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I think this piece is excellent. I'm shocked it's getting attention on HN - not usually the place I go for my anti-capitalism screeds. I don't know if I agree

I think this piece is excellent. I'm shocked it's getting attention on HN - not usually the place I go for my anti-capitalism screeds. I don't know if I agree with the author that neoliberalism (or capitalism, which I think is closer to what she's really talking about) is the cause of all the ills she mentions, mainly because I don't think we should frame it that way. "Neoliberalism bad, [other system of choice] good" is not the way to consider it. As bad as neoliberal democracy/captialism is, would she rather live in autocratic China or feudal medieval England? The question isn't whether the current system is bad, it's whether there exists a demonstrably better system we can now attempt to implement. I think, at least for the United States, the answer to that question is very much so, yes. It's called socialism, and most all the other democratic societies are already doing it. It also doesn't necessarily mean the end of capitalism, so much as an adjustment to the rules and formula.

seniorivn 8y ago
If you think that so called democratic socialism is not capitalism, than you just delusional, look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_economic_freedom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_economic_... European 'social democracies' have comparable economic freedoms, some even more, and expenditures are also comparable https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_spending#As_a_percentage_of_GDP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_spending#As_a_perce... The difference is efficiency of the government, if your government is inefficient and corrupted, and your political system has a lack of competition(US is the greatest example of that among democracies), than increase in government spending will lead you to disaster like it did with Venezuella, Zimbabwe, USSR, Kuba and etc The question is, do you think US Government on all levels is efficient enough to be trusted with even more jobs/resources to manage? And if it's not, what the people of us should actually do to make it happen?
- ivraatiems 8y ago
  > If you think that so called democratic socialism is not capitalism [...] I specifically said in my post I don't think that. Quoting myself, "It also doesn't necessarily mean the end of capitalism, so much as an adjustment to the rules and formula." > The question is, do you think US Government on all levels is efficient enough to be trusted with even more jobs/resources to manage? And if it's not, what the people of us should actually do to make it happen? I think it's efficient enough, but not scrupulous or just enough. That's the part that needs to change, and that can only happen by changing laws.
- ddw 8y ago
  > The question is, do you think US Government on all levels is efficient enough to be trusted with even more jobs/resources to manage? And if it's not, what the people of us should actually do to make it happen? Instead we're ruled by large, monopolistic corporations that have so much power they can avoid paying taxes, pay off almost any politician and basically set any policy that they want. I'll never understand why people are fine with our current system. I think your comment is basically neoliberlism in a nutshell. Let the market decide, right?
  - vithlani 8y ago
    > I'll never understand why people are fine with our current system. They are fine because the system operates at a level they cannot see, at least in most Western "democracies". It is also very preferable over dictatorships, arbitrary monarchies, harsh serfdom, feudal setups, Soviet style communism, access based capitalism such as in India, etc. They have to find a way to get Joe Cubicle-Farmer producing for 40 years; doing it this way keeps away chaos and blood.

seniorivn 8y ago

If you think that so called democratic socialism is not capitalism, than you just delusional, look at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_economic_freedom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_economic_... European 'social democracies' have comparable economic freedoms, some even more, and expenditures are also comparable https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_spending#As_a_percentage_of_GDP https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_spending#As_a_perce... The difference is efficiency of the government, if your government is inefficient and corrupted, and your political system has a lack of competition(US is the greatest example of that among democracies), than increase in government spending will lead you to disaster like it did with Venezuella, Zimbabwe, USSR, Kuba and etc The question is, do you think US Government on all levels is efficient enough to be trusted with even more jobs/resources to manage? And if it's not, what the people of us should actually do to make it happen?

ivraatiems 8y ago
> If you think that so called democratic socialism is not capitalism [...] I specifically said in my post I don't think that. Quoting myself, "It also doesn't necessarily mean the end of capitalism, so much as an adjustment to the rules and formula." > The question is, do you think US Government on all levels is efficient enough to be trusted with even more jobs/resources to manage? And if it's not, what the people of us should actually do to make it happen? I think it's efficient enough, but not scrupulous or just enough. That's the part that needs to change, and that can only happen by changing laws.
ddw 8y ago
> The question is, do you think US Government on all levels is efficient enough to be trusted with even more jobs/resources to manage? And if it's not, what the people of us should actually do to make it happen? Instead we're ruled by large, monopolistic corporations that have so much power they can avoid paying taxes, pay off almost any politician and basically set any policy that they want. I'll never understand why people are fine with our current system. I think your comment is basically neoliberlism in a nutshell. Let the market decide, right?
- vithlani 8y ago
  > I'll never understand why people are fine with our current system. They are fine because the system operates at a level they cannot see, at least in most Western "democracies". It is also very preferable over dictatorships, arbitrary monarchies, harsh serfdom, feudal setups, Soviet style communism, access based capitalism such as in India, etc. They have to find a way to get Joe Cubicle-Farmer producing for 40 years; doing it this way keeps away chaos and blood.