But why did it grow so quickly and pervasively as a social and economic system?

Capitalism, in a nutshell, is the private ownership of the means of production combined

with a free market system of trade. And while not everybody agrees with Capitalism’s effects

on society, it’s difficult to argue that capitalism doesn’t have a massive impact

on societies that implement it. Which is also nearly all societies. So, why is capitalism

so successful?

Essentially, capitalism grew to be what it is today because it is an attractive offer.

It says that if you are able to outwit your competition, you’ll get more money, and

money can buy you options. You don’t have to work the fields anymore, instead you can

pay people to do that for you. And that process incentivizes innovation and hard work. Of

course, the dark side is that if you don’t manage to outwit your competition, you may

end up in a worse place than if you had never competed to begin with. That’s the inherent

basis of inequality and the source of most capitalist critiques. It also promotes financial

gain as the most effective and sought after tool for how we measure success.

Now, many countries have attempted to combat the negative aspects of capitalism while promoting

the positive. Socialist-leaning countries like Sweden are championed because they soften

the blow of failing in a capitalist system through social welfare. Other countries attempt

to remove capitalism entirely, the USSR for example, tend to suffer from a lack of incentive,

and subsequently must use force as motivation. Countries that prioritize capitalism above

social protections, like the United States, tend to suffer from some of the nastier side

effects, like high rates of poverty and inequality. Clearly capitalism comes with it’s pros

and cons, as is the case with most political systems. Whether it is worth it or not will

probably depend on your values and priorities.

Since capitalism is a complex and interconnected system, there are millions of other angles,

and opinions, we can’t cover in two three minute videos, or even a 3 month video. So

let us know what we missed!

If you enjoyed this video, make sure you check out our piece on Communism, an economic and

political theory on the opposite end of the spectrum. You can find that link in the description

below. Please don’t forget to subscribe, and thank you for watching TestTube News.