There are pockets of capitalism in the U.S., but what we mostly have now is a corporatist system.
When the Federal Reserve ‘lends’ money to Goldman Sachs at 0% interest so that they can lever up 30:1 and buy U.S. Treasuries at 3%, that’s not capitalism.
When the Federal Reserve ‘lends’ $3.3 trillion to politically favored corporations at 0% interest, that’s not capitalism.
When the Federal Reserve buys $2 trillion in bonds in the name of quantitative easing, that’s not capitalism.
We have a BS system where those at the tippy-top get bailed out, driving up the U.S. debt to $14 trillion. However, when it comes time to pay the bill, it’s the middle class who have to pay it with their taxes or with a reduced social safety net.
And spare me the ‘personal responsibility’ canard. The banks have a responsibility not to offer products that end up blowing up the economy. If the banksters were bailed out and don’t have to take ‘personal responsibility’ for their actions, why should the individual borrowers?