I'm a Democrat and not a socialist. n/t

[WSHazel]

126. Good thoughts

I disagree with most of it, but those are good thoughts.

Freedom of choice is capitalism. The three legs of the classical liberalism stool are democracy, Rule of Law, and capitalism. You can't have one of those without the other two. Capitalism is freedom of choice for how you will live your work life. It doesn't guarantee outcomes, but it does provide options.

For about 1200 years, from 300 AD, when Emperor Constantine imposed a caste system on the Roman Empire, to about 1500, when the renaissance reached northern Europe, most of humanity in the West lived as virtual property, with no agency over any part of their lives. Then the early sprouts of capitalism started to take hold in the lower Rhine, setting off the Reformation, early forms of democracy, and taking the first major shots at the brutal and barbaric Feudal system. Capitalism gave democracy and individual rights the power to stand up to embedded Feudal systems that had lasted for over 1,000 years. As the West rapidly evolved from a backwater of the world into global powers, other countries such as Japan adopted similar policies, with incredible success. Japan overthrew a brutal Shogunate that had ruled for 250 years, and transformed a Feudal system that dated back over 2,000 years, and became a world power within 40 years as a result. Even communist China finally acknowledged under Deng that their system didn't work.

The quality of life in countries that have some kind of capitalist economy is much higher than it is in countries that don't. As importantly, liberal societies win.

Your complaints about income inequality are valid, but those are also the easiest to solve. Just raise taxes. I would actually do it in coordination with the other developed countries to make jurisdiction shopping more difficult, but raising taxes on the rich is a pretty simple solution that works within a wide range. I would return to the Bush Sr./Clinton tax rates of the 90's. Taxes were high in the 90's, but the economy was very strong and the government ran a budget surplus. Art and culture were flourishing, the world was at peace, and median incomes were rising quickly. Seems like a pretty good deal to me.