is capitalism (like a strangler vine) crushing the ethics out of people as its intensifies its pernicious grip

Question

on human behaviour?
isnt the reducing of everything to money [sport, art, film etc] impoverishing us all...
..and opening the door to questionable selfish behaviour, because whenever a situation arises of choosing what is right against what is profitable, the virus capitalism has injected into our moral system is going to exert its stranglehold on our behaviour.
or at the very least is going to tempt even those with a strong and steadfast ethical make-up, to choose to do the dubious...before the choose to do right.

is that not a definition of corruption?

Answer 1

Capitalism is the worst economic system in the world, except for all the others.

Look at the achievements of Capitalism. Imagine if the technological developments of the last 25 years had not happened. All are the result of the system you despise. You have the time to wring your pudgy fingers over such matters only because of the productivity Capitalism has brought. Your parents old age is underwritten by the shares in private industry their pension funds hold. Everything you are, everything our society has achieved from the mobile phone to the National Health Service is funded by Capitalism.

Before you destroy our way of life, at least prove that what you want to replace it with is better!

Answer 2

The word "Capitalism" is a pejorative made up by Karl Marx. It was used in the same way you are trying to use it, to denigrate private enterprise. The US is successful because we have freedom to operate businesses.
Profit is not a crime.
Your remarks make you sound like a socialist.
Consider this: you come up with an idea and you invent something that people want to buy. People buy a lot of your product. Example: Bill Gates. He went from college dropout to multi-billionaire in about 30 years. You would do the same if you had the chance.

Answer 3

Most definitely. Everything that rampant commercialism touches it corrupts, Football is a case in point. Family breakdown is a commercial advantage, but nor a social one.
The rady sneer of certain newspaper correspondents is to the commercial advantage putting an alternative view, which sometimes even the writer can not believe to be correct.

Answer 4

Capitalism, socialism, corruption, - all ethics, ideologies... are created by mankind - not the other way around.
Each person has the choice - to take whatever path, out of the vast selection on offer - that he or she feels is right.
If 'we' are impoverished by a way of life - we may make other, better choices.
Mankind is not such a slave to the god of ideas, as you imagine, and temptation, though it may be hard to resist - is likewise not an all powerfull god, and can be - with determination, overcome.

Answer 5

Capitalism achieves via economic manipulation what fascism and communism have both historically had to rely upon their state police (Gestapo and KGB) to achieve.

Would you rather live with the ability to raise your voice and at liberty to rise through "the system" by means of your own effort? Or would you prefer to live in fear and condemned to remain at the bottom of the heap, knowing that if you raised your voice your liberty would be forfeit?

All political systems are corrupt; their Achilles heel is that they all require a top to their individual pile.

Answer 6

Capitalism teaches selfishness. I hate to read its proponents arguing "but look how rich its made Bill Gates and the Hiltons blah de blah"

Yes and look how miserably poor its made MILLIONS AND MILLIONS all over the world!

For every one who gets the same sort of success as Mr Gates, *millions* will live lives of poverty, suffering and deprivation.

Its just evil.

Answer 7

well, if you don't like capitalism, then one could assume that you are in support of communism?

I'll take the lesser of two evils and keep my capitalism.

Answer 8

Absolutely and to think, money was invented.