Full lecture
Capitalism? It’s selfish! So why should anybody want to live in a society like that?
http://http://vimeo.com/9687278
Craig Biddle takes questions
A lecturer hosted Monday night by the University of Wisconsin Students of Objectivism asserted capitalism is the only moral social system.
Craig Biddle, author of “Loving Life” and editor of “The Objective Standard,” said capitalism is widely acknowledged as the most practical social system. He said most people agree the freer a society is, the wealthier and better off it will be. He thinks it is also extremely moral.
“I’m here to talk about capitalism from a perspective it’s rarely talked about from… from a moral one,” Biddle said.
He said his argument could be clearly seen using three main questions as guidelines: What is capitalism? What are the alternatives to capitalism? What are the basic requirements of human life?
Capitalism, Biddle said, is a “social system of individual rights.” He said people are able to act fully self-interested as a matter of principle, which he believes to be a good thing.
“Capitalism legalizes complete and utter selfishness,” Biddle said. “We don’t, as capitalists, hide from this. It’s good and [people] should [act within their self interests].”
He went on to give his opinions of other social systems such as communism, socialism and fascism. He said the fundamental problem with these other systems is they do not allow citizens to be truly free.
Within all other social systems, Biddle said, citizens do not fully own the property they possess and are not free to do what they want with their property. Under capitalism, he argued, people can do what they like with their things.
Biddle added he does not think the US is truly capitalist in nature, but is rather a society that is becoming increasingly fascist. He cited what he called the nationalization of General Motors, Citigroup and AIG, as well as the proposed nationalization of the health care system as examples.
“What we have [in the US] is a mongrel mixture of fascism… or outright socialism… or in some cases, even theocracy,” he said.
Biddle continued by describing the requirements for human life as rational thinking and corresponding action. He said the selfishness encouraged by capitalism allows citizens to truly act within their rational thinking.
He also discussed how the poor, disabled and helpless would fare under this sort of society. He said there is not necessarily anything wrong with being poor, and if someone is poor because they do not want to work, that is their own problem and not society’s.
He added that many disabled people have been able to make a good living within a free market society, giving the examples of Stevie Wonder and Stephen Hawking.
He finally said those who are truly helpless would also be taken care of, because it is in society’s best interest not to have people dying in the streets.
UW sophomore Frank Reiser, a hopeful business major, said the lecture reaffirmed his beliefs about capitalism.
“I pretty much agree with whatever he said; capitalism does give more to the individual, which is definitely a pro for me,” Reiser said.
