What is Capitalism?

In popular discourse, there is a lot of talk about being in late-stage capitalism, and headed toward a post-capitalist world. Will socialism replace capitalism? Will something else emerge?

Before we could hope to answer these questions, we need a clear understanding of what capitalism is. In popular discourse around capitalism, however, it's common to see supporters and detractors talking past one another. The one thread that seems to unite both sides is the understanding that capitalism is a market-based economic system. But if capitalism could be any market-based economic system, then capitalists would have to be open to systems where everything from justice to parental love are traded on the stock exchange. Conversely, when socialists deride all market-based economic systems, market-based alternatives to capitalism like 'Market Socialism' become problematic no matter how prosperous they might be. So how do we define capitalism in a way that accurately captures what it is without leaving anything out, or letting too much in?

Our goal today is to bring some clarity to what capitalism is and isn't, what it does well and what it doesn't, what needs to change, what should stay the same, and where society might go from here.

Supplemental videos:
Man exploits man - https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5z7Wt1doTEs
Is China capitalist, socialist, or communist?- https://youtu.be/5mjVP09XqbM?si=d3RcfH0IfUnMxBXw
What is capitalism? - Capitalism explained - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLsAhwJzQoI
Capitalism limits what we can achieve - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUn9x1BS-g ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUn9x1BS-g)

Question's we'll cover:

1. Find or create the most accurate value-neutral definition of capitalism you can.
2. What do profit, GDP, and the stock market say about the health of society? Is capitalism wedded to these measures or can there be forms of capitalism that track other variables?
3. Is capitalism inherently exploitative? Is political or economic exploitation inevitable in any functioning society? If so, then is some kind of exploitation justified? What kind?
4. Does capitalism get human nature right? Are we self-interested and competitive, or communal and cooperative? Are we workers by nature, or are we lazy and in need of being coerced to work?
5. What creates the most success in capitalism? Merit, virtue, power, grift, luck? If one succeeds in the market, should they have a greater claim on political power as a result?
6. Is capitalism inherently class-based? Does it necessarily create inequality? How much inequality is okay, how much is too much?
7. Are we in late-stage capitalism? Is capitalism dying?

Supplemental definition:
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article on Socialism (https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/socialism/#SociCapi) says "capitalism displays the following constitutive features":

(i) The bulk of the means of production is privately owned and controlled.
(ii) People legally own their labor power. (Here capitalism differs from slavery and feudalism, under which systems some individuals are entitled to control, whether completely or partially, the labor power of others).
(iii) Markets are the main mechanism allocating inputs and outputs of production and determining how societies’ productive surplus is used, including whether and how it is consumed or invested.
(iv) There is a class division between capitalists and workers, involving specific relations (e.g., whether of bargaining, conflict, or subordination) between those classes, and shaping the labor market, the firm, and the broader political process.