Brian’s Reflection: Monday, January 17, 2011

My rackets are run on strictly American
lines and they're going to stay that way.

Capitalism is the legitimate
racket of the ruling class.

Guess Who


I’m trying to stay away from politics for politics sake. But so often, politics and economics and who we are are profoundly related.

I am reading a fascinating book on economics ….. as far as I can understand it! It’s hard; I have no background or education. It is called “The Value of Nothing”. And the author, Raj Patel, and American from San Francisco, has the knack for helping ignoramuses like myself to comprehend.

I suppose that no form of economics is intrinsically “wicked”. But that all forms of economic structuring can be used either “wickedly” or not. “Wicked” meaning: it harms and demeans Humankind.

To be simplistic, an economic system can be considered “wicked” (my “take”) when it defines human beings as objects to be used for making money, with no consideration for any other dimension of being Human.

Shaping human beings into Consumers, into essentially objects or tools for making unlimited amounts of money by corporations and politicians, is “wicked”.

The exercise for today is for us to think about what is essential for being a Human Being ….. for being the person you want to be. What principles do you use for making this determination? It could be an interesting day!

The quotes are from Al Capone, who was born on this day, 1899. And I think his insights into Capitalism as it is now in America, and his insight into his “rackets”, are both bang on.

Brian+