Re: Capitalists and coercion.

From: Dehede011@aol.com
Date: Wed Oct 04 2000 - 13:50:02 MDT


In a message dated 10/4/00 11:32:17 AM Pacific Daylight Time,
talon57@well.com writes:

<< The fact that some may try to defend what they are doing by calling
 it capitalism is simply inaccurate. I am a capitalist, I am also a Union
electrician, incompatible with your statement above. Brian >>

Brian,
    I think you have to distinguish between Capitalism at the Macro level and
at the level of the individual businessman.
    In a capitalist society with a capitalist government no one except the
government is allowed to initiate the use of force and that against only the
invader and the criminal after due process.
    But nothing in that process says that the individual businessman has to
be a capitalist in personal philosophy. That individual could possibly be
member of a number of personal philosophies but if they can not get away with
using force, coercion or deceit the only tools left to them is free trade.
    Personally I have worked for individual businessmen that were complete
scoundrels personally but could not effectively get away with that behavior
given our laws and courts. He made a business of contracting for work and
his best workers knowing him would demand, and got, pay in advance before
they would go to the job. The man was still operating as a capitalist even
though he really didn't want to - he couldn't get away with anything else.
Ron H.



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