MINUTES: Globalization Study Group
Meeting of 31 January 2006
 
Present. DC (Douglas Christoffersen), BD (Barry Devine), CD (Cliff Durand), and AY (Arturo Yarish).

We welcome Douglas Christoffersen who plans to join our group until 03 March. DC’s e-address is douglaschristoffersen@hotmail.com

Our Discussion focused on John Bellamy Foster’s interview in Monthly Review, Vol.56, No. 6 of Nov.2004, entitled “Capitalism & the Socialization of Nature” which may be found at http://aurora.icaap.org/2004Interviews/JohnBellamyFoster.html

During a well-developed discussion the following major points were made.

Political forces shape social and economic policy in which people make decisions but the central imperatives of the capitalist system inform legislation that frame the choices people make.

We seem to have developed a political system of inaction founded in the historical distrust of government, which is why we tend to make changes at the point of crisis. Various examples such as New Deal Era legislation and Nation wide highway construction in the Post World War II period were offered as examples.

Recognition of class position and an understanding of relative class power must play role in an analysis of policy formulations.

More aggressive education on environmental issues is essential to increasing public awareness of the major choices we face.

The import contrast presented by JBF between the “Privatization of Nature” and the necessary “Socialization of Nature” became a focal point of discussion. Finite Nature cannot yield the unlimited bounty of resources that Capitalism requires to sustain its systemic need for incessant growth. Therefore, John Bellamy Foster concludes, “…we must achieve the fullest extension of democratic public control…over how the collective resources are used.” The nature of capitalism is approaching its natural limits.

OUR NEXT MEETING will be held at Arturo Yarish’s house on Tuesday, 14 February from 3 to 5 p.m.

GD will distribute a reading as early as may be possible before our next meeting. Sorry for the delay but we were hoping that the book we chose would arrive well before the meeting scheduled for 14 February.

Respectfully submitted by Arturo & Pat