Chapter 2: The Faustian Bargain
"Keynes was deeply ambivalent about capitalist civilization. It was a civilization which unleashed bad motives for the sake of good results. Morality had to be put in cold storage till abundance was achieved, for abundance would make possible a good life for all. (...) Marx presented a compelling case for why capitalism should come to an end, not why it would. He failed to reckon on the continuing dynamism of the capitalist system, its ability to overcome obstacles. (...) The fear of capitalist crisis disappeared. The problem was no longer one of obstacles to the achievement of abundance, but obstacles to the enjoyment of the abundance achieved. (...) Capitalism, it is now clear, has no spontaneous tendency to evolve into something nobler. Left to itself, the machinery of want-generation will carry on churning, endlessly and pointlessly."
