We live in a world that is luxurious and wealthy by every previous standard of living. Health, comfort, entertainment, knowledge, and longevity are enjoyed in greater abundance that in any previous culture -- with the possible exception of life before the Great Flood of Noah.

To whom do we owe this abundant prosperity? Capitalists or politicians?

We enjoy an abundance of food because scientists have discovered more efficient methods of agriculture, such as fertilization and crop rotation. Inventors have created the cotton gin and other machines that increase agricultural productivity.
  • The government pays farmers not to grow what people need.
  • The government bans fertilizers and pesticides which create more food.
We enjoy a lifespan double that of the pre-industrial era thanks to advances in medical technology, from antibiotics to X-rays to biotechnology, discovered by doctors and medical researchers.
  • The government bans life-saving medicines which are available in other countries.
We enjoy the comfort of air conditioning, the speed of airline transportation, the easy access to information made possible by the World Wide Web—because scientists and inventors have made the crucial mental connections necessary to create these products.
  • The government bans freon, which makes air conditioning inexpensive.
  • The government regulates energy, increasing its price.
  • The government doubles air travel time with its fictitious "war on terrorism."
  • The government is threatened by an unregulated Internet.
The goal of production in a free market is to give man an ever-greater power over his environment. Consider the power man has gained after only 200 years under capitalism’s Industrial Revolution. To give just a few examples that bear directly on human health: fertilizers and pesticides have made possible an unprecedented production of food, eliminating the periodic famines that plagued all pre-industrial societies; rapid and inexpensive transportation, powered by fossil fuels, has made all kinds of foods available everywhere year-round, making improved nutrition possible; universal availability of refrigeration (thanks to CFCs) has made possible the safe storage of food; air conditioning (also thanks to CFCs) has minimized the health danger of extremely hot weather; electrical power, generated by nuclear and coal-fired power plants, provides a source of heat and light that is safer and more reliable than fire; the development of plastics has made possible the invention of numerous life-saving medical implants and devices. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Thanks to thousands of advances such as these, life today under capitalism is incomparably safer, cleaner, and healthier—not to mention more comfortable—than it has ever been in human history. But all of these advances were produced by corporations seeking profit on the free market. Thanks to capitalism, the average lifespan in industrial countries has increased steadily to more than 70 years—compared to less than 40 in pre-industrial societies.

Most people recognize the right of scientists and engineers to be free to ask questions, to pursue new ideas, and to create new innovations. But at the same time, most people ignore the third man who is essential to human progress: the businessman. The businessman is the one who takes the achievements of the scientists and engineers out of the realm of theory and turns them into reality; he takes their ideas off the chalkboards and out of the laboratories and puts them onto the store shelves.

Behind the activities of the businessman there is a process of rational inquiry every bit as important as that of the scientist or inventor. The businessman has to figure out how to find and train workers who will produce a quality product; he has to discover how to cut costs to make the product affordable; he has to determine how best to market and distribute his product so that it reaches its potential buyers; and he has to figure out how to finance his venture in a way that will best feed future growth. All of these issues—and many others—depend on the mind of the businessman. If he is not left free to think, the venture loses money and its product goes out of existence.

The businessman has to have an unwavering dedication to thinking, not only in solving these problems, but also in dealing with others. He has to use reason to persuade investors, employees, and suppliers that his venture is a profitable one. If he cannot, the investors take their money elsewhere, the best employees leave for better opportunities, and the suppliers will give preference to more credit-worthy customers.

Government regulation, by contrast, operates by thwarting the businessman's thinking, subordinating his judgment to the decrees of government officials. These officials do not have to consider the long-term results—only what is politically expedient. They do not have to back their decisions with their own money or effort—they dispose of the lives and property of others. And most important, they do not have to persuade their victims—they impose their will, not by reason, but by physical force.

The government regulator does not merely show contempt for the minds of his victims; he also shows contempt for their personal goals and values.

A system that sacrifices the self to "society" is a system of slavery—and a system that sacrifices thinking to coercion is a system of brutality. This is the essence of any anti-capitalist system, whether communist or fascist. And "mixed" systems, such as today's regulatory and welfare state, merely unleash the same evils on a smaller scale.