Beware of Economic Nonsense Trotted Out by Profit-Seeking Corporations
Consumer benefits may sometimes exceed such costs. But, as we’ve painfully learned over the years (the Wall Street meltdown, the BP oil spill in the Gulf, consumer injuries and deaths from unsafe products, worker injuries and deaths from unsafe working conditions, climate change brought on by carbon dioxide emissions, and, yes, manipulation of the tax laws – need I go on?), the social costs may also exceed consumer benefits.
via Beware of Economic Nonsense Trotted Out by Profit-Seeking Corporations and Their Stooges | Alternet.
Noam Chomsky on Anarcho-Syndicalism
NOAM CHOMSKY: Well, anarchism is, in my view, basically a kind of tendency in human thought which shows up in different forms in different circumstances, and has some leading characteristics. Primarily it is a tendency that is suspicious and skeptical of domination, authority, and hierarchy. It seeks structures of hierarchy and domination in human life over the whole range, extending from, say, patriarchal families to, say, imperial systems, and it asks whether those systems are justified. It assumes that the burden of proof for anyone in a position of power and authority lies on them. Their authority is not self-justifying. They have to give a reason for it, a justification. And if they can’t justify that authority and power and control, which is the usual case, then the authority ought to be dismantled and replaced by something more free and just. And, as I understand it, anarchy is just that tendency. It takes different forms at different times.
via NOAM CHOMSKY — ‘Everyday Anarchist’: The Modern Success Interview | Modern Success.
Help us build a dictionary on commons economics!
As part of the ongoing post-conference documentation and with the aim of sustaining a new type of commons-oriented “economics” “ecommonics?, we started with a dictionary of common economics terms…
via Help us build a dictionary on commons economics! | ECC 2013 – Communication Platform.
Teach Your Children Well: Don’t Play Monopoly
Never played this game, but sharing anyway…
Do you really need to own Boardwalk and Park Place and all the associated property to be a winner? That’s how it works with Monopoly. But isn’t that the sort of board game teaching the wrong lessons to our children – and to us?
Don’t we have enough corporations and businesses monopolizing our economy and owning our government?
Enter Co-opoly, a board game where cooperative business are developed through team strategy. In short, sharing knowledge and creating cooperative strategies determine whether everyone wins or everyone loses. It’s not about an individual grabbing up all the wealth and bankrupting others; it’s about the economic success of people working together.
Corporate Hunger for Profits Has Devastated American Life—and the World
The damage caused by the relentless corporate drive for profits has become more clear in recent years. In the most important areas of American life, devastating changes have occurred:
Health Care: Almost half of the working-age adults in America passed up doctor visits or other medical services because they couldn’t afford to pay. The system hasn’t supported kids, either.
Sir Richard Branson talks about Virgin, Innovation, and Disruption
How to differentiate in an oligopoly market.
We’re living in an Ayn Rand economy
Ayn Rand’s philosophy suggests that average working people are “takers.” In reality, those in the best position to make money take all they can get, with no scruples about their working-class victims, because taking, in the minds of the rich, serves as a model for success. The strategy involves tax avoidance, in numerous forms.
Surprise! Inflation is too low almost everywhere on earth
The leading economies of the industrialized nations may not have a lot in common, but they are all afflicted by this: Inflation is too low.
via Surprise! Inflation is too low almost everywhere on earth.
Economics @ ITT 
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