I agree that the housing/credit bubble is not an example of capitalism... rather, it's the result of central planning that is heavily influenced by the building trade, realtors, various social planners, etc.
The planners did not anticipate the self-reenforcing nature of the small price increases their machinations were causing, and before long boom, it burst and prices went down a lot.
Surely bubbles existed before central banking and affordable housing policies, but bad planning appears to make them bigger/worse than would otherwise be possible. It may also lead to greater average stability, who knows.
I think it's an interesting thought experiment to consider what would be a capitalist utopia. Literature is full of socialist style utopias, but it's harder to imagine one under capitalism.
If WalMart moves us further from such a utopia, what does the utopia look like? Is it mom 'n pop shops everywhere and extremely expensive search costs and high markup?
I find myself thinking that a capitalist utopia would have a high percentage of workers as freelancers and there would be lots of ongoing learning, and one might decide to change careers far later in life, etc.
To me Wal-Mart helps to usher in that era by freeing up lots of capital that was previously not all that productive (with a lot of fat added to the supply chain) which can now be used for other, higher, more utopian purposes.
>Is it mom 'n pop shops everywhere and extremely expensive search costs and high markup?
You're assuming that having lots of little stores as opposed to one big chain means high markup. It doesn't have to. Walmart has extremely high markup in certain areas.
Personally I think a capitalist "utopia" would indeed consist of countless small companies all competing on equal footing with each other. The enabling factor would be instant communications and robotic production to keep costs down. Big companies damage the market because they move closer to monopolies. Imagine trying to get into the general retail space today!
Toys can be up to 60% for example (probably average 35% to 40%). I think there are examples that go higher than that but toys is the only one I'm certain of.
The planners did not anticipate the self-reenforcing nature of the small price increases their machinations were causing, and before long boom, it burst and prices went down a lot.
Surely bubbles existed before central banking and affordable housing policies, but bad planning appears to make them bigger/worse than would otherwise be possible. It may also lead to greater average stability, who knows.
I think it's an interesting thought experiment to consider what would be a capitalist utopia. Literature is full of socialist style utopias, but it's harder to imagine one under capitalism.
If WalMart moves us further from such a utopia, what does the utopia look like? Is it mom 'n pop shops everywhere and extremely expensive search costs and high markup?
I find myself thinking that a capitalist utopia would have a high percentage of workers as freelancers and there would be lots of ongoing learning, and one might decide to change careers far later in life, etc.
To me Wal-Mart helps to usher in that era by freeing up lots of capital that was previously not all that productive (with a lot of fat added to the supply chain) which can now be used for other, higher, more utopian purposes.