The two great minds of Adam Smith and Karl Marx have as many similarities as they have differences. Both want to help the general population by reducing poverty. Both have a distaste for big business and elites. Both believed that the most valuable entities in an economy were labor and the ability to produce goods. Both were philosophers and economists who thought a lot about the morality of their economic systems. While they had common goals and beliefs, they differed in how to build an economy that worked for everyone, not just the super rich. Adam Smith developed an economic system based on private business, competition, and limited government involvement. He believed that an invisible hand would guide the market towards a rise. Marx believed that capitalism was not the best way to achieve the goals of reducing poverty and preventing businesses from getting too big. What he used as evidence were the different classes, the working class proletariat and the capitalist bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie participated in the exploitation of workers by increasing working hours, reducing wages, and requiring workers to be more productive. The risk of a worker dying or becoming unfit for work was minimal. Most of the workers were unskilled and could easily be replaced with a member of the reserve army. These horrific conditions coined the term The Race to the Bottom. This is the idea that companies will do everything in their power to reduce costs, allowing them to achieve higher profits or a lower selling price to undercut the competition. The race to the bottom is not just an idea; it's a reality. Companies are cutting wages, decreasing workplace safety and squeezing as much as they can out of their workers. By necessity, governments have had to pass laws and regulations to ensure the safety of workers and consumers. Marx and Smith, two people with the common goal of reducing poverty, but with completely different views on how to achieve it. Smith believes in the power of the invisible hand to guide businesses to help the poorest in society. Marx believes in the power of people themselves to help those in the lower economic classes of society. Each solution is not free from defects either