Establishment of Free Markets is Directly Proportionate to Technological Advancements

The advantages of a Free Market are many, and obvious to those who know where to look. While the skeptics continue to fester, there is no dearth of evidence in favour of capitalism. One of the most pertinent findings is that the capitalist state is conducive to technological advancements and is, therefore, directly related to the betterment of human life. The evolution of technology not only improves our standard of living, it also determines who holds the reigns to the vehicle that drives global economies. The most obvious manifestation of this is the bargaining capacity that is accrued by nuclear power. However, technology is not only a tool for competition, it is also a tool of egalitarian growth and harmony. It is the future of mankind.

Consonance of Ideas

The premise of the free market system or capitalism is that human nature is inherently selfish. However, its proponents see nothing wrong with it and have tried to awaken people from the daze of religious servitude to what the title of Ayn Rand’s book famously describes as The Virtue of Selfishness. Capitalism rests on the belief that people are driven by “self-interest” and the desire to better their condition. Adam Smith believed that general welfare depends on allowing an individual to pursue his self-interest, “as long as he does not violate the laws of justice.” When a person acts in his own interest, “he frequently promotes (the interest) of society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it,” wrote the father of free market economy.

This ideology and its hypothesis of human nature are completely conducive to the advancement of science and technology. It too reiterates that instead of waiting for an external force to better our condition, if we were to awaken to what is around us, our natural tendency of “creativity, enterprise and ingenuity” (qualities that capitalism presupposes as the foundation of human nature) will help us to make a better life for ourselves and for others. Therefore, it is no surprise that the establishment of free markets is directly proportionate to the advancement of technology.

Capitalism and Scientific Innovations: A Symbiotic Relationship

“More progress in improving human well being has been made in the last 250 years than the previous 10,000 combined,” said John Mackey, the CEO of Whole Foods. He elucidated his point by stating how, since the advent of capitalism, human lifespan has increased, world poverty has decreased and the value of human dignity has been restored by way of abolition of human slavery and the waning of patriarchy in capitalist nations. But its strongest impact has been on technological advancements, the most dramatic of which is the internet. This potentially transformative invention had been previously exclusive to the army. However, only when it was handed over to the private sector did it come into its own. This is clearly indicative of how the tenets of Capitalism are conducive to technological innovations and therefore betterment of the human condition at large.

The Future of Technology

If we were to take triadic patents as an indicator of world innovations, we would see that a third of the world’s patents belong to the United States of America. Second to the United States is Japan, also a formidable global innovator. After Japan, the most number of patents registered annually come from Europe, of which Germany takes the lead. It is no coincidence that the economic policies of these countries favour innovation. While developing countries also register patents, it is usually within the boundaries and in order to ward off external competition. This is surely not for the lack of talent in the countries, but due to the lack of opportunities. Those that try to create the opportunity have too many bureaucratic hurdles to cross, so that it would seem that whatever innovations do take place, they are not due to the government, but despite it. On the contrary, capitalist countries have the economic stability that affords them the foresight to be able to not just preserve that stability in the future, but also to enhance it.

While developing countries also register patents, it is usually within the boundaries and in order to ward off external competition. This is surely not for the lack of talent in the countries, but due to the lack of opportunities. Those that try to create the opportunity have too many bureaucratic hurdles to cross, so that it would seem that whatever innovations do take place, they are not due to the government, but despite it. On the contrary, capitalist countries have the economic stability that affords them the foresight to be able to not just preserve that stability in the future, but also to enhance it.