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The history of socialism in western europe and america is as interesting a social, political and Labor history as anything else. We, as a society, haven't done well in navigating co-operation, inclusion and contribution with our existing consumer set up. It's being successfully argued that were in a front row seat to witness the unassailable contradiction of the current system. For me, the main thrust of Marx was the criticism of capitalism (which he supported in his early life as a progressive force but witnessed it turning the corner into a familiar feudal pattern (taking a lot of liberty in paraphrasing). As Harvey states in his lecture linked above, America has always gotten out of it's economic contradictions by house building and making things to fill them up with. Expansion and wealth accumulation are capitalism's laws of motion that have to exist for it to function. China pulled our chestnuts out of the fire by expansion similar to our suburban housing expansion from WW2 to apx. 1968. For china to achieve enormous growth rate as well as lifting countries invested in the China trade out of recession, they poured as much concrete as the U.S. did in it's last 100 yrs, between 2008-2011! That also represented all associated planetary resources for ore and minerals that went with that scale of expansion.... Expanding the global GDP the historical 2.5% sweet spot on a apx. 50 trillion world GDP. We are now working at apx. 85 trillion world GDP and rising. How will we expand to stay within the historical 2.5% after having depleted planetary resources?
What then?
History provides me with some answers. One way I would prefer but it is the historical underdog. The other way is pretty repressive and intolerable. I have that sentimentalism of always rooting for the underdog. I think a good deal of America has that 'underdog' cultural roots and mystique.
To be clear, though, I don't view politics thru a romantic lense. I prefer history and rational economics mixed with public goods and assets and democratic workplaces to what's been on tap and getting worse in Murika.
