- Capitalism and Alternatives -

Answers, answers, answers . . .

Posted by: Joel Jacobson ( none, USA ) on March 22, 1999 at 11:37:50:

In Reply to: Another question for the weekend posted by B on March 19, 1999 at 18:01:50:

: If free markets and capitalism are the natural expression of the human condition, why must so much psychological, emotional, physical, political and economic force be expended to preserve it?

By the way, Marx and Hegel both thought what you call "capitalism" was natural. Whatever is ideally (Hegel) or materially (Marx) necessary is also real and an aspect of the natural development of things. In short, might makes right. During Marx's time there were Comptian positivist socialists who kept calling on the nation-states to implement 'social justice'. Marx constantly derided these people as 'utopian socialists' and 'undialectic'; he almost hated them worse than the capitalists. He felt taht 'socialism' would come when the materialistic position of 'capitalism' had deteriorated to where 'socialism' better utilized the forces of production. No one would have to do anything as the 'logic of the situation' would unfold and herald a new dawn for mankind. So, arise from your anti-Marxist, undialectic ideas of 'social justice' [Marx's derisive sarcasm included here] and become 'class conscious'. Actually, you don't even need to do taht. Socialism will come naturally just as capitalism came naturally through [Marx's] the concept of material historicism. No one will have to do a thing.


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