Economic Update: Liberating Technology From Capitalism

[S11 E31] Liberating Technology From Capitalism

On this week's show, Prof. Wolff provides updates on two small labor victories (Vermont's AFL-CIO and 4000 pork-processing meat cutters in Sioux Falls), how global capitalism became even more unequal during the pandemic, Iceland's move to the 4-day work week, US students hobbled by debt, and why "labor shortage" is actually class war. On the second half of the show, Wolff interviews Wendy Liu, author of "Abolish Silicon Valley: How to Liberate Technology from Capitalism."

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“Hennelly brilliantly analyzes our capitalist crises and how individuals cope with them, tragically but often heroically. He helps us draw inspiration and realistic hope from how courageous Americans are facing and fixing a stuck nation.” - Richard D. Wolff
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About our guest: Wendy Liu is a software engineer and startup founder who left the tech industry to pursue a master's degree in inequality from the London School of Economics. She has written about technology and politics for Logic Magazine, Dissent, and Tribune, and has been featured in articles on tech worker organising for The Atlantic and CNBC. Wendy is the author of “Abolish Silicon Valley: How To Liberate Technology From Capitalism.” She lives in San Francisco.

Twitter username is @dellsystem

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SOURCES FOR SHOW SEGMENTS:

[foodparadise]

I think I am at Wendy's age and went through similar scenario to learn the hard truth of capitalism. Now at age 41, I am proud to call myself a socialist. If Capitalism don't die, nothing will live.

[MountaineeringSense]

Love the Wolff! Leaned so much from this channel and his interviews are out of this World! Thanks Mr. Wolff & Wendy! Excellent introspection and reflectivity thought here! Socrates would be proud! Silly-Con Valley? Both of you, please keep up the good work!

[edifying]

yep This young lady needs to be commended for her maturity. Why can't a large per cent of Americans see what she saw? I think she is what we are to be when we are adults.

[hassanfares]

Wonderful talk, thank you prof. Wolff.
You are absolutely right about unemployment stats. I gave up on finding a good job and its happening to many. You have major signs of an empire collapse: military arrogance, economic failures, and unlimited division. Stressful times indeed

[Mrs.Sardonicus]

Fantastic interview. If we don't wanna live in tech startup sponsored company towns then we absolutely need to reign in Sillicon Valley, and put their IT in the hands of the public, and their businesses in the hands of Labor.

[GrandmaCathy]

I have a Master's degree. I have a 30 year old student loan. I have a great job now, after starting as a secretary and working my way up in a corporation. I could have done the same with no degree whatsoever.

[kd-mimi]

Thank you for these important updates Prof Wolff

[LONEWOLF..-S-T-L]

SALUTE ... GREAT TALKING POINTS MR WOLFF AS USUAL ... AS WELL AS YOUR INTELLIGENT/BEAUTIFUL GUEST WENDY. LIU... ❤💪🏾💯👍🏾

[mauibill]

In the 70's I worked for start up electronics firms. That was my education in tech. Two or three individuals run the show and pay the engineers and designers to produce a product. Usually they find one small innovation where they can file for patent protection. Then along comes a huge company, like IBM, or Sony and quite ignorantly invent the same thing. Suing the big companies for patent infringement is where the money is.

[bundleofperceptions]

The big problem is that when honest actors find themselves surrounded by corruption, they get disgusted and leave for more honest work, and thus corrupt actors crowd out honest actors. This is true in the political, business, financial, religious, and all other spheres of influence. So corruption is the cause of why technology isn't being used to better the living conditions for all life on Earth, as it could be. We tend not to notice the corruption, like fish don't notice what they are swimming in either.

[esego]

My last job had a 37.5 work week thanks to the Service Employees International Union. However, I ended up working tons of overtime that funded my retirement account. I am now happily retired. Free at last! As Professor Wolff points out, most Americans are still suffering in miserable jobs for insufficient pay. Meat and chicken processing is grueling and underpaid. Stop eating it please. Give the workers, many of whom are undocumented, paths to citizenship and rights to appropriate and safe housing and jobs.

[josiahsuarez]

love that line "Liberating Technology From Capitalism" 👍

[spencerschubert]

Reducing the work week length or hour total is not really an option for large employers. NOT because they don’t believe it could be more productive in logistical practice… but because if you release the psychological and physical burden on the population, they will begin to ask other questions about what they should change. It’s about power. There is greater class solidarity in the elite at the moment than there is in the poor.

[markuspfeifer]

Silicon Valley would fall apart if it wasn’t for open source libraries. Yet, if you try to do open source as a business model based on donations, you will hardly be able to pay yourself anything

[JungleJim]

I'll just leave this big like here. Great guest.

[uayfb]

Prof. Wolff. I don't know if you have already have done so, but if not, could you do something on the recovered companies in Argentina. This movement really took off in 2001 when Argentina experienced an economic collapse, and reneged on its debts. Workers took over companies that went broke or were simply abandoned by their owners; they became workers' cooperatives.

[GhostOnTheHalfShell]

In an economic down turn 500 families gain trillions. From where did this money come?

[jman]

I bet that dog walking job is posed to the students as a great honor

[TTTzzzz]

Smithfield Food Company: Famous? Shouldn't it be Infamous?

[billfrenger]

Thank you Professor Wolff. It would be most interesting to hear your thoughts on Lewis Powell's 1971 memo to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and how or if it has any bearing on what we see before us today.