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Originally Posted by EnI  Regarding oil & other raw material prices: they will rise in the long run since natural resources are limited in supply. That's a fact. Limited supply + higher demand = higher prices. A fact.
Capital can't live without working force, and working force can't operate without capital. So claiming capital is everything is a bit naive. |
It's not a fact because demand always fluctuates. Many commodities have lost value in real terms, when you adjust them for inflation. Gold was $850 per oz. in the 1980s. It is $650 today. Oil was about $40 per barrel in '79. Today, they are in the mid-$60s, but you need to factor in general inflation. Up until 2005, oil prices were lower than what they were in '79 in inflation-adjusted terms.
I did not claim that capital is everything, but let's just say that many workers need companies more than vice-versa. If companies have no workers, they'll innovate and build better machines or go somewhere they can get workers for one red cent per day.