> In fact, I’m so impressed with how well The Profit scenarios illustrate the value of capitalism that I now build upon it a challenge to socialists: please des

> In fact, I’m so impressed with how well The Profit scenarios illustrate the value of capitalism that I now build upon it a challenge to socialists: please describe in detail how The Profit style enterprise reform would happen under socialism. It probably wouldn't. So what? Is the argument here really "an economic system is only viable if it can accommodate CNBC's The Profit?" A society with a different economic system would have different structures in place for reforming failing businesses. For instance — off the top of my head — conditional grant or loan programs that oblige the recipient to seek professional management counselling, perhaps. They might work better, or they might work worse. But they wouldn't be The Profit. That said, I don't think that this sort of enterprise reform happens much under capitalism, either. Sure, it happens on one reality TV show, but that's not a real data point. Consider this claim made in the article: > Another lesson from The Profit is that firm problems are personal problems. The son who can’t step out from the shadow of the father and the father who can’t let go. The two brothers who haven’t gotten over the death of their father and the problems this creates in the firm they have inherited. The siblings who are still fighting to get their parent’s attention. This is reality TV! The episode where the problem arose from zoning laws or product/market fit didn't get produced. You can't draw conclusions from something which is designed primarily to be dramatic and entertaining, rather than to provide a realistic survey of the problems faced by small businesses. If this kind of investment were especially profitable, lots of people would be doing it, and we'd be able to point at the statistical impact it has on small businesses instead of appealing to a TV narrative about it.