CCapitalism Abd Democracy

Capitalism And Democracy

My strating point is what we can rely on as most unlikely to change. Economically I think that we can assume that the world will be driven by capitalism in one form or another. Poylitically it will be driven by democray in one form or another or dictatorships. To think in terms of dictatorships would be to think in terms of almost ineviable war and destrcution of everything, including the human race. So wehave to hope for democracy and the model to follow I think is in Scandinavia.

If we examine the Scaninavian counries they all embrace capitalism and democracy with some differencies in how they do it but all do it in ways that that avoid extremes of wealth/poverty and political exremes. The tndancies to these exremes exist within them but are restricted to a large extent. The other, less obviously political etremes , are wealth and poverty which, if extreme, tend towards political ewtremes. So these too need to be factored in.

So the force against xhich democracy and capitalism have to fight is communism which, in practice if not in heory, appears to rely on dictatorship whilst promising if not necessarily delivering equitable wealth distribution. So, if we wnt democracy we have to have capialism. The question the is: what kind of capitalism?

One example of an extreme form of capitalism can be found in the USA, which has some of the wealthiest people in the world and also some of the most deprived iamong developed countries. Other countries with in the economicqlly developed orld mitigate against the extremes of capitalism in various ways, to a larger or smaller extent. It’s a question of wh has got the best balance and my bet is that the Scaninavian countries have achieved that. Wealth generated by capitalism appears to be more equitably shred in these countries which have, amongst contempories, both higher employee earning and higher taxes, both anathrma to pure capitalism. Isn’t there a lesson to be learned there?

 

Update

 

Update

I have noticed that I haven’t updated thi blog for some time and I need to add something. The problem is that not much happens here during the winter and that is accentuated by by the COVID restrictions. Nonetheless there are a fewthings worth recording.

Christmas and the new year ere quietly enjoyable, as I would have wished them. I went to friends Steve and Jo for lunch on Christmas day and, with other friends invited, had a good lunch and pleasant time. On Boxing day I invited Steve, Jo and jean-Claude and had the same. The village was lit by it’s customary blue and white lights, an obvious connection with a Chelsea supporter (see photo).. To celebrate the new year I took Steve and Jo to the St Hubert restaurant in Entrechaux and again had a very good meal and good company. All this went as expected and was quietly enjoyable. There is, it must be admitted, at me age the sad corollary of having to wonder at the fate of those who haven’t replied to Christmas greetings.

 So what else is there to report? One thing that struck me through my interview for French nationality, and which has stayed with me, is the French dfinition of «fraternité» in their holy trinity of «liberté, égalité,, fraternité». Fraternité is paying the taxes decreed because the money is used for, amiong other things, paying for public services which benefit everyone. The underlying theme is that the better off help the less well off. In particular taxes pay for the health service, which has remained at a very high standard here despite the strain put on it by COVID.

There is a strong sense of coillectivity in France, contributed to by the fact that their are very many small enterprises, particularly in agriculture. Small holdings need mechanisation sometimes but can’t afford it individually so cooperatives are everywhere, jointly purchasing mechanisation for shared use. Fraternité chime with solidarité explains the strength of unions in France. Contrast that with free market forces and devil take the hindmost..

I find this a refreshing and interesting take on taxes. The general view is that, although inevitable, they are always undesirable. Maybe that view should be questioned. I’m reminded that Eisenhower, when US president and faced with an economy that was rudely healthy and growing, raised corporation tax temporarily to 90 %. I’ve no idea what amount of outrage that raised but his thinking was that no business would want to pay that rate of tax and to avoid it they would have to invest most of their profits in themselves. It worked and US businesses became even more dominant. I call that creative thinking and the world could do with a lot more of it. It’s also an example of a political leader deliberately taking what must have been an almost universally unpopular measure to create a general benefit. And that is rare indeed.

An example of the aforesaid fraternité occurred to friends Jo and Steve a few days ago. A neighbour who is a hunter offered her about a quarter of a large boar that he had killed. Some might object to killing a wild boar but they are increasing in numbers around here and cause a significant degree of destruction on farm land and gardens. Culing the herds, because that is what they form, is a necessity to some degree as they have no natural predators. And it is not uncommon here for people who have an excess of something to share it with neighbours. When vegetables are plentiful people sometimes come to one of the cafes with a bag of excess produce to be shared by whoever wants it. Fraternité again. Anyway, Steve Jo and I now have stocks of boar in our freezers.

One thing you are sure to get in a small agricultural village is a lot of mice and rats, as well as the loirs that abound here. It’s not that the village is overrun with them but they are there. They don’t worry me except in that I suspect they have eaten a lot of the bulbs I have planted outside. Friends Jo and Steve had a similar experience last year when they planted a lot of bean seeds and had only one survive. I’m pretty sure that seeds and bulbs can be coated with something that deters rodents from eating them and have made a mental note to ask at the local agricultural co-op what can be done.

My boules playing has been curtailed by the weather. I feel the cold more than I used to and find I can’t play well encumbered by a heavy pullover and jacket nor if I feel cold. My muscles, such as they are, seem to clench up and affect how I throw the boules. But it is a small and temporary matter; let spring come soon.