- Capitalism and Alternatives -

Sure, everyone has a political life

Posted by: Stoller on February 23, 19100 at 21:00:49:

In Reply to: Why not also assign the description of 'entrepreneur' to the same people that you would call 'social scientist'? posted by Frenchy on February 22, 19100 at 10:34:39:


: OK, fine, if your definition of a social scientist includes workers who gripe about not earning what they think they ought to earn, usually approxiamately as much as Bill Gates, workers who question the intellect of those who are above them in the hierarchy, then isn't it also fair to define budding entrepreneurs as workers who look about and see fresh ways in which to organize a contemporary process? Why not also assign the description of 'entrepreneur' to the same people that you would call 'social scientist'?

I would certainly call any capitalist---budding or firmly entrenched---a social scientist. After all, a capitalist understands the politics of social relations under the regime of capital as well, if not better, than any worker subject to those social relations.

But we cannot call that 'budding entrepreneur' a worker. Once someone earns a single dollar because someone else has 'contracted' to work for him / her, then that ‘budding entrepreneur’ is a capitalist.

Sure, a capitalist 'works'---they all work very hard to make sure their wage-laborers produce as much profits as permissible by law and labor-market. But there's a difference between such work: a capitalist's 'work' only realizes surplus-value; only a real worker produces it.

: There are too many opportunities being created for anyone to say that they are 'wage slaves' to any but their own inferiorities. The opportunities are created, ultimitely, by an individual who has the courage to do something different, to take a chance.

Not so. As I’ve pointed out many times before, only 25% of all American jobs require any skill above a high school level. That means most work PREVENTS people from doing 'something different,' most work PREVENTS people from 'taking a chance.' And, especially, most work PREVENTS people from becoming capitalists.

What I am saying is: capitalism itself creates low-skill work because it is based upon low-skill work (subdivide tasks so their performance merits only the lowest of wages) which coincides with the fact that capitalism also produces a class of people suited for only low-skill work.

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NOTE: This is the second time I have submitted this post.


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