[Capitalism] is a highly moral system too. The human relationships in capitalism are not forced but voluntary. People invest, create, supply, buy and sell things as they choose. No government ordains their actions: the decisions are theirs. Indeed, the only role for the power wielded by the state is to ensure that individuals are not forced – or robbed, or defrauded, or otherwise violated. Capitalism is not based on commands, but on the rule of law in which general rules (such as honest dealing, honouring contracts and shunning violence) apply to everyone – including the government authorities.
-Eamonn Butler (economist, An Introduction to Capitalism)
(H/T: Cafe Hayek)
