Capitalism is an Oppressive Economic and Social System

Imagine a society where a small minority of people have absolute control over masses. In such a society, mass media and institutions are the major means of spreading messages of false hope and promises. Through the mass propaganda machines of mass media and popular culture, a state of group think and conformity is established where a set of values is enforced so that a few may benefit immensely at the expense of many. One would think that such a tale is told only in dystopian fiction but the truth is that we live in such a society and the main cause of this oppression of the masses is our economic and social system, Capitalism. Capitalism is an oppressive economical and social system. It serves as a tool used by the rich minority†¦show more content†¦One individual that was able to see through the myths and utopian propaganda presented by this corrupt system was the Argentinean revolutionary Ernesto â€Å"Che† Guevara. In a letter titled â€Å"Socialism and man in Cu ba†, Guevara writes â€Å"The laws of capitalism, which are blind and are invisible to ordinary people, act upon the individual without he or she being aware of it. One sees only the vastness of a seeming infinite horizon ahead. That is how it is painted by capitalistic propaganda.†[3]. During long journeys through much of South America, Guevara realized that capitalism is a system that exploits many and creates many social injustices and class divisions [4]. The recent â€Å"Arab Spring† protests are an example of groups of individuals realizing that the dreams painted by capitalism are false and these individuals have realized that the class divisions created by capitalism don’t just disappear with more education as the capitalistic rhetoric perpetuates. The â€Å"Arab Spring† has caused the fall of 3 presidents, Pres. Hosni Mubarak and Pres. Mohammad Morsi in Egypt and Pres. Ben Ali in Tunisia, as well as the death of the dictator Muammar Gaddafi [5]. It has also served as the inspiration for protests elsewhere, such as by the Occupy Movement and the hacktivist group â€Å"Anonymous†. These revolutionaries like Che Guevara have realized that capitalism is an oppressive system that creates divides and just like him are working to change it. Our economic system,Show MoreRelatedMarx s Criticism Of Capitalism1282 Words   |  6 Pages According to Karl Marx in the Economic and Philosophic Manuscript of 1844, â€Å"the only wheels which political economy sets in motion are greed and the war amongst the greedy - competition.† A capitalist society, defined by the systems of competition and private ownership, is divided into two classes - the â€Å"property owners† and the â€Å"propertyless workers† (701). In this system, workers suffer from exploitation and alienation, while capitalists grow wealthier and more powerful. 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