Capitalism Rules Everything Around Me

Why capitalism isn’t the root of all evil, but maybe greed is

If you've been on TikTok or around Gen-Z lately, you might have heard that capitalism is the cause of everything wrong in the world. It's why you can't get a date. It's why you can't make meaningful friendships. And, of course, it's why you can't afford nice things.

I don't want to downplay these societal ailes. I understand that many people are dissatisfied with their place in society and the economy. And rising inequality in our economy is indeed a serious problem. But saying capitalism is the reason is a frustratingly lazy assessment that disempowers us from making meaningful changes.

Blaming capitalism doesn't solve any problems

My car recently broke down on the side of the road, which was a frustrating experience, given that it's my family's only vehicle. If the mechanic working on my car told me that the root cause was capitalism, I would be concerned. I would doubt that the mechanic had the know-how to get my car running again.

It's probably true that, in some sense, capitalism is the reason why my car broke down. Perhaps the profit motive caused Chrysler to install a cheap, failure-prone computer to cut costs. But still, starting a communist revolution wouldn't fix my problem. 

The people who blame capitalism aren't even specific about what feature of capitalism is the problem. Maybe if I owned a Korean-made car instead of an American-made car, I wouldn't have had any issues. Perhaps Korean-style capitalism is better at regulating and supporting the auto industry in a way that results in more reliable car production. 

Next time, I will probably buy a foreign car, given my unsatisfactory experience with my Chrysler. But that's a decision for another day, and I really just wanted my Chrysler fixed ASAP. Luckily, my mechanic did have the ability to service my car, and he was willing to exchange that service for monetary compensation. Thank you, capitalism!

Blame market failures, not capitalism

Another thing that annoys me about the "blame capitalism" meme is that the people repeating the phrase seem entirely uninterested in learning about economics. Economists have been labeled complicit in the capitalist system and can't be trusted. However economists are the first people to point out the failures of a free market society. They even have a name for it: market failure.

Market failures are situations where the free market fails to allocate resources efficiently or equitably, harming society or the economy. The unaffordability of childcare is a market failure. The high cost of healthcare is a market failure. The pollution from oil and gas companies is a market failure. To solve these market failures, we must first identify them and then set policy to address each specific failure. It takes much more work and research than saying, "Blame capitalism."

Money is the root of all evil, not capitalism

And the final reason I hate the phrase "blame capitalism" is that it's unoriginal. It's just a new way to say that "money is the root of all evil." And that idea has been around a lot longer than capitalism. It comes from the New Testament: "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." People will love money under socialism, communism, mercantilism, feudalism, and capitalism. Greed is not bound by our economic system.

I know money is the root of all evil
Do funny things to some people 
Give me a nickel, brother can you spare a dime
Money can drive some people out of their minds." 
- O'Jays.

We could all benefit from being less materialistic. And I will admit that American-style capitalism often unfairly rewards greed. But that's why I study economics— to understand the specific aspects of our capitalistic economy that should be regulated and improved.