Mike Spencer's illustrative example highlights the relevance of my initial 3-sentence summary from the Producer/Predator perspective. That is, how predators ruin the work and cooperation of producers.
Whether one is asking for a distinction between function and status, or for overcoming this distinction in practical work groups, one cannot ignore the Producer/Predator distinction: Producers focus on function (of work, tools and products), whereas predators are obsessed with status and (organizational) structure. The emphasis on functions while ignoring status/structure, as outlined in the example of raising a barn, can only work among producers, but will be ruined by predators, on small scale (barn) as well as on large scale (corporations, society). Ruined not necessarily by outright sabotaging it, but by subverting it, in order to perpetuate exploitation in different forms. For example, predators will maintain or quickly create _informal_ hierarchies even in a group of individuals of formally equal status, even if this subverts functional cooperations. As long as predators are in charge, it is illusional to think that exploitation can be overcome, even by "formally" abolishing employment and/or hierarchies. Predators always find ways to perpetuate exploitation in different forms. Even if they sell it -- in Orwellian schemes like the "Ich-AG" -- as "liberation". Chris ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SpamWall: Mail to this addy is deleted unread unless it contains the keyword "igve". _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list Futurework@fes.uwaterloo.ca http://fes.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
