Economics

Explore human nature and civilization and cultivate multiple-streams of income. Find a niche for yourself in our one, universal commonwealth. Join a team of entrepreneurs and play. Have fun, improving yourself and making the world a better place. Practice making good deals, for yourself and everyone else.

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system characterized by private ownership of the means of production and the unfettered operation of free markets to allocate resources, produce goods and services and determine prices. It is one of the most influential and widespread economic systems in the world, shaping societies, governments and cultures.

At its core, capitalism is a social and economic development system in which individuals, families and businesses own property and control production. Decisions about investment, production and distribution are driven by market dynamics such as supply, demand and competition, rather than centralized planning.

Individuals, families and businesses own assets, including land, labor and capital, rather than the state or community. Economic activities are driven by the pursuit of profit. Profits incentivize innovation, efficiency and risk-taking. Markets determine prices and allocate resources through voluntary exchange. While profit is definitely not the only motive for truly free enterprise, businesses do need to be profitable to be sustainable.

Firms compete for customers, which encourages innovation and efficiency while regulating prices and quality. Governments play a minimal role, primarily focusing on enforcing contracts, protecting property rights, ensuring market stability and supplying a safe, clean, decent and fair ecosystem in which we can all live and work in harmony with each other. The balance between freedom, equality and justice for all is delicate and needs to be nurtured, protected and well governed.

Production and prices are determined by the interplay of supply and demand. This mechanism allocates resources efficiently in response to consumer preferences. Individuals and businesses act in their own self-interest, leading to innovation, productivity and economic growth. Voluntary trade between individuals and organizations allows for the transfer of goods, services and capital. Decision-making is decentralized, with individuals and businesses making choices based on their knowledge and preferences.

Laissez-Faire capitalism involves minimal government involvement. Markets operate freely with limited regulation. Welfare capitalism combines market principles with social welfare policies to address inequality and provide public services. In state capitalism, the government owns or controls key industries while allowing market competition in other sectors. In corporate capitalism, large corporations dominate the economy, influencing markets and government policies.

Advantages of capitalism include competition driving businesses to produce goods and services efficiently, reducing waste and lowering costs. The profit motive is an incentive to invest in research and development, fostering innovation and advancements. Markets offer a wide variety of goods and services, allowing consumers to choose based on preferences and affordability.

Capitalism promotes investment and entrepreneurship, leading to wealth creation and higher standards of living. Economic power is distributed among individuals and businesses, reducing the risk of centralized control and inefficiency.

Criticisms of capitalism include wealth and income disparities, leading to social and economic divisions. Unregulated markets can result in issues like monopolies, environmental degradation and inadequate public goods. Businesses may prioritize short-term profits over long-term sustainability or social responsibility.

Critics argue that capitalism can exploit workers and resources, prioritizing profits over ethical considerations. Capitalist economies are prone to cycles of boom and bust, leading to periods of economic instability.

While capitalism emphasizes limited government intervention, the state often plays a role in preventing monopolies, protecting consumers and addressing market failures. The state often provides essential services like infrastructure, education and healthcare that markets may not supply very well. The state uses taxation and social programs to address inequality and support disadvantaged populations. It implements policies to manage inflation, unemployment and economic growth.

Capitalism in Practice

Unleashing the creative freedom of people has been the most productive social and economic development ecosystem in human history. Individual initiative and free enterprise are honorable motives. Productivity causes prosperity.

Capitalism operates differently across nations, shaped by cultural, historical and political factors. In the United States, a capitalist system emphasizing free markets, individualism and entrepreneurship. Sweden combines market capitalism with a robust welfare state, exemplifying welfare capitalism. China practices state capitalism, where the government controls key industries while encouraging private enterprise in others.

Socialism emphasizes collective ownership of resources and centralized planning to achieve equality. In contrast to capitalism, socialism often prioritizes social welfare over individual profit. National socialism is big private corporations controlled by the state.

Communism claims to advocate for a classless society with communal ownership of all property. In practice, it is always ruled by an authoritarian ruling class, the communist party. And it is usually a social and economical catastrophe, everywhere it has been tried. Unlike capitalism, communism eliminates private property and free markets entirely. Most capitalists want to get rid of any ruling class. Communists want to be the ruling class. That rule of man suppresses the rule of natural law created by the one true God, because they don’t want God competing with them for power and control. It’s insane. Thinking you are more or less important than anyone else, other than the manifestation of God, is a character defect that causes all crime, war and poverty.

A mixed economy combines elements of capitalism and socialism, with both private enterprise and government involvement. Just like our bodies can start out as one cell and then diverge into a great variety of cells, our economy can include a well regulated free market of private property, with free and open source education, healthcare and technology where it is appropriate, and government enforcement of the rule of law and social welfare programs to produce a safe, clean and decent economy and culture.

Capitalism faces several challenges in the 21st century. Balancing profit motives with the need to address social justice, environmental degradation and resource depletion. Managing the impact of automation and artificial intelligence on jobs and income distribution. Addressing inequalities and ethical concerns in global supply chains and markets. Implementing policies to reduce disparities without stifling innovation and growth.

Capitalism is a dynamic and adaptable economic system that has driven significant economic growth, innovation and societal advancement. In fact, it has completely transformed life on earth during the last few centuries. While it offers numerous benefits, including efficiency, choice and opportunity, it also has inherent challenges, such as inequality and market instability.

The success of capitalism often depends on balancing its principles with regulatory frameworks that address its shortcomings, ensuring that its benefits are shared broadly and sustainably in a rapidly evolving global landscape. Democracy and capitalism both depend on religion. Neither democracy nor capitalism are moral systems. They depend on the people practicing them to be moral people. Otherwise, democracy becomes mob rules and capitalism becomes materialistic hedonism run amok.

Advanced Technology

We’re building hundreds of safe, clean and decent cities. Family friendly neighborhoods, interconnected with fast and slow trains, artificially intelligent automobiles and jet planes. Many of us live and work in skyscrapers, with computers and the Internet bringing artificial intelligence to anyone who wants it. Smart houses draw enough energy out of the zero point energy field the universe is made of, to supply plenty of energy for your house and all of your appliances. Your smart house will also keep in touch with you through your smart phone and your smart cars.

Take control of your technology. Use free and open source technology to liberate yourself and your family from the ivory tower, the imperial pyramid, the military industrial complex (Different names for the same competitive social hierarchy). The ivory tower is teaching everyone a culture of dependence on big businesses and the state. Use free and open source education and technology to break free from the rule of man. Turn your swords into plowshares. Depend on God.

Terraforming Earth

Human nature is terraforming earth from a wilderness into a beautiful garden. Explore this wondrous new world order we are building. We’re building cities as fast as we can all over earth. They are our 21st century pueblos. We are all responsible and accountable for living in harmony with each other and our natural habitat.

We need lots of biologists and forest rangers to take care of our natural habitat. Do not litter. Prevent forest fires every chance you get. Clean up the trash. In my opinion, our government should be acting proactively to clean up our natural habitat and actively maintain it from now on. And that does not mean harassing farmers for being farmers.

Farmers need to take care of their private property and work in harmony with reasonable environmental regulations. The state needs to nurture agriculture. We all definitely need to get rid of some of the poisonous chemicals that agriculture is introducing into our natural habitat. The state should be nurturing free enterprise and environmental sustainability. Capitalist entrepreneurs are responsible and accountable for working in harmony with nature and with the state.

Spacefaring Civilization

Apollo and the Moon landings were the first wave.

The second wave is the Mission to Planet Earth, with its satellite based exploration of earth, photographing, X-raying and cat scanning every inch of the planet. We’ve sent robots to every planet in the solar system. They are photographing, X-raying and cat scanning the universe. The space shuttle was a monumental accomplishment. We’ve already had several space stations in orbit around earth for decades.

Now, a third wave of space exploration, involving the manned exploration of the Moon, Mars and the asteroids is well under way. Private enterprise has always been involved, usually in the form of private contracts with the government. Now, private enterprise is starting to dominate our migration into space. Private companies are building private space transportation systems. The creation of small, sustainable artificial biospheres in spacecraft and on the Moon and Mars and maybe even asteroid based mining operations is an exciting, dangerous and wonderful adventure.

Read a lot. Learn how to be valuable in this modern information age. Make your financial and economic activities a game. Figure out what you like to do and get really good at it. Cultivate a few talents and abilities in yourself. Build your own free enterprise in this wonderful booming world economy. Be realistic and careful and have fun making the world a better place.

Thank God for your prosperity. Always remember that God makes the rules. Seek the truth. Find out what the rules are, according to God, and practice them in your free enterprise and in every other detail of your life.