[lbo-talk] New Imperialism or New Capitalism?

Jonathan Nitzan nitzan at yorku.ca
Tue Dec 28 14:53:35 PST 2004


I suppose by these standards, much of Marx's attempt to connect the quantitative gyration of capitalism with its qualitative nature were a waste of our time.

Carrol Cox wrote:


>Jonathan Nitzan wrote:
>
>
>>OK.
>>
>>Now, how much "labor performed" goes into the production of a car, a
>>modern drug or a capitalist movie? What units should we measure this
>>labor with? Marx came with the answer of "abstract labor."
>>
>>
>
>If you ask Marx to answer question that (a) he didn't ask and that (b)
>are not worthwhile answering, then you will find that the answers he
>gives to the questions he _does_ ask fail to answer the questions that
>for reasons I don't understand have your knickers in a twist.
>
>Marx asked, "How, under given historical conditions, is living human
>activity allocated?" It is more a "cultural" than an "economic"
>question. After all, Marx did not write a book entitled _Capitalist
>Economics_. Nor did he write a book entitled, _Political Economy_. He
>wrote a book subtitled _A Critique of Political Economy_, in which he
>dissolves from inside the pseudo-questions which "economists" try to
>answer. We are concerned with human social relations under capitalism,
>not with getting accurate figures on the GDP.
>
>Carrol
>
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>
>
>
>



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