Towards a New Socialism ? by W . Paul Cockshott and Allin F . Cottrell
نویسندگان
چکیده
Short of state implosion, what those who wish to promote free markets most need is an unevasive, contemporary, socialist theory. A bird cannot fly without air resistance, and those who oppose planning, egalitarianism, and “democracy” cannot long be sustained by grudging consent, however wide, relieved only by pedantic disputes over the terms of agreement. W. Paul Cockshott and Allin Cottrell in their book Towards a New Socialism supplemented by a number of substantial papers1 (1993a, 1993b, pp. 71–99; 1993c, pp. 73–112; 1993d, pp. 157–85; 1997, pp. 177–302) have come as close to developing a serious, up-to-date version of a neo-Marxist political economy as we are likely to see. They propose that money be abolished, replaced by labor tokens, that these be equally (or nearly equally) distributed, that we voluntarily reorganize into communes, and that the State dissolve into a neo-Athenian democracy.2 In support of these proposals they claim to have refuted the socialist calculation argument, maintaining that such calculation is perfectly feasible using units of average socially necessary labor time (1993c, chap. 3–9, pp. 20–25). I believe they have succeeded in countering a version of the calculation argument thus ironically clarifying and strengthening the reasons for considering socialist calculation not just as troublesome, but impossible, and valuation in terms of labor an illusion. Aside from a few sour remarks about democracy and equality, I shall confine myself to what Cockshott and Cottrell (hereafter C&C) have to say about socialist calculation.
منابع مشابه
Computers and Economic Democracy
Forty years ago there was little doubt in the minds of socialists that planning was way of the future. This was borne out by the rapid advance of the planned economies, which with Sputnik and Gagarin seemed to outpace the muddled inefciency of capitalist economies. Today of course the picture looks di erent. In the face of the collapse of Soviet power at the end of the 80s, left wing authors se...
متن کاملSocialist planning after the collapse of the Soviet Union
It must seem to many people that the collapse of the Soviet Union (and the planned economies of Eastern Europe) effectively ends the socialist calculation debate, with a decisive verdict in favour of the market. We argue that this conclusion is unwarranted. Soviet socialism presented a specific form of planning with definite shortcomings of its own, and its collapse need not rule out alternativ...
متن کاملInformation and Economics
In a series of recent writings we have sought to re-open a debate over the economics of socialism. We have argued that the collapse of the Soviet system does not necessitate the conclusion that all forms of socialist economy are doomed to inefficiency. Updating and extending a line of reasoning found in Lange (1967) and Johansen (1977),1 we have claimed that modern information technology permit...
متن کاملWhy Labour Time Should Be the Basis of Economic Calculation
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union it has seemed to many that the socialist calculation debate is essentially over, with a decisive verdict in favor of the market. Recent instabilities in the world market are again prompting the question whether some form of conscious regulation of economies may be appropriate. We argue that the increasing power of modern computer technology along with the ...
متن کامل