IMHO #5 Of Capitalism and Cancer
56HEADED FOR SELF-DESTRUCTION
CANCER, CAPITALISM AND ANNIHILATION
Cancer is a fascinating, if tragic, result of human arrogance and ignorance. It is, after all, only what should be expected in a highly complex organism that is attempting to evolve in an environment that is changing more rapidly than its reproductive cycle can keep up with. What is particularly ironic about this situation is that the damage is self-inflicted. The chaotically changing environment is the creation of the creature being destroyed by it. How appropriate. How elegant.
As organisms become larger and more complex it takes them longer to chance upon a mutation with positive attributes; changes that will improve the chances of survival. It may take hundreds, even thousands of generations for natural selection to work its random mutational magic in the larger more complicated animals. Simpler life forms such as bacteria, viruses and even many insects, because of their short life cycle and rapid, high volume reproductive capabilities, are able to mutate and adapt more quickly to an extremely dynamic environment. Within one or two generations, bacteria become resistant to antibiotics. Insects become immune to insecticides. Since the average life span of an ant or a worker bee is around ninety days, these changes can and do happen very quickly. Large creatures like homo sapiens need much longer to adapt to changes. The human race causes dangerous changes faster than it can adapt to them. Hence cancer.
The Cancer of Capitalism
I tend to think of capitalism, particularly the virulent free market variety, as a cancer in the body of the human race. In nature, the typical predator kills simply to survive. Cancers on the other hand are not motivated by survival. They are mindless mutations that destroy their environment in a frenzied orgy of consumption, incapable of realizing that they are destroying themselves in the process. Sounds like capitalism to me.
If you’ve ever tried to explain to a capitalist that they may be committing slow suicide or are, very probably, murdering their children or grandchildren through their mindless exploitation of everything imaginable, you know you may as well be speaking to a lump of coal. The state of denial they live in is so complete that no amount of factual, statistical data, however voluminous it may be, will have even the slightest impact. The best you can hope for is to be dismissed as a “conspiracy nut” or “tree hugger”. They live within an impervious bubble of greed and short term self-interest that can not be penetrated by anything short of that which is capable of depriving them of their wealth or causing physical harm to their person.
Such laissez-faire, libertarian types claim that human rights do not exist, only those of the individual. Individual rights have come to mean, in a world where greed is overwhelmingly the prime motivator, to serve your own interests exclusively without regard for the consequences to anyone else. That is the simple picture of modern libertarianism as I see it. Short-term gain, self-interest and instant gratification are given greater priority than even the survival of our species. The libertarian of today has conflated “corporate persons” with “individual rights” and taken the concept to; the last one standing is the winner. They believe it is their individual right to own any and everything of vital importance to survival and then charge everyone else an exorbitant fee for the privilege of staying alive. In modernity, as far as I am concerned, the libertarian, capitalist, corporatist, feudalist, monarchist, plutocrat, and flat out military dictator are all roses by another name. They all want a two-class world of masters and slaves. The term “enlightened self-interest” is an oxymoron. It presupposes that the self serving individual is also benevolent. These are, in fact, mutually exclusive characteristics.
How silly of me. Remorseless, ruthless self-interest with utter disregard for the consequences to anyone else is, of course, the most admirable and noble of aspirations. To be a libertarian, a free market capitalist, a corporate fascist or even just a good old fashioned military dictator, ah, how exhilarating! Who, in their far right mind, would ever desire the life of an honest, hard working, productive member of society? Who even wants a society? Good lord, how could one tolerate all that useless interaction with inferior workers and skulking merchants? The natural order is a very simple one. There are two races. There is the Master Race, those of us who are the true humans, who enjoy life unencumbered by conscience or compassion. Then there are the sub-human workers who simply are not intelligent, ambitious or aggressive enough to be thought of as real people. The Morlocks and the Eloi. I mean really, do you extend “human” rights to beasts of burden? I would certainly think not! So, what could possibly be wrong with that? Why, it is, quite simply, the laws of nature at work! I say bollocks to all this nonsense about treating each other with respect and dignity. It is, always has been and always will be every man for himself and always will be! Never forget the great libertarian Alistair Crowley, master of High Magick who said, “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law”.
Long live “individual rights” and “free will”. Down with “society”.
Presupposition is another word for assumption. I think it is safe to say that presuppositions are what have brought us the very deep shit we are presently up to our collective necks in. Most Americans supposed their government was acting in their best interests all these years. They assumed the “free” market was. They supposed they were living in a democracy, more or less. They assumed the corporations they supported all this time were here for the benefit of everyone and not just the CEO’s and investors. Americans supposed theirs was the greatest and most wholesome nation on Earth while, in fact, it has been the most ravenous, deceitful and murderous empire in history.
I have said and written, repeatedly, that capitalism is a system that can not succeed, that it inevitably can not result in anything other than terrible suffering for massive numbers of people and that it has a built in self-destruct mechanism. For decades we have seen the oppression, poverty, suffering and death it has caused. What we are witnessing today is the result of the self-destruct mechanism finally being fully engaged. The capitalist machine has finally gone into critical overload; its engine has been blown. The mythical ocean of endless consumerism has finally gone dry leaving the capitalist leviathan gasping for life on the dry land of reality. The flopping and thrashing of its death throes will take many more innocents with it into oblivion.
The high priests of Mammon are frantically casting useless economic spells, performing meaningless financial liturgies and chanting impotent free market mantras, all to no avail. The machinations of Paulson and his ilk, the great TARP bailout and its like, are not solutions. They only compound the problem, add to the destruction and ensure the complete collapse of the mythical capitalist empire. The chain of events that has been set in motion has become self-sustaining like the detonation of a nuclear weapon. Once the reaction has begun it can’t be stopped. The only result can be complete annihilation.
The unbridled greed of a relatively small number of psychopathic power mongers has initiated a wide array of negative feedback loops. It isn’t the first time in history this has happened. It is the first time it has happened on a global scale. The redistribution of nearly all wealth to a tiny fraction of the population has all but eliminated consumerism. The resultant surpluses pile up and can’t be sold. This means more business failures which mean more unemployment which means more over supply which means more bankruptcies which mean more business failures which mean... Just one part of the cascade of disasters which are finally bringing us to the end of a disastrous era.
And so ends the Age of Pisces. According to those who follow such things the coming age is Aquarius. One can only hope.
For your further edification.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=10977
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=11117
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Comments
Thanks Shalini. We can always agree to disagree. It's a very viable option and does not even imply adversity.
Not sure of anything? Welcome to the State of Confusion. Population: several billion.
I know CWB - it isn't you - you're pretty clear - I just find so much of what I believed in crumbling around me! So I guess it's a state of confusion like new belief constructs are built!
'Who in their far right mind' - wish I'd thought of that one! This is a very good and, I think, pretty fair description of what we've been doing and where it has brought us. What troubles me is that the 'leaders', without exception, are saying 'how can we restart the engine?' when they should be saying 'what can we do that's better?'
The cancer analogy works. The evolution one works if you consider us like any other long-living mammal. However we have the ability, through language aided by social and technological invention, to care for each other and the planet, if we only stop manic competitive consumption.
Belief can turn on one without warning Shalini. The truth is often the most elusive of quarries. All we can do is continue the hunt.
Thank you Paraglider. Occasionally I actually manage to pull out a rabbit when rummaging through my top hat.
The "leaders" may say what they like. Their time is fading fast.
Our languages, for now, are still babel. Globally we really don't communicate. We just talk at each other.
Our technology is one of the things that has brought us to this moment of truth. It is what has produced the rapid changes to our environment that we can't adapt to. We have been so obsessed with whether we could do things that we never stopped to consider if we should. We have gotten very far ahead of ourselves. That is about to change, rather abruptly.
No arguments from me CWB, although I do think "enlightened self interest" works if it is truly enlightened--That is, if you think it through, from a purely selfish point of view, it is in my best interest that EVERYONE has enough and has their basic needs (at least) met, and that everyone has a chance to be who they are, unmolested. But you have to think it through to the end to reach that conclusion, and most people don't. For most folks, "enlightened self-interest" means "me first, screw you."
I gotta say I'm unimpressed by the Libertarian viewpoint too. It seems to appeal to a lot of young people, who, as far as I can tell, think it means growing your own food and doing whatever you want without having to worry about other people's problems. I think it's a naieve and rather heartless point of view.
IMHO radical individualism and total personal independence is neither achievable nor desirable. People are social animals. The libertarian view seems to me to be a "Cider House Rules" kind of philosophy. You can post the rules on the side of the Cider House, but poor people will always drink on the roof and fall off of it anyway. Every man for himself is not a very inspiring tenet.
Thanks for the rant. I think we are so screwed right now. But, it'll get worse.
Interesting times we're living in CWB. We in the West have indeed been like the ELoi, exotic food delivered to us (on jugganauts from far-off places), gadgets created to make our lives easier and more fun, (and delivered to us on jugganauts from far-off places) entertainment beamed directly into our warm and comfortable homes, clothes manufactured so cheaply (in far-off places) that we no longer learn how to make and mend, we simply replace and discard.
We are now a society lacking in practical skills, dependant on oil, at the mercy of capricious fate. Change will happen, and it might be bloody. My best advice is to hold on to your hats, and expect the unexpected!
I often refere to what is happening as a virus, maybe it is more like cancer but worse than aids itself, our own auto immune deficeintcies. What a terrible state to live in.
My friend is a hard core liberalist, though she would probably have a fit about your description of liberalism, and she is more like Pams description. She does actually feel that because of the way the world is right now that it is best to pick one thing and go for it.
We have similar arguements about these situations and I can't really un-validate her point of view. Anyways, I was wondering if you had heard of the super computer?
From what I understand (and believe) this machine collects all the data put into it, from us people like you and I and rich capitalist and so on and it predicts outcomes and changes like clockwork.
It predicted the rapid growth of technology as it has grown thus far and also the colapse of the entire empire, coincidentally (I think not) it also made a prediction for a new era, one of a very transgressed state.
Could be good but we can never really tell. I have implemented my "stop paying for it" method because I really do believe that is the only way to tear down the free market society and balance out what the "governments, capitalist and aristrocrats" have done.
Know that the government has made it absolutley know that they are just printing money and will continue to, I do believe that burning of the money is in order.
Of course who is willing to do such a thing? In my far "confused" mind, the next step would be to literally burn they bills and take them out of society otherwise they will be forgetten and worth about a penny. (or on second thought...maybe it is a good thing)
It has been said that we realize things in hindsight, so last year when I was havinig these dreams, visions and epifonies I did the strangest thing, never thought I would do it in a million years.
I burned my money, not all of it, but for spiritual purposes my offering to the allmighty, I burned it and sent it up to God and I realized it was so hard to do, not only because I really needed the money or because others could have used the money, but there was an important message in the sacrifice.
Or I suppose I am my own sort of radical person but burn the money and remove the hand that yeilds its own disasterous powers and what would we have left?
The scales could reverse (I can't say for sure) but my theory is that the governemts would find themselves with a lot less loyal peoples in their cabinets and find themselves on the side of justice, working (liberalish) to eat and feed, sewing to stay warm and still remain social but with none of this paper establishing your lot.
I have been called a communist, a liberalist, and a tree hugger and confused. I think I like confused best, it seems more accurate. :)
Fantastic hub, ColdWarBaby, and great comments! I agree that the cancer analogy is very fitting, and I do believe that capitalism has planted the seeds of its own destruction. If this empire needs to fall for something better to be built in its place, so be it. I only hope that the tides of change will be kind to the Eloi and humbling for the Murdocks.
In many ways, these issues stem from the lack of conscience and compassion that you described. Too many people have been taught that more is better and operate from a space of unenlightened self interest. What type of ethics do we learn about in American History, with glossed-over stories about the discovery of a new world, free for the taking from the primitive people who inhabited it; built on the sweat and tears of people stolen from Africa. Some lives were regarded as valuable, while others were treated as a means to an end. As a society, we don't seem to have progressed very far from this ideology. Even religion, largely derived from socially-conscious teachings about love and kindness, has been distorted to breed hatred and contempt for the people too stupid to let themselves be saved.
In the midst of all this misdirection and confusion, in the wake of destruction caused by unchecked power and greed, I hope the dawning age will bring the change we so desperately need.
C'mon pgrundy. No arguments? What kind of fun is that?
Seriously, we see pretty much eye to eye on just about everything.
I equate enlightened self interest with noblesse oblige. It’s not impossible for it to happen in rare, isolated instances. Trying to apply it systematically to a society results in exactly what we’ve got right now. The free market is the noble endeavor that’s supposed to bring prosperity to everyone. That’s a variation on noblesse oblige. We’ve seen how well that works out.
You’re exactly right as far as libertarianism goes. Let those who believe themselves to be rugged individuals exit stage right to the wilds of canada or alaska and have at it, without the benefits of any social structure or interaction or manufactured goods, processed foods, access to hospitals, doctors or healthcare of any kind.
Homo sapiens has been and always will be a social creature. It’s in our nature to live and work together.
Thanks for reading pg. Your comments are always welcome.
Interesting indeed Amanda. Your analysis of our social condition is quite succinct and accurate.
I’m hoping that people will come out of their consumer delirium and begin to reform real neighborhoods and communities. That way they’ll be able to help each other hang on to their hats and whatever else they need to survive.
Thank you for reading and adding your thoughts.
Welcome sandra.
I believe the computer you’re referring to is simply referred to as the Black Box. Here’s a link.
http://www.redorbit.com/news/display/?id=126649
It’s a very interesting development.
I think burning money will become a fairly common practice before too much longer. It’s not going to be worth anything so maybe it will be useful as tinder for starting fires to keep ourselves warm. There’s a fire burning in my fireplace right now. It’s the only source of heat we have.
It’s really not going to be necessary for us to take any direct action against the powers that have brought us to this time of disaster. They have doomed themselves. What remains for the rest of us to do is lay down our hatred and prejudices and work together for the survival of the human race into the future.
We have a lot of evolving left to do. I think there is a period of transition coming that could lead to a far better world. It’s very sad that it has and will require so much pain and suffering for so many.
Hi Melissa.
You clearly understand what I’ve been saying for some time. You’re absolutely correct about the fact that we have been educated to be self interested, greedy and self righteous. That’s what makes for good consumers and unquestioning “patriots”.
I share your hope for the future. I sorrow for its price.
Change is coming but it is no longer up to politicians and capitalists to determine the course of the future. Nature will take its course and no amount of wealth or power on a human scale will stop it.
Thank you for reading and adding your contribution.
Nature will certainly take its course over climate change and environmental damage. But societal reorganisation is still a human preserve. Bankrupt countries like the US will be forced to try something new but genuinely rich countries like Abu Dhabi and Qatar will not. So I don't think there will be a new world order so much as a major shift in power. The inflated money will have to shrink to match the tangible resources which are located in the Gulf, Iraq, Khazakstan, and the like. The biggest impediment to this happening smoothly is maybe US military power. That's a very dangerous imbalance. Traditionally the rich countries had the military power. And traditionally, the fall of dominion was by military defeat. But in US, we have a bankrupt military giant. It's a dangerous formula.
Paraglider, might not the laws of economics re-assert themselves here? I know that you have a better grasp of these things than I do, and are in a better position to judge, so this is a genuine question. If the West can no longer afford the oil, and industry and growth stagnate to the point where demand falls away, won't that bring down the price of oil, and ultimately affect the income stream of the oil-producing nations? Also, we hear a lot about Peak Oil, and if Peak Oil actually is in play, won't that also ultimately shift the balance towards communities who are advanced technologically and who have good alternative energy strategies in place?
Amanda - I really don't know. We're all speculating. The market can push the price of oil down, but OPEC can unilaterally fix it if they want to. The Gulf economies can apparently stay in surplus as long as the oil price is $45 a barrel or higher. But that depends on the dollar hanging on. It might not. One great thing about alternative energy is that while you could destroy it militarily you can't steal it the way you can with oil. It tends to be local by nature, so it reduces dependencies. I only raised the US military question because it could be relevant. Of course, I hope not.
"Let those who believe themselves to be rugged individuals exit stage right to the wilds of canada or alaska and have at it, without the benefits of any social structure or interaction or manufactured goods, processed foods, access to hospitals, doctors or healthcare of any kind."
Exactly! Are they wearing homemade shoes and clothes? Do they possess any plastic utensils? Do they forge their own steel? To my mind it just seems like an excuse to be self-centered and myopic and blame victims for their own problems and tragedies. I don't understand the appeal.
It IS hard to argue when we mostly agree on everything! (o:
Paraglider.
I think most people are underestimating the scope and magnitude of the natural events that will be triggered by our meddlesome presence. Their may be some brief resource wars, not unlike what’s going on in Iraq, but the use of those resources will only hasten and intensify the extinction event that has already begun. If any of these “rulers” had an iota of sense they would be fighting to make sure that whatever oil remains in the ground stays there.
With what Gaia has in store for us, I just don’t think the rules we’ve been playing by for the last several thousand years will remain in force. I think, and actually hope, that an entirely new paradigm will evolve.
It’s my fondest wish that, a few centuries down the road, a human society, utterly alien to the present failed experiment, will be making progress toward a true civilization.
I understand your concern regarding amerikan military actions. Even though the forces are stretched to the breaking point it’s not the conventional military that worries me. A bankrupt and collapsing u.s. still has thousands of nuclear weapons aimed at major cities all over the world. I would only take one lunatic, with adequate authority, to set off a nuclear holocaust. The soviet union went bust without nuking the planet so I guess there’s a fair chance the same could hold true for the u.s.
It works for me Pam!
Shalini Kagal says:
13 months ago
Brilliantly written CWB - I'm not sure I agree with everything you say about Capitalism - but then, I'm not sure of anything anymore!