Economics - Is Capitalism bankrupt?

The world is a largely capitalistic economy - one that even communist China is embracing. But with a worldwide financial crisis, towering government debt and the public outrage of the 99 per cent, perhaps the free market is not free enough.The worlds largest economy, the US, has a $15.2tn debt. According to Tea Partiers, that is because government spending and central bank meddling has distorted the market. Occupy campaigners, however, argue that capitalism brings excessive wealth to the few.To even the most fiscally unlearned, the disparity is obvious.The Economic Policy Institute has found that 1 per cent of US households control 42.7 per cent of the countrys assets.And with wealth, comes influence - 24.3 per cent of all political donations in the 2010 election cycle were made by 0.01 per cent of Americans.Sadly, the developing world gets left behind as well. According to the United Nations Childrens Fund, the richest 20 per cent of the worlds population control 82.8 per cent of its income, while the poorest 20 per cent control just 1 per cent.