Capitalism, when defined as "investment of capital for the sake of making more money," is:?

In the question regarding, "investment of capital for the sake of making more money," I'm leaning towards "4. the freedom of expression through the use of property," for my answer. I think any such agreement deserves an explanation, however.

I'm ruling out "1. theft", and "3. harmful to the have-nots," for the same reason, that investment of capital, even if the money was stolen, does not constitute 'theft', and it is only harmful in the sense of how the capital may be used. If I give the capital to a company that will use it for war purposes or some other purpose the investor considers to be evil, then number 3 is true, but not necessarily so, since it can be used for good or neutral purposes as well.

I believe, "2 if, successful, the creation of more wealth than existed before," is wrong because capital clearly does not create wealth, people do.

Finally, I like the idea of freedom, since it reflects the act of the individual, his right to do what he wants, including invest his own capital (assuming he didn't steal it).

It could be any, all, or none of those depending on how it was done (except that I find the idea of #4 a bit odd--"money talks..." is supposed to be cynical, not utopian). If you invest money to make money and you don't actually make, buy, or sell a product or provide a service, then it is probably closer to 1 and 3. If you invest money to perform one of those actual economic functions then you can create more wealth than existed before, and any perceived harm or 'theft' you did would be mitigated (and probably overshadowed) by the good you do to the people and economy.

There are companies that make money and help the country become greater while they do it. There are other companies that destroy to make a buck. You can look at the 1980's if you want an example that won't be politicized to death. You could see real innovation and "the creation of more wealth than existed before" with the rise of the computer industry and communications technologies. You could see junk bond dealers who basically committed theft harmful to the have-nots in order to make themselves money at the expense of nearly everyone.

I have never understood why anyone thinks capitalism is "good" or "bad". It depends on how the system is being used. Unless we shift away from the real world and start talking ideologies it is never black and white. If we are talking ideologies, pure capitalism and marxist socialism both stink--they are unworkable and usually lead to misery.

Number 2

Capitalism is worth every penny. Successfulness is not. The free market is the best way to let human beings seek economic success.

5 a product of human nature