-Caveat Lector-
----- Original Message -----
From: M.A. Johnson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Ric Carter wrote:
> Meanwhile, all the previous writers in this thread seem to
> assume Capitalism is about fee-for-service, then argue whether
> a State has a role in resolving disputes between contractor
> and contractee.
>
> MJ:
> Non sequitur, strawman ... proving this person cannot reason
> logically.
Ad hominems are off-limits here - criticise the writing, not the writer.
Failure to follow this rule of civility results in the degeneration of
debate into "you're a lousy (*&)(YUHJ*..." characterizations. If you
wish to proceed thusly, please do so on Usenet, not CTRL.
And you seem able to divine my motivations, that I wasn't even aware of.
I had no intention of constructing a "straw man" - as I wrote, previous
writers on this thread were NOT dealing with Capitalism as a process of
accumulating capital; rather, they wrote of fee/service disputes. If you
have evidence to the contrary, please present same and refresh my memory.
> Ric Carter wrote:
> T'ain't so. Capitalism is about acquiring and manipulating
> CAPITAL, about owning and controlling the means of production
> of material goods. Capitalism is thus about POWER. In
> any non-trivial society, many conflicting interests will
> contend for power, resources, influence; a representative
> gov't serves as the lubrication between those interest, a
> way for the social "machinery" to run without seizing-up
> and melting-down. How well any specific gov't institutions
> serves that purpose, is debatable.
>
> Capitalism is the social system based upon private ownership of
> the means of production which entails a completely uncontrolled
> and unregulated economy where all property is privately owned.
What is the basis for this statement? If the US founders accepted
this view ["completely uncontrolled and unregulated economy"], why
did they empower Congress to regulate commerce? Can you name any
viable society that hasn't regulated commerce? Doesn't unregulated
commerce lead to monopoly/cartel and/or drug-lord-style competition?
[I use 'commerce' as a shorthand term for any commercial activity.]
> But the separation of the state and the economy is not a primary,
> it is only an aspect of the premise that capitalism is based
> upon: individual rights. Capitalism is the only politico-economic
> system based on the doctrine of individual rights. This means
> that capitalism recognizes that each and every person is the
> owner of his own life, and has the right to live his life in
> any manner he chooses as long as he does not violate the rights
> of others.
> As demonstrated in the previous example no government intervention
> is required; but more specifically, once the government steps in,
> capitalism ceases.
Does the concept of the primacy of "individual rights" preclude any
individuals from joining in free association, incorporating as groups
to engage in commercial, charitable, governmental or other activities?
Do corporations [public or private] have more, equal or less rights
than individuals? In a representative democracy, who is the protector
of individual and corporate rights? Shall a society form and empower
a gov't to represent the varied interests of members of that society,
to mediate between conflicting interests, to adjudge and protect the
rights of those members? Isn't this what the US Constitution is about?
IMHO proclaiming that individuals have absolute rights over groups is
as bogus and dangerous as proclaiming that groups have absolute rights
over individuals. A viable, vibrant society requires mechanisms for
balancing the interests/rights/responsibilities of all its members,
individuals and groups alike. The mechanisms: gov't & law. Yup, this
equates to POWER. Strip our representative gov't of power, and where
will it flow? Into which nonrepresentative institutions would you
invest power? Do private, commercial, corporate boards of directors
consider your interests when making their plans? Should they?
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