New-radical-political-economy

In this lecture I will discuss some basic and essential concepts.  I also provide a run through of the entire course, so I briefly discuss the other 19 lectures listed in the course outline.

I think it is important to give a holistic overview.

The lecture is based broadly on the first chapter of my book Babylon and Beyond, you should read this and you should also examine the arguments of those like the Economist magazine who are sympathetic to a market based economic system.  Essentially this course looks at the economics of the anti-capitalist movement and seeks to examine critically why anti-capitalists object to the present economy system and what they would put in it’s place.

I stress the word ‘critically’, this course sets out to look at the strengths and weaknesses of varied forms of ‘new radical political economy’ and is particularly interested in open source alternatives.

It is very important to understand the strengths and weaknesses of market based economics and to study the arguments of those who advocate it. 

These notes are not the ‘lecture’ but merely give you some signposts.

Capitalism.  This is a much contested concept and we can discuss different definitions, wikipedia provides a very interesting list of different interpretations!  My starting point is that

‘Capitalism is, essentially, a system where profits are made within a market-based context and reinvested in new capital equipment.’ (Wall 2005:9).

There are big debates that can be had around the definition but note I use the term ‘system’, capitalism is a systematic way of organising production and consumption.  Profit is not simply made but reinvested and this tends to have a number of effects such as the growth of firms or other business units which tend to exploit economies of scale.  Marxists and other critics of capitalism along with those who support capitalism make a number of subtle distinctions when defining capitalism, which it would be wise for you to explore at this stage in the course.

Globalisation is also hugely contested.  We will discuss it in detail in lecture 2.  Those critical of the term argue that the global economy has long been international so to speak of ‘globalisation’ as a new feature is misleading.  We can also debate what is globalised (goods, services, culture, power?) and the extent to which globalisation requires reduction in the power of nation states like the USA or the UK.

I define it as a process where resources flow on a increasingly world wide scale and the power of nation states is progressively reduced. 

Anti-capitalist/anti-globalisation movements.

Are diverse in this course I look at Keynesians who essentially want to modify global capitalism like Joseph Stiglitz and George Soros, Greens, monetary reformers, various Marxists and even anarchists.

Arguments for Capitalism

Capitalism can be a ‘cuss’ word for youthful protesters but its advocates argue that a free market capitalism, with little government intervention, is economically, efficient, environmentally beneficially, is democratic and is some extent ‘fair’.  There are strong arguments to be made for the benefits of capitalism, which I will discuss. As I have noted it is important to look at the worlds of those who support capitalism in a relatively unmixed form.

Arguments against capitalism

The bulk of this course will look at the economic ideas of those who challenge capitalism, at this stage it is worth examining these at least briefly.

Seminar questions.

1. What is economics?

2. What is capitalism?

3. Why do advocates believe capitalism is beneficial?

4. How has capitalism been criticised by opponents? 

Further Reading.

Norberg provides an excellent outline of the arguments for capitalism.

The Economist magazine provides numerous well argued articles on the benefits of a market economy, unfortunately only a few can be looked at for free!

Dvd.s

This blog will act as a place to put notes, leave suggestions for further reading and to allow you to comment on my New Radical Political Economy course unit, a 3rd year unit in the Department of Politics, Goldsmiths College, New Cross, London.

New Radical Political Economy

2006-2007
Dr. Derek Wall (Visting tutor)

Department of Politics
Goldsmiths College
University of London

wallddd@hotmail.com

Course Syllabus

This course will provide students with an understanding of key issues in the field of contemporary radical political economy.  The introductory lectures will examine debates around the economic influence and effects of globalisation.  The core of the course will outline and evaluate contemporary radical critiques of the globalised economy including the neo-Keynesianism of Soros and Stiglitz, the anti-corporate apporach of Korten and Klein, green political economy, ecofeminism, neo-Marxism(s) and the autonomist perspective developed by Negri and Hardt.  In the final section of the course alternatives to the market including monetary reforms such as the Tobin Tax together with commons regimes, embedded markets and open source/social sharing will be analysed.

Course aims:
Examine key theories and concepts in new radical political economy.
Provide the analytical and contextual tools to understand and evaluate the functioning of  a globalised world economy.
Provide an understanding of the economic aspects surrounding issues of ecological sustainability, governance and social justice.
Analyse the differences and similarities of major schools of contemporary radical political economy.
Explore the economic, ecological, political and social implications of alternatives to the     market.

Learning outcomes:
After completing this course, students will be able to:
Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of conventional market based approaches to     global economic institutions, structures and processes.
Outline the competing theoretical approaches to the field of new radical     political     economy.
Demonstrate a precise understanding of the central debates around the issues of     globalisation, ecological sustainability, governance and social justice.
Articulate in depth the relevance of alternatives to the market in economic, ecological,     political and social terms.

Assessment:  One two hour written paper (three questions to be answered), plus assessment of written coursework (one in-depth essay, approximately 5,000 words). A plan of the essay will be submitted by students at the end of the first term.  Course work counts as 50% of the final mark.

Reading List:
Wall, D., (2005)  Babylon and Beyond:  The economics of anti-capitalist, anti-globalist and radical green movements, London: Pluto Press.  This title provides a textbook for the course, additional texts are provided below.

Journals
Capitalism Nature Socialism, Capital and Class, Historical Materialism, New Left Review and New Political Economy  are academic journals that contain useful articles on contemporary radical political economy.  The Economist is a highly recommended source along with magazines such as New Internationalist and Red Pepper.

Seminar Topics
The required readings constitute the minimum requirement for class meetings. You are expected to have completed these readings as part of your preparation for the lectures. This will aid your understanding of the issues discussed and constitutes thus a central part of the learning experience. The readings indicated form the basis for preparing seminar presentations and essays. Some of the ‘other readings’ will be found at the Senate House and libraries of the University of London.

1.  Introduction:
Legrain, P.  (2003) Open World:  Truth About Globalisation. New York:  Little Brown.
Wall (2005) Ch 1.
Wolf, M.  (2004) Why Globalization Works:  The Case for a Global Market Economy.  Yale:  Yale University Press

2. Globalisation in Question
Hirst, P. and Thompson, G.  (1999) Globalization in Question:  The International Economy and the Possibilities of Governance.  Oxford:  Polity.
Wall (2005) Ch 1.
Weiss, L. (1997) Globalization and the Myth of the Powerless State
New Left Review September-October 1997, pp. 3–27

II. Schools
3. Soros and Stiglitz
Cammack, P. (2002) Attacking the Poor,  New Left Review January-February 2002, pp. 125–34
Latham, R.  (1997) ‘Globalization and Democratic Provisionism; Re-reading Polanyi’, New Political Economy, 2:  53-63.
Soros, G.  (1998) The Crisis of Global Capitalism.  London:  Little, Brown and Co.
Stiglitz, J.  (2002) Globalization and its Discontents.  London:  Allen Lane
Wall (2005) Ch 2.

4. Korten’s anti-corporate critique
Korten, D.  (2001) When Corporations Rule the World.  San Francisc:  Kumarian Press.
Wall (2005) Ch 3.

5. No Logo and beyond
Klein, N. (2000) No Logo, London: Harper Collins
Mertes,T. (2000) On No Logo ( review) New Left Review , July-August 2000, pp. 168–72
Wall (2005) Ch 3.

6. Development as freedom.
Sen, A.  (1999) Development as Freedom.  Oxford:  Oxford University Press.

7. Green localism
Morris, D.  (1996) Free Trade:  The Great Destroyer,  Mander, J. and Goldsmith, E.  (eds.) (1996) The Case Against the  Global Economy:  and for a turn towards the local.  San Fransisco:  Sierra Club.
Wall (2005) Ch 4.
Woodin, M. and Lucas, C.  (2004) Green Alternative to Globalisation:  A Manifesto.  London:  Pluto Press.

8.  Global monetary reform
Grahl, J. (2001)  The Sway of Finance? ( review) May-June 2001, pp. 149–53
Hutchinson, F., Mellor, M. and Olsen, W.  (2002) The Politics of Money:  Towards sustainability and economic democracy.  London:  Pluto.
Patomaki, H.  (2001) Democratising Globalization:  The Leverage of the Tobin Tax.  London:  Zed Press.
Wall (2005) Ch 5.

9. Marxist approaches to globalisation
Desai, M.  (2004) Marx’s Revenge:  The Resurgence of Capitalism and the Death of State Socialism.  London:  Verso.
Fine, B and Saad-Filho, A.  (2004) Marx’s Capital.  London:  Pluto
Wall (2005) Ch 6.

10. Marxist approaches to globalisation 2
Callinicos, A.  (2003) An Anti-Capitalist Manifesto. Cambridge:  Polity Press.
Castro, F.  (2003) On Imperialist Globalization:  Two Speeches.  London:  Zed.
McNally, D.  (2002) Another World is Possible:  Globalization and Anti-Capitalism, Winnipeg:  Arbeiter Ring Publishing.
Wall (2005) Ch 6.

11. Autonomism and Empire 1.
Dyer-Witheford, N.  (1999) Cyber-Marx:  Cycles and Circuits of Struggle in High-technology Capitalism. Urbana and Chicago:  University of Illinois Press.
Glick, M. and Brenner, R. (1991) The Regulation Approach: Theory and History
New Left Review, July-August 1991, pp. 45–119.
Read, J.  (2003) The Micro-politics of Capital.  State University of New York Press.
Wall (2005) Ch 7.
Wright, S.  (2002) Storming Heaven:  Class Composition and Struggle in Italian Autonomist Marxism.  London:  Pluto Press.

12. Autonomism and Empire 2.
Hardt, M. and Negri, A.  (2001) Empire. New York:  Harvard University Press.
Hardt, M. and Negri, A.  (2001a) From Movement to Society  Anon. On Fire:  The Battle of Genoa and the anti-capitalist movement. London:  One-off Press.
Balakrishnan, G. (2000) Hardt and Negri’s Empire ( review)
New Left Review, September-October 2000, pp. 142–8

13. Autonomism and Empire 3.
Capital and Class, no.85. Spring 2005 special issue on autonomism and diy culture
Dinerstein, A, (2003) Power or counter-power: the dilemma of the Piquetero movement in Argentina post-crisis. Capital and Class, no.81, autumn 2003

14. Ecosocialism and globalisation
Wall (2005) Ch 8.
Foster, J.  (2002) Ecology Against Capitalism.  New York:  Monthly Review Press
Kovel, J.  (2002) The Enemy of Nature.  New York:  Zed Press.

15. Feminist approaches to globalisation

Bennholdt-Thomsen, V. and Mies, M.  (1999) The Subsistence Perspective:  Beyond the Globalised Economy. London:  Zed Press.
Peterson, J. and Lewis, M.  (1999) The Elgar Companion to Feminist Economics. Cheltenham:  Edward Elgar.
Shiva, V.  (1988) Staying Alive:  Women, Ecology and Development. London:  Zed Press.

III. Alternatives
16. Fair trade, free trade and embedded markets
Barret Brown, M. (1993)  Fair trade : reform and realities in the international trading system.  London: Zed Press.
Thekaekara, S.  (2003) Beating the System:  Local solutions to the globalisation crisis.  London:  New Economics Foundation

17. LETS, micro credit and monetary reform
Boyle, D.  (ed.) (2002) The Money Changers:  Currency Reform from Aristole to E-Cash.  London:  Earthscan.

18. Parecon and other experiments in participatory economics
Albert, M.  (2004) Parecon. Life After Capitalism. London:  Verso.
Wainwright, H.  (2003) Reclaim the State:  Experiments in Popular Democracy.  London:  Verso

19. Open Source
Frow, J. (1996) Information as Gift and Commodity, New Left Review , September-October 1996, pp. 89–108
Moody, G.  (2001) Rebel Code:  Linux and the Open Source Revolution.  Harmondsworth:  Penguin.
Wall (2005) Ch 9.

20.  Social sharing beyond cyber space
Klein, N. (2001) Reclaiming the Commons, New Left Review, May-June 2001, pp. 81–9
Ostrom, E.  (1991) Governing the Commons:  The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action.  Cambridge:  Cambridge University Press.
Wall (2005) Ch 9.

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