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1/ Socialism makes these mistakes:
1. For some people to win, other people have to lose, economy is a zero-sum game, hence the "class struggle"; see Marx's labor theory of value;
2. Society and economy can be planned (totalitarianism being the logical conclusion);
1. For some people to win, other people have to lose, economy is a zero-sum game, hence the "class struggle"; see Marx's labor theory of value;
2. Society and economy can be planned (totalitarianism being the logical conclusion);
2/ For a short introduction, as I understand it ...
(1) Innovation creates products w/ a value greater than the sum of their parts; and for innovation you need people risking capital on bets.
For every success story, we don't see the other 9 entrepreneurs that went broke.
(1) Innovation creates products w/ a value greater than the sum of their parts; and for innovation you need people risking capital on bets.
For every success story, we don't see the other 9 entrepreneurs that went broke.
3/ (2) Society isn't natural, but it has an order that isn't planned either—people can work toward something, they can vote, etc, but most often the consequences, the status quo is an unplanned emergent phenomenon. An organism that's greater than the sum of its parts.
4/ Economy too. It's mostly why communism went broke in Easter Europe. Individuals know their needs better, and it's stupid even to think that you can plan a division of labor, which in capitalism is another unplanned phenomenon. A planned economy doesn't have competition.
5/ Capitalism is the free market, which was described as an invisible force that keeps us working towards a common good, w/o us wanting to work towards that common good. Sometimes incentives don't align w/ those of consumers or employees, but it's a free market for competition.
6/ Democracy? A free market for your electoral vote. An imperfect system meant to punish bad actors w/o a revolution. Just like capitalism, democracy is self-serving. We vote for our private interests, not for the common good.
To go against capitalism is to go against democracy.
To go against capitalism is to go against democracy.
7/ The transfer of wealth from the rich to the poor provides only temporary relief.
Populations are lifted out of poverty only after they are provided w/ the means to innovate & participate in the free market. And that means education, infrastructure & the rule of law.
Populations are lifted out of poverty only after they are provided w/ the means to innovate & participate in the free market. And that means education, infrastructure & the rule of law.
8/ Socialists are also "primitivists": this lingering idea that early humans were more superior, living in harmony w/ nature. If we could only go back to being hunter-gatherers and share our prey ... too bad we ate the megafauna & had to avoid starvation via agriculture 
9/ Capitalism is modernity, globalism, pluralism, it drives innovation, which is the force that makes any social progress possible.
Social progress is perfectly correlated w/ economic and technological progress. Nobody thinks of solving social justice under threat of starvation.
Social progress is perfectly correlated w/ economic and technological progress. Nobody thinks of solving social justice under threat of starvation.
10/ Speaking of censorship, problem will always be "who decides the truth?". It goes back to the notion that society's direction can be planned, a flawed ideology.
In some cases it's obvious. Trump deserved a ban. In other cases (e.g universities banning authors) not so much.
In some cases it's obvious. Trump deserved a ban. In other cases (e.g universities banning authors) not so much.
11/ — I'm seeing socialist ideas everywhere, when speaking of how to tackle global warming, fake news, overpopulation, COVID-19 pandemic.
Consider just the outrage for using fossil fuels, as if it's immoral, when in fact fossil fuels connect and feed 7.8 billion people.
Consider just the outrage for using fossil fuels, as if it's immoral, when in fact fossil fuels connect and feed 7.8 billion people.
12/ — For dealing w/ pandemic, consider all the calls to do what China's CCP did (one of the worst human rights violators): keep people in their homes by force, as if individual autonomy is irrelevant.
(Yes, compromises work, under a liberal framework)
(Yes, compromises work, under a liberal framework)
13/13 — I'm actually a "progressive", but I can't identify w/ US's left (or right).
I see a lot of socialism being promoted by academia, by software devs that actually benefit from liberalism & capitalism.
In our drive to fix world's problems, let's not throw baby w/ bathwater.
I see a lot of socialism being promoted by academia, by software devs that actually benefit from liberalism & capitalism.
In our drive to fix world's problems, let's not throw baby w/ bathwater.
