… is from page 283 of Kristian Niemietz’s important 2019 book, Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies:
Why do we so easily dismiss the massive gains that capitalism delivers and obsess over its shortcomings? Why are we so desperate for an alternative that we are prepared to give the most horrendous systems a free pass (at least for a while), provided they are not capitalist? Why are (or were) so many well-meaning observers willing to turn a blind eye to Gulags and Laogai, but incandescent with rage when large companies earn a profit, or when some people earn a lot more money than others?
DBx: Why indeed?
These questions are especially appropriate ones to ask on this 31st anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.