Re Alfredo's [6907]: > I think that a more useful approach would depart from the relations of > production: in "slave-capitalist" societies, slaves produce commodities using > (by and large, though not necessarily) inputs that are also commodities; > moreover, even the slaves themselves are commodities (and, therefore, the > production of slaves is also a commodity-producing process). I ask that you think through the implications of this last statement: if the (re)production of slaves is a commodity-producing process, is it also productive of surplus value? If so, this would mean that the procreation and raising of children as slaves would itself be productive of surplus value. This would mean that the act of procreation and reproduction by and of slaves -- including the rape of slaves by slaveowners where pregnancies and children result [!!!] -- would itself be a productive act [!] in the sense that it would be productive of surplus value. If that were the case, then it would be possible to then say that slave_owners_, through the act of rape, contribute directly to the production of surplus value and are thereby (partially) productive laborers! In solidarity, Jerry
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