Newspeak | No Treason

Anti-Capitalist Newspeak

On the Mises forum, it’s normal to see a mutualist or left-libertarian protest the use of the word capitalism. The argument goes that instead we should be using “free market” or “market anarchy”.

Why? The reasoning is that too many people misunderstand the word capitalism and think it is the American economic system. It’s not even an argument that the word capitalism means something different than the Austrian or right-libertarian (anyone who is not a left-libertarian apparently) usage, but rather that since a lot of people misuse and misunderstand the word, they now own it. The word is now defined by it’s misuse.

This has already happened with terms like liberal, anarchist, anarchy, laissez-faire, liberalism and libertarianism to name a few.

I refuse to let the lowest common denominator define the language I will use. These are the same people who do not understand, and lack the curiosity to discover why inflation occurs. The same people who vote for the lesser of two evils. The same people who cheer for war when it starts, then cry about it later. The same people who want to bailout Main Street by placing a tax burden on their children, and their children’s children. The same people who worship Reagan and the Clintons. Who think that natural disasters are good for the economy and that America can spread freedom and democracy abroad with the barrel of a gun.

Why would I care what ignorant and loathsome people think? Why would I allow them to frame the debate through their stunted and twisted perception of language?

The answer is, I don’t care, and I won’t allow someone to place limitations upon the debate.

Capitalism. It’s a great thing.