cap·i·tal·ism
Function: noun: an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market
de·moc·ra·cy
Function: noun
1 a : government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections
2 : a political unit that has a democratic government
3 capitalized : the principles and policies of the Democratic party in the United States
4 : the common people especially when constituting the source of political authority
5 : the absence of hereditary or arbitrary class distinctions or privileges
I looked at the dictionary definition of capitalism & democracy & saw that there is a fundamental disconnect in a system of democracy that is driven by capitalism. Free enterprise is only free for private corporations making private decisions on prices & distribution of goods where the private minority preys on the global majority in the presence of hereditary & arbitrary class distinctions & privileges.
he·redi·tary (hə red′i ter′ē)
adjective
of, or passed down by, inheritance from an ancestor to a legal heir; ancestral
having title, right, etc. by inheritance
of, or passed down by, heredity; designating or of a characteristic transmitted genetically from generation to generation
being such because of attitudes, beliefs, etc. passed down through generations hereditary allies
ar·bi·trar·y (ärb-trr)
adj.
1. Determined by chance, whim, or impulse, and not by necessity, reason, or principle: stopped at the first motel we passed, an arbitrary choice.
2. Based on or subject to individual judgment or preference: The diet imposes overall calorie limits, but daily menus are arbitrary.
3. Established by a court or judge rather than by a specific law or statute: an arbitrary penalty.
4. Not limited by law; despotic: the arbitrary rule of a dictator.
How do countries/continents with vast resources push systems of governance in the name of democracy ( government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections) when the majority suffers from not benefiting from the vast amount of resources which they help to cultivate , produce & distribute in a so called “free market” enterprise of capitalism that is not vested in its people? I look at the “New Africa” where the China effect can easily become the new plague & new colonialism vested in purely bringing more capital to it’s own country & private enterprise- the usual using Africa as a vacation spot/temporary job rather than equal partnerships in building nations toward self sufficiency & equal profit. This is not the fault of China & other global countries who come to invest in Africa, but rather the fault of African & other governments who make these deals on the behalf of the people without it trickling down to the people. How is it possible for African governments to allow China to bring in thousands of Chinese workers for infrastructure /construction projects when many Africans have no jobs & have the ability to do construction- how does this benefit Africans in the short or long run? Eventually after the Chinese are done & take what they need in return for their investment, Africans will once again be left to pick up the pieces in trying to figure out how to rebuild from dependency when the source of African dependency picks up & leaves once again. Many of China’s investments in infrastructure have been beneficial to Africa, but at what cost- only time will tell. Africa/Africans should be hopeful for the best, but to always be prepared for the worst. We need to learn from the past that short term investments/aid instead of true partnerships with global nations which include & benefit the average citizen, can never benefit any nation particularly those who have always been the workers & not the owners. We can’t always be ready to sell our souls for quick money-there has to come a time when our dignity & ability for self empowerment & future building as a continent is not for sale.
An average African is now faced with a new yet very familiar struggle of global investments that do not benefit the average African’s prosperity & having to compete with the counterfeiting of their own goods to be sold to their own people at a lesser price that takes away their existence & ability to attain capital to uplift from poverty & dependency. The production of traditional cloth, leather sandals & other goods made in Africa have now been replaced by often inferior products or counterfeits because the “have nots” have no choice or are completely disadvantaged in a competition that handicaps them right from the start. If you make on average $100 a month –you have to stretch that money & make it last so you forcibly become compliant in a system that keeps you down & dependant, where you will have to pass up the goods made in your own nation in efforts to build up your own economy for one that just takes your spending capital to build up other nations because the price is right. Most Africans would love to buy product made in their own nations because it helps the nation in terms of economic & national pride, but it has become a system of choosing the slow death over the quick death because you maybe able to save a couple of dollars today & saving yourself from not dying today based on the depletion of your means of existence, but in the long run it’s just a slower depletion & burning of your existence. The USA started the cycle of creating China as a super power, handicapping their own industries of production/manufacturing & ending up indebted to China while paving the way for China to possibly give the same fate to the rest of the world in the name of free market capitalism and selling one’s soul/consciousness for capital which eventually left the USA soulless & unconscious in its slow demise. Free enterprise can not be free only to private corporations & not free to the average citizen doing most of the production work. How is one form of communism/socialism or whatever types of governments that we constantly say are inferior to American style democracy, OK & another is not- why is it OK to open doors & have free enterprise with China but not Cuba when the main grievance we taut is a lack of basic human/civil rights? Have we looked at the state of human rights in China? Where has the the civility in our humanity gone? There is an abundance of global resources giving us all the ability for self sufficiency, but in a system of capitalism one’s reward/profit comes from having/taking more than another whether it is fair or not. In one way or another we are all global citizens who contribute to one another’s livelihood & existence in our global collective earth- so we need to stop all the hypocrisy when we are all contributors to the state of the world & the lack of resource distribution to the majority of the world. It is time to wake up & take responsibility before there is a global mass majority Revolution determined to Evolve from brutal inhumane existence in a world of abundance which benefits a select/chosen few!
LMAO- European nations-Good & Honest partners with Africans as opposed to China- It’s all the same game just new super powers & Europe/USA are clamoring to get back global power from China. Why isn’t she more focused on encouraging European countries & the USA to open the so called free market enterprise to enterprising Africans in terms of trade. If that was occurring then perhaps none of them would have to worry their perfect little heads & shout out their self serving opinions of China exploiting Africa & Africa needing a European/American mouthpiece to protect them from Big Bad China.
The journalist just showed her ignorance & spoke directly to Ms. Moyo’s point of trade not aid by suggesting that Africa does not have the resources of Asia to uplift its economy. The ignorance of foreign journalists on Africa comes thru the focus on reporting so much about African aid & poverty instead of African trade & wealth. Africa has more resources than Asia that is why China & others are so invested in Africa-so of course it’s possible for African countries to achieve the same if not more of an economic rise as certain Asian countries have from skillfully & intelligently utilizing their resources to push their individual country’s economic growth.
When did Europeans from former colonizing nations become the spokespeople for Africa? They may belive they are helping but they are just perpetuating the stigma of Africa that we constantly need our former Colonizers/Masters to come to our aid & save us from ourselves & others.
http://worldfocus.org/blog/2008/10/13/chinese-investment-in-africa-soars/1555/
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.