"Capitalism is just human nature."

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Hi all. I've made this thread because I want to dissect a narrative that I keep hearing.

"Capitalism is just human nature! You can't fight human nature!"

Let's talk about the Piraha people. They are a tribe that lives in the Amazon rainforest. Do they have capitalism? No. They don't need any sort of economic system.

What is human nature? People want food, water and shelter. That's human nature. The Piraha people take everything that they need from Mother Earth. When they are hungry, they go fishing or pluck fruit from a tree. It's that simple.

Fruit trees can only grow in certain types of soil. In Europe and North America, most of that soil is privately owned. If you are taking a walk in the woods, you usually won't find an apple tree bearing big apples. Those trees can only grow in certain types of soil ... and most of that soil is privately owned by corporate fatcats.

That's our present economic system in a nutshell. Whoever owns the natural resources makes the rules. Growing your own food is hard, so you have to buy it. You can't extract your own gasoline because most of the land containing oil is privately owned ... so you have to buy it. You can't dig for metal in your own backyard because metal is only found in a few key locations across the globe, so you have to buy it.

The super-rich control earth's natural resources using two methods.

1. Threats of Violence: They have the cops and the military on their side. After all, they control the government through lobbying. The government controls both the cops and the military.
2. Propaganda: Most of the TV news media is corporate propaganda. The "liberal media" talks about every progressive issue except for the issue of class antagonism. This sends an unspoken message. "If you are white and male, all of your problems are your own fault ... even if you are poor ... because class conflict isn't real." That's why so many white guys are siding with Fox News ... which pits lower/middle class white males against everyone else ... except the billionaires.

Thus, the corporations control the news media in order to turn the working class against itself. There is no real conflict between Fox News and the "liberal media". They're in cahoots. They're controlled by the same people from the same economic class.

In other words, our current economic system is a product of technology. Private corporations control the natural resources ... and they will use heavy weaponry to punish you if you try to take any of it without paying. This is oppression.

All political/economic systems are products of technology. During ancient times, the people who controlled the metal mines made the best swords and so they made the rules. If we want to predict the future of politics, we need to look at the future of technology. How has technology been changing lately?

Answer: Look at the internet. In recent years, more and more people have been using the internet. More and more people are learning about the real history of American foreign policy. I'm talking about the stuff that the so-called "liberal media" doesn't even talk about. Poor people are learning about corporate corruption. Poor people are communicating with poor people who belong to different racial and religious groups. There are some sites that can help translate text in seconds. Thus, you can communicate with people who speak in a different language as long as you use literal language that can be easily translated.

Poor people naturally want something more than what they've got. That's human nature. The rich have been pacifying the poor using "rags to riches" propaganda for decades. Thanks to the internet, the poor are learning the terrible truth. They are learning about the real history of socialism and anarchism. This is leading to a renewal of class consciousness.

Eventually, they will abandon the corporate propaganda and vote for a democratic socialist like Bernie Sanders. That's human nature. Socialism has failed several times in the past ... but the internet is like nothing that has ever existed in any previous historical epoch. The internet is making the impossible possible every single day! This will only continue as more poor people start using it.

The corporate media is desperately trying to shut the internet down. "The internet is full of pedophiles who will rape your children!" "The internet will brainwash your kids and turn them into literal Nazis!" "The internet is full of porn that teaches men how to rape!" "Anonymous is a terrorist organization that treats the web like a real-life video game!"

They know that their time is running out. That's human nature. You can't fight human nature.

tick tock tick tock

With the money I earn in a capitalist society I am able to buy clothes, camera equipment, video games, food, and drinks. I can also pay my cell phone bill. A corporation gave me a good job.

FACT: Capitalism is slowly destroying itself.

What will happen when the capitalists run out of countries to exploit? What then?

So the solution's the black and green block? It sounds like that's what you're describing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcho-primitivism


Steven Pinker used to be an anarchist too - till he took an arrow to the knee!

Capitalism is a creative way to vent your vitriol and mow down your fellow man.

One and a half minutes of Noam Chomsky on anarcho-primitivism. I'm not 100% sure this is what you mean but what he has to say about walking back to pre-Industrial revolution is pretty important with respect to us attempting to break ourselves down into small tribes and live communally:

I feel like Capitalism works on a curve. It's very useful for small markets and societies, but as things grow you get a few actors dominating the system with monopolies or Robber Barons.

Eventually, it almost seems like a system of plundering resources without a care of replenishing anything. Sort of like stripping the landscape of trees for tinder with no thought of seeding new trees or possibly slowing down. The executives will just shrug and say it is their job to maximize profits and stock prices for the share holders.

I think beyond material resources the Human Resources at some point need a break to replenish, not just in numbers, but it the ability to afford education to become Skilled Labor so the Economic Machine can function and not stall or stagnate.

You must be new here. This seems like a "naïve everyman" comment. That's good. I love educating newbies who haven't been corrupted by the corporate machine yet.

What makes you think those things won't exist in a socialist society? Jobs, clothing, technology, video games, food, drinks and jobs will still exist under socialism.

Here's the thing. Capitalism comes with a hefty price tag. The billionaires basically control our government through lobbying. Thus, they control our military. What happens when the military is controlled by businesses? You get perpetual warfare. That is the real cause of terrorism and the refugee crisis.

Additionally, violent "ghetto" crime is a natural part of the capitalist system. That's what happens when we send the cops in to shoot criminals ... who were just trying to steal enough money to pay their bills.

Still think that capitalism is no big deal? Whatever. There are plenty of poor people who are suffering greatly under the current system because they aren't as lucky as you. For decades, they have been deceived by lies ranging from "This awful world doesn't matter because you will go to heaven." to "Them darkies are the problem." to "Not all billionaires are like that! It's just the Jews!" to "Your life will be meaningful if you die in Iraq for your country!"

This is changing because poor people are using the internet at an alarming rate. They will break free of their self-defeating delusions in due time. This will change every aspect of our world.

I'm just describing the inevitable. I'm not even describing what "should" happen.

Technology creates the rest of society. That's simply a fact. Poor people are using the internet more. That's how technology is progressing at the moment.

Anarchism is a nice ideal ... but that would take a long time. If we removed the state right now, it would be a disaster. Right now, the state is the only buffer against other forms of oppression.

That being said, I still think that people should know about the history of anarchism before they make the mistake of thinking that "anarcho-capitalism" makes any sense.

That being said, we need environmentalism urgently.

What would indicate that a Socialist could ever win?

Socialists get so few votes in US elections that no one even talks about them.

Gloria La Riva ? Alysson Kennedy?

Bernie Sanders himself runs as an "independent".

Would you rather be poor in the USA or poor in Brazil?

Be thankful you have a job (and a "good" one too!), because many of us have become permanently excluded from this experience, due to not having the "right personality" for most positions in paid employment.

I live in one of those "socialist" - or as chomsky calls it "highly efficient state capitalist"- european countries.
I'm self employed because... Turns out people don't like you when you start a job, and a week later tell everyone the whole company is using the software wrong. (They could have saved sooo much time).

Anyway. I make enough money to survive.
I do however often wonder... Since I make enough to survive, but not teally a lot, yet I'm still in the richest 10% of my species...plus, the accumulated wealth in my " socialist" country, like public transport and clean tap water and so on...
Does anyone have an idea how a person on wellfare in a 1st world country compares to a proletarian a hundred years ago?
As in: a person, not employed but "dragged along" by society, compared to exploited factory workers a hundred years ago?

Bernie lost because the DNC fought against him.

People reject socialism because of a propaganda machine that is starting to fall apart.

I sure hope capitalism is on the way out...

I don't think Pinker makes a compelling argument here. Although I can't say what happened in Montreal, because I wasn't there.

Anyways, anarchism isn't just getting rid of the government. It's about dismantling oppressive social relations and building communitarian structures. Anarchism requires class consciousness, solidarity and revolutionary spirit among the hearts and minds of everyday people.

Yep.

In the past, capitalist societies had one positive aspect. Almost everyone was employed.

Nowadays, workers are being replaced by machines. Thus, many people (especially the disabled) have a tough time finding work.

Marx actually predicted this. In his books, he predicted that machines would replace nearly every job on the planet.

What happens when workers have been replaced by machines and can no longer find a job? They basically need to live on welfare. Hardly anyone talks about this aspect of the "welfare queen" phenomenon.