A magazine with the headlines “Crazy Cool Hair,” “Ultimate Fall Fashion,” and “Hot Holiday Styles” thinks it has a solution to poverty: abolish capitalism. In April, Teen Vogue composed an article titled “Everything You Need to Know About Capitalism,” but it only recently posted an obnoxious and asinine tweet to complement the piece: “Can’t #endpoverty without ending capitalism!” The 15-year-old publication would be better off using its resources to inform the world of the “16 ways to banish acne scars and dark marks for good,” not delve into topics it is unfamiliar with.
Author Kim Kelly attempted to broach the subject in an objective, neutral manner. However, the more you perused the 1,800-word article, the more you realized it was a hit piece disguised as journalism in the same way CNN’s Jim Acosta is an activist disguised as a reporter. It also used a wide panoply of falsehoods, misrepresentations, and talking points to portray capitalism as a selfish endeavor.
Despite a system that has brought more people out of poverty than any other ideology in human history – the global poverty rate is now under 10% for the first time ever – the writer tries to turn capitalism into a vulgarity.
Here are some excerpts that try to correlate poverty with capitalism:
"It also led to the spread of colonialism, slavery, and imperialism."
"The problem is that many capitalist bosses aren’t great at sharing the wealth, which is why one of the major critiques of capitalism is that it is a huge driver of inequality, both social and economic."
"In a capitalist country, the focus is on profits over anything else; in a socialist country, the public is seen to be more important, and social welfare is a major priority.”
“The essential anti-capitalist argument is that 'the hallmark of capitalism is poverty in the midst of plenty.'”
Capitalism Alleviates Poverty
There is an idea on the left that the U.S. is composed of two groups: the haves and the have nots. There are the wealthy and then the impecunious. Democratic socialist it girl Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez may believe this is the case, but, like the old Will Rogers quote goes, “It isn't what we don't know that gives us trouble, it's what we know that ain't so.”
Democrats often speak of income inequality, but this is largely a myth for several reasons. First, income mobility continues to happen; the rich are getting richer, but so is everyone else, and there isn’t a permanent and perpetual bottom 20%. Second, the U.S. may have a higher poverty rate than other developed states, but the poor have higher median incomes. Third, the standard of living for impoverished Americans is much greater than a poor person residing in Venezuela, Mexico, or South Africa.
There is another crucial point: The left believes that welfare can cure poverty. Fine, let’s for the sake of argument concur with that statement. Here is a question: How can the government fund the welfare state without the capitalist model? The government, whether you’re in Washington or in Scandinavia, can extend these goodies to the citizenry because capitalism creates wealth, not the state.
Kelly describes capitalism as “private property, economic growth, freedom of choice, and limited government intervention.” If you study history, or at least examine modern numbers, you realize that these elements have produced a massive amount of wealth for the 1%, the middle class, and the poor.
On the opposite end, the hallmarks of socialism – public property, big government, and oppression – have killed tens of millions of people and left millions more in destitution.
Irony of Teen Vogue
The irony may have been lost on Teen Vogue employees, particularly the social media team. Why? Teen Vogue is a property of Conde Nast, which is controlled by Advance Publications, which is owned by billionaire descendants of S.I. Newhouse Sr., Donald Newhouse, and S.I. Newhouse Jr.
“The One Look to Please Your Dictator.”
In recent years, the publication has made “woke” an integral and profitable part of its business model. Profits are essential to capitalism, yet the magazine informs us that it must be ended so we are all prosperous and drinking champagne from the heavens. So, when will Teen Vogue start sharing the profits with everyone else?
In addition to being woke, the magazine is the epitome of consumerism, trying to sell cool and hip products, manufactured by odious capitalists using the laws of supply and demand, to the masses through advertisements – both in print and digital. If Teen Vogue is genuine about ending capitalism, then it had better lead the way and shut down its printing presses and content management systems immediately.
Socialists Love Capitalism
Let’s face it: No matter how much the socialists denounce capitalism, they hold a great deal of affection for the free-enterprise system.
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) made a million bucks and purchased three homes telling the world how miserable we all are because we’re not stealing more money from our neighbors. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wears $3,500 suits and will inevitably compose a bestselling book about how iniquitous capitalism is – her followers, likely socialists, too, made a certain lipstick sell out in stores. Millennial hipsters cannot go a single day without Starbucks, their Apple iPhones, and hair gel to perfect that certain selfie look before participating in a demonstration to smash capitalism.
If Teen Vogue is bracing for the upcoming socialist revolution, then here are a few titles it should consider for its next issue: “8 Selfie Poses to be Revolution Ready,” “A Venezuelan Recipe to Help You Lose Weight This Winter (Hint: No Food Needed),” “5 Hair Styles to Impress Your Comrades on the Killing Fields,” and “The One Look to Please Your Dictator.”
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