Just @ me 😂.

Common sleight of hand is to conflate capitalism with crony capitalism.

The problem with capitalism, is that it hasn't really been tried. I know. I know. 🫂

Capitalism doesn't need to be tried, it's the default state of affairs when people are free to exchange goods and services voluntarily. Conflating that with what happens when people capture parts of the system and rent-seek is the sleight of hand. There will always be rent seeking and crony capitalism but it's a baby/bathwater situation. The alternative (indiscriminate forced wealth redistribution) is all bathwater.

Capturing part of the system and rent-seeking is not outside of capitalism. It's just one economic strategy among many, like war, enterprise, arbitrage, theft and swindle, etc. Capitalism has no method for preventing it because capitalism doesn't care. Capitalism is not a moral system. It's an economic system. Having any sort of morals or conscience only limits your ability to be the best capitalist you can be. There's no point preaching capitalism and then some capitalists get their hustle on and be like, Not like that, tho.

I agree, capitalism is not about moralizing, it's just a natural state of affairs when people are left to trade and exchange value. But theft and fraud are NOT part of capitalism because the exchange is not voluntary. Capitalism needs *some* top down intervention, e.g., a legal system that punishes crime, but so what? That doesn't mean we should be redistributing wealth indiscriminately.

Capitalism does not need to be voluntary. Using theft, coercion, etc. is also allowed under capitalism. Capitalism is just when private citizens own the means of production, which is the natural state. There is no rule saying how they are allowed to come into that ownership. Nature is red in tooth and claw. Every other economic system is an attempt to defang capitalism.

How can private citizens "own" anything unless there are rules protecting private property? That's what it means to own something, that someone else is not allowed to take if from you with force, i.e., they can only convince you to part with it *voluntarily*. If I can steal your property, then there is no ownership. And it's not capitalism. That's why capitalism does not mean "state of nature". It's the natural order of things only when certain conditions are in place. Laws are necessary.

There is Natural Law, whereby possession covers 9/10th of ownership.

**Ownership is when you control property, and can use, transfer, or dispose of it. This is defined by Nature.** If you are walking along a path and pick up a stick, and use it as a walking stick, it is then your stick. That stick is now your potential capital, as you might later put it to some productive use. You are now a capitalist. If someone comes along with a bigger, longer stick, whacks you over the head and takes your stick, they are now the proud owners of two sticks and are a more successful capitalist than you are. You were unable to defend your private property and it is now someone else's property. If you had been a more clever capitalist, you would have found other stick-owners and grounded a stick-owner coalition and arranged for the common security of your sticks. If the Rogue Stick Bandit showed up, he would no longer be able to take your stick. You and your buddies could even demand he pay you, to be allowed to keep his stick. You are now the more successful capitalist.

You only own that which you can somehow defend.

That's not capitalism. That's the law of the jungle. Capitalism implies property rights. Without property rights, there is no capitalism.

I give up. 🤦🏻‍♀️