Mastodawn

That this economic system persists and grows larger and stronger in spite of its evident failure has nothing to do with rationality or, for that matter, with evidence. It persists because, embodied now in multinational corporations, it has discovered a terrifying truth: If you can control a people’s economy, you don’t need to worry about its politics; its politics have become irrelevant. If you control people’s choices as to whether or not they will work, and where they will work, and what they will do, and how well they will do it, and what they will eat and wear, and the genetic makeup of their crops and animals, and what they will do for amusement, then why should you worry about freedom of speech? In a totalitarian economy, any “political liberties” that the people might retain would simply cease to matter. If, as is often the case already, nobody can be elected who is not wealthy, and if nobody can be wealthy without dependence on the corporate economy, then what is your vote worth? The citizen thus becomes an economic subject.

Wendell Berry (b. 1934) American farmer, educator, poet, conservationist
Speech (1994-09-29), “Conserving Forest Communities,” Kentucky Forest Summit, Louisville

More about this quote: wist.info/berry-wendell/17540/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #wendellberry #bigbusiness #capitalism #corporations #economicsystem #economy #oligarchy #politics #subjects #totalitarianism #voting #plutocracy #corporatocracy

Speech (1994-09-29), “Conserving Forest Communities,” Kentucky Forest Summit, Louisville - Berry, Wendell | WIST Quotations

WIST Quotations

Hacker News Oct 7

Eating capitalism: How our food got hijacked by profits

https://hi-im-ada.beehiiv.com/p/7-eating-capitalism

#HackerNews #EatingCapitalism #FoodIndustry #Profits #FoodJustice #EconomicSystem

#7: Eating capitalism

How our food got hijacked by profits and is now having its way with our bodies

Hi! It's Ada ^^

RevDrMatthewFox Jul 16

An #economicsystem based on #community, not on rapacious #profit—that is what a vow to support #MotherEarth requires. That is a twenty-first century version of the monastic vow of #poverty. #NewMonasticism #VoluntarySimplicity bit.ly/4k1KUr6

Proutist Universal Jul 14

The founding of the world's largest cooperative and the vision of its founder - employee ownship, not state or corporate ownership, of economic power.
Find out more at: https://www.elysian.press/.../the-cooperatist-manifesto...
#Prout #Mondragon #Cooperative #Economics #Power #EconomicSystem

Show thread

Srijit Kumar Bhadra Feb 23

@LukeLeal @Radical_EgoCom

You may consider reading my post [https://hachyderm.io/@srijit/114041629339916466] regarding my attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student and the corresponding responses from @RD4Anarchy.

I must add that the replies from @RD4Anarchy are more intriguing and thought-provoking than my own.

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

Srijit Kumar Bhadra (@srijit@hachyderm.io)

[Part 1/2] My attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student Economic system An economic system is a way that a country or society organizes and manages its resources, such as money, goods, and services. It's like a set of rules and practices that determine how people earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume. Economic freedom Economic freedom means having the ability to make your own choices about how to earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume. It is the freedom to participate in economic activities without unnecessary restrictions or interference. Capitalism Capitalism is an economic system where people can start their own businesses and make decisions about what to produce, how much to charge and where to sell their products. In this system, capital assets (e.g. factories, mines, rail, roads, ports etc.) can be privately owned and controlled by individuals or private companies and labour is purchased for money wages. Profit is the money a business earns after paying for all the costs involved in producing and selling goods or services. The primary goal of capitalism is to make a profit (need not be as much profit as possible) by selling goods or services. This profit motive drives competition among businesses to be the low-cost producer of a certain good and to switch production to more profitable goods if necessary. Economic freedom and capitalism Economic freedom is not only related to capitalism. Other economic systems also provide economic freedom to varying degrees. Economic freedom is important because it encourages innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth. When individuals and businesses have the freedom to make their own economic decisions, they are motivated to work hard, take risks, and come up with new ideas. This leads to the creation of new businesses, job opportunities, and improvements in the quality of goods and services. Reference: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/06/basics.htm #Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

Hachyderm.io

Show thread

Srijit Kumar Bhadra Feb 21

[Part 2/2]
My attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student

Major drawbacks of capitalism that can affect society

1. In a capitalist system, wealth tends to accumulate in the hands of a small percentage of the population, and this can lead to a wide gap between the rich and the poor.
2. Successful companies can usually become so powerful that they dominate the market, allowing them to charge higher prices to consumers.
3. Capitalism can encourage greed i.e. the pursuit of profit in capitalism can sometimes prioritize making money over making decisions that may benefit society as a whole.
4. Capitalism, with its focus on profit, mostly overlooks the environmental impact of production. This can lead to overproduction, pollution, and other harmful effects on the environment and climate that affect everyone.
5. Often people are rich, simply because they inherit wealth or are born into a privileged class. Therefore, capitalist society can not only fail to create equality of outcome but also can also fail to provide equality of opportunity. Societies which are highly unequal create resentment and social division.

Reference: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/06/basics.htm

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

What Is Capitalism? - Back to Basics - Finance & Development, June 2015

Sarwat Jahan and Ahmed Saber Mahmud - Free markets may not be perfect but they are probably the best way to organize an economy

Srijit Kumar Bhadra Feb 21

[Part 1/2]
My attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student

Economic system

An economic system is a way that a country or society organizes and manages its resources, such as money, goods, and services. It's like a set of rules and practices that determine how people earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume.

Economic freedom

Economic freedom means having the ability to make your own choices about how to earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume. It is the freedom to participate in economic activities without unnecessary restrictions or interference.

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system where people can start their own businesses and make decisions about what to produce, how much to charge and where to sell their products. In this system, capital assets (e.g. factories, mines, rail, roads, ports etc.) can be privately owned and controlled by individuals or private companies and labour is purchased for money wages.
Profit is the money a business earns after paying for all the costs involved in producing and selling goods or services. The primary goal of capitalism is to make a profit (need not be as much profit as possible) by selling goods or services. This profit motive drives competition among businesses to be the low-cost producer of a certain good and to switch production to more profitable goods if necessary.

Economic freedom and capitalism

Economic freedom is not only related to capitalism. Other economic systems also provide economic freedom to varying degrees. Economic freedom is important because it encourages innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth. When individuals and businesses have the freedom to make their own economic decisions, they are motivated to work hard, take risks, and come up with new ideas. This leads to the creation of new businesses, job opportunities, and improvements in the quality of goods and services.

Reference: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/06/basics.htm

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

What Is Capitalism? - Back to Basics - Finance & Development, June 2015

Sarwat Jahan and Ahmed Saber Mahmud - Free markets may not be perfect but they are probably the best way to organize an economy

Janet Fraser Dec 20, 2024

Christheraven comments on this article in the Guardian: "It's the expected result of our economic system and our failure to regulate obscene wealth concentration. We need to set out and clearly explain an alternative and then be prepared to fight vested interests who don't want the current system to change."

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/dec/20/elon-musk-is-becoming-a-one-man-rogue-state-its-time-we-reined-him-in?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

#ElonMusk #democracy #DemocracyVsAutocracy #economicsystem #wealthinequality

Elon Musk is becoming a one-man rogue state – it’s time we reined him in

He has bankrolled elections, stoked riots and ignored laws. We mustn’t make the mistake of playing nice with the world’s richest bully, says Guardian Europe columnist Alexander Hurst

The Guardian

SubtleBlade ⚔️Jul 15, 2024

#ThomasPiketty: 'It's time for the #left to get back to describing the alternative #EconomicSystem to which it aspires'
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/opinion/article/2024/07/13/thomas-piketty-it-s-time-for-the-left-to-get-back-to-describing-the-alternative-economic-system-to-which-it-aspires_6682965_23.html
#Economics #Politics #Society

Thomas Piketty: 'It's time for the left to get back to describing the alternative economic system to which it aspires'

In his column, the economist advises the French left to create a democratic federation capable of organizing deliberation and settling disputes, rather than wallowing in rhetorical radicalism.

Le Monde

Dennis Alexis Valin Dittrich May 19, 2024

The Rise of Mesoeconomics https://www.project-syndicate.org/onpoint/mesoeconomics-study-of-networks-supply-chains-key-to-successful-industrial-policies-by-william-h-janeway-2024-05
"…what #mesoeconomics offers to #policymakers is the information needed to guide targeted interventions designed either to increase the resilience of the #economicSystem on the supply side, or to enable effective responses to legitimate extra-market demands. That information necessarily includes a mapping of economic #networks to identify potential vulnerabilities and bottlenecks."
#economics

The Rise of Mesoeconomics | by William H. Janeway - Project Syndicate

William H. Janeway details how a long-neglected field of economic study can be applied to today's most pressing policy challenges.

Project Syndicate