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Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. It’s a political and we’ve only liked it because we were on the benefitting end. Now that the west is m

by moksly 5y ago

Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. It’s a political and we’ve only liked it because we were on the benefitting end. Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China, we’re seeing more and more of the exploitation first hand. It would be lovely to say this was a new chance, but since Chiquita and the other banana companies had local farmers killed by local militia for their land in the 70-80ies the whole thing has been rotten to its core, and probably even before that. The prison labour of America is just crazy, and it’s only a thing because a very small elite makes a profit of it.

Tade0 5y ago
> Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China Is it actually? The results of the recent census paint a picture of a country which, in the long run, might become the largest economy in the world, but will struggle to maintain growth - more so than the west.
namdnay 5y ago
> Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. It’s a political and we’ve only liked it because we were on the benefitting end. Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China, we’re seeing more and more of the exploitation first hand. It's ironic that you raise China in your comparison, because the chinese people have been massive beneficiaries of global capitalism.
- cerved 5y ago
  and its forced labor practices
filleduchaos 5y ago
If there's one thing capitalism is very good at, it's externalising costs - and in my opinion that's precisely how it's kept its reputation (in the West, at least) as so much superior to any other economic system. It's very nifty. As long as all the vices are conveniently offshore in the places that people already don't really think or care about (or buried deep enough in the underbelly of your society, where it has the same effect), you can extol only the virtues and continue to reject any useful change. I'm starting to think that from a global lens the economic system doesn't even matter - none could really have mitigated the unbridled greed combined with the population explosion of humanity in the 20th century. Now most of us are stuck relying on the poverty and deprivation of others to support the vaunted quality of life of the 21st; food, clothes, etc can only be so cheap when somebody is willing (or even forced) to take pennies to produce them.
spankyspangler 5y ago
> Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. Prison labor is not global capitalism it would be done even if nations were isolated. Prisons, judicial systems, slave labor, and exploitation of labor and labor conditions have all been far far worse at many or most times in the past since prehistory. What is the correlation with capitalism? > It’s a political and we’ve only liked it because we were on the benefitting end. Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China, we’re seeing more and more of the exploitation first hand. China is a dirty old dinosaur of an economy, it has double the carbon emissions of the US while only generating 2/3 of the GDP! Horrific carbon intensity. Not to mention all the other environmental destruction it causes. The worker exploitation, the corruption, the human rights abuses, the bullying of its neighbors. It's modernization strategy consists of copying from the west, and little else innovative, certainly not for its size and wealth. A single American company started less than 20 years ago has already surpassed its entire space program, which sees it losing control of its rockets in orbit and crashing them all over the globe. It will never be a leading country and will always be looked down on, at least until the crooked communist dictatorship at its core is dismantled. Not even when its GDP manages to eventually creep past the USA (has it even overtaken the EU yet?), not even if they ever managed to eclipse "the west" ($60 trillionish).
- chopin 5y ago
  > China is a dirty old dinosaur of an economy, it has double the carbon emissions of the US while only generating 2/3 of the GDP! Does this account for the goods exported from China to the US? These should be added to the emissions caused by the US. The west exported much of their environmental problems to poorer nations, including China.
  - swongel 5y ago
    It doesn't, it also doesn't account for the fact that China has a larger population. The US only has about ~23% of China's population to sustain. GDP/CO2 is a silly metric to compare (No Patrick, selling financial products to increase GDP/CO2 isn't green). In reality China is just "greener" (in CO2 emission) than the USA if you measure more reasonable metrics like CO2 emission per capita.
CountDrewku 5y ago
>Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. Cool. Now, do something useful and suggest a better option. Utopia doesn't exist.

by moksly 5y ago

Tade0 5y ago

> Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China Is it actually? The results of the recent census paint a picture of a country which, in the long run, might become the largest economy in the world, but will struggle to maintain growth - more so than the west.

namdnay 5y ago

> Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. It’s a political and we’ve only liked it because we were on the benefitting end. Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China, we’re seeing more and more of the exploitation first hand. It's ironic that you raise China in your comparison, because the chinese people have been massive beneficiaries of global capitalism.

cerved 5y ago
and its forced labor practices

filleduchaos 5y ago

If there's one thing capitalism is very good at, it's externalising costs - and in my opinion that's precisely how it's kept its reputation (in the West, at least) as so much superior to any other economic system. It's very nifty. As long as all the vices are conveniently offshore in the places that people already don't really think or care about (or buried deep enough in the underbelly of your society, where it has the same effect), you can extol only the virtues and continue to reject any useful change. I'm starting to think that from a global lens the economic system doesn't even matter - none could really have mitigated the unbridled greed combined with the population explosion of humanity in the 20th century. Now most of us are stuck relying on the poverty and deprivation of others to support the vaunted quality of life of the 21st; food, clothes, etc can only be so cheap when somebody is willing (or even forced) to take pennies to produce them.

spankyspangler 5y ago

> Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. Prison labor is not global capitalism it would be done even if nations were isolated. Prisons, judicial systems, slave labor, and exploitation of labor and labor conditions have all been far far worse at many or most times in the past since prehistory. What is the correlation with capitalism? > It’s a political and we’ve only liked it because we were on the benefitting end. Now that the west is moving into the economic shadow of China, we’re seeing more and more of the exploitation first hand. China is a dirty old dinosaur of an economy, it has double the carbon emissions of the US while only generating 2/3 of the GDP! Horrific carbon intensity. Not to mention all the other environmental destruction it causes. The worker exploitation, the corruption, the human rights abuses, the bullying of its neighbors. It's modernization strategy consists of copying from the west, and little else innovative, certainly not for its size and wealth. A single American company started less than 20 years ago has already surpassed its entire space program, which sees it losing control of its rockets in orbit and crashing them all over the globe. It will never be a leading country and will always be looked down on, at least until the crooked communist dictatorship at its core is dismantled. Not even when its GDP manages to eventually creep past the USA (has it even overtaken the EU yet?), not even if they ever managed to eclipse "the west" ($60 trillionish).

chopin 5y ago
> China is a dirty old dinosaur of an economy, it has double the carbon emissions of the US while only generating 2/3 of the GDP! Does this account for the goods exported from China to the US? These should be added to the emissions caused by the US. The west exported much of their environmental problems to poorer nations, including China.
- swongel 5y ago
  It doesn't, it also doesn't account for the fact that China has a larger population. The US only has about ~23% of China's population to sustain. GDP/CO2 is a silly metric to compare (No Patrick, selling financial products to increase GDP/CO2 isn't green). In reality China is just "greener" (in CO2 emission) than the USA if you measure more reasonable metrics like CO2 emission per capita.

CountDrewku 5y ago

>Global capitalism has been terrible since its inception. Cool. Now, do something useful and suggest a better option. Utopia doesn't exist.