Poverty is a tax on cognition. In an outstanding lecture at the London School of Economics, Macarthur "genius award" recipient Sendhil Mullainathan explains his research on the psychology of scarcity, a subject that he's also written an excellent book about.
Mullainathan begins by establishing the idea that your cognition is limited — you can only think about a limited number of things at one time, and when the number of things you have to pay attention to goes beyond a certain threshold, you start making errors. Then he explains how poor people have a lot more things they have to pay attention to.
Neoliberalism – the ideology at the root of all our problems. Imagine if the people of the Soviet Union had never heard of communism.
The ideology that dominates our lives has, for most of us, no name. Mention it in conversation and you’ll be rewarded with a shrug. Even if your listeners have heard the term before, they will struggle to define it. Summary of the Great Transformation by Polanyi – WEA Pedagogy Blog. Since it was posted in Aug 2013, this post has been almost continuously among the top ten posts on the RWER Blog, and attracts nearly a 1000 hits every month.
Revised & updated on 25/12/2017; Previous Version (rev 16/9/2016); Original Post (29/8/2013) Shortlink: bit.do/polanyi Ever since the spectacular failure of modern economic theory became obvious to all in the Global Financial Crisis, the search for alternative ways of organizing our economic affairs has intensified. The vast majority of alternatives under consideration offer minor tweaks and patches, remaining within the methodological framework of neoclassical economics.
In contrast, Polanyi offers a radical alternative, with unique insights based on a deep study of the history of the emergence of capitalism. A major obstacle to understanding Polanyi is the fact that living in a market society shapes our mindsets and behaviors, making it difficult to imagine radical alternatives. Mike O'Sullivan: The end of globalization (and the beginning of something new) The Gospel of Conscious Capitalism (and Consumption) in its Metatheoretical Guise. Chris Hedges: ‘The system of global capitalism is breaking down’ In this series, Rudyard Griffiths, chair of the Munk Debates, Canada's leading public-affairs forum, discusses issues and trends just over the horizon with renowned analysts and policy-makers.
Unpack for us why you think we live on the cusp of a great revolutionary moment? As a journalist, I have covered two Palestinian uprisings, the revolutions in Eastern Europe, the street demonstrations that brought down Slobodan Milosevic. Rebecca Solnit: The Age of Capitalism is over. It was the most thrilling bureaucratic document I’ve ever seen for just one reason: it was dated the 21st day of the month of Thermidor in the Year Six.
Written in sepia ink on heavy paper, it recorded an ordinary land auction in France in what we would call the late summer of 1798. But the extraordinary date signaled that it was created when the French Revolution was still the overarching reality of everyday life and such fundamentals as the distribution of power and the nature of government had been reborn in astonishing ways. The new calendar that renamed 1792 as Year One had, after all, been created to start society all over again. The Next Big Idea: E52: WORK: Should You Do Less of It? Adam Grant and James Suzman on the 15-Hour Workweek.
Neoliberalism: the deep story that lies beneath Donald Trump’s triumph. The events that led to Donald Trump’s election started in England in 1975.
At a meeting a few months after Margaret Thatcher became leader of the Conservative party, one of her colleagues, or so the story goes, was explaining what he saw as the core beliefs of conservatism. She snapped open her handbag, pulled out a dog-eared book, and slammed it on the table. “This is what we believe,” she said. OuiShare Magazine - Voices for a Collaborative Society. Addicted to Failure. Neoliberalism foists on career-minded millennials; a self-relation which resembles that of alcoholics in the throes of addiction A friend of mine is in a program now, and she’s doing much better.
Underearners Anonymous (UA), a 12-step program founded in New York City in 2006, is a program for people who have trouble pursuing their personal “vision,” a term which appears seven times in the brief “About UA” pamphlet. In one sense, “underearning” is simply what its name implies: an “inability to provide for one’s needs.” But it’s not just about earning a higher salary. It is also about “underachieving, or under-being, no matter how much money we make.” Patterned after Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), the original 12-step program, UA may be thought of as a protocol for personal change. Alan Watts on Socially Responsible Automation and an Unconditional Basic Inco...
Neoliberalism – the ideology at the root of all our problems. Imagine if the people of the Soviet Union had never heard of communism.
The ideology that dominates our lives has, for most of us, no name. Mention it in conversation and you’ll be rewarded with a shrug. Even if your listeners have heard the term before, they will struggle to define it. Neoliberalism: do you know what it is? Its anonymity is both a symptom and cause of its power. So pervasive has neoliberalism become that we seldom even recognise it as an ideology.
Against Charity. The new issue of Jacobin, centering on development and the Global South, is out now.
To celebrate its release, new subscriptions start at only $14.95. Imagine you came across a child drowning in a small pond and you were the only one around to help. You could easily save the child by wading in, although doing so would ruin your clothing and shoes. But if you don’t, the child will die. Paul Mason: ‘Post-capitalism will set you free’ Paul Mason sits in his two-up, two-down terraced house in south London while a newly arrived wheaten terrier, Lottie, still getting used to visitors, slumbers in a pen on a sultry afternoon.
Mason, the outspoken economics editor of Channel 4 News, is readying to return to Greece, the land whose fortunes, or otherwise, he has charted at length. For some its experience marks the end of Europe’s single currency. But Mason believes the crisis facing capitalism does not stop at Greek overspending and maladministration – or, indeed, at an Irish banking crisis caused by property debt.
Critics of Capitalism Must Include Its Definition. (Image: Capitalism definition via Shutterstock)Truthout combats corporate power by bringing you trustworthy, independent news. Join our mission by making a donation now! Most business leaders, mass media, politicians and academics keep defining capitalism, the main economic system in today's world, as markets plus private ("free") enterprises.
That definition is wrong. Definitions matter more now than ever as people increasingly question, challenge and want to move beyond capitalism. Consider the 20th century revolutions that overthrew a capitalism they defined as markets plus free enterprises. Rebecca Solnit: The Age of Capitalism is over. It was the most thrilling bureaucratic document I’ve ever seen for just one reason: it was dated the 21st day of the month of Thermidor in the Year Six. Written in sepia ink on heavy paper, it recorded an ordinary land auction in France in what we would call the late summer of 1798.
But the extraordinary date signaled that it was created when the French Revolution was still the overarching reality of everyday life and such fundamentals as the distribution of power and the nature of government had been reborn in astonishing ways. The new calendar that renamed 1792 as Year One had, after all, been created to start society all over again.
Videos. Money Happiness. QED. The formula for human well-being used to be simple: Make money, get happy. So why is the old axiom suddenly turning on us? Photos by Brian Ulrich. See more photos from this series. The world economy is flying with only one engine. The global economy is like a jetliner that needs all of its engines operational to take off and steer clear of clouds and storms.
Unfortunately, only one of its four engines is functioning properly: the Anglosphere (the United States and its close cousin, the United Kingdom). The second engine – the eurozone – has now stalled after an anaemic post-2008 restart. Indeed, Europe is one shock away from outright deflation and another bout of recession. Movement refuted by climate-report? No, not at all!
By Christiane Kliemann Right before the recent UN climate change summit and shortly after the Leipzig Degrowth-Conference, international media, governments and the United Nations enthusiastically welcomed a new report entitled “Better Growth, Better Climate” and trumpeted its central message around the globe: that economic growth and tackling climate change can go hand in hand. While the report, released by the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, is supposed to drive climate-action by world leaders, business executives and investors, critical scientists fear that its central message will open the door for business-as-usual approaches and play down the urgency of immediate and far-reaching action. Accordingly, University of Melbourne´s Samuel Alexander points out that “while the report has some merit insofar as it highlights the importance of energy efficiency, pricing carbon, investing in renewable energy, it fails miserably to justify its core conclusion.”
Russia and economic warfare: RIP the free market new world order. Capitalism's Deeper Problem. (Image: Stock exchange via Shutterstock)Recent press reports refer to troubling price increases for such assets as real estate, government bonds, companies targeted for acquisition and artwork. The End of Employment. Nothing is easier, as the Long Descent begins to pick up speed around us, than giving in to despair—and nothing is more pointless. 5 Dirty Secrets About the U.S. Economy - Umair Haque. If there’s one thing I hate these days, it’s discussing the U.S. economy. It's simple. If we can't change our economic system, our number's up. Wharton Prof, Adviser to the European Union, Says Capitalism Is Starting to B... Life in a 'degrowth' economy, and why you might actually enjoy it. Ten ways we can build a better economic system. For the numerous readers who asked: "But what can we do?
" after reading my "10 reasons to smash capitalism," here are ten ways we can build a better economic system: 10. We can elect governments that represent people rather than corporations. This will require serious electoral reform and include laws to make it clear corporations are not people and therefore cannot participate in the political process. A government representing all the people would regulate corporations to ensure socially responsible behaviour and transform psychopathic capitalist monstrosities into democratic, social enterprises that benefit all.
Wealth Accounting and the Valuation of Ecosystem Services. Orthodox economists have failed their own market test. From any rational point of view, orthodox economics is in serious trouble. Is Marxism Facing a Rebirth? Top 10 Policies for a Steady-State Economy. It's Growthism, and It's Bad for Us - Umair Haque.
You know the alien cults that announce to their followers that next year, on October 28th, at precisely 4:05 pm, the master race will arrive, and save humanity? What Then Can I Do? Ten Ways to Democratize the Economy. 45: Clive Thompson on zero-growth economist Peter Victor. Don Tapscott: Transforming capitalism won’t happen without leadership. Chrystia Freeland. Viewpoint: Manuel Castells on the rise of alternative economic cultures. The Next American Revolution Has Already Begun: An Interview With Gar Alperovitz. Occupy This! - Judy Rebick.
Revealed: how the FBI coordinated the crackdown on Occupy. Recent Features : Nightmares of Capitalism, Pipe Dreams of Democracy. Criminalizing Dissent and Punishing Occupy Protesters: Introduction to Henry Giroux’s "Youth in Revolt" Occupy Integral! Time Ain’t Money: Stop Punching the Industrial Age Clock, and Start Embracing the Digital Now. Amanda Palmer: The art of asking. No Local – Why Small-Scale Alternatives Won’t Change The World, Greg Sharzer - Zero Books Blog. Grad Student Who Shook Global Austerity Movement. Austerity Kills: Conservative cure worst thing for what ails the economy says Stiglitz. Imposing Austerity on the World’s Most Resource-rich Country. There's no need for all this economic sadomasochism. Who Is Defending Austerity Now? ‘Austerity’ deflects us from true nature of economic crisis - Economic News. Imposing Austerity on the World’s Most Resource-rich Country. Tax Havens.
Time to turn capitalism 'inside out' - roundtable report. Communities, co-operatives, and social businesses: Towards a systemic proposal. The Challenge of the Era of Technological Abundance. 2. Consumed by Abstraction. Jeff Rubin on the end of global economic growth. Ideas with Paul Kennedy. Money, Gift and Society in the Age of Transition. Fear of a Living Planet. Why the Age of the Guru is Over. Article - Latent Healing. Homepage for Sacred Economics: Money, Gift, and Society in the Age of Transition.
Ii. Foreword by Charles Eisenstein. Charles Eisenstein - Sacred Economics. Charles Eisenstein — A Little Bit Crazy. To end poverty, guarantee everyone in Canada $20,000 a year. But are you willing to trust the poor?