CAPITALISM'S ACHILLES HEEL Dirty Money and How to

330 CAPITALISM’S ACHILLES HEEL
CHALLENGE
Reading Part I on illegality and Part II on inequality, you might conclude
that this, quite simply, is the way the world works. But reading Part III
on distorted philosophy, I hope it becomes clear that the way it works is
in part a choice we have made, based on a set of rationalizations we find
comforting.
I told the story at the opening of this Part III about the confrontation I
had with the minister of industries in a poor country. She was intent on distorting
capitalism to cheat one segment of her society in order to advantage
another segment of her society. She was advocating Jeremy Bentham writ
large: selective sacrifice, greater good, ends justifying means. The story may
have seemed a bit curious then. Perhaps its relevance is more obvious now.
That country teeters on the brink of state collapse. And whether it is one
country or one world, the process of disadvantaging, defrauding, plundering
a part of society for the supposed greater advantage of another part of society
is flawed policy. Can anyone seriously argue that this is where we want capitalism
to be?
My third challenge is directed to philosophers and others, not with a
daring or defiant tone but with a plea for reflection grounded in reality.
Memorandum
To: Philosophers, Economists, Political Theorists,
and Social Scientists
From: Capitalism’s Achilles Heel
Subject: Challenge: New Foundations for
Twenty-First-Century Capitalism
Integrating reality and theory, propose the contents of fresh
philosophical underpinnings for the capitalist system. Consider in
particular:
• The role of utilitarianism in nineteenth- and twentieth-century
capitalism.
• Current trends in poverty, inequality, crime, terrorism, population
growth, globalization, and connectivity.
• Relations of rich and poor nations.
• Relations of rich and poor people.