Article in the Wall Street Journal about the Chilean miners who were stuck for weeks and how capitalism saved them.
Although I mostly disagree with the author, it is an interesting perspective.
Have a good Fall break,
Alex Jackman
2 thoughts on “Capitalism Saved the Chilean Miners?”
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It was interesting to read another perspective, but this article seemed ridiculous to me. As I was reading I couldn’t help but remember how the miners ended up there in the first place-the result of a capitalist system! I completely agree with Professor Vila’s points. And yes, the author of the article is right, that capitalism spurs on progress and the development of new technologies. But the capitalist system does this at the expense of the powerless/poor. The technology that the article was trumpeting, from the Center Rock Drill Bit to copper fiber socks, did help to save the miners. But this case was unusual. In most of the world, technology like this (which the author says is invented because of the creativity and market of capitalism) usually benefits the few. This kind of technology is exploited, and not shared with the general public or made available to those who need is most. Capitalism may spur the creation of new technologies, but rarely do they serve the greater good. Overall, I thought the author’s argument was weak. Yes, it is worth celebrating the miner’s escape, but there are many other issues at play (like Professor Vila explains). And the other article, about the aftermath of the rescued miners, was very revealing! The media’s portrayal of a heartwarming and feel-good story hid the economic challenges and poverty of miners across Chile. Obviously, things are not always what they seem and one can always seem to find the dark side of capitalism.
As I mentioned when I first read this — and you sent it to me, Alex (thanks!) — it’s uncanny that the Wall Street Journal (this is typical of this publication, by the way), asserts the wonders of Capitalism at the end, the result, while denying that it was Capitalism in the first place that (a) creates the need for the mine, (b) creates the corporate blindness to wealth and power that compels them to cut corners and thus keep open a mine that (1) was already cited for having safety problems and (2) is kept open despite so that (c) in a vertical economic system, in one of the poorer areas, among the poorest of people, generationally, there is only “mine-work” available (the oldest miner rescued had been mining since he was 12 and was 62 or 63 when trapped), and thus (d) there is no recourse but to mine to simply subsist and keep food on the table, though the corporation clearly cares little about the miners’ well being. This is the proper definition of capitalism (now, note how I’ve reduced it, here, to a lowercase “c”).
But capitalism continues. Note the story Rescued Miners’ Secrecy Pact Erodes in Spotlight