[lbo-talk] Constant Capital and the Crisis in Contemporary Capitalism

[Wojtek S]

[WS:]  What is your take on Brenner's "The Economics of Global Turbulence" -
he makes a similar point by analyzing profit rates after WW2 (i.e.
profit/investment) instead of the organic composition?  If I read him
correctly, he argues that as the profit rate falls due to overinvestment, so
does labor productivity.  In other words, he does not depend on the notion
of organic composition of capital to make his point.

I find his argument rather convincing because it is based on historical data
rather than theoretical concepts.

Wojtek

On Wed, Mar 24, 2010 at 9:47 PM, michael perelman <michael at ecst.csuchico.edu
> wrote:


> Constant Capital and the Crisis in Contemporary Capitalism
> Echoes from the Late Nineteenth Century
>
> Introduction: Constant Capital and Crises
>
> An understanding of constant capital is an overlooked, but necessary
> component of crisis theory.  This paper uses the experience of the 19th
> century U.S. economy illustrate the relationship between constant capital
> and economic crises.  The rapid technological advances of the time led to a
> lethal combination for capital.  Investment in constant capital suffered
> rapid devalorization, while growing productivity saturated markets, creating
> what was then known as The Great Depression.
> Constant Capital and Labor, Living and Dead
>
> Read complete paper
>
> http://michaelperelman.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/constan.pdf
>
>
> --
> Michael Perelman
> Economics Department
> California State University
> Chico, CA
> 95929
>
> 530 898 5321
> fax 530 898 5901
> http://michaelperelman.wordpress.com
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