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Subject: Re: Reich and Marx - Wed, 13 Mar 1996 10:19:00 -0500
Date: Wed, 13 Mar 1996 10:19:00 -0500
From: ccaruso@sas.upenn.edu (Christopher G Caruso)
Message-Id: <199603131455.JAA09624@mail2.sas.upenn.edu>
Subject: Re: Reich and Marx
To: orgonomy@jefferson.village.Virginia.EDU
Sender: owner-orgonomy@jefferson.village.Virginia.EDU
Christopher T. Phillips wrote:
>
> I am sorry if it bothers you, but I simply do not agree
> with this example as a definition of Capitalism. It is, however,
> a fine example of how Marxists define Capitalism !
>
> >> >
> >> >
> >> Well, this clearly shows that Dr. Reich was not an economist.
> >>
> >> Christopher T. Phillips
> >> <zzippy@concentric.net>
> >>
> >
> >I don't know what you mean here. Reich here shows a fairly erudite
> >understanding of Marxist political economy. He is illustrating the
> >difference between someone who is highly paid (like a doctor) and a
> >capitalist. A capitalist is someone who uses capital (money) to exploit
> >the labor of others. For instance, imagine I am a worker in a widget
> >factory. I get paid 5 dollars an hour, and in that hour I make a number
> >of widgets that the capitalist (the owner of the widget factory) will
> >sell for 10 dollars. Thus, my labor is being exploited. I am producing
> >10 dollars of value and only paid 5 dollars. This is due to the private
> >ownership of the means of production (i.e. the factory). It is because
> >the capitalist owns the means of production (the factory) that he is in a
> >position to exploit my labor.
> >
> >Reich's example, of someone who employs five doctors, is an example of
> >the petite bourgeois (literally "small capitalist")- someone who only
> >exploits the labor of a few people.
> >
> >In the course of his explanation, Reich draws the distinction between
> >simple and complex labor. Simple labor, like working in a widget
> >factory, does not require much training. Complex labor, like being a
> >doctor, requires much training. Doctors much be paid more than a
> >widget maker to compensate for the expense of training. This explains
> >why Reich, as a doctor, is paid more than the average worker, but is not
> >a capitalist.
> >
> >Reich also makes the distinction between "value" (or exchange value) and
> >"use value" in his explanation. Money is a token of value. Every
> >commodity in a capitalist economy has two properties: value and use
> >value. A commodity has use value in that it fulfills some human want:
> >food satisfies my need to eat, shoes to walk comfortably, etc. A
> >commodity also has exchange value (or just "value") in that it can be
> >exchanged for other commodities or their equivalent (money). Reich's
> >patients receive use-value (namely, health) from the services he provides.
> >Reich receives exchange value (i.e. money) for the services he provides.
> >In turn, he uses this value (money) to buy products like food, clothes,
> >etc., which have use-value for him (i.e. they fill his needs).
> >
> >Reich's statement here seems impeccable to me. What do you mean when you
> >say that he is 'clearly not an economist'?
> >
> >Do one have to 'be an economist' (i.e. have the proper degrees and
> >status) in order to speak the truth about the economy?
> >
> >--
> >Chris Caruso Check out: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~ccaruso/
> >ccaruso@sas.upenn.edu http://www.igc.org/fair/
> >Philadelphia, PA USA http://www.mcs.com/~jdav/league.html
> >
> >
> >
> > --- from list orgonomy@lists.village.virginia.edu ---
> >
> Reich's paraphrasing of the Marxist definition of Capitalism
> is very accurate, I agree. I was not implying that he was unfamiliar
> with Marxist theory. And I've never said that one must be an economist
> in order to "speak the truth" about the economy. However, I do take
> issue with Marxist definitions of Capitalism, and the villanisation of
> the application of Capitalistic principles, especially when Marxism has
> yet to be applied sucessfully as an economic system.
> Unfortunately there was only one freely-elected Marxist that I
> know of, perhaps I am mistaken, but I beleive it was Presedent Allende
> of Chile. Unfortunately it appears that the U.S. Government assisted
> military dictators to overthrow and murder Allende. Not an unfamiliar
> theme, I'm afraid.
> I simply disagree with the Marxist dogma which villifies
> person or persons that organise people so they can be be steadily
> employed, and depicting them as being little more than exploiters
> of labor, deseving to be prosecuted for wrongdoing. This is, in
> my opinion, seriously flawed.
> That's really all I have to say about it. I am not critiquing
> Reich <at the moment>, after all, he was a product of his time just
> as we are of ours. But I do not feel compelled to blindly accept every
> statement Reich ever made as gospel either. He had his shortcomings
> too. <gasp!> After all, he was born human into a superstitious soceity
> just as we are.
>
>
> Thank You
>
> C. T. Phillips
> <zzippy@concentric.net>
>
>
>
> --- from list orgonomy@lists.village.virginia.edu ---
>
It would be helpful, for purposes of discussion, for you to give an
argument _why_ you think that Marx's definition of a capitalist is wrong,
rather than just asserting it.
To say that "Marxism never worked" is not a real criticism of Marxism.
Marxism is a science of understanding society. Marx pointed out
the internal contradictions of capitalism which will eventually cause its
demise, to be replaced by a new system. He did not draw any blueprints for
what that new system would be, other than the fact that the proletariat would
be in power.
On a more general note, it seems strange to me that because countries like
the USSR and East Germany called themselves "socialist" and have since fallen,
we conclude that socialism or Marxism is a proven failure. (1) They were not
socialist countries. They were state capitalisms. (2) East Germany also
called itself a democratic country. Why don't we conclude that with the
fall of the wall, that democracy has also failed?
--
Chris Caruso Check out: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~ccaruso/
ccaruso@sas.upenn.edu http://www.igc.org/fair/
Philadelphia, PA USA http://www.mcs.com/~jdav/league.html
--- from list orgonomy@lists.village.virginia.edu ---
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