Ganesh
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- Jun 15, 2014
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Does capitalism necessarily mean democracy, or does it even favor democracy? Today we tend to merge the two concepts, but there is strong evidence that democracy can easily atrophy in the face of unrestrained economic force.
We now have, as economist Yanis Varoufakis puts it, huge twin peaks within the developed economies. A mountain of debt, and a mountain of unused capital. Demand falls away as the imperatives of capitalism extract profit, and demand ever more spartan attributes from the work force. This is further exacerbated today by the availability of technology. So a mountain of capital is accumulated, but not invested, due to fear of low demand. This is a realistic fear, as unemployment and underemployment grows, undercutting demand further.
And so the desires of the masses diverge from the priorities of the rentier class. The paybacks for investment in society and its needs are not immediately in focus for those enjoying wealth today, and for some, perhaps not understood at all. Democracy is of no utility to this group, indeed,it is more a threat than a support.
This is an unstable system, and Varoufakis makes the point that such systems tend to come to an abrupt end.
https://www.ted.com/talks/yanis_varoufakis_capitalism_will_eat_democracy_unless_we_speak_uphttps://www.ted.com/talks/yanis_varoufakis_capitalism_will_eat_democracy_unless_we_speak_up
(18 minutes but worth watching)
We now have, as economist Yanis Varoufakis puts it, huge twin peaks within the developed economies. A mountain of debt, and a mountain of unused capital. Demand falls away as the imperatives of capitalism extract profit, and demand ever more spartan attributes from the work force. This is further exacerbated today by the availability of technology. So a mountain of capital is accumulated, but not invested, due to fear of low demand. This is a realistic fear, as unemployment and underemployment grows, undercutting demand further.
And so the desires of the masses diverge from the priorities of the rentier class. The paybacks for investment in society and its needs are not immediately in focus for those enjoying wealth today, and for some, perhaps not understood at all. Democracy is of no utility to this group, indeed,it is more a threat than a support.
This is an unstable system, and Varoufakis makes the point that such systems tend to come to an abrupt end.
https://www.ted.com/talks/yanis_varoufakis_capitalism_will_eat_democracy_unless_we_speak_uphttps://www.ted.com/talks/yanis_varoufakis_capitalism_will_eat_democracy_unless_we_speak_up
(18 minutes but worth watching)