Are there any ways in which American capitalism is not compatible with Locke’s ideas about the social contract and our natural rights to life, liberty, and property?

Answer 1

There is at least one way in which Locke and American Capitalism clash, and that is the notion of squatter's rights. For Locke, possession of one's property was the defining characteristic of actually owning it. But, under American Capitalism, one can (and is often encouraged to) buy property that one cannot physically possess, at least, some of the time. For example, I may live in Denver, and own a vacation home in Aspen. Under American Capitalism, this is more than acceptable, it's a desirable situation. For Locke, however, because it's not possible to live in both places at once, it is therefore not possible to truly own (i.e., possess) more than one home at a time. This means that squatter's rights are perfectly legal under a Lockean system, because whoever is in possession of the item/property in question is the official owner. Whether or not one can actually possess land is an entirely different question.