It’s cap and gown season again. “Pomp and circumstance,” It’s in the air all over the country. I will be attending several high school and college graduation ceremonies again later this month. My youngest is not yet graduating from high school, and my oldest son, Mighty Mites’ mother, plans to send them off to kindergarten soon. One of the ways I’m at least holding on is, spirit of youth I work with university students at my alma mater and elsewhere. Those visits can also provide a good perspective on our potential future.
On many of my university visits, especially when given the opportunity to speak, I pose questions to millennial student audiences. You want a system that requires everyone to graduate and get a job with the same pay and benefits, regardless of what they study in school, an individual’s GPA or other contributions to the community, or Do you support the idea that all are equal?
Almost every hand in the room goes up in the air. Do you need to be rewarded for getting better grades, graduating from school, participating in philanthropy or community service, or serving in various roles as a student leader? Only the person’s hand goes up. What I have been describing so far is socialism, and the system that has made us successful today is capitalism, which rewards performance, effort, and achievement.
I’m an American and a patriot, but I’m not arrogant enough to say that socialism and communism don’t have attractive aspects, but in every country I’ve visited that lives under these systems, Corruption was widespread, as was severe poverty. The evidence is clear.
What about work ethics? Sweat equity? Are you paying your dues? Are you getting paid commensurate with your talents and skills? These concepts are not taught or shared in the classrooms I encounter today, so they may as well be written in hieroglyphs. not. Family and parents are also involved here. Most of the college students I meet are his HOPE scholars here in Georgia. To maintain free tuition, you must have a grade point average of B or better. The majority of students and their families choose not to risk academic decline by requiring part-time employment. Real-world work experience, even part-time, is invaluable in understanding how the real world works.
In third world countries and many parts of the world, all Americans are considered wealthy. I don’t begrudge other people’s success. I’ve received a few smaller scholarships during my college years, but the one I’m most proud of involved an essay in support of capitalism, or as the donor who founded the fund put it: , I was asked to write an essay that would “express my thoughts and antipathy toward the redistribution of wealth.”
I expressed my antipathy in the opening paragraph, but I’m sure that was probably the tiebreaker that won me that award. In frequent conversations with young voters and students, capitalism, profits, and wealth creation almost universally get frowned upon.
Capitalism is a system that allows tangible assets (real estate, financing, and other hard assets) to be put at risk to build, finance, and support other potentially commercial enterprises. Socialists, like their neighbors, live modestly in the same house/area for most of their lives. Capitalists use their homes as collateral to take out stock loans and then invest that capital in other properties, businesses, and even friends.
What I think capitalism needs is rebranding. Traditional media almost entirely stopped using the term “liberal” to describe Democratic Party policies during President Bill Clinton’s era. What you’re hearing now is definitely a far more preferred label than “progressive,” especially for swing voters. The word “progressive” seems to indicate a concern and “progress” for our future, as well as the ever-expanding role of government at all levels: local, state, and federal.
What about meritocracy? Professional sports, and even the NCAA and the Olympics, already operate on a meritocracy, with player salaries, contracts, sponsorships, etc. pursuing and driving performance. Academic scholarship largely follows a similar trajectory.
Or maybe we should get young people to come up with new capitalist names like “Liz.” or being a “freak”. Perhaps, if we change the name, we will come to understand the many advantages of this system, which in many ways is the envy of the Western world. I’d look up “Material Girl,” “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend,” or “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” on Amazon Music or Spotify.
