Mikhail S. Gorbachev: Market Capitalism
on Monday, November 19, 2018Mikhail S. Gorbachev Money Quote saying the marketplace didn’t spring from the mind of a capitalist – it has existed as long as trade has – forever. Mikhail S. Gorbachev said:
“The market is not an invention of capitalism. It has existed for centuries. It is an invention of civilization” — Mikhail S. Gorbachev
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In this quote, Mikhail Gorbachev seems to be challenging the notion that free markets are a construct of capitalism alone. Specifically:
- Gorbachev states that while markets have become strongly associated with capitalist systems, they in fact predate capitalism by “centuries” and are not unique to it.
- He argues that well-functioning markets are a “civilization” in general, implying they can and have existed in various economic models throughout history, not just capitalist ones.
The best interpretation is that Gorbachev believes markets are a natural outgrowth and facilitator of advanced societies, not an invention of any single modern ideology. From his perspective, commerce and voluntary exchange between participants have long been an element of developed human communities regardless of the dominant economic structure, contrary to views of markets as a purely capitalist phenomenon.
The quote conveys Gorbachev’s view that markets are a product of social progress rather than the property of any single modern school of economic thought.
Birthday: March 2, 1931 – Death: August 30, 2022