Capitalism… Forever

Published in El Universal
(Venezuela) on 15 June 2009
by Saul Godoy Gómez (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Guilherme Serôdio. Edited by Robin Silberman.
The satisfaction that Chavez and our endogenous communists feel, viewing the difficulties of the U.S. financial crisis, can’t be disguised. It’s a delight, the celebration of how the state, by the hands of Bush’s and now Obama’s government, had to intervene in banks, nationalize insurance companies and lend the nation’s money to the automakers and other financial institutions. This violates, according to our domestic communists, the first commandment of the capitalist system: the state should not intervene in the free market. The first thing I must say is that, yes, there is a serious financial crisis originally born in Wall Street that affects not only the U.S. national economy, but its entire sphere. Venezuela (armored against this global crisis, according to Chavez) is included, clearly showing something as fundamental as the fact that the U.S. is our main client, paying us in dollars for our oil and, on top of that, is our primary provider of goods and services.

Is the spiritual poverty of the Chavistas (Chavez supporters) such that they will use this crisis as an opportunity to preach the fictitious kindness of socialism? They are appointing Chavez as a wizard, since he, for decades predicted that this would happen, and due to his sagacity our reserves are safe… Again, pure tales. To begin with, capitalism has been and is still an imperfect economic system; it has never boasted a supposed infallibility like communism does. In fact, the economic crises are its bread and water, making it grow, improve and not make the same mistakes. Problems don’t scare the capitalists. Indeed, they look for them, face and master them, because capitalism is praxis, action, movement, continuous creation: it’s life.

An average economist studies the innumerous crises of capitalism, each caused by different problems coming from monetary issues, markets, abilities, finances, production, prices, values, etc. Each aspect of the market practice has been tested and it has advanced to improve its functioning; to prove its principles, controls and liberties. With each market crisis the system re-strengthens and grows more reliable because the system is relying in trust, in constant change and in creativity.

The economy in the capitalist system always tends toward equilibrium, but it never achieves it. The most it can aim for is a precarious balancing where numerous forces - spiritual and material, act. When that balance is lost, all the parts of the system immediately start reacting: creating gains for some and losses for others. Opportunities arise and bankruptcies happen, and, when that imbalance is too big there is always space for state intervention. This is not to end the capitalist game, but only to recover it and restore its tone. This idea is particularly incomprehensible for those who only regard a state intervention as an end to liberties, productivity and gains. Chavez will never understand that the state is at the service of the society and the commonwealth, and that in a capitalist system the market determines a way of life and work. When that “way of life” is threatened, the state acts to save it, not to destroy it and take what is not his to take: the life and the work of the people.

In a capitalist system the state plays an important part, and due to its fiscal muscle it maintains a safe ground where institutions can sustain themselves. So why not to use it in times of crisis? In the USA, the most powerful and rich country on the planet, the crisis of its system is gigantic. It so happens that, in the exercise of one of its most appreciated attributes – liberty – excesses can be expensive, and that is what is happening. The necessary and normal speculation in investment processes, when in the hands of some unscrupulous groups, gets out of control and creates damage. This is just like the excess of state control, when it imposes unrealistic targets for real estate: such as offering a house for everyone, without concern for the costs, thereby generating a worldwide recession. One idea is to consider doing without the financial element of the economy; to give force to the real and productive economy, leaving behind all those artificial values assigned to products and financial instruments whose objective was to raise the values of papers and auctions that created so many toxic debts in the system.

The North American economy is searching for its balance in the middle of a crisis that affects the entire planet. No one group will have the solution, which is why help must come from all sides. Hopefully the North American people have the material and moral resources to face this situation and forge ahead, reinforcing the capitalist system. Capitalism is an evolving system, adaptable and elastic; not like rigid socialism, controlling and in need of creativity (it can’t generate richness, what it does is to wrongfully distribute what already exists). In terms of welfare production, the market is full of formulas and proposals. If crises are opportunities, then with no doubt we will have capitalism for a while - this pleases me and may cause Chavez further despair.


La satisfacción que siente Chávez y nuestros comunistas endógenos con los apuros que está pasando EEUU con su crisis financiera no la pueden ocultar, es una fiesta lo que se celebra al ver como el Estado, en manos del gobierno de Bush y ahora de Obama, tuvieron que intervenir a bancos, nacionalizar compañías aseguradoras, y prestarle dinero de la nación a las ensambladoras de vehículos y otras instituciones financieras, violando, según nuestros comunistas endógenos, el mandamiento principal del sistema capitalista: El Estado no debe intervenir en el decurso del mercado. Y lo primero que debo decir, es que sí, efectivamente, hay una crisis financiera grave originada en Wall Street que afecta no solo la economía nacional norteamericana sino a todo el orbe, incluyendo a Venezuela, y que según Chávez, estaba blindada en contra de la crisis que es global, obviando algo tan fundamental como que EEUU es nuestro principal cliente, que nos paga en dólares por nuestro petróleo y que además es nuestro primer proveedor de bienes y servicios.

Es tal pobreza espiritual de los chavistas que aprovechan el problema para predicar las bondades ficticias del socialismo, para decir que Chávez es un brujo pues, desde hace décadas, predijo que esto iba a ocurrir, que gracias a su sagacidad nuestras reservas están a buen resguardo… de nuevo, puro cuento. Para empezar, el capitalismo ha sido y es un sistema económico imperfecto, nunca se ha vanagloriado de una supuesta infalibilidad como sí lo hace el comunismo, de hecho, las crisis económicas son el pan y el agua del sistema, obligándolo a crecer, a mejorar, a no repetir errores. Los problemas no asustan a los capitalistas, de hecho los buscan, los enfrentan y los dominan, porque el capitalismo es praxis, es acción, es movimiento, creación continua, es vida. Un economista medianamente preparado estudia las innumerables crisis del capitalismo, todas ocasionadas por problemas diferentes, de origen monetario, de mercados, de competencia, financieras, de producción, de precios, de valores, etc. Cada aspecto de la práctica del mercado ha sido puesto a prueba y se ha avanzado en mejorar su funcionamiento, en probar sus principios, sus controles, sus libertades, y con cada crisis el sistema se fortalece y se hace más confiable, porque fundamentalmente el sistema se basa en la confianza, en el cambio constante y en la creatividad. La economía en el sistema capitalista siempre tiende al equilibrio, pero jamás lo alcanza, lo más que puede lograr es un balance precario donde actúan innumerable fuerzas materiales y espirituales, y cuando se pierde el equilibrio las partes del sistema actúan de inmediato produciéndose en el ínterin ganancias para algunos perdidas para otros, aparecen las oportunidades, se producen las quiebras, y cuando el desequilibrio es muy grande, siempre queda la posibilidad de la intervención del Estado, no para poner fin al juego capitalista, sino para recuperarlo y volverlo a poner a tono. Esta idea es particularmente incomprensible para los comunistas quienes solo ven a la intervención del Estado para acabar con las libertades, la productividad, las ganancias, Chávez jamás comprenderá que el Estado está al servicio de la sociedad y del bien común, y que en un sistema capitalista el mercado determina una manera de vida y de trabajo, y que cuando ese "way of life" se ve amenazado, el Estado actúa para salvarlo, no para destruirlo y hacerse de lo que no es suyo: la vida y el trabajo de la gente.

En un sistema capitalista el Estado juega un papel importante, de hecho gracias a su músculo fiscal mantiene un piso seguro gracias al cual funcionan las instituciones ¿Por qué no usarlo en momentos de crisis? En el caso de EEUU el país más poderoso y rico del planeta, las crisis de su sistema son gigantescas y sucede que, en el ejercicio de unos de sus atributos más preciados que es la libertad, los excesos pueden ser costosos, y eso es lo que está sucediendo, la especulación que es necesaria y normal en los procesos de inversión, en manos de unos grupos de inescrupulosos, se escapa de control y hace daño, igualmente el exceso de controles por parte del Estado al imponer al sector inmobiliario metas irrealizables como fue la de ofrecer vivienda para todos, sin importar costos, produciendo una recesión mundial. Se está incluso hablando de prescindir del elemento financiero de la economía, para darle fuerza a la economía real y productiva, dejando atrás todos esos valores artificiales asignados a productos e instrumentos financieros, cuyo objetivo era elevar el rendimiento de papeles y acciones y que han creado tanta deuda tóxica en el sistema.

La economía norteamericana está buscando su balance en medio de una crisis que afecta a todo el planeta, a nadie le conviene hacer fiesta con este problema, por ello es que las ayudas vienen de todos lados y afortunadamente el pueblo norteamericano tiene los recursos materiales y morales para hacerle frente a esta situación y saldrá adelante, y el sistema capitalista se hará más fuerte. El capitalismo es un sistema en plena evolución, adaptable y elástico, no es como el socialismo rígido, controlador y carente de creatividad (es incapaz de generar riqueza, lo que hace es mal distribuir la que existe), en términos de producir bienestar, el mercado es pródigo en fórmulas y propuestas. Si las crisis son oportunidades, entonces no dudo que tendremos capitalismo para rato, lo cual me place y desespera a Chávez.
This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

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  1. with communism man exploits man with capitalism it is the other way around.

    you failed to mention some of the destructive aspects of capitalism such as imperialism.

    america has 700 military bases around the world and has an industrial military complex that controls its politicans.

    you also forgot to mention that americans spend much of their resources for this war for profits mentality.

    you also forgot to mention that the middle class in america has been on the decline for almost 4 decades. only massive amounts of borrowing has kept the american middle class from realizing they are living on borrowed time and money.

    do you have any idea of the suffering and hardships that go on in the world due to american interventions and their wars for profits? ie 4 million iraqis desplaced. two million outside their country.

    there are spiritual laws in the universe not religious laws but spiritual laws; and both communism and capitalism goes against those spiritual laws.

    capitalism is about profits not the needs of people. capitalism assumes that materialistic success will meet the needs of its people.

    americans prisons are full and over flowing and a massive drug problem and a massive educational problem and a massive poverty problem and a massive health care problem and a massive credit card problem.

    just as communism self destructed capitalism will self destruct that is the nature of the universe. indeed capitalism is now self destructing but few see this self destruction in process and want to call this economic crisis a recession.

    denial is a powerful attribute of the human species. the universe through karma gives us powerful lessons to develop our souls and americans are receiving such lessons.

    will they learn? maybe no? then the lessons will be repeated that also is the nature of the universe to repeat the lessons until they are learned.

    I repeat with communism man exploits man with capitalism it is the other way around.

    few in the world understand that simple axiom. very few.

  2. a quote to remember.

    “Advocates of capitalism are very apt to appeal to the sacred principles of liberty which are embodied in one maxim: the fortunate must not be restrained in the exercise of tyranny over the unfortunate” Bertrand Russell.

    because there is a huge variation in human and soul development capitalism by its very nature creates an unfair playing field.

    ie the rich get richer and the middle class move down to the lower classes. the interesting part as this is happening the rich even advocate more capitalism and less deregulation on the very core of capitalism.

    ie the rich even want more.

    ie yoyo: “your on your own”

    not quite what jesus taught is it yet the christians are the biggest advocates of pure capitalism.

    and the christians by a large number support torture more than nonchristians. go figure.

    ie christianity died on the cross.