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I'm sure ET allows dissention on the Anglo disease theme as well.  We don't all have to agree on everything, the important thing is that ET provides a space where new ideas can be developed.  Not being a banker I'm not sure I fully comprehend the implications of Chris' model, but it seems a pretty big, radical, and counter intuitive concept as far as the received wisdom is concerned and should surely thus qualify as one of say 20 themes? If there are bigger and better ideas in the works then lets have them...

"It's a mystery to me - the game commences, For the usual fee - plus expenses, Confidential information - it's in my diary..."
by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot dotty communists) on Tue Apr 8th, 2008 at 07:05:55 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I think Jerome's diagnosis of the Anglo Disease is spot on.

Where we differ is in relation to the causes and the cures.

"Any economic unit can emit money. The serious problem is to get it accepted" Hyman Minsky

by ChrisCook (cojockathotmaildotcom) on Tue Apr 8th, 2008 at 07:35:35 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I think Jerome's recognition of the Anglo Disease is relevant. But I don't it's exclusively a capitalist problem - more about a peculiarly pig-headed self-serving ignorance which the Anglo countries have made their own, and which has been operating for much longer than the current disaster-in-making.

Class is possibly the strongest determinant. People are either on top, desperately trying to get on top, or being screwed by those on top. Capitalism turns this into a rather psychotic artform, but it's not possible for a culture to function intelligently as long as there are these kinds of horizontal fault-lines running through the population.

Change is only going to come by distracting people from their silly class-based games and creating a sense of personal participation which is actively exciting. People desperately want to feel a part of something which is more fulfilling than office politics and a useless and irrelevant right to vote.

The Right does well because it makes politics personal - not abstract, or issue based, but directly participatory. The sense of participation is a lie, but in politics people seem to want that feeling more than almost anything.

Which is why it's not enough to critique the Anglo Disease - there has to be an alternative which is easy to understand, easy to get involved with, and which has both personal and political influence.

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Mon Apr 14th, 2008 at 07:27:28 PM EST
[ Parent ]
see also http://www.eurotrib.com/comments/2008/4/12/123134/240/65?mode=alone;showrate=1#65

"It's a mystery to me - the game commences, For the usual fee - plus expenses, Confidential information - it's in my diary..."
by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot dotty communists) on Mon Apr 14th, 2008 at 07:38:21 PM EST
[ Parent ]

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