Civilization ...

" ...is the fruit of the cooperation of two types of men:

of those whose saving, i.e., deferment of consumption, makes entering upon time-absorbing, round-about methods of production possible, and of those who know how to direct the application of such methods.

Without saving and successful endeavors to use the accumulated savings wisely, there cannot be any question of a standard of living worthy of the qualification human.

(...) Saving is always the abstention from some kind of immediate consumption for the sake of making an increase or improvement in later consumption possible.

It is saving that accumulates capital, dissaving that makes the available supply of capital shrink.

In acting, man chooses between increasing his competence by additional saving or reducing the amount of his capital by keeping his consumption above the rate correct accountancy considers as his income.(..)

Where there is no saving, no capital goods come into existence. And there is no saving without purpose. A man defers consumption for the sake of an improvement of later conditions. He may want to improve his own conditions or those of definite other people. He does not abstain from consumption simply for the pleasure of somebody unknown.

There cannot be any such thing as a capital good that is not owned by a definite owner. Capital goods come into existence as the property of the individual or the group of individuals who were in the position to consume definite things but abstained from this consumption for the sake of later utilization.

The way in which capital goods come into existence as private property determines the institutions of the capitalistic system." Mises