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There are a LOT of small business owners who choose to pay their employees more than they “have” to because they genuinely want to. There are a LOT of entrepren

There are a LOT of small business owners who choose to pay their employees more than they “have” to because they genuinely want to. There are a LOT of entrepreneurs who see “making my company a great place to work” as one of the core values of their job. I don’t think this is so common when you were talking about mega companies, in part because the work of operating a mega company is a lot less fun than a smaller company, and so you have this selection pressure where (a) people who pursue that path are more likely to value wealth and growth over quality of life, and (b) ruthlessness seems to usually help companies compete and win in the market. Thus the biggest and most famous companies of the world are more likely to be focused on cutthroat efficiency and, as a result, miserable places to work. But that’s no more a feature of capitalism than cancer is a feature of DNA. It’s a pervasive malfunction, but I believe it’s treatable, particularly through aggressive anti-trust and wealth taxes. Remember that the vast majority of capitalism is little businesses like your local veterinarian or florist, not FAANG.

shadowlight 5y ago
>Remember that the vast majority of capitalism is little businesses like your local veterinarian or florist, not FAANG. That is the vast minority. Corporations dictate much of the business in the states and the world. It's really easy to see this without resorting to statistics. What is the ratio of your friends who work for corporations vs. the amount that own/work for small businesses? The anecdotal percentage here is a good indicator of the real percentage of economic output produced by corporations vs. small businesses. You will find that as how most of your friends direct their own economic output in service of corporations so does most of America.
- azemetre 5y ago
  I believe it, I remember reading an article saying that there were 3 times as many small businesses in the 70s than there are today. It makes sense. There are many requirements and licenses for to start hair salons, barbers, wanting to garden, etc the system is set up to support the established elite today. At least IMO.

shadowlight 5y ago

>Remember that the vast majority of capitalism is little businesses like your local veterinarian or florist, not FAANG. That is the vast minority. Corporations dictate much of the business in the states and the world. It's really easy to see this without resorting to statistics. What is the ratio of your friends who work for corporations vs. the amount that own/work for small businesses? The anecdotal percentage here is a good indicator of the real percentage of economic output produced by corporations vs. small businesses. You will find that as how most of your friends direct their own economic output in service of corporations so does most of America.

azemetre 5y ago
I believe it, I remember reading an article saying that there were 3 times as many small businesses in the 70s than there are today. It makes sense. There are many requirements and licenses for to start hair salons, barbers, wanting to garden, etc the system is set up to support the established elite today. At least IMO.