Public Money, Public Destruction

What most of these poor, dumb bastards who criticize capitalism fail to realize is that much of what constitutes American capitalism today is a modern variation of the mercantilism that existed then. In fact, it's actually worse because the 'mixed' economy many put so much faith in is really a cover for the possibility, or eventuality, of total government control. It's not really the control factor they object to, just who enjoys the favors and power of market control. If the anti-capitalists could have the control, they would not criticize restricted markets, regulated prices, and government control of property use.

For all the improperly-taught yoots, still-ignorant adults raising them, or emotionally-driven, intellectually vacuous, potentially dangerous, poor dumb bastards reading this, the mixed economy is the mistaken belief that the elements of a command structure, like government, can be successfully combined with elements of a market structure, like capitalism, to correct the 'failures' believed to be inherent in a capitalist system. The command elements supposedly complement the capitalism and make it better, more equitable, and more stable.

The mixed economy is a fallacy because the level of regulation governing economic activity at even the smallest level renders ownership and control of property and the factors of production, in the purest sense of these terms, obsolete. Government has effectively 'crowded-out,' to coin an economic term, freedom of ownership and use of property.

In order to exercise true ownership of property, a person has to have the ability to use it in ways that some people, including government, may not approve. And please, spare me the retort that, in the absence of government regulations, people would use property for illegal and destructive means. A community of rational-minded people can devise rules for property use that are enforceable, without having to resort to the massively-intrusive government characteristic of our economy.

The rules (regulations) that government imposes on economic activity have nothing to do with efficiency or guarding against supposed failures inherent in the capitalist system. They are forced on all for the benefit of the few. Rules are specifically crafted to close markets from competition; to seize control of land and resources while preserving the cost of upkeep for the 'owner'; to manipulate prices favorable to some, but unfavorable to others; and to force property owners to submit to the demands of mob rule (elections). Under these conditions, ownership of anything is contingent on what the state permits, always subject to the fickleness of the idiots who elect crooks to pass more laws that further restrict and regulate property ownership and use.

Here in Arizona , there are two proposals that would ban smoking in public places across the entire state. Of course, in the egalitarian sense, that permeates modern identification of property; 'public' places includes privately owned restaurants, offices, and bars. One proposal would require hotels to make half their rooms non-smoking. How many Arizonans know, or care, that they would effectively be voting to seize private property in the name of the state? In all likelihood, one of those proposals will pass.

In the end, this will be just another thoughtless theft of property in the name of the state on the road to the complete socialist utopia, free of the evils of capitalism. Make sure you thank all those drooling, reactionary, sometimes destructive, dumb bastard anti-capitalists for preventing us from fully enjoying the benefits of capitalism.