From: gerald_a_levy (gerald_a_levy@MSN.COM)
Date: Sun Jun 01 2003 - 13:46:08 EDT
Re Michael E's post sent Saturday, May 31: > As ever, we are not on the same page. You are on the ontic page, and I am > on the ontological page, i.e. ultimately I am interested in getting a view > of a concept of imperialism (or whatever) adequate to the phenomenon. Ontologically, one must view the concept of imperialism (or whatever you want to call it) from the standpoint of its particular meaning in the current mode of production. That is, a comprehension of this phenomena as it appears under capitalism requires not a comprehension of 'empire' from a trans-historical perspective but rather the particular _form_ that it appears under conditions of generalized commodity production and exchange. > The trouble with all "neo-" concepts (such as neo-liberalism) is that > they rely on a base concept which is said to "recur", and this base > concept is invariably itself not well thought through. I don't agree. Concepts such as "neo-liberalism" (or "neo-capitalism" advanced by Ernest Mandel, who later chose to refer to the same phenomena as "late capitalism") can be rigorously developed and explained by authors who use "neo". > Lenin's concept of monopoly is really that of oligopoly. But then why > not speak of oligopoly capitalism? Well, I suppose one could refer to "monopoly capitalism" as "oligopoly capitalism". I don't think that we should get too fixated by labels. A single phenomena can be labeled variously -- the question is what the label means. > What is the justification for using a > political concept (imperialism) to capture an economic phenomenon (large > oligopolies)? This is where we differ. I don't view imperialism as a "political concept" as distinct from an economic phenomenon. > And, as I said before, fairness has long been at the > basis of Western conceptions of justice. What is "fairness" within the Western conception? Slavery, both ancient and modern, was rationalized (with e.g. an appeal to racist ideology) as natural, eternal, and fair. It is a term, like "freedom", which has more than one meaning. E.g. capitalism gives workers the "freedom" to be unemployed, to be homeless, to die of starvation, to not have medical care, etc. This is an ontological comprehension of wage-labor -- that underlying "freedom" to work, is the necessity and compulsion of the marketplace -- that should be on our radar screens! In solidarity, Jerry
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