Moral + Economic Bankruptcy

The original article can be found here, in it's entirety:

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090323_america_is_in_need_of_a_moral_ba...

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[TheBigHo111]

Capitalism without ethics or morals is pure destruction. I have said this before but capitalism is destined to eat itself. Humanity needs a spark of the modern age. Otherwise we are going to fall pray to the same ill as the past ages... power.

[Bernd1964]

Successful civilizations need a healthy immaterial foundation that promotes social understanding and peace. Exaggerated consumerism is a kind of materialism that compromises the immaterial foundations of a civilization on the long run. Consumerism fosters greed and an overassessment of the significance of money which deforms egos and leads to ecocide. Intelligent civilizations promote reading and thinking, value immaterial competences like philosophy, poetry and poesy. We need a real change.

[Larkinchance]

Considering that I am a liberal, I remember when Ross Perot challenged Clinton and Bush1. About NAFTA, he said, Theyll be a huge sucking sound and that will be out jobs. He was right. It is one more example of our politicians selling out their own constituency to monied interests.

[stratvic]

"Saying its the system takes all responsibility of a person's actions away and transfers them on the system itself."

Not what I am saying at all ... a system is no substitute for ethics. I am saying that eating itself is a feature not a fault.

Capitalism is a term that needs to be defined based on the different understandings and baggage that comes with the term.

Power comes from politics and force not wealth.

[TheBigHo111]

My statement is meaningful. lol

Youre playing semantics. Could you use my comment for something else, sure. Does it make it any less true?... NO.

The system doesn't strip people of assets, people do.

Saying its the system takes all responsibility of a person's actions away and transfers them on the system itself. Essentially subverting personal or societal ethics with no repercussions.

Creating what we have today, economic sociopaths.

[stratvic]

The opposite of consumerism is not "immaterial competences", it is investment in productive capacity and fecundity. You are advocating the exchange of frivolity in material things for intangible frivolities. You might as well be promoting pornography over garden gnomes. Society is better served when its resources are used to increase its productive capacity and capabilities (of the mind inclusive), not when its resources are squandered in frivolous consumption in excess of productivity.

[lktasl999]

where is the quote "Capitalism without ethics or morals is pure destruction" from?

[stratvic]

"Capitalism without ethics or morals is pure destruction."

I don't know how you choose to define capitalism, but is not any social system without good ethics or morals "pure destruction"?

Not to be rude but I think your statement is meaningless.

It is true that capitalism eats itself. It is a profit and loss system (without government). It is part of the system of capitalism to strip assets from those who are unable to put them to work for society productively and give them to those who can.

[truthsleuth]

Nice Work Ella, at giving us a better understanding of how those "elites" are working to bring us all down! We need to hear what you have to share.

I really like all of what you haved shared here. Keep more coming our way too!

[kjack5]

'Casino capitalism'---very good definition, and really describes what seems to be going on!

[angryislander56]

Excellent piece Ella.I like Chris Hedges. He paints

a particularly vivid picture of the corporate type.