[Xmca-l] Re: poverty/class

[Andy Blunden]

One of the themes of the correlation you mention, Mike, is the focus on 
"the creative industries." There are theories about the way cities can 
escape from their rust-bucket depression by promoting "the creative 
industries." These include software development (e.g. computer games), 
advertising, packaging and fashion. That's probably fine for urban 
renewal, except for the artists who get booted out of their old 
warehouses which get done up for the expected "creative industries," but 
where it's has a big negative impact in the academy is in the "critical 
sciences." People involved in social and political criticism are 
suddenly faced with imperatives to serve the "creative industries." So 
feminist, philosophical and  political critiques, which were surviving 
by a thread, now have to educate software makers who are building 
computer games or artists who are designing advertisements all in the 
name of needing to support the "creative industries."

Avram, I am not convinced that creating niche economies can in any way 
ameliorate the domination of big capital. We have to find a way to 
penetrate and subvert the sources of capitalist exploitation, rather 
than offering "alternatives," I think. Capitalism can do perfectly well 
without a certain percentage of the world's population who find an 
"alternative".

Andy

------------------------------------------------------------------------
*Andy Blunden*
http://home.mira.net/~andy/


mike cole wrote:
>
> So my noticing of the fascination and promotion of "culture and 
> creativity" discourse, design schools, and neoliberalism may be more 
> than a symptom of failing eyesight?
> Mike
> On Friday, March 21, 2014, Avram Rips <arips@optonline.net 
> <mailto:arips@optonline.net>> wrote:
>
>     The problem is the connection between people alienated from their
>     labor, or no labor and building a new democratic structure- that
>     can happen in a small scale , and spread out to new modes of
>     production away from the destruction of capital-such as chiapas
>     and taking over factories in Argentina.
>     ----- Original Message ----- From: "Andy Blunden" <ablunden@mira.net>
>     To: "eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity" <xmca-l@mailman.ucsd.edu>
>     Sent: Friday, March 21, 2014 8:35 AM
>     Subject: [Xmca-l] Re: poverty/class
>
>
>         Yes, it seems to me that the burgeoning inequality created by
>         neoliberalism is a situation crying out for imaginative social
>         entrepreneurship, i.e., social movement building. It is good
>         to hear that the 1/99 protests have generated talk about
>         inequality, but that in itself does not create a solution,
>         does it?
>         Andy
>         ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>         *Andy Blunden*
>         http://home.mira.net/~andy/ <http://home.mira.net/%7Eandy/>
>
>
>         Avram Rips wrote:
>
>             Innovation and entrepreneurship  in some ways means
>             capital crowding out social space and solidarity. This is
>             evident in cities-whole neighborhoods taken over by
>             wealthy crafts people, and little focus on co-operative
>             movements for working class people-where a new focus on
>             participatory democracy can be developed ,and working
>             class culture in the Gramscian sense. take care! Avram
>             ----- Original Message ----- From: "mike cole"
>             <lchcmike@gmail.com>
>             To: "Andy Blunden" <ablunden@mira.net>
>             Cc: "eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity"
>             <xmca-l@mailman.ucsd.edu>
>             Sent: Friday, March 21, 2014 12:31 AM
>             Subject: [Xmca-l] Re: poverty/class
>
>
>                 Andy--- My intent in the garbled sentence you query
>                 was to suggest that the
>                 discourse in the US around vicious inequalities has
>                 increased markedly in
>                 the past year in tandem with a kind of frenzy in those
>                 parts of academia I
>                 come in contact with about "design, culture, and
>                 creativity" all of which
>                 are linked to innovation and entrepreneurship. I very
>                 interested in the
>                 nature of imagination and creativity but I they often
>                 appear to be new code
>                 words for social and individual salvation in a lean,
>                 mean, neo-liberal
>                 world.
>
>                 Maybe just another of my confusions.
>                 mike
>
>
>                 On Wed, Mar 19, 2014 at 6:14 PM, Andy Blunden
>                 <ablunden@mira.net> wrote:
>
>                     Mike, could you clarify a little your comment
>                     below ...
>                     ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>                     *Andy Blunden*
>                     http://home.mira.net/~andy/
>                     <http://home.mira.net/%7Eandy/>
>
>
>                     mike cole wrote:
>
>                         ... My fear that is appearance is
>                         non-accidentally rated to explosion of
>                         concern about poverty/class (the 1%/99% idea
>                         has become ubiquitous in
>                         American
>                         discourse).
>
>                         mike
>
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