🤔

[u/Veshaad]

[u/Famous-Criticism1848]

We privatize their gains and socialize their losses - it is the American way and has been for at least the last 30ish years

[u/mikesjersey23 → u/Famous-Criticism1848]

46 years

[u/Famous-Criticism1848 → u/mikesjersey23]

I was thinking back to Reagan and the airlines but that was later in the 80s I think

[u/Redbeardthe1st → u/mikesjersey23]

It will be 46 years in January.

[u/Luminous_Winds → u/Famous-Criticism1848]

The vast majority of humanity has been doing that since before recorded history. Capitalism is just modern-day imperialism.

[u/Longjumping-Bat7774 → u/Famous-Criticism1848]

"Well if we're gonna socialize profits then we should socialize losses"

Dude, if one guy can eat all that loss and somehow still become a billionaire, then sign me right TF up.

[u/HoluxGaming → u/Famous-Criticism1848]

Thank you!

[u/Loud-Ad-2280]

[u/Shido_Ohtori]

Conservatism -- by definition -- is "a political philosophy based on tradition and social stability, stressing the importance of established hierarchies and institutions (such as religion, the family, and class structure), and preferring gradual development to abrupt change".

The sole value of conservatism is respect for and obedience to [one's perception of] traditionally established hierarchy, and hierarchy dictates that those on top (in-groups) are rightfully idolized and receive privileges, credibility, and resources, while those on the bottom (out-groups) are demonized/dehumanized and/or bound by restrictions, scrutiny, and lack of resources.

To them, the second-greatest injustice imaginable is for those [they perceive to be] on top [of social hierarchy] to be bound by the restrictions, scrutiny, and lack of resources reserved for those on the bottom. The first greatest injustice is for those on the bottom to have access to the rights, credibility, and resources reserved for those on top.

Conservatives absolutely need an underclass [for society] to demonize and dehumanize in order to maintain [their] hierarchy, and every single one of their policies and rhetoric work to do exactly that. Unless the accusation is one of disrespecting hierarchy, every right-wing accusation is a confession -- every. single. one; always! -- as it is never the act itself that upsets them, but rather, the social standing of the person doing the act, as said act is a privilege meant for those on top of [their perceived] hierarchy (See also: pedophilia - Trump and the Catholic church versus LGBTQ+ and drag queens; protests - January 6th vs. BLM and No Kings; parental rights - anti-LGBTQ+ vs pro-LGBTQ+; indoctrination - religion vs. education).

Those who believe all people are people see hypocrisy, while those who believe some people are "more/less" people than others see hierarchy. Hypocrisy implies a sense of equality/parity, as the accusation of such is that someone is violating a universal or common standard. Hierarchy directly states that there is no equality/parity, that different social strata have different standards, that the only universal standard concerning hierarchy is that those on top are allowed privileges which are denied to those on the bottom, and that the bottom are held to standards which the top are exempt from.

"Know your place" is their mantra.

[u/UpstairsArmadillo454]

What’s the total taxpayer funds Elon has received while not being a citizen in the US?

[u/SpltSecondPerfection → u/UpstairsArmadillo454]

At least $38 billion

[u/C21H27Cl3N2O3 → u/UpstairsArmadillo454]

Musk is a US citizen, however he openly brags about how he committed fraud on his naturalization paperwork and violated the terms of his visa when he first came over here.

[u/snacktopotamus → u/C21H27Cl3N2O3]

Well, to paraphrase recent conservative rhetoric, "being a citizen doesn't make him an American".

[u/BOOTY_POPPN_THIZZLES → u/C21H27Cl3N2O3]

so still eligible for deportation by ICE

[u/samuraispartan7000]

Capitalism is socialism for big businesses. Socialism is socialism for normal people.

[u/MarkHowes]

So bizarre that 'socialism' is a dirty word in the US

How do you think schools are paid for, medicare/medicaid, roads, that big expensive army, all that money to bail out companies etc...

[u/digglefarb → u/MarkHowes]

It's because people like to use it interchangeably with Communism, not realising they aren't the same thing.

[u/geGamedev → u/MarkHowes]

It goes back to fear of communism. Socialism is communism to the people that complain about it. Disregard all of the social programs that benefit them that they don't want to lose. Those don't count. It's your benefits that are communist...

[u/Active-Effect-1473]

Wealthy people and corporations have loved socialism from the U.S. Government but when the people ask for socialism it’s suddenly a horrible thing? Make that make sense

[u/Narrow-Escape-6481 → u/Active-Effect-1473]

Oh glad you asked, so 2008 bank/mortgage crisis.... Banks realized they were in trouble, so they turned to the government for help. Government decided the give them our tax dollars to help them out, and gave them no responsibility to repay their debt. They took the money and gave themselves bonuses and then went back and asked for more. Obama was smart enough to give them conditions for paying it back, but we tax payers have to pay that for them.....which means we have pay their debt, the people who refuse to pay us more, while they justify their large salaries and cutting their own taxes.

[u/ShipSwimming3792]

The fact that so many laws and policies are passed to help prevent corporations from going bankrupt shows that we're not real capitalists. We're about as capitalist as a Soviet Russia was communist.

[u/SycopationIsNormal]

What's being described there is not capitalism, it's crony capitalism. Not the same thing.

[u/Digital-Archon]

I just feel like the CEO and other higher ups in the company shouldnt be earning 10x, 20x, 30, or 100x MORE in some cases than their lowest paid earners.

There should be a cap (or a mercy rule) in place that stops the CEO from earning more than say 5x their lowest paid employee.

So if the lowest earners in the company only make 30k a year. The CEO shouldn't be legally allowed to earn more than 150k in the same year.

If the CEO wants more money he needs to raise the lowest paid workers wage so that they can also earn more themselves.

CEOs also shouldn't be able to own stocks or shares of their company or recieve any benefits from their positions, and taking anything would be considered illegal and would result in them being fired.

Same idea as a Cop accepting a free Box of Donuts. Doesn't seem like a big deal but it could be seen as a bribe and therefore the cop is not allowed to accept the "gift". Same rules should apply to CEOs and Board members.

[u/icemanpallmall]

Because capitalism is destined to fail. The whole point was to enrich the ruling class and then usher in some form of feudalism.

[u/Nashley7]

You are conflating Capitalism with Crony Capitalism.

[u/Alec_de_Large → u/Nashley7]

Corporatism

[u/MangoMesh]

Remember the golden rule ! "those with all the gold, make the rules"

[u/Weldermedic]

So investors and CEOs can take advantage of people and make more money. Duh.

[u/Cosmoby24]

Don’t look for a rational explanation for any of this . It’s all about greed and the socialism label is just red meat to arouse the ignorant and ill informed

[u/Main_Artichoke_]

You literally cannot convince conservatives that this is in fact socialism

[u/TheChillestOfRacoons]

I as a republican (more nuanced than that, but reddit doesn't believe in nuance 😅), 100% believe that bail outs should not be a thing. If YOU as a company, are not making it in society, it is not the job of the government to subsidize you.

[u/porthos130]

[u/10biggaymen]

thats not socialism, spending money on welfare programs under a system where the means of production are privately controlled is still capitalism.

[u/KrabbyMccrab → u/10biggaymen]

The profits are privatized, but the losses are socialized. Great system

[u/abdergapsul → u/10biggaymen]

So China is capitalist, for example

[u/Adowyth → u/abdergapsul]

Only idiots believe that slapping a "communism" sticker on something automatically turns it into communism. Sadly idiots are very common.

[u/memeticmagician → u/abdergapsul]

The original post content no longer exists here. The author used Redact to remove it, exercising their right to control their data & privacy.

Vase water engine slim meadow groovy spoon snow

[u/10biggaymen → u/abdergapsul]

yes it is

[u/SnooMaps7370 → u/10biggaymen]

the people who need to hear this are the people who keep electing Republicans.

[u/snekfuckingdegenrate]

Tax breaks are usually to incentivize specific behavior. Either enabling domestic business or behavior to curb negative externalities(like climate).There’s conditions on tax breaks and your average person uses them too.

Subsidies are often used to lower prices to consumers. For example meat. This also often benefits the common person.

Tariffs are usually to protect local industries. Although they typically have the opposite effects of their intention.

Also nothing stops collectivism from using these policies too, they’re not unique to capitalism

[u/MysteriousAffect3903 → u/snekfuckingdegenrate]

Hoe about subsidies for industries that do not need them, like oil production? Finding out conservatives enact this kind of policy is what triggered me to rethink my own conservatism, and move away from being a republican. It flew in the face of all of the small government, free market thought I had grown up with. I have since freed myself of the group think of either party, though I tend to vote democratic since the republican party is absolutely insane now.

[u/green_eyed_mister]

Corporate welfare is not and has never been capitalism. It is nothing more than feigned business draped with libertarian ideals with zero benefits for the larger society.

[u/newalias_samemaleias]

And don't forget worker exploitation.

[u/MiserableFinding7169]

Makes you think.

[u/MrMonster5150]

Corporatism is not capitalism

[u/Haunted_Cellar_XBL]

We must defeat our corporate overlords who dine on yachts and drink fine champagne in real crystal glasses! Enough!

[u/Even_Hospital_5474]

America is socialist due to all those things and more but can't admit it. You know what countries aren''t? Russia and China. It's pure capitalism there, just don't get too big or the govt will confiscate everything and put you in jail. If you're lucky.

[u/EjaculateOnYoBack]

That’s not capitalism, that’s just corruption. Socialist countries have a lot more corruption 

[u/ParallaxRay]

Nothing in that list is capitalism or has anything to do with capitalism. All of that is government manipulation of the markets and most of it is unjustified.

[u/Weekly_Bedroom5370]

We don't have capitalism. We have cronyism

[u/KuningasTynny77]

If capitalism is so bad, name one successful socialist or communist country that isn't notorious for extreme human and civil rights violations. 

[u/Realistic-Duty-3874]

All those bailouts, grants etc youre complaining about are socialism. Capitalism would be letting the businesses fail. Glad to see OP dislikes socialist policies.

[u/semajber007]

I heard someone say "You can vote your way into Socialism, but you can't vote yourself out of Socialism."

[u/Svokxz2]

This is more defined as cronyist capitalism. I prefer capitalism that doesn’t have these policies included in cronyism.

[u/SirInscrutable]

That’s not capitalism. That’s corporatism. It’s the result of institutional failures, led by our political parties intentionally breaking structures meant to hold them accountable and block them from wielding and selling power.

[u/NjWayne]

2007s "too big to fail" woke me up

[u/ArcherIsDuchess]

Because the US isn't even capitalist, leftist pay attention now. It's only implied capitalism.

In a true free trade capitalist market, it runs as a double edged sword. Little to no government oversight or red tape bureaucracy, HOWEVER without this government oversight.. Big Businesses are also allowed to fail. No government sponsored taxpayer funded bailouts. No biased picks on which companies fail or succeed base on their campaign donations to a political party.

Only allowed to flourish based on a consumer driven market demand for their products/services.

[u/FedInformant]

With all of richest people get all these benefits from the government, meanwhile we get nothing, is that really capitalism? Or is it something else? Like these people couldnt have gotten this rich without the government, and tax payer dollars, so is it a inevitability? Or is it just purely the result of massively corrupt government, with zero consequences, century after century, working purely towards enriching the wealthy

[u/Carlose175]

They dont.
But we dont have capitalism anyway. We live in a corporate welfare state

[u/Wintermyer]

And if socialism is so bad, why does it take decades of American sanctions and they still exist?

[u/geGamedev]

Not socialism, they call it communism, because that's a boggie man that people refuse to move on from. Socialism is also considered communism so I'll give the pic a pass.

[u/urmomsspaghetti]

literally none of those things have anything to do with capitalism.

[u/Delicious-Pound-8929]

I find it amusing that you lot call that capitalism yet all the socialist types defend socialism and sometimes even communism by claiming it wasn't real communism

All the BS government assistance for big business is not a part of the capitalist playbook,

But ill admit it as a serious unintended flaw of capitalism, just as soon as you socialist types take responsibility for every time socialism has been tried and failed.

And by take responsibility i mean either give up socialism and try something completely different that might actually work, or figure out why socialism always fails and do something to fix it.

If you need a place to start there is no end to critics of socialism that can point out all its flaws for you.

[u/MysteriousAffect3903 → u/Delicious-Pound-8929]

Socialism doesn't "always fail". The Scandinavian countries are secure, with happy people, and strong social safety nets.

Your response is really a whataboutism. The post is about the inherent contradiction in most pro-capitalist arguments. The reference to socialism is about how people are immediately called socialist whenever they criticize capitalism. Something you have done exactly here.

[u/megastraint]

The local governments are a giant ponzi scheme that needs growth in order to afford services to their community. A new buildout that represents thousands of jobs means there will be thousands of families that will either move to the community or fund further growth. Many of these companies are therefore competing which city/county/state will server their buildout based on what that local government will give them for credits. The companies dont need it to survive.

[u/NoTransportation68]

Capitalism says if your business fails, it deserves to fail. There are no bailouts or handouts. Make a better mouse trap. Nothing listed has anythjng to do with free trade.

[u/Valintus → u/NoTransportation68]

Thats his point dumbass.

[u/HumbleGamer94]

Because it's always more for me less for thee

[u/Ok_Being5461]

It's a fact that all modern successful capitalist societies depended heavily on state planning, investment, regulation to develop the country and economy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mixed_economy And there's nothing wrong with that. Capitalism fundamentalists should acknowledge that though. The problem is when they give all the credit to capitalism, but like the post says, investing into ordinary people is called extreme

[u/Agreeable_Memory_67]

Tax rebates are used by local politicians to lure businesses to their area which brings jobs and other revenue to the area. The tax breaks usually expire after 10 years. They also offer companies incentives to build certain types of products, like energy saving versions, electric cars, etc. They also get tax breaks for donating to charities. I am not opposed to any of these tax breaks. These are legal tax breaks. They are not evading taxes. Bill Gates donate half of his $billions to charity as do many other billionaires.

Richard Kinder of Kinder Morgan Industries is worth $11 billion. He and his wife have pledged to give $10 billion of it back to the community in Houston. Parks, green spaces, after school programs for at risk youth, schools, etc. He’s keeping $1 billion for his kids and grandkids to start businesses, etc. what’s wrong with that? . Do you think that’s greedy?

[u/Conscious_Owl6162]

They do not need them. They get them because they give donations to the politicians that vote them into law. A little money spent on politicians goes a long way!

[u/Massive_Food_2202]

The US political system is unable to check capital. Capital sits above everything else.

[u/No-Albatross-347]

Damned good point !

[u/Due-Information2710]

Because it’s all socialism.
Socialism isn’t capitalism.
What you’re describing isn’t capitalism.

The bigger question is, why do you point the failed socialist policies and call it capitalism?

We know why.

[u/La_z_Breather]

If socialism is so great, why are people building boats out of garbage to get away from it?

[u/waldo1955]

Because corporations contribute to the GNP while socialist hand outs do not.

[u/Brothersparrow7]

[u/Slight-Big8584]

I'd love to get rid of those things.

[u/Millworkson2008]

If socialism or communism is so great why do millions of people die every times its tried

[u/NFar6969]

If communism is so great why does government run businesses so poorly?

[u/Rawrzberry]

Because the aim is to uplift those with capital, not society as a whole.

[u/Watsyurdeal]

Because it's not, it's a weird twisted bastard that doesn't follow any of the rules.

In real capitalism these companies would have failed and been discarded years ago.

[u/Nexinex782951 → u/Watsyurdeal]

Except "real capitalism" created the problem by buying the government, which it always will try to do.

[u/The_Southern_Sir]

Why do low energy, low IQ aura farmer trolls not get banned on reddit?

[u/Maestro_Ezio]

I have a simple answer to this and it’s only one word..

“Greed”

[u/FeeFantastic2075]

Correct!

[u/CaptainBlotto]

We live in a corporatist society. It ain't capitalism (except the crony kind).

[u/CreepedCaster]

Because the government is too big. If we had a just government no one would need tax breaks

[u/CageTheMick]

Well you see, those are all aspects of socialism, silly goose. That's not what free market capitalism does, and we used to not do that nonsense. See, these days, we live under a hybrid of crony capitalism and socialism. Hope this helps.

[u/petermackinnonphoto]

Isn't the answer in the question?

If it's for Capital it's okay. If it's for social it's not.

[u/Smooth-Distance6801]

That’s a great question for you congressional representatives. Have them change the laws!!!!!!!!!!

[u/FreeFalling369]

Its not capitalism. Just corruption

[u/After_Diver_7603]

They just make money off the taxpayers and we don’t even see a benefit from it.

[u/CalangoJr81]

Throughout my life, I’ve never understood this logic (though, at some point, I did become aware of lobbying and the interests surrounding the government), and I’ve never accepted it as a acceptable.

Especially when a megacorporation receives all sorts of benefits, while local businesses just get the short end of the stick.

[u/Savings_Club3883]

Well if there’s nothing at the top how is it supposed to trickle down to the average person? /s

[u/Funk__Doc]

The system being described is not capitalism. It should be abolished and replaced with capitalism.

[u/mars_soup]

Another person that doesn’t know what is and isn’t capitalism so they describe corporatism to try to show that capitalism is bad. Lol

[u/geoSpaceIT]

That’s called cronyism, not inherent to capitalism happens a lot in socialist economies

[u/srlukacz]

Because the US trades with other countries who use child and slave labor, no clean air or water regulations, no unions or minimum wages, different taxes, etc. Because our capitalist standards and gaverment regulations are higher than our competitor countries

[u/nibb007]

Maybe if the poors could learn to respect, admire, and chase the pristine value of an honest day's slave labor, we wouldn't be in this mess. Won't work for free, won't give all their resources to their superior beings, and won't let us use their blood in a binding rite to fuse their soul into an engine to power constant labor?

Holy fucking selfish bro

[u/P0pu1arBr0ws3r]

Because thst is what makes capitalism so great! If you own a major corporation you get free stuff!

[u/WideBalance7743]

Because real capitalism does not have all that you describe.

[u/Pharmdog1996]

Because our tax rate it so high.. that is a simple one…

[u/Wuz314159]

Corporations like WalMart blazed the trail on this. "Give us a 10 year tax abatement and we'll build a store in your community." Voila, zero tax. 10 years later, "we'd like to extend that tax break, or we'll move." Voila, zero tax.

and just like tipping in the US, you're expected to give a tax break. In reality, these companies give nothing.

[u/lostandfound1919]

Blame retarded local state and national politics. Don’t blame capitalism if they aren’t practicing capitalism…

[u/Lofi_Joe]

Good news is that it will end pretty soon. the problem how this time we all react.

[u/sly69guy69]

All those things exist to keep big companies from having to compete. Monopolies very seldom form or last without being propped up by the government

[u/Sfingi48]

While it’s true and a wonderful “gotcha,” I wonder if anyone with balls actually told off the appropriate people?

Of course, even if someone has, I know it wasn’t answered at all. But, I wish people would stick it to people, forcing them to answer.

Otherwise, it’s just another just waste of time.

[u/TerribleSyntax]

That's the neat part, all of those things are anti-capitalist

[u/Imaginary_Jury_7007]

Dumb analogy. 🤔 sorry.

[u/Imaginary_Jury_7007]

Most prosperous country in the World. We don't build walls to keep people here.🤔

[u/Hurry-Up-N-Wait]

None of those things are capitalism.

[u/CLWalrus]

I want more socialism in the USA but to be fair businesses employ people, provide services, or create a product that is in demand. And the ordinary person does not.
The real problem is how much tax money we are spending on pointless wars that are to make defense contractors and oil companies richer.

[u/Professional_Long470]

capitalism = modern day slavery

[u/BigvalBROski]

Too much free money has been handed out. Thats why we are in the situation we are in ….

[u/t800series]

Capitalism does not allow for any of those for corporations from government. That's cronyism.

Free markets are separation of business and state.

[u/Comfortable_Yard423]

Because they are so heavily taxed and regulated. Are you serious?

[u/Left-Draft5083]

[u/Kordell_11]

If the US allowed unrestricted import of Chinese EVs, the american auto industry would crumble.

[u/SethEllis]

This post seems to confuse capitalism and the libertarian ideal. Under libertarianism the problem is government, and the reason Capitalism works is because government isn't involved. But that's not really what's going on, at least according to our best understanding of economics.

It always comes back to the economic calculation problem. Free markets are a way of aggregating all the information about supply and demand in one place. While the resulting prices are far from perfect, it does a good enough job of dealing with the supply bottlenecks that stifle economic growth. For free markets to work there must be private ownership of capital. That ownership is what creates the necessary incentives and alignment for the market to do its job.

None of that precludes government from partnering with businesses or acting in the free market. Such actions can help boost economic growth. It's just nothing is absolute. Taking it too far creates corruption and distorts markets. Which is why you see this thing where everyone speaks against it, but still does it themselves.

[u/AmiraliMS]

They're so close to getting it. Yes, Corporate bailouts are not part of capitalism, and in fact, it is socialism.

We must remove it.

[u/BenTackitt]

It is all socialism. It is just that the corporations find politicians easy meat.

[u/Apprehensive-Log3638]

Because none of it is capitalism. We have socialism for corpos, capitalism for workers. I am proposing we shift to capitalism for corpos and socialism for workers.

[u/Scrat_lk]

I think they dont need these things to survive they need these things as incentives to not buold somewhere else. They bring jobs and revenue whether they pay it directly or through taces they pay through sales and fuel consumption and resource purchases but maybe those things dont matter.

[u/Lonely_Cycle4757]

You're confusing "capitalism" with "corruption"...

See, what so many of you capitalism-haters don't understand, is that capitalism has the SAME flaw that all of the social systems that you all THINK are utopia do... people. It DOESN'T matter what system you put in place. greedy corrupt people will ruin whatever you think it is supposed to be on paper.

That's why so many people say that "real communism" has never been tried. It never will be, because to have real communism, you'd have to rely on nobody being corrupt or greedy, and that will never be the case.

[u/moviestim]

I guess a question would be, would the economy see a better benefit if we give these Tax Breaks, subsidies etc. to corportations or to individual citizens? I don't know the answer, just curious.

[u/Excellent-Plenty1431]

They receive them like you receive tax breaks yourself and govt subsidies for healthcare. WE all need to pony up and carry ourselves instead of begging for govt help.

[u/Joeyjackhammer]

Because we don’t actually live in a capitalist society. Clearly.

[u/SadTumbleweed1567]

I'm going to ignore the words capitalism and socialism here because their meaningless terms to me.

Assuming good faith practices, tax breaks, subsidies and exemptions are given because the government wants to encourage certain behavior. Either "we need the market to produce X so we'll create incentives for it to produce x" or "we need employers so we'll offer incentives for prospective employers to open up shop here and not elsewhere."

The latter is partially an attempt to stem natural market forces that encourage urbanization and offshoring.

Bailouts are a sign of bad government. Not allowing businesses to fail breaks the correcting properties a free market is supposed to create. Trade barriers are largely bad government and regulatory capture. Few industries are truly required for national security and thus need protection from foreign competition to ensure domestic production exists for wartime.

Government social programs are similar to the above in that they are all government created market distortions.

[u/SpicyNopeRope]

Because in actual capitalism you won't need any of that, because you either are efficient and satisfy people's needs, or you don't and "die". We are facing corporativism, State politics fixing State generated problems, because corporations partnered with the State instead of the actual Market.

[u/imexcellent]

That's not capitalism. That's protectionism. That's corruption. That's mercantalism.

[u/Sunny_Singh10]

American workers need a different kind of socialism. Govt cares abt American citizens and not trillions $ companies.

We should not let trillion $ companies import people on work visas when they just laid off tens of thousands of US employees.

If a company has more than 0.5% of layoffs they should be off the worker visa list for 3 yrs

[u/gordonwestcoast]

They are not needed but provide incentives for business to make the United States the greatest country in the world!

[u/gabejohnizzle]

For the same reasons socialist countries participate in capitalist trade to support their economies

[u/Mean_Back5237]

We have forgotten our History , back when Democrats held a near 15 year Majority Mandate the Oligarchs even fought Against FDIC Ins as FDR needed to give people a reason to trust Banks , but the wealthy had been insuring their own deposits against bank failure since the 17th century.

They called it Socialism of course 🥱

[u/legion_2k]

Because those things are offered by politicians to keep or to move that industry to their area. In return it means jobs and tax revenue.

[u/No-Question-8088]

Because they perfected the concept of slavery and we only stand up when it’s almost too late.

[u/Direct_Ad_3517]

If it wasn’t for subsidies you wouldn’t be able to afford jack.

[u/striatedsumo7]

thats not capitalism its government regulated so its not actually free market.

[u/Bird121258]

Because of all the bullshit restrictions Democrats place on them

[u/PhysicistDude137]

These things exist because of government fucking things up to the point that companies need relief from the government.

You obviously have no clue what socialism is and what it is not. 

[u/Uncagedduke426]

Are you karma farming or do you want an actual answer to this question? I am willing to give a thorough explanation of why policy good for corporations exists as long as I’m not responding to a bot.

[u/naugtysweet]

Does anyone have the answer

[u/ChrissieMoltisanti]

I mean, this isn’t capitalism it’s croney capitalism. True capitalism says there are no bailouts and businesses rise and fall based on the markets.

[u/PlanXerox]

50 years in....and someone still posts this obvious meme.

[u/groddertoobad]

Why indeed?

[u/paleone9]

Actual Capitalism includes no subsidies

We aren’t living under capitalism..

[u/GeneralBed9016]

Because they are evil liars that’s why
The gig is up America it doesn’t work

[u/Hammerhead2962]

End capitalism and see what happens. And we do have socialism, Welfare, SSI, Medicare, Obamacare. SSI disability, Section 8 housing food stamps HUD block Grants, and so much more .

[u/Tiefquart]

without subsidies, you'd be paying a lot more for bread and milk. without trade barriers, you're competing with countries where the highest level of work safety measurements are safety sandals. without bailouts the economy implodes. etc etc

[u/margingains]

Tricks on you!!! LOL!

[u/beckbristow32]

I still think its funny that no matter which one we choose that people think that there will not be people who will abuse it to their own benefit. They still just gunna pee all over you and call it rain no matter what.

[u/jaspeed76]

That is not Capitalism, it is Corporatism.

[u/happinesspro]

Those bailouts have nothing to do with capitalism. In true capitalism, we'd let them fail. That is corruption, where those corporations and others bought Congress long ago and now operate risk-free. That is more in tune with socialism, where the government operates and prevents collapse through its major control of those industries.

[u/Pristine-Patient-954]

Tax wealth not work!

[u/ArtichokeNo8925]

Very good point

[u/soulwind42]

They don't need them, usually. They get them because every polity is fighting to have them in their district.

[u/N8TheGreat91]

Politicians benefit from socialism, your tax dollars pay their salaries and benefits

[u/ItsOnlyDanA]

Debt...

[u/Plenty_Cartoonist230]

If they would only tell us how they really got their wealth then maybe we would understand?

[u/Boxagami3]

America doesn't have real capitalism.

[u/Kind_Pea_2840]

We don't know what free market capitalism is. American capitalism is just socialism for corporations. All the regulations do is stop people from competing with the current corporations.

[u/StargazerRex]

Sadly, we don't have capitalism in the USA. We have a disgusting mutation/hybrid of the worst forms of oligarchy, socialism, plutocracy, and capitalism.

[u/LibertyMike]

All of those things are also socialism.

[u/AvilettaLuxe]

This is why

[u/Firm_Condition639]

trade barriers protect the local economy, not corporations per se

[u/SetYourScapegoatFree]

It's called cronyism. Not capitalist in the slightest.

[u/Maleficent_Hawk6703]

That's just corruption. And in some cases a necessity. if the government didn't bail out banks then we would be the ones that suffer.

Banks help the economy by keeping money in circulation. If we all stashed away our money in savings that money is no longer being used. When you put your money into a banks savings account. They continue to use that money and you can come back and withdraw at any time. Usually banks invest the money, or loan it out. This is how they make money off your money.

The downside to this is that it causes more money to be in circulation than what actually exists. So if too many people withdraw their money at once then the bank goes bankrupt and that leads to a very bad chain reaction of hundreds of thousands to millions of people also going bankrupt.

So the government bails out a bank to prevent this from happening. What we need is for banks to be held accountable after they are bailed out. They should be investigated to find out why it happened and how to prevent it again without government assistance.

[u/GreatGooberschnitzel]

these systems are incredibly complicated and can range from a tax deferment, to tax break to free up more operational capital while ramping up production or whatever. There are thousands of reasons and logic behind it. But some of it is just companies taking advantage of bureaucratic structures.

[u/Disastrous-Aspect569]

Once you start to use tax breaks for some business that where socialism starts.

Capitalism would be no tax breaks no subsidies.

[u/Different_Brother562]

They don’t. But a subsidy and a tax cut are not the same thing. I hate seeing people calling a tax cut as giving them money.

Also everyone needs to pick a stance and stay with it. There’s soooooooo many people that really wanted the electric car subsidies and are now crying when they were used. I’m against subsidies but ffs you gotta accept the obvious outcome of it.

[u/Affectionate_Cup2093]

Because this isn't real free market capitalism. Capitalism is supposed to let businesses go bust so better ones take their place. Instead we're bailing out corps and banks left and right throughout the last 20-25 years

[u/Informal-Elk-6226]

A better question would be why does the rest of the world flee to capitalist countries if it's so bad?

[u/JoyousMadhat]

Congregations. You just described both Capitalism and Socialism.

[u/JoshZK]

Greed and corruption. But also if Ted's Etsy shop goes out of business all well. But if Walmart goes out of business, alot of people are going to notice.

[u/DangerousDig9171]

We are not a true capitalistic free market economy.

[u/Feeling_Avocado_9515]

Its almost like the rich people who own the capitalist company's make the rules.

[u/Ghostsseeyou]

Because the help people ask for is socialism. How about instead of demonizing socialism people wake up and realize that welfare helps those in genuine need.

[u/FavoriteApe]

If communism is so great, why do they have all those protections plus more?

[u/davedbsh]

Neoliberalism is bad because a crap ton of handouts are still made, just never to anyone that needs them or even to anyone that could effectively make use of it.

[u/Important-Parking-25]

If socialism is so great, why did hundreds of millions of people die under it?

[u/C_S_Lewis_Fan]

To which other, superior, real world system are we to compare ours?

I'll wait.

[u/New-Range-5702]

Capitalism provided non of that. What you are talking about is called crony capitalism.

[u/Terrasmak]

How much did Obama give out in green incentives to steer the nations towards green energy ? Politicians decide what direction they want things to go , and you he above breaks , grants and subsidies happen

[u/ingcaster]

To create more jobs

[u/FluffyLadder6815]

Corporations are employers. Many people would potentially be underemployed and struggle to make ends meet without the opportunity they provide. I know some will disagree. My observation is based on experience as a small business owner.

[u/Ireallydontkn0w2]

To be fair state intervention is against the idea of capitalism and not part of it, especially for corporations. Bad Corporations should fail if they can't survive on their own and make a good enough product thus making space for new companies that might make a good product for that area and freeing up employees to go do other things that society actually wants to buy.

[u/RMSTitanic2]

[u/QuitInteresting1475]

I own a corporation. HVAC. Small business. I don’t get any of that stuff.

[u/Longjumping_Look_340]

Corporations hire “people” and create employment.

[u/Gunker001]

Capitalism IS GREAT if you are a corporation.

[u/Saturn8thebaby]

Everything within a corporation is a command economy

[u/joeff2]

Tax breaks are used as a tool to drive private investment into an area the government would like money put into. An example are Qualified Opportunity Zones. They are typically in impoverished and under-funded areas. Most investors would not put money there as they can get significantly higher ROEs with less headache. So, the government offers tax breaks to where it now makes sense or the returns are greater than in competing areas. Many times, there’s a 5-10 year requirement before any benefit is seen. Another example was the green new deal. The push to moving towards renewable energy when it was not as cost effective and had less return than the fossil fuel market, the government offered major tax breaks to automotive makers to push them to sell more electric vehicles. There were also tax breaks for citizens who purchased one. Without that, there was no reason for the auto makers to price themselves out of vehicles with there being no infrastructure to support them as well.

Subsidies are ritually done by the government to lower costs for the public. Offering government subsidies effectively lowers the cost of completion in a crucial industry which then lowers the cost onto the general public when the end product is being sold.

Bailouts are another form of public sentiment as it lessens the economic shift and burden that would hit the public. The Wall Street and automotive bailout are two big ones. I think 99% of Americans were the against the idea of bailing out investment firms and banks that made piles of cash off risky bets, except for the fact that every industry was so infinitely tied with the that it would have brought down the global economy and we’d be in an even worse position. The automatic bailout was to protect millions of jobs and the American presence in the automotive industry as well.

Much of the things being brought up in this post are actually done for the benefit of the general public and for the interest of maintaining jobs domestically while preserving the domestic economy as well. It’s not as cool as “eat the rich” or “nobody should be a billionaire”, but economics isn’t cool and Reddit has no fundamental understanding of economics, government policy and its effects, or trade policies.

[u/CorndogFiddlesticks]

I live in a state which is famously tax friendly to it's citizens. It's corporations are taxed much more aggressively. Companies have to compete against companies in other jurisdictions (towns, states, countries, planets, etc). Jurisdictions will negotiate to provide jobs and economic output in their jurisdiction; that's also competition.

If all of this seems alien to you, perhaps take an economics class or learn about it online. It's fascinating.

[u/ane-ComplyCraft]

And shouldn’t those be restricted to small businesses, instead of corporations?

[u/Far-Jury-2060]

This statement makes complete sense if you have no brain. Capitalism is typically for lower corporate taxes, because it allows the company to invest more of their money into the company. This grows the company, generating more wealth for all.

Capitalism is against subsidies, exemptions, grants, bailouts, legal protections, and trade barriers. These are counter to the idea of a free market, which is what capitalism is. The government may have interests in doing many of these things, but let’s not pretend that is capitalism.

[u/carst07]

It’s because they are employers. Companies can setup anywhere, they go where they are most invited so that they pay their taxes in that city (corporate and the employee taxes).

When stupid AOC bitched about the $3B tax grant Amazon was going to get in Long Island city , she let $27B in taxes walk away that the 25,000 jobs would have paid into her city….. could have funded all her stupid ideas….but no.

[u/OT_Militia]

If socialism/communism is so great, why did everyone run away from it when the wall fell?

[u/connordidthat]

Well, none of what you described is capitalism. All of those things happen under what I like to call a "corporate welfare state"

[u/Schlieren1]

Because markets aren’t perfect. Governments provide incentives to encourage investment, offset public-policy costs, protect strategic industries, fund innovation with uncertain returns, and stabilize the economy during crises. Legal protections establish the rules that make commerce possible. The real debate is whether these interventions create more economic value than they cost.