I sit down with British economist, author and political activist Grace Blakeley to discuss her new book “Vulture Capitalism” and why everything we know about capitalism is wrong
Joanna, you were right that I'd enjoy this interview. I've been following Grace on social media for some time now, but I appreciated your perspective in this interview as well.
In the US, as Grace mentions here, there was a brief era following WWII in which unions had the sway to be able to advocate on workers' behalf to foster equality and collective power. The gap between corporate executives and everyday workers was smaller than ever during this time, and this was largely seen as a positive thing! I'd say the negative trend began a bit earlier than the 1980s, both on the government front (deregulation under Carter) and big business (the 1971 Lewis Powell memo). The latter, in my opinion, was more influential because it had a normative impact on our perception of free enterprise vs. collectivism — Reagan exacerbated this, of course, but the blueprint for elevating the standing of US businesses (and the extractive capitalist model in general) had been fully laid out by the 1980s. Unfortunately, they were, and still are, much better coordinated — not to mention better funded — than the movements for collectivism and equity. This is why books like Vulture Capitalism are so important, because we've essentially been brainwashed for the last 50 years about what capitalism and free enterprise are in reality, clouding our view of how capitalism actually operates in the United States and around the world.
Thank you for such an informative response Casey, and I'm glad that you enjoyed it!
"because we've essentially been brainwashed for the last 50 years about what capitalism and free enterprise are in reality, clouding our view of how capitalism actually operates in the United States and around the world."
This is it.
I wonder how this message can be translated to people on a mass scale so that the facts are very clear, a kind of timeline so to speak? I'm increasingly wondering what will happen next in capitalism, what would need to happen to change things? I agree with Grace that collective action is essential. There needs a real sense of urgency from us all for it to come about, and action from big business itself.
I agree! In my view, just as how Grace critiques UBI for being excessively top-down, the approach to education must take a grassroots approach. Part of it is community-based, people like me and you writing and sharing with our families and friends on the issues that are important to us. We have our own community here on Substack that we can use to amplify and spread content that speaks truth to collective power. It's also about supporting journalism and civil society organizations that take a bottom-up approach to holding corporations (and corrupt politicians) accountable. It's a process that requires patience and steadfastness, but I'm hopeful. :)
Thank you Patrick, I’m pleased to hear that you found the interview very interesting. All of your points are very well said (as per usual). It will be interesting to discover if certain reforms will come to fruition (G20 finance ministers are currently discussing a global billionaire’s tax) and how this will change things.
A very interesting interview, Joanna. I like how Grace insists on structural changes and collective solutions. That criticism of UBI is very apt.
I think monopoly is the natural trajectory of all systems; they generally progress towards amassing power and entrenching themselves. I also think this is the trajectory of capitalism. As inequality deepens, those at the core (governments, corporations) will have to find a way to cede some power to consumers/citizens. Otherwise, the periphery will become so large and unstable such that the natural reaction will be implosion.
Communism and socialism are poor at producing; they just cannot last. Capitalism does poorly at distributing. This is a problem that can be postponed but not ignored. That time frame for postponing could be nearing its end.
Joanna, you were right that I'd enjoy this interview. I've been following Grace on social media for some time now, but I appreciated your perspective in this interview as well.
In the US, as Grace mentions here, there was a brief era following WWII in which unions had the sway to be able to advocate on workers' behalf to foster equality and collective power. The gap between corporate executives and everyday workers was smaller than ever during this time, and this was largely seen as a positive thing! I'd say the negative trend began a bit earlier than the 1980s, both on the government front (deregulation under Carter) and big business (the 1971 Lewis Powell memo). The latter, in my opinion, was more influential because it had a normative impact on our perception of free enterprise vs. collectivism — Reagan exacerbated this, of course, but the blueprint for elevating the standing of US businesses (and the extractive capitalist model in general) had been fully laid out by the 1980s. Unfortunately, they were, and still are, much better coordinated — not to mention better funded — than the movements for collectivism and equity. This is why books like Vulture Capitalism are so important, because we've essentially been brainwashed for the last 50 years about what capitalism and free enterprise are in reality, clouding our view of how capitalism actually operates in the United States and around the world.
Thank you for such an informative response Casey, and I'm glad that you enjoyed it!
"because we've essentially been brainwashed for the last 50 years about what capitalism and free enterprise are in reality, clouding our view of how capitalism actually operates in the United States and around the world."
This is it.
I wonder how this message can be translated to people on a mass scale so that the facts are very clear, a kind of timeline so to speak? I'm increasingly wondering what will happen next in capitalism, what would need to happen to change things? I agree with Grace that collective action is essential. There needs a real sense of urgency from us all for it to come about, and action from big business itself.
I agree! In my view, just as how Grace critiques UBI for being excessively top-down, the approach to education must take a grassroots approach. Part of it is community-based, people like me and you writing and sharing with our families and friends on the issues that are important to us. We have our own community here on Substack that we can use to amplify and spread content that speaks truth to collective power. It's also about supporting journalism and civil society organizations that take a bottom-up approach to holding corporations (and corrupt politicians) accountable. It's a process that requires patience and steadfastness, but I'm hopeful. :)
Thank you Patrick, I’m pleased to hear that you found the interview very interesting. All of your points are very well said (as per usual). It will be interesting to discover if certain reforms will come to fruition (G20 finance ministers are currently discussing a global billionaire’s tax) and how this will change things.
A very interesting interview, Joanna. I like how Grace insists on structural changes and collective solutions. That criticism of UBI is very apt.
I think monopoly is the natural trajectory of all systems; they generally progress towards amassing power and entrenching themselves. I also think this is the trajectory of capitalism. As inequality deepens, those at the core (governments, corporations) will have to find a way to cede some power to consumers/citizens. Otherwise, the periphery will become so large and unstable such that the natural reaction will be implosion.
Communism and socialism are poor at producing; they just cannot last. Capitalism does poorly at distributing. This is a problem that can be postponed but not ignored. That time frame for postponing could be nearing its end.