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It's not about how capitalism works, it's about how humans work. Capitalism is not stopping anyone from investing into anything.

• coldtea 10y ago
  No, that's the way humans work in a specific belief and motivational system. Historically societies have had many incentives and motives for behaviour, advancement, job production, etc, outside of profit, that were as or more important to it. This includes religion, morals, ideals, customs, laws, etc. Christians, for example, were for centuries not loaning with interest, not because they weren't humans, but because they valued a moral code more than profit. As a fact, we do such stuff too, and have even put it in laws, e.g. against child labour, slavery etc. All those could bring huge profit too, but we value our morals (e.g. anti-slavery) more. People certainly didn't stop doing them because they weren't profitable.
  • EdHominem 10y ago
    > Christians, for example, were for centuries not loaning with interest, not because they weren't humans, but because they valued a moral code more than profit. That confuses who's making the choices with who they're making them for. There were always christians willing to lend for interest, what stopped them was the other xians who thought it was bad. Also, look as islamic banking as a modern example. It charges almost exactly as much as a system with interest would but the payments are structured as fees, etc. There's still usury, it's just in the form of ruinous collateral-backed fees, instead of compound interest. A late-payment fee, on the capital plus a previous late-payment fee, is economically identical.