How We Live

This is an essay i did for my social movements and social change class. It has to do with what i was discussing a couple posts down, only it makes more sense. I would have liked to touch more on the human side of things with this essay but i really didn't have the space to do it, nevertheless i think it's important to note that all the forces I'm talking about cause a level of human suffering that would make us sick to our stomachs if we ever saw it first hand.

Here's the essay.

As modern globalization has emerged to catapult capitalism into its post Cold War era, the world has witnessed capitalisms borders expand to engulf nearly every aspect of life in nearly every country. However, the benefits that capitalism can bring, the wealth that can be generated by greater productivity, have not been seen by the majority of the world’s citizens. Capitalism has in fact created more poverty. (Singh, Lecture: February 19, 2008) The worker remains increasingly expropriated from the means of production and in cases where the workers have begun to gain ground they are quickly crushed by the heavy hand of Western intervention which is fearful its tight grip on the means of production may be loosened.

In this essay I look to show how developing and third world nations have been exploited and manipulated in order to further increase capitalist causes. Because of these manipulations many of their citizens live in extreme poverty. Using Marx’s framework put forth in the Communist Manifesto and using a cotemporary political economy ideology I will show how these acts of imperial benevolence and terror are fundamental to the very existence of the kind of expansive capitalist juggernaut which exists today. I will begin my argument with a discussion of production relations and how they cause class conflict and allow for violent enterprises to spring up in defense of these relations. Second, I will trace how the dominant infrastructure of a society, or the means of production, shapes a societies superstructure, or the state. I will then seek to show how the state acts as an agent in extending terrors which are fundamental to its continued control throughout the globe. Thirdly, I will focus on how the capitalist class ideologies that come to shape the infrastructure of society and in-turn the state affect the laboring classes in countries where the imperial arm of capitalism has swept through. Lastly, I will conclude with a discussion of the necessary violence inherent to capitalism and attempt to examine what can be done to halt this process before it claims anymore victims.

The relations of production under a capitalist system require that labor is liberated from the means of production. (Singh, Lecture: January 15, 2008) In other words, the laborer is disconnected from the resources and mechanisms which create goods and services. This divide is not an inherent feature in any society, it came about through a process of class struggle (Singh, Lecture: January 15, 2008) in which the workers are in many cases forcibly removed from their attachment to the means of production or their striving towards more equal production relations.

The relations of production that are necessary for capitalism to function were created through struggle, this struggle does not stop at the inception of these capitalist production relations, it continues well after they have been established and will continue until they have been abolished. (Singh, Lecture: February 19, 2008) There is a clear division of interest between the laboring and capitalist classes. The capitalist class looks to create a common interest which adheres to the maintenance of current production relations; this is achieved through the political control of the state. (Marx and Engels, 1986) On the other hand, the laboring class is striving to move closer towards having a hand in the means of production, they are attempting to alter the mode of production. In this way it is clear to see how the relations of production translate into volatile relations amongst human beings. Large margins of society do not have their interests served through a capitalist system. It is the job of the capitalist class to somehow convince the laboring class majority that their interests will be served. If this cannot be done through a series of false promises and lies, then, because the capitalist class controls the state it can be done through force or violence.

This violence can be seen most noticeably if one looks at the imperial ambitions of the world’s most dominant capitalist power, which is today the United States. Because of globalization the capitalist interests of the West have become necessarily expanded throughout the world. When those interests are threatened by a countries attempt to revolutionize capitalist production relations or to emerge as a socialist state, the capitalist interests must be protected. This is exemplified when in the mid to late 1900’s the core countries of South America were beginning to emerge as socialist states and served as an example to the hope of the developing world. (Klein, 2007) All of these countries, Argentina, Peru, and Chile to name a few had their flourishing development violently halted because of the threat they posed to Western capitalisms global dominance. (Klein, 2007)

These poor countries had served to provide cheap resources to Western Capitalists and helped these capitalists to maintain the existing set of production relations within their own countries by allowing them to keep their workforces appeased with reasonable wages afforded to them because of the ability to harvest cheap resources. Any change to the status quo had to be crushed not only to keep the peace in the West but also to expand free market capitalism to the worlds developing nations. The nations of South America were crippled by violent Western intervention which helped to establish severely divided production relations under which extremely cheap labor and the rapid depletion of natural resources would become the norm. (Klein, 2007) These nations served as an example of both the benefits and tragedies of what can happen if class struggle succeeds. Through struggle, equality had become a real possibility but that possibility was annihilated when the citizens of these countries were violently reminded, through the rise of Western backed dictators and corrupt free market ideologies that even if they manage to defeat their own nation’s oppressions, there is a much larger enemy looming, the enemy of global capitalism.

It is important to recognize the role of the state throughout this discussion. Misuse and exploitation of state power by the capitalist class is essential for capitalisms survival and it is important to examine how the state extends capitalist ideologies throughout society. The circumstances under which nature, the tools used to manipulate nature, and the human labor used to operate those tools come together define the means of production. (Singh, 2000) The means of production then go on to represent the infrastructure of society and that infrastructure goes on to represent the superstructure, or the state. (Singh, 2000) In a capitalist society the ideologies that shape the circumstances under which the means of production arise are representative of the capitalist class. This means that the ideas and the form of the state are largely attributable to the ideologies of the minority bourgeois class. (Marx and Engels, 1986) The state then becomes the platform on which the ruling class asserts their common interests. Under capitalism this means that the capitalist class passes its affairs off as the affairs of the entire nation when in reality, because the state is controlled by capitalists, it is only interested in capitalist interests. (Marx and Engels, 1986)

This helps to explain the violent nature of a capitalist controlled state. As any one body or any organization in a position of power must defeat its opposition to remain in power, so to must a capitalist state destroy those opposed to its interests. This can be done through dominant ideologies which are passed off as in the interest off all peoples. (Marx and Engels, 1986) Unfortunately these lies are often bought by the laboring class, particularly in the West. This can also be done, as it has in many developing countries, through violence which is, many times, provoked and disturbed by Western powers that are aware that opposition to their capitalist fantasies cannot be crushed quickly enough. In many ways this is definitive of the Cold War as capitalism sought to destroy its most deviant threat; socialism. (Singh, Lecture: March 4, 2008)

It is not surprising that much of America’s journeys abroad during the Cold War were directed at the fabricated threat of communism. If America’s citizens could be convinced, and even if they could not be it was necessary to crush any glimpses of communism both abroad and at home. It is not alarming either, that as the Cold War began to grind to a halt and Capitalism began to grab the upper hand through all its boorish and violent tactics, the laissez faire concept began to spread behind the will of startlingly relentless capitalist diplomats such as Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. (Klein, 2007) This spread is marked in the West with massive layoffs to striking government employees such as the mass lay offs of 11,400 air-traffic controllers in the United States. (Klein, 2007) And it was seen in the developing world in countries like Bolivia and Poland, through shocking economic policies pushed through by top American economists with the promise that it would resurrect the countries struggling economy. Unfortunately these policies did nothing more than free markets from governmental control and allow wealthy capitalists to scavenge any money making monopolies from the citizens of these countries leaving them devastatingly poor. (Klein, 2007) As Klein (2007) states:

“No longer inspirational examples, these countries were now terrifying warnings about what happens to poor nations that think they can pull themselves out of the Third World.” (Klein, 2007:132)

Although what was done with these economic policies was not directly violent, they created extreme poverty and can be held responsible for massive amounts of death and suffering throughout the world. Capitalism was created through a violent class struggle in which war was a central figure. (Singh, Lecture: February 19, 2008) Capitalism needed violence to be created; now it needs violence, whether it is through conniving economic tactics or full-on military adventures to survive.

In order to fully understand the states functioning under capitalism one must be aware of the dominant ideologies that permeate every facet of society. These ideologies underpin the ways in which the production relations are established and controlled, they must be fundamentally believed in throughout society if citizens are to actively partake in capitalism. These ideologies also represent the underlying actions and beliefs of the state. As much as values and norms such as, freedom, individualism, equality, and material prosperity helped to shape capitalism they are also reproduced and enhanced through capitalist production. Ideologies are continually produced and enhanced through the same production relations under which goods and services are produced, therefore it is impossible to find dissenting ideologies at the forefront in any capitalist controlled state. (Singh, 2000) These capitalist ideologies are not the ideologies of the whole society; they are only the ideologies of the capitalist class. However, in order to avoid massive class conflict and to demean the ever existent class struggle the capitalist class, through control of the state, must convince the whole of society that the current systems ideologies under which severely divided production relations and massive class contradictions are evident, are in everybody’s interest. (Marx and Engels, 1986)

The problem for the laboring class is that these capitalist interests that have been sold to them as beneficial for everyone only serve to exploit them and to ensure that they remain expropriated from the means of production. These ideologies promise freedom, equality, and material prosperity yet they have delivered enslavement, exploitation, extreme poverty, violence and death on an almost unimaginable scale. (Singh, Lecture: March 4, 2008) The capitalist system is designed so that it cannot deliver what its leaders have promised, it can only deliver positive outcomes for the capitalist class and only at the expense of almost an entire world of laborers seeking to sell their dignity for a crumb leftover from the capitalist gorge-fest.

The entire worlds laboring class has been severely affected by their belief in these false ideologies. Although some laboring classes, particularly in the West are better off than those in the developing world where the act of selling your labor can be a challenging one, all laboring classes are being exploited. (Singh, Lecture: March 4, 2008) This exploitation is a necessary function of capitalism, the result of this necessity is: “The impoverishment of growing numbers of people, and an increasing gap in life-circumstances between the capitalist and the laborer.” (Marx and Engels, 1986:13)

These dire circumstances are no more evident than in Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Although the communist government was less than ideal it did not allow its citizens to slip to the depths of despair as the capitalist system that was later implemented did. The devastation Russia’s laboring class felt can be summed up with the following statistics:

“By 1998, more than 80 percent of Russian farms had gone bankrupt, and roughly seventy thousand state factories had closed, creating an epidemic of unemployment. In 1989 before shock therapy, (erratically implemented free market economic policies) 2 million people in the Russian Federation were living in poverty, on less than $4 a day. By the time the shock therapists had administered their “bitter medicine” in the mid-nineties, 74 million Russians were living below the poverty line, according to the World Bank.” (Klein, 2007: 286)

This shows the severity of what can happen when capitalist ideologies are passed off as in the interest of all. The capitalist world hugely benefited from this startling transformation of Russia’s economy, the world moved one step closer to being dominated by capitalist interests and left in the wake of this perceived progress were millions of lost and ruined lives.

Throughout all the above discussion it is obvious that in order for capitalism to exist as anything but a shell of its current self, shrewd exploitation, corruption, and violence are necessary ingredients. The very fabric of a capitalist system requires human worth to be reduced into exchange value. (Singh, Lecture: February 19, 2008) Capitalists do not see the human beings who labor to make their great wealth possible as valuable. They are simply a replaceable tool in reaching a fantastical desired end. If should they suffer, lose their lives, or have their entire countries raped and sacrificed in the name of the capitalist religion it is of no concern to the capitalist elite. This is the process of capitalist expansion; it is unavoidable if the current system is aloud to reign free. The inner workings of capitalist functions are startling when uncovered, as such Klein (2007) in her discussion of the inhumanity experienced in the core of South America in the 1970’s asks,

“Is neo-liberalism an inherently violent ideology, and is there something about its goals that demand this cycle of brutal political cleansing, followed by human rights cleanup operations.” (Klein, 2007: 151)

The answer to that question is yes, neo-liberalism is inherently violent. Since neo-liberalism is merely a more radical, more laissez faire driven approach to capitalism and capitalism in its functioning in the outside world is sustained through violence, so to are its ideological extensions.

If one can look clearly at the areas where the capitalist world has ventured to exploit material resources one can see that these areas more often than not become engulfed in war and poverty. (Singh, Lecture: February 26, 2008) The answer to this or the key question arising out of this can be seen in the quote from Klein (2007) directly above. Political cleansing is needed in these areas if the capitalist world is to separate a developing country from its resources. Capitalism cannot take from a country that believes its resources are best used serving its people, therefore it is the job of the capitalists to transform the political landscape in that country, in doing so the countries valuables will be made ripe for the picking. Whether this political cleansing is done through ideological genocide as it was in Chile or Indonesia or through harsh economic reform as It was in Russia or Poland the outcome seems to be the same; the production relations are divided as far as can be and capitalist ideologies such as freedom, equality, and material prosperity are instilled in the political landscapes. This creates a cooperative and sustaining environment under which the capitalist world can exploit as it needs to.

Political cleansing as it is engaged in by Capitalism is no different in its mission, to eradicate opposition, than ethnic cleansing which has resulted in some of the most catastrophic tragedies in human history. It is unfortunate that we do not look at political cleansing in the same light as we view the ethnic cleansings of Rwanda or Sudan. Both forms of cleansing produce the same dire results, mass destruction, poverty, and death, only political cleansing comes with the promise of enhanced capitalist opportunities.

If capitalism continues to tear the world apart at its current pace, every citizen, even the capitalist elite will be faced with exceptionally difficult circumstances. Violence cannot reign forever, where there is injustice, justice is not far behind and gaining evidence as it makes up ground, those who sew evil will eventually reap it. There is no question as to whether or not capitalism will fall; the only question is when it will fall and how. Those are circumstances over which we still have control and as such it is imperative that citizens find a way to continue the class struggle that birthed and will eventually end capitalisms reign. The majority laboring classes must find a way to struggle past the violence they will be faced with when they attempt to grasp at more equal production relations. Capitalism can fall and still leave some standing if the struggle for state control is in the hands of majority interests. (Singh, Lecture: February 19, 2008) Despite the fact that our lives seem so engulfed in the capitalist way of life and that the beast of capitalism looms so large it is still possible to move beyond. To move ahead will require sacrifice as those who currently hold power will not retreat without a massive spectacle. However, I firmly believe that the majority holds the power, they have just been tricked into thinking they are powerless. The process of unlearning and being weaned off of the sedatives administered by the capitalist state will be a long and strenuous one in which the true nature of capitalism will have to be revealed for all to see. I believe that if this can be done and done before capitalism declines from its climax, the predicted Marxist progression which saw capitalism supplanted by communism through a class struggle can become reality. This is the only real hope for the well-being of the world’s citizens and it is necessary to believe this to be possible.