History has proven beyond doubt that capitalism works and no other system of economic organization can better create wealth, promote stability, and improve lives. But like any complex system of human organization, capitalism has inherent flaws. The robber baron era of unbridled excess led to monopolies, which crushed any competition and undermined free market forces. John D. Rockefeller’s fortune came from a monopoly that forced virtually all grocery/hardware stores that sold kerosene or lubricants to stock only Standard Oil products. Unfettered free market capitalism led to the Great Depression, the savings and loan crisis, and the recent failure of the banking and housing industries.
We have developed an American myth about the magical efficiency of market forces and capitalism. We have developed a growing disdain for government regulations as obstacles to progress. Neither is entirely true or false. Capitalism is not wholly good and government regulations are not entirely bad. Both the private sector and government are essential, and both are flawed. Our future lies in our ability to balance one against the other, extracting the best from both and minimizing the worst from each. This is where the current Republican Party has utterly failed. They have lost all sense of balance, relying solely on a mythical private sector that can do no wrong.
Ken Simpson
Vancouver
