In the first of a five-part series analyzing the role of money within capitalist society, Adam Booth looks at the origins of money.
Economics
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In Defense of Marx's Labor Theory of Value
First developed by the early bourgeois economists, the labor theory of value has now become an anathema in bourgeois circles, not least because of its revolutionary implications.
Why You Should be a Socialist
Rob Sewell, editor of Socialist Appeal (Britain), looks at the ongoing crisis of capitalism, the growing inequality in the world today, and the potential for transforming our lives on the basis of modern technology.
On Equality: Them and Us
From where does the “utopia of equality” idea arise?
Michael Albert and Parecon
To put it bluntly, the future for young people in America is bleak. In these conditions, millions of youth are beginning to question whether capitalism has anything to offer. There is a lot of interest in the ideas of people like Noam Chomsky and Michael Albert. But what do these ideas, particularly Albert’s “Parecon,” actually offer in the way of a theoretical guide to action?
The Puzzle of Productive and Unproductive Labor
In their desperate search for profitable fields of investment, the capitalist class, especially the financial oligarchy, has presided over an explosive growth of unproductive expenditure that today threatens to undermine the very edifice of capitalism. As more and more surplus value is siphoned off into unproductive activities, the issue of “productive” and “unproductive” labor has once again resurfaced as a factor contributing to, and a reflection of, the present terminal decline of world capitalism.
Will There Be A Slump?
For our November 2013 organization-wide reading we republish Ted Grant’s Will There Be A Slump. An excellent restatement of the basics of Marxist economics and an analysis of the world economy coming out of World War II. While many so-called Marxists were declaring that capitalism had somehow resolved its contradictions and turning their backs on the working class, Ted Grant used this document to orient the forces of genuine Marxism. Although the timing was off, the analysis was spot-on.
The Communist: Voice of America’s Communist Generation
The Communist is the official newspaper of the party of the Revolutionary Communists of America. It is different from any other publication you’ll find in the US today. Behind this newspaper, there’s a vast network of communist activity from coast to coast. It is a tool for organizing in the streets, at protests and strikes, for building communist cells in our neighborhoods, workplaces, and campuses.
The RCA is on a mission to carry Bolshevism into the political arena of a country that’s ripe for it. Yes, we’re Bolsheviks living in the digital age, and we also use social media and our podcast to spread the communist program. But we’re not the kind of internet leftists who stay inside and “do politics” online. That’s why we need something we can carry with us into the streets and put into people’s hands. The physical paper is an instrument for building a real-life organization—a genuine Communist Party of fighters.