From: Paul Cockshott (wpc@DCS.GLA.AC.UK)
Date: Wed Nov 29 2006 - 14:22:31 EST
I agree with Paul Z on this, a capitalism made up of competing self owned Companies would have a pure urge to accumulate. Since there a legal restraints on companies owning themselves - buying up all their own shares, there is always a conflict of interest between the firm - a personification of abstract capital, and the shareholders who are personifications of the rentier interest. The rentier may have some of the attributes that Rakesh attributes to the capitalist in general. -----Original Message----- From: OPE-L [mailto:OPE-L@SUS.CSUCHICO.EDU] On Behalf Of Paul Zarembka Sent: 29 November 2006 19:17 To: OPE-L@SUS.CSUCHICO.EDU Subject: Re: [OPE-L] SV: [OPE-L] what is irrational in the functioning of capitalism? Rakesh's conception below is a neoclassical, i.e., the drive for consumption drives economic activity. Marx's conception is that luxury consumption is basic to simple reproduction, but not to accumulation of capital. Luxury consumption is the drive of the feudal lord. Of course, the capitalist also participates in it. Paul Z. --On Tuesday, November 28, 2006 11:43 PM -0800 Rakesh Bhandari <bhandari@BERKELEY.EDU> wrote: > All his [capitalists] spending--on luxuries today and in capital investments--is > motivated by the pursuit of luxury. ************************************************************************ ** THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF 9-11-2001 --"a benchmark in 9/11 research", review Volume 23 (2006), RESEARCH IN POLITICAL ECONOMY, P.Zarembka, ed., Elsevier *********************** http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/PZarembka
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