I agree wtih this Arthur... but I would put it slightly differently--that there is no broadly meaningful/acceptable analysis/critique of the current situation or what a desireable outcome from it might be... One of the reasons for this I suspect is again the new media/technologies... The number and diversity of people who need to be engaged/convinced around such an analyis/critique is greater by a factor of 10,000 or so than it was in say Marx's time because of the spread of the conventional media but more recently because of the sense (and to a limited degree reality) of voice and efficacy given to "multitudes" by the the Internet. There are just a lot more people involved in these discussions than previously in history and they are coming from a much more diverse (and divisive) set of perspectives. It doesn't mean that there can't be a coalescence around some meaningful vision (I think) but it makes the process of achieving this much more difficult, time consuming and ultimately democratic. M
-----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Arthur Cordell Sent: Sunday, October 25, 2009 8:09 AM To: 'RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION,EDUCATION'; 'Keith Hudson' Cc: 'Sheila Meldrum' Subject: Re: [Futurework] 65 and Up and Looking for Work I think there is a third thing: There is no positive image of the future which has broad acceptance. After the failures of socialism, communism followed by the corrosive forces in the financial markets, there seems no template, no model to which to turn. arthur From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Ed Weick Sent: Sunday, October 25, 2009 10:27 AM To: Keith Hudson; RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, EDUCATION Cc: Sheila Meldrum Subject: Re: [Futurework] 65 and Up and Looking for Work Two things can be said about the future right now Keith. One is that one doesn't want to think about it. It's too dismal. The other is that one wants to find someone to blame. Bankers perhaps? Blaming the Chicago School has become a bit jaded, but the Harvard Business School has recently come under attack. Perhaps all business schools should share the blame? Ed ----- Original Message ----- From: Keith Hudson <mailto:[email protected]> To: RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME <mailto:[email protected]> DISTRIBUTION,EDUCATION Sent: Saturday, October 24, 2009 10:29 AM Subject: Re: [Futurework] 65 and Up and Looking for Work Ed, There was Special on this on BBC Newsnight last night. During a discussion of the 1930s Depression what I found particularly interesting were comments by a couple of historians that in the US the Depression had enormous political effects (against the bankers and the right-wing) but that this took 18 months even before it began to express itself fully. What has surprised me greatly about the present one (at least over here -- and, similar to the US, we're in a much worse condition than Canada) is that public criticism of the bankers has been relatively mild so far. It's understandable therefore that the politicians have done almost nothing so far about bringing new legislation about and imposing their will on them (as Roosevelt did in the 1930s against fierce opposition of Congress). But if the past is any guide, then social and political explosions will follow shortly! One straw in the wind is that the British National Party over here (about two-thirds of the way towards the German Nazis of the 1930s) is already beginning to take off with 20% public support according to a opinion poll of yesterday. Keith At 09:25 24/10/2009 -0400, you wrote: Thanks for posting, Arthur. Gives a new meaning to the term "depression". It's not only about the economy but also about how people struggling to cope feel about things. Ed ----- Original Message ----- From: Arthur Cordell <mailto:[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Friday, October 23, 2009 11:01 PM Subject: [Futurework] 65 and Up and Looking for Work NY Times October 24, 2009 65 and Up and Looking for Work By STEVEN <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/g/steven_greenho use/index.html?inline=nyt-per> GREENHOUSE
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