Andrew Yang: UBI for Capitalism

Andrew Yang Money Quote saying Universal Basic Income will be required to preserve our capitalistic way of life. Andrew Yang said:
 

I’m a capitalist, and I believe that universal basic income is necessary for capitalism to continue
— Andrew Yang

Andrew Yang is arguing that for capitalism itself to survive and thrive into the future, a universal basic income may be necessary. As a capitalist, Yang believes that capitalism has benefits but that technological changes like automation risk disrupting the job market and economy in ways that could undermine capitalism.

By providing everyone with a basic income, it could ensure people still have money to spend in the economy to drive consumer demand, even as the nature of work changes. So in Yang’s view, a universal basic income could help address challenges to capitalism from trends like automation and allow the capitalist system itself to continue functioning effectively going forward.

Christopher Dawson: Wealth & Happiness

Christopher Dawson Money Quote saying we’ve allowed the equivalency of wealth & happiness to dominate our democratic society and guide policy decisions. Christopher Dawson said:
 

 

“The great fault of modern democracy — a fault that is common to the capitalist and the socialist — is that it accepts economic wealth as the end of society and the standard of personal happiness” — Christoper Dawson

In this quote, Christopher Dawson is criticizing how modern democracies, whether capitalist or socialist in orientation, define national success and personal fulfillment primarily according to economic outputs and standards of living.

By stating democracy accepts “economic wealth as the end of society and the standard of personal happiness”, Dawson implies this outlook reduces prosperity to narrow material terms rather than recognizing non-monetary sources of meaning. He suggests viewing wealth maximization and consumption as life’s sole purpose impoverishes society’s deeper aims and individuals’ capacity for fulfillment.

The overall interpretation is that Dawson believes democracies fall short by prioritizing accumulation of money, goods and services over less tangible yet profoundly important goals for communities and citizens alike – such as cultivating justice, wisdom, compassion, civic virtue, strong social bonds, spiritual well-being and human flourishing in all its forms. Dawson’s perspective conveys that truly progressive societies nourish people’s full humanity, not just their bank accounts or consumption habits.

Birthday: October 12, 1889 – Death: May 25, 1970

Nick Hanauer: Plutocrats Made in America

Nick Hanauer Money Quotation saying wealthy need to understand the value in a strong middle class in capitalism. Nick Hanauer said:
 

 

“We plutocrats need to see that the United States of America made us, not the other way around; that a thriving middle class is the source of prosperity in capitalist economies, not a consequence of it” — Nick Hanauer

In this quote, Nick Hanauer is again directly addressing other wealthy “plutocrats” like himself. He is arguing that the plutocratic class needs to recognize that it was the United States as a whole that enabled their wealth, not the other way around where they created the country’s prosperity.

Additionally, Hanauer states that a thriving middle class is the true source and driver of economic prosperity in capitalist systems, rather than the middle class being just a consequence or outcome of plutocratic-led growth.

In essence, he is pushing other wealthy individuals to acknowledge their debt and role in supporting a strong middle class in America, since that middle class is what fuels broad-based economic success, in contrast to the idea that the wealth of the few alone creates prosperity for all.

E.A.G. Robinson on Capitalist Nastiness

E.A.G. Robinson Money Quotation saying greedy, evil capitalists find unreasonable means to acquire more than their share of profit and somehow accrue value to society. E.A.G. Robinson said:
 

 

“The great merit of the capitalist system, it has been said, is that it succeeds in using the nastiest motives of nasty people for the ultimate benefit of society” — E.A.G. Robinson

In this quote, author E.A.G. Robinson seems to be acknowledging both the strengths and weaknesses of capitalism. On one hand, he refers to the “nastiest motives” of self-interest, greed and profit-seeking as driving capitalist behavior.

However, Robinson also notes that these unsavory individual motives, when channeled within a free market system, ultimately benefit society through increased innovation, productivity and economic growth.

The quote conveys Robinson’s perspective that while capitalism is powered by less noble human traits like avarice, competition and ambition, it harnesses these impulses in a way that lifts overall prosperity – suggesting the system transforms vices into virtues on a macro level, even if the micro-level incentives remain less than noble.

Overall, Robinson appears to be recognizing capitalism’s ability to align private vice with public virtue through market forces.

Birthday: December 12, 1893 – January 26, 1973