author & educator
If we consider the behavior of individuals, it is clear that maximizing personal benefit is indeed a prime concern. It is by no means, however, the only concern. Human motivation is more complex, and people are, after all, social beings. People act out of habit; they are constrained by institutional forces; they display altruism and concern for others; and their sense of well-being is tied closely to the state of others around them.
VICTOR D. LIPPIT
introduction, Radical Political Economy: Explorations in Alternative Economic Analysis
Capitalism continually renews and reinvents itself. This helps us to understand the fact that despite its severe internal contradictions, contradictions that Marx anticipated would bring about the ultimate collapse of capitalism, the capitalist system has managed to remain vibrant over the centuries.
VICTOR D. LIPPIT
Capitalism
If capitalism persists for several more centuries, as seems to be highly likely, then from the vantage point of the future, capitalism may be seen as the system responsible for the transformation of the human condition from one of mass subsistence to mass prosperity.
VICTOR D. LIPPIT
Capitalism
Divisions among the sexes may enhance profitability. In this case ... gender-based discrimination is the underlying cause.... To the extent that white male workers are victims of the capitalist system--suffering from low wages, harsh working conditions, and fear of unemployment--they are less likely to become conscious of their status or to challenge it as long as they perceive their status to be superior to that of other groups in the society. In this context, capitalists may benefit both individually, through lower wages and higher profits than would otherwise be possible, and as a class, through the displacement of the antagonisms that work experience engenders in such a way the capitalist system itself remains free from challenge.
VICTOR D. LIPPIT
introduction, Radical Political Economy: Explorations in Alternative Economic Analysis
The core dynamic of the capitalist system is the accumulation process, a process in which a portion of the profits reaped through the sale of goods and services is reinvested, swelling the capital stock, incorporating new technologies in the process, and permitting larger sales and profits in the future.
VICTOR D. LIPPIT
Capitalism