Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

Episode: Criticizing Capitalism (June 28, 2018)

Episode Overview

This episode is devoted to a sharp critique of capitalism—both in its historical forms and as it operates today. Host Richard D. Wolff opens with current economic developments, legal challenges to worker welfare, and systemic inequality, before sitting down for an in-depth interview with renowned Marxist scholar David Harvey. Their discussion covers the ongoing relevance of Marx’s analysis, the persistent instability and inequality of capitalism, the manufactured nature of consumer “needs,” and the social consequences of alienation—particularly under the Trump administration.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Worker Co-ops and Legal Frameworks

• Colorado as a Pioneer ([00:10]):
  • Wolff highlights Colorado as a uniquely friendly state for worker co-operatives, contrasting it with Delaware's longstanding favoring of capitalist corporations through pro-business laws.
  • The need for a political party dedicated to leveling the playing field for worker co-ops is emphasized.

2. Worker Suicide and Societal Responsibility

• Cab Driver Suicides in New York ([03:45]):
  • Wolff discusses the recent suicides of six New York City cab drivers, linking their despair to the rise of ride-sharing companies (Uber, Lyft) and the dramatic depreciation of taxi medallions.
  • He draws parallels to historical examples where competitive capitalism harmed workers until societal intervention occurred (e.g., child labor, mine safety).
  • France is cited as a contrasting model: executives at Orange (formerly France Telecom) are being prosecuted for workplace harassment leading to 19 worker suicides, reflecting a legal system that holds corporate leaders accountable.

3. California Rent Control and Public Housing

• Ballot Initiative Signature Drive ([07:40]):
  • Over 407,000 Californians sign a petition to address skyrocketing rents via ballot initiative.
  • Wolff critiques the real estate industry’s threat to halt construction if rent increases are limited—countering that the public sector could and should provide public housing as an alternative.

4. Tariffs and Trade Wars

• Trump Administration Tariff Policy ([09:10]):
  • Trump's tariffs and trade threats are positioned as the latest stage in ongoing US efforts to secure economic advantage, much like the voluntary export restraints imposed on Japanese automakers in the 1980s.
  • Consequence: American consumers ultimately pay more (e.g., $1,200 per car) when foreign competition is curtailed.

5. Corporate Promises and Broken Commitments

• General Electric’s Jobs Pledge in France ([12:10]):
  • GE promised to create 1,000 jobs after acquiring France’s Alstom but only delivered 323, risking substantial fines.
  • Wolff notes such corporate commitments often evaporate in the US due to lack of follow-through, while French political pressure—bolstered by labor and left parties—forces greater accountability.

6. Detroit’s Decline and Corporate Responsibility

• Michigan Central Station ([14:41]):
  • Detroit’s decline is traced to auto industry decisions to maximize profits by relocating production, leading to urban collapse.
  • Wolff is critical of the narrative celebrating Ford’s acquisition and planned renovation of a decayed Detroit landmark, reminding listeners of corporate culpability in the city’s destruction:

    “We were all supposed to celebrate the renewal of Detroit and conveniently forget that the renewer was the destroying monster not that long ago.” ([15:40])

In-Depth Interview: Richard D. Wolff and David Harvey

On the Critique of Capitalism and Marx’s Relevance

1. Marx’s Lasting Insights ([16:21])

• David Harvey:

  “He [Marx] came up through a critique of classical political economy with a way of understanding the dynamics of capitalism... how capital accumulates, how it circulates and how it produces crises periodically. And I think those insights are still with us... Capital is still creating crises and doing all those things that Marx said it was going to do.”
  [16:21–16:53]

2. Instability as a Systemic Problem

• Wolff’s Framing:

  “All my life I’ve always wondered how my colleagues focus so much on Keynesian economics... recognizing that it’s an unstable system, a cyclical, crisis-prone system. But it has never... been able to fix it...”
  [17:44]

• Harvey’s Response:

  “Most economists seem to like equilibrium... Marx says, no, it diverges all of the time. So he’s looking at it... saying it creates disequilibrium.”
  [18:55]

3. Inequality as an Inherent Tendency

• Harvey:

  “Under conditions of pure competition, the rich are going to get much richer and the poor are going to get much poorer... That is an inevitable consequence of free market capitalism.”
  [20:41–21:34]

• Harvey (on Piketty):

  “There’s something inherent within the system... in a perfect market situation there is nothing more unequal than the equal treatment of unequals.... the gap between us goes higher, higher and higher.”
  [20:59–21:34]

4. Why Defend a Flawed System?

• Harvey:

  “Capitalism has not been all bad. It’s technologically very dynamic... That’s, I think, how a lot of people have a fetish belief almost in the beauties of a capitalist system... [but] it produces homelessness. It produces less and less capacity to educate people. It makes students go into debt...”
  [22:11–23:18]

• Wolff:

  “What an advertiser does is try to get you to part with your money for some object. And so the logic of advertising: present all the positives and obliterate all the negatives.”
  [23:18–24:24]

5. Production of Wants, Needs, and Desires

• Harvey:

  “One of the things about capital is the production of wants, needs and desires in such a way as to define a whole way of life... The whole style of life has political consequences.”
  [24:24–25:39]

6. Technological Contradictions: The Promise and Reality of Time-Saving

• Harvey:

  “We have household technologies now which are time saving... And if you ask people, yeah, does anybody, how do you feel these days? Do you have a lot of free time? And the answer is no.”
  [26:34]

7. Trump, Alienation, and Political Consequences

• Harvey:

  “Marx has a very good analytic concept... alienation. People are alienated in their work... We have a mass alienation of populations right now... I think Trump is the president of alienation.”
  [27:34–28:40]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On holding corporations legally responsible for worker suicide:

  “In France, you prosecute people who impose suicidal conditions. Here in the United States, you pretend it doesn’t count.” – Richard D. Wolff ([06:30])

• On the emptiness of corporate promises:

  “It’s an empty promise that no one follows up on in France, partly because of the power of the labor movement and... socialist, communist... parties. You can’t do that the way you do that in this country.” – Richard D. Wolff ([13:40])

• On manufactured needs and suburban life:

  “The system is producing us rather than serving us. It’s almost the Frankenstein monster, our creation comes back and dominates us.” – Richard D. Wolff ([25:39])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Colorado & Worker Co-ops: [00:10–02:40]
• NY Cab Driver Suicides/French Law: [02:40–06:45]
• California Rent Control: [06:45–09:10]
• Tariffs & Trade Wars: [09:10–12:10]
• GE’s Job Promises in France: [12:10–14:41]
• Detroit’s Collapse & Corporate Accountability: [14:41–16:21]
• Interview Introduction (David Harvey): [16:21]
• Marx’s Insights & Instability: [16:21–18:55]
• Inequality & Market Logic: [18:55–21:34]
• Systemic Defenses & Contradictions: [21:34–25:39]
• Technology’s Contradictions: [25:39–26:59]
• Harvey on Trump & Alienation: [26:59–28:40]
• Closing Remarks: [28:40–28:49]

Tone and Language

The episode is forthright, critical, and at times impassioned, blending accessible explanations with polemical urgency. Both Wolff and Harvey speak as both scholars and activists, illuminating capitalism’s flaws while urging systemic alternatives and deeper public engagement.

For listeners and readers new to the show or Marxist economic critique, this episode provides both timely news-driven examples and foundational economic theory—showing precisely why alternative analyses of capitalism remain vital to understanding contemporary crises.