Posted by rainer on April 23, 1999 at 17:29:41:
(3.99 $ at www.amazon.com)
The new book I propose to read and discuss
together here on line is THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO
written by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in 1848.
150 years later, this wonderful text is more than
relevant. It gives a detailed description of
neoliberalism and the way modern - contemporary -
capitalism works.
The most astonishing aspects of his historical and
structural analysis - and in particular in The
Capital - is his detailed multi faceted
descriptions of how capitalism is constructed.
Where it comes from, where it goes to. This is not
to say, that by studying capitalism, its genealogy
and its ontology, one necessarily has to share
the same conclusions of a proletarian dictatorship
he did. Quite the opposite.
Today, his texts are the new bible of stock
brokers who can see themselves mirrored and well
depicted. Marx anticipated a world of high tech
communication networks, global turbo-capitalism
and speaks of a bankocraty (Das Kapital) that
reigns the world.
He is absolutely right. But he underestimated and
overestimated the teleological force of his
thoughts. Marx in his introduction to Das Kapital
speaks very clearly that the German society
suffers from too much and not enough
industrialization at the same time. Marx can very
easily be read as the ultimate capitalist.
Definitely as the ultimate critic, historian and
analyst of capitalism, imperialism, sexism, and
colonialism. His remarks on the state of the
family, the function of women and children have
come more than true. Todays capitalism exploits
mostly women and children. (I hope your sneakers
or all kind of other sports wear you are having on
hurt a little bit.... ).
Even in his 40 pages of the Manifesto it is all
there. It is brilliantly written and full of
insights that can serve today moren than ever as
a powerful tool to come to terms (ideological,
social, political, etc...) with contemporary
reality.
As in the past I will give portions of the text
and hope to generate a discussion and hopefully
actions.
Any conclusions of his analysis are up to you. You
can become a stock broker, an educator (I guess I
could be named an educator) a neo RAF bomb builder
or an info-terrorist on the internet. Resistance
or affirmation, protest, outrage or collaboration
-- this book helps you.
(taken from#rainer`s reading seminar# (bbs.thing.net)