INTEGRATION PAPER-IMPACT OF CULTURE OF CAPITALISM

INTEGRATION PAPER-IMPACT OF CULTURE OF CAPITALISM

The major part of the world observes and has been following the culture of capitalism. The culture has not just extended in the business world, but it has also expanded in the making of organizational and government principle s.  The net effect of capitalism in different societies is that it has increased business activities and made people adopt ownership of property and industries. Capitalism has reflected as one of the most necessary cultures for innovation and a growing world. However, societies that uphold the culture of capitalism experience resistance and protests and massive opposition[1]. The culture is believed to have vastly negative environmental, economic, social, and political effects[2]. Consequences of the culture such as inequality, hunger and poverty, financial instability, population growth, environmental destruction, and corruption have been rampant in capitalistic societies.[3] Capitalism has been witnessed to be dealing with the problem it creates to some way since it supports and enforces democracy, rallies for the empowerment of marginalized groups; it seeks for equality and seeks government support[4].  The culture of capitalism has created a vast unfair and competitive world that has made capitalistic societies experience rebellion and protests, but with the proper execution of the principles of the culture, the problems created can be rectified if the principle focuses on the majority benefitting.

The very visible impact of the culture of capitalism is that it has turned people to be more centric on their own matters and to increase their wealth. Industrialists have been expanding their industries while workers consistently toil to be paid and realize their personal growth.[5] Capitalism has sponsored a revolutionary world where there is a consumer and a producer and a laborer who are all intending to earn wealth.[6] Indeed, the capitalist world does not seem to recognize any kind of a function where the money is not the sole agenda. Robbins states, “Money forms the central institutions of the modern market and economy, and around it are grouped the ancillary institutions of kinship, religion, and politics.”[7] The net impact of the culture is that it has affected relationships between people to be only focused on money.

Other than making people seek for their own wealth, capitalism led to the creation of classes. It led to the creation of castes which were inclusive of the wealthy, the middle class, and the poor. While these were not necessarily induced, they happened just naturally. As people sought wealth, some became richer than the others, while others did not have the means to make enough.[8] The rise of classes not only happened in the economic context but was also witnessed in the social context. Depending on the financial abilities of a person, they could access certain social privileges.[9] Therefore, it occurred that the rich people were better placed in social settings that the people of other caste. To date, capitalism still creates classes where the rich can live in abundance, go to the best schools and hospitals and access the best places of fun. Therefore, it would be true to say that one of the impacts of capitalism is the creation of societies that seemed together but very disunited.

Also, capitalism cannot be assumed for the way it led to the rise of merchants, industrialists, and capital controllers who sponsored the slave trade and finally colonization. Due to the need to amass wealth and with stiff competition in Europe, many of the industrialists tried to expand on a global space. Their expansion to the global space was just to access many more raw materials, more available and cheap labor, and to expand their industries. The rise of merchants saw such robust growth in the slave trade. There was increased suffering as humans in Africa and America were misused. In Africa, the misuse went beyond the collection of slavery into colonization[10]. The rich merchants supported by their governments sponsored conquests and accessed many raw materials, cheap labor, and processed goods from the riches of Africa.[11] Therefore, capitalism must have led to a lack of human connection and understanding as the wealthy merchants tried to amass more wealth from every opportunity that seemed to arise.

Capitalism has not been a fairly and fully accepted culture, and it often fuels rebellion and protests. People in capitalist societies have identified the loopholes in the culture that have seen some of the people take advantage of the others. One of the most viewable issues with capitalism is that daily, it is fuelling inequality. Inequality trickles down from the social classes and extends to the minority groups[12]. Based on the idea that every person should seek their wealth, the already rich are more established and can make adequate grounds for members of their families to also rise up in the economic as well as in the political spaces.[13] The culture has also fuelled inequality in payment for services over a long while, which has made male workers to be paid more than female workers. Also, chances of employment are only available with regard to the competitiveness which means that some people are paid very meager while others are paid too much.  The culture of capitalism is undoubtedly a significant source of inequality.

As the culture of capitalism extended, it led to the rise of corporations, which are believed to have had their share in financial instability. It is worthwhile to note that in capitalistic cultures, financial investments. The culture of capitalists has led to the creation of the nation-state where language, bureaucracy, and education have been witnessed to affect the way that corporate decisions are made[14]. Essentially, the elite, well-educated, and bureaucratic individuals lead corporations as well as the government. Their leadership means that for every corporation that has thousands of workers, a few people make financial decisions in boardrooms, without involving the workers.[15] They may make retrenchment and layoff decisions without considering the rest. Consequent to the bureaucracy created by capitalism, there has been so much financial instability. Rebellion to governments and corporations have since been witnessed in different parts of the world due to financial denial that comes with capitalism. In the United States, for instance, the “Occupywallstreet” was a major rebellion directed against banks and multinational corporations for their involvement in creating an unfair global economy.[16] The rebellion, among many others across the world are explications of how capitalism has been effective in creating a messed up financial world.

Resistance and rebellion against capitalism have not just been peaceful. They can be dated back before and after colonialism. Major resistances in former colonies such as Kenya and Malaysia had been directed towards the colonization that had been established by the British and other European powers. In countries such as Mexico, the Chiapas rebellion has been launched, and it was expected to fight poverty and inequality that had been created by the colonial governments.[17] The creation of an unequal society is, therefore, one of the ideals that can be observed in any capitalist society. The major share of the wealth is capitalist countries is controlled by a meager percentage of the rich while the major percentage of the poor lives in denial. Hunger and poverty are, therefore, insistent in capitalist societies based on inequality.

Capitalist societies have also been witnessed to have issues with population growth and environmental disruption. Analysts believe that there is greater growth in population in poor nations than it is in more developed nations. The problem of population growth in poor nations is because there are low mortality rates while there are higher birth rates[18]. There are also fewer mechanisms in education concerning birth control that governments have undertaken. It is only fair to believe that the economic impact of capitalist societies have been having the wrong net effect on childbirth in most societies especially those which are less developed[19]. With increased population growth, environmental disruption has happened as people seek to find enough food. Increased disturbance of the environment, such as poor farming, clearing forests, and over-industrialization, have all been experienced in capitalist societies.

In a way, capitalism has been striving to correct the ills that it has created. In recent days, governments have been witnessed trying to enforce democracy. One of the ideal issues in the culture of capitalism as originally made was that it is based on democracy. Nations have in recent days, been trying to restore political capital by trying to make movements that seek to make governments accessible to the people. Governments have been seen to engage in activities of awareness where they create access to information to help everyone make informed decisions[20]. Also, there is more freedom of expression that is experienced in capitalistic cultures that often see people try to ask for a balance in the sharing of resources as well as political power. Capitalism has therefore, been trying to correct the aspect of inequality and poverty in such indirect ways.

Capitalistic societies have also been trying to reestablish social capital. Social interactions seem to have very little meaning in capitalistic societies. People who have grown in societies that are capitalistic do not view social networks as essential if at all they do not offer them income in return. Capitalistic societies have in the recent been trying to build major developments around reciprocity[21]. This development has made people to be engaged in family functions, in education and in child care and entertainment. Building of social capital has been in the bid to make people realize the need to share equally[22]. Governments have also engaged in empowerment mechanisms for the oppressed and marginalized society that have seen economic changes such as payment of women just like men.In view of the environment, capitalistic societies have started accepting that environmental change is such a huge issue. They have since started rallying behind proper production and manufacturing that does not go against the already established standards. These have been efforts to ensure that productivity and the creation of wealth do not endanger the existence of human life.

In summation, capitalism has had a positive impact on society by helping people find wealth increasingly. However, it has had many negative impacts that are inclusive of inequality, hunger and poverty, financial instability, uncontrolled population growth, and environmental disruption. All these effects have made the society to be impoverished, and only a few people seem to benefit from it while the rest of the community remains oppressed. Due to all these negative effects, there have been scores of protests and rebellion in the same societies. However, in the wake of the problems it causes, capitalist cultures have tried to enforce democracy and increase access to information, create social capital, and also educate on the management of the environment. It is therefore clear that capitalism has created unfairness, which is the root of rebellion and protests, but the problems can be remedied if the culture is carried out with a reflection on benefitting the majority.

Bibliography

“Ecological Footprint.” 2019. Global Footprint Network. https://www.footprintnetwork.org/our-work/ecological-footprint/

“Noam Chomsky – The Alternative to Capitalism.” Chomsky’s Philosophy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUzquEya6Lw

“Noam Chomsky on the Mondragon Cooperatives and Workers’ Councils.” Chomsky’s Philosophy. March 14, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_1709717435&amp=&feature=iv&amp=&src_vid=RUzquEya6Lw&amp=&v=TyUciVOjZP4

“Ten Years Since Economic Collapse Sparked Occupy Wall Street, the Cooperative Movement Is Surging.” Indipendent Global News. September 18, 2018. https://www.democracynow.org/2018/9/18/ten_years_since_economic_collapse_sparked?utm_source=Democracy+Now%21&utm_campaign=529a928cdb-Daily_Digest_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fa2346a853-529a928cdb-191205353

Albo, Gregory. “Alternatives to Capitalism.” February 2, 2012. https://philosophersforchange.org/2012/02/02/alternatives-to-capitalism/

Johnson, Allan. “If not Capitalism, What?” Allan G. Johnson. 2013. http://www.agjohnson.us/glad/if-not-capitalism-what/

Levitin, Michael. “The Triumph of Occupy Wall Street” June 10, 2015. https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/06/the-triumph-of-occupy-wall-street/395408/

Little, Allan. “Tunisians embrace democratic life.” October 27, 2011. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-15462198

Marcos. “Chiapas: The Southeast in Two Winds A Storm and a Prophecy.” January 27, 1994. http://www.struggle.ws/mexico/ezln/marcos_se_2_wind.html

OccupyWallStreeet. 2020. http://occupywallst.org/about/

Robbins, Richard . Global Problems and the Culture of Capitalism. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. 2019.

Shah, Anup. “Consumption and Consumerism.” January 05, 2014. http://www.globalissues.org/issue/235/consumption-and-consumerism

United States Federation of Worker Cooperatives. 2020. https://www.usworker.coop/home/

Wolf, Richard. “Yes, there is an alternative to capitalism: Mondragon shows the way.” June 24, 2012. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/jun/24/alternative-capitalism-mondragon

[1] Richard Robbins, Global Problems and the Culture of Capitalism. 7th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. 2019.

[2]. “Ten Years Since Economic Collapse Sparked Occupy Wall Street, the Cooperative Movement Is Surging.” Independent Global News. September 18, 2018. https://www.democracynow.org/2018/9/18/ten_years_since_economic_collapse_sparked?utm_source=Democracy+Now%21&utm_campaign=529a928cdb-Daily_Digest_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_fa2346a853-529a928cdb-191205353

[3] “Poisoned by Water.” September 2009. Frontline. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/poisonedwaters/

[4] Little, Allan. “Tunisians embrace democratic life.” October 27, 2011. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-15462198

[5] United States Federation of Worker Cooperatives. 2020. https://www.usworker.coop/home/

[6] Shah, Anup. “Consumption and Consumerism.” January 05, 2014. http://www.globalissues.org/issue/235/consumption-and-consumerism

[7]Ibid

[8] Richard Wolf, “Yes, there is an alternative to capitalism: Mondragon shows the way,” June 24, 2012, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/jun/24/alternative-capitalism-mondragon

[9] Allan Johnson, “If not Capitalism, What?” Allan G. Johnson, 2013, http://www.agjohnson.us/glad/if-not-capitalism-what/

[10] Ibid

[11] Ibid

[12] “Noam Chomsky on the Mondragon Cooperatives and Workers’ Councils,” Chomsky’s Philosophy, March 14, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_1709717435&amp=&feature=iv&amp=&src_vid=RUzquEya6Lw&amp=&v=TyUciVOjZP4

[13] Gregory Albo,“Alternatives to Capitalism,” February 2, 2012, https://philosophersforchange.org/2012/02/02/alternatives-to-capitalism/

[14] “Noam Chomsky – The Alternative to Capitalism,” Chomsky’s Philosophy, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUzquEya6Lw

[15] Ibid

[16] OccupyWallStreeet. 2020. http://occupywallst.org/about/

[17] Marcos, “Chiapas: The Southeast in Two Winds A Storm and a Prophecy,” January 27, 1994. http://www.struggle.ws/mexico/ezln/marcos_se_2_wind.html

[18] Ibid

[19] Ibid

[20] Ibid

[21] Ibid

[22] Ibid