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09-05-2008, 05:32 PM
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| Handouts and Bailouts. The UK’s multi-billion pound bailout of the banks and America’s multi-billion dollar handout to the electorate are symptomatic of the continued malfunctioning of capitalism – ‘progressive and destructive’ even of itself. That so, collapse is far from immanent. An example of the power of pragmatics to maintain the system can be seen in Zimbabwe. Hyper inflation beyond calculation demonstrates clearly that the monetary system has failed – and yet we see scenes reminiscent of Germany after WW1, or America after 1929 – people exchanging wheelbarrow loads of currency for a handful of food. The question no-one seems to be asking is whether government should be pumping billions of our tax dollars and pounds into a system that, on the one hand, owns full responsibility for the current crisis, and on the other, owes allegiance only unto itself? It’s akin to giving billions in aid direct to Robert Mugabe. In classical economic theory, the authority inferred by ownership of land and capital justifies appropriation of the surplus value of production – the capitalist, acting in the course of this rationale, screwing the worker at one end of the process and the consumer at the other. But by threatening to move operations overseas they undermine government, placing an additional burden upon the worker/consumer/tax-payer, while by the same mechanism subverting labor and environmental laws. Thus, were government genuinely by the people, or even for the people, cooperation with finance and industry should be at best antipathetic, but on our behalf, governments both sides of the pond have dropped trou’ – bent double and braced for another plundering. And of course, for government is not in the least genuine. It’s a wholly owned subsidiary of the same elite in control of the banks and big business, existing only that the worker/consumer/tax-payer might maintain some shred of dignity with a pretence of consent while the whole planet is raped to ****ing death. And just like the people of Zimbabwe, the worker/consumer/tax-payer will busy himself counting wads of promissory notes, following blindly unto extinction from resource wars set against a background of climate change he is paid to not see coming – crises government can’t afford, and business accepts no responsibility to prevent. Well now, theoretically at least, the boot is on the other foot. If finance and industry want billions from the treasuries of the UK and US the question to ask is what are we getting in return? Personally, in return for my promissory notes – I’d like finance and industry to adopt obligations that secure the continued existence and welfare of the human species. If they can’t make such promises in return for my capital then they surely have no right to the land or the surplus of my labor, and let the land lay fallow till the sky falls – they should not have one penny or cent of what remains, at least ostensibly, tax-payer’s money.      |
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