this post was submitted on 21 Jul 2023
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Asklemmy
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I think you’ve written a good, neutral summary critique that increases our common ability to debate this. Thank you.
I would argue, however, that your example makes it sound especially egregious as the profit margin in your example is 95%. The advantage of capitalism, according the people who support it (like I do), is that other sprocket making companies exist and together they bring the profit margins down and down and down (due to completion), forcing continual innovation to bring it back up. Thus, not only is the profit margins typically much, much smaller (1-10%), but society collectively advances, which benefits the workers too as the produce they need to acquire increases in quality and lowers in price.
The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.
So I agree with you when arguing against monopolies.