Capitalism,
then, reveals how inequalities in talent, brains, virtue, and luck lead
to economic winners and losers. But a dynamic capitalism gives people
the freedom and opportunity to rise as far as their abilities can take
them, rather than being stymied by static castes, guilds, and classes.
; The “snowflake” phenomenon on our college campuses is just
one example of this widespread belief, the malign effects of which
extend far beyond the millennial generation. Apart from the damage to
our characters, autonomy, freedom, and sense of responsibility for our
actions, the therapeutic vision runs counter to the foundations of our
political and economic order.
We can see the cost to the former in the reduction of our freedoms
caused by political correctness and the laws defending the
sensibilities and feelings of “protected” classes. The anxiety not to
cause offense leads to censorship both formal and internalized, which
compromises our First Amendment right to free speech without which a
democracy cannot function. And the demand to meet ever escalating
standards of well-being and comfort by redistributing wealth has
contributed to sluggish economic growth, the unsustainable expense of
social welfare entitlements, and the $20 trillion in debt on track to
bankrupt the country.
[FULL]
