January 28, 2005

Capitalism in America

A Youth's Perspective

By FRANCISCO UNGER

   Global Resistance Network  

The arguments concerning governmental and economic structure tend to run deep, for these two issues speak volumes of human nature and ideals. Capitalists are drawn to capitalism because of what they perceive to be its benefits; proponents of capitalism base it on a belief of private ownership, proper incentive, and meritocracy.

However, capitalists are often misguided in their support of the system that they feel so naturally drawn to. As much as capitalists will deny, capitalism as a system has failed miserably: rather than the world of opportunity and ascension that its concept seemed to promise, capitalism has instead formed a massive rift of social inequality, in which the poor majority find themselves constantly at the mercy of the selfish elite.

In order to fully understand the effects of capitalism, one must examine closely its many failures.

In America, capitalism’s hallmark of private ownership has fostered the birth of a miniscule ruling class elite who preside over the poorer majority. Over time, this class has gradually extended its wings so that its jurisdiction now includes the corporate industry, the press, and all branches of government.

With this mass of power in its grasp, the ruling class has twisted the objectives of the nation’s economy and government to reflect those of its own self-interest.

It is in the world regulated by these elite that we have witnessed remarkable cuts in the funding of education, healthcare, and other domestic needs while the military budget continues to rocket towards epic proportions. In contrast to the $536 billion of our federal budget that will be spent on the current military (not including $50 billion spent towards the Iraq and Afghan Wars and the $349 billion spent on Past Military such as veterans’ benefits), only $633 billion will be invested in the entire collection of human resources: this includes education, health and human services, food and nutrition programs, the labor department, social security, and so on.[i]

One wonders how a civilization can place the value of its army ahead of the well being of its own people. Yet, in the present system of capitalism, thus is the paradox that we are faced with.

Indeed, it does not take a pessimist to recognize the tragedy of the current social structure. While we like to think of our nation as one of great wealth, the 2002 Census Bureau reported that nearly 35 million citizens live below the poverty line.[ii] This number accounts for twelve percent of the population, or approximately one out of every eight.

How is it that in a nation of billionaires and booming markets, there are those who struggle to maintain the necessities of life, tight roping the limits of survival? Why has one out of eight been left behind, excluded from living the American Dream?

These questions stem from the fundamental organization of the capitalist economy: an organization that has the rich rake in the profits of the poorer workforce assigned under them. Just as landowners in primitive societies historically lived off the exploited labor of peasants, the heads and CEO’s of our corporate industry make their livings off the exploitation of factory workers, who slave away for sixty hours a week only to find that their meager incomes can barely make ends meet.

There is very little room for ascension in this system, as the poor are delegated dead end jobs that consume all they have to give, yet lead them nowhere. In this respect, the capitalist economy has failed in its promises of meritocracy: it is the lower classes who are the most productive workers, yet, they as well are the most neglected.

One of the great failures in America has been the public educational system, which has failed to provide a decent education for the masses due to a lack of funding, capable teachers, and so on. Without a sufficient education, the poor have been denied capitalism’s promises of opportunity: from the outset, their options in life are limited and of little hope.

Their educations provide no path that will lead them out of the dumps and they are branded to a life that promises little forward progress, while there is only a tattered safety net if they slip backwards. It is for these reasons that, in America, the poor find themselves mired in poverty throughout their lives. As public education continues to stagnate, the rich are sent to private institutions that ensure their future success. In this system, it is not one’s work ethic or drive that determines his future, but the environment that he is born into.

As far as education, the future seems bleak; as long as the rich control Washington, the massive reform so desperately needed will never materialize, as it is the rich who benefit from the current system and feel no inclination to act upon it. Capitalism in America has created a level of great inequality in education, keeping the poor at bay while the rich excel.

Given the neglect and indifference that the ruling class has consistently shown towards the masses, one wonders how they manage to maintain such complete power. How can they draw voters who are the very victims of the party that they elect? Among other factors, such as elections fought on hazy ideals rather than concrete policies, and an appalling voter turnout, the answer is that the ruling class is in almost complete control of the press (it is this press that has perpetuated the myth of liberal media, a myth eagerly gobbled up by conservative America).

Because of the power provided to the elite under capitalism, they have controlled the output of media in this country: it is they who decide what the people will see, and more importantly, what the people will not. It is only in this situation that a government, as the one now in power, can consistently produce unfounded and immoral actions, while encountering very little controversy.

Because the ruling class has infiltrated both the government and the press, these two sides now work in tandem. The press is now present not to educate the masses, but to hammer them with popular belief; creating a population with a viciously uniform outlook and a very weak ability to discern. How can a people be expected to make the proper decision when they are given only the knowledge that the ruling class wishes them to have? Thus, in this respect as well, the masses have little chance of social improvement, as they blindly vote against their own interests, sentencing themselves to several more years of failure and dependence.

The implementation of capitalism in America has failed miserably. Built on foundations of false ideals, capitalism has given birth to a fortunate few at the expense of the rest. It has stricken the poor of all opportunity, providing only jobs that will gradually further the objectives of the ruling class elite. The ruling class, lacking of any altruistic feelings, have continually exploited the poor, depriving them of sufficient social necessities such as education, healthcare, and a truly objective press. The true root of these issues-- the system itself--has been concealed from the masses. Instead, we are bred to believe that the problems of the poor lie in the poor themselves.

Yet, upon examination of the system, it is clear that the poor face such infinitesimal odds, that to place the blame on their very shoulders would be foolish. Only when our society comes to grips with the flaws of our capitalism, and is willing to leave it open to revision, will we reach a world of greater equality and justice.