Did Capitalism Fail?

I was talking to an Obama supporter yesterday, and asked them simply, "do you understand that Obama is essentially promoting socialism?" They answered yes. I was shocked at their response, and asked if they support the idea of America becoming a communist state. They looked at me, and said "well, capitalism sure didn't work!"

Shock and awe are two words that describe how I feel about this new movement towards socialism. The fact that people actually believe capitalism failed acknowledges that either they are ignorant, or that, as usual, the media has betrayed what we may soon refer to as the "old republic."

Capitalism has not failed. Capitalism and free markets do not fail. They go through peaks and valleys for sure, but they do not fail. The free market produces hard work, accountability, and most of all savings. The power behind the market is the workers, something we never have a shortage of in America. Savings is the true definition of capital. It is what we are left with when we have used all we need for living.

However, thanks to big government, bigger corporations, and most of all, the federal reserve, we have allowed a monetary system to be put in place that creates debt, not capital. It is erronious to call our current system capitalistic. Instead, we have central planning, from a central bank, who control the markets through manipulation. This is not free, and it is exactly why the free market system is not working!

My argument is simple. The failure of the market is due to big government and their insistance on an obviously failed monetary policy. Their solution is bigger government, a bigger central bank (world bank), which, in turn would create bigger corporations and even more control for the current monopolies. More government control, more debt, and a continued decrease in our God given rights and Constitutional freedoms is the end result of this socialist march.

The solution seems simple enough to me.

"Our government has lived beyond its means for decades. We now face a crucial juncture, at which we determine whether to continue down the path of debt, inflation, and government intervention or choose to return to the economics of the free market, which have been ignored for almost a century. Increased debt leads to higher taxes on future generations, while increased inflation diminishes the purchasing power of American families and destroys the dollar. No society has ever been achieved prosperity through indebtedness or inflation, and the United States is no exception. We cannot afford to continue our current policies of monetary expansion and unending bailouts. Unless we return to sound monetary policy, sharply reduce government expenditures, and realize that the government cannot act as a lender of last resort, we will drive our economy to ruin." - Ron Paul