We Believe

we can listen and learn.

Why do we have poverty and unemployment in the USA?
Why so much misery here at home? It is very simple, really.
I will tell you, and it is not what you think.
It is the fact that Capitalism doesn't work when employment hits 100%.

Capitalism works just fine when people compete for jobs. This keeps wages low, which keeps prices low, which keeps inflation down. "Just fine", however, is arguable because of the misery it causes, but the concept of Capitalism itself functions just fine. People might not be all that happy, but the system is stable. Our monetary system is another matter, and that part is inherently unstable. But that's another topic entirely.

Back to Capitalism… now imagine 100% employment. Imagine employers competing for workers. Annoyed with your job? Instantly go find a new one. Employers everywhere are paying top dollar for your labor. People everywhere are fat dumb and happy. Sounds great, doesn't it? It would be, except that it's not stable. Wage increases to attract and retain workers cause price increases, which cause more wage increases, which cause more price increases, etc, etc. This is known as a wage-price-spiral, and is the ultimate definition of inflation. In fact, we did this back in the 70's, and it caused chaos.

The inflation caused by 100% employment under Capitalism is so bad, and so brutal, and so inherently unstable, that it simply cannot ever be allowed to happen again. And it's not just the inflation. If anyone could have any job they wanted, why then, would anyone bother to be a trash man, or a sewer inspector, or any of a myriad of other nasty jobs? In fact, with 100% employment under Capitalism, the entire society falls apart.

This is why our southern border is wide open. This is why we legally allow millions into the US every year. This is why we have free trade with third world countries. This is why we have unemployment and poverty. Capitalism does not function without unemployment. It's that simple.

But I like Capitalism! I do. The very thought of a Socialist policy whereby the worthless idiot in the cube next to me is making the same money as I am, infuriates me. I like the competitive nature of Capitalism. I believe we need it.

Wage freezes, price freezes, not even a combination of the two will work to solve the collapse caused by 100% employment. Eventually, basic unsavory necessities stop, due to lack of labor.

We will, of course, have to deal with this soon enough. As Capitalism spreads around the world, as more and more people are put to work, they will, eventually, run out of labor. Capitalism will destroy itself. Guaranteed. Inevitable.

And what is right about labor competing for jobs anyway? Why inflict misery on the population? Shouldn't employers be competing for labor instead? Yes, they should. Of course they should. But that, as we know, creates problems. There are solutions. The difficulty being: that all involve bigger government, more regulation, and an end to most of the free market. With 100% employment, someone has to decide which jobs are more important than others in order to keep the society functioning. Someone has to decide who builds what and how much. Someone has to decide what price to charge for various goods and services. Someone has to decide who gets paid how much. Someone has to be in charge of keeping the limited workforce in balance with the needs and desires of the population.

That someone is the federal government. Not in its current form, of course. Could you image how fucked up things would be if we let the current corruption machine have that much control? Well, perhaps not much worse than things are already screwed up. But the mere thought of yet more government control is rather repulsive, I have to admit that.

And so, the solution to our problems, to end poverty, to end unemployment, to end misery all across the planet, and to prevent the inevitable collapse of Capitalism due to its own dysfunction at high employment levels, is to completely overhaul our government. Trash it. Start over. Build a completely new structure that eliminates corruption. Build a system of government we can trust and rely on.

That, my friends, can be done.