Yanis Varoufakis: We are living in a post-capitalist dystopia
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- Опубликовано: 21 фев 2022
- From the push to turn more of the workforce into precarious “gig workers” to the ways profit-seeking digital platforms condition how we act and think while extracting free data from us, we can see and feel everyday the creeping evidence that we are living in a new reality. As world-renowned Greek economist, author, and politician Yanis Varoufakis argues, “This is how capitalism ends: not with a revolutionary bang, but with an evolutionary whimper. Just as it displaced feudalism gradually, surreptitiously, until one day the bulk of human relations were market-based and feudalism was swept away, so capitalism today is being toppled by a new economic mode: techno-feudalism.”
In their latest interview for TRNN, co-hosts of THIS IS REVOLUTION Jason Myles and Pascal Robert speak with Varoufakis about how this “techno-feudalist” system emerged, what sets it apart from the global capitalist system that preceded it, and what it will mean for humanity if we don’t stop it. Yanis Varoufakis formerly served as the finance minister of Greece and is currently the secretary general of MeRA25, a left-wing political party in Greece that he founded in 2018. He is a professor of economics at the University of Athens and the author of numerous books, including The Global Minotaur: America, Europe and the Future of the Global Economy and Another Now: Dispatches from an Alternative Present.
Read the transcript of this interview: therealnews.com/
Pre-Production/Studio: Jason Myles
Post-Production: Cameron Granadino
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The fact Corporations treat our environment as an externality and we allow them to get away with that means we're all doomed. Solidarity = survival
This is critically important. Why aren't all those plastic bottles coca cola's problem instead of everyone else's?
Thanks for articulating this have been thinking this for years!!
@Richard Gilley We don’t have a sustainable forestry. Maybe if you believe monocrops doused with herbicides and insecticide and “forests” of spindly softwoods lined in rows replacing older growth, hardwoods, diversity of all flora and fauna and not to mention the destruction of wetlands is a sustainable forestry industry. It’s not. It’s how the lumber companies decided it was going to be defined and they told the politicians and the politicians instructed their red and blue pawns to accept it and they did - and a bunch of bought off “environmentalists” helped that fiction be told.
@@JH-pt6ih Greenwashing at this critical hour is beyond nauseating
@@saskk2290 I don’t know what you are getting at.
Thank you, Yanis Varoufakis for everything you do to stand up against the ideological absolutism of the capitalists.
I am a Greek and this guy is a clown! When Greece needed him the most he dipped out like a coward! He is a over read Marxist, who was also a lazy bum and leached off his family complaining!
@@Skabanis Well he's quite a thinker and makes sense.
Yanis is the Greek hero of our time that the world needs.
"Adults In The Room" is a terrific read! Free Julian Assange & Leonard Peltier!
Yes it is, and Yanis book Talking to My Daughter About Economics also FANTASTIC.
Screw Julian Assange....he ain't on our side
This is Revolution is one of the best political shows out there right now. However, I am with Varoufakis on Star Trek being better than Star Wars.
Sorry, not 4, 5 or 6.
@@rhonda6791 movie wise, those are better than any Star Trek movies, agreed. In terms of Star Trek’s world, and the best of the series (and earlier films), I think Star Trek is where it’s at.
Still, the OG Star Wars movies are so goddamn good; 4 and 5 being perfect films, and 6 being a 9/10 film. I can’t say that about any Star Trek movies.
@@nikolademitri731
Hi Nicola, I see what you mean by the whole Star Trek world. I’m reading a Star Wars book with one of the kids I teach, The Master And Apprentice. Obi Wan is young and Qui Gon is his master. It’s really good.
Who’s your favourite Star Wars character? Of course I love Obi Wan but for me it’s Darth Vader.
star wars is a space opera, star trek is the real world in digestible doses
@@saeedhossain6099
Interesting, thank you.
I urge anyone who is a staunch defender of capitalism to listen to this man, he is the arrow that pierces through the deep fog of deception.
What does it mean to support Capitalism, if it always becomes fascism/kleptocracy/oligarchy?
@@lyndonbarsten393 Because Socialism turns into fascism/kleptocracy/oligarchy in terms of years (if it doesn't start that way) as opposed to terms of decades like capitalism. The real problem is too much government power. Socialism is about government control of the economy so the government oppression of the people gets a head start with socialism. The path to freedom is to limit the power of the government and the wealthy.
@@phookadude you aren’t getting it. You are worried about fascism to you. But the reason why your gas is cheaper than is should be is because of fascism in other countries. Other countries pay ppl less and have lower quality of life flap your gas is cheap. What if Saudi Arabia was a true democracy? Gas bill oils be more expensive to you, do you agree?
@@NotShowingOff The US was energy independent a couple of years ago which drove oil prices to all time lows. Venezuela is a perfect example of socialism's failure as they have the largest oil reserves in the world and one of the wealthiest populations in the 1960's and over 60 years of nationalization and kleptocractic governments they are a failed state. If any country could have made socialism work it would be Venezuela but all you need to know about it is Hugo Chavez's daughter is a multi billionaire from government sources. Governments are made of people and no people should be trusted with anywhere near the power a socialist government requires.
@@phookadude how can the power of the wealthy be limited
A good human being! Love this man!
Only tuned in for Yanis but am most pleasantly surprised. Almost forgot what real substance looks like.
Wow, opened my eyes. Thank you for helping me see the light.
Conservatives love to claim that we leftists "don't know basic economics"- in fact, the more I learn about economics & listen to the perspective of people like Varofaukis who are outside the narrow neoliberal orthodoxy, the more socialister I become.
They want us to believe there is only one way for economics to work...their way.
Techno-feudalism = the WEF's goal.
I've seen several of Yanis' speeches and read a couple of his books. He is the best explainer I know of when it comes to the global economic system. Unfortunately, most people are not open to even considering his ideas, preferring instead to accept what corporate media tells them.
"Talking to my Daughter about the Economy" is such a great book. If you can get people to read one book it should be that one. I always recommend it.
@@shyman3000 That one I listened to - audiobook. It is excellent, as it is written for the layman and explained with examples everyone can understand.
@@shyman3000 awesome book, his new sci fi one is even better. One of the best I've read in years
@@13strandquistc From what i heard him describe made me think of Aldous Huxley who is a favorite of mine. I will have to check it out.
@@shyman3000 Probably more similar. His is closer to utopian fiction, which right now is so refreshing to read something hopeful and forward thinking, instead of reading the same old "capitalism bad" dystopian fiction.
I am with Varoufakis all the way, with one caveat, that we shouldn't implicitly or explicitly disrespect the efforts of labor activists, many of whom died to get the concessions described (ca 1932-91). Even if it wouldn't have happened without the competition of communism as a system, those people still did what they did, and did it for us. Love the forum, the hosts are fantastic, so on topic and well versed and extra hosty. Thanks for getting YV on!
Capitalism can only exist as a positive force in society if corporations and monopolies are outlawed. Otherwise, financial power will always get consolidated at the very top. Love listening to Yanis speak!
Varoufakis is such an interesting man to listen to. Well read with a deep understanding of history.
"I always blame the Left" -- understood properly, this is a strategically crucial insight. So many of the struggles and paths taken by the leftist leaderships of the 20th and 21st century come down to a loss of nerve at the critical moment, with Tsipras being a relevant example. That loss of nerve is not fundamentally a matter of moral character, it is rooted in historical perspective and a sober yet robust confidence in the creative capacities of the working class. The balance of forces won't always be in our favor, so defeats are inevitable. But there have been many occasions where the opposite was the case, and the struggle was not for the ruling class to win, but for the working class to lose -- not through any fault of their own, but as a consequence of the failures of leadership.
It is something of an ideological act of cowardice to say after the fact, "well, the defeat was overdetermined" and absolve oneself of any serious insight and responsibility. Lessons have to be learned, not to moralistically separate saints from sinners, but because objectively assessing historical experience is of strategic importance to the international working class.
So well said
Very well said Mr. Marothy ;)! I'm someone whose quite obsessed with strategy and the one thing I always want remind my comrades to shift from just general criticism and engage more in constructive criticism. The former could at best be self-indulgent, whilst the latter serves the purpose of advancing our overall cause.
Top quality content. Thank you guys!
The most enlightening and informative program and discussion that I have ever witnessed and listen to!
All three of you guys I’ve blown my mind and expanded it in ways I could never have imagined!
Infinite gratitude and appreciation for your generous contribution to
The successful continuation of our species and it’s attempt to be civilized......🕊🦋⚖️⏰❗️🖖❗️🖖❗️🖖❗️🖖
excellent interview, really liked the questions.
This is a most awesome and informative interview guys... Thanks! Keep it up yo!
Once again, fantastic content comrades. Love the way ya let Yanus just talk through it. Would like to here Pascal's response to Yanis''s take on last question ... after I enjoy a lengthy conversation about Stars Trek and War.
"Capitalism is the extraordinary belief that the nastiest of men for the nastiest of motives will somehow work for the benefit of all."
No one believes that. Capitalism is not a belief, it's a material reality of society; it's a mode of production. Asserting that capitalism is a belief is equally absurd as asserting that slavery is a belief.
@@KingOfShenanigan who you kidding? Capitalism is God in the states.
@rockdale-gym Y'all are not understanding what I'm saying. CAPITALISM IS NOT JUST A BELIEF. Yes there is an ideological component to capitalism, but it's not just an ideology it is a mode of production. Hunter-gatherer, slave society, feudalism, socialism, are some other modes of production.
All modes of production have their ideological components. For example, feudalism had ideological components such as the divine right of kings and noble blood, but that doesn't mean that feudalism was just a belief.
In a nutshell! Unfettered Capitalism has demonstrated for over a century that greed is NOT good for the betterment of the human experiment. Just a privileged few.
@@KingOfShenanigan You're splitting hairs. If the OP would have more specifically written something like, "Capitalism is legitimated by the extraordinary belief that [...]", would you have been satisfied?
This was a very fascinating interview. Great job guys.
Great questions n great Guest!
I try to catch Yanis each time a recent interview appears. This was an excellent session! Trekkies of the world, unite! Thank you Jason and Pascal for great questions.
Yeah, overall this was really interesting. Pascal and Jason tied sci-fi in well towards the last question...( Speaking of political and class divides in this context, "The Expanse" series comes to mind : )
So happy to see yall speaking with Yanis. One thing to add to his point at the beginning about platforms like Alexa and Google maps extracting value without compensation--all these platforms and algorithms, e.g. Google translate, are harvesting & aggregating the labor of millions of real, human translators and writers and speakers and laborers that they cannot function without; they are all completely built and made better by our participation and data
What a great interview & discussion!
Thank you all.
First show I've caught. Good stuff.
Edit: whoa.😮
That doom metal over Bolshevik footage is badass as fuck. I love it. 👍
Thank you! It's my band (Jason from the show THIS IS REVOLUTION>podcast). Look up Bitter Lake, hella stuff on Bandcamp and Spotify, etc.
Thanks to you guys for creating yet another portal for enjoying and assimilating the thoughtfulness of Yanis Varoufakis. Do keep up the excellent work.
5:28 Quote from Another Now: underlaying concerns of a dystopian future .
6:20 foregrounding science fiction
6:40 Indigenous Australian “Dreaming” had been evolving over 40,000 years, until European “Invasion”. It mythologised origin, explained language, organised country and ancestral families and laws over property and for governance. It wasn’t the imagining of things that didn’t exist but instead of existence itself as it was - until the cultural break. Reaccumulation is only 250 years young, we still have lots of time. Possibility is an inherent part of story itself. Science Fiction is the fictionalised possibilities of science infused with the everyday, and that dreaming is still with us and largely forms the dominant origin story since the birth of the industrial revolution. Science has been with all humans and possibly all human types forever and possibly is the early example of our abstract thinking ability and as such is a wonderful cladistic grouping, of similarity not differences.
8:50 Techno Feudalism
15:55 “50plus Year Counter Revolution context - brilliant.
28:00 Counter
34:17 The reality of Techno Feudalism for traditional Labour.
40:54 Wtf 😳 happened with Syriza!?
47:17 Star Wars vs Star Trek - who owns the universe debate - rescheduled for another Galaxy quadrant.
48:31 Q: The inability of the left today to capture the imagination of black and brown people in America.
( timing the conversation out is for my own records - it’s an important theory - it was nothing more than that)
Indigenous Dreaming doesn’t fit neatly into western narratives, it very much part of the reason they have remain culturally seperate despite having lived along side each other for over two hundred years. There were over 500 different clan groups or 'nations' around the continent, many with distinctive cultures, beliefs and languages so which one are you talking about. Not all nations got along together just like today, some could easily said to be liberals, other conservatives and others again socialist and even Maoist’s.
Kym, YOU'RE BRILLIANT! Now I can clip these for our channel!! (this is Jason from TIR)
@@LaFinAbsoluteduMonde Hi Jason, nice to meet you.
@Huai Danny I imagine a lot of its to do with initially the focus and it’s nature via Marxism on a specific epoch: the enlightenment onwards.
You the real MVP. 🥂
@Teratology was just another rationalisation she had about the efficiency of output.
Great interview with Varoufakis. You provided him with interesting questions to answer and a welcoming atmosphere. I watch all of the Varoufakis interviews. This was a really good one.
Great interview with thoughtful questions. Glad to have found this channel!
Absolutely on mark…I’ve worked in corporate America my whole life and it’s truly beyond anything I’ve ever seen.
I was with Yanis until what I understood him to say about centralized digital currencies; i.e., that they are OK. Combined with a social credit system it gives the ruling elite an instant way to punish those who offer resistance to their rule. "Oh, you criticized Dear Leader? Don't expect to be able to buy groceries for two weeks."
Job security is completely gone
That was one of the best interviews with YV that I have seen. Enlightening and accurate
Thank you all! Wonderful, pointed questions - substantial answers that address the questions! What a concept! Think it could catch on? Well-informed, articulate intelligence. I love it!
Another great program - AND you still have the best intro anywhere. :)
Wonderful and thought provoking show as always 🙏
Phenomenal conversation!
Thank you gentlemen for bringing us this interesting interview.
Fan-f-n-tastic interview!!! Thank you for such an indepth conversation.
Great interview! 👍
Well this is an exciting connection! Great to find you here!!! Loved you before, and still, even more! So you and Max Alvarez??? Awesome
Great content guys!! Yanis never dissapoints!!! Thx guys
Unfortunately, the voting age adults in "the land of the free and home of the brave" are not Greeks.
I would be profoundly shocked to hear any american say, "I have only a small pension but gladly risk it for (eg.making fundamental change toward building a real democracy)". NEVER!
Here It would be the exact opposite: "I have only a small pension that I will not risk losing! ~and all my friends feel the same way
I got bills to pay, a family to support and I don't want them to be living out in the street~homeless!
No! Forget it!!!!"
Write your congressman!
They are lap dog slaves. They always respond to their masters dog whistle. They are lobotomized.
It's a very different situation, don't be too down on American workers. You literally see the willingness to endure sacrifice if it means securing dignity in the longer term everytime you see a picket line in this country. the difference is we're in the belly of the beast whereas Greece is in the periphery of the EU and its experience of the crash was much more catastrophic and registered across social strata in starker ways.
@@janosmarothy5409
All the more reason to enlarge expectations not based on the present and a return to a past that had significant vulnerabilities (eg. 1950's) but with a new vision of a future where such inhuman cruelties are the rare exceptions in both the political and economic domains.
It's much more than dignity at issue here.
@@robertburatt Given that I'm talking about class struggle, Greece, and US picket lines, it's clear that dignity is shorthand for something else. I'll spell it out: the articulation of working class power on a socialist basis. And I don't mention dignity lightly, Varoufakis goes out of his way to stress the affirmation of _dignity_ (as against Troika-imposed _humilitation_ ) as a broadly felt subjective expression of outrage against the brutal imposition of austerity as an objective factor in Greek society.
I feel for Yanis when he said he's still recovering. Thank you Yanis for your vulnerability and continuing effort.
Wonderful -- informative AND entertaining. Well done, all.
Amazing how this vid has only gotten a little over 50K views. Everyone should be having this conversation. Thank you, Gentlemen.
Wow you guys and you Yanis what a revealing and stimulating discussion. I bet the people in power and the politicians they control pls the corporate press would not have had a clue and could not possibly enter a discussion like this. Thank you!
Great show! 👍
Yanis is the man. One of the few people on this planet that can give you the truth. Thank you for your dedication to truth and humanity.
Yeah who stole the idea of his novel from the movie "Moon".
Great questions, enjoyed the depth of the conversation.
Great segment. Always enjoy Yanis's take on things
LOVE YANIS!!! You guys are getting amazing guests. Yanis, Chris Hedges, amazing. Thank you!!
Wow!
That last answer from Yanis was so damn insightful and spot on about what
causes divisions amongst people.
With capitalism there is no real incentive by an individual or group to ensure the quality of life of all society. ALL wealth is produced by ALL of society....it just using natural resources to produce goods and then creating services. There is absolutely no blue print of how to distribute the wealth produced....actually it's " last pig to the trough gets no slop"....in other words " greed is good, greed works ". When a society attemps to put any kind of restrictions on capitalism it's accused of being socialist. Capitalism has its place,,but so does society that produces all the wealth. " goods and services is all that really exists " money ( currency ) was created as a means to distribute. ....how's that working out for over 90% of society ( producers and services ) ?
excellent show, excellent guest and excellent questions prompting a great conversation---est stupendo.
Just found your channel, enjoyed this very much
Peace and love to all
What a great discussion. Thank you.
Very interesting discussion ! Thank You !
I was looking for the latest interviews of Yanis, this is bit old interview but great as usual.
Really enjoyed that. Subscribed. 👍
Awesome channel, keep up the good work
Always good to hear from Yanis.
Oooh thinking about moving to Mexico too!! How are you liking it? I've been all over the county and would have a hard times deciding were to move. Thanks Yanis! We need you voice much more at this moment!!
Love this guy. I also have been accused of having verbal diarrhea
Love the show amazing 🤩
An absolute homerun...thanks to all involved!
Great, great show. Thanks guys.
The plot of the book sounds a lot like the plot from "Moon".
The plot of the book is very different, it's just a quote explaining why he made it a sci Fi book.
The book itself is an alternative history of the occupy Wall Street movement. Well worth checking out, it's one of my favorite books I've read in years.
As an American, I cheered when progressives won in Greece. I had hopes of a David and Goliath scenario and yes, I was hurt that they failed, but I definitely understand.
one thing is that the central banks in US and London are private, they are not state.
then remember the supercomputors put inline with stock market? I think this is their way of siphoning out the 401k of the working folks retirement
Awesome discussion!
Varufakis is the voice we need to give sense to our struggle
A brilliant guest!………..👍🏽
Great Job as Well by This Is✊🏾 Revolution
I’m an oaklander too just found the show Thanks for your work
Great interview to all. I took away at least one thing during this episode, that half-measures avail us nothing.
This was so good!
Looking foward to the Star Wars vs Star Trek discussion!
Great Interview - As far as I know YV gives interviews in Greek or English only...
Usually on KPFA Berkeley in the day
Thank y'all, I saved this one👍✊
I'm surprised Mr. Varoufakis' suggestion concerning an organized Black Friday event, including a 1 day Amazon boycott, was sort of ignored due to time constraints. These are tactics which must be considered, we have so little leverage and will never gain any if we don't push back, even if we lose.
Yes!! I'm all up for Star Trek v. Star Wars.
Please consider putting subtitle names under "my friend in Miami." and the other fine cohost. You guys are great, and people need to match a name to your faces.
Totally vibing at 0:15 nothing says our times quite like Thick Sabbathian sludge!
The question and answer after 48:40 are quite enlightening! (Yes the question too!)
That was amazing. I’m on my porch in the sun with a fire up here in Northern New Hampshire enjoying the shit out of this. I love you people.
Yanis is great. Awesome chat.
Great discussion.
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Star Trek (pre-Abrams): Let's be logical and find a better way to resolve our problems than to polarize and kill each other.
Set phasers to stun.
Star Wars (pre and post-Abrams): Abandon rational thought, "trust your feelings," DO polarize (Light Side vs Dark Side).
Light Saber in hand... Brain in neutral.
-
star wars is about blowing up things
Great chat. Would love to see the discussion about Star Trek Liberal Communism vs Star Wars Feudalism. You should definitely tour Greece and maybe make a series.
I love ya two as a tag team. My dudes.
Yanis always brings it :)
So, what about the French Revolution of 1789 that swept away the Feudal Monarchy in France? That revolution was triggered by a volcano eruption event changing the weather enough to cause a food shortage. I think I can agree with Yanis that there is a steady state political equilibrium where a techno-feudal elite dominate our political economy until, a revolution of some kind sweeps it away.
Great show
So crystal clear.
Subscribed for the follow up sci-fi show 😅
You're really playing Silver Hawks in the closing credits? Nice.
If you have ever organized for unions you understand thoroughly his discussion of race and class neglected by the American left. The reminder about Stalin attacking communists was SAVAGE. Thank you for using your voices to address life on the rent level and representing the position of black and brown folk as we endeavor. 😎🤲🙏💪
WOW! Knock out question at 41:47 by "my best Haitian friend in Miami" who by the way is a real genius and ask Yanus about the sadly failed efforts of left to fight raw capitalism in the bunkers of the highest offices in Greece. Yanus very humbly answers on how he tried his absolute best, and NO ONE CAN FAULT YANUS ONE BIT. What a wonderful, amazing human being Yanus is and may he live to the ripe healthy age of 120!