In a capitalist economy, how can we cure poverty?

Answer 1

I doubt if can ever actually "cure" poverty. However, when companies expand and increase hiring, they have created more consumers and thus have increased their profits.

Answer 2

I agree with Ms. Sue. A "cure" for poverty is probably never going to happen.

Remember that "capitalism" and "free enterprise" are pretty much the same thing, just different terms. Over my lifetime (since I started paying attention and voting, anyway!), I've seen huge government institutions formed (under Pres Johnson), for the purpose of helping those who are in poverty, and I've seen those same institutions reformed (welfare reform under Pres Clinton), in the hopes of getting people off the welfare rolls and into jobs. Whether these programs or their reformed versions actually work or not is debatable.

At the end of one of the Obama-Romney debates last fall, the president said that the free enterprise system is the greatest engine of prosperity in the world. He's right. One thing a true free enterprise system would do is to generate huge amounts of tax revenue for the federal government to use for assistance programs and everything else our country needs.

http://www.google.com/#q=define+free+enterprise

http://www.google.com/#q=define+capitalism