Capitalism
Not the same thing as Cronyism!
I’m not an economist, so maybe I have no idea what I’m talking about, but I’m going to share some thoughts, anyway, as disjointed as they may be. I may even add more to this later.
I passed on my “business” card to my local smokeshop clerk yesterday. He said they weren’t taking credit/debit card purchases anymore due to the rising fees, and said something derogatory about capitalism. So, I thought that was a good cue to pass on some info. I said he’d find stuff on anarchy, consciousness and occultism, and he said, “all the stuff I’m into.” Okay, cool. Well, when someone condemns capitalism and says they’re into “anarchy” I can only assume they’re the “radical leftist” variety who doesn’t really understand what they’re condemning. Or they do, but have so much brainwashing that any moral principles have been clouded or wiped clean. You can’t be anti-capitalism without being pro-theft.
I do think we need to abandon a monetary system entirely at some point, but until then, capitalism – as in free-market trade, not cronyism – is the most logical value system. Real capitalism is about rightful ownership. If you rightfully acquired something (without theft or violence), and you’re in exclusive control of it and responsible for it, it’s your property. No one else has a rightful claim upon it. If I create something – a tool, a home, an artwork, a meal, etc – I am the only one entitled to it and the only one responsible for its usage. I’m also the only one who gets to decide if anyone else can have it. That’s not being selfish or greedy, that’s the nature of ownership. If someone wants what I have, I might trade it for what I feel it’s worth. If I start baking bread and people want some, I don’t owe them my bread just because they’re hungry. Their hunger doesn’t entitle them to anything. They can either start baking their own bread or offering me something in return. I would be happy to teach them how to bake, as well. There’s nothing unfair about that system. It’s all about personal responsibility. Conversely, Cronyism is purely about greed. Greed isn’t saying, “this is mine,” it’s saying, “I want more even if I have to take it by force, coercion or deception,” and no one should condone that.
True Capitalism is about intrinsic value, and is based on the understanding of what you rightfully own or do not own. If we say “I don’t believe in property,” that belief will extend past physical things, and we’ll allow others to take anything they want from us or do anything they want to us. And then we’ll start to believe we can do the same to others. Not understanding rightful property is the catalyst for greed and theft, not Capitalism.
Your mind is your property.
Your body is your property.
Your well-being is your property.
Your rights and freedom are your property.
Without understanding this you cannot truly understand morality, either, because morality is about our behavior towards each other. Someone who doesn’t believe in property will not recognize the self-ownership of another (much less their own) and believe they have a “right” to steal from them or harm them in the name of some “greater good.” Theft doesn’t lead to anything good, and all wrong-doing is a form of theft.
Here’s another point regarding Rights taken from my website:
“While every single human being has the right to food, shelter, and everything else that comes with freedom, that doesn’t mean you are entitled to those things by others. Other people are not obligated to provide you with basic necessities. It means you have the right to acquire those things without restraint, restriction, or duress. The only thing other people are obligated to do is to not infringe upon those Rights. No one owes you anything. Freedom is about personal responsibility. When you believe that other people must provide you with what you need, you are basically saying ‘other people are my slaves,’ and that’s immoral. You are entitled only to what YOU create.”
– Rights & Sovereignty, achievingsovereignty.com
So… I wonder what the smokeshop guy will think about that.
True Anarchy isn’t Marxism or Communism which is what movements like ANTIFA are based in. Anarchy is sovereignty and freedom from any state regardless of size. Anarchy is the Non-Aggression Principle and Self-Defense Principle in action. Anarchy is understanding Property and Morality.
Perhaps one day we can do away with fiat currency and create abundance where we have what we need without worry, but there will always be someone who wants something they don’t have. That’s where free-market capitalism comes in. You can either learn a skill and make something yourself, or you can trade for it. If the seller wants more than you can offer, that means they probably value the item greatly and don’t want to part with it. Of course, they could still be asking for absurd prices, but it wouldn’t make sense to do that in an abundant anarchist society. Greed is a function of scarcity, and scarcity is an illusion to create dependency and maintain control. Still, if someone insists on a high price, it’s their right to do so. All you can do is find other options if you’re unwilling to pay it. You don’t resort to thievery.
In a truly free society there will always be options. In a statist society, not so much. Cronyism gets in the way of fair and voluntary arrangements and makes capitalism look scummy. And thus, we have so many people today who equate the two. That misconception is then amplified by moral relativism and lack of principles. This whole system is designed to cultivate notions of entitlement and victimhood, and to get us to condemn natural systems. It’s designed to keep us in perpetual scarcity and dependence. Cronyism is the spade that steals the fruits of our labor (and the soil along with it). Capitalism is the seed-planter and the groomer. It keeps the soil rich and the fruits abundant. It keeps the gardener creative and free.
Before I end this, here’s some wisdom from Ayn Rand:
“Capitalism is a social system based on the recognition of individual rights, including property rights, in which all property is privately owned.
The recognition of individual rights entails the banishment of physical force from human relationships... In a capitalist society, no man or group may initiate the use of physical force against others.”
“In a capitalist society, all human relationships are voluntary. Men are free to cooperate or not, to deal with one another or not, as their own individual judgments, convictions, and interests dictate. They can deal with one another only in terms of and by means of reason, i.e., by means of discussion, persuasion, and contractual agreement, by voluntary choice to mutual benefit. The right to agree with others is not a problem in any society; it is the right to disagree that is crucial. It is the institution of private property that protects and implements the right to disagree—and thus keeps the road open to man's most valuable attribute (valuable personally, socially, and objectively): the creative mind.”
“Capitalism demands the best of every man—his rationality—and rewards him accordingly. It leaves every man free to choose the work he likes, to specialize in it, to trade his product for the products of others, and to go as far on the road of achievement as his ability and ambition will carry him. His success depends on the objective value of his work and on the rationality of those who recognize that value. When men are free to trade, with reason and reality as their only arbiter, when no man may use physical force to extort the consent of another, it is the best product and the best judgment that win in every field of human endeavor, and raise the standard of living—and of thought—ever higher for all those who take part in mankind’s productive activity.”
– Ayn Rand
Again, I do believe we should move away from a monetary system altogether, but it has to happen organically. We all have to be on the same level of consciousness. You can’t force it. Money doesn’t make the world go round, though – people do. Money doesn’t have intrinsic value, it has imagined value that we’ve collectively agreed upon. You can’t eat paper or precious metals for any nutrition. You can’t clothe yourself with it, use it to defend yourself, or shelter yourself from bad weather. The things that do serve those purposes are what have intrinsic value, and with a control system out of the way we will have those resources in abundance.
We have all that we need to thrive, we just need to abandon the systems of control that hold us back from that level of progress and evolution. Until then, we must work with what we have and do it with conscience, consciousness and care, and with an understanding of property, rights, and right livelihood. That’s the greater good.