Quotes of the Day and 2 Thoughts on Capitalism and Wealth Creation

Here is an interesting video and a short but very readable analysis, both by university instructors.  Two quotations from them:

From the video: "Exploitation is not exclusively capitalist, but wealth creation is."

From the article: "The intellectual critics of capitalism believe they know what is good for us, but millions of people interacting in the marketplace keep rebuffing them. This, ultimately, is why they believe capitalism is “bad for the soul”: it fulfils human needs without first seeking their moral approval."

I love this bit too -- A LOT:

When I was a university teacher, I frequently encountered students who argued just as Clive does. We are too materialistic, they told me; we don’t need all these possessions; we should stop the capitalist machine and devote our energies to better and higher pursuits. But whenever I asked them at what point in history they thought the machine should have been turned off, they would invariably reply: “now!” These students wanted everything that industrial capitalism had delivered to their generation up to that point—the comfortable housing, the audio systems, the cheap flights to foreign countries, the medical advances, and the increased education and leisure time—but they thought future generations should go without the additional benefits that would be generated in the years of capitalism to come. I used to wonder what they would think if their parents and grandparents had reasoned along similar lines, and switched off economic growth 20, or 50, or 100 years ago.

Heh!