Why You Should Be A Socialist In 2024
Summary
TLDRThis video explores the issues caused by capitalism, emphasizing how wealth inequality has worsened, particularly during the pandemic. It argues that capitalism, driven by profit, leads to monopolies, overworked laborers, and a concentration of wealth among the rich. The video advocates for socialism as a better system, proposing a society where basic needs like housing, healthcare, and education are guaranteed, and workplaces are democratically controlled. It also addresses misconceptions about socialism, urging viewers to consider alternatives to profit-driven economies.
Takeaways
- 💰 Capitalism leads to extreme inequality, with the richest 1% accumulating most of the world's wealth, while the majority struggle.
- 📉 Capitalism works by accumulating capital, but at the cost of worsening living conditions for the majority of people.
- 🔄 Socialism is presented as a logical next step after capitalism, as societies evolve and systems change over time.
- 🏦 Capitalism concentrates wealth and power in the hands of a few, with mega-corporations dominating various industries.
- 💼 The profit motive in capitalism drives inequality and creates a system where the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer.
- ⚖️ Socialists advocate for a society where basic needs like housing, food, healthcare, and education are universally guaranteed.
- 👩💼 Socialists argue for democratic control of the means of production, where workers have more say in how workplaces and resources are managed.
- 📊 Inequality under capitalism is worsening, with CEOs making exponentially more than their workers, while wages stagnate.
- 🌱 A socialist economy focuses on human needs and environmental sustainability, rather than profit-driven motives.
- 📚 Socialism supports individual freedom and creativity by ensuring a baseline standard of living for all, enabling people to pursue passions beyond survival.
Q & A
What is the main argument presented in the video regarding capitalism?
-The video argues that capitalism is inherently flawed, as it prioritizes profit over human well-being, resulting in massive wealth inequality and worsening social conditions for the majority. The speaker believes capitalism has run its course and should be replaced by socialism.
How does the video explain the accumulation of wealth by the top 1% during the COVID-19 pandemic?
-According to the video, the wealthiest 1% accumulated nearly 2/3 of all new wealth generated since 2020, with the top 10 billionaires gaining over $1.5 trillion in wealth. This was largely due to the structure of capitalism, which allowed the ultra-rich to profit from the suffering of others during the pandemic.
Why does the speaker claim capitalism is not evil, but flawed?
-The speaker explains that capitalism is not inherently evil but is designed to prioritize profit above all else. As a result, the system leads to wealth concentration and exploitation because that is how it functions. It follows its own 'profit motive,' which results in negative outcomes for most people.
What does the video suggest is the 'logical next step' after capitalism?
-The video argues that socialism is the logical next step in human development after capitalism. Just as society moved from feudalism to capitalism, the speaker believes it will progress from capitalism to socialism as a means to create a more equitable society.
How does the speaker address the misconception that socialism enforces uniformity and limits personal freedom?
-The speaker clarifies that socialism does not aim to enforce uniformity or restrict personal freedom. Instead, it seeks to ensure everyone has access to basic needs, such as housing, healthcare, and education, which would allow people to pursue personal goals and creativity more freely.
What is the speaker's view on workplace democracy under socialism?
-The speaker advocates for workplace democracy, where workers have control over the means of production and decision-making within their workplaces. They argue that workers often know best how to perform their jobs and that workplace democracy would lead to higher efficiency, morale, and less waste.
How does the video contrast capitalism and socialism in terms of addressing societal needs?
-The video argues that capitalism follows the logic of profit, which leads to societal harm, while socialism is focused on meeting societal needs. In a socialist system, resources would be distributed based on people's needs rather than on the profitability of industries.
What does the speaker say about the relationship between capitalism and political power?
-The speaker argues that under capitalism, political power is heavily influenced by the wealthy and powerful, such as large corporations and lobbying groups. This leads to policies that benefit the capitalist class rather than the general public, reinforcing inequality.
What examples does the speaker provide of capitalist systems consolidating power among a few corporations?
-The speaker cites companies like Google, Amazon, and Disney as examples of how capitalism leads to monopolies. They argue that under capitalism, more and more of the economy becomes concentrated in the hands of a few mega-corporations, which harms competition and consumers.
Why does the speaker believe socialism is more aligned with addressing climate change than capitalism?
-The speaker believes socialism is better suited to address climate change because it prioritizes the needs of society over profit. In contrast, under capitalism, any solutions to climate change are filtered through the lens of profitability, which often leads to insufficient or harmful actions.
Outlines
🎥 Introduction and Call to Action
The video begins with a message thanking patrons on Patreon for their support and encouraging viewers to become patrons for early access to content. It briefly touches on structural issues in society and introduces the core argument that capitalism is responsible for many modern problems. The speaker suggests that socialism offers solutions to these issues, emphasizing that capitalism is not the only viable system for human progress.
💸 Wealth Inequality and Capitalism's Impact
The paragraph highlights the extreme wealth disparity exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. It cites data from Oxfam showing that the richest 1% accumulated two-thirds of new wealth created since 2020, with 10 billionaires amassing $1.5 trillion during that period. The narrative critiques capitalism for enabling a system where the ultra-wealthy profit off widespread suffering, arguing that capitalism inherently leads to inequality due to its profit-driven nature.
📉 Worsening Economic Inequality
The paragraph discusses how capitalism, over time, leads to a disproportionate accumulation of wealth among the rich while reducing the living standards of the majority. It mentions how wages have stagnated, with half of all new wealth going to the top 1%, and describes how most Americans live paycheck to paycheck with little or no access to paid vacation or parental leave. The author argues that capitalism thrives on inequality and that the system's design is to favor the wealthy over the working class.
⚖️ The Employer-Employee Power Imbalance
This section delves into the fundamental relationship between employers and employees under capitalism, explaining how businesses inherently prioritize profit over worker welfare. It argues that wages are always less than the value workers bring to companies and that capitalism creates an unequal dynamic, favoring employers through mechanisms like high unemployment and stagnant minimum wages. The narrative claims that this dynamic forces workers into compliance out of fear of poverty.
🛠️ Socialism vs. Capitalism: Different Philosophies
The paragraph contrasts the philosophies of capitalism and socialism. While capitalists believe free markets lead to societal good, socialists argue that markets prioritize profit over the collective well-being. The text emphasizes that capitalism concentrates power and wealth in the hands of a few, while socialism advocates for a more equitable distribution of resources and decision-making power. It clarifies that socialists do not seek to eliminate individuality but rather to ensure a baseline standard of living for all.
🏡 A Socialist Vision of a Just Society
This section outlines the socialist vision for a society where everyone has access to basic needs like housing, education, food, water, and healthcare. It criticizes capitalism for forcing people into undesirable jobs due to fear of eviction or starvation, while socialism promises a system where people can pursue passions and contribute to society without the constant threat of poverty. It also emphasizes the idea of democratic control over production, where workplaces operate with the collective interests of workers in mind.
🏢 Democracy in the Workplace
The paragraph elaborates on the concept of democratizing the workplace, arguing that workers often know how to manage their jobs better than management. It gives an example from the speaker's personal experience working in retail, where workers performed better when left to make their own decisions, compared to when profit-driven corporate policies were imposed. The argument is that workplace democracy increases efficiency, morale, and reduces waste.
🌍 National-Level Democracy and Capitalist Influence
This section critiques the current state of democracy in capitalist societies, arguing that governments are often controlled by wealthy elites and corporations rather than representing the will of the people. It refers to the influence of lobbying groups and industries, particularly fossil fuels and the military-industrial complex, which dominate policymaking. Socialism, by contrast, offers the possibility of true democratic decision-making that prioritizes the needs of the people over profit.
🛑 The Limits of Capitalist Democracy
The paragraph quotes Lenin and others to argue that capitalism only offers democracy to the wealthy, leaving the working majority disenfranchised. It mentions how capitalist societies funnel resources towards military spending and subsidies for harmful industries, rather than addressing urgent issues like climate change. The speaker suggests that socialism offers a more sustainable, democratic solution that empowers citizens to make decisions that benefit society as a whole, rather than prioritizing corporate profits.
📢 Closing Thoughts and Call to Action for Socialism
The video concludes by reinforcing the idea that socialism offers a more just and equitable future. It acknowledges the challenges of overcoming capitalist propaganda but encourages viewers to question the status quo and explore socialist ideas. The speaker also touches on their personal decision to leave Nebula over a disagreement regarding the Israel-Palestine issue, urging viewers to support the channel through Patreon to maintain independence. They invite viewers to join the community and engage in discussions about socialism.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Capitalism
💡Socialism
💡Wealth Inequality
💡Profit Motive
💡Means of Production
💡Class Divide
💡Oligarchy
💡Democracy in the Workplace
💡Surplus Value
💡Climate Change
Highlights
The episode emphasizes how capitalism contributes to economic inequality, citing examples of wealth transfer during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It mentions the richest 1% accumulated nearly two-thirds of all new wealth generated globally during the last two years, according to an Oxfam report.
The 10 richest individuals accumulated $1.5 trillion, which is about the same amount of wealth lost by the rest of the world’s population.
The video argues that capitalism works as intended – to accumulate capital – but that its inherent logic produces extreme inequality and societal harm.
It claims that capitalism’s profit motive drives companies to prioritize profits over people's well-being, which results in wealth disparity and societal problems.
The speaker asserts that capitalism will eventually give way to socialism, comparing it to the historical shift from feudalism to capitalism.
It critiques the notion that capitalism is the best system humanity has found, arguing that something better, such as socialism, is possible.
Capitalism, according to the video, consolidates wealth and power into the hands of a few, leading to monopolies and mega-corporations like Google, Amazon, and Disney.
Socialism, the video argues, offers a more equitable future, focused on providing a guaranteed baseline standard of living for all, including universal access to housing, healthcare, education, food, and water.
It also promotes the idea of democratic control over the means of production, where workplaces are run collectively or democratically by workers.
The video explains that the employee-employer relationship is inherently unequal under capitalism because employers must make a profit from the worker’s labor.
The speaker believes that under socialism, workers would have more say in how workplaces are run, which would improve efficiency and morale.
The episode highlights how democracy under capitalism is compromised by the influence of wealth and lobbying groups, making government policies favor the rich.
It argues that socialism offers a solution to climate change, as decisions under a democratic economy would prioritize the planet over profit.
The speaker concludes that socialism is both moral and common sense, advocating for the democratization of power and an end to capitalism’s outdated profit-driven solutions.
Transcripts
this episode and others like it are made
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[Music]
patreon.com/crashcourse and I figured
it'd be fun to revisit the topic a lot
of structural issues remain unchanged so
if some of this sounds familiar don't be
surprised so let's get straight to the
heart of the matter many of the problems
in your life are either caused or
worsened by capitalism the good news is
we have the means to solve these
problems when we socialists say a better
world is possible it's because it's true
capitalism has only really been around
for a few hundred years it's a little
bit silly to assume that we just
magically found the perfect system and
this is how humans are supposed to to
live it's not utopian to think that
maybe something better can come after
and it's not being bitter or envious to
criticize the status quo things are bad
we know why and we know how to fix them
every system eventually comes to an end
just as Humanity progress from feudalism
to capitalism so too will capitalism
give way to socialism it's The Logical
next step in human development if you
strip away all the extra stuff the core
purpose of our species the only thing
that really matters is leaving a better
life for our children we can no longer
do that under capitalism so let's take a
look at some of the problems capitalism
creates and why it's time to move
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on the example I used in last year's
video was the massive transfer of wealth
during the co pandemic now that the dust
has mostly settled we have better data
on just how extreme it really was
according to a report by Oxfam the
richest 1% of people accumulated nearly
2/3 of all New Wealth generated in the
last 2 years I'll say that again of the
$42 trillion of wealth created since
2020 the richest 1% of people 1%
siphoned off 26 trillion of it put
another way for every $1 of wealth
earned by someone in the bottom 90% The
Upper Crust amassed $1.7 million during
the first two years of the pandemic
specifically the 10 richest people on
Earth accumulated over 1.5 trillion
of wealth which coincidentally is
roughly the amount of wealth lost by
everyone else these 10 people already so
rich they'd make the pharaoh's blush
raked in money at a rate of $1.3 billion
every single day for 2 years together
these oligarchs hold more wealth than
the world's poorest 4 billion people
that is staggering inequality in a time
when 99% of humanity was struggling to
make ends meet when companies were
sacrificing their workers on the altar
of profit when Millions lost their jobs
and had to survive on two tiny emergency
checks over the span of 2 years the
ultra Rich were safe isolated and
profiting massively off the suffering of
their fellow human beings one staggering
statistic that really puts this wealth
disparity into perspective is that if
these 10 multi-billionaires lost
99.99% of their wealth right now they'd
still be richer than 99% of the
population it's hard to even
conceptualize that kind of inequality
but this is what capitalism produces
it's not that capitalism is evil it's
that it is beholden to its own inherent
Logic the logic of the profit motive if
the profit motive says a million people
need to Die to Save the economy then the
only possible outcome under a capitalist
system is that a million people will die
I said last year that this is not a
system that works but I want to amend
that statement capitalism does work it
does the thing it's supposed to do which
is accumulate capital
but because of how capitalism Works
we're left with a society in which the
extreme wealth of the few is a direct
result of the suffering of the many and
that tiny handful of multi-billionaires
will only get smaller over time an
economic system constructed to produce
winners and losers will always end in
Monopoly look at Google look at Amazon
look at Disney every facet of our
society is being Consolidated under ever
growing Mega corporations and that's not
going to stop it can't and a system that
creates Godlike wealth for a handful
while actively preventing the vast
majority from living a decent life needs
to be done away with more and more
people are waking up to this fact as
things continue to get
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worse but okay come on capitalism is an
improvement over feudalism right we
can't just throw away the best thing we
have you're right it was an improvement
we went from from a system where there
was no chance of upward Mobility to one
where some lucky few could rise out of
poverty that's great but the thing we
have to realize is that something which
could have been seen as Progressive 400
years ago might not be so great today
things change and in capitalism's case
not for the better again due to the
inherent logic of the profit motive the
ruling class must always take measures
to reduce costs and maximize profits and
over time you start to run out of fat to
trim today
50% of all New Wealth created goes
directly to the top 1% of the population
CEOs of large corporations make over 350
times what their workers do while
employee wages are lower than they were
50 years ago when you account for
inflation but I could almost forgive
that if half of all Americans didn't
live paycheck to paycheck or if a $50
trillion transfer of wealth hadn't gone
from the bottom 90% of society to the
top 1% since
1975 but they do and it has and it's not
just wages it's everything else too 28
million Americans don't get any paid
vacation or paid holidays so they hardly
take any time off and who can blame them
when wages don't even keep up with
inflation and most people can't cover a
surprise $400 expense it's simply not
possible to take time off and that's
hardly surprising for a country that
also has no federal guaranteed paid
parental leave whatsoever it's not just
that we're getting paid less getting a
smaller share of the wealth we produce
and enriching a single percent of the
population despite living in the most
productive time in human history we're
working more for less and please don't
think I'm cherry-picking data here all
of these statistics are from Western
capitalist funded sources they're all
Linked In the description if you want to
check anyway again all of these
statistics are perfectly in line with
the prime directive of our current
economic model the accumulation of
profit for the capitalist class they're
all Justified by the fact that in some
way they've allowed for a small minority
of the population incredibly powerful
and Wealthy by virtue of ownership of
the means of production to squeeze more
out of their workers for themselves in
the last century we've seen the gradual
destruction of unions a federal
tolerance of permanent high unemployment
and a series of changes to the tax
system that allow more and more wealth
to accumulate at the top wealth is more
concentrated we're more overworked and
rampant inequality persists because this
economic system has no mechanism to fix
these problems on the contrary it
thrives on their existence what
capitalism demands above all else is
profit and in order for the system to be
profitable somebody needs to get screwed
over and it certainly won't be those
with the executive power to set the
rules think of it like this no boss out
there however compassionate or
kind-hearted they are will ever pay
their employee an equal or greater
amount than they bring to the company it
wouldn't make sense what would be the
the point of hiring an extra person if
all the money they generate goes right
back in their pocket in other words no
matter what your pay is even if it seems
incredibly generous it's less than what
you're actually Worth to the company and
the money taken off the top your Surplus
value isn't going to a company fund or
R&D or a collective pension scheme
nothing that benefits you or your
co-workers even indirectly no it's going
to the shareholders otherwise there'd be
no profit only expenses and income this
this is the fundamental truth of
capitalism the employee employer
relationship is always always in favor
of the employer because when it isn't
companies aren't profitable and that's a
big no no under capitalism and the rest
of the economy is there to facilitate
that a consistent natural unemployment
and a minimum wage that hasn't budged in
15 years together gives your boss the
ability to replace you at any time it
keeps you compliant to their power under
threat of poverty and it gives them
leverage to steadily increase the gap
between how much much money you make for
the company and how much you get
[Music]
paid okay I understand that last section
may have been a little frustrating if
this is the first time you're hearing
these talking points I can hear you
saying well yeah it sucks but how else
would a business function it's just
common sense that it has to be this way
or the economy wouldn't work and that
right there is the point it's not that
the economy wouldn't work it's that a
capitalist economy wouldn't work so what
about socialism whereas capitalists and
temporarily embarrassed millionaires
believe that free markets inherently
lead to the greatest societal good
socialists have a different
perspective in a nutshell proponents of
capitalism believe that along with a
free market a healthy Society is divided
into two classes one that owns and
controls the productive Enterprises and
seeks profit and one that does not own
this form of property and therefore
needs to sell its labor for a wage in
their opinion markets even when they're
imperfect are better at making decisions
than democracy is socialists disagree we
understand that markets follow the money
not the collective good and side note
capitalists understand this too they
just think the average person is
gullible enough to believe their
propaganda at its core the whole
capitalist system is built on a small
group of unelected people having more
power than everybody else and using it
to enrich themselves the Socialist
conception of society does away with all
that but before we talk about what
socialists do want we should briefly
touch on what we don't want because
we've all been subjected to A Century of
redscare propaganda at this point so
it's probably worthwhile to clear up
some
misconceptions first we're not trying to
make everyone work in the coal mines and
wear all gray and have exactly the same
number of State mandated Funko pops when
Socialists use words like equality we're
talking about making sure that everyone
is has afforded the same Baseline
standard of living that's it we're not
trying to enforce uniformity across the
board everyone has the same basic
guarantee when it comes to quality of
life you can go out and improve that
it's not a cap on quality of life it's
just a way of saying you are a human
being and that means you deserve a modum
of dignity and security no strings
attached individuality personal
expression the drive to do or become
more none of that will change that's the
best part of being human and socialists
are all about it in fact pursuing goals
taking up Hobbies creating art that's
all far more possible under socialism
where you've got a guaranteed Baseline
standard of living than it is under
capitalism where your options are work
or starve okay we've said that a couple
times now guaranteed standard of living
What specifically does that mean
universally free or at the very least
universally accessible housing education
food water and health care for all the
right to a life of of dignity and basic
security because those things are well
within our power to provide there's too
much food going to waste too many empty
houses too much stuff being destroyed to
artificially inflate its cost and too
many people making a profit by hoarding
our basic needs socialists are tired of
people being pushed into grueling
dangerous or demeaning jobs by being
threatened with eviction and starvation
why are we so intent on holding
ourselves back by keeping the majority
of the species poor and unable to pursue
their path passions a society that
invests in itself by allowing its people
the ability to flourish has a far better
chance at longevity and public support
than one that withholds Necessities for
the sake of Greater profit another thing
socialists propose is democratic control
over the means of production we use that
word a lot what does it mean think large
companies factories Farms literally the
means by which capital is produced we
advocate for an economy run
democratically and not in the search of
profit this can take many forms whether
that's a cybernetically planned economy
a network of autonomous communes or some
other method what works in the US may be
different from what works in other parts
of the world what we can say for certain
is that they would all work better than
what we have now workplaces would be run
either without a boss or with one
elected by the workers and the products
of this economy would be geared towards
satisfying the needs and wants of
society without having to be profitable
to do so if you're having a hard time
inag ining what a democratic workplace
would look like just think about your
current job I'll take retail as a common
example so I used to work at besty as a
camera expert my job on paper was to
help customers pick out the camera that
would best suit their needs in reality
management just wanted me to upsell
people on more expensive gear to make a
long story short the camera department
is kind of detached from Best Buy proper
we technically reported to the
respective Brands and we didn't have a
brand manager there most of the time
when left to our own devices the camera
Department had the lowest rate of
product returns in the store by far
because we decided amongst ourselves how
best to meet the customer needs when
corporate started pressing us for higher
profits and the GM started forcing us to
upsell the return rate skyrocketed
actual profit shrank and the department
got all kinds of negative reviews in
this scenario and countless others
across the labor landscape the workers
know best how to do their job and
meddling from an unelected manager only
makes things worse democracy in the
workplace increases efficiency and moral
and reduces waste it's a
no-brainer one final thing I'd like to
talk about is democracy at the national
level the ability to have a say in how
your country is run in the United States
we supposedly elect people who enact
policies that reflect the will of the
people it's pretty clear that this is
not actually the case Studies have shown
that what the average person wants has
next to zero influence on policy while
what lobbying groups want
does because both both major political
parties are in the pocket of capitalist
industry particularly fossil fuels and
the military-industrial complex we end
up with representation for those with
wealth and power this is something that
socialists noticed over a hundred years
ago for example in his book The State
and Revolution lenon said in capitalist
Society democracy is always hemmed in by
the narrow limits set by capitalist
exploitation and consequently always
remains in effect a democracy for the
minority only for the propertied classes
only for the rich freedom in capitalist
Society always remains about the same as
it was in the ancient Greek republics
freedom for the slave
owners the average American doesn't want
to send billions of tax dollars to fund
genocides or proxy wars we don't want to
subsidize industries that are making the
planet less habitable for our children
we want labor protections a better work
life balance a Health Care system that
won't bankrupt us I'm not saying that
everything will be perfect in a
socialist society I'm saying the these
things are impossible in a capitalist
one when we Face a problem today
something important like climate change
for example our Solutions not only need
to be filtered by what will either be
most profitable or at best hurt profits
the least but also the actual Solutions
we do adopt are made by Industries
unaccountable to the public under
capitalism no government no scientific
board no body of citizens really has the
power to step to the fossil fuel
industry under socialism under a
democratic economy a climate change
level decision may still be incredibly
hard to make but most people care more
about still having a planet to live on
than making the line go up every year
and this way they'll actually have the
power to make that decision a reality
that is what socialists offer a more
dignified life and the democratization
of power and the only thing it will cost
us is giving up on the outdated idea
that there is always a profit-driven
solution to our problems there isn't and
we can do better so socialism is the way
forward for Humanity it is moral it is
just at this point it's Common Sense we
have the data we just have a lot of work
to do deprogramming ourselves from A
Century of Red Scare
propaganda anyway I hope that some of
this video has resonated with you and
that you'll start asking questions about
socialism yourself if you do I've got a
bunch of other videos to help you learn
more we can do this we can build a
better world so go on why not be a
socialist
I mentioned at the beginning of the
episode that my content is only possible
thanks to my patrons on patreon I
recently made the decision to leave
nebula so I'm back to being 100%
independent it's exciting but also a
little nerve-wracking since nebula
handled all my sponsors because a lot of
people have been asking and some Bad
actors have been trying to start drama
no I wasn't kicked off the platform I
was asked to make a clarifying statement
about my stance on Israel and Palestine
and in the end it felt just a little too
both sidy for for me in my opinion it's
a very black and white issue so rather
than compromise my principles I decided
it was best for me to leave there's no
bad blood there so please don't go
harassing nebula for my sake but now
that I'm independent again the best way
to support the channel is on patreon if
you enjoy the work we're doing here at
second thought and you're able to chip
in even a dollar a month I would greatly
appreciate your support every Patron
regardless of pledge amount gets Early
Access to every video plus access to our
patrons only Discord we've got
everything from a recommended reading
list to a book club and I try to do a
live Q&A every month or so we've built a
great community and we'd love for you to
be a part of it we are a small team here
we don't have institutional backing so
we're entirely dependent on viewer
support if you'd like to help keep this
operation afloat visit
patreon.com/crashcourse
[Music]
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