Any existing structures and all the conditions of doing business are always in a process of change. Every situation is being upset before it has had time to work itself out.

Schumpeter, in Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy (1942, p. 31-32), obviously plagiarizing one of the early chapters of the Communist Manifesto, in which I believe the phrase was about relations that become “antiquated before they can ossify.”

4 months ago | 8 notes | Reblog |
marx, marxism, schumpeter, creative destruction, capitalism, socialism, democracy,

As a matter of fact, capitalist economy is not and cannot be stationary. Nor is it merely expanding in a steady manner. It is incessantly being revolutionized from within by new enterprise, i.e., by the intrusion of new commodities or new methods of production or new commercial opportunities into the industrial structure as it exists at any moment. Any existing structures and all the conditions of doing business are always in a process of change. Every situation is being upset before it has had time to work itself out. Economic progress, in capitalist society, means turmoil.

Schumpeter, in Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy (1942, p. 31-32, emphasis included).

If I understand correctly, a good way to become a hugely influential economist is to plagiarize Marx while you repudiate Marx.

4 months ago | 16 notes | Reblog |
schumpeter, capitalism, socialism, democracy, marx, marxism, creative destruction,

To any mind not warped by the habit of fingering the Marxian rosary it should be obvious that…

Joseph Schumpeter, in Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy (1942, p. 19).

Yep, still waiting on that nuanced, “neutral” (p.xxi) appraisal of Marxism that was promised in the book’s introduction.

4 months ago | 4 notes | Reblog |
marx, schumpeter, capitalism, socialism, democracy, marxism,

Iceland Is Crowdsourcing Its New Constitution →

Future historians, I do not know whether to pity or envy you:

In the wake of the devastating collapse of Iceland’s commercial banks, the country is drawing up a new constitution, and it’s doing things a little differently: It’s crowdsourcing the process. For real.

The country’s 25-member constituional council is posting draft clauses on its website and inviting the public to comment on them there or on its Facebook page. And their comments are actually being incorporated into the document. The council also has Twitter, YouTube, and Flickr accounts and is streaming all of its meetings live. It’s perhaps the most open and participatory constitutional process in modern history (the Greeks were pretty good at democracy in their time). [edit: no, they weren’t; democracy in Ancient Greece was only for property owners, not for women, not for the majority of people]

Should be interesting to watch this develop.

11 months ago | 4 notes | Reblog |
crowdsourcing, iceland, democracy, facebook, twitter, youtube, flickr, greece,

In Historic Vote, UN Declares Access to Water a Fundamental Right →

“The United Nations General Assembly has declared for the first time that access to clean water and sanitation is a fundamental human right. In a historic vote Wednesday, 122 countries supported the resolution, and over forty countries abstained from voting, including the United States, Canada and several European and other industrialized countries. There were no votes against the resolution. We [Democracy Now!] speak with longtime water justice activist, Maude Barlow.”

One more reason to not be too proud about living in Canada..

1 year ago | 0 notes | Reblog |
water, un, rights, united nations, canada, maude barlow, democracy, democracy now, human rights,

Help Ruin Chiquita’s Crowdsourcing Campaign

The most recent crowdsourcing innovation comes from Chiquita. Yes, the banana company:

Chiquita has always been on the cutting edge of business. For instance, in the 1950s, as the United Fruit Company at the time, they were instrumental in a CIA-sponsored coup to overthrow Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán, the democratically-elected President of Guatemala. Arbenz’ returning of land to the people of Guatemala had antagonized the United Fruit Company; they said he was a communist for supporting the impoverished indigenous peasants, who overwhelmingly applauded the land distribution plan — the United States, then in the McCarthyist red-hysteria era, of course sided with the United Fruit Company and against the people of Guatemala. Attempting to compromise, Arbenz offered to buy the land from the United Fruit Company. They refused, a propaganda campaign began, Guatemala was invaded, and Arbenz was deposed. (see Wikipedia)

If you are so-inclined, enter the Chiquita contest and submit images from the 1954 Guatemala coup d’état. Here is a picture of Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán:

Or here is Arbenz on the cover of Time magazine:

Or send Chiquita an image of the Guatemalan flag:

Or send Chiquita the CIA logo:

The possibilities are endless! That is why crowdsourcing is so exciting — there is so much room for creativity!