Traditional capitalism needs "extra" people, but managerial capitalism has no use for them

[AndreStmaur]

@Bozobub

An excellent point and remarkably well-said, kudos.

@Fang

Capitalism no longer requires a lot of people to produce, that’s true, but they require people to consume. What good is being big, powerful, and productive, without people? How many authors would write if readers didn’t exist?

Well, yes, but a remarkably large percentage of the wealthy/powerful have no real conception of this basic fact or its corollary: If you don’t make sure people have enough to spend in general, no one will have the money to pay for your product.

But, in the USA, wealth does not derive from the manufacture of products any more. I mean: the great humorist Dave Barry once said “The entire US economy is made in China”…
Wealth for the USA 1% derives from finance, manipulation of the markets, which may actually be easier if no real product is manufactured. And if there is no product, people with enough money to buy it are not needed. Granted: some are needed for the economic construct to be believable, but not many.