Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
On the Importance of Definitions
On the Importance of Definitions
Apr 2, 2025 8:29 AM

I recently asked the question at Ethika Politika, “Which Capitalism?” (also the title of my article), and I followed it up with a related question here regarding the relationship between distributism and capitalism (is the former a form of the latter?). In addition, Jordan Ballor reflected last week on the different orientation of definitions of capitalism and socialism, observing, “One definition [i.e. capitalism] is focused on structure, the other [i.e. socialism] is connected with moral ideals.”

On a related note, I found this post from Matt Mitchell at Neighborhood Effects to be quite to the point as well:

Google Chairman Eric Schmidt defended pany’s practices [of taking certain tax exemptions], saying:

We pay lots of taxes; we pay them in the legally prescribed ways…. I am very proud of the structure that we set up. We did it based on the incentives that the governments offered us to operate.

So far so good. He didn’t make the rules that privilege his firm, but he will avail himself of these privileges when offered. I can sympathize. I oppose the mortgage interest deduction but still take it every April. Schmidt’s next statement, however, is about as far from the mark as one can get:

It’s called capitalism…. We are proudly capitalistic. I’m not confused about this.

A quick lesson for Mr. Schmidt: genuine capitalism is peting on a level playing field for customer dollars. If you offer a superior product orservice, customers will reward you by voluntarily parting with their money in exchange for what you offer.

Schmidt’s confusion it widespread, unfortunately, and it can make clear, charitable, and productive discussion very difficult. When many Christians say that they support the free economy, people hear it as supporting the status quo of cronyism, but that is rarely the case in my experience. If we hope to have intelligent discussions with those who disagree with us, on any issue, clear and charitable definitions of terms are essential. And that, of course, goes for terms other than capitalism as well.

Read the full post by Matt Mitchell at Neighborhood Effects here, and checkout the other posts referenced in this one by clicking on the hyperlinked text in the first paragraph above.

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
A Jewish perspective on market, justice, and charity
“Not a day goes by when there’s not some concern raised about the state of the economy and how people are faring,” says Curt Biren in this week’s Acton Commentary. “While recent economic growth has been promising, wage growth is lackluster, many say.” The middle class is shrinking. There’s too much e inequality, and the list goes on. These concerns are pelling. Who wouldn’t like to see more opportunity and more growth? People yearn for the good life, to experience...
Stiglitz vs. Easterly: Leading economists debate the role of markets in reducing poverty
In a fascinating debate hosted by Reason Magazine, development economists William Easterly and Joseph Stiglitz discuss how to best fight global poverty, responding to a simple question: “Which is a better approach, freer markets or increased government action?” Easterly, a professor at New York University and author of the popular book, The White Man’s Burden, highlights the importance of freer markets, arguing they provide better incentives, better mechanisms for sharing knowledge, and, most importantly, better rights. Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate...
5 Facts about hurricanes
Hurricane Florence has struck the Carolinas, dumping massive amounts of rain that could trigger catastrophic floods inland. Here are five facts you should know about these types of deadly storms: 1. A hurricane is a form of tropical storm that form over warm ocean waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Sea, southern Atlantic Ocean, and Gulf of Mexico. When the winds of a tropical storm are less than 38 mph, it is called a tropical depression, and when the...
Radio Free Acton: Inside the studio of a violin maker; Upstream on the film ‘Andrei Rublev’
On this episode of Radio Free Acton, award winning news anchor Anne Marie Schieber visits the studio of Matthew Noykos, a violin maker in Grand Rapids, MI, to learn more about his craft and discuss how he finds purpose and fulfillment in his everyday work. Then, on the Upstream segment, Bruce Edward Walker speaks with Robert Bird, author of two books on Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, about Tarkovsky’s film “Andrei Rublev,” which was recently re-issued by The Criterion Collection. Check...
How Trump’s tariffs hurt Michigan industry
“President Donald Trump’s continued embrace of tariffs spells danger for Michigan,” says Tyler Groenendal in an op-ed for the Detroit Times. Groenendal, the foundation relations coordinator at the Acton Institute, says though Trump is noted for his “America First” refrain, his call for tariffs will ultimately hurt America the most: Michigan is particularly vulnerable to the consequences of protectionism. According to estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau of Economic Analysis, imports and exports accounted for 38.9 percent of the Michigan’s...
How expert are expert stock pickers?
Note: This is post #93 in a weekly video series on basic economics. In his 1973 book, A Random Walk Down Wall Street, economist Burton Malkiel made a controversial claim: a blindfolded monkey, throwing darts at the financial pages, could select a basket of stocks that would do just as well as a set chosen by the pros. Economist Alex Tabarrok explains why that is true and why the first rule of smart investing is “ignore the expert stock pickers.”...
Abp Justin Welby compared Amazon to leeches — but it built his church
In a recent speech, the Archbishop of Canterbury likened Amazon executives to leeches and ancient Aztec rulers who “ate the flesh of human sacrifices.” However, in reality Amazon has generated such prosperity for its shareholder, the Church of England, that it has financially built up the body of Christ. In a harsh address to the Trades Union Congress last week, Welby said that Amazon “leached off the taxpayer,” since its low tax bill proves “they don’t pay for our defence,...
Rev. Robert Sirico’s ‘Catholique et Libéral’ launched in Paris
The full-house at Paris Story theater brought together many ranks of French leadership from economics think tanks, businesses, human rights advocacies, and the Catholic Church. From left to right: David Briend (publisher), Rev. Robert Sirico (author), Emmanuelle Gave (interpreter), Jean-Philippe Delsol (IREF president), Charles Gave (preface author and president of Institut des Libertés) Recently, on September 6, Acton’s president and co-founder Rev. Robert Sirico launched his first trade press book in French Catholique et Libéral. Les raisons morales d’une économie...
A crash course on how to interpret the U.S. Constitution
Today is Constitution Day, a holiday celebrated in America every year on September 17, the anniversary of the day the framers signed the document. The U.S. Constitution is arguably one of the most important legal documents in the history of the world. Because of this venerated status, though, many people assume that you need to be a Juris Doctor (J.D.) and an expert on recondite Constitutional law to understand how to read the document, much less interpret the Constitution. But...
Post-industrial economics: Studying human action in an age of intangibles
As pletes its transition into the Age of Information, economists are struggling to identify the drivers and develop their predictive models accordingly. Alas, as businesses continue to grow and evolve more rapidly, and as the corresponding systems continue to increase plexity, many economists still view individuals and businesses as mostly static and reactionary. “Mainstream economists treat the firm as if it were an inorganic particle that does nothing but react to forces around it,” writes economist Arnold Kling in National...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved