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Democratic crisis is inevitable under capitalism creating such stark wealth inequalities. When one person can have wealth orders of magnitude more than years of
by TazeTSchnitzel 8y ago
Democratic crisis is inevitable under capitalism creating such stark wealth inequalities. When one person can have wealth orders of magnitude more than years of the salaries of all the country's elected politicians, it's inevitable corruption will happen.
- mulmen 8y agoIt's unclear to me that this problem is unique to capitalism. All economic systems need regulation. Democracy appears to me to be the best way to create and manage that regulation.
- bsanr2 8y agoI don't think he was saying it was unique to capitalism, only that it's inevitable under a capitalist system. Which is true. As you said, regulation is necessary to keep capitalism from becoming a socially-corruptive influence.
- mulmen 8y agoSure but I don't see how that makes a democratic crisis inevitable. The implication seems to be that democracy and capitalism are fundamentally incompatible which I don't think is true. They are in fact complimentary in my opinion. What better way to regulate a capitalist economic system than with a democratically elected government?
- andrepd 8y agoThe argument goes as follows, if you're interested. In a capitalist society there exists wealth inequality, and with it a power inequality. Democracy is the belief that every citizen has an equal say in the decisions and affairs that concern him. Manifestly, however, in a system with such stark differences in power, this cannot be the case (just think of how a "commoner" and a billionaire cannot even be compared in terms of resources and power at their disposal). "True" democracy is impossible in capitalism, as it is in feudalism, or in a monarchy, or in any system with classes.
- TazeTSchnitzel 8y agoThat's my thinking basically, yes. In particular, the gradually escalating power differential as money flows to the top will slowly and then rapidly destabilise a democracy.
- makotech222 8y agoThats literally what socialism is. Its democracy of the workplace that prevents wealth from accumulating in the hands of the few. This is why Marx is famous.