Qwent

While your concerns are justified your fears are counterproductive. Even if you are doomed to die you should not live your life as though that will be the case. Do not allow fear to consume you but rather use the fear to spur yourself into actions that will alleviate the need to fear.

Say what you will about Trump but his presence in this political cycle is making many people to sit up and take notice that might otherwise not even pay attention. I am not saying he would ultimately be the best choice for president but to have him out there acting and speaking without the filter of political correctness and/or engaged in begging for media approval is just gloriously refreshing. You can agree or disagree with Trump's positions but how could you possibly fail to admire him for his straight forward and unapologetic delivery? As a non-politician, he is willing and able to say the kinds of things that need to be said but would never be uttered by the vast majority of the politicians we see metastasizing all across the country.

Care to fill in that blank? 2016 will be the year that _________

When it comes to an exchange of value capitalism is the ability of individuals or entities to engage each other in contracts for goods and services that are agreeable to all parties in the contract. Now you can see that unfettered capitalism can be a problem if the goods and services at issue are otherwise detrimental to those who have no say in the contract. For example; you may not contract with an individual who is willing to provide the service of killing your neighbor for the money that you are willing to offer. While the forgoing might fit the definition of a capitalist exchange it is not something that would be permitted in civilized society. In order for capitalism to function amicably in a society, that society must have some set of recognized and accepted standards that are followed by the private sector and are enforceable. Now your friend at the meeting might have been referring to the oft habit of local police bringing in revenue for the local government by issuing as many parking tickets as possible. Well, consider that there is an implied contract with the city to provide a parking space in a public space for a set period of time and for a set fee. Your legal use of such a space implies your willingness to pay the set fee for its use. Failure to pay the fee could result in a fine for not fulfilling your end of the implied contract. But the question remains, is the gathering of fines in this manner considered "capitalism"? I say no because the violator ended up paying a fine rather than the fee specified in the contract. Had the violator paid the parking fee then he would have been voluntarily exchanging of his money for use of the parking space for the set period of time and that would have at least looked like capitalism. The fine however is a penalty for not fulfilling his end of the contract and when he pays this he is not getting anything for his money beyond what the parking fee would have cost him had he paid it at the outset. The overage is paid as a punishment intended to compel a particular behavior from him in the future. It is this negative aspect of the transaction as a fine rather than a fee that defines it as something other than capitalism as there is no mutually agreed upon benefit specific to both parties in this outcome. ​