#economicsystem — Public Fediverse posts

A quotation from George Orwell

One ought not to pay any attention to Hitler’s recent line of talk about being the friend of the poor man, the enemy of plutocracy, etc etc. Hitler’s real self is in Mein Kampf, and in his actions. He has never persecuted the rich, except when they were Jews or when they tried actively to oppose him. He stands for a centralised economy which robs the capitalist of most of his power but leaves the structure of society much as before. The State controls industry, but there are still rich and poor, masters and men. Therefore, as against genuine Socialism, the moneyed class have always been on his side. This was crystal clear at the time of the Spanish civil war, and clear again at the time when France surrendered. Hitler’s puppet government are not working men, but a gang of bankers, gaga generals and corrupt right-wing politicians.

George Orwell (1903-1950) English journalist, essayist, writer [pseud. of Eric Arthur Blair]
Essay (1941-02-19), “The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius,” Part 2 “Shopkeepers at War,” sec. 3, The Searchlight Books [ed. Fyvel and Orwell]

More about this quote: wist.info/orwell-george/81894/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #orwell #georgeorwell #autocracy #classwarfare #economicinjustice #economicsystem #nationalsocialism #Nazi #plutocracy #rulingclass #socialism #upperclass

A quotation from Wendell Berry

Rats and roaches live by competition under the laws of supply and demand; it is the privilege of human beings to live under the laws of justice and mercy.

Wendell Berry (b. 1934) American farmer, educator, poet, conservationist
Essay (1988), “Economy and Pleasure,” What Are People For? (1990)

More about this quote: wist.info/berry-wendell/81315/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #wendellberry #economicsystem #economicjustice #competition #humancondition #justice #living #mercy #supplyanddemand #ruthlessness #laissezfaire

A quotation from Daniel Webster

The freest government, if it could exist, would not be long acceptable, if the tendency of the laws were to create a rapid accumulation of property in few hands, and to render the great mass of the population dependent and penniless.

Daniel Webster (1782-1852) American statesman, lawyer, orator
Speech (1820-12-22), “First Settlement of New England,” Plymouth, Massachusetts

More about this quote: wist.info/webster-daniel/80794…

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #danielwebster #accumulation #concentrationofwealth #economicinjustice #economicsystem #freegovernment #freedom #government #incomeinequality #laws #plutocracy #politicalsystem #property #wealth

A quotation from Wendell Berry

That this economic system persists and grows larger and stronger in spite of its evident failure has nothing to do with rationality or, for that matter, with evidence. It persists because, embodied now in multinational corporations, it has discovered a terrifying truth: If you can control a people’s economy, you don’t need to worry about its politics; its politics have become irrelevant. If you control people’s choices as to whether or not they will work, and where they will work, and what they will do, and how well they will do it, and what they will eat and wear, and the genetic makeup of their crops and animals, and what they will do for amusement, then why should you worry about freedom of speech? In a totalitarian economy, any “political liberties” that the people might retain would simply cease to matter. If, as is often the case already, nobody can be elected who is not wealthy, and if nobody can be wealthy without dependence on the corporate economy, then what is your vote worth? The citizen thus becomes an economic subject.

Wendell Berry (b. 1934) American farmer, educator, poet, conservationist
Speech (1994-09-29), “Conserving Forest Communities,” Kentucky Forest Summit, Louisville

More about this quote: wist.info/berry-wendell/17540/

#quote #quotes #quotation #qotd #wendellberry #bigbusiness #capitalism #corporations #economicsystem #economy #oligarchy #politics #subjects #totalitarianism #voting #plutocracy #corporatocracy

Eating capitalism: How our food got hijacked by profits

https://hi-im-ada.beehiiv.com/p/7-eating-capitalism

#HackerNews #EatingCapitalism #FoodIndustry #Profits #FoodJustice #EconomicSystem

@LukeLeal @Radical_EgoCom

You may consider reading my post [https://hachyderm.io/@srijit/114041629339916466] regarding my attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student and the corresponding responses from @RD4Anarchy.

I must add that the replies from @RD4Anarchy are more intriguing and thought-provoking than my own.

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

[Part 2/2]
My attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student

Major drawbacks of capitalism that can affect society

1. In a capitalist system, wealth tends to accumulate in the hands of a small percentage of the population, and this can lead to a wide gap between the rich and the poor.
2. Successful companies can usually become so powerful that they dominate the market, allowing them to charge higher prices to consumers.
3. Capitalism can encourage greed i.e. the pursuit of profit in capitalism can sometimes prioritize making money over making decisions that may benefit society as a whole.
4. Capitalism, with its focus on profit, mostly overlooks the environmental impact of production. This can lead to overproduction, pollution, and other harmful effects on the environment and climate that affect everyone.
5. Often people are rich, simply because they inherit wealth or are born into a privileged class. Therefore, capitalist society can not only fail to create equality of outcome but also can also fail to provide equality of opportunity. Societies which are highly unequal create resentment and social division.

Reference: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/06/basics.htm

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

[Part 1/2]
My attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student

Economic system

An economic system is a way that a country or society organizes and manages its resources, such as money, goods, and services. It's like a set of rules and practices that determine how people earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume.

Economic freedom

Economic freedom means having the ability to make your own choices about how to earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume. It is the freedom to participate in economic activities without unnecessary restrictions or interference.

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system where people can start their own businesses and make decisions about what to produce, how much to charge and where to sell their products. In this system, capital assets (e.g. factories, mines, rail, roads, ports etc.) can be privately owned and controlled by individuals or private companies and labour is purchased for money wages.
Profit is the money a business earns after paying for all the costs involved in producing and selling goods or services. The primary goal of capitalism is to make a profit (need not be as much profit as possible) by selling goods or services. This profit motive drives competition among businesses to be the low-cost producer of a certain good and to switch production to more profitable goods if necessary.

Economic freedom and capitalism

Economic freedom is not only related to capitalism. Other economic systems also provide economic freedom to varying degrees. Economic freedom is important because it encourages innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth. When individuals and businesses have the freedom to make their own economic decisions, they are motivated to work hard, take risks, and come up with new ideas. This leads to the creation of new businesses, job opportunities, and improvements in the quality of goods and services.

Reference: https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/06/basics.htm

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

#ThomasPiketty: 'It's time for the #left to get back to describing the alternative #EconomicSystem to which it aspires'
https://www.lemonde.fr/en/opinion/article/2024/07/13/thomas-piketty-it-s-time-for-the-left-to-get-back-to-describing-the-alternative-economic-system-to-which-it-aspires_6682965_23.html
#Economics #Politics #Society

The Rise of Mesoeconomics https://www.project-syndicate.org/onpoint/mesoeconomics-study-of-networks-supply-chains-key-to-successful-industrial-policies-by-william-h-janeway-2024-05
"…what #mesoeconomics offers to #policymakers is the information needed to guide targeted interventions designed either to increase the resilience of the #economicSystem on the supply side, or to enable effective responses to legitimate extra-market demands. That information necessarily includes a mapping of economic #networks to identify potential vulnerabilities and bottlenecks."
#economics

My attempt to explain capitalism to a high school student

Economic system

An economic system is a way that a country or society organizes and manages its resources, such as money, goods, and services. It's like a set of rules and practices that determine how people earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume.

Economic freedom

Economic freedom means having the ability to make your own choices about how to earn money, buy and sell things, and make decisions about what to produce and consume. It is the freedom to participate in economic activities without unnecessary restrictions or interference.

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system where people can start their own businesses and make decisions about what to produce, how much to charge and where to sell their products. In this system, capital assets (e.g. factories, mines, rail, roads, ports etc.) can be privately owned and controlled by individuals or private companies and labor is purchased for money wages.
Profit is the money a business earns after paying for all the costs involved in producing and selling goods or services. The primary goal of capitalism is to make a profit by selling goods or services.

Economic freedom and capitalism

Economic freedom is not only related to capitalism. Other economic systems also provide economic freedom to varying degrees. Economic freedom is important because it encourages innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth. When individuals and businesses have the freedom to make their own economic decisions, they are motivated to work hard, take risks, and come up with new ideas. This leads to the creation of new businesses, job opportunities, and improvements in the quality of goods and services.

Major drawbacks of capitalism that can affect society

1. In a capitalist system, wealth tends to accumulate in the hands of a small percentage of the population, and this can lead to a wide gap between the rich and the poor.
2. Successful companies can usually become so powerful that they dominate the market, allowing them to charge higher prices to consumers.
3. Capitalism can encourage greed i.e. the pursuit of profit in capitalism can sometimes prioritize making money over making decisions that may benefit society as a whole.
4. Capitalism, with its focus on profit, mostly overlooks the environmental impact of production. This can lead to overproduction, pollution, and other harmful effects on the environment and climate that affect everyone.
5. Often people are rich, simply because they inherit wealth or are born into a privileged class. Therefore, capitalist society can not only fail to create equality of outcome but also can also fail to provide equality of opportunity. Societies which are highly unequal create resentment and social division.

Topics not discussed
1. Rent

Reference: www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/fandd/2015/06/basics.htm

#Capitalism #EconomicSystem #EconomicSystems #EconomicFreedom

@atthenius @mathieu_caron
I think, Mathieu raises the question why hard sci climate researchers don't speak up about the #EconomicSystem that keeps eating away at the #PlanetaryBoundaries of what human activities the planet can sustain and still maintain a global tech civilisation.
#ClimateChange is ofc only one of these boundaries. But the underlying problem to overstepping all of them is the economic system and its concepts that have perverted the cultural norms in G-North so much so that upholding the voluntarianisms, the laissez-faire [for the rich] is more important than keeping a habitable, global civilisation-sustaining environment. G-North is the villain here, bc it has imposed its system and culture everywhere, except North Korea. ^^
Hard-sci cli-sci are the go-to-people for all things climate.
I say, unfortunately, because they generally don't speak up about the systemic reasons for the physical extremes humans are pushing the planet into.

Some do. Like the late #WillSteffen
But it'd be the duty for all hard sci scientists to do so.

#Technofeudalism #YanisVaroufakis #book #BookRecommendation #BookSummary #economics #EconomicSystem #GlobalEconomy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fhgm5b8BR0k

Why is it that we are so surprised and affronted by politicians openly lying and exaggeration in order to get elected? Our whole economic system is based on the the big lie and the little lie: new and improved, driven by a little old lady, global warming isn't real, smoking doesn't cause cancer … #PoliticiansLying #Exaggeration #EconomicSystem #BigLie #LittleLie #NewAndImproved #LittleOldLady #GlobalWarming #SmokingDoesntCauseCancer
1 …

You know that there is something wrong with our #EconomicSystem and #society when #repairability and #modularity become a feature instead of a liability.

#Framework #FrameworkLaptop #RightToRepair #SustainableTech

🥥 When is an epic #disaster a #metaphor for an #EpicDisaster?
Maybe when the #EconomicSystem has been engineered to produce more disasters all the way down. 🥥