For the record . . .

[jawnbc]

Capitalism sux.

I've not yet come up with a viable alternative (Marxian critiques: good. Marxist politico-economic alternatives: bad), but gimme time.

Do we have time? Oy . . .

Comments

Political theory vs. reality

[darkphuque.livejournal.com]

John, I sense that you are a Utopian...I certainly was one. I am old enough to remember the soviet union at its worse, unless you wanna talk about Stalin. I don't think that there is any system that will work, because the unknown quality is humanity. Humans are by nature group folks, but we don't do well in anything other than small groups. It seems that once the extended family becomes a tribe things begin to shift. A need for a power/leader becomes the first evidence of the struggle for power.

I wonder why a poor educated guy can't become president in our country. If you look at how this works its the money that creates the election, and that is a terrible construct. Our republican democracy doesn't work, certainly not the way it was written, or meant to be acted upon.

The soviet system was no better. The constitutional monarchies are no different. The monarchies are no different. So I wonder...

If we had to return to an agrarian society, would this be better? I wonder...what do you think? Maybe humans are simply incapable of loving each other.

Re: Political theory vs. reality

[jawnbc]

Not what I was getting at at all. And no, I'm not a Utopian

[quetzalcoatl.livejournal.com]

Capitalism is a slippery animal that continues to change shape -- I would submit that the one certain comment that one can make is that it is not stable in any "pure" form, so that there is no such thing as genuine laisser faire capitalism, the pious hopes of The Economist notwithstanding.

The market, left to itself, does not necessarily (all right, never does) behave in a 'rational' manner.

Does one need to find an all-encompassing alternative or simply keep up the tinkering with/evolution of, the current varieties?

[jawnbc]

I think the problem with the "tinkering" approach is that there will always be a critical mass of exploitative uber-capitalists that will seek their own profit at any expense--usually others, the environment etc.

So long as this cycle continues, I'm inclined to seek a system that precludes--rather than minimizes--that position.