Capitalism has a very shaky reputation, particularly in the modern age with socialist economies taking over much of Europe. However, there is still a strong voice in support of this economic system, despite its apparent social and moral complications. However, some of the loudest supporters of capitalism are capitalists who directly benefit from the cheap labor that they employ. If we ever want to reform this economic system, we must understand a basic principle, the wealthy Americans in our nation will fight with every dollar in their offshore bank account to ensure that they are able to continue to get rich off the backs of working Americans. 

One of the most famous capitalists of the modern age is billionaire investor Warren Buffet. As of the time of this writing, Buffet has a net worth of over $100 billion, (1) according to CNBC. Buffet currently ranks in the Top 10 richest people on Earth. In a recent meeting, Buffet gave his remarks on capitalism. He said, “capitalism has worked incredibly well, especially for the capitalists. … The world can change in very, very dramatic ways” (2). However, this is not the first time Buffet has given positive remarks for capitalism. In early 2020, he gave strong support for the economic system. But he also mentioned that capitalism doesn’t help those struggling in society. He stated in February of 2020, “We ought to do better by the people that get left behind by our capitalist system…I don’t think we should kill the capitalist system in the process” (3). Despite Buffet’s claims that we should ensure capitalism works for the weakest of society, his huge accumulation of wealth seems to suggest that someone else should help, not him. 

Capitalism is impossible to fix. 

While this may seem pessimistic, there is sound logic to the statement I just made. The systems in place, political, social, and economic, are all controlled by wealthy Americans. From our social media sites to our banks, to our technology to the required textbooks we have to buy from greedy private education companies that gouge students because the textbooks are required. All these systems are controlled by wealthy, greedy individuals, corporations, or corrupt politicians who take money from such entities. We all benefit from capitalism, and even the lowest middle-class people benefit from the cheap goods we are able to produce through cheap labor that save them from slipping into poverty. Despite this, capitalism is deeply flawed, and those who benefit from the system, including ourselves, will find it difficult to remodel a system that gave us the most advanced technology directly at our fingertips. 

I will conclude by mentioning a gory but extremely important social commentary movie titled “The Platform.” This movie is a social, political, and economic commentary that condemns capitalism and man’s greed. In short, there are prisoners who live in a vertical building, and food is brought down once a day, floor by floor. At the top, there is plenty of food, enough for everyone. However, because of everyone’s greed, the food is finished, and people die of starvation. Despite attempts to ration, violence still occurs.  Although this movie is extremely violent, with scenes depicting murder and cannibalism, it is an extremely thought provoking social commentary. This movie shows that although people understood the system was broken and they must ration, they were unable to show mercy to the levels below because when they were below, they were not shown any mercy.

As we look for ways to alleviate the pains capitalism has caused, let us ignore the fake attempts of socialist politicians to seem populists. Politicians are corrupt, and even the ones that seem to only take small donations, still live luxurious lives while everyone else suffers. Capitalism is not perfect, however, I fear increasing government regulations and creating a socialist economy may cause inequality just as we have seen in capitalism. It is only through radical social change that we can truly upend and improve the system. Know this, you with your iPhone, Starbucks cup, driving your car to school: You contribute to capitalism (not to mention global warming). We are all the problem. Not just Jeff Bezos, or Elon Musk, no, we all contribute to these issues.   

1. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/19/how-warren-buffett-spends-his-billions.html

2. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/01/berkshire-hathaway-meeting-live-updates.html

3. https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/warren-buffett-agree-bernie-sanders-capitalism-regulation-socialism-election-vote-2020-2-1028932198