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>Though many things have changed in the last 70 years, it seems as if the stock market still plays the same role and function today as it did back then. Does i

>Though many things have changed in the last 70 years, it seems as if the stock market still plays the same role and function today as it did back then. Does it, though? The cartoon (which was probably a little naive even back when it was made) presents a world where corporations have a duty to provide good jobs and to serve the national interest in times of crisis. It describes the stock market as the mechanism for these corporations to raise money for growth and to share their profits with public shareholders. It talks about how carefully the NYSE vets the companies going public, and how a company must have substantial real assets and profits to be considered. But I would argue that today, the tail is wagging the dog. Capital uses the market as a way to aggregate more capital, and if it happens to provide some money for growth and some of the wealth gets spread around, that's just a happy side effect. Those considerations are secondary to the game. Companies go public now with virtually no assets other than name recognition, and no profit in sight. There are public companies with billion-dollar valuations and less than 200 employees. There is no implicit or explicit expectation of social value, a company is judged solely on its return on capital, a judgment that will always be weighted towards those with the most capital to begin with. The idea that it contributes to the national standard of living, or can provide some value in a national emergency, doesn't enter into the discussion at all. The cartoon is goofy, but at least it has a notion of civic obligation that no longer exists.

dragontamer 5y ago
The point of this cartoon is for the USA to puff out its chest about the benefits of capitalism in the age of the Cold War. Capitalism vs Communism is the underlying theme of this cartoon (though unspoken, we cannot ignore the timeperiod this cartoon was made in). ------ That being said, the cartoon is correct about the fundamentals of how the stock market works, and its theoretical benefits. I'm sure companies existed back then that were terrible, but we gloss over those facts in propaganda to make the audience feel better about their society.
- systemvoltage 5y ago
  Not inclined to you but... I was afraid that the comments in this thread is going to be political. Yup, low and behold HN never disappoints. At this point, so many things are being politicized (Rust drama today as well), that is better to stay off of HN than not for mental health.
- vannevar 5y ago
  True, I can't disagree. But I think it's an important point that when the cartoon was made, the people who made it expected that their audience would approve of a message that presumed a civil duty for America's biggest businesses. Whether they actually lived up to that presumed duty, at least they acknowledged that the duty existed. Today, the average citizen no longer expects any civic obligation from business. In the years since this cartoon was made, they have been trained to accept profit as the only legitimate obligation of business.
  - UncleOxidant 5y ago
    In 1952 when this movie was made only about 4.2% of the US population owned any stocks. After the Depression it took a generation before many people were willing to invest in stocks. I can recall my grandparents, who were in their 20s during the Depression, being very disparaging about "playing in the stock market". And my parent's generation (their children) really had no idea how to invest in the stock market because it wasn't something their parents did or told them about. May dad had a 401K, but he had no clue what he was doing with it - never seemed to understand the market at all and I don't think that was unusual for his generation.

dragontamer 5y ago

The point of this cartoon is for the USA to puff out its chest about the benefits of capitalism in the age of the Cold War. Capitalism vs Communism is the underlying theme of this cartoon (though unspoken, we cannot ignore the timeperiod this cartoon was made in). ------ That being said, the cartoon is correct about the fundamentals of how the stock market works, and its theoretical benefits. I'm sure companies existed back then that were terrible, but we gloss over those facts in propaganda to make the audience feel better about their society.

systemvoltage 5y ago
Not inclined to you but... I was afraid that the comments in this thread is going to be political. Yup, low and behold HN never disappoints. At this point, so many things are being politicized (Rust drama today as well), that is better to stay off of HN than not for mental health.
vannevar 5y ago
True, I can't disagree. But I think it's an important point that when the cartoon was made, the people who made it expected that their audience would approve of a message that presumed a civil duty for America's biggest businesses. Whether they actually lived up to that presumed duty, at least they acknowledged that the duty existed. Today, the average citizen no longer expects any civic obligation from business. In the years since this cartoon was made, they have been trained to accept profit as the only legitimate obligation of business.
- UncleOxidant 5y ago
  In 1952 when this movie was made only about 4.2% of the US population owned any stocks. After the Depression it took a generation before many people were willing to invest in stocks. I can recall my grandparents, who were in their 20s during the Depression, being very disparaging about "playing in the stock market". And my parent's generation (their children) really had no idea how to invest in the stock market because it wasn't something their parents did or told them about. May dad had a 401K, but he had no clue what he was doing with it - never seemed to understand the market at all and I don't think that was unusual for his generation.