Capitalism is the name people give to the way the modern economy is arranged. Now that Communism has been discredited as an economic system, there seems to be no real alternative. But the word is misleading.
A capitalist analysis of any economic issue starts with capital, both physical capital – factories and land – and financial – shares and bonds. It is associated with free and competitive markets for goods and labour. And capitalism has come to designate a system where private property is the norm, with any exception needing some sort of justification. Capitalist analysis usually treats governments and unions as economic interlopers, and ignores the broader society.
That perspective is too narrow. Capital and markets are only two parts of the complex modern economic system. People don’t only matter because they bring their labour to the owners of capital – as in the original, 19th century definition of capitalism. And governments over the years have become regulators and keepers of the monetary order. Moreover, the economy is so closely integrated with modern society that no clear border separates the two. Social forces – such as the thirst for technological innovation, the work ethic and other moral values – play a fundamental part and influence the workings of the purely “capitalist” system.
A limited analysis often leads to unnecessarily grim prognoses. Think back to the 1960s, when environmental pollution was first identified as a serious problem. Many observers, enthusiastic capitalists among them, thought that the capitalist system couldn’t deal simultaneously with environmental goals and the search for profits. Economic disruptions were predicted. But changes in the law, technology, corporate priorities and cultural values combined to bring about a remarkable success in reducing noxious emissions, without noticeable harm to prosperity or profits. The system found a way to price externalities without endangering itself.
Half a century later, people, including enthusiastic capitalists, are again wondering whether the system can survive. Now they cite the long financial crisis, or issues such as the exorbitant privileges of the very rich. They are not wrong to be concerned. If the economy were simply or primarily capitalist, either of these problems could well be lethal. After all, neither factory nor financial capital can be expected to allocate income and wealth justly. And the financial system could be too wounded to heal itself.
