How Capitalism Makes You LESS Free | Grace Blakeley Meets Aaron Bastani
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 มิ.ย. 2024
- Common sense tells us that free-market economies maximise freedom and that planned economies, typically found under socialist governments, curtail it. But what if this is completely the wrong way around?
On this episode of Downstream Aaron is joined by economist and author Grace Blakeley to discuss Henry Ford, Boeing and the nature of democracy.
You can buy Grace’s latest book ‘Vulture Capitalism’ here:
www.bloomsbury.com/uk/vulture...
00:00 Intro
03:43 Why I Wrote ‘Vulture Capitalism’
07:47 Myths About the State and Where They Come From
15.48 The Problem With Monopolies & Boeing
25:53 Henry Ford
38:36 Innovation Myths, Workers & Hierarchy
55:06 How do you Build a Democratic Society?
1:01:03 What Is ‘Unfreedom’?
Novara Live broadcasts every weekday from 6PM on TH-cam and Twitch.
Episodes of Downstream are released Sundays at 3PM on TH-cam.
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‘Workers in a sector, that have expertise in that sector, do not need to be managed’. I completely agree. I started work at a large media organisation in the late ‘80s and had one person between me and director level. When I left there were seven people. Managers managing managers made no sense and made my job a ball ache.
Interesting. See on my side in tech, project managers are priceless. They facilitate communication between vastly different teams and views. We've worked a lot with teams that have flat hierarchy structures, and it's a mess. No decision can be made without full attendance, there's never full attendance. Professionals are often placed on the same level as amateurs on a particular topic. It also breeds a very clique attitude to work, where politics are rife and mob rule becomes a huge issue. I truly beleive management is a true skill, but it's based on communication and empathy, rather than force and position. Think of leaders over bosses.
What do you think about all this? Very different experiences.
You just rattled off the usual excuses for hierarchical systems, "I believe," the same as John Locke, !😮😅😊
In my current job I do have managers but they are very hands off with us. They have the attitude that it is their role to enable us to produce value and that's what they spend most of their time doing. I reach out and contact my manager probably two or three times more often than he contacts me. They only care about the quality and quantity of our productivity. We are judged solely on the job performance rather than on our ability to make ourselves look busy. We've gotten a couple employees over the years that did take advantage of this paradigm but they were pretty easy to spot and get rid of in their first 90 days. For most of us this has been very a effective way of cultivating a workforce that takes pride in their work.
From what I see, the problem is not about the need of hierarchy or not, but about the autonomy of workers when given a certain task.
That is why I trust in a system akin to SF military for work manageament - yes, there is hierarchy, but the hierarchy is defined not by politics, but by competence, and while there is defined timetables and objectives, HOW said things can be achieved is left on the hands of the people in the "field".
And as a Marxist, I don't know if this is contradictory, but at least is efficient.
Working for a blue chip company it was interesting that managers were categorised as overheads and operators as assets.
I work in healthcare and Grace is CORRECT about the feedback loop from the ground up. So much of the highest management is disconnected from the realities on the ground and horrible decisions are made as a consequence.
I work in finance and this is also the case.
It worked during covid when front line took over planning and implementation of covid jab rollout.
@@nasreenakhtar8521 excellent point
@@misscogito9865cooperative decentralized economy is better and more humane than centralized capitalist economy where BlackRock and VanGuard have 10$ trillion in assets under management worldwide, which gives them enormous control over every aspect of life , and turns us into modern day slaves.
You work in captured industries. They are poor analogs for free market capitalistic effort.
Boeing made $60 Billion in stock buy backs rather than develop safety, better pay, or a new plane. . . ..
And you would be freer to choose other options if the regulators were not so captured by the industry, and vice versa.
The ills of corporatism and financial deregulation.
Yet peter schiff the lying jew claims capitalism is good and enriches us all!
They want you broke, fearful, helpless, fighting, dumb and ignorant. The system takes from hard working people and gives to the greedy, corrupt liars. Stand up, find your voice and fight back.
gives to lazy people or poltical class steal it for there own intrest taxes is theft
You left out isolated. That is the key aspect to it all.
@stevenredpath9332 that was exactly what I was going to say...
Now you know what Black people have been dealing with. How does it feel?
'the system' is the key. Free market capitalism is a system. Marxist critique is philosophy. The UK has a vestige of feudalism. How does a system come about and what system will displace capitalism in an era of climate catastrophe, mass migration, AI and robotics. The concept of the working class will likely disappear. What are we if we aren't slave, serf or employee?
I've worked in engineering and research, and often times the projects I worked on were disrupted or sabotaged by management. Management was always the disruption in progress.
OMG. Any innovation that disrupted the office political hierarchies were always deep sixed, sometimes by sabotage or by literally destroying people's reputations, health, and careers. And on a larger scale, corruption in government, Brexit, and things like the TTIP negotiations, where the US bribed EU Commission functionaries to try and push through a treaty which would have ripped off EU taxpayers (Which the Tories supported, because it would have driven through NHS privatisation). The timely failure off precipitate American oligarchs persuading British Oligarchs that Brexit was necessary, is Techno feudalism writ large on the Global system. Nevermind the absurdities they try to make us believe, so that they can perpetrate atrocities on us and others pursuit of profit. No wonder the global economy is like an overripe fruit, slowly rotting and breaking down as the capitalist global central planning is failing to keep ordinary people healthy, happy, and fed everywhere.
Seagulls?
Chess Playing Pigeons:
They swoop in,
knock over all the pieces,
shit all over the board,
then stomp about like they've won the game
Interested to hear some examples, and WHY you think that happens - would it not be in the interests of management to have successful projects?
@@browncow7113only tangentially. Managers need credit for success, not actual success. Thus they obsess over statistics they can present as achievements.
And above all, they need to shift the blame for any failures downwards, even if they theoretically get paid more to accept responsibility.
Mark Twain - 'If voting made any difference they wouldn't let us do it.'
While I agree democracy isn't perfect I would reverse that statement and say if voting didn't have the potential to make a difference authoritarians wouldn't work so hard to take it away from us. The right to vote wasn't handed down to us by benevolent elites. It's not something they 'let' us do. Mass movements fought for it over centuries, opposed every step of the way by wealthy conservative interests.
“If voting changed anything, they’d make it illegal,” is a famous quote by Emma Goldman, a Russian-born US political activist, anarchist and writer (1869-1940).
@@coreyc1685 just because people fought for a scenario where they get a imagined democracy doesn't change the reality of it being a placebo.
Cool it with the anti-Semitic remarks.
@@Stoddardiando you get paid to troll or is this something you do as an individualist in your free time?
"When injustice becomes law, Resistance becomes duty"
This country was built on hypocrisy. It’s was never based on justice, only domination.
🇺🇲⌚️
💯 Free Free Free Palestine 🇵🇸
Anymore clichés??😂
@@sufmeister786 mind control
Good someone else is finally saying this; ive been marginalized all my life as socially maladapted for voicing these realities.
Grace is brilliant. I agree in any working place the shop floor will always be the place where innovation and improvements can be found. But it is also true that a good manager is vital and extremely rare and is always recognised by the shop floor workers .
This is an important point I think. You maybe box yourself into a bit of a corner if you try to get rid of managers and hierarchy. There are "collaborative" managers and there are dictatorial managers. Similarly there are cases where a hierarchy is just a necessary decision-making device, and other cases where it is a status game.
@browncow7113 the best management has support from below
Bad management has to be imposed from above
She really don't have a clue. Donald Trump is the working and middle classes only last hope in America. Back when that man was in office our groceries where affordable, housing was affordable, fuel was affordable, and we weren't involved in funding fools errand proxy wars/and west asian ethno states putting the world on the verge of ww3. He created Peace deals in the Middle east (Abraham accords)and withdrew or tried to withdraw troops out of Syria/Afghanistan. He did domestic Prison reform more than any Democrat ever did. And he had our economy BUMPING. BUT OOOH OH NOOO HE MADE MEAN TWEETS!!
@@browncow7113 Yes, it is an important point. And we shouldn't box ourselves into thinking that hierarchical management is the only way to do it. Or that all control should be vested in the management structure alone. Your acknowledgement of "collaborative" managers implies gathering viewpoints/input more widely, which is good, but still the sole decision-making power (i.e. control) vested in a single person (which might be good for simple accountability, but again, we shouldn't box ourselves in to just one model). We can be more innovative, more flexible, more contextual, in how we design decision-making processes. Objectifying or concentrating them in a single person is only *one* way to do it.
Yes, yes. And agree: Grace is brilliant!
Dear Grace,
I recently came across your book titled "Vulture Capitalism," wherein you make claims that, while not new, strike at the heart of a contentious issue. The term "vulture capitalism" itself carries connotations of contempt, depicting a system where individuals prey upon or exploit others for personal gain.
It's worth considering the perspectives of notable figures in economic thought on this matter. Adam Smith, often hailed as the father of economics, notably identified self-interest, rather than benevolence, as the driving force behind market dynamics, a reflection of the cultural norms of his time. Economist Lord Maynard Keynes similarly characterized market behavior as being influenced by what he termed "animal spirits."
In contrast, economist Milton Friedman famously suggested that greed plays a significant role in driving market forces. Now, to confront your argument at its strongest point, let me pose two questions posed by Friedman himself, along with one of my own:
What kind of society isn't structured on greed? (Milton Friedman)
Is there some society you know of that doesn't run on greed? You think Russia doesn't run on greed? You think China doesn't run on greed? What is greed? (Milton Friedman)
Grace, why did you write "Vulture Capitalism"? The answer, according to your thesis, is greed.
These questions and reflections invite deeper consideration into the nature of capitalism and its underlying motivations.
Belief that one is powerless makes one less free.
it makes slave of own mind created limits
power isnt about beliefs, its projection of one's wealth
@@Ankhar2332 Jesus was a poor man.
@@farinshore8900 he was tortured to d. that was why
Ex workers will not fly on a Boeing plan.
That's a staggering piece of information
i mean that's down to capitalistic shortcuts in maintenance and upkeep, cutting corners and low priced parts
any pilot; no matter how skilled, cannot fly a plane set up to break mid-flight
it is gross negligence via economic greed, not ''DEI'' like some nutcases and swivel-eyed loons want to pretend it is; their way to defend that failing model of upkeep
BIG fan of Grace, looking forward to this… Go on girl….
Grace Blakeley is my favorite guest, though Novara has many I enjoy
Unfreedom... Good concept to capture contemporary illusory senses of freedom
Grace always has an amazing view point
Yes amazing, and totally daft;
An 'Individual' and sees herself as one. Which is Ok IMO.
Privatise the gains, socialise the losses: Capitalism in a nutshell.
It's brilliant though. All you can do about it is whine like a resentful peasant.
@Stoddardian this is techno feudalism, so they let the peasants be keyboard warriors...
Nonetheless, our power to stop this is nonexistent if we can't work together
@@Stoddardian not any more brilliant than a robber its just immoral
Isn’t that corporatism really?
@@SuperZorgus capitalism is pretty much set to become corporatism and imperialism.
And apparently, leading back into feudalism, which is essentially where we're at
Grace is so fantastic, I could listen to her all day. She speaks about complex topics in an understandable way and does a good job at joining separate concepts and logical arguments together. I've put her book on my reading list!
Ah I love Grace. We’re so lucky to have this smart woman fighting for us 🫶🏻
Dear Grace,
I recently came across your book titled "Vulture Capitalism," wherein you make claims that, while not new, strike at the heart of a contentious issue. The term "vulture capitalism" itself carries connotations of contempt, depicting a system where individuals prey upon or exploit others for personal gain.
It's worth considering the perspectives of notable figures in economic thought on this matter. Adam Smith, often hailed as the father of economics, notably identified self-interest, rather than benevolence, as the driving force behind market dynamics, a reflection of the cultural norms of his time. Economist Lord Maynard Keynes similarly characterized market behavior as being influenced by what he termed "animal spirits."
In contrast, economist Milton Friedman famously suggested that greed plays a significant role in driving market forces. Now, to confront your argument at its strongest point, let me pose two questions posed by Friedman himself, along with one of my own:
What kind of society isn't structured on greed? (Milton Friedman)
Is there some society you know of that doesn't run on greed? You think Russia doesn't run on greed? You think China doesn't run on greed? What is greed? (Milton Friedman)
Grace, why did you write "Vulture Capitalism"? The answer, according to your thesis, is greed.
These questions and reflections invite deeper consideration into the nature of capitalism and its underlying motivations.
Can you entertain that economic theory from social sciences that claims the global economy thrives on the premise of perceived self-interest, greed, or selfishness? Or perhaps you lean towards a term that offers a gentler interpretation for the sake of mental turmoil? While we grapple with this notion, it's crucial to acknowledge the undeniable role greed plays in shaping both human economies and governmental policies. I understand that it can be difficult for many to accept that governments, too, are greedy in their actions. Despite their efforts to conceal or justify this greed, it often remains visible for all to see.
It's natural for our ego developed in childhood to distance us from this characterization, perhaps placing ourselves low on the greed spectrum. However, the truth is far more nuanced. Each of us occupies a position on this spectrum, except for the very rare outlier with an extraordinary story that we would never hear. In our own unique ways, we engage in a subtle competition to satisfy our primal instincts. These deeply ingrained instincts have been skillfully obscured over time by the intricate web of societal norms, expectations, and constructs.
Grace is refreshing on a Monday morning. Great interview.
The UK has a top heavy government model with the office of the PM being at the top of the hierarchy. We need to take power from the establishment and into our communities.
You need to do more than that. You need to stop believing absurdities before you stop the atrocities being carried out on you and others. You need to move from blame to accountability, and recognise that here is no free lunch. Unless you do, nothing will change.
Not sure I've ever disagreed more with Aaron's points than I have during this episode. Chiefly on managers: my brother, you're giving managers far too much credit, particularly middle management if you think this isn't an easily replaced group; most of these people take a business course that detaches them from reality and fluffs their ego until they simply make bad decisions confidently. Agree wholeheartedly with Grace's final point: power and autonomy for everyone is in and of itself a positive for the individual and society.
There seemed to be this suggestion that a group of mechanical engineers would be more capable of running a company than Aaron, which might be true, but isn't even the point. A company wouldn't just be run by engineers. There are accounting, and operations, sales, marketing, quality control, and logistics people, etc. They pool their knowledge, and the result is exponentially better than any group of executives could ever hope to achieve.
We need both specialization and generalization to be most effective.
And we need to have philosophy to tell us what it is we want to value and to effect
sales and marketing could easily be done by any tramp on the street.
I think a company requires competent leadership, just as a ship needs a captain. The world's companies run by committees would be chaos, imo.
@@Stafus incorrect, you have college degrees on target markets and sales and market economics, understanding that is key, something a random might not have
also nice generalization, good to know how you think of the people you deem ''lesser'' than yourself and a prospective employee by your standards
Really? Why do you think this?
“If voting changed anything, they’d make it illegal,” is a famous quote by Emma Goldman, a Russian-born US political activist, anarchist and writer (1869-1940).
Management is not decision-making. Thank you for this Grace and Aaron.
Absolutely correct. Many things have been conflated in the ideology and propaganda of Capitalism to pre-emptively close down debates and options.
Walk into any Jobcentre and you will instantly understand we are not free, I figured this moons ago.✌
We need Grace Blakeley in Italy too
A debate between Grace and Liz Truss would be cruel. Grace´s perspective on history is illuminating. Great guest.
What a brilliant interview!!!!!! My God that was good. I am ordering the book and definitely following Grace’s work. She articulated in so many ways things I’ve believe but have not been able to express. I learned so much and am in total agreement with her about management. Thanks Novara
another great adult discussion and conversation covering lots of issues. If only the world of politics could be like this.
Capitalism for the poor; socialism for the rich. Very sad but very true, unfortunately.
Aaron went down a really weird hole in the 2nd half of this. Essentially claiming that there are individuals so brilliant they have single handedly created their own billion dollar companies.
But they haven't. The innovations within those companies, the manufacturing power, the systems and processes - they are all created by hundreds of people. The owner/ceo just had the money to pay to find those solutions.
The owner/ceo doesn't have any of the intelligence or knowledge to do that. They're just the owner. They just have the money to pay someone else to be intelligent.
Sure. Management is a thing. But it's no more skilled than a social worker. And CEO's/shareholders don't manage. They pay other people to manage. They pay other people to understand aspects of the company and to report their recommendations.
Finished reading Vulture Capitalism not 10 minutes ago and this video drops! Moving forward with not just a clearer understanding of the world, but also how to change it!
Interesting. Do you realize that the "capitalism" to which words are attached is no longer "capitalism"?
Also whatever an economic system turns out to be it is determined by the FORCE of the government in POWER.
Finally, in those systems where those in POWER use FORCE, if there is not an equally opposing FORCE
that can counter-act it, those without POWER are by definition "powerless"!
All else is distraction.
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH; it's just not the strength of the ignorant.
great commentary, thanks for always introducing us all to such brilliant new thinkers.
Found this interview so inspirational. Self conscious how bad my individualism is covering my understanding of things
That's been the plan for almost 500 years now. The Enlightenment was focussed on *_individual_* free will, but it has gone way too far now. It is unbalanced and has become counter-productive.
We love you grace
Fantastic conversation, I really love this channel. I really dig the concept that capitalism is this entity that wants to purport itself as a "natural" construct, which obviously is not, it has a history and a development and like it was mentioned in this video it has transformed certain ideas across time, to the point of becoming this "invisible, odourless" ideology as old Zizek often points out. Then this ideology creates its own narratives, but because it hinges on the illusion of total individual freedom, it hides the fact that, in time, some elites have formed that now do subtract freedom and limit the rest of society to their own advantage to a degree that has started to drain resources from the public sector. And that is where people sometimes have this wake up moment and notice that things aren't exactly as their politicians describe them. But then there are other countless small lies that are not a direct decision of the ruling elites, but that are a consequence of the system that has been put in place, and I'm talking for example about some appalling policies that companies have, the fact that in order to be competitive (read: save money) they prefer to do internal promotions and put incompetent people to in positions of higher responsibility, or the fact of paying less skilled workers and by doing so effectively reducing the quality of their production and so on. Which leads me to probably the biggest lie of all, that is the concept of the "unskilled worker". This is an outright lie, because if it's a job, and it has to be done at certain standards, there is a skill. If you're not fast enough with the bloody service you don't get a place at Costa. So that's a skill. People working with their own language get minimum pay because, again, this is portrayed as a "natural" asset, therefore devoid of skill. That is untrue, because whatever the job carried out in your natural language, it happens within a certain industrial framework, so there will be other skills that you are required to acquire and if you don't, you're out. In my eyes this all goes to the direction of telling us that we're worthless shits, when in reality the worthless shits are managers that don't recognise human value, that put quality behind profit, and that ultimately contribute to degradation, instead of improvement. But all this, is the consequence of a (economic) culture that by purporting its own pragmatism, being down-to-earth, intellectual freedom, non-ideological character... in reality promotes cynicism, low quality, subjugation, and individualism. It's not just making poorer in the wallet, it's making us poorer in the mind and in our values.
Galbraith already wrote about the industrial state some 60 plus years ago.The symbiotic relationship between state power and capital is there from the beginning.
Always a great guest and I have her book on my birthday wish list. Community Interest Groups (CIGs) are definitely a great way to take back some control at a local level. If you get a chance to join or support a CIG do so with both hands....and if you're lucky enough to be able to financially support CIGs that's a great move also.
Loving the new geeky student look Grace!
Grace for Prime Minister. Her book is excellent, and so is this talk. Thanks.
Grace fan here ☝️😎🏴🙏
Collectivism requires various things one of which is time, the most underrated asset, the asset which truly exemplifies freedom - which is increasingly being taken from us. For example our own admin which is ballooning, counter intuitively, with the increasing reliance on the internet. Business, or government, has moved their admin on to us under the guise of making things cheaper, or more empowering, when in reality is only making their profits greater and their control easier. In effect we are all now doing their admin for them for free, whilst at the same time giving away our freedom.
💯% Absolutely true!! Yet more cost, profit and risk shifting.
I had a brief conversation with a green councillor recently about proportional representation. He was guardedly supportive citing the risk that it would let right wing representation in as well. I am a great believer in Grace's trust in people. Diversity of opinion is a strength. Testing that opinion in discussion with others is how we develop our thinking and achieve meaningful progress. In the end there is an innate goodness in people which if allowed to will direct their decision making. What gets in the way of this is poverty and being shut out of decision making. This is what gives fascism a voice.
Enticing vision of a system that takes some of the best notions from both the capitalist and socialist ideologies. Love listening to (and looking at) Grace! Keep up the good work!
Great information from Grace as per, I wish she spoke at the same rate as Norman Finkelstein. And give my brain time to take it all in.
Regarding innovation...a huge majority of American innovation was based on massive government intervention. From direct financing to funding research universities. Its public money for private profit
And same happening in Big Pharma. Most of the innovation happening in Unis under public funding, then privatised to extract the profits in Big Pharma.
Wow. Grace Blakely is superb.
Thanks Grace and Aaron. Looking forward to reading the book.
Sad that Novara attracts so many trolls in the comments.
Agree and agree.
They are all over the place. The Establishment/ancap fanboys/Atlas network ideologues must feel threatened by the powerful analysis, ideas and solutions that Novara, and here, specifically, Grace, are disseminating. They know they cannot win a fair open discussion or argument and like some unipolar hegemon that we won't name resorts to kneecapping any competition (e.g. Cuba, Venezuela, Iran, Indonesia, Russia, now China, and the list goes on and on) to stay number one. For an ideology that touts choice as a its key benefit it sure does a lot of choice/competition suppression... And Adam Smith saw this, as reflected in his many references to "monopoly" (a.k.a. no choice).
I've got an offer to study Engineering at Cambridge, and Grace's arguments about empowering workers make far more sense to me than any idea that Engineers are more intelligent than the average worker or trade union. Aaron's train signalling problems could be solved far more quickly by the RMT if they had the power to, than by BAE systems.
Brilliant interview
One of the most fundamental points which was not discussed here, and I don't know if Grace addresses it in her book, is that believing in political agency comes from experiencing it. Experiencing it requires achieving it. Achieving it requires defeating and supplanting the current system of political agency in the form of the ruling class. That class will not tolerate even the slightest challenge and its power to suppress has gotten to the point where enormous violence will be required to overthrow it. Being willing to make mortal sacrifices in the class war requires a level of faith in the project and in such enormous numbers that is unimaginable. It seems like a chicken and egg problem.
we are doomed, i'm just glad i'm old enough not to care any more.
And anyway, in a multi-cultural society, there will never be consensus or solidarity. It's a fait accompli...
And yet... we have (necessarily) both chickens and their eggs...
Have faith. We will be free again. But we need to fight to our last breath. But hasn't this always been the way? Our strength is that we are not alone. And our imaginations are _free_ and Grace exemplifies this. We can explore new ideas and come up with *_better solutions_* than now.
Don't forget that systems change has occurred before and what seemed like "eternal status quo systems" ended and new systems began.
And this is inevitable since the failing system creates increasing amounts of suffering among the people and this first motivates questioning and then motivates action. The questioning and action need to be directed toward productive and useful change into an effective and efficient new system that works for the people. People such as Grace and organisations such as Novara are working towards discerning what will be productive and beneficial to aim for and to coalesce the questioning and action around. Stay aware. Support positive change. Resist the control over-compensation in the decline of the current system. And yes, the status quo will always resist in every way they contain (e.g. all the tea rolls in these comments) (e.g. a few of the Boeing whistleblowers ended up "dead in mysterious circumstances"...).
The most dangerous time for the _status quo_ is when the people do not have anything left to lose. Why then do they continue to take everything from us? The ideology and system of Capitalism demand it. That is its inherent nature.
that was fantastic. thank you!
It’s great that Aaron refences Anarcho Syndicalism at 51:50 when talking about the failings of some trade unions. However Anarcho Syndicalim is more than just member run trade unions: neither Grace or Aaron make reference to the fact that many of the topics they are discussing are actually the basic tenets of Anarcho Sydicalism.
I have ordered the book on the strength of the interview and am looking to reading it.
The part about the Welsh city seems odd. I live in a small town, and I'd love to do projects, like say build a hydroelectric dam or massive solar farm. We have the tractors and know how to do it. The problem is, there is no way in hell we'd be allowed to do it. And even if you were, if you were forced to buy the land there is no way the cost to do the project would be feasible. How is that little Welsh city getting around the legal structures to actually be allowed to do things that serve their local community? Here in Canada the vast majority of that would be illegal. I agree that people should fix local problems, and it's not that we haven't thought of doing that... we're just not allowed to. 🤷♂️
A hydroelectric project for I think it was in Wales it was cancelled I heard on the news an couple of years back
If THEY can't make enough money off of it, it won't happen.
@@antediluvianatheist5262 well that's what I mean... How did Wales do it? In my province in Canada the electric companies would be all over you for creating any sort of power station, it would be absolutely impossible
@@AlexWilkinsonYYC The Welsh Govt. is actively promoting community hydro projects to help meet its net zero goals. It often provides grants or business rate relief to help these projects.
I couldn't quite make it out but I think the town she referred to is Blaenau Ffestiniog. I've found a few articles online about various community initiatives there (e.g. on ITV News, WalesOnline), but none that mention hydro power.
The Community Energy Wales website talks about various community driven renewable energy projects (e.g. YnNi Teg Cyfyngedig (Fair Energy ltd)) but those are all over North Wales. I couldn't find anything specific to Blaenau Ffestiniog.
Hopefully that's a good starting point for your own research.
We all know we live in a rigged system. They don't want ordinary people to have power or to be able to create their own solutions.
Thats why we need system change. So that the people are empowered to improve their own lives and their own areas and situations.
Excellent genuine Marxist analysis, not distracted by form but rooted in the material substance of power.
Engineers vs Managers: I thought that Grace's response to Aaron's point about Managers was a good one, where she brought up 'Innovation' which she tied to her argument about Freedom. I could feel myself approaching the comments for feedback before she said that. I think that broadly she makes a very good response. Firstly, I haven't been employed for 20 years, but I did study Engineering at Uni. I think, from an Engineering perspective, the way I would frame it would be in terms of Manufacturing vs Products (which I think basically Grace does) rather than Engineers vs Managers the way Aaron posed the question. Or even Manufacturing vs Products like Parents vs Children (to relate it to the last interview with Galloway). For example, a company like Ford and the Managers working within it would place a lot more emphasis on Innovation in the Manufacturing process over Innovation of the Products (Cars) they make - a good example would be in reducing the amount of components they use to make their Cars. So here you could have a hugely 'Innovative' system of repression (as Grace describes) essentially in the way Ford controls the Manufacturing process, making a product that isn't very Innovative (maybe it doesn't push the boundaries of what is possible with Electric Vehicles for example). However, where this gets complicated is when the Technological Innovations in Manufacturing then start to be used in the Products themselves (on one level they'll be cheaper) - the ultimate example would be futuristic Food Replicators (with infinite menu possibilities) or Transporters where the Manufacture and the Product become one and the same entity. But I guess Grace would say here that, despite the infinite possibilities available, everyone would just end up eating Gruel, and maybe she would also say that when you get Transported and turned into a data stream you would actually be killed. Is the structure of our world an inevitable consequence of our connected world though? - to the extent it doesn't matter if we try to make it bottom up rather than top down, it won't change the structure itself? I've taken an interest in the coin flipping game 'winner takes it all' - its a very capitalist way of viewing the world, and the 'winner takes it all' only happens when you have an Authoritarian (knock out rounds) structure to the game where you're only allowed to play two people against each other at a time. Allow everyone to play at once and you'd never get 'winner takes it all' (purely due to probability). The world we have is where some people are allowed to play against more people than others - richer people can play against more people than poorer people can, and so poorer people have worse odds than richer people... So this is either rigged or extremely unlikely.
Thank you, Grace. Very interesting and informative.
1 more copy sold. engaging, clear explanation of what to expect.
I always found one of the ugliest lies peddled by the right, by the free market disciples is the so called "freedom of choice".
This lie is meant to appeal to people's innate fear of losing out. Based on the inane assumption that the players in a free market are not first and foremost preoccupied with making money.
Of course, as most people know, the fear of losing out is the key ingredience of aggressive marketing.
That's a bit cynical, isn't the idea that society gets to vote on the products and services it prefers? It broadly works else we'd all be driving Ladas 🚗
@@jbob34345we don't have a say on what goes onto the shelf, we can only choose out of the products that are made available to us.
There's no voting, not with the ""dollar", although libertarians and Neoliberals love to talk about that because they are terrified of letting people have meaningful choice at the ballot box
@@mattgilbert7347 Well by voting with our dollars for the products we buy I think this does influence the products on the shelf - as if a product is crap the company goes bust and the product is gone.. Additionally everyone is free to bring their own product to market. For all its flaws, capitalism is very successful in this regard.
Positive vs. Negative Freedom
A relatively young person of great promise. A bit animated, but passion in these times is both good and needed.
Young = hope for our future. And _already_ delivering on her great promise.
"passion in these times is both good and needed" -> indeed, essential. Hope and despair are nipping at our heels because the status quo/Capitalism tries to convince us that "There Is No Alternative" ("TINA"), that we are stuck in this prison forever. Grace shows there is hope for a better future. We need to support her and all working on a better future.
FREE MARKET: Refer Hudson's " J is for JUNK ECONOMICS " is the opposite of FREE. But free to exploit your fellow countrymen with overpriced services because you control a vital resource which once was publically owned and provided at cost or even really free. But is now used for rent extraction by extraction of profit on top and shareholder dividends and is not reinvested in such as water services: A rentier economy.
We once had the " mixed economy " and that worked really well. The essential services and goods for a healthy economy and society were controlled by the people the rest private economy could do as it wished governed by rules and regs.
@darrylsugg7230
18 minutes ago
How can we be free when wealth controls everything?
I agree.....
Wealth automatically prevents someone else's freedom to some extent.
In techno feudalism, we have very little freedom.
We are just wealth generating pawns for our overlords
Just discovered Grace Blakely.
Agree or disagree, one gains IQ points just by listening to her.
i love this woman
Great chat -thanks Grace
Sounds like Grace, Richard Wolff and Michael Hudson are traveling
on the same 'Superhighway' ❣️
Regards, Viet vet/Ecologist VFP
Amazing stuff. I am really worried now that the much used analogy of Starmerite Labour and the Tories being " two cheeks of the same arse" is maybe quite accurate! Help!
I really enjoyed this and thanks for presenting so much food for thought.
No one talks about how our society has now entered CLASS MONOPOLY. As monopoly is exclusion of competitors based upon a competitive advantage yielded by scale or State. Now the entire CLASS of rentiers or Owners have placed all other classes into noncompetitive state through the direct control of capital itself... CLASS MONOPOLY
💯% Absolutely correct. And don't forget the Capitalism/donor class capture of the people's monopoly too (i.e. government, monopoly over law/violence). Capitalism now wielding this powerful tool in its own self-interests (e.g. no Corporate tax/offshoring, privatisation, money-printing, endless wars, elimination of competition through regulation, sanctions and regime change or whole of country destruction (e.g. Libya, Syria, Gaza)).
Good points about people being able to organize and have the responsibility to participate in the governing apparatus
brilliant chat
Thank you
Liked her giving the Blairite Lisa Nandy on Question Time a smack down for stealing Jeremy Corbyn's policy of taking the railways back in to public ownership!
Thats more of an argument that favors Nandy. Grace said it was an empty manifesto. Nandy pointed out, taking rail back into public ownership, which was also in the 2019 manifesto.
@@KevenHutchinson-gt1nnso the only thing they had was stolen - it’s empty of any content from Blairites
Laissez-faire was mentioned here in Ireland during the famine, the British limited government aid on the basis of those principles.
To your point about Elon not wanting to serve the wider market with cheap sustainable cars...this is back to front.
The reason he started off selling roadsters to his billionaire friends was SO THAT he could generate enough capital and IP to ramp up production and drive down end user cost...over the course of a decade...which is what we are seeing with the Model 3
Capitalism is primarily based on distorted mindsets: it pathologises its own structural shortcomings as if they were isolated issues of the individual whilst distorting the meaning of individual differences until they're utilised to justify decontextualised and/or misplaced hierarchies.
Seeing Grace explaining why those distortions are indeed distortions is always a pleasure, she's straight to the point, just let her talk you out of the mud and into actual adulthood.
This first paragraph is philosophical ‘gold’.
“Individualisation of Failure” & “Manufacture of Consent” well explained - Thanks…!
@@musiqtee Please use it wherever and as much as you will then, just keep it as off from copyrights and distortions as the philosophy of the common good should be... This kind of paragraph is just as gold as it can stick to its purpose (:
Financial profit is only derived from the deliberate and forceful creation of a large working class.
Feudalism is to blame for that, then the capitalist took advantage of that ready made class system.
without that foundational class system capitalism could not exist.
The hierarchies of feudalism and capitalism are pyramid shaped, while every natural hierarchy of competence is a bell curve (IQ bell curve) with few at the top and bottom and the majority in the middle.
Pyramid hierarchies are artificial and integral to capitalism/profit, there has to be a very large base of low paid workers in a capitalist hierarchy in order for profit to be generated.
Financial profit is not possible in a natural (bell curve) hierarchy because there aren't enough people at the bottom to skim labor value from.
Capitalism is not contrary to feudalism, capitalism is the lying thief that feudalism gave birth to.
You talk an awful lot of bollocks.
@@janlaag I “am” that dichotomy… 40 y in music industry, including hearings for copyright law. Being snubbed, snubbing others, getting sick from that and realising I’m fine - The sickness is capitalism, not me…
Thanks, I’m mentally unable to carry the burden of furthering that distortion… :)
Work or starve, there is no choice in capitalism.
increasingly it is "work *_and_* starve" (a.k.a. the "working poor"). Capitalism opens up choices, but later starts closing them down - ending in Totalitarianism.
Good discussion - can not agree more !
I feel like this is very much the topic of Adam Curtis' recent work. In these situations i always feel the need to ask for them on a round table to help me tease things out.
The difference between a smart worker and an entrepreneur? Access to capital. THAT'S IT.
How is Grace not a model. She is stunning
I'm gay (so I can't feel sexual attraction to women) but she's seems to be a pretty smart and sweetheart lady.
🙄
She has a first class degree from Oxford. Why would someone like that want to be a model?
Absolutely excellent interview.
When I come across channels like this I'm reminded that there is no limit to how far motivated reasoning can take us. High IQ people are no more immune, but simply travel the path they've chosen faster.
meritocracy is a myth
Only fools believe that Billionaires get to be Billionaires by being honest, straightforward, trustworthy or supporting the interests of the common person. Admiring the rich, in the hope they will press for YOUR interests.
Whats Del and Rodney got todo with it.
@@KevenHutchinson-gt1nn Trotters Independent Traders only became millionaires (made millions selling a rare timepiece originally dismissed as junk) and celebrated it in The Nag’s Head, so they were good. 😎 That was a good one...I didn't even think of "Only Fools" when writing it in the first place. 🎯
Grace has a mind like a diamond! 😁
Great show, great guest!
More grace please ❤❤❤❤❤
I think he isn’t understanding her critique on the entrepreneur genius leader. Yes they can problem solve and innovate to create new material progress for people. However, they are often not interested in the quality of lives of their actual workers and what sacrifices they are making for their employee. In Kant words they are of the ‘end justifies the means’ philosophy, not caring how things get done, just that they meet the deadline. Capitalism often denies the Buddhism truism of all we have is now, if we are working in bad conditions we are being robbed of life. Humans aren’t lazy to want a life that is balanced. As a teacher I see how overworked parents are, meaning they spend less time with their family. There is much more to life that just work and work should have a sense of dignity and humanity not just a focus on efficiency.
Regulated markets reduce negative freedom but increase other goods, tax funded public goods increase positive freedom. This is well known like math not politics.
I'm generaly on the right of politics, but this was a really good debate between both Grace & Aaron.
Viva la revolución 🇨🇺
Hahaha. The Americans think they live in the Land of the Free 😂😂😂
We're free to act and speak within invisible limits they set for us....
I certainly don't feel all that free....
But i also know there are far worse places to live
@@MattAngiono Financial profit is only derived from the deliberate and forceful creation of a large working class.
Feudalism is to blame for that, then the capitalist took advantage of that ready made class system.
without that foundational class system capitalism could not exist.
The hierarchies of feudalism and capitalism are pyramid shaped, while every natural hierarchy of competence is a bell curve (IQ bell curve) with few at the top and bottom and the majority in the middle.
Pyramid hierarchies are artificial and integral to capitalism/profit, there has to be a very large base of low paid workers in a capitalist hierarchy in order for profit to be generated.
Financial profit is not possible in a natural (bell curve) hierarchy because there aren't enough people at the bottom to skim labor value from.
Capitalism is not contrary to feudalism, capitalism is the lying rat that feudalism gave birth to.
The first amendment is wonderful though, in that regard they are freer than most.
@@jbob34345 too bad they are trying desperately to destroy it as we speak
@@Stafus I'm no fan of profit driven nor hierarchical systems.
I think that's the biggest mistake of humanity and it's gotten worse in recent years.
Capitalism may have been a brief departure from feudalism, but due to its inherently false logic, we are back there again.
We now have techno (or Neo) feudalism, according to Yanis Varoufakis, and the level of inequality is still climbing.
Where this goes is uncertain, but it sure doesn't look good.
It does seem, however, that resistance towards the elite is building both on the left and the right, which is promising.
The problem is that they've certainly been planning for this and aren't going to give up their power easily.
They control all the tools we use to communicate and organize (including the ones we're holding) and they are masters at manipulation.
Be very wary of the coming blockchain temptations and other digital traps.
Once the new surveillance and control technologies are in place, it will be much harder to resist.
There's also the legal side of things as our rights are being slowly eroded.
Free speech is being tested as we speak between hate speech legislation and the TikTok ban (which extends beyond the app).
Its not ford that came up woth the technology and designs for the cars. That was people working there. He just had the money. There is difference between a owner of capital and a innovative person. All people are innovative in their daily lifes when they find new methods to do things , that be at their work or private life.
A more recent example. Musk bought the design of the Tesla car from a bloke that had built a prototype of it. Musk had the capital to turn the idea into money by building a factory to mass produce them. The engineers of Tesla have done the improvements to the design, etc. Musk is smart, but his main role is in managing capital to make more capital. Thats different from making products to solve some problem. He allocates his capital to make the most money from the investment. Ideally this _might_ correspond to a high priority unsolved problem for many individuals in society - but only the ones that have the money to pay for it. Teslas from the start were a luxury product. China is better at producing affordable electric vehicles for the masses - and they are being kept out of the US market because of this (as well as for geopolitical agendas of the neocon psychos).
Ford invested in building an affordable car from all of the available technology and got engineers to make it happen. Built factories to produce it cheaply. This is a valid role of a capitalist, to invest capital to design and produce goods that society (individuals) need *_and can pay for_* . A clever thing he did was pay his workers enough so that they could (eventually) afford to buy a Ford. And the wages Ford paid lifted other workers pay as well. The current system is one driving continuing decline in real wages, increasing costs in essential goods and services (e.g. houses now unaffordable to many). Capitalism drives itself into an unsustainable path of decline. Inherent ideological/systemic flaws. People like Grace are working to fix or replace them.
Brilliant always love listening to Grace 😊
god bless you girl
I think you can’t beat capitalism if you treat it as a “thing” or a system. It is , seriously, a religion: it relies on a set of apparent rules, the mandatory breaking of which is a pre-requisite to individual success and thus it appeals to every individual as it offers a personal paradise while at the same time time ensuring its super-facilitators live in gilded palaces on earth. The delusion is apparent and essential : a proof-less belief that self-improvement lies in acceptance and advocacy. Still….Liz Kendall, eh?😮💨😂
00:03 Individualism hampers collective organization
02:13 Exploring the impact of capitalism on freedom
06:12 Capitalism is a hybrid system with centralized planning
08:09 Debate between state command economy and free market capitalism
12:06 Neoliberal ideology fails to address concentration of power in big monopolistic institutions.
14:09 Capitalism promotes monopolies and concentrates economic power
17:55 Boeing's lack of regulation and corporate welfare showcase the flawed competitive market
19:42 Corruption and lobbying in American state intertwines with big corporations.
23:19 Boeing's cultural shift under Harry Stonecipher's leadership
25:20 Corporate Titans mismanagement and destruction of iconic American companies
28:46 Henry Ford's authoritarian control over workers and expansion into the Brazilian Amazon
30:32 Ford's Imperial Ambitions and the shift in power dynamics
34:04 Neoliberalism empowers capitalists in planning decisions
35:56 Capitalism promotes planned economies for business success
39:34 Capitalism creates a false dichotomy between entrepreneurs and workers.
41:17 Lucas plan transformed manufacturing towards socially useful technologies
44:38 Workers with expertise can self-manage under Democratic control.
46:17 Democratic socialism decentralizes and democratizes power.
49:41 Qualified individuals should have more power in budget allocation.
51:16 Trade unions can prioritize self-interest over members' interests
54:32 Empower society to make collective decisions on technology
56:08 Democratization of the international economy through policy shifts
59:39 Capitalism's impact on cultural decline and potential critique of China
1:01:22 Capitalism constrains freedom by imposing external constraints on individuals
1:04:43 Losing political agency to enlightened bureaucrats can lead to resentment and push towards far-right ideologies.
1:06:19 Decentralized decision-making leads to more progressive policy outcomes.
Crafted by Merlin AI.
So glad this wasn't a circle jerk and Aaron pushed back on ideas. If I could buy a budget EV Porsche with a 700 mile range, sounds good. I suppose that's why they're gonna stick 100% "free market" tariffs on them! 😅
It’s been downhill since the acceptance of the 2-finger KitKat….
"Fun" size
In exchange, we got confections with nuts on the outside! !
@@MattAngiono just wait for the 1/2 finger "starvation" size... Greater Depression on its way!
McDonald'Douglas even had a shared accounting system with the Pentagon what could go wrong.
The Defence "accounting system" that has never been able to support a successful audit. You mean that one... And the one that makes multi-billion dollar accounting errors in order to send yet more weapons to UK-rain...
Has Grace heard about the exploits of self-governing socialism in Yugoslavia from 1950 to 1990? Under Yugoslavian socialism, a significant part of the economy was based on enterprises managed by workers. There was also a private sector of the economy. Private sector companies were smaller in production volume and number of employees; private companies could have a maximum of 30 employees. Based on data relating to the Yugoslav self-governing economy, the efficiency of privately owned enterprises could be compared with that of socially owned enterprises within one state, i.e. one could compare the efficiency of enterprises managed exclusively by private owners of the means of production and enterprises managed by workers
Financial profit is only derived from the deliberate and forceful creation of a large working class.
Feudalism is to blame for that, then the capitalist took advantage of that ready made class system.
without that foundational class system capitalism could not exist.
The hierarchies of feudalism and capitalism are pyramid shaped, while every natural hierarchy of competence is a bell curve (IQ bell curve) with few at the top and bottom and the majority in the middle.
Pyramid hierarchies are artificial and integral to capitalism/profit, there has to be a very large base of low paid workers in a capitalist hierarchy in order for profit to be generated.
Financial profit is not possible in a natural (bell curve) hierarchy because there aren't enough people at the bottom to skim labor value from.
Capitalism is not contrary to feudalism, capitalism is the lying thief that feudalism gave birth to.
Socialism is the ultimate democracy. It extends down to community level, commune-ism. If everyone has the same means we can all have the same freedoms.
Capitalism is only freedom if you have the money to be free: live rent free, have money to decide if you work or not, travel if you want. Not only capitalism but also our debt based monetary system were spending 30% of our labour paying the interest on all the money that's ever been created in this system. For the USA it's about a trillion $ a year!