7.  IS CAPITALISM AT FAULT FOR THE CURRENT FINANCIAL DEBACLE?
    by Ragnar Danneskjold 
    Special to TLE

I have been reading stories in the mainstream media, blaming capitalism for
the current market woes. It's the greedy capitalists, they say, that are
responsible for the faltering economy. "The bottom line is the only
thing those capitalists think about, without any consideration for the
long-term economic outlook, employees, or social welfare", says one
reporter. "Capitalism gives the executives of companies such as Global
Crossing, Enron, and WorldCom incentives to cook the books", states
another.

True, executives pay attention to the bottom line. That's their job. And
some of them commit fraud by cooking the books. But why indict capitalism?
That's like blaming gun manufacturers for violent crimes. Oh, but wait.
That's the whole point. We like to blame everything or anything other than
the individual. The first thing the mainstream media does is blame
everything else, and the individual is a side-story, an unimportant
tangent.

The devil made them do it or, rather, the capitalist system. Why blame the
executives when they are just pawns of capitalism, doing what capitalism
tells them to do? Why put all the blame on the murderer for the murder,
when there are larger social issues involved? Why blame anyone for
anything?

When we play such blame games, we diffuse the issues. We make the subject
irreconcilable. If there is no one person to blame, but many, or even a
whole system, or society as a whole, why blame anyone? Our attention is
diverted. The issue is diffused to the point of irrelevancy.

Rational people should understand that responsibility must rest on the
person pressing the trigger, or the accountant signing a financial
statement knowing it is false, or the executive who looks the other way.
Fraud is fraud under capitalism, socialism, communism, fascism, or any
other economic or political system. The real issue, therefore, is fraud,
committed by unscrupulous executives. And they must be punished. It's as
simple as that. There is no need to look anywhere else to complicate
matters. Sure, the reporters and columnists like complication. Who wants to
write a boring story centering on another instance of fraud. Let's spice it
up, make it look like there's a problem with the entire system or society
as a whole. Nationalize or globalize it. That's the ticket. Confuse
everyone and muddle the issues.

In reality, however, all we have are a bunch of people who thought they
could get away with cheating. They are no different than credit card
fraudsters or pick-pockets. Sometimes the simple answer is the correct
answer, even if it does not sell as many newspapers or magazines.

Capitalism is a system that allows people to pursue life, liberty, and
property. Blaming this system for the acts of duplicitous executives is an
insult to all business people everywhere. I am a capitalist, but I do not
cheat people. Do you?
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Ragnar Danneskjold is Editor-in-Chief at  and
Reporter/Editor at http://PlanetGold.com>

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