Topsy-turvy capitalism

"The great virtue of a free market system," noted Milton Friedman, "is that it does not care what color people are; it does not care what their religion is; it only cares whether they can produce something you want to buy. It is the most effective system we have discovered to enable people who hate one another to deal with one another and help one another." Laissez faire capitalism is blind as the statue of Justice. Everyone gets from the economic pie a piece proportional to the contribution of his personal assets (labor, land, capital, entrepreneurship) in the production of the pie. It is a merit-based system where the value of each input and output is ultimately determined by all of us as consumers.

The free market system creates conditions for everyone to better their lives but it does not guarantee anyone "decent" working conditions, "living" wages, or goods that are simultaneously cheap, safe, and efficient. Labor unions and consumer advocates have been praised for mitigating the nastier sides of capitalism by inducing government controls. Less widely publicized are the unintended consequences of introducing politics where individuals should be left to interact free of coercion. Far from being a panacea for exploitation and inequality, bureaucratic control has always been a major source of abuse and conflict.

In today's upside-down version of capitalism, success is punished and failure is rewarded. Economic justice is no longer blind and outcomes depend on campaign---rather than productive---contributions. Hard work subsidizes slothfulness. Prudence subsidizes irresponsibility. Efficiency subsidizes wastefulness. Members of professional organizations have restricted the entry to many occupations, earning higher wages at the expense of low skilled minority workers. Producers have been just as quick to play the political system in their favor. When the government controls the economy, corporations no longer need to adapt to market changes. It is much easier to force consumers and taxpayers to pay the bill. And those who vote for more of the same should be prosecuted for criminal credulity.