Cooperatives are better than traditional businesses

The traditional business model is the single most effective way of raking in money for the investors. With clear-cut structure, those who have the drive and ability compete with others with drive and ability, which causes talent to rise to the top. (See: Donald Trump). As businesses are mandated to make as much money as possible for the owners, they will, by default, gravitate towards sending as much money upwards as possible, with enough to make payroll and invest in improvements if possible sent back down or retained. Those lowly line workers are entirely free to purchase stock in their company or others, and therefore have a personal stake in it, but that is at their sole discretion, and may suffer should they experience termination of employment. In a hierarchical structure, it is easier for the counter-productive members of the group to be purged. In a cooperative, everyone needs to be gathered together for every single decision. If they aren't, then someone is making more decisions than they should. This "level playing field" you speak of already exists. Rigid hierarchies succeed because people immediately know where to go to take things, instead of canvassing every single other member of their cooperative. I, for one, would be more than happy to take my grievances to my immediate superior and then wait, rather than have to spend that time waiting going to everyone and waiting for them to make a decision. Have you ever considered the possibility that the deck is stacked in favor of capitalism because capitalism, by its very existence, stacks the deck in favor of itself, retroactively if need be? The fat cats at the top worked to get to the top, and thus enjoy the fruits of the labors of the aspirants below them. For example, look at tournaments. Tournaments have a "many will enter, few will win" deal. Many enter the private sector seeking to make it big. The ones who have made it big are the ones who pass policies. And their policies say "Keep the system we have, as it works for us, the winners." In short, this is meaningless whining about how the rich won the economic battles and that those laurels have been worn out. Look, until such a time as the rich squander their money, they have every right to keep their money. The traditional business model was actually brought back under the Soviet Union under the NEP. NEPMen got rich when a massive cooperative GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION could not meet the demands of the populace. Said governmental organization lasted 70 years, compared to the Hanse, which lasted from 1358-1862. A modern business lasted half a millennium and was only put of action by governments. The Honourable East India Company was a traditional business that managed to prosecute its rule of India, again for centuries, with an armed force rivaling its home country. It was able to accomplish this through having a clear-cut hierarchy, individual discipline, and unquestioning obedience, compared to the misconduct and disorder that was rife throughout the subcontinent. On a level field, organization and logistics are paramount. The traditional business model is the most successful means of ensuring both are easy to carry out.