Jurriaan Bendien, currently living in the Netherlands, has joined our
list.
Jurriaan, at my request, introduces himself below:
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I got your name from Paolo Giussani, [...] I knew Paolo from a Value
National Accounts conference I attended in London organised by Alan
Freeman in 1984. At that time, I was doing research in New Zealand on
empirical tests of Marx's labour theory of value against official
statistical information on manufacturing in New Zealand, as part of a
wider analysis of capitalist development in New Zealand which I did with
a friend. A Phd thesis resulted out of this by Geof Pearce, Where is New
Zealand Going ? University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand,
1986, available on microfilm I think. I continued research in the area
of national accounts, developing a system for interpreting national
accounts data and deriving the Marxian ratios from them. Unfortunately
due to political activities and financial problems I was not able to
complete my Phd but who knows I may do so again. We were also in
contact at that time with Anwar Shaikh.
Currently I am living in Amsterdam where I was talking among others with
Guglielmo Carchedi of the University of Amsterdam, against interested in
the subject of Marxian political economy.
In response to your question (I asked for additional info, JL), adding to
my previous remarks:
I was educated at University of Canterbury, New Zealand where I
completed a Master's degree in education and social science 1982. I
undertook Phd studies there in political economy 1987-90. My interest in
Marxist economics and theory came out of socialist activism and personal
research. There wasn't a welldeveloped Marxian tradition in New Zealand -
I know of only 2 genuinely Marxist academics who have university
positions there - and I was part of a very small group of pioneer
researchers. I was in contact then with the late Prof. Ernest Mandel, who
examined the mentioned 1986 thesis.
I worked as tutor in education and lecturer in social science
methodology at Canterbury University 1985-90, as public library education
officer 1990-91, and as research statistician for the New Zealand
Statistical Office 1991-1994. I currently work free lance as consultant
and translator.
I am planning a new Phd thesis on the work of Ernest Mandel, of
whose writings I had previously made an initial bibliography (1,200
items) in 1984-86, and whose literary estate is becoming available to me
in 1998. My current research interests are (1) theoretical issues in
empirically verifying Marx's labour theory of value, (2) the implications
of modern information technology for Marx's theory of capitalist
development.
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Jurriaan: welcome aboard!
We now have 57 subscribers.
In solidarity, Jerry