We
are running out of time. And maybe it's too late already ...
by
system failure
Capitalism
apologists frequently use a very common argument (to the point that
it has become a cliche) to defend the capitalist system. They often
support - in the context of a pseudo-rational dominant perception -
that financial crises is a kind of a natural phenomenon and that
capitalism will always survive, no matter what.
Yet,
today there are signs showing that we are probably living in a unique
moment in history. For the first time, there is a constant and
bizarre atmosphere of uncertainty, inside which, only one certainty
manages to survive: that another major crisis is about to come. The
only question is "when".
Indeed,
in the past, capitalism was always finding ways to escape dead ends
and contradictions, through its ability to transform itself and
mutate. Yet, after major financial crises, a big war was necessary to
restart that process. However, the last mutation of capitalism, which
has started about four decades ago, appears to contain the tools of
its final demolition. Financial capitalism, accompanied with the
corresponding neoliberal ideology, created a deeply unequal and
unstable system.
The
mainstream neoliberal ideology has penetrated in almost every aspect
of life. Naturally, the so-called political center, especially in the
West, has been bought by that ideology. In our strange times,
establishment politicians have adopted a completely distorted
perception of reality, in which, their political amoralism is often
considered something natural and justifiable.
This
blatant dysfunctionality continuously
grows
through a vicious
cycle
in which the system produces types of politicians who have no real
vision and zero ability to foresee developments. Therefore, they have
absolutely no idea how to handle another major crisis, and,
naturally, their only option is to mobilize all energy and means to
save that system from definite collapse, just to keep it alive until
the next crisis.
We are
now exactly at the point where we should expect another major war,
after the big financial crisis of 2007-08, that will permit the
system to survive. Only this time, a WWIII is not an option because
with all this terrifying nuclear arsenal, it would probably mean the
end of civilization.
So, what should we expect to happen after the next big financial meltdown?
It seems
that the only answer to that question is that the system will be
probably crushed beyond repair. This is as far as we can go, for now.
Hyper-automation
evolves rapidly, throwing millions out of the working force.
Small-medium businesses are being eliminated by a system in which
only the big players have direct access to the printing and digital
money machine, and creates bubbles of all sizes that finally burst,
more and more frequently. And, despite the inflating instability, the
elites continue to accumulate capital as if they are preparing for
the final collapse, no longer being able to maintain their failed
model.
Meanwhile,
the only reverse contribution of that system to the planet, is the
rapid environmental degradation with immeasurable impact to our lives
in the close future. And, of course, the constant threat of a nuclear
holocaust through an accident, or through a creepy, lunatic clown in
power who will finally push the button.
Above
all, and perhaps the most frightening, is that this is a picture of a
system that makes absolutely no sense.
In
short, we could say that, while the arrow of technology goes always
forward, the arrow of the cultural progress of societies goes back
and forth. Well, we don't have the luxury to go back and forth many
times until we meet the arrow of technology and behave for the first
time with true responsibility. Meaning, managing technology only for
the benefit of the whole, and not for war and destruction of nature.
We are
running out of time. And maybe it's too late already ...
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