This is much more in-depth and interisting than the sweary title might lead you to believe.
The bit about ventilators in particular is tragic.
The bit about ventilators in particular is tragic.
DIY ventilators were in fact a vital lifesaving measure at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a little over two years ago:
<https://spectrum.ieee.org/diy-ventilators-for-covid19-could-...>
Couldn't source enough.
Why was that?
Supply chains stretched so taut that a single disruption shut the whole world down.
Why was that?
Profit.
Capitalism is the problem.
(I've been looking for articles to support this without joy so far, though there were numerous articles on "open source" ventilator concepts, such as this one: <https://journal.valeriansaliou.name/makair-series-the-incept...>.)
This goes above and beyond basic market function, though yes, I suppose you could say that it was rooted at some level in capitalist short-term-profit-maximising practices.
Saying "single disruption" here is almost as bad as saying the dinosaurs were wiped out by a single rock. It's not a matter of the number of underlying causes but a matter of the scale of the disruption.
What if I actually do want that for my own self? Shouldn't that be my right to decide?