Capitalist Economy

Improved Essays
Why We’re All Poor
When man first walked out of Africa, it marked both a cultural and technological revolution. From 10,000 BCE onwards, man learned to harness the power of fire, bone, stone, and even animal hides and natural dyes. In this time, however, arose what some people claim to be the greatest of human achievements: Capitalism. In fact, the earliest records of trade for profit come from the Indus River Valley civilization, which formed in what is now eastern India more than a thousand years before the first pyramids began construction. Certainly, Capitalism as an economic civilization is well ingrained within human society, but there comes a time to question whether or not it still has a place relevant place within modern day society.
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Government policy affects the economy in a variety of ways, but it is ultimately better for the government to have an active role in regulating and controlling it. Statistically speaking, the economy does better the more government regulation of it there is. Under the Obama administration, the economy has now more than quadrupled the number of jobs present from the Bush administration, and unemployment rates have dropped below the current historical average (Brooks). In addition, corporate profits have nearly tripled, and wages have increased 1.7% (Brooks). Under President Bush’s Administration, (which actively opposed government involvement in economic affairs,) unemployment peaked at 8%, the GDP lost 5%, and wages for college graduates stagnated. (Matthews). In addition, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were underfunded due to Republican backed tax cuts, putting the nation in debt over 1.778 Trillion dollars. (Matthews.) Ultimately, no matter what the opposition claims, it appears that, in a statistical, money based theater, the economy and the people of The United States of America benefit more from a controlled, monitored, and regulated environment that one that has little to no …show more content…
Well, No. The system of Capitalism in America is so broken that, in fact, the top 1% of the nation continues to prosper while the bottom 99% flounder. If America is to survive both socially and financially, the wealthy must pay their fair share, or the nation must find a new way to avoid poverty. In 2015 alone, corporate profits rose to nearly 2 trillion dollars nationwide (“Corporate Profits after Tax”), and the average CEO pay was 13.5 million, a nearly 15.6% increase from the previous year (“Executive Paywatch”). While these numbers would sound fantastic to the average seller, they spell doom for the average worker. In 2014, the average worker to CEO hourly pay ratio was 373:1 (“Executive PayWatch”). An average worker at Walmart in the year 2014 brought home only $36,184 while a worker on federal minimum wage made only a measly $15,080 (“Executive Paywatch”). In addition, since 1970, productivity at Walmart stores has risen an astounding 319%, but the hourly compensation has only risen 20.34% (“Executive Paywatch”). The top 1%’s share of the wealth has grown nearly 111% since 1990, while the share of wealth for the bottom 99% has only increased an atrocious 4.3% (“Executive Paywatch”). These numbers are upsetting, to say the least. However, they are even worse when one realizes that, globally, 1.2 billion people (22 percent of the world population)

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