capitalism

Categories under capitalism

Managing Addiction

Written By: - Date published: 2:16 pm, November 6th, 2010 - 32 comments

We’ve had numerous prescriptions claiming to tackle ever growing numbers of social ills, but the elephant in the room; the underlying cause for our problems as a society is always, assiduously ignored.  And that means that many of our resources are being wasted (perhaps deliberately) on illusory problems.

Neoliberal dominoes

Written By: - Date published: 9:55 am, November 6th, 2010 - 51 comments

According to some, the very definition of madness is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.  In economic terms the world, and NZ, have been doing the same neoliberal economic agenda over and over for the last 30 years.  It hasn’t worked.  It’s time for a change…

Q&A on The Hobbit – Part 2

Written By: - Date published: 1:30 pm, November 3rd, 2010 - 52 comments

In a highly-charged debate like the Hobbit fiasco, it’s easy to lose sight of the real issue amongst the claims and counter-claims over petty details. In a second post that strips things back to what matters, Blue asks the big question: ‘how exactly did NZ taxpayers end up handing over tens of millions of dollars to Warner Brothers?’

Austerity in the UK

Written By: - Date published: 5:16 pm, November 2nd, 2010 - 63 comments

The UK entered the financial crisis over-committed and under-prepared.  They spent billions of taxpayers’ money bailing out the bankers.  Now the bills need to be paid, and the new government is embarking on a vicious austerity regime.  As usual, the burden falls on the poor…

NZ gets a shake-down

Written By: - Date published: 8:37 am, October 31st, 2010 - 15 comments

From 1999 t0 2009, the economy grew by $8 billion a year. It’s so bad now the Prime Minister hands over $33 million and our sovereignty as soon as foreign capital says ‘boo’. Which international corporate will shake us down next? Maybe if the Nats had a plan for the economy. Then we could stand on our own feet. But they’re asleep at the wheel.

Democratising capital

Written By: - Date published: 10:18 am, October 30th, 2010 - 85 comments

After the Hobbit debacle, no-one can fail to understand the power that those who control capital exercise in a capitalist economy. The system is set up for them, hence the name, and their power is never stronger than during recessions. While capital is unaccountable, we cannot have true democracy and freedom. How can we democratise capital?

Meanwhile, elsewhere.

Written By: - Date published: 1:10 pm, October 29th, 2010 - 22 comments

28% of the population raised out of poverty.

50% growth over a five and a half year period

8.2% growth per annum

Unemployment down from 21.5% to 8.5%

Inflation adjusted wages up by more than 40%

The changes to employment law

Written By: - Date published: 7:36 pm, October 28th, 2010 - 44 comments

The government is currently rushing through changes to employment law.

But the change won’t make any difference to the kind of action Actors Equity took.

So what’s the point?

Caption Contest

Written By: - Date published: 7:39 am, October 28th, 2010 - 25 comments

  There was some expenditure that didn’t qualify under the old scheme…We’ve looked to broaden that out. John Key on Warner Brothers, 27 Oct 2010

The price of our hysteria

Written By: - Date published: 8:30 pm, October 27th, 2010 - 180 comments

The Government will give the Hobbit producers an extra $33 million to stay in New Zealand and it’s going to use this ‘crisis’ as an excuse to slam through more anti-worker laws. New Zealand has been played like naive hicks. The Hobbit was never leaving. We let Jackson and his Hollywood mates whip us into a frenzy of fear – now we’re paying the cost.

An invitation to Warner Brothers to be up front

Written By: - Date published: 10:30 am, October 27th, 2010 - 10 comments

Wallace Chapman has a thoughtful Open Letter to the visiting Warner Brothers executives on his blog, inviting them to front up to the New Zealand public: We have a small segment called “Soapbox” and we’d just love you to come over and join us and speak your mind to camera for 60 seconds. We know […]

Lord of the tax breaks: A history of capital flight threats

Written By: - Date published: 7:53 am, October 27th, 2010 - 90 comments

The Hobbit ‘crisis’ is just the latest in a series of capital flight threats from Jackson and Hollywood. We’ll end up paying more to stave off the threat of capital flight because the wider economic benefit makes it worthwhile. Key is trying to talk down how much we can pay but he bears responsibility for talking up the ‘crisis’ to put the boot into unions.

Tax breaks and the Hobbit

Written By: - Date published: 7:06 pm, October 26th, 2010 - 96 comments

From Stuff: A meeting between Warner Brothers and senior government ministers has ended, with studio executives asking for larger incentives to keep The Hobbit movies in NZ. The two-hour meeting, which included New Line Cinema boss Toby Emmerich, ended with no resolution to the Hobbit standoff…

Bending over for Warner Brothers

Written By: - Date published: 11:30 am, October 26th, 2010 - 30 comments

Otago Law Professor Paul Roth says possible law changes by the Key Government to provide more tax-payer funded charity to corporate giants Warner Bros Entertainment is ‘Third-World’ lawmaking and a ‘race to the bottom’ in an attempt to compete against developing nations with little or no labour rights. Roth says if we ‘lie back and prostitute ourselves […]

Key the real target of Hobbit producers’ game

Written By: - Date published: 2:01 pm, October 24th, 2010 - 75 comments

The Hobbit ‘crisis’ is all about money. It’s about the producers of this long-troubled production, who are in financial difficulty, wanting to minimise their up-front costs. The mark in the con is the only one with cash to offer on the scale they need – the Prime Minister. He’s the one with the most to lose and the most ability to pay.

The Hobbit ‘crisis’: cui bono?

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, October 22nd, 2010 - 171 comments

Does anyone believe that a $660 million project moves countries over the ‘threat’ of a few actors wanting better standards? Would Jackson really betray NZ when Weta is based here, the casting is underway, and Hobbiton is built? Cui bono, this talk of ‘crisis’: how much will the Government fork over to appease the threat of foreign capital flight?

Why Russell Brown is wrong

Written By: - Date published: 10:58 pm, October 21st, 2010 - 69 comments

Russell Brown’s anti-union take on the Hobbit dispute has been cited by righties all over the internet as “evidence” the union is wrong.

So let’s take a look at what he’s saying and how it matches up with employment law, industrial relations and all the rest of that good stuff.

An understanding of class

Written By: - Date published: 9:20 am, October 17th, 2010 - 52 comments

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mYY1QGK0jQ Here’s John Cleese, Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett in the classic “An Understanding of Class”, a lovely commentary on one of the pillars of capitalism. Since the abandonment of class rhetoric by Labour a few decades ago, we no longer have a lot of class consciousness in New Zealand. Which is a bit ironic […]

Rules are for you, not for big money

Written By: - Date published: 6:51 pm, October 14th, 2010 - 17 comments

In the US banks that turned mortgages into “complex financial instruments” that were so complex nobody knows who owns what are foreclosing on homeowners.

That’s despite the banks having failed to prove they have a right to. And the justice system is backing the big money. It’s gangster capitalism at its finest.

Congressman Alan Grayson explains…

Capitalist Ten Commandments

Written By: - Date published: 7:45 pm, September 30th, 2010 - 22 comments

A Capitalist Ten Commandments.

Do unto others…

Hickey sees the light

Written By: - Date published: 12:49 pm, September 29th, 2010 - 73 comments

Bernard Hickey, one of the country’s leading economic commentators, was a hardline neo-liberal – ie. the market is god. Now, he’s changed his mind. He’s come to the realisation that there’s no invisible god’s hand directing capitalist markets. Instead they are directed by short-termist elites. We need to take back control.

Jackson threatens capital flight

Written By: - Date published: 12:26 pm, September 29th, 2010 - 36 comments

I thought Peter Jackson was an ordinary guy made good who hadn’t let success make him an elitist prick. I was wrong. New Zealand taxpayers contributed hundreds of millions to his <em>Lord of the Rings</em> trilogy and what thanks do we get? Threats of capital flight, which will probably soon be followed by demands for taxpayer subsidies.

China rising

Written By: - Date published: 9:37 am, September 25th, 2010 - 37 comments

The idea of The Chinese Century has been around for a long time now.  But a couple of articles that caught my eye recently make me think that the start of that century is well and truly upon us.

Pause For Thought # 1

Written By: - Date published: 7:25 am, September 24th, 2010 - 30 comments

The suspension of normal democratic processes in the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquake should be an occasion to pause for thought in the light of likely future events.

Amongst the rubble: a look at the Christchurch earthquake from the bottom up

Written By: - Date published: 11:18 am, September 18th, 2010 - 16 comments

First posted on the excellent Beyond Resistance blog: While the dust settles and Christchurch recovers from the 7.1 earthquake, people have begun to pick up the pieces and get on with their lives. But for many working class people this is not so easy. Those most affected by ‘natural disasters’ are those already on the margins of despair.

The contradictions of charity

Written By: - Date published: 1:44 pm, September 14th, 2010 - 24 comments

Continental Philosopher Slavoj Zizek talks about ethical buying and charity and the contradictions they entail. I’m not sure I agree with him (I often don’t) but it’s certainly worth thinking about.

Equality of opportunity

Written By: - Date published: 7:20 am, September 13th, 2010 - 194 comments

“The Spirit Level” is a book with a simple message: An unequal society is a sick society.  It’s a message that has the right wing running scared, and trying to dodge the issue by pretending that they believe in “equality of opportunity”.  But across society there’s no such thing…

The next financial crisis

Written By: - Date published: 8:15 am, September 11th, 2010 - 42 comments

If you have some time to spare this Saturday morning, check out the documentary “Overdose” – The story of the greatest financial crisis we will ever see… The one that is on the way.

Mystery rant

Written By: - Date published: 9:50 am, September 8th, 2010 - 32 comments

Here’s an interesting rant.  I’m not going to link to it, because I want you to spend a moment trying to work out who (which raving leftie blogger?) is the author.  So read it, and make your guess, then Google for the answer…

SCF bail-out gets much, much murkier

Written By: - Date published: 8:46 pm, September 2nd, 2010 - 14 comments

A few people have made a hell of a lot of money off the South Canterbury Finance collapse and bail-out. Are these the same people behind the mystery company that was created just three weeks ago and wants to buy SCF for $1.57 billion? Whether it’s been an organised plan or just lone sharks attracted by blood in the water, the result is the same: the rich win, we lose.

Our $20 million bill for Nats’ expediency

Written By: - Date published: 8:48 pm, September 1st, 2010 - 28 comments

Many argue English should never have extended the deposit guarantee to South Canterbury Finance in April, or question whether the terms of the guarantee called for the pay-out. Then there’s the stink around the payment of SCF bonds. One thing’s for sure, the Nats didn’t need to spend $20 million on foreign depositors – they did it to try to kill the issue faster. Plenty of meat for Labour. Will they bite?