Even a Time Finance Columnist Is Now Questioning American Capitalism

[bhikkhu]

8. "American capitalism" is more a predicament of political ideology

applied to economics, where the modern application of "neoliberalism" bends to the idea of free, self-regulating markets (the transition of regulatory power from government authority to corporate authority as the WTO, TPP and TTIP provide for), a low-tax government austerity condition, and deregulation. The general idea being the markets should be left alone, and government should be small and uninvolved, and then things will be fine.

Historically, I don't know how any economist avoids seeing how previous examples of this led to regular booms and crashes, and miserable working conditions. We have always lived in some form of economic capitalism, it can't really be replaced as it is a part of human nature, but the basic effect of capitalism is to concentrate wealth. The basic role of government is to balance that concentration, through tax policies and social programs.

Governments that regulate capitalism effectively lead to prosperous and reasonably equal societies. The republicans are so far on the wrong side of the equation its absurd, but the "cognitive capture" noted in the OP seems to lead to a whole generation of ordinary people, voters and economists and Democratic leaders, bending toward the wrong side, unable to effectively comprehend the basic role of government in this problem...which is about what most people have been saying here for years.