Pictures of the Socialistic Future
Set in 1890’s Imperial Germany, this remarkable novella follows the arc of a family as narrated by the head as he initially enthuses over the socialist sweep to power. Quickly, however, he progresses through various stages of disenfranchisement that inevitably follows: first tempering his expectations, then ratcheting them downward, followed by grappling with cognitive dissonance brought about by the internal contradictions of the new system. When those contradictions are inescapable, he finally spirals into angst and despair as he comes to fully comprehend the horrors of socialism. Realizing it is too late for himself, his family and livelihood largely destroyed, he commits one final act of repudiation against his socialist future. Originally written in German in 1893 by the journalist and politician Eugen Richter, it was translated into English in 1907 by Henry Wright with Thomas Mackay providing an introduction to the English text. Now that so-called “democratic socialism” is finding new found vogue in the current age, Mark E. Jeftovic provides a new forward with contemporary context. Get it now
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Read MoreAmerica teeters on the precipice: our government is now captive to special interests and big money, twin cancers that threaten our democracy. This accelerating crisis is exacerbated by a toxic social media-fueled tribalism that has replaced “what do you think?” with “which side are you on?” Our crisis isn’t just political – it’s structural: as the pace of change explodes from gradual to non-linear, the organizations that dominate our economy – centralized corporations and government – become destined to fail. We see this failure in both the soaring inequality that has hollowed out the American Dream as well as in the rising tide of social and political disunity. To prevent the fall of our democratic republic, we must transform our economy and society from the ground up. As we enter a new era of rapid, unprecedented tumult, it is we citizens who will need to save our democracy. For our political and financial elites will cling to their centralized power, doing more of what’s failed, even as civil society unravels. All is not lost – yet. Our way forward starts with understanding the fatal flaws of our brittle, self-serving status quo and embracing this basic truth: better options are available if we’re willing to explore.To pathfind our way to a better destiny, we must create new localized structures optimized for resilience and adaptability – a flexible, decentralized, sustainable, democratic, opportunity-for-all nation. Get Audiobook
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Read MoreInequality is rising globally, and rising inequality is destabilizing. A status quo of increasing inequality self-destructs. To avoid this fate, we must answer this question: Why is the gulf between the wealthy and everyone else widening so dramatical...
Read MoreThe current conventional-wisdom view of our soon-to-be future is rose-tinted: Automation will free millions of people from the drudgery of work, then by taxing the robots doing all the work, we can pay everyone universal basic income (UBI), enabling a life of leisure and artistic pursuit for all. The result: a future of universal happiness. But is this accurate? Is this what UBI is actually capable of doing? More importantly, is this what we want? And even more importantly: Will this “future” be our best future? Will it account for and manage the practicalities of work, money, and automation, given the limits of endless growth on a finite planet? Money and Work Unchained drags the now-popular concept of universal basic income (UBI) from the shadows of pundit blather into a harsh, illuminating light, and in doing so presents an entirely new view of the future that upends our conventional understanding of work and money. This audiobook lays out a practical pathway that realigns work, money, and human fulfillment into a sustainable system that sheds the inequalities and injustices of the status quo in favor of a human-scale way of living. Get Audiobook
The post Money and Work Unchained by Charles Hugh Smith appeared first on SpokenTome Media: Audiobooks.
Read MoreInequality is rising globally, and rising inequality is destabilizing. A status quo of increasing inequality self-destructs. To avoid this fate, we must answer this question: Why is the gulf between the wealthy and everyone else widening so dramaticall...
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