It's the Cooperation, Stupid.

Capitalism is the utmost least worst economic system possible.

Capitalism is natural. Self-propelled because of the laws of nature. The laws of nature meaning. Capitalism is a direct output of the most universal. And by far strongest instinct. That all living things have in common. Self-preservation. Safety. Survival. The instinct of self-preservation is nature’s 'invisible hand' that gives capitalism its self-propulsion. 

Capitalism is a paradox. It's the only system that is self-powered. Powered by the 'invisible hand' of our very core nature. Our most fundamental concern. Try not to die.

It's a paradox because this instinct of self-preservation also happens to be the very leading destroyer of capitalism. Whenever not regulated wisely, and with respect to our nature.

Here's a quick break-down of how capitalism is a direct output of the laws of nature in the first place. 

Self-preservation is life's strongest most universal instinct, Webster’s dictionary defines it as

1.  preservation of oneself from danger, injury, or death

2.  the urge to preserve oneself, regarded as an instinct

Keep in mind, preservation of oneself from danger or death isn’t limited to just the glaringly obvious goals of avoiding snake bites and shark attacks. Avoiding danger, injury, and death also includes (in fact mainly includes) acquiring food, water and shelter.

And it’s not enough to acquire these things on a moment to moment as-needed basis, so we do everything in our power to secure more than we need at the very moment. Beyond the mere as-you-go attainment of food, water, and shelter; our instinct of self-preservation deeply motivates us to keep our pantries and refrigerators stocked with a few-day supply, and to secure a permanent roof over our heads or at the least lock down a one-year rental agreement.

Here’s how Wikipedia describes self-preservation in a sub-section named ‘economic impacts’

Self-preservation urges animals to collect energy and resources required to prolong life as well as resources that increase chances of survival… The instinct that drives humans to gather resources now drives them to over-consumption or to patterns of collection and possession that essentially make hoarding resources the priority

And now let’s introduce an economics term whose definition should be considered synonymous with nature’s law of self-preservation aka survival instinct, which is profit motive. 

Profit motive is defined by the Oxford Dictionary of Economics as 

The desire for gain as a motive in economic activity

Considering that all survival activities are in fact economic activities in that both are life and death ventures involving dire competition, gains, and losses; what evolutionary biologists call self-preservation, economists call profit motive. It's more than an analogy, self-preservation equals profit motive. Capitalism is natural. 

But here’s how we misuse Capitalism…  

Too Big Too Fail is to Capitalism what an Invasive Species is to an Ecosystem.

Evolutionarily speaking, wanting more is the "invisible hand" that compels all survival-related actions of any species.

At bottom, the two survival-related types of actions are Cooperation and Competition. Without competing survival is not possible. And without cooperating survival is not possible.

Cooperating and competing for survival evolved millions of years prior to the notion of stored resources. Much less the possibility of outsize over-abundance that's become too big too fail.

And as storage of resources become over-concentrated and over-abundant in the hands of a too small few. Two things happen -

Cooperation Atrophies

Sometimes disappears. Actively. Intentionally. By lobbyists. Such as, the few too-big-to-fail corporations' lobbyists' that effectively have the power to write laws. And write them. With only their own Corporation's interests in mind.

Competition Atrophies

Sometimes disappears. And without the external counterforce of competition. When its down to just one lemon-aide stand. Maybe two. Maybe three. Less vodka gets added. Then the lemon-aide has no more vodka at all. Prices goes up. Pay remains flat.

The reality. Over-concentrations and over-abundances of money and power tend to more and more corrupt over time. More so in the absence of competition, and or checks n balances.

But we as a species are so far ahead of all other species that we can better regulate the fruits of our collective outsize abundance. And should.

No need to hate or judge over-abundance. Be thankful some were born with the bug to achieve it. Because they. Throughout history. Without them. No light bulb. No phone. No car. Not even fire or language. Much less AI. That we taught our language to. That now might word that one hard-to-word email for work better than we can.

We need not hate or judgement towards self-interest and greed. We must grow up and just see it as the ultra-expressive variant of our main instinct that it is.

We only need regulation. Strong regulation against overly outsize over-concentrations of over-abundances.

The last big break-up under Anti-Trust of Big Anything was 1982. MaBell. ATT.