[A]s things now stand, the case that capitalism will make the world - not just the West - materially better off has simply not been convincingly demonstrated. Indeed, with almost 70 per cent of the world's people experiencing a decline in their real incomes in recent years, the opposite appears to be true. The wanton celebration of market capitalism while so many people throughout the world are lacking basic food and shelter seems, if not downright vulgar, at least a little insensitive.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Capitalism has not proven to improve global material well-being convincingly.
- In plain terms
- Many people are poorer under capitalism, making its praise seem insensitive.
- What can you take from it?
- Question the benefits of unchecked market capitalism.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- Who benefits most from current markets?
- Is inequality inevitable?
Another view
Some regions have seen growth under capitalist systems.
More from Linda McQuaig
Under the market system, there is demand for a product if a lot of people want it - but that demand counts for nothing if those people have no money. If they l…
Permalink to quote #10 Canada got one break in the Walkerton tragedy: the deadly contamination of the Ontario town's water supply, which killed seven people in the summer of 2000, ca…
Permalink to quote #12 Not only has capitalism failed to bring us to the brink of a scarcity-free world, but in a sense, you could say that capitalism invented scarcity - at least as…
Permalink to quote #9
Related quotes
...so long as power remains privately concentrated, everybody, everybody, has to be committed to one overriding goal: and that's to make sure that the rich fol…
Noam ChomskyNoam Chomsky quote #15 If we want to save our planet earth, we have a duty to put an end to the capitalist system.
Evo MoralesEvo Morales quote #1 This American system of ours ... call it Americanism, call it capitalism, call it what you like, gives to each and every one of us a great opportunity if we on…
Al CaponeAl Capone quote #2