Page 582 - Atlas of Creation Volume 3

THE "ROBBER BARONS," DARWIN'S FOLLOWERS

arwinism lies behind a great many dangerous intellectual trends, ideologies and practices that
have persisted down to the present day. It is most interesting that it constitutes a foundation

D shared by ideologies that are completely opposed to one another. Darwinism played a role in the
birth and spread of Nazism, fascism and communism, in the alleged justification of racist and communist
massacres, and also constituted the alleged scientific basis for "unrestrained capitalism." In Victorian
Britain and America, in particular, Darwinism received great acclamation and was hugely strengthened be-

cause of the support it offered to ruthless capitalists known as the "robber barons."
Savage capitalism's most important error is in putting no limit on the extent to which weaker busi-
nesses (and weaker individuals) can be crushed, exploited and eliminated. No doubt this cruelty and ruth-
lessness are totally unacceptable. Today this error is summed up in the saying, "Big fish eat little fish." In

other words, small enterprises are eliminated—or acquired—by larger ones. That is Darwinism applied to
the world of business.
During the 20th century, the world tried two main different economic models: the liberal one, based on
private property and free intervention; and the socialist one, based on state property and a planned econ-

omy. Socialist economies failed in every country, inflicting poverty and misery on their societies. Liberal
economics, on the other hand, displayed unquestioned success, bringing greater well-being to individuals
and societies.
But by itself a liberal economy is not enough to bring well-being to a whole society. Thanks to the lib-

eral economy, a society's economic well-being generally rises, but not everyone can enjoy his share of that
increase. The poor remain poor, and the danger of social injustice begins to increase. To prevent that dan-
ger and to eliminate social injustice, two things are necessary:
1) The state must extend a hand to the down-and-out and the unemployed, as a requirement of the con-

cept of the "social state" and take measures to help them.
2) Feelings of cooperation and solidarity, that religious moral values require, need to pervade society
as a whole.
The second requirement is particularly important because in the end, it tends to define the first. If a so-

ciety attaches powerful importance to religious and moral values, then the liberal economy that society im-
plements will provide both economic development and social justice. The rich will use part of their ac-
quired capital to help the poor and establish social programs to support the weak. (Indeed, this is the eco-
nomic model revealed by God in the Qur'an. Private property does exist in Islam, but its owners are

charged to use part of their assets, in the form of alms, to assist the poor and those in need.)
If a society undergoes moral degeneration, then the liberal economy turns into "savage capitalism" in

580 Atlas of Creation Vol. 3