Tuesday, July 26, 2011

The corruption of pure capitalism

Business is, by its very nature, corrupt

The purpose of business is to make a profit. Personal gain. And businessmen will do anything, moral or not, for personal gain.

That is not the purpose of government. The purpose of our government is pretty well spelled out in the preamble to the constitution. To form a more perfect union. To establish justice. To ensure domestic tranquility. To provide for the common defense. To promote the general welfare. To secure the blessings of liberty.

Nothing in there about profit.

Men become corrupt when considerations of personal gain take precedence over considerations of right and wrong.

Capitalism does not include any precept of right and wrong. Its stated goal is profit. Personal gain.

Government becomes corrupt when the people running it put personal gain over the stated goals of the government.

Now, who has the means to provide personal gain to Congress? The Supreme Court? The President?

I'll tell you. It is the wealthy and powerful.

It is not the poor, the teachers, the police, the firefighters. It is not the unions, the truck drivers, the office peons. None of these people have anything with which to tempt anyone in a position of government power.

It is leaders of business who corrupt the leaders of government.

Think about that the next time you kneel at your Ayn Rand shrine and kiss the cover of Atlas Shrugged.