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Capitalism is Now About What?

Chris Moseng

Iowa City Press-Citizen

May 1, 2006

[Note: This material is copyright by the Press-Citizen, and is reproduced here as a matter of "fair use" for non-commercial, educational purposes only. Any other use may require the prior approval of the Iowa City Press-Citizen.]



I learned recently that a business with a branch in Coralville will shut down local operations rather than relocate in town when their lease expires because they couldn't get the state to help pay for their new building ("Applied Systems Leaving Coralville," April 28).

Is this what capitalism has become? An assortment of spoiled welfare addicts who'd sooner turn their institutional capital out on the street, over 100 skilled local workers, than pay for their own accomodations?

They play community against community like children learn to do to get ice cream out of estranged parents. And if they're denied an opportunity to dip their toes into tax revenues, they take their ball and play elsewhere with no more compassion for the destruction left behind than the law requires.

We're living in a prisoner's dilemma: Communities are the prisoners pitted against one another and the corporations fill the role of the sociopathic jailor.

Until we figure out how to escape from this prison, or learn to cooperate, the choice is between being laid off and having an increasing share of every paycheck go right back to your employer's balance sheet by way of the state.

Although one option is obviously more palatable, neither is right.

Chris Moseng

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