Capitalism has been associated with the kind of economy that solely centered on profits.it is centered upon an economy that whose goals do not go beyond the making of profits. Mostly, capitalist economies are coupled with the privatization of land and property, where the ruling class owns most of the properties in the nation (Bowles, 2012). The lower class provides low-wage labor for the rich, and the economy is the greatest beneficiary of all these. The United States is among the states that are most associated with capitalist economies in the world. In the USA, entrepreneurship is the leading source of wealth. It has led to a class of very wealthy CEOs and business men who pump millions of dollars back into the economy in taxes and other forms. The country became a capitalist nation in the 1950s, where its economical ideologies were shaped after the Second World War. There was a surging economic depression at the time, and the USA turned upon industrialization to create a profit-making economy. The lower members of the economy worked in the industries. The affluent members of the society owned these industries, and the government benefited immensely from them. Because of this, the country rose to become a world superpower that is also politically dominant. Property is owned among the rich, who employ the lesser members of society. Many people have criticized the morality behind capitalism. Scholars argue on the basis of the plight of the laborers who have long working hours, low-income and do not have many properties as evidence of their hard work. The plight has been carried across centuries, even as the government constantly tries to come up with methods to improve working conditions. The efforts can be witnessed throughout the many trade and labor unions that have been established.
However, Ayn Rands disagrees with skeptics that continually criticize capitalism. In Rand’s book titled, “Capitalism the unknown ideal”, the writer looks at the positives brought about by capitalism. The book looks at capitalism as the economy’s salvation. She cites that people should not pity the workers. Rather, they should pity the CEOs and hard workers who work to contribute to the general population of the less competent members of the society. Capitalism is the most moral form of trade. The ruling class of the society pays the most taxes. The government collects from them and uses the money for the benefit of the economy, which mostly consists of the less deserving members of society. In this light, the rich should be complaining about capitalism. The laborer earns from the rich person, who also has to contribute towards their education, and comforts in life through what is taken from him by the government. Therefore, capitalism can be said to have a moral standing. She explains all these in the concept of altruism, which she argues is most advanced by capitalism. The United States government does spend millions on all its citizens. It does not classify on the degree of benefits one gets compared to what they give. Part of becoming an economically dominant country is through making sure that the well-being of citizens is protected (Murolo & Chitty, 2001). Even though the wealthy people in the country get richer, there are continuous efforts to close this gap that has seen the rise of the working class as the middle class in the country. There are efforts to bridge this gap in an attempt to become financially empowered. The efforts to help other members of society form the basis of altruism, which Ayn notes are a principle of capitalism.
In addition, the writer does not see the reason someone should not enjoy what they worked for through the privatization of property. She argues this through the different standings of objectivism. She supports the establishment of patents, copyright laws and intellectual property law rights. All these are ways for capitalists to protect the rights of originality in the generation of wealth. We would otherwise have a society in which everyone wants to reap off other peoples sweat. In addition, the philosophical view of epistemology is employed. She says that humans should be allowed to have the free will to use their minds to pursue happiness. Capitalism, therefore, ensures that the people in society are free to pursue their interests (Rand, Branden, Greenspan & Hessen, 2008). They should be allowed to be selfish in their means, which is has been seen as the underlying principle behind the private ownership rule. In her philosophical view, individual’s rights to pursue self-interests are part of their genetic makeup. It is in human nature to want to exercise freedom and pursue what their mind tells them to. The government, therefore, should not interfere with any section of this nature. She argues against anti-trust laws limit objectivism. Things such as public education, taxes on inherited land and unions should not be included in a capitalist economy.
While there have been critics of her work, Rand still maintained her points on America’s big business. She emphasized her point in her subsequent book,” Atlas shrugged”, in which she criticized the USAs treatment of its big businesses and corporations. She calls the wealthy the most hardworking smartest people, who are the reason for the economic prowess in the USA. However, the government does not treat these corporations well. There are still sanctions formed, and they are not allowed to exercise absolute freedom on the principles of free-market trade on which capitalism is founded. She even suggests that healthcare should be substituted with wealth care. The United States does exercise the principle of free-market trade but only to a certain extent. The corporations control their means of production, but are controlled by the government, which exists to protect the common man. The government has its responsibility extended to the normal citizen who has no voice. Their voice is the government. She names the businessmen as “America’s prosecuted minorities who are robbed off their wealth by “looters” masquerading behind anti-trust laws, taxes and trade unions.
All in her book, she wants the readers to see the misconceptions on capitalism. The government has the function of protecting the individual rights of its subject. Therefore, capitalism is the only way these rights can be protected as opposed to the sharing nature depicted by communism. In the 20th and 21st centuries, much to the dismay of writers such as Rand, capitalism has evolved to advocate more anti-trust laws. It has shifted focus from the needs of the ruling class to those of the needs in the society. The ruling class still has an influence on the government, but the presence of rigid laws has provided a fair framework for the working class.
The adoption and drafting of the United States constitution was one event that influenced the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Citizens were given the responsibility of voting and upholding the rule of law. The rights of citizens were clearly stipulated in the constitution. The rights included those of advancing their economic interests, protecting their rights and advocating their freedoms. The citizens helped to formulate anti-trust laws that form a stumbling block for the full effect of capitalism. In addition, the constitution put measures to facilitate the responsibility the citizens had of paying taxes. It helped transform the rights of women and formed the basis for the lowest of minority groups to acquire rights. The black community, which formed a strong basis for the provision of cheap labor, was awarded rights. It, therefore, meant that they were considered citizens and they had to be treated well by the industrialist. It came at a time when the only labor that was cheap was that of children, whose rights were also advocated in the constitution.
Communism, on the other hand, embraces principles that are different from capitalism. Unlike capitalism’s principles of private ownership, communism embraces the common or public ownership of property. In addition, there are no social classes in communism, and everybody is regarded as the same. Communism has been seen as a more moral entity in society where everything is equally shared (Heits, 2013). The aspect of money, therefore, is not used to influence the activities of the members of society. All members of a particular society, therefore, work towards its common good. In addition, it opposes the concepts of a free means of production. Since there is no ruling class to control the production process, the authority in the society sets the standards for production. The standards are supposed to beneficial to everybody, as opposed to capitalism where the ruling class controls the means of production. Russia is one of the leading nations to embrace communism. It adopted communism after an outcry in the industrial revolution towards the poor living standards of the proletariats. The state was largely influenced by the invasion of Germany and had to put up a united front. Then, it did not matter whether there was the issue of class to be considered. The Russians united against the Germans, giving birth to their spirit of nationalism. Communism, however, was not easy for Russia. It suffered great poverty levels and was practically living on the edge.
In the 20th and 21st centuries, Russia has struggled with the deplorable states of poverty and has had forums that seek to change the traditional approach to communism. The most recent proposals have been an effort to take governance from the communist authority and incorporate democratic aspects of leadership in the country. It seems as though the communist leaders exploited the good nature of communism and turned it into a system of tyranny (Boone, Gomulka & Layard, 1998). For the full effectiveness of the system, there need be good intentions from those in power. Even though communism does not seek to recognize the presence of the state, the state played a crucial role in transforming Russia into a communist economy. The rulers then turned it into a monopoly economic in which the citizens could not question anything. They simply worked and shared what they got.
Such conditions influenced Ayn Rand to write her two books, “capitalism the unknown ideal”, and “Atlas struggle”. The writer escaped Russia upon its adoption of a communist economy. She lost all her father’s businesses to communism and watched as poverty reigned and destroyed the country. From her book, she questions the purpose of morality in communism when individuals cannot be allowed to enjoy what they have. They instead give their property to thieves who do not help the economy in any way. Through the example of Russia, she is can coax the reader into thinking about communism as a source of slavery. The people in power exercise control over a person’s mind and hard work, which should not be the case. She seems to suggest that capitalism encourages people to exercise their freedom as opposed to communism. Therefore, capitalism is a means of salvation. With the example of Russia in mind, the effects of communism can be felt and leave a doubt on its morality. Most of the economies that practice capitalism are world leading economies while communists significantly trail behind (Rand, 2007). Communism has left many to wonder on the future of Russia. The other major difference between communism and capitalism is the adoption of nationalistic practices. Capitalism in practice adopts aspects of the government and democracy. Communism has no such aspects. If the mechanisms for the adoption of the public ownership of property are properly adjusted, then the theory can work. The two are different in their objectives. Capitalism seeks to advance the economy’s profit and communism, also known as socialism, seeks to promote the social aspects of sharing. When we compare the two countries on the basis of the theories, the United States can be said to have achieved its purpose. The presence of a free market leads to the flourishing of the economy. In her book, Rand argues that the difference is not on who controls what aspects of both theories, but striking a balance. It is indeed true that a society could benefit from both of these aspects. Absolute freedoms that capitalists seem to enjoy should be cut lose because it corrupts the morality in society. In addition, too much freedom afforded by capitalism corrupts the society. Therefore, the approach by the United States seems right. To control the freedom of the market brought about by capitalism but not to alter its course completely. The balance will help establish the morality in society that everyone is the center of talks. In modern capitalism, democracy has been embraced to ensure that the society functions at all levels. In addition, she says that there is a need to put a barrier between the economy and the state. The state is the main cause of an industrial crisis that the world communists have constantly found themselves.
The war between Russia, Syria and Germany influenced the responsibilities of citizens. In addition, the Second World War played a role in responsibility and citizenship. Russians needed to put a strong force of togetherness to win or even survive the wars. They did not have many allies, mainly because they had broken up the ties they have with Syria. Therefore, the citizens were given the responsibility of helping the country in any way they could. Giving up their possessions was one way in which this could be achieved. The possessions would help everyone get through the economic crisis that ensued.
References
Boone, P., Gomulka, S., & Layard, P. R. (1998). Emerging from Communism lessons from Russia, China, and Eastern Europe. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Bowles, P. (2012). Capitalism. Harlow: Pearson.
Heits, R. T. (2013). Communism. Broomall, PA: Mason Crest.
Murolo, P., & Chitty, A. B. (2001). From the folks who brought you the weekend: a short, illustrated history of labor in the United States. New York: New Press:
Rand, A. (2007). Atlas shrugged. New York, N.Y: Signet.
Rand, A., Branden, N., Greenspan, A., & Hessen, R. (2008). Capitalism: The unknown ideal. New York: Signet.
