<html> At 01:58 PM 8/30/2002 -0700, you bill: <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite>At 2:16 PM -0400 29/8/02, JBrown72073@cs.com wrote: You've put your finger on it. The problem with capitalism is that it is a system which stifles modern technology, preventing it from achieving its potential. Capitalism results in a constantly improving technology, but prevents this technology from being efficiently utilised to benefit humanity. </blockquote> Every social-economic institution does that by making choices that create precedence, which in turn, reduce transaction of costs for those who follow their path, whereas those who do not face higher transaction costs (see for example Brian Arthur, Increasing Returns and Path Dependence in the Economy).   Attributing that exclusively to capitalism is distorting social/historical reality. wojtek </html>