A society without GDP | Martin Wolf

Do we need to rethink economics?

[laars]

GDP is nation wealth but does not indicate how the wealth is divided.
This man is saying there is a growing return to where the top percentage population of earth is working back to how it was in the 'old days' with 10% at the top. I think we're way past that at 2-3% at the top, and they want more.

[elmerfadd]

GDP was adopted as the main measure of a country's economy at the Bretton Woods conference in 1944. So it had nothing to do with wealth development until 1944. The transition away from aristocracy happened because of revolutions throughout the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, not because the GDP was adopted. Since 1944 and the adoption of GDP (but not only because of that) we are on a path towards the zero sum that he is describing.

[edwardsl]

Controlling people with consumption and credit cards

[dncbot]

Many centuries ago, when the population was a fraction of today's, when the technology was much less developed and when democracy and human rights were lacking, things were much different than today. 😮

[astrovarius]

Everyone always forgets to factor in human nature.

It's literally the dominant overarching commonality between us all and defines us in a far deeper and more significant way than any social disparities ever could.

[MrFStCtUK]

Brilliant summary by the FTs old wise man!

[drumdrumcymbal]

Sounds like most 1st world countries now.

[JaseboMonkeyRex]

I think we could possibly change this since it's not written in stone... And we never go backwards to the way things were, it's always spiralling upwards

[themediawrangler]

So let’s impoverish the consumers in a consumer driven economy. Brilliant

[lukasmakarios]

If you want better equality, AND fairness based on merit, you need an economic constitution designed to create it. There will always be levels in society, but we don't have to be ruled by greed.

[Tom_Wolf_]

Thats not what humans do. What about the Scythians, Greeks, Celts, the old Germans during and before Rome etc. Good argument but it doesn't contain every civilisation.

[Mrgasman]

"... because that's what human beings do."
Let it sink for a bit.

[kjmunson]

Time for humanity to stop "being" and start growing.

[Tao_Tology]

I would hope that anyone who watched this clip knows the difference between GDP (which includes _all_ the money that flows through an does not necessarily stay in that particular country or area) and gross _national_ product GNP (which is the amount that actually stays in an economy).

[christophercrane]

Lol this is so funny since as Wolfe knows very well, we are FAR more unequal now than we were back then. And he also knows that our system now in fact extracts ALL surplus, and back then there was merely less surplus to extract.

[PatsRule]

The number on the graph go up, that mean the world more gooder!

[anthonysteele]

I’d edit that last bit to say: ..” because that’s what humans do when abiding by the principles of market economics.

[ravishbhasin]

Basically its stupid to structure society based on economy. Because eventually the basic demands will be met and now you have endless greed for more, propping up Needless consumerism. The one who can fulfill the demands for service or goods is obviously the one who'll benefit the most. Eventually market forces would be running the nation, directly or indirectly. But What about those protect the nation? what about those who are cogs in the system? they'll have to get by meager sums or simply being ignored. Eventually you have to life centric, move into spirituality and slowly shed you habits of waste otherwise you'll ruin the earth with your greed and a portion of society is forced to live in abject poverty.

[patricknorton]

We do a lot of things, good things and bad things, but we do get to choose. I don't know what his point is here.

[pyotrberia]

I think that instead of "GDP" he should really say laissez-faire capitalism or more precisely, the modern version sometimes labeled neoliberalism.