Millennials and Capitalism

It’s not that surprising that my generation doesn’t understand economics. It wasn’t something I was taught much about in school (unlike history), and to be honest, I thought it was boring and probably wouldn’t have paid attention until I was in college. When people my age hear the term “economy” (not to mention capitalism), I’m pretty sure they associate it with money-hungry CEOs who are buying private jets while exploiting their workers (not that the workers who make private jets aren’t ok with their business). Any mention of the economy during the economic shutdown was met with accusations that the speaker didn’t care about people’s lives.

But what is more necessary for life than the economy? The economy is simply the system by which we are able to work, move food and other goods around the country, feed, and clothe ourselves. Caring about the economy is the same thing as caring about lives. If our economy collapses, you won’t be able to get food for your children.

Unfortunately, those in my generation and younger seem to have a lot of misconceptions about capitalism. This was made clear by a Harvard poll in which students were asked their views on capitalism and socialism. The ironic thing is that, while they have a low view of capitalism, they have a high view of entrepreneurship. Of course the latter can really only happen in the conditions of the former, but if you don’t understand economics, you wouldn’t know that. To learn more about this phenomenon, check out this article.

On that note, below is a very apt Libertarian take on BLM’s commitment to Marxism and how it should have been obvious all along to those who are educated about these things.