“As long as capitalism exists, will I just be cleaning up its mess with no end in sight?”

My older sister is the most selfless person I know. When she’s not getting her little brother out of a bind she works as a social worker helping kids who are dealing with severe mental illness. She works unholy hours dealing with some of the most difficult and emotionally draining cases on the front line of the youth mental health crisis.

Knowing I am a communist, she recently asked me a blunt question: “as long as capitalism exists, will I just be cleaning up its mess with no end in sight?” I found myself at a loss. The easy answer is that she is having a positive impact on the lives of the kids she helps. As my sister’s first and longest running patient, I feel that this impact is worth something. The harder (and more truthful) answer is that this inhuman system will continue to pull more and more children into depths from which social workers like my sister cannot hope to save them. With limited training and time to spend with any one kid, they are facing a sinking ship with only a thimble for the water.

What I am sure about is that a system which makes the most selfless, caring, and brave of us feel like Sisyphus rolling the boulder up the hill does not deserve those people, and should be overthrown. Final answer.

– Anonymous