Re: [xmca] US discovers capitalism doesn't work

We too are planning to get out this weekend as part of MoveOn's push to
increase voter turnout. I get the sense, however, that we are left fairly
on our own with regard to what script to use. Any suggestions would be
most appreciated.

Jenny

> A lot of local folks are going out to work, Peg. As an experienced door to
> door canvasser,
> what is the best way to get the message across?
> mike
>
> On Mon, Sep 22, 2008 at 9:03 AM, Peg Griffin <Peg.Griffin@att.net> wrote:
>
>> And, if you are canvassing door to door, all too often you find that the
>> political translation seems to be "forget about voting on November 4th,
>> it's
>> no use." Who'll win if there's a low turnout? You know. Determinism
>> is
>> in
>> danger of trumping hope. So, please, GOTV!
>> PG
>>
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu [mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu]
>> > On Behalf Of Tony Whitson
>> > Sent: Saturday, September 20, 2008 6:36 PM
>> > To: mcole@weber.ucsd.edu; eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity
>> > Subject: Re: [xmca] US discovers capitalism doesn't work
>> >
>> > I'm seeing one advance on the ideological front: It is now a
>> > commonplace observation in the mainstream media that what we're seeing
>> > is a system in which "profits are being privatized, while losses are
>> > being socialized."
>> >
>> > As for Martin's observations on the consciousness of participants: It
>> > reminds me of a class I had in law school in which the Professor
>> > characterized as "Marxist" an interpretation that attributed market
>> > failures to corruption and criminality (not acting according to the
>> > norms of the system). I protested, of course, that such is ANYTHING
>> BUT
>> > a Marxist analysis. Marxism is more concerned with how capitalism
>> > operates when the players ARE playing by its rules.
>> >
>> > On Sat, 20 Sep 2008, Mike Cole wrote:
>> >
>> > > Interesting analysis, Martin.
>> > > Part of what fascinates me is watching the Republicans argue against
>> > > raising taxes while coming up with a scheme to solve the problem
>> that
>> > > will make ordinary citizens pay for their profits..... but they will
>> > > be out of town before anyone can deal with the situation
>> effectively.
>> > >
>> > > A story on Yahoo today says for the first time, what is most
>> > worrisome
>> > > about how this will effect the outcome of the upcoming election: The
>> > > rascism of a large part of the electorate may well be sufficient to
>> > > ensure a Republican victory even as them whats been the leaders in
>> > > this long term disaster blame "Washington insiders." - A Stanford U
>> > poll study.
>> > >
>> > > mike
>> > >
>> > > On Sat, Sep 20, 2008 at 9:21 AM, Martin Packer <packer@duq.edu>
>> > wrote:
>> > >
>> > >> It seems to me that we ought to mark here the events of the past
>> > week
>> > >> in the US, as they throw light on the kind of social reality in
>> > which
>> > >> many of us live. I'm certainly no economist, but this is what I
>> > think
>> > >> I've figured out so far.
>> > >>
>> > >> A bunch of smart bankers figured out how to turn debt, especially
>> > >> mortgage debt, into a commodity. They arranged to package it and
>> > >> label it as high quality, with some dubious auditing. They arranged
>> > >> to market it to individual and corporate investors. And then they
>> > set
>> > >> about mass producing this new commodity, by exploiting the people
>> > >> whose debt they could purchase.
>> > >> They advertized easy credit to naïve would-be home owners. This
>> > >> pushed up house prices, but this was fine because it created more
>> > >> demand for mortgages and these loans were for higher amounts, so
>> the
>> > >> size of the debts was doubly increased. They sold credit with one
>> > >> hand while with the other hand they sold the debt this created. A
>> > >> win-win situation, seemingly.
>> > >>
>> > >> Several things went wrong at the same time. The price of housing
>> got
>> > >> so high that the demand to buy it dried up. The mortgage contracts
>> > >> turned out to be so grossly exploitative that the people bound by
>> > >> them were simply squeezed dry. So the value of the new commodities
>> > >> fell into doubt, and the banks found they could no longer sell
>> them.
>> > >> They were over-stocked with goods that were no longer wanted, and
>> > >> overnight a vast amount of value simply disappeared. The banks woke
>> > >> up to discover that they could no longer pay their own debts, to
>> one
>> > >> another, to industry, or to investors. The country woke up to find
>> > >> their savings disappearing, their currency falling, their homes not
>> > >> worth what they paid for them, their credit revoked, and their jobs
>> > >> on the line.
>> > >>
>> > >> So now the federal government has stepped in, and will buy these
>> > >> unwanted commodities from the banks for a total of perhaps $500
>> > >> billion. The banks will get real cash in its place and will be able
>> > >> to do business again. The government will hope to squeeze some
>> value
>> > >> from the mortgage holders, presumably on less onerous terms, in
>> > order
>> > >> to get something back for its purchase. The wheels of capitalism
>> > will
>> > >> turn again, and the crisis may be over.
>> > >>
>> > >> This at least is the picture that is now visible, on the basis of
>> > >> data collected by government agencies and reporting by the media.
>> > But
>> > >> the participants in all this were able to see only a small part of
>> > >> what they were doing, and understood what they saw only poorly.
>> Part
>> > >> of this was wishful thinking and deception, but it was also a
>> result
>> > >> of the positioning of the various actors and the ways capitalist
>> > >> economies take on a life of their own, escaping both the needs and
>> > >> the intentions of we who inhabit them.
>> > >>
>> > >> It's a fascinating situation, enough for a dozen good
>> dissertations.
>> > >> Alexandra Michel and Stanton Wortham, who were at ISCAR, are
>> > >> publishing a book based on their study of the contrasting cultures
>> > of
>> > >> two investment banks. I hope they will extend their work to include
>> > >> what is going on today.
>> > >> To me it would be especially interesting to explore the
>> > psychological
>> > >> dimension – how desires are created and manipulated, how
>> perceptions
>> > >> of risk and probability are changed, how people act in a time of
>> > such
>> > >> instability.
>> > >> But it also shows how modern society, civilized and modern and
>> > >> advanced, is a house of cards.
>> > >>
>> > >> Martin
>> > >> _______________________________________________
>> > >> xmca mailing list
>> > >> xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>> > >> http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>> > >>
>> > > _______________________________________________
>> > > xmca mailing list
>> > > xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
>> > > http://dss.ucsd.edu/mailman/listinfo/xmca
>> > >
>> >
>> > Tony Whitson
>> > UD School of Education
>> > NEWARK DE 19716
>> >
>> > twhitson@udel.edu
>> > _______________________________
>> >
>> > "those who fail to reread
>> > are obliged to read the same story everywhere"
>> > -- Roland Barthes, S/Z (1970)
>>
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-- 
Jenny Langer-Osuna
Doctoral Candidate
University of California, Berkeley
919-765-5592 H
786-270-8471 C
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