No one was "coerced" into investing their pension money in Enron. People who worked for Enron had a portion of their benefits paid in company stock, and that stock had a value, based on the financial statements of the company, which were being illegally fudged. When it was discovered, the stock took a nosedive and the people who held the stock, paid the price. That was indeed unfortunate, but the people responsible were taken to court and prosecuted, then sent to prison for committing fraud. We can't do anything more than enforce the law, it doesn't matter what kind of system we have. You are taking an example of something illegal that happened, and claiming this as the model for everything happening, and that is a falsehood. A deliberate, deceptive, dishonest, falsehood or LIE.
The only way you can condemn capitalism, is to find examples of illegal activities, and then construct a LIE from that. Capitalism and free market systems do not have a thing to do with Enron and illegal corrupt business practices, which we send people to prison for.
This is where you are again, incorrect. Hitler was elected by a majority vote. Mao in China, came to power as the result of a people's revolution. Most socialist countries do hold democratic elections, but you only have the choice of socialist candidates. Some socialist countries hold elections and you can vote for the ruler or face the consequences, it's entirely up to you.... we see a similar thing happening in America, where you can vote for the Democrat or be hooted down in the streets as a racist bigot knuckledragger. Pretty soon, that won't be enough, and you can vote Democrat or have your life ruined and destroyed.
What do you mean by "the free market had their chance to come up with ideas?" IS their chance now over, and free markets now have to allow socialists a turn? Because, let me explain how this works... once you've given up freedom, it isn't given back. Once you hand your freedoms over to government, you no longer have freedom. Socialism can't allow individual liberty, there is absolutely no way to make a socialist system work, and have individuals exercising liberty. We either have the freedom to engage in capitalist activity and free markets, or the markets aren't really free, but controlled by government, as well as our freedoms.
You put all of your faith and trust in the government to take care of us, to provide for all of these 'needs' we have, but the government here has been doing that for over 70 years, and still, people live in poverty, people are struggling to survive, people still get sick. We've spent trillions on trillions for social programs to help the needy, and we still have just as many needy people today as 40 years ago, not a thing has changed. I think the ones who have 'had their chance' are liberal socialists, who've spent the next 3 generations into debt, trying to fix something that socialism has never been able to fix, and never will.
The way we climb out of this mess, is to unleash free market capitalism! Not restrict it further! To enable free people to freely engage in the free market free enterprise of capitalism, and get government out of their way. If we do this, there is practically no limit to the economic prosperity we can achieve. The more economic prosperity, the more taxes are generated, and the more social things we can provide and fund. Your government is incapable of generating economic prosperity, no matter how hard they try, or how much money they dump into it, the bottom line is, the government doesn't produce a good or provide a remunerated service for profit, so they have no means of influencing the economy. Price controls and regulations have been tried, they don't work, they simply impede capitalist economic prosperity. Taxing the fuck out of "rich people" or corporations, also does not work. The more of it you do, the harder you make it for capitalism to succeed. The less capitalism succeeds, the less the economy prospers, and the less tax is generated.
You want a Nanny State system, where Big Brother takes care of all your needs, wants and desires. But what you will end up with, is a corrupt socialist regime who doesn't give two shits about you or your needs, wants and desires, and who will just as soon put a bullet in your head, as to have to deal with your complaints. You want to trade a system which allows any person the freedom and opportunity to do anything they dream, for a system that forbids you from having anything more than what the state tells you is appropriate. I'm sorry, I like freedom better, and I think most Americans agree with me.
Everything based on lies is certainly coercion. You can't get around that, dicklicker. When you have liars whether in business or in politics and regulation you have deliberate and unfair coercion. I find that most common amongst the rightwingers. It's the only way they can survive in a relatively uneducated society and that is exactly why the US is ranking so low in educational scores. It is most definitely the design of the rightwingers. Everything points directly to them as the genuine culprits.