The Pope is chasing a myth.

Just about everyone on the planet who is exposed to mainstream news reports is aware that the Pope has aligned himself with the world’s Marxists by saying that global poverty and injustice are the result of capitalism.

However, true capitalism has not existed anywhere in the world for almost a hundred years. Where it once existed, such as the United States, it was quietly and systematically strangled to death by thousands of laws that spoke of social reform, stabilizing the economy, protecting the weak, redistributing wealth, sharing resources, providing social services, welfare, and the greater good for the greater number.

We are told that we live in a capitalist system, but nothing could be further from the truth. We now live in a collectivist system that is almost indistinguishable from the theoretical models for fascism, socialism, and communism. The capitalist shell remains, but it is empty.

FREE-MARKET CAPITALISM VS.
MONOPOLY CAPITALISM

Classical capitalism includes the concept of a free-market, controlled by government only to the extent necessary to insure that agreements are honored. What we have now is what might be called monopoly capitalism in which almost all aspects of the market are controlled by government and in which favored players in the game (those that generously fund political campaigns) obtain government-backed monopolies and, thereby, are protected from competition. However, to call that a form of capitalism is also a trick, because it pulls attention away from the fact that monopoly is the normal condition in all collectivist systems, including socialism, communism, and fascism.

Those who are calling for more government control over the economy and over all human activity in the name of fighting poverty are merely demanding more of the same poison that created the illness in the first place.

This is the cruel trick being played on the rank-and-file Leftists who fill the streets and the ballot boxes, but who at the top is orchestrating this trick? Are all Leftist leaders merely ignorant or misinformed, or are there a few masterminds who know full well what they are doing?

There is no doubt that most politicians are fully aware that “evil capitalism” is a modern myth, but it is a useful myth for their purposes. The question of the day, however, is: in which category does the Pope belong?

It’s a good thing that we do not know the answer to that question, because then we would have to defend our position, which could lead to an acrimonious division within our ranks. Fortunately, it makes no difference if the Pope is simply naive or if he sees himself as a global social engineer. Either way, those of us who know the truth must put all question of religion aside. We must step forward to proclaim that he is chasing a myth and that the consequences of following him in this regard will be devastating to the very people he professes to defend.

G. Edward Griffin
2015 September 25