Kolibri [she/her]

Death to America

amerikkka

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Joined 2 years ago
Cake day: November 28th, 2023
  • Kolibri [she/her]@hexbear.nettotheory@hexbear.net•Das Kapital reading group – Week 43, Oct 21-27 – Chapter 31, Chapter 32, and Chapter 33 of Volume IIIEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    The last few chapters really interesting like chapter 33, and then comparing it to today’s time. Where a lot of things are done with banks or credit unions? One of the things this reminded me of is people who say money is dead or dying due to like things going digital? But I think Marx shows that won’t ever be the case since there will be plenty of times money will always be needed, especially in times of in crises? At least in capitalist production and that there will always be a medium of sorts? I do kind of wonder how much digital stuff has affected the medium along with credit? Since it probably made things more easier and more efficient. Like referenced here with other stuff

    According to the testimony of W. Newmarch before the Bank Committee 1857, No. 1741, other circumstances also contributed to economy in the circulating medium: penny postage, railways, telegraphy, in short, the improved means of communication; thus England can now carry on five to six times more business with about the same circulation of bank-notes.

    Also it’s really interesting that the last few chapters talked about crises more to.

    Talk about centralisation! The credit system, which has its focus in the so-called national banks and the big money-lenders and usurers surrounding them, constitutes enormous centralisation, and gives to this class of parasites the fabulous power, not only to periodically despoil industrial capitalists, but also to interfere in actual production in a most dangerous manner — and this gang knows nothing about production and has nothing to do with it. The Acts of 1844 and 1845 are proof of the growing power of these bandits, who are augmented by financiers and stock-jobbers.

    Isn’t this what happen in 2008?

  • Kolibri [she/her]@hexbear.nettotheory@hexbear.net•Das Kapital reading group – Week 42 – Chapter 29 and Chapter 30 of Volume IIIEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago
    I found this footnote from chapter 30 interesting, mainly on Engels talking about crises.

    [As I have already stated elsewhere [English edition: Vol. I. — Ed.], a change has taken place here since the last major general crisis. The acute form of the periodic process with its former ten-year cycle, appears to have given way to a more chronic, long drawn out, alternation between a relatively short and slight business improvement and a relatively long, indecisive depression-taking place in the various industrial countries at different times. But perhaps it is only a matter of a prolongation of the duration of the cycle. In the early years of world commerce, 1845-47, it can be shown that these cycles lasted about five years; from 1847 to 1867 the cycle is clearly ten years; is it possible that we are now in the preparatory stage of a new world crash of unparalleled vehemence? Many things seem to point in this direction. Since the last general crisis of 1867 many profound changes have taken place. The colossal expansion of the means of transportation and communication — ocean liners, railways, electrical telegraphy, the Suez Canal — has made a real world-market a fact. The former monopoly of England in industry has been challenged by a number of competing industrial countries; infinitely greater and varied fields have been opened in all parts of the world for the investment of surplus European capital, so that it is far more widely distributed and local over-speculation may be more easily overcome. By means of all this, most of the old breeding-grounds of crises and opportunities for their development have been eliminated or strongly reduced. At the same time, competition in the domestic market recedes before the cartels and trusts, while in the foreign market it is restricted by protective tariffs, with which all major industrial countries, England excepted, surround themselves. But these protective tariffs are nothing but preparations for the ultimate general industrial war, which shall decide who has supremacy on the world-market. Thus every factor, which works against a repetition of the old crises, carries within itself the germ of a far more powerful future crisis. — F. E.]

    Since the part of about “But these protective tariffs are nothing but preparations for the ultimate general industrial war, which shall decide who has supremacy on the world-market. Thus every factor, which works against a repetition of the old crises, carries within itself the germ of a far more powerful future crisis” Reminds me a lot of Lenin’s work on Imperialism. Also feels like Engels kind of saw the great depression?

    Also I like the footnote of Engels talking about a childhood story in 29.