CAPITALISM MAKES US BETTER OFF
Capitalism has continually generated more jobs. When America began, 90% of workers worked on farms. Now fewer than 2% do. And there are millions more of us. Still, I’m told that even if capitalism brings us cheaper or better products, it just isn’t “good for us.” That’s Myth No. 6. Because of capitalists like them, Mitchell points out, “We went from agricultural poverty to a country characterized by middle- class prosperity.” Of course, capitalism can breed nasty materialism. Fox News’ Tucker Carlson sneers, “Does anybody believe cheaper iPhones or more Amazon deliveries of plastic garbage from China will make us happy?” Mitchell responds, “We’re not buying iPhones and plastic garbage unless we think it’s better for us than the dollars that we have!” That’s a very important point. No capitalist gets our money unless we voluntarily choose to exchange it for whatever he’s selling. As Mitchell puts it, “Capitalism is the only system that gives people the liberty to make their own choices.” Myth No. 7: Capitalism’s pursuit of profit drives businesses to create robots that will eventually take away most everyone’s job. It could happen. Artificial intelligence is powerful. Maybe this time is different.
But again and again, experts predicted that employment was about to decline – and again and again, they’ve been wrong. Some people do lose jobs. Capitalism promotes creative destruction. It’s terrible for the fired employee. But it’s good for most everyone else. It’s what allows for innovation. Mitchell points out, “The computer destroyed the typewriter builder’s job, electricity took candlemakers’ jobs,” but those jobs were soon replaced with better ones. Capitalism has continually generated more jobs. When America began, 90% of workers worked on farms. Now fewer than 2% do. And there are millions more of us. “As long as our economy has the dynamism that free markets allow,” says Mitchell, “we’re going to see more job creation and higher income levels. That’s what makes the children and grandchildren of typewriter makers so much better off. No other system anywhere in the world has ever come close to capitalism’s ability to generate mass prosperity.” John Stossel is author of Give Me a Break: How I Exposed Hucksters, Cheats, and Scam Artists and Became the Scourge of the Liberal Media . © Creators.
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July 2021
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