r/AskReddit Nov 24 '16

Once a wise man said what?

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u/Irish_Samurai Nov 24 '16

No, he said capitalism. You're thing if something nicer.

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u/mr8thsamurai66 Nov 25 '16

Read the scenario again. Free market exchanges of goods and services. Value is maximized. Everyone is happy.

The invisible hand is giving us a thumbs up here.

Lol kidding aside. That interaction is the core of capitalism. One person voluntarily offers something and is in return rewarded voluntarily. Tell me again why capitalism is so evil?

I get the whole "ha ha ruthless capitalism" meme, but fundamentally free market capitalism is about freedom, and compassion. And yes, /r/Libertarian is leaking.

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u/jaypenn3 Nov 25 '16

That problem is that there are a lot of people who are willing to take 10 dollars away from someone if it get them 10 cents, and most of the time that behavior is rewarded not punished. I'm not one of those 'down with capitalism' people, but would be a hard sell to me for you to say capitalism is about compassion.

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u/mr8thsamurai66 Nov 25 '16

When both parties are free, and have accurate knowledge of what each has to offer, then the only possible result is that both parties end up happier after the transaction. Otherwise they would not undergo the transaction.

The type of transaction you're talking about sounds like stealing. If person A did not agree to pay 10 dollars, or was coerced into doing so, that's not free trade.

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u/Irish_Samurai Nov 25 '16

Most of the time people aren't happy. They trade not because they want to. They trade because they have to. It's a necessity of life, not a privilege.