This remark made me stop and think: what is "wasteful" production? What is wrong with "profit" if it accrues to the whole society? does a socialist economy only trade with itself? how can a socialist economy expand its productivity and raise its standard of living unless some form of surplus value is created in the act of production?
If these questions are elementary and naive, a very brief answer would be welcome.
BobW
--- Mike Ballard <swillsqueal at yahoo.com.au> wrote:
> Eubulides asked:
> Please articulate/explain the phrase *realm of
> freedom*.
>
> ^^^^^
>
> CB: It's in a binary with the realm of necessity.
>
> In fact, the realm of freedom actually begins only
> where labour which is
> determined by necessity and mundane considerations
> ceases; thus in the very
> nature of things it lies beyond the sphere of actual
> material production.
> Just as the savage must wrestle with Nature to
> satisfy his wants, to
> maintain and reproduce life, so must civilised man,
> and he must do so in all
> social formations and under all possible modes of
> production. With his
> development this realm of physical necessity expands
> as a result of his
> wants; but, at the same time, the forces of
> production which satisfy these
> wants also increase. Freedom in this field can only
> consist in socialised
> man, the associated producers, rationally regulating
> their interchange with
> Nature, bringing it under their common control,
> instead of being ruled by it
> as by the blind forces of Nature; and achieving this
> with the least
> expenditure of energy and under conditions most
> favourable to, and worthy
> of, their human nature. But it nonetheless still
> remains a realm of
> necessity. Beyond it begins that development of
> human energy which is an end
> in itself, the true realm of freedom, which,
> however, can blossom forth only
> with this realm of necessity as its basis. The
> shortening of the working-day
> is its basic prerequisite.
>
>
>
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/subject/hist-mat/capital/vol3-ch4
> 8.htm
>
> ****************************
>
> Yes! This is a fine quote from Marx and sums up his
> stance on the question of
> freedom. Freedom for human beings begins when they
> have *disposable time*,
> when they aren't required to do the *necessary work*
> e.g. mining, the
> production of foodstuffs and so on. And the *class
> struggle* over the control
> of the social product of labour and the *time* which
> is necessary to produce it
> is key.
>
> http://www.iww.org/projects/4-Hours
>
>
> This explains why socialism for Marx means common
> ownership/control of the
> means of production and the land by the associated
> producers themselves. With
> that control, the realm of disposable
> time/free-time/freedom can be increased
> as various forms of wasteful production for profit
> are eliminated.
>
> Thanks to Eubulides for asking the question and to
> Charles for answering it.
>
> Mike B)
>
>
> An injury to one is an injury to all
> http://www.iww.org/
>
>
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________________
> Looking for a deal? Find great prices on flights and
> hotels with Yahoo! FareChase.
> http://farechase.yahoo.com/
> ___________________________________
>
http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk
>