The capitalism papers : fatal flaws of an obsolete system / Jerry Mander.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mander, Jerry.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Capitalism--Environmental aspects.

Capitalism.

Capitalism--Social aspects.

Physical Description:

257 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Berkeley, CA : Counterpoint : Distributed by Publishers Group West, [2012]

Summary:

Examines the environmental and social problems of capitalism, arguing that certain problems of the system are intrinsic to its structures and cannot be reformed.

Contents:

Part 1 Introduction

I Economic Succession 3

The Missing Link 5

The "C"-Word 7

This Book 11

Disclaimer 11

Structural Arguments 13

II Growing Up Global 16

A New World Order 17

From Yonkers to Wharton 20

New Dawn for Business 21

Robert McNamara, Enforcer 24

Forty Years Later 28

III The Copenhagen Conundrum 30

Carbon Debt 31

Cochabamba, Bolivia 33

The Cancún Conundrum 35

The Morales Conundrum 37

Part 2 The Fatal Flaws of Capitalism

IV Intrinsic Amorality & Corporate Schizophrenia 43

Is Greed Good? 49

Everyday Life in Advertising 53

Are Corporations People? 58

Corporations Are Machines 60

V Intrinsic Inequities of Corporate Structure 62

Eight Intrinsic Inequities of Corporate Structure 64

1 Profits from Business Operation 64

2 Profits from Capitalization of the Public Commons 65

Cost Externalization 65

Limited Legal Liability 66

Exploitation of the Intellectual Commons 66

3 CEO Megasalaries & Bonuses 70

4 Stock Payments & Dividends 72

5 Invested Earnings: The Multiplier Effect 73

6 Wage Repression of Employees 73

7 The "Worker Productivity" Scam 75

8 Cashing Out: The Sale of Company Assets 76

The Illusion of Corporate "Efficiency" 77

VI Endless Growth on a Finite Planet 81

Ecosystem Into Economy 84

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) 85

What's Left Out of GDP? 87

Virtual Growth 89

"Planetary Boundaries" 91

Resource Shrinkage on a Finite Planet 92

Financial Speculation in Food Supplies 94

Privatization of Water 97

Peak Species & Peak Beauty 98

Earth Island 100

Fundamental Questions 103

VII Searching for Growth: Desperate Measures 105

Seven Explorations in Growing Growth 106

1 Shifting from Real Growth to Virtual 106

2 Creating "New Resources"-Privatizing the Commons 106

3 Expanding the Military Economy 107

4 Green Capitalism 107

Eco-pornography 109

Green Shopping 110

5 Search for Green Energy 111

Net Energy Limits 112

6 Creative Destruction 114

7 Techno-Utopianism & New Nature 119

Reinventing Nature 120

Atmospheric Engineering 122

Artificial Volcanoes 125

Debate: Intellect or Wisdom? 126

VIII Propensity Toward War 129

War as Economic Strategy 130

The stealth Economy 134

Doing the Numbers 135

Commercial Arms Trade 138

Military Keynesianism 139

F-35LightningII Fighter: $325 billion (Lockheed Martin Corporation) 140

Gerald Ford-Class Supercarrier: $120 billion (Northrop Grumman Corporation) 141

Future Combat System: $340 billion (Boeing and SAIC) 141

Littoral Combat Ship: $38 billion (Austal USA and Lockheed Martin) 141

U.S. Military Bases 143

Asia Pacific 144

Western Europe 145

Middle East 145

Africa 146

South America 146

Focus on the pacific 147

"Comparative Advantage" oe War 151

IX Privatization of Democracy 153

Rule by the Rich 154

Doing the Numbers 156

What Is a Billion Dollars? 158

The "Problem" of Surplus Capital 159

Investments in Government 160

Politicians for Sale 164

Koch Brothers: Role Models for Neofeudal Expression 167

Democracy? 170

X Privatization of Consciousness 172

Who Needs Advertising? 174

Living Inside Media 176

Advertising to Children 177

Global Reach 178

The Powers of Received Images 179

Are You Immune? 180

Is Television Real? 181

"Truth" in Advertising 182

Virtual Reality 185

Global Control 186

AOL-Time Warner 188

Disney 188

The News Corporation 189

Crisis point 190

XI Capitalism or Happiness 194

Laissez-Faire 195

Doing the Numbers 196

Consequences of Inequity 199

Economics of Happiness 201

Sufficiency 203

Summaries & Afterthoughts 206

Part 3 Epilogue

XII Which Way Out? 213

Four Megashifts Toward a New economics 217

1 Nature Comes First 217

Steady-state Economics 218

Contraction and Convergence 219

Biological Restoration and the Public Commons 220

The United Nations' Declaration of the Rights of Mother Earth 221

2 The Primacy of Scale: Not Globalization, Localization 222

Direct Democracy 224

The Indigenous Example 226

3 Experiments in Corporate Values and Structure 229

Redesigning Corporate Form 230

Worker-owned Cooperatives 233

4 Hybrid Economics 235

Central Planning? 236

Can We Learn from China? 237

New-economy Models 238

Uncharted Territory 241.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 245-251).

ISBN:

9781582437170

1582437173

OCLC:

794684350