In looking at the US reaction to the current crisis, some may see the resulting measures taking as adopting “socialism”:
Radical measures taken thus far
Hitting panic mode trillions of dollars are flying everywhere to stave off an economic collapse. Of course, Wall Street got a $1.5 trillion bailout. They are "too big to fail." But what about the too small, to save? There is a $2 trillion stimulus package with:
$500 billion in direct payments to Americans: $1000 for each person and $500 for kids
$575 billion in loans and/or loan guarantees for hotels, airlines and travel agents
$100 billion to healthcare providers
$10 million in loans to small business
In California, the housing problems seem to have found an immediate solution. Homeless people with COVID-19 getting access to empty hotel and motel rooms
Capitalism greatest enemy: reality
Society is a collective where a pandemic or natural disaster does not respect the artificial class boundaries put in place by Capitalist society. Hypothetically, Charles Koch, an 84-year-old man, could die if he catches COVID-19 from a poor person who is working and not self-isolating to pay the bills. So society needs to protect both Koch and the sick person. That is, an Islamic society recognizes the collective destiny that we have. The health of one impacts the other.
Back to “good” old days of FDR?
Some may see these recent measures as way back to “nice” Capitalism, non-disaster Capitalism or fettered Capitalism – like the one implemented by President Roosevelt during the Depression.
However, that’s not likely the case. Back then, the elites feared Communism. They feared that a Bolshevik revolution within the US. Their solution at the time? Compromise.
Unions and other mechanisms that the Capitalist system adopted, healthcare, welfare and even desegregation were but tools in the struggle against Communism. Once Communism was on its way out, then there was no need for this. For example, US President Ronald Reagan famously fired the air traffic controllers, thereby rescinding 80 years of Republican support for unions.
Yes. Unions in their early days were supported by the Republican Party. It was the Republican Senator, Marcus Hannah, who supported unions going so far as to say:
“The large aggregations of capital, feared at first by labor, may prove to labor's best friend, in that, control of a trade being thus centralized, there is opportunity to establish friendly relations... Organized labor and organized capital are but forward steps in the great industrial evolution that is taking place.”[1]
But he couldn't resist. He had to reveal why he really wanted these unions in place:
"There is nothing in the organization of society in this country that can afford to permit the growth of socialistic ideas. They are un-American and unnatural to us as a people.”
As Chris Hedges points out, the unions and the liberal class were used by the elites to fight Communism. Once that threat ended. Their services were no longer required.
So how does Islam succeed where Capitalism fails?
I recently had a debate with a friend on whether the Capitalists were implementing Communist solutions or whether the Capitalists were re-interpreting the social contract to fit the reality. Tommy Douglas, who is regarded as the father of public healthcare in Canada, offered his ideas when Communism was in vogue. Bernie Sanders, however, made an argument that public healthcare is cheaper for everyone as a whole, harkening back to the concept of the social contract.
After thinking about it, the underlying issue goes back to the limited nature of man-made ideologies. Human beings are influenced by their environment and prone to contradictions. Human beings don’t know best:
“And it could be that you hate something and it is good for you, and it could be that you love something and it is bad for you, and Allah knows and you know not." [TMQ 2:216]
In contrast to the myriad of contradictions of Capitalism, Islam offers a set of harmonious solutions:
“Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction.” [TMQ 4:82]
In Islam, healthcare is a right. But this complements the rule around the prohibition of public companies. In an Islamic society, billion-dollar companies, like Covidien, buyout a company (like Newport) who can supply inexpensive ventilators to the community. Also, the right to healthcare is in harmony with prohibition around patents, which prevent patent trolls like Labrador Diagnostics from cashing-in on a potential COVID-19. Instead, it would encourage 3D printings start-ups, like Isinnova, to help manufacture the much-needed parts for ventilators. Manufacturers couldn't sue them because there is no basis to do so.
Things may change after this pandemic pass if the elites think it’s a priority or if there is a mass uprising that threatens elite control over the society. However, activists should realize that the compromise offered is only temporary. Only Islam can provide a permanent contract between all members of society that is fair and just. Only Islam can safeguard society from pandemics, poverty, or other problems.
[1] Hanna, Marcus A. “Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration,” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Volume 20, Pages 20-27, 1902.