Originally Posted by
Guisslapp
You should go back to school. There was stagnant growth back when people were working their fields for long hours. Profit is a key piece of capitalism, but it is not a new thing.
For most of history the economy stayed much the same size. Yes global production increased, but this was due mostly to demographic expansion and the settlement of new lands. Per capita production remained static but all that changed in the modern age. In 1500, global production of goods and services was equal to about $250 billion; today it hovers around $60 trillion. More importantly, in 1500, annual per capita production averaged $550, while today every man, woman and child produces, on the average, $8,800 a year. What accounts for this stupendous growth?