This book does an excellent job of showing exactly how the development of British capitalism was dependent on slavery. The author is Eric Williams, an obscure PhD student at the time of writing, but later in life to become Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago. Williams goes through his evidence in systematic detail, examining British economic [...]
Tag Archives | capitalism
The only possible system
Capitalism, we are told, is the only possible system. Anything else is impractical dreaming. Capitalism delivers prosperity, stability, growth… except when it doesn’t. The credit crunch is nothing new – remember the Asia currency crisis, the Russian debt crisis, Black Monday, Black Friday, Black Wednesday and all the rest? The March edition of New Internationalist [...]
“Anarchy” by Errico Malatesta
With the G20 protests engulfing London this week, and anarchy briefly replacing terror as the bogeyman du jour, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at what anarchism is really all about, according to Errico Malatesta, a leading anarchist thinker of the late 19th and early 20th century. Anarchy is [...]
Consume less, live more!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4OPFl2Kxhs&hl=en&fs=1] From Friends of the Earth, http://www.foei.org/en/get-involved/livemore. Seen originally as a cartoon in New Internationalist, August 2008
The Shock Doctrine
New Left Review 48 carries an interesting review by Michael Hardt (co-author of “Empire”) of Naomi Klein’s new book The Shock Doctrine. Makes me want to read the book. Klein, according to Hardt, draws a parallel between the electric shock therapy of the 1950s and the neoliberal doctrine of economic shock therapy. Electric shocks to [...]
Marxism 2007: Day Four (Sunday)
“Cuba after Castro” was a great talk, with one small problem: it wasn’t about Cuba after Castro. The speaker, Mike Gonzalez, focused most of his talk on Cuba under Castro, and spent only the last few minutes talking about Cuba after Castro. It wasn’t the only speech at this conference to disregard its advertised topic, [...]
The crime of compassion
Sometimes I think I have become so cynical that I am no longer capable of feeling true outrage. I have come to expect fascism, brutality and heartlessness from my elected leaders as a matter of course. But every now and then, something comes along that makes my jaw hit the floor once again. Today was [...]
How we used to be
You may remember the vague speculation in my earlier Cutty Sark post about community being traditionally much more important to human beings than competition, and therefore being something we always reach back to even though contemporary society has more or less destroyed it. Well, as luck would have it I was beginning the somewhat daunting [...]
“Capitalism Works”
When I talk about workers, particularly in poor countries, being exploited by large companies, a frequent retort is, “Well, the people want to work there. Who are you to tell them they can’t? Would they be better off if the factory closed down and they were out of work?” A good example of this argument [...]
Classless Confusion
The Nation has an analysis of globalisation in its upcoming issue that is almost very good. I say “almost” because although he makes some excellent points, the author William Greider creates all kinds of confusion by studiously avoiding any mention of class. Now I know that it’s not fashionable to talk about class any more, [...]
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The 20 best Caribbean book blogs
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Liebster Award reloaded
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The cafe killer
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The Kindle Report: does it beat paper?
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The next big thing…
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We could take a train, be miles away by morning…
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Ten years ago: Voluntary poverty in New York City
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Some interviews
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Giveaway: Granta Best of Young British Novelists 2003
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How to Improve your Foreign Language Immediately
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Andrew Blackman: Hi Geo Good to hear from you. I love the way yo...
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Leslie Finkel: Andrew, I appreciated your review and the comme...
