In the last few months, we have shared what John Templeton thought were five economic vices: envy, greed, pride, intolerance, and moral relativism, as cited in his speech to Buena Vista College entitled “The Religious Foundation of Liberty and Enterprise.” Now we’ll explore his five economic virtues. The first virtue he lists is cooperation.
The first economic virtue is the ability to cooperate. That simply means getting along with others.
Cooperation is not a word we tend to associate with capitalism. Since at least the turn of the century, we have tended to associate capitalism with dog-eat-dog competition. That is a grave error, for the overwhelming amount of activity of capitalism is people cooperating with other people.
Think about our daily activities. Consumers cooperate with producers at every economic exchange, from the local fruit stand to the trading floor at Wall Street. Each person involved in the exchange is giving up something for something of great value. When I spend two dollars for a carton of milk, both the grocer and I come out ahead. That is the virtue of cooperation.
Cooperation is a virtue essential to every economy. Through it, the baker does not need to concern himself with plowing land, sowing seeds, weeding the ground, or cutting, threshing, and milling the wheat. He comes together with others who do that. He need only bake and to offer it to others.
It is one of the virtues of capitalism that it insists on cooperation. If we become more aware of this, and become better at getting along with others, we create a better and more productive economy.
