Hand-in Questions:
William Shaw and Vincent Barry in their textbook Moral Issues in Business define the essence of the social order of capitalism as being, "using money to make money" (p. 145). An assessment of capitalism so defined - "the society or civilization that arises when money or capital is taken to be the ultimate end of the dominant institutions(s) of that society" - yields the following moral criticisms:
a) The process of relentless or insatiable capital growth does not fit in a finite world.
b) Capitalism breeds oligopolies i.e. it leads to a concentration of economic resources that works against individual freedom.
c) It promotes excessive and unfair competition undervaluing and undermining cooperation.
d) The means used to gain competitive advantage are ethically questionable: -influence is exerted on governments (to provide, for example, subsidies to business)
-responsibility is not accepted for costs external to transactions (e.g. pollution) -barriers to entry are put into place (e.g. advertising, restrictive patents)
e) Those who do not hold capital are exploited - i.e. are treated not as ends in themselves, as persons, but as mere means to another's ends.
f) It creates false needs and leads to a commodification of culture
g) This political/economic system keeps people dependent and does not really achieve universal prosperity - i.e. wealth is in fact transferred from "have not" individuals and countries to "have" countries.
