Video review: An 11-minute talk from Noam Chomsky on “Democratic Fears of Corporate Power.” Some notes and feedback/thoughts from the talk: - Thomas Jefferson and Adam Smith’s (who Chomsky refers to as “classical democrats and libertarians”) worst fears have been realized. - Jefferson, in 1816, believed the United States was move toward “a single and splendid government of an aristocracy, founded on banking institutions and moneyed incorporations” and feared this would “be the end of democracy and freedom.” * When discussing the formation of “democracy” (that term should be used loosely) in the US, it is difficult to ignore the undemocratic nature of the founders, many of whom were privileged and wealthy aristocrats and slave-owners. Jefferson’s idea of “democracy and freedom” was certainly restricted by this reality. * A common theme from the beginning of the United States through its early formation was “fear of the people.” This is not surprising when considering the “founding fathers” were, themselves, a super-minority (wealthy landowners). This theme was captured in the Federalist Papers, where James Madison claimed such privileged men should have control over the affairs of the country in order to “protect the minority of the opulent against the majority” (in other words, protect the rich from the people). The people were often referred to as a “mob,” and John Adams spoke of a “tyranny of the majority,” a term that was later borrowed by Alexis de Tocqueville in his book, Democracy in America. John Jay explicitly stated that “the people who own the country ought to govern it.” Because of this dominant theme, Charles Beard’s book, “An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the US,” is an important read. * As flawed as the founders’ philosophies were, it is interesting to note that modern democratic theory is even worse. It has, in fact, reached a consensus (among elite “thinkers”) that people should be completely removed and disenfranchised from the democratic process. - According to Chomsky - Adam Smith, a classical liberal economist who is often referred to as “the father of capitalism,” did not anticipate “the development of the autocratic structures of modern, industrial capitalism.” - The idea of CORPORATE PERSONHOOD became prominent after the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision. However, as Chomsky explains, corporations had already been given the privilege of “immortal persons” via a series of decisions that occurred in the 19th century. This happened “primarily though judicial decision in an effort to create a developmental state” (i.e. a capitalist state) by directing public resources into the hands of private power. * Ironically, the man who is known as the “father of capitalism” (Adam Smith) would seemingly oppose what became of his brainchild. Smith clearly opposed Joint Stock Companies (corporations of his time) and warned of the dangers of them becoming “personified.” - It’s also important to note that Smith’s idea of liberty went far beyond the market. To him, “the market was no end in itself – the further ends were the realization of human capacities and potentialities,” and believed, like many classical liberals, in the fundamental “right of every workman to the fruits of his own labor.” This thought is virtually unrecognizable today. * This is where modern libertarians in the US (i.e. Ron Paul) veer in a completely different direction than their classical counterparts. While claiming to seek liberty for all, they ignore (and actually support) the most fundamental obstruction to liberty – the coercive relationship between capital and labor. - Prior to the 21st- century, the notion that “workers must be masters of their own industrial fate” was commonly accepted as a prerequisite to liberty. Today, it is largely ignored and considered to be “crazy” by mainstream thinkers who have been blinded by the TINA (There is No Alternative) mentality. * 20th-century thinkers like John Dewey (despite being in the mainstream) openly and accurately discussed the contradictions between capitalism and freedom/democracy. Dewey referred to politics as “a shadow cast on society by big business” and stated that, as long as this shadow remained, private power would naturally undermine liberty. * Chomsky reflects that, with this shadow firmly in place, “reforms are essentially pointless.” To take that a step further, one can infer that voting is also pointless (in terms of moving towards creating a society that is grounded in freedom and liberty.) - Chomsky concludes with the all-important point that, historically, wage slavery (wage labor) has been considered as “not very different” from chattel slavery. As Dewey stated, “it is illiberal and immoral to train children to work for the sake of the wage earned, and not freely and intelligently under their own control.” * It is remarkable to note that such a fundamentally recognized notion has been completely stamped out over the past century, to the point where it is now widely considered “crazy talk.” Please listen/read and share your thoughts.
Posted on: Sun, 19 Oct 2014 01:45:44 +0000
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