IMO this is just what capitalism looks like. We direct resources to whatever seems like it’ll yield the highest returns and force society to eat the externalities. This effect will continue to worsen over time without reform or revolution, until we transition to a more pure oligarchy.
Unfortunately the current admin is pro-oligarchy so expect things to worsen in the immediate future
People who participate in the stock market (which tends to be many people who may even be anti-capitalist) do so in the hope of generating excess returns.
Is this really a function of capitalism or just who humans really are in general? That is to say humans are self interested and desire to maximise their own wealth.
Sure, that’s an observed human behavior. You can also observe altruism, compassion, empathy, etc.
Capitalism is designed to force everyone to maximize personal wealth, because wealth determines resource allocation. Other societies did it or do it differently.
That's nonsense.
You do not have to 'maximize' your personal wealth and nobody is forced to do so. Many people choose to do so, voluntarily. That's the essence of free markets. It just so happens capitalism not only complements the notion of free markets, but enables more markets to exist than otherwise.
You can't have it both ways.
It would be great to give anti-capitalists a forced one year vacation in a paradisiac communist country at the end of the 80's in say Eastern Europe or USSR. To say nothing of life during the "revolution" years in the 20's USSR.
It amuses me that capitalists are so uncreative. The Soviet approach didn’t work well, so you’re all out of ideas.