Why We Need Less Of Michael Moore
by Alexander Wissel, Editor in Chief, Investment U
Knock my favorite football team… make fun of my sports jacket… tease me about my hairline… destroy my finance books… have at it. I’ll even give you a pass for making fun of my mother.
But when it comes to capitalism, “it’s on like Donkey Kong.”
And that means you, Michael Moore. His new film, Capitalism: A Love Story, concludes that capitalism is evil.
Time to draw the line at that one.
Capitalism is no more evil than a lion, alligator, shark, or pack of hyenas. These animals are all necessary parts of the food chain, just as corporations are necessary parts of an efficient society. They aren’t evil… they’re the efficient expression of Mother Nature.
Is the outcome always fair? No. Is it always a perfect system? No. Is it “evil?” Absolutely not. This isn’t about good or evil… it’s about profit and earnings.
Survival of the fittest means just that. The fittest and most able survive. The weaker ones do not. Capitalism systematically allows that to happen. It pulls money away from inefficiency (and sometimes stupidity) and puts it in the hands of the smarter folks.
And while there are situations where an unfit organism survives longer than it should (like a male lion without young competition, or a bloated bureaucratic car company like GM), these are the exceptions to the rule. Eventually, nature puts things back in balance.
Not surprisingly, those who complain about capitalism generally find themselves on the side that isn’t smart. But knowledge isn’t static – you can always grow smarter. It’s why we do what we do: helping as many people as possible stay on the smart winning side of the markets.
Moore states that capitalism is evil and you can’t regulate evil. Ironic then, that he’s made a film about it in an attempt to make money from the very thing he rails against – capitalism!
The fact of the matter is that there is no better system that rewards hard work, intelligence and, most importantly, good ideas. These are the things that have improved the living and working conditions for humanity – and will continue to do so.
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11 Responses to “Why We Need Less Of Michael Moore”
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Your comparison of corporations to lions, alligators, sharks, and a pack of hyenas is on point.
This being said, corporations should not be allowed to prey upon human beings, same as lions, ect.
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Just like humans can be evil or at least do evil things, so too can our creations, which as it turns out, includes unregulated markets. Survival of the fittest has little if anything to do with this. If anything, one could argue that the natural balance has been subverted. One thing is for sure, if an asteroid hit the planet (not a comet or meteor, but a bona fide asteroid) I’m pretty sure the CEOs with million dollar bathrooms won’t be among the survivors.
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One additional point could be made: Michael Moore has become rich through capitalism. To my knowledge, he has not dedicated the entire proceeds or copyrights to his books and movies to the public domain. Why is that?
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Capitialism is great as long as it is practiced in “good conscience.” Unruly capitalism without a conscience or concern for fellow human beings is what has fueled the likes of the Michael Moores of the world. Captialism has proven to be immoral in the area of health care as Michael Moores ” Sicko ” so graphically illustrates. I would however subject the “overweight Michael Moores of the world” to a “fat tax” to compensate for those of us who stay lean and healthy!! I know that some liberals may consider that mean, but we do need to be rewarded for making healthy choices!
I have been a self employed business person for 20 years now and private health care for me has been a complete sham and ripoff. I have been blessed with unusually good health so much so that my so called “regular doctor” refuses to even see me anymore because I have not seen him in the last 5 years.
I have paid huge premiums and would have been better off being “self insured” in the long run even after suffering through a broeken leg and two ear surgeries. If people did the right thing we would not need “regulations.” Waiting for the dirty unscrupulous players in the business and investment community to regulate themselves is like asking the fox to guard the henhouse.
My customers get 100% satisfaction and I get no tax payer bail out if I screw up. It should be the same for everone. I want the same healthcare congress enjoys!!
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I enjoy your point of view, although it is a little hard-line. I think Capitalism requires some regulation, but I see it more as a teacher guiding a science fair. Making sure that creativity and brilliance shine with some guidelines that keep the playing field fair without constricting too much freedom and innovation.
This being said, i feel fully justified and illegally watching Michael Moore’s movie online because god forbid some “evil” company gets money through his profit. We all know the stocks this hypocrite keeps.
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“Survival of the fittest means just that. The fittest and most able survive. The weaker ones do not. Capitalism systematically allows that to happen. It pulls money away from inefficiency (and sometimes stupidity) and puts it in the hands of the smarter folks.”
Sorry, but I’m laughing out loud at this one. Where were you when the US government handed out $12.8 trillion to failing banks in order to band-aid a problem that they created?
Sorry, but hyenas, alligators and lions belong in the wild or in a zoo.
I refuse to be a part of their “food chain.”
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“the fit” is a political definition. I chose not to design WMD’s for the US and I get socially punished for making that choice; I doubt that intelligence will overcome long term problems… More intelligence is Enronish than anything else and based on ego and self deception.
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this reads like a post from an exicted, first semester econ student who hasn’t gotten to the “market failures” section.
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ok, this is crazy. what glitters is not necessary good, rather what glitters is almost always a trap. you just cannot equate the homo sapiens (humans) with other species of animals on this planet because humans have a thinking brain which can make us override our animal spirits. if you do not think that we need to override our animal spirits, then please don’t refer to humans as humans but just as another animal. so, you all human animals are just like other animals except you stand on legs and look different. the law of jungle is an animalistic law.
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We need Michael Moore as long as there is a Rush Limbaugh. After all they are mirror images of each other (granted, Moore is a little fatter than Limbaugh). They both use their media positions to advance their extreme views by bending the truth and presenting editorialization as reporting and fact.
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capitalism is aligned with washington, be it dem or rep. as long as we have elected officials being fed by the corps, capitalism is doomed in the long term. the corps ruled the country and their greed resulted in the great depression. just like the banks and wall street ruled the politicains and caused this collapse. mm is pointing out obvious flaws in the system. go for it.
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