How capitalism defeats racism

In her essay “Racism,” Ayn Rand argues that racism — which she describes as “the lowest, most crudely primitive form of collectivism” — is incompatible with capitalism and can only be defeated through capitalism. She defines capitalism as “a social system based on the recognition of individual rights, including property rights, in which all property is privately owned.” She explains that a defense of private property and laissez-faire capitalism is the only way to defeat racism:

Inequality is caused by inflation

Many claim the problem with fractional reserve banking is that it loans money into existence. It does, but under normal circumstances the money created by commercial banks disappears when loans are repaid or defaulted on, which therefore doesn’t create a permanent inflation of the money supply. Government intervention, however, converts temporary money into permanent money through bailouts like the Troubled Asset Relief Program. They purchase loans that would have been defaulted on, preventing the evaporation of credit.

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Russ Lemley works in the financial services industry and lives in southern California.

The problem with ‘work or starve’

Work or starve is a common argument used against free-market capitalism. Proponents of the “work or starve” argument argue that capitalism forces one to work or be forced with the prospect of starvation or destitution. This is a mistaken approach since work or starve is not a feature of capitalism but rather of the world we live in. By conflating positive rights with negative rights, a perverted type of justice is imagined.

Canada’s “Worst Decline in 40 Years”

Canada’s standard of living is on track for its worst decline in 40 years, according to a new study by Canada’s Fraser Institute.

The study compared the three worst periods of decline in Canada in the last 40 years the 1989 recession, the 2008 global financial crisis, and this post-pandemic era.

They found that unlike the previous recessions, Canada is not recovering this time. Something broke.

No exceptions, please!

The American Constitution is far from perfect, but one good feature is that it lacks a provision found in some European constitutions. This provision allows the president to suspend the Constitution if there is a national emergency.

As the theologian David Bentley Hart observes,