Surviving Capitalism (Not) : Latin America’s New Middle Class Rulers: Stabilization, Growth and Inequality

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Latin America’s New Middle Class Rulers: Stabilization, Growth and Inequality

by James Petras from Global Research. The article provides an excellent overview of the last 20 years of the economic and political events in South America.

I only wish that he had spent more time on the events in Venezuela. For me, it is clear that the pace of radical changes in that country is being retarded by the same middle class bureaucracies that are in control in the other countries of South America. (Read the article I posted following his.)

Because many South American countries are rich in resources, they have been induced to take advantage of the capitalist markets driven largely by the resource demands of China and India. It is hard to fault them for that, but one should not be seduced by revolutionary or pro-indigenous rhetoric. Likewise it is obvious that the SA governments have been greatly influenced by the recent success of government supervised capitalism that exists in China and well as the economic havoc caused by unrestrained neo-liberalism that existed during the last 20 years. (For a contrasting view from South America, read this.)

This article, and others like it, is essential reading and study by everyone who sees the necessity for a change to social arrangements that are just and environmentally sustainable. If you do not understand how capitalist ruling classes are able to maneuver around the inevitable social conflicts that their system creates, your hard fought efforts for change will be in vain. That has been the story of all those who have come before you and worked for change . However, their efforts will not have been in vain if you understand their failures and learn from their mistakes.

As I see it, time is running out for most of the human race. Many knowledgeable people are making the argument that transitioning to other energy resources will require creating a costly new infrastructure that we may not be able to afford (under the existing capitalist system).

The capitalist system with its addiction to the private accumulation of wealth is driving us to our destruction brought on by violent climate changes, environmental degradation, and energy exhaustion. If this system is allowed to continue, the most optimistic scenario is that most of us will be faced with apocalyptic upheavals ending with only a tiny population barely surviving amidst the ruins of civilization and the environment.

We, as activists and concerned citizens, must stop being manipulated by ruling elites that talk a good story of hope, jobs, prosperity, etc. and look at only what they actually do. At the same time, we must stop supporting any kind of rule by elites, or any social arrangements that provide one segment of society with substantial advantages over the rest. For the existing societies today, that means that socially produced wealth can no longer be owned or controlled by private individuals. Our task is to create a true democracy--that means a direct democracy with inter-related localized economies. See the alternatives presented at the top right on this blog.