More Working Man's Blues

Now Argentinian libertarian Milei has an electoral mandate to impose yet more "free market" austerity on that fragile country. And he got the votes from the working classes living in the favelas of the large cities. Milei enjoys his popularity due to being Trump adjacent and he shares in some of Trumps entertainment qualities. This new form of anti-politics/ entertainer politician appeals to working people in many places now - for instant the entertainer Farage in Great Britian is leading in the poles. It is dubbed 'far right" in the mainstream media because of the anti-immigrant nationalist chauvinism these movements espouse. Left wingers are quick to see these folks as proto or neo-fascist with their mass appeal and authoritarian leaders and these same leftists seem to think good old redistributive policies are the way to organize these same masses in a progressive movement. What would Jane McAlevey do? In a piece in today's NYTimes the grifter running for governor of New Jersey puts it like this: “I can say, ‘I’m going to lower taxes,’ and I get a nice round of applause,” said Mr. Ciattarelli, the Republican candidate for governor of New Jersey. “But I say, ‘I’m bringing back the plastic bags,’ and it brings down the house, every time.” Everyday people just want to use plastic, they love plastic and will die for the freedom to use plastic. Sure, a guy like Mamdani can get people in a place like New York City to believe the place can become "affordable", whatever that means, and maybe they will figure out a way to get rich folk to pay for it. In NY City. Or San Francisco. Not in Montana. Here the people want to be able to afford a giant truck with wheels that stick way out. A black truck that is way off the ground. And they will vote for anybody who promises to lower rich people's taxes. To pay for the trucks they will support fossil fuels in any form because that is where the money is. Hence, the plastic bags. The 2.99 price of gasoline. This will be the campaign slogan for Democrats in 2026 : Fine. You Can Keep Your Plastic Bags! But once in power they run up against the same old problem, one that is much bigger than bags degrading in the biosphere. They will have to keep the workers in treats. And that gets more and more challenging as the chits get called in, all the claims on future growth get cashed and the only (non)solution is for everybody to put in longer hours producing less and less. While the bags degrade.

Bursting Bubbles

Everywhere there is increasing nervousness about this growing AI/ data center bubble. According to much of what I am reading, the insane investment in this one dubious sector is the only thing propping up a hollow global economy. If you think there is rebellion now, if /when that bubble bursts it will be ugly. I guess that's why so many are hedging with gold, but it seems unlikely a safe full of gold will save you when there are soup lines stretching around the block. The other problem with having your entire economy depend on one technology is that somebody who doesn't like you might have control over a critical component of said technology. If you forgot about the whole "supply chain" thing, because you were busy deporting workers or firing workers, you could be screwed. The other bubble that could burst is the idea that so-called "democracies" are governed by and for the people. As Trump threatens to crash Argentina (again) unless they vote in his boy, the people get a glimpse of who is in charge. Sort of like the Brits did when the markets forced Liz Truss to resign. Mamdani is touting the past success of "sewer socialism" as he campaigns, but if this program was so successful, wouldn't we all be social democrats by now, if not actual socialists? Unfortunately, the opposite is true, that is, it is the forces of reaction which now dominate. Shouldn't we be asking why "sewer socialism" failed? Dozens of major cities were governed by socialist mayors in the last century and brought lots of services and benefits to working class people. What happened to all that? I would suggest a couple of things. First, those benefits proved to a lot of people that you could have a kinder, gentler capitalism that shares some of the surplus. The other thing that happened was when the balance of power began to shift a bit too far towards labor, Capital went on strike. As it always will. A couple more bubbles bursting: The Children's Trust lawsuits against the Trump administration's lack of climate action and The No Kings protests. This is the most resistance liberals can imagine: going to court or standing on the sidewalk counting honks. Neither gets you where you need to go, in fact it could be argued ( I do) that these actions are counter-productive, that they just set you spinning in an endless loop. They are designed for the old media/ political landscape that no longer exists. We now live in the liminal space predicted by Baudrillard- the Spectacle of DeBord. That means any reistance has to adapt.

"No Kings" Misses The Point

Liberals, progressives and Democrats eagerly await the No Kings protest set for next week. But the problem is not Kings. Western society already had those bourgeois revolutions long ago; the English revolution in 1688, the French Revolution in 1799, the American revolution ending in 1783. We don't want or need those revolutions repeated now, we need to confront the contradiction of so-called liberal "democratic" capitalism, which is the real ruler over us all. This upset over authoritarians misses the point; leaders like Trump are symptoms of a much more insidious disease. Getting rid of him or MAGA or Project 2025 doesn't get rid of the problem, at best it only kicks the can down the road, giving us a kinder, gentler capitalism for a little while. But it is the entire system which is in crisis. Perfect example: they just awarded the Nobel in economics to promoters of Green Tech Capitalism. They claim there is no limit to economic growth as long as we embrace technological innovation. A self-reinforcing feedback loop of capitalist promotion, cranking out a whole new generation of innovators and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who turn a blind eye to energy and ecological limits. It is a religion, a cult of true believers all wanting to get in on the ground floor of the next big thing. While ignoring the social and biological collapse happening in real time. Another bourgeois democratic revolution with another constitution cannot slow this collapse. That's a liberal fantasy that is totally discredited yet remains dominant. That was then, this is now. Meanwhile, all across the globe, angry young people are getting rid of corrupt leaders while they remain stuck in an unsustainable system. The new leaders will face the same pressures as the old ones; having to attract investment, having to exploit resources and workers, having to embrace austerity to deal with debt. That doesn't change. They can write a wonderful constitution and they can have free and fair elections and have a free press yada yada. But they will still be taking orders from their central banks who will be taking orders from other central banks. That's the King you need to get rid of.