One of the most central arguments for capitalism is that humanity is inherently competitive and hence a system that celebrates competition is only appropriate. This argument, among other arguments that are tacitly accepted as rule of law that is beyond contestation, does not withstand scrutiny.

“It's true that you can say that humans are competitive,” says professor of linguistics and philosophy Noam Chomsky, “but humans are anything you like. Humans are mass murderers, humans are courageous and honorable and magnificent in many of the things that they do.” He maintains that there is a wide spectrum of traits that could be attributed to “human nature”. For one to say that the most characteristic human trait is competition is tantamount to saying that the biosphere is made up of water. By doing so, one is eluding the rest of the spectrum and being extremely selective and hence misrepresentative of the multifaceted nature of humanity. That is if one is serious about deriving the basis of a socio-economic system by inspecting human nature.

Turning to the natural world for inspiration, others argue that the animal kingdom is governed by the ‘law’ of natural selection which draws on such concepts as competition and survival of the fittest. At first thought one is easily convinced that that is the case - that human beings just like animals, are driven by and thrive upon competition and the survival of the fittest: that it is only through competition that we can sustain ourselves economically. It is undeniable that a battle of sorts is existent between different species on earth. A multitude of different species, as well, live together in perfect harmony sustaining the balance of nature. But by looking at any single specie we see a totally different picture – one of cooperation and collaboration. Members of any specie remain in closely held communities and cooperate collectively for their ‘collective’ survival. Those who argue for competition have somehow managed to circumvent the ‘collective’ dimension to the survival of a species, not to mention the fact that human beings are members of the same specie. We are no different from each other; we are a single specie that, if we are to draw inspiration from nature, should work together in co-operation for the collective good.

The domain of race, for those who are still in doubt, does not constitute an array of species. It might help to note that race does not in any way shape or form create any disparity between members of the human race, other than, perhaps, in guise. We all live the same way, we all drink the same way, we are all capable of eating the same things, we all defecate the same way, we all die the same way (though by different means, some much more unfortunate than others) but most importantly, we all share the same inherent logic that allows all of us, regardless of race or background, to read this article or any other piece of writing and identify the various premises and follow the inference to agree  when it is sound and disagree, on any point, if a fallacy is detected by our common and inherent logic. To rephrase, we are all people.

Let us inspect history and look at civilizations down through recorded history. It is cooperation rather than competition that was the impetus behind their rise and success. In fact, if we look at any system in the world, living or non-living alike, all the different parts to that system work in unison for the attainment of a certain end. In the case of humanity it is basic – to help rather than harm. If the principle that each and every one of us is here for our collective good is recognized and considered before any decision is made in any realm of human life - be it in politics, economics, or social theory – humanity would be on the right track. Or at least on a righter track.    

“There has been a tremendous effort,” professor Chomsky elaborates, “its been going on for a couple of hundred years now, to try to emphasize particular traits, mainly, the sort of, "Look out for Number One" trait…that's the tendency in human character that is enormously supported and amplified by institutional structures, by the propaganda system, by education, by the entertainment industry, by everything.” That is not to say that competition is intrinsically disordered. On the contrary, we as human beings feel competitive many a times, just like we feel altruistic or selfish, compassionate or not so compassionate at times. But, to borrow the long held adage, moderation is key to everything. Competition is not the equation. It is only part of the equation.