Ah, Capitalism!

The announcement by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation that it would increase its contribution to fight disease in poor countries to $1.5 billion is a hymn in praise of capitalism.

The amount of wealth created by Bill Gates almost defies comprehension. Not just his wealth, a great deal of which he is giving away, but also the wealth of every MicroSoft employee right down to the warehouse packer, of the owners and employees of thousands of companies made possible or more efficient by MicroSoft's products, the retailers and service companies who make a living sellling and servicing the project.

I've never seen any numbers on it, but my guess is that Bill Gates, because he got to work in a country that champions capitalism, single-handedly created more wealth than the Soviet Union did in its entire history.

And most important is that capitalists like Carnegie and Gates give much of it away. Complain about their products, complain that they don't give enough ... but still, when those kids in Africa and Bengaladesh live instead of die, say a prayer of thanks to Bill Gates and Capitalism.