Is Capitalism Better than Socialism for Human Flourishing? Yaron Brook vs Bhaskar Sunkara

Recorded live on November 13, 2025 by the Steamboat Institute, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=769yfyFVt0Q

Is capitalism truly the moral engine of human flourishing—or does socialism offer a better path?

In this sharp, high-stakes debate, Yaron Brook (Ayn Rand Institute) and Bhaskar Sunkara (Jacobin, The Nation) go head-to-head on the fundamental question shaping the future of freedom, prosperity, and the human condition.

Hosted by the Steamboat Institute in partnership with the Center for the Study of Government and the Individual, this event brings moral philosophy, economics, politics, and human nature into a collision course.

If you care about prosperity, inequality, freedom, or the future of liberal democracy… this debate is essential viewing.

00:00 – 13:00 | Welcome & Opening
13:00 – 15:00 | Pre-Debate Audience Poll
15:00 – 20:00 | Opening Statement – Yaron Brook
20:00 – 26:00 | Opening Statement – Bhaskar Sunkara
26:00 – 32:00 | What Do “Capitalism” and “Socialism” Actually Mean?
32:00 – 34:00 | Who Really Has the Power?
34:00 – 40:00 | What Is Human Flourishing?
40:00 – 47:00 | Which System Serves Healthcare & Childcare Better?
47:00 – 55:00 | What Counts as a “Basic Need”?
55:00 – 57:00 | What Should Education Actually Produce?
57:00 – 1:00:00 | Are Military & Firefighters “Socialism”? 
1:00:00 – 1:03:00 | Do Unskilled Workers Have Power Under Capitalism?
1:03:00 – 1:05:00 | What Would It Take to Implement Socialism?
1:05:00 – 1:11:00 | Can Socialism Coexist with Human Nature?
1:11:00 – 1:19:20 | How Do We Prevent Tyranny?
1:19:20 – 1:28:00 | Closing Statements
1:28:00 – 1:33:15 | Post-Debate Poll Results

Socialism promises equality. Capitalism delivers opportunity. Which path leads to real prosperity?
🔗 Watch the full debate and comment! https://youtu.be/z7iJXStVW24

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Yaron is the executive chairman of the Ayn Rand Institute and a world class speaker. He is the coauthor of the national best-seller Free Market Revolution: How Ayn Rand’s Ideas Can End Big Government, Equal is Unfair: America's Misguided Fight Against Income Inequality and In Pursuit of Wealth: The Moral Case for Finance. He speaks around the world on a variety of topics including the morality of capitalism, Ayn Rand and her philosophy, finance and economics, and the value of inequality.