Three Mountains (13) - Wealth

Free market capitalism has solved the production problem. It allowed human initiative and inventiveness to flourish. The accumulation of capital has massively increased human productivity. Free trade has supported a greater division of labour. These factors have massively increased the wealth of the western world. We have moved from a life of subsistence to a world of prosperity in a couple of centuries.

There are now thousands of high wealth individuals in the world. They hold a huge share of the wealth that is produced in the world.

The problem with free market capitalism than wealth tends to be concentrated in the hands of a few.

1. Efficient entrepreneurs are rewarded with increasing wealth. That is as it should be. Many use the increase in wealth to expand their enterprise.

2. Wealth flows to those who already have wealth. Those who inherit wealth will find it much easier to increase their wealth than those with none. Wealth begats wealth.

3. The corrupt, crafty and unscrupulous will often do even better. They will often manipulate and swindle the less misfortunate to defraud them for their own benefit.

4. When wealthy people collude with political rulers, the flow of wealth to the rich and powerful is really boosted.

5. Some wealth flows down to those at the bottom, but the flow up is far greater.

6. When governments produce economic depressions, the poor suffer most.

Secular capitalism increases the wealth of most people in society, but it also produces increased inequality.