Several times this week, I’ve heard/read people recognize the strangeness of our country’s economic morality. Out of one side of our mouth we hate all the debt we’re getting into, out of the other we talk about how only spending will recover our consumer economy. I’m too lazy to look up all the links, but I think it was Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, Studio 360, Radio Lab, and the New York Times.
I’ve felt this strangeness for a long time–probably starting with George’s urge to go out shopping on Sept 12, but continuing right through all our discussions of this current downturn.
But I keep waiting for someone to actually address this moral dilemma. So far I’m just getting people recognizing that. I suppose that’s better than the utter blank faced statement of paradox without recognizing paradox. (of course their recognition is probably b/c of the huggggge stimulus package suggested by Obama. Oh that’s right, This American Life also discussed this).
I don’t feel like I know enough about economics to answer this. But I just don’t get capitalism. If the whole point is to ever increase profit (it’s not enough to continue making the same amount of profit as last year, you have to actually grow that profit), won’t we run out of resources? Won’t we run out of customers? Is it possible to create an economy that is not so utterly centered on growth?
Let me know what you think.
Well, one article about morality in economics: http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financial/2009/02/09/090209ta_talk_surowiecki. But not what I was thinking about (morality within the capitalist system rather than the morality of the capitalist system).
Maybe I’ll have to go beyond my usual humanities type sources for an answer to this question. 🙂