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Meme has become a by-word of contemporary digital culture. And that makes sense, because when you think of it, meta-jokes allow us to communicate things in a way more complex way. Sometimes, it’s the other way around. When the subject of a conversation is fundamentally intricate, it begs for an unorthodox way to talk about things.

Like, capitalism. Many of us know how painful it may be to work late hours like there’s no tomorrow, like your family doesn’t exist, to sit by the desk without a day off, trying hard to deliver your very best daily, only to realize it’s been like this for the past decade. Here you go, I just described one of the memes in this list.

And while the capitalist society is spinning its wheels harder than ever before, with long-awaited hope of minimum wage being raised to $15 in the US, these anti-capitalist memes seem more relevant than ever. Someone's calling us overdramatic?

And to whoever is not into hard topics in life, this batch of memes speak of society and its flaws in a funny, like cringe funny, “oh my, it’s me” way. Psst! Another batch of anti-capitalist jokes can be found in our previous post here.

#1

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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phanmo avatar
phanmo
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is a tax credit scam. The grocery store makes a donation in their name with all the money collected and gets a tax credit.

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Something
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They're selling halos. EDIT: I mean the point isn't the donation. Giving makes people feel good, so they're doing this to gain customer satisfaction.

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Liz
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No, they're doing it because they can write off whatever money you donate in their taxes as charitable donations.

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tuzdayschild
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The best part is this: They use your donated money as their own donation and write it off on their taxes. So that's wonderful.

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Lily Swag
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

THIS. It's the same as the Amazon smile stuff. People think it's so impressive, but it's just a way to dodge taxes.

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Mia Hamsa
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you donate via their system, they get to claim it as part of their corporate donations that are TAX REFUNDABLE so they don't have to put in their own money to get the tax deductions. Don't give to the super markets, give what you can when you can on your own.

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Keith Wollenberg
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's worse than that. They use your donation as their own to reduce their tax contribution to the community. By all means, donate to charities that inspire you, but use the tax deduction for yourself. Don't contribute to a scheme to help corporations avoid paying their share.

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Kathy Duke
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They actually combine your donation with theirs & a take a huge tax write off.

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Todd Hunter
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Plus the company can collect the donations and use them as a corporate donation which is tax deductible for them.

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Colin L
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They get to claim the charitible donation, and you have to trust that they aren't donating to some homophobic or weird religious charity.

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Daria B
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This one reminds me of my phone asking me sometimes, "Are you charging your phone? Do you want to activate the option that donates money to poor African children while you're charging your phone?" Me: "If I do that it will be ME the one needing charity....."

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Mewton’s Third Paw
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Also, if I have to check out my own food then I should be paid or my groceries should be cheaper.

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Marcellus the Third
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

An amazing percentage of people indeed pay themselves by 'accidentally' not scanning an item or two. And they all feel justified as stealing from a faceless corporation (you don't even look a checkout person in the eye!).

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Stannous Flouride
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The businesses donate the collected funds and use it as a tax deduction. By donating you're helping that billion dollar corporation pay LESS taxes.

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frannie march
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They do this to get a tax write off. That's right, your money gets siphoned through their corporation as their charitable deduction so they can pay even less taxes.

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Paul Davis
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Made me angry that last week, I donated $5 to end child hunger. I came back this week, and apparently child hunger was still happening! WTF?

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Akshita Singhania
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You should never fall for this tactic.In my country many companies are bound by laws to do charities as a part of their corporate social responsibility. And the money they ask you to donate goes towards that. So basically the corporations are making the customers pay the money that actually should go from their profits. If you are interested in doing charity, then you should directly contact non profit organisations instead.

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Billy Bob the 4th
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They ARE donating $20 to end child hunger, only they are using the money you give them, and get huge tax write offs as a bonus!

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Mona Khadra
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Seriously , the clerks are just suppose to ask that, they make minimum wage. Ppl are such jerks !

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Sam Yobado
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I always ask if the company will match my donation. They never do, so I never donate this way. It is as many have mentioned a money making scheme for them via a tax credit that costs them nearly nothing.

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Norart
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Apparently the only acceptable comment here is big companies are evil but also big companies should give away all their profits to the charities you deem acceptable and also should pay me what I think I deserve regardless of the market context. Y'all are trippin. I want to be wealthy so I can decide for myself the charities and groups I choose to give money to. I do not want to blame wal mart for world hunger. Or (choose the major company you approve of). Ben and Jerry's. REI. I really do not understand why one feels they can wash their hands and not give because someone else has the ability to give e more. You have a very toxic relationship with and understanding of money if this is the case.

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Dee Koz
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

oh, absolutely Mr. and Mrs. Walton, why don't YOU pay your help a starting wage of $15. per hour and give them some meaningful bonuses once in awhile!!! I totally agree, Rebecca.

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Flash Henry
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The grocery store gets lots of tax benefits for those donations. That's why they push them on customers.

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Downunderdude
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Just had a thought... In Australia, you can claim donations to charity as a tax deduction. But if you give your donation to Megacorp and THEY pass it on to a charity, cam Megacorp claim it off their tax?

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Jen A-Ben
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I work at a food cooperative and we ask shoppers if they want to round up their grocery bill to the nearest dollar for a different local nonprofit each month. The average donation is around 25 cents and we typically raise $12,000-$16,000 for the monthly recipient that way. It makes a HUGE difference to those small, local charities and in our communities. The point is, know what you're donating to and try to support local nonprofits when you can. A little bit goes a long way.

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Aubrie Allen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am trying to end child hunger. I'm someone's child and I'm buying discount potatoes to feed myself.

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Cenk Karaferya
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Amen! Same with tips! Pay your staff well, don't make them beg for their wage! It's rude.

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Yort
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I mean a lot of these places DO already donate to that stuff.

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KT
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

NEVER donate at stores. They use the donation as a tax break for themselves. If you're going to donate do it on your own time online and use your receipt for tax time.

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mph seti
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They only ask me if I want to donate a dollar. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.

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Gary French
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is what Comic Relief and Children in Need in the UK are. Rich people appearing on TV asking poor people to donate money to poorer people.

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Winx
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Also, they donate your money in their name so they get the tax break for donating to charity.

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Jojo Dancer
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

they use it as a tax write off. Nothing charitable about it.

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Kiran
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I do not donate to big corporations. Why would they use my donations for their tax credit? If they want to donate, it should come from their own pocket.

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Norart
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I despise this argument. You have control over YOUR spending. Don't try to blame a faceless corporation for a problem you have the power to help solve.

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Eduard Korhonen
Community Member
3 years ago

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Most of these big companies usually are helping out good causes. You just assume that they don't

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Run Forest
Community Member
3 years ago

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I had a snarky comment about Becky but then I read her twitter handle and it just writes itself.

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To find out more about the complex dynamics between capitalism and internet jokes, Bored Panda reached out to Dovydas Skarolskis, a Vilnius-based connoisseur of the contemporary political and cultural climate.

First off, Dovydas said that there’s no mathematically accurate answer to whether capitalism and the free market are evil. “The economic historians defending the free market have estimated that it is only because of the ideas of capitalism and industrialization that people have been able to rise out of poverty.”

Meanwhile, he explained that many researchers and activists of the field see our contemporary society as full of various forms of exploitation. “The fight between these and many other political ideas is perfectly illustrated by the Political Compass memes that ridicule one position or the other, as well as mock the assumptions about them and the ideas behind them."

According to Dovydas, when tackling a vast array of different opinions, “humor is an excellent way to find like-minded people as well as attract new people who’d be interested in the ideas or even change their point of view.”

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Dovydas likes to divide all the memes and jokes that criticize capitalism into a couple of categories. “First, it’s jokes that defend more radical ideas, irony and satire. They don’t require taking extreme measures to disrupt the functioning of our society, like replacing liberal democracy run by free trade with  socialist or even anarchist or communist principles of public governance.”

#6

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Troux
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Try leasing poverty. Go to the laundromat instead of using your own machine, cash a check at Amscot/WU instead of at your own bank, or try some rent-to-own furniture. You'll see just how expensive it is to be poor.

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#7

🤷🏼‍♂️

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Kay blue
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

For some reason lots of people like to attack single mothers and think that because they need a bit of extra support they are a drain on society. What about all the fathers who did a runner and don't help to support their offspring. The pro-birthers don't want women to have abortions but also don't want to help support the child once it is separate human.

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However, Dovydas sees the flaws of this type of humor. “The biggest problem with these jokes is that they often justify historical crimes associated with radical leftist movements, or promise happiness by abandoning what we have in the name of something that has never been implemented before.”

“The second category of jokes falls under the softer criticism of capitalism and the free market that targets particular problems, exposing the absurdity of everydayness. We can name a number of problems associated with the modern free world: starting with the exploitation of third-world workers, corporate tax evasion, illegal and sometimes even legal pollution, and a number of others. In summary, the second type can be described as more moderate individuals who fight against obvious manifestations of social injustice.”

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#10

Nah, It's Probly Just Teachers

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Troux
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

...not to mention increasing access to info that shows us what other countries do.

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#11

How True

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Sleepyhead
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember reading the news and seeing this tweet, and it is spooky how quiet it’s been. Like, would I get low-key eliminated by a dark web hacker for this comment?

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#14

Cool

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River Webb
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

who cares about healthcare? what REALLY matters is that our precious overpriced buffalo wings are still available

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The third kind is what Dovydas calls “the post-ironic” approach. “It’s when joking, or rather the act of creating a joke itself, happens just for the sake of self-realization. The person who creates or likes this kind of content can be free from political ideas, or even if one has a particular political view, they don’t have to expect to change something about it.”

According to Dovydas, it’s totally enough to make fun of the world around us to collect a few or a few more likes. “Doomers, who believe that modern capitalism is a sort of dystopia they cannot escape, also fall under this category. This third group can also be named nihilists, pessimists, and post-ironicists.”

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#17

It’s Time To Stop

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Ray Martin
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Damon Tripodi - Nobody likes you Damon. It's not because you're a horrible person, though. It's because you're a horrible person who seems compelled to share his unpleasant opinions about everything.

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#18

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Sum Guy
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It usually is the rich parents... or having a family to fall back on.

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#19

I Wish We Had A Choice.

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Mewton’s Third Paw
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It’s literally that simple. Except for me i make the distinction between just capitalism vs unregulated capitalism.

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#21

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Gurnox
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To be fair, I've not got an issue with someone getting a leg up from their parents. I would do it for my kids. It's when the person being helped pulls the ladder up after them, and adopts an 'I'm alright Jack' attitude, that there is a problem.

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#23

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Paradise
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Trump goes on the show to get some $ to pay his debts. Gets answers wrong, sues the show for being losers and fake. He rightfully won and in fact got the answers right - like "what is the capital of Florida?"and he says Mar a Lago.

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#24

Haha Commercial Money Go Brrr

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Levels of irony
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ye what more do they need like what do they do just make us money defiantly not

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#25

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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River Webb
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

even if a rich person is supernaturally terrorised I still really doubt they'd share

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#28

74 Of The Most Accurate Capitalism Tweets And Jokes That Prove We Already Live In A Dystopia

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Harrison Miller
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That only comes out to 16.82285 billion. Meanwhile, Jeff Bezos is sitting in his $250 million estates counting his billions.

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Helen Haley
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No kidding. What customer is going through the checkout line throwing hissy fits and elbows because someone is sitting while scanning?

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#34

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Leo Domitrix
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The internet was made for fun by nerds. Then capitalists charged for access to it. History in a fortune cookie.

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#35

"But People Starve Under Socialism!"

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Sleepyhead
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’d like to ask other countries what they don’t like about the United States, but the people of the United States would say I’m not UnitedStatesan. CUZ MURICA

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#36

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Troux
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They'll notice when you use that first vacation day and treat you like a slacker. :)

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#40

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Something
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The thing is, though, the types of socialism that people want aren't even the opposite of capitalism. With the type of mixed economy that exists now, it is actually possible for the system to become both more socialist and more capitalist at the same time.

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#41

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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#42

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Something
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Communism is also bad though. And unnecessary because there are a lot of other good ideas to solve the problems in the current system.

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#45

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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CatWoman312
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Shh the cancel culture squad might overhear you and declare this offensive

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#47

Fascism vs. Capitalism

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Levels of irony
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wow clowny is there to entertain you while you are in serious debt and need to work work and work until your body disnagrates

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Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Julie C Rose
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

New Zealand closes its department stores whenever we go into soft lockdown and also banned online shopping from department stores when we were in our strict lockdown. This gets rid of covid so well that we usually don’t have to deal with the situation this person is describing, but I notice that this is never the kind of solution that people like this are looking for...

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Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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Solrac
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Well, in communist countries you work to make the party oligarchs rich, only they pose as servants of the people.

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#50

Capitalism-Jokes-Tweets

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River Webb
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

what are you talking about? every single one of those generic, harmful, plastic bottles has a unique and original design!

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