Left wingers have a habit of mistaking capitalism for something else, and ascribing all the sins of humanity to what is an extremely recent and limited phenomenon.
Throughout most of human history, societies were not primarily organized around the principles of capitalism, which include a market economy based on the exchange of goods and services for profit, private ownership of the means of production, and the pursuit of individual wealth and accumulation. Instead, many societies were organized around different economic systems, such as command economy, feudalism, communitarianism, tribal communism, or some hybrid of several economic systems.
Capitalism as a dominant economic system only began to emerge in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries, and it was not until the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries that it became the dominant economic system in the Western world.
Most societies historically were centered around different forms of strong central state control. The creation of a strong central state is often associated with the development of agriculture, as agriculture requires a complex system of organization and regulation to support large-scale food production. A strong central state is able to provide the infrastructure and resources needed to support agriculture, such as irrigation systems, transportation networks, and markets.
Agriculture is typically more productive than hunting and gathering, and it allows societies to support larger populations and create a more stable and reliable food supply. As a result, agriculture often crowds out hunting and gathering as the dominant mode of food production, as it allows societies to support larger populations and to produce a more diverse range of foods.
However, the adoption of agriculture also has a number of consequences for societies, including changes in social and economic organization, the development of social hierarchies, and the loss of traditional ways of life. In many cases, the adoption of agriculture has led to the displacement of hunter-gatherer societies, as they are unable to compete with the productivity of agriculture and are often forced to adapt to new ways of life.
Overall, the creation of a strong central state is often associated with the development of agriculture, as it provides the resources and infrastructure needed to support large-scale food production. However, the adoption of agriculture also has significant social and economic consequences, and it can lead to the displacement of hunter-gatherer societies.
There are a number of examples of economies that are explicitly non-capitalist where environmental and human rights abuses took place.
The forests England were heavily exploited during the medieval period, as the demand for wood and other forest products increased with the growing population and the development of the economy. This led to widespread deforestation, as large areas of forest were cleared to meet the demand for timber, fuel, and other products. The deforestation of England had significant environmental consequences, including soil erosion, loss of habitat, and the decline of many species.
Easter Island in South Asia was an island where the people were apparently wiped out as the people focused all their resources on building giant stone heads. The economy of Easter Island was based on a system of subsistence agriculture and fishing, and the island's resources were collectively owned and managed by the community as a whole. The Rapa Nui people did not engage in trade or commerce with other societies, and there was no system of money or currency on the island.
The Mayan civilization was formed from people who diverged from eurasian civilizations 20,000 years ago and despite that had its own set of environmental and human rights issues. Some of the environmental problems faced by the Maya civilization included deforestation, soil erosion, and water pollution, which were the result of the civilization's reliance on agriculture and urban development.
The Maya civilization also had a hierarchical social structure, and it is believed that there were significant inequalities in terms of wealth, power, and access to resources. The ruling class of the Maya civilization, which included the nobles, priests, and rulers, enjoyed a higher standard of living than the common people, who were often subject to harsh working conditions and had few rights or protections.
Now all that being said, I don't mean to insinuate that capitalism is an economic system without sin either. England under industrialist capitalism also suffered deforestation and the london fog was a result of mass air pollution from burning coal, and the industrial revolution may have led to massive increases in quality of living, but it also led to massive wealth inequality and injustice. Today, we live with many legacies of pure greed, including the bulk of the United States being a fundamentally different ecosystem then it would have been prior to colonization, and I would argue the United States is one of the most capitalist civilizations in history so it can't be discounted. Clearly there's a lot of issues with wealth inequality there too, and it's indisputable that compared to the post baby boomer economic boom the average worker and the average CEO have much different lives comparatively speaking. That said, I don't need to prove capitalism is a system without faults to prove that it is not the root cause of all problems in the world.
The pursuit of money and the pursuit of political power are two different goals that have driven human behavior throughout history. Both the pursuit of money and the pursuit of political power can be motivated by a desire for advantage and a desire to gain power and control over others. No matter what economic system people live under, individuals will always crave advantage compared to others and will use the systems available to them to achieve that end.
In capitalist societies, the pursuit of money is often seen as a primary goal, and people may use their wealth and resources to gain influence and power. In non-capitalist societies, the pursuit of political power may be more important, and people may use their connections and influence to gain control over resources and decision-making.
Ultimately, the pursuit of money and the pursuit of political power are both driven by a desire for advantage and a desire to gain power and control over others. While the specific systems that people use to achieve these goals may vary, the underlying motivations are often the same.
wigglehard@wolfballs.com 1 year ago
Great writing #1 im only here to critique and such
“Left wingers have a habit of mistaking capitalism for something else, and ascribing all the sins of humanity to what is an extremely recent and limited phenomenon.”
*The main enemy of the spread of marxism aka leftism is capitalism. In a truly marxist society wealth is equally distributed amongst the laborers that have seized the means of production thus eliminating the CEO’s or industrialist leaders in control. In theory it sounds fair, in practice it stifling to innovation as new ideas (inventions, processes ect.) are often not sought after as no reward as far as financial gain will be given to the individual that is innovative as wealth is equally distributed. Also the other major flaw of marxism, corruption. As with stallinism or lennonism, power is usually seated to a despot leading the marxist revolution with in the country. When supreme power is given to a few, the many suffer (usually the result).
“Capitalism as a dominant economic system only began to emerge in Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries, and it was not until the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries that it became the dominant economic system in the Western world.”
*I agree and disagree, capitalism was available to those who somehow broke out of the lower classes of society. For those stuck in the lower classes, you were nothing and your existence was merely as serf to thy lord of the land. You toiled in crops own by nobility or wealthy merchants. However if by some way or mean you broke out, the opportunity of capitalism awaited you. The establishment of the American colonial society was a major breakthrough in humanity as people had fresh lands not own by a European monarch to plot their own futures; Just so long as you could deal with the natives.
“The forests England were heavily exploited during the medieval period, as the demand for wood and other forest products increased with the growing population and the development of the economy.”
*It was basically post renaissance, colonial era, and the wood was used yes development of economy but a large part was the English navy both military and commercial
*paragraphs 4-7 although well written i felt conveyed many of same points and could’ve been condensed, overall good assessment. I would add that many states (countries, empires ect.) controlled food production because it gave them power. Also since the land was owned by nobile birth right or by the purchase of land by wealthy merchants the serfs would pay their taxes in crops.
“The Mayan civilization was formed from people who diverged from eurasian civilizations 20,000 years ago and despite that had its own set of environmental and human rights issues. Some of the environmental problems faced by the Maya civilization included deforestation, soil erosion, and water pollution, which were the result of the civilization’s reliance on agriculture and urban development.
The Maya civilization also had a hierarchical social structure, and it is believed that there were significant inequalities in terms of wealth, power, and access to resources. The ruling class of the Maya civilization, which included the nobles, priests, and rulers, enjoyed a higher standard of living than the common people, who were often subject to harsh working conditions and had few rights or protections.”
*The myth that natives of the Americas were peaceful hunter gatherers simply isn’t true. They often fought over trivial matters and land rights. The aztecs and Mayans both did human sacrifice. Also they were a backwards stone age people easily defeated in both battle and by disease brought by Europeans in the post renaissance, colonial era. Also it is to be noted that that vikings did reach America long before Columbus and akso evidence of African and Asian contact before Columbus is out there.”
The rest i have no criticism (except little parts here and there and also i would say that the main problem with American capitalism is our tax code. The income tax never should’ve been a thing. There’s so much i could dive into but I’ll leave it at that.