Capitalism+and+Democracy

Maha Kourikchi AP U.S. History 9/1/11 = **Capitalism and Democracy** =

//1. What is capitalism?//

Capitalism is an economic system that has existed for a fairly long period of time. This economic system is based on the idea that individuals operate and own businesses or means of production in order to earn a profit, without little to any interference from the government or any higher power. Capitalism is also known as a “free market economy.” This means that individuals have a larger role in the economy than the government because they’re constantly making decisions that affect the economy. Some of these decisions are setting prices for goods and deciding whether or not to purchase a product. In this unique economic system, people have the power to sell, trade, and buy from whomever they want without having to get permission from the government. People, who live in a society that has adopted capitalism as their economic system, tend to work for themselves rather than for their whole society or community. This is due to the fact that capitalism rewards individuals for their own work, depending on what type of job they possess. This is one of capitalism’s many faults because certain individuals become wealthy while others remain poor, all because of the available jobs these individuals take part in. This also leads to the idea that people in a capitalist society tend to compete with one another because the harder and better equipped someone is to work a certain job, the more money that person gets, which doesn’t seem fair to many others. Capitalism is an economic system that has both negatives and positive factors, but continues to expand and be used by nations all around the world.

//2. What form of capitalism does the United States practice? What are the details of this form of capitalism?// The United States not only practices capitalism, but socialism as well. Socialism is an economic system in which organizations control the means of production unlike in capitalism, where individuals do. Socialism encourages equal opportunities for all citizens, no matter how different, and also encourages individuals to share and own means of production amongst one another. Therefore, the United States is considered to have a mixed economy due to its practice of both capitalism and socialism. In this mixed economy, both the government and citizens have a major role in economic growth. Some of the government’s influences on the U.S. economy are taxes, import restrictions, and government spending. One way that individuals affect the economy is by spending. The more people spend, the better the economy runs. In other words, the United States’ has a mixed economy in which the means of production are shared between individuals and the government, or a higher power.

Someone she disliked; her mom.

//3. Why does the U.S. practice capitalism – why is it the system that the founders of the United States established?//

The United States practices capitalism for several reasons. One reason is because capitalism represents many ideas from the Enlightenment, which was a very influential time period for many Americans including the founders of the United States. During the Enlightenment, people believed in individualism and believed that a single person was the center and focus rather than a whole community or a group. This is also what capitalism is about, because in capitalism individuals are in control and are also the center and focus. These ideas from the Enlightenment strongly influenced the U.S. government at that time. Since the founders of the United States were strongly influenced by the Enlightenment, they used some of the concepts from that period of time and incorporated it into the economy and the government. Another reason why the United States practices capitalism is because it gives more power to the people because they’re allowed to participate in private ownership. This freedom allows individuals to gain wealth and compete with others in order to get to a more successful place than everyone else. This competition results in great economic growth and because of this, the United States practices capitalism. //4. What are the positives and negatives of having this economic system?// There are many positive and negative factors in capitalism. One positive factor of having this economic system is that individuals tend to compete with one another, which promotes economic growth. Competition helps the economy grow because it produces opportunities for individuals to participate in jobs that pay a higher income. Also, capitalism is said to create a decentralized economic system. A decentralized economic system is basically when individuals are exposed to many more options and opportunities and when they have to overcome challenges in order to stay in the competition. Another positive factor of having a capitalist economy is that individuals are able to buy and sell whatever they want without government interference. Also, individuals have the right to own their own property without having to answer to anyone. Another good thing about capitalism is that capitalism motivates individuals to strive and invest and earn a higher paying income. Even though there are many positive factors about having this economic system, there are many negative factors as well. One negative factor is that this economic system isn’t always fair to every individual. Since there is so much competition taking place, many people get left behind and aren’t able to keep up. Many people are at a disadvantage because they don’t have to ability or opportunity to earn as much money as others. Another negative factor is that as businesses grow and become larger and more successful, their motives are all about making as much money as possible. This leads to unfair labor practices because companies don’t really care about their labor forces as much as they care about making money. Also, since this particular economic system is constantly growing, many of Earth’s resources are being used which can lead to negative affects on the environment. For example, many companies require many of earth’s resources to thrive but at the same time they’re hurting the environment due. All of these positive and negative factors work together to form our economic system.

//5. What is democracy?//

Democracy is a form of government in which people have a voice and have the power to make decisions through an elected system of representation. In a democracy, individuals usually vote for and choose who they want to be represented by. These elected officials have a certain period of time to serve in the government, and it’s up to the people to decide whether or not to reelect government officials. People are free to criticize anyone working in the government without being punished at all and are free to support and vote for whomever they wish. Also, participation in political affairs is voluntary and in no way forced. In a democracy, everyone is equal and can take part in any organization, religion, or party without being punished. Democracy makes sure that the law is applied to everyone, no matter how different. Also, this political system protects citizens’ rights and doesn’t give all of the power to the government. According to Abraham Lincoln, democracy is a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people” (//Gettysburg Address, 1863).// Democracy has helped America become a stable, prosperous, and secure nation.

6. What form of democracy does the United States practice? What are the details of this form of democracy?

The form of democracy that the United States practices is a representative democracy. A representative democracy is a form of government that is based on the idea of having elected officials to represent the people. These representatives are elected by the people and are supposed to be their voice and fight for their interests. Most of the time, this isn’t the case. Some elected representatives don’t necessarily voice the opinions of the people they’re supposed to be representing. This is why there is usually more than one elected representative for each region so that the peoples’ opinions will be more likely expressed. These elected representatives have a lot on their shoulders and the thoughts and opinions they express have the potential to change the lives of many people living in the United States. They also have a lot of power because sometimes they’re able to help make the decision to choose a president, another representative, or a government official. Even though the representatives have a lot of power, they can’t abuse it because the Constitution prevents them from doing that. This form of democracy has been around for a long time and ultimately citizens elect representatives that they think are most capable to voice their opinions and interests. 7. Why does the U.S. practice democracy – why is it the system that the founders established? The United States practices democracy because of the strong influence from the Enlightenment, and because of other factors too. The founders of the United States got the idea from the Enlightenment that all men were created equal. They believed that everyone had the right to stand up against the government if they had different opinions or views. Therefore, having a democracy made the most sense because everyone would be able to have their own voice and the government would respond to the people rather than the other way around. Also, the Constitution made the U.S. government more democratic due to its ideas of checks and balances and even the three branches of government. These ideas not only protect the rights of the citizens but also limit the amount of power that the government could have. The reason why we practice a representative democracy is because there are so many citizens in America, which makes it hard to listen to every single individual, and what their interests are. So, the founders of the United States decided to get educated people who would represent citizens. This would make getting people’s opinions and interests out there without being too complicated. 8. What are the positives and negatives of having this economic system? Having this economic system has many positive and negative factors. Some positive factors of having a democratic government is that everyone is allowed to express their opinions and views. They’re able to vote and support whomever they want. Also, there isn’t just one person that holds all of the power. Everyone is limited to how much power they have, which prevents our government from turning into a dictatorship. Another good thing about having this economic system is that individuals have many rights like freedom of speech, freedom of press, and many more. Also, individuals are able to participate in the government and will have an idea of what is going on in the world around them. Another advantage is that citizens have an influence on that happens in the government through means of voting and being represented by elected officials. A disadvantage of having this economic system is that there are some individuals who aren’t educated and who don’t know what’s occurring in the world around them, which can result in them making the wrong decision when voting. Also, many representatives who are supposed to be representing the people, end up not fighting for the people’s interests but for their own instead. Another negative factor is that individuals could be intimidated or forced by others to vote for certain candidates who are running for a government position. Also, not everyone in a democracy will agree with each other, so there will always be people who aren’t satisfied about who gets elected or what laws or bills are passed. These positive and negative factors create the political system that is democracy. 9. Please watch Michael Moore’s 2009 documentary “Capitalism: A Love Story” and summarize 4 or 5 of his main points. Also, please critique his arguments -- what does he leave out, and what problems do you find with his approach, etc. Make sure you relate the film to your earlier research on capitalism and democracy. (So please do these steps in order, so this film should be viewed after you’ve done the work for #1-8). Michael Moore’s 2009 documentary Capitalism: A Love Story was based on the United States’ economy. It revolved around the financial crises, companies’ influences on the government, middle class workers’ lives, and capitalism itself. This documentary focused on the harsh consequences of our nation’s economic system and how it was negatively affecting millions of people in the United States. Moore expressed his views and opinions and also expressed several main points for the audience to hold onto and think about. One of his main points is that capitalism is “evil,” unfair, and is corrupting our nation. Moore went about sharing this by showing viewers the damage being done to families and the economy. He shows us that the government and companies are manipulating citizens of America and treating the middle class unfairly. The rich are being treated better than the poor, and some less fortunate individuals in this movie didn’t have as many equal opportunities as other people did. Moore shows that the majority of people had a profit motive and only cared about earning money. They didn’t care if they were hurting anyone or if what they were doing was morally right. For example, many citizens’ homes were foreclosed and were forced to move out. These people had been living in their homes their whole life and were being told to just leave. The whole purpose of this was so that the government could sell the house to someone else in order to make a profit. No one cared that they had just kicked a family out forcing them to live on the street or in their cars. No one cared how much it affected the people that were kicked out of their homes. They only cared about making money for themselves and the government. Michael Moore has done an excellent job portraying how he thinks capitalism is ruining our country. Another main point Michael Moore expresses in his documentary is how unfair banks are. In the United States, he shows that banks and large successful companies are constantly stealing money from average working people. One way they’re doing this is by making a profit over employees’ deaths. This has been occurring for several years, and no one has put a stop to it. It has even gotten to a point where the people of Walmart call these unfortunate employees “dead peasants.” This name is extremely insulting and demeaning to the families that have lost their loved ones. The crazy thing is that some of these families don’t even know that the banks and the companies their loved ones worked at, are even making a profit off of the death of their family members. Michael Moore even brings up the question of why it’s illegal to rob a bank when banks are stealing from people all of the time. By showing how average citizens were struggling, Moore’s point affected many viewers, including myself. Michael Moore also spends a lot of time in this documentary explaining how much influence companies, industries, and banks have on the government. He explained how some companies even bribed government officials to do what they wanted and how Wall Street basically took over the government at one point. There was one specific company that Moore spent a lot of time talking about. This company is called Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs is an investment-banking firm that Michael Moore accused of making secret deals with the government and using the people’s money for their own benefit. This firm, and many others got more and more involved in the government and eventually ended up being the ones running it. They were influencing and manipulating everyone just so they could get their own share of money. There was also a case of how 6,500 children were unjustly convicted all because the judge wanted to make a profit. One of these kids had just thrown a piece of steak at the dinner table and got sent away for over five months. All of these kids were treated unfairly and were sent away all because the judge had made a business deal and had to raise the conviction rates. This shows how money, and companies can have an influence on the government and even in the courtroom. This documentary also focused on the treatment of rich people and middleclass workers. In this film, rich people were treated better than middle class citizens because of the fact that they have more money. It shows that in this world, if you have money then you’re able to get away with almost anything. All of the middle class workers have to fight for the very basic things in life. America is one of richest countries in the world so people should have to fight for basic necessities. They have to do this because capitalism provides unfair competition and people aren’t able to afford certain things due to the fact that they don’t have equal opportunities. According to Michael Moore, citizens should be able to have “a decent job, healthcare, a good education, [and] a home to call our own.” Unfortunately, we don’t all have that due to the unfair economy and the way we live in America. This is a “system that riches the few at the expense of the many” (Moore, Capitalism: A Love Story). Therefore, middle-class workers and poor citizens are slaving away to provide for not only themselves, but for others that already have it all. Personally, I think that Michael Moore focused too much on all of the negatives of capitalism and didn’t really try to explain what the positives of capitalism were. He spent the whole movie looking at all of capitalism’s downsides rather than spending some time on its upsides. He did a wonderful job interviewing people and his incorporation of humor into his documentary made it that much more enjoyable. Moore definitely seemed to be on the middle class’s side and never explained how the government, companies or even rich individuals thought about capitalism. This documentary was very informative and certainly opened my eyes about some issues that I had never heard of before. Learning about real people’s situations and struggles helped me understand more about the United States’ economic and political systems. Capitalism: A Love Story is an incredible documentary that portrays what is going on in the world around us, and how we can change to create a brighter future. 10. What is the relationship between capitalism and democracy? How do they work together, how do their principles coincide and how do they oppose each other? The relationship between capitalism and democracy is very unique. They work together to form the United States’s political and economic systems. Capitalism and democracy have developed and grown together over the years and are connected in our nation. Even so, they’re principles coincide and oppose each other. With capitalism, people are forced to take things for themselves and try and be as successful as possible, even if it means stepping on other people or being selfish. With democracy, people are encouraged to work together to reach a common goal. In this case, both systems are working against each other, rather than working with each other. Democracy represents equal opportunities for every individual, but with capitalism individuals are motivated by making money and will do anything to get it. Both capitalism and democracy have the same idea that individuals are in control. This is one way that these two systems work together because neither of these systems interfere or try and control the people. Another way that capitalism and democracy’s principles coincide is that democracy and capitalism both put power into people’s hands that allow them to do what they wish, as long as it’s legal. Due to the fact that both democracy and capitalism work together, people are able to voice their opinions, own property, vote for and support anyone, buy and sell what he or she wishes, and even choose what jobs they’d like to participate in. Capitalism and democracy both work together to help our nation and its people grow. = Citations =
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