CHART OF THE DAY: Don’t Tell Bernie, But Capitalism Has Made Human Life Fantastically Better:

Back in 1995, now-Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said, “I personally happen not to be a great believer in the free enterprise system for many reasons.”

And having watched Sanders during this primary season, it doesn’t appear to me that the self-described democratic socialist has much changed his opinion of capitalism. Which is both amazing and appalling. The single greatest story of human achievement of the past 2,000 years is the dramatic rise in living standards of the past 200 years. It’s an astounding ascent — see above chart — driven by innovative, entrepreneurial capitalism. Free enterprise. Economic freedom.

And to turn a Bernie-esque argument on its head, look at how much it’s accomplished while having to drag the parasite of socialism alongside it for well over a century. Imagine what it could to do if it was really unleashed.