Quote Originally Posted by DarthLord View Post
I must disagree, friend. What you're describing is corporatism; capitalism is a very simple concept: I take capital (either from an investor in return for a share of the profits, or from my own resources) and use it to build or grow my enterprise. Capital is, by its very definition, wealth used to grow or start an enterprise. Capitalism, as an economic concept, has no relationship between companies and stockholders and inflation and dividends; those are governmental structures created in an attempt to provide a framework for capitalism; and I think we can all agree that framework has failed us.

A stock broker, as you said produces nothing; an investor, on the other hand, produces opportunity.
Capital as a noun, is neutral, you are correct - it is a means.

Capitalism - as a practice, a verb, is vastly different that it's root meaning.

One is an thing - capital.

The other is an action - capitalism.

The practice of capitalism (or as you call "corporatism) is what's being discussed, not the actual capital itself. And there is a difference, a profound difference as outlined in two of it's many manifestations, free enterprise vs. current capitalism.