From: Rakesh Bhandari (rakeshb@STANFORD.EDU)
Date: Fri Jan 02 2004 - 12:05:50 EST
>Rakesh has been talking a lot about rent (and recently about Cyrus' work on >this). It reminded me that I'm still in the dark about some theoretical >questions in relation to rent. On 22 April, I responded to Cyrus as follows >but didn't get an answer (he may have missed the question). Maybe, though, >Rakesh could respond./michael > >>I appreciate very much Cyrus' comments and estimates. Let me display my >>ignorance of rent questions, though. Cyrus dismisses the question of >>absolute rent in the following way: >> >>> 2.. Q: Why don't I speak of 'absolute rent' in the oil industry? >>> >>> >>>A: Within the framework of value theory absolute rent belongs to the >>>rent-producing sector whose 'organic composition of capital' is below >>>'average.' Given the fact that oil industry, as a whole, has >>>historically been heavily 'capita intensive,' speaking of 'absolute oil >>>rent' is irrelevant. Those who allude to 'absolute' rent for the oil >>>industry are either confused Marxists or if they mean 'monopoly rent' >>>are neoclassical economists, in which case are plain wrong. >> >> I'm in Caracas right now and away from Vol. III (and it's a long >>time since I looked at the discussion of absolute rent there), and I >>haven't read any of the sources that Cyrus cites. Is the argument that the >>marginal wells (which I suspect are in the US) are receiving no rent of any >>kind--- ie., that the revenues they generate are purely the result of >>exploitation of oil workers? And, if so, are conclusions about the oil >>industry in anyway based upon the implicit assumption that the rate of >>surplus value in the oil industry is equal to that in industries elsewhere? No capitalist receives profit solely as a result from the exploitation of the workers he commands. Cyrus has argued that absolute rent no longer obtains, so either those marginal wells pay no rent at all; they pay very, very little rent which has a monopoly character when demand reaches a peak at the height of the business cycle. >--------------------- >Michael A. Lebowitz >Professor Emeritus >Economics Department >Simon Fraser University >Burnaby, B.C., Canada V5A 1S6 >Office Fax: (604) 291-5944 >Home: Phone (604) 689-9510
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