Debate 1984 | Socialism or Capitalism: Which Is the Moral System?
In the legendary 1984 debate against socialists Jill Vickers and Gerald Caplan, the team of Leonard Peikoff and John Ridpath defended capitalism against their opponents criticisms and roundly refuted the socialists.
Service:
YouTube
Publshed on:
Apr 23, 2021
Duration:
02:20:38
Channels
Objectivist Conference Presentations
Theme and introductory highlights
00:00
to
02:15
2.3 minutes
Topic and speaker introductions by the moderator
02:16
to
11:24
9.1 minutes
Dr. Peikoff round 1 - what is morality?
11:29
to
19:53
8.4 minutes
Peikoff: the mind is the basic source of every pro-life value
12:30
to
13:20
50 seconds
Peikoff: altruism means the sacrifice of the successful
15:19
to
16:31
1.2 minutes
Peikoff: definition of Capitalism
17:34
to
18:14
40 seconds
Peikoff: Capitalism contrasted with Socialism
18:14
to
19:39
1.4 minutes
20:07
to
28:12
8.1 minutes
Vickers: Slavery works - immoral systems are productive, but fall when their immorality is exposed
22:30
to
23:47
1.3 minutes
Vickers: Capitalism is seductive because it expresses simple childhood wishes for unaccountability
23:58
to
24:35
37 seconds
Vickers: self-interest is a childish call to pursue self-interest on the backs of others
24:36
to
25:19
43 seconds
28:24
to
36:04
7.7 minutes
Ridpath: Man, in a social setting, needs one thing: freedom
30:08
to
31:06
58 seconds
36:17
to
44:43
8.4 minutes
Kaplan: What is Socialism? Almost a religion; that will suppress the black part of the human soul and elevate the best.
39:02
to
39:42
40 seconds
Kaplan: Then Ends of Socialism: Egalitarianism, Social Justice, Economic & Social Security, Peace
40:02
to
41:38
1.6 minutes
Kaplan: "Stomach Socialism" - not just a larger cake, but also a fairer distribution
40:35
to
41:08
33 seconds
Kaplan: (Democratic) Socialism is not Communism
41:38
to
42:01
23 seconds
Kaplan: What is Capitalism?
42:00
to
44:42
2.7 minutes
45:20
to
50:37
5.3 minutes
Peikoff: on the creation of wealth
48:34
to
49:01
27 seconds
Peikoff: on "commitment to the community" vs cooperation
49:17
to
50:19
1.0 minutes
Peikoff: on William F. Buckley
50:22
to
50:33
11 seconds
50:48
to
55:27
4.7 minutes
Vickers: Support systems are that which we owe to one another as brothers and sisters
53:25
to
53:59
34 seconds
54:07
to
54:31
24 seconds
Vickers: How did the wealthy get wealthy off the poor?
54:32
to
55:27
55 seconds
55:35
to
01:00:55
5.3 minutes
Ridpath: The essential: the role of the initiation of force in human affairs.
57:51
to
58:42
51 seconds
Ridpath: Capitalism contrasted with Fascism, and characterized generally
59:06
to
01:00:52
1.8 minutes
01:01:14
to
01:06:30
5.3 minutes
Kaplan: The reality of Capitalism doesn't align with the words. You are part of the Conservative movement.
01:01:29
to
01:03:12
1.7 minutes
Kaplan: The contribution of the Socialism movement - the shifting of the debate: not whether socialism, but how much.
01:03:13
to
01:04:37
1.4 minutes
01:07:06
to
01:13:32
6.4 minutes
Peikoff: politics is not a primary. The issue is basic philosophic premises.
01:09:42
to
01:10:16
34 seconds
Peikoff: Nazism is Socialism - definition of Socialism by the Capitalists
01:11:07
to
01:12:37
1.5 minutes
01:13:36
to
01:16:35
3.0 minutes
01:16:44
to
01:21:44
5.0 minutes
Vickers: I believe in reason, and emotion too.
01:17:52
to
01:18:11
19 seconds
Vickers: altruism is not just self-sacrifice
01:18:14
to
01:18:31
17 seconds
Vickers: I'm Aristotelian; all things in moderation, including self-sacrifice. Selfishness vs. altruism is a false dichotomy.
01:18:31
to
01:20:06
1.6 minutes
Vickers: I have never felt coerced by my government
01:20:07
to
01:20:46
39 seconds
01:21:46
to
01:26:37
4.9 minutes
Q: Since Capitalism is most productive, and socialism is most moral, should we choose just one?
01:27:54
to
01:31:46
3.9 minutes
Q: Democratic socialism doesn't seem like a real alternative to capitalism. It's just a struggle for control rather than empowering the workers.
01:31:50
to
01:35:44
3.9 minutes
Q: Why is it right to sacrifice for others?
01:35:50
to
01:39:27
3.6 minutes
Q: What do you do about people who can't afford the things they need?
01:39:41
to
01:45:07
5.4 minutes
Q: Is the morality that produced the Ukraine famine under the USSR the kind of thing we're to expect from Democratic Socialism?
01:45:08
to
01:48:36
3.5 minutes
Q: How can third-world countries succeed under Capitalism when they don't have the wealth to bootstrap themselves?
01:48:42
to
01:52:52
4.2 minutes
Q: (incoherent rant) Does selfishness mean we can do whatever we want?
01:53:09
to
01:58:44
5.6 minutes
Q: What about inheritance?
01:58:42
to
02:02:38
3.9 minutes
Q: How is it that selfishness won't lead to the same thing the Nazis did?
02:02:38
to
02:07:35
5.0 minutes
Q: Why is it that the Capitalist countries have the most prosperity?
02:07:51
to
02:12:34
4.7 minutes
Q: If laws can create wealth, then why didn't countries do that years ago?
02:12:34
to
02:18:03
5.5 minutes