Economic Update: Swedish Socialism Undone
Вставка
- Опубліковано 17 лип 2022
- [S12 E27] Swedish Socialism Undone
In this week's show, Prof. Wolff presents updates on SCOTUS decisions, on the chaos of a declining capitalism, French elections and a strongly resurging French left, and on the meaning of recent collapse of the cryptocurrency markets. In the second half of the show, Wolff interviews Eleanor Goldfield, Swedish-US media activist, on why and how Sweden is not socialist.
**Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff is @democracyatwrk production. We make it a point to provide the show free of ads. Please consider supporting our work. Become an EU patron on Patreon: / economicupdate and help us spread Prof. Wolff's message to a larger audience. Every donation counts!
A special thank you to our devoted EU Patreon community whose contributions make this show possible each week.
******************************************************************************************
SUBSCRIBE: EU Podcast | Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | iHeartRADIO
SUPPORT: Join our Patreon community at patreon.com/economicupdate or donate on our website at democracyatwork.info/donate
Follow us ONLINE:
Facebook:
/ economicupdate
/ richarddwolff
/ democracyatwrk
Twitter:
/ profwolff
/ democracyatwrk
Instagram: / democracyatwrk
DailyMotion: www.dailymotion.com/democracya...
Shop our CO-OP made MERCH: democracy-at-work-shop.myshop...
Want to help us translate and transcribe our videos? Learn about joining our translation team: www.democracyatwork.info/geti...
******************************************************************************************
About our Guest: Eleanor Goldfield is a creative radical, journalist and filmmaker. She works with a variety of independent outlets in both written and photojournalism. She is the co-founder of the independent media aggregate RadIndieMedia.com, one of the 2020 recipients of the “Women and Media Award” presented by The Women's Institute for Freedom of the Press, and is currently a board member of the Media Freedom Foundation. Her first documentary, "Hard Road of Hope," has garnered international praise as well as laurels from a dozen film festivals.
Currently, Eleanor is the co-host of the podcast Common Censored along with Lee Camp as well as the co-host of the Project Censored radio show with Mickey Huff. Her work as a community organizer is based on mutual aid principles and direct action.
As an artist, her work typically combines live music, spoken word and projected visuals. Besides touring, performing and media work, she also assists in frontline action organizing and activist trainings.
Links: ArtKillingApathy.com; HardRoadofHope.com
IG and Twitter: @RadicalEleanor
******************************************************************************************
NEW 2021 Hardcover edition of “Understanding Marxism,” with a new, lengthy introduction by Richard Wolff is now available at: www.lulu.com/
“Marxism always was the critical shadow of capitalism. Their interactions changed them both. Now Marxism is once again stepping into the light as capitalism shakes from its own excesses and confronts decline.”
Check out all of d@w’s books: "The Sickness is the System," "Understanding Socialism," by Richard D. Wolff, and “Stuck Nation” by Bob Hennelly www.lulu.com/spotlight/democra...
******************************************************************************************
SOURCES FOR SHOW SEGMENTS:
1. Declining capitalism: www.bloomberg.com/news/featur...
2. Elections in France and Colombia: www.bbc.com/news/world-europe...
3. Layoffs in cryptoworld: www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...
4. BRICS:
a. english.news.cn/20220622/8cb6...
b. www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-i...
5. Election victory in Colombia: www.coha.org/colombias-new-pr...
![Global Capitalism: Capitalism Turns to the Authoritarian State [July 2023]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/w0c5Gfh2ZWY/mqdefault.jpg)
Once the USSR disbanded, there was no "threat" of another way possible so taking away all those social democratic concessions was all the easier.
USSR was never "the other way possible". It was a dictatorship that inevitably failed its promise to its people.
Why can't I see this reply?! Gah!
@@WindowsXP_logon_sound_25yrsago Ikr? This keeps happening all the time on Socialist videos
@@The1Elcil so many replies floating around in the UA-cam ether these days. it's nuts 😒
Um, USSR? You're not REALLY going to call the USSR a socialist country in anything except a few Marxist terms n major exercise in how to make socialism a public disaster, are you? Because Eleanor is speaking literal truth in which even the swedish system is pretty far off from True socialism. So, the USSR in my opinion was a military socialism imposed on them mostly by constant interfering by the state department and then the CIA of the United states, along with continual blacklisting from various world monetary organizations run by who else but the United States, so since the experiment of the USSR was never actually tried under any conditions that could be called favorable, it was not really a truly appropriate experiment.
As "doomer" as it may sound, I have a sick feeling that the global monied few are beginning to "circle the wagons" around their own privilege in response to Earthly "circumstances". In the same fashion that rich white guys ignored the humanity of African slaves and Native Americans, the monied few now seem equally indifferent to the plight of most of us.
I was just trying to write what you have stated here. As insane as it seems the global elite does seem like they are moving to a world war scenario where they can kill their way to absolute dominance.
They refer to us as "the pitchforks"
We must become brothers and sisters in this fight to keep human and animal progress alive.
If it was not for the Africans ignoring the humanity of their fellow Africans, the white
guys would never have had a chance to.
Of the 12 to 15 million Africans shipped west, only 350,000 were introduced to the North American
colonies...and none arrived as slaves, as the 1619 project claims. To add to the irony, it was
one of the original twenty, that was responsible for the legal condition of "chattel slavery"
being imposed on all "arriving" Africans from that point forward...having completed his
indentured servitude, and was given land as per the terms and conditions of this agreement.
He then acquired "indentured servants" of his own, but refused to honor those terms when
they were fulfilled...ended up in 'court" which ruled in his favor, thus condemning all his
fellow Africans to permanent bondage as well as their off-spring, if they had not managed
to complete their service and obtained their freedom at the time of this decision.
It also should be noted that the conditions of slavery in the north American colonies,
were such that constant importation was not required as slave families reproduced
naturally, and were not dying as they were in the other American colonies and reached
their peak of 4 million in 1860...at roughly 14% of the total U.S. population.
As for the indigenous native populations, they hardly responded peacefully to this
clash of cultures, so again...things are not what they seem or correspond to what
is believed and this moral posturing in hindsight serves no useful purpose as
it does not strive for any actual understanding...and the causes that comprise what
is the history of human civilization. Without this understanding, proper resolution
of those problems that continue to plague us, is a pointless exercise.
They SEEM indifferent? Actively working to the enslavement and abuse of most of us is more like it. Whip the galley slaves.
I’ve been an avid listener, watcher , and reader of Professor Wolff since I sat, mesmerized, by the first production I saw featuring him, ‘ Capitalism Hits the Fan ‘, when Democracy at Work was the tiniest twinkle in someone’s eye. Here’s to another decade ( and more ) of Professor Wolff’s organization !…
You're comment is a twinkie thing to say. Sounds like your smitten beyond critical thinking. Are we following no matter where they take us? The Critical Drinker gives us an idea of how we could think, although I refrain from cursing and do not advocate its use.
The Sad Tale of The Rings Of Power - The Critical Drinker
ua-cam.com/video/2TQB-7ddAJk/v-deo.html
The mental state of "twinkie" is the giving or taking of support/praise to/from something, someone or group which provides little to no insight, useful information, quality data. Twinkie is never good-n-wholesome. Twinkie, as the name suggests, is less than nutritious for the mind and soul, can be subversive, often simple/empty flattery, wasted words, disrespect for people's reading time/efforts.
Take Care
@@patrickmccormack4318
You said:
"The mental state of "twinkie" is the giving or taking of support/praise to/from something, someone or group which provides little to no insight, useful information, quality data. Twinkie is never good-n-wholesome. Twinkie, as the name suggests, is less than nutritious for the mind and soul, can be subversive, often simple/empty flattery, wasted words, disrespect for people's reading time/efforts."
My reply:
Well then isn't it a good job he never said twinkie and actually said twinkle but you lack the basic grasp of the English language it seems to both read correctly and to analyze the sentence in your own damned head which should have told you "twinkie" would make no sense in that sentence he wrote.
Now go clutch your pearls where you will find a more receptive audience, I am sure you can find a right wing shit posting blog somewhere.
You have to understand the real problem Matt, is that if you look at Demographics (population) of world we getting smaller. All "isms" in-order for them to work they need to have a growing population. But now we de-populating. So "Capitalism", "Socialism", "Fascisms", "Nationalism", "Populism", and "Communism" are all failing.
@@marctemura2017
1. What utter crap. The global population is still rising, markedly.
2. Capitalism is failing, that is for sure, but socialism does not require a perpetual growth of consumers in order to satisfy demands for return on investment tomorrow that a handful; of fat rich wealthy bone idle capitalists "invested" today, and under a socialist economy machines and automation work for all within the enterprise to either lower hours worked while maintaining pay or maintain hours will increasing pay. So fewer workers is no problem at all under socialism as it simply means the existing workforce gets more in their pocket. Where as under capitalism less workers and more machines means more money in a capitalists pocket and fuck his workers.
I really do not know where you plucked your paragraph of bullshit from, but it is far from the truth of any matter.
Wow - I’m so impressed with your guest Eleanor Goldfield. She is so articulate and immensely knowledgeable about the politics of Sweden. Great job Eleanor.
Elanor frequently does videos with Lee Camp on his Moment of Clarity YT channel. If you like her commentary, you should check that out. She and Lee Camp work together quite well.
Hon pratar en massa skräp.
@@guapodesperado2822 They're a married couple btw.
@@joyduncan9434 Thanks for the info. I knew they were a couple, and a cute one at that, but didn't know they were married.
@@joyduncan9434 Do they live in separate countries?
Brilliant. Keep going with interviews like this. Folks in the US are so unaware of the outside world. Vital info.
lying to the American people is standard procedure. the goal of the us intelligence agencies is to ensure every American believes every lie.. everything that Americans believe is a lie. the entire govt exists to preserve the power and wealth of those who run it..it has nothing to do with representing the slaves they rule.
Looks like we're not so different; United States and Sweeden...
@@reubenmorris487 it's like this all over the west. Austerity dictated by the IMF and world bank. Since the 80's, the government has been chipping away it's "expenses", and then once that system, health care for exemple, starts to suck to use because it's slow to use, then they say they need even more public-private partnership, draining the state's coffin even more to pay for basically sub-contractors.
in medicine, you get inflated prices and less or no "control" on working conditions and less or uncontrolled practices.
In roads, you get inflated prices and less or no control on working conditions and quality and practices.
and so on and so on...
@@reubenmorris487 true, we are going in the same direction thanks to people like this woman
The last vestiges of whatever Socialist ideals remained in Swedish Social Democracy was assassinated alongside Olof Palme. We've had 30 years of neoliberal reforms and austerity which have been devastating to our society and safety nets.
And it's only going to get better as money is funneled into the MIC (mostly USA MIC, I would add) rather than domestic outlays.
Very much so. We're in severe decline.
@@adams6412 Its true though as a Swede. Why would it be a bot?
Yes, Sweden is really a liberal role model. Low taxes of over 50% for ordinary workers, extremely many laws or regulations on the labor market and collectively centrally planned wages.
Sweden is as liberal as Germany was in the 1930s and the Social Democratic Party then had the same opinion of Jews as the German Socialists.
@@adams6412 I figure Bots are often paid for. Example is all those ridiculous pro Russian comments you see under some Ukraine videos. So, who would pay for a Swedish Socialist advocate Bot?
Eleanor is a brilliant woman. We are very lucky to have her objective eyes and ears everywhere. She is mega talented and I am so glad she is now a mom too ❤️
This is heartbreaking to hear that Sweden has allowed the neoliberal ideology into their country. Truly heartbreaking.
It is a both powerful and insidious threat to the continued existence of the human race...
They gonna pay for that and them will be the greenish of teeth
There was a lot of pressure from the The World Bank and IMF as well as from corporations to head in this direction. should have been some sort of cooperation between broadly social democratic countries to resist this. I think a lot of politicians simply sold out.
@@abraxis20 I think you're right
@@abraxis20 And the SD are the largest party in Sweden... right wing extremists as far as I can tell who run on populist economics (tax cuts, tax cuts, deregulation and more tax cuts) and anti-immigration/refugee (read; racist) platforms. So clearly there's something badly wrong going on with my beloved neighbours (I'm norwegian).
This has been written in the wall for a long time, Sweden's NATO accession is the final nail on the coffin.
Swedish left, Social Democrat
prime minister. Olaf, Palme,
"conveniently" was, assassinated
some decades ago. Guess, who
benefitted??
Is it "nail on the coffin" or "nail in the coffin"? Are the effects of a nuclear attack referred to as a disaster or a catastrophe? Are the effects of an 8.0 earthquake referred to as a disaster or a catastrophe? No worries.
@@patrickmccormack4318 Pick the one that pleases you the most.
@@patrickmccormack4318 None of that will "save" nor will it "help" you to solve the mysteries on your living.
Any country that uses the words candy over sweets, or school prom over school disco is already a lost cause.
I mourn the losses of Sweden. If they privatise healthcare, they will regret it. Just look at the US. Even the UK retains its NHS: I hope Sweden changes directions. This was a real eye-opener for me. Thank you for the work you do.
Reagan and Thatcher economic policies was a major factor. And still is today. 😎
I don't know if there's a hell; if there is, both are surely in it.
"Trickle down" gets really old when people never get beyond bottom feeding.
ALL DESTRUCTIVE
Neo-liberalism and electoral democracy are obviously failing....
There is no such thing as society ergo no socialism. TINA sounds like a dictatorship of capital to me. You will obey or be vanquished to the netherworld.
Eleonor's analysis of Sweden is very accurate, clear, and reflects my personal experiences as a health care worker in Sweden.
What you means? Explain more broadly??
They're also the third largest weapons exporter in the world. That is what this lady claims in the video. That is far from correct, Sweden does not even enter among the ten largest but on the thirteen spot you can find the country. And this with socialism, Sweden has never been on the way towards socialism, not even close. It can be described as a capitalist society, with a welfare state. That to me is not accurate at all
This seems to be the near universal story of social democracy.
Rather than paving the way for socialism, it sets up a future resurgence of capitalist interests, beating back and subjugating the working class.
I think if we want to have any kind of lasting victory, we may need to set social democracy aside & look at more ambitious options.
That's only because of active efforts to subvert the system from the US. It's not intrinsic to the project. Yugoslavia was destabilized as well.
It kind of IS intrinsic to social democracy. Private capital keeps growing and eventually simply becomes too powerful.
@@thomaswikstrand8397 Unless the social democracy decimates private capital with taxes and enforced public trading and dilution. That's what happened throughout the first half of the 20th century, until the capitalists created organizations to fight for their interests, against worker organizations.
@@thomaswikstrand8397 Sounds like it works too good. It brings wealth to people by treating them right. I've noticed that the countries in that part of the world lack some of the troubles seen elsewhere too.
@@daniellarson3068 Nah. Trickle down is actually sucking up. At first, the "middle" get paid, as the money flows through them from the lower classes. Alas, the money doesn't stop there - it keeps getting vacuumed up to the owning class, and with time, just like in the US, the rulers become immensely rich and everyone else... Well, are left to "enjoy" the wrecked society left behind.
I’ve been living and working in China for almost 15 years and can verify how well they dealt with the virus. Three months after the virus appeared I was teaching our students in class, wearing a mask, but while the west argued about masks, we were getting back to normal in China.
Why did the chinese troops have to shoot dogs in front of their owners?. So heartbreaking. I admire China in some other ways
@@kjmax1068 Why is Korea the leading dog-eating nation in the world? And why do some western people seem to care more about animals than they do about human beings? These issues are cultural and historical and I think we will understand each other if we take the time to read each other’s history… every culture has strengths and weaknesses.
@@kjmax1068 Has the US government ever kill dogs? What happens when Cops serving warrants and a dog starts barking? Gotta fill those prisons, no matter the methods. How about Fauci and the NHS? Weren't they just in the news for killing 1000s of dogs? It seems unfair to apply some standard to China that other governments don't live up to, especially when one is an actual system contributing to 1000s of deaths over the decades, and the other is just some anecdotal current news story where some dogs died, which sucks, but let's at least be honest about the nature of our own government. Stones and Glass houses and all.
@@kjmax1068 "The Department of Justice estimates that nearly 25 dogs are killed by law enforcement every day in the United States, which makes a total of 10,000 per year"
@@kjmax1068 because its better for an animal to die than a human or to allow a young human be severely disabled by long covid. Animals unfortunately spread the disease
A "Nation" - any nation, SHOULD represent the People. A "nation" is NOT its borders, government and military. A "nation" should represent the collective-well-being of its citizens, including healthcare, education and economic viability. If that were true, "the sum of the parts would be greater than the whole". We, in America, are just the opposite. America is much, much less than it could be because of the greed and power of a small minority. America is becoming more feudalistic with every passing day. Now, it seems, so is the rest of the World.
The biggest issue is the people’s hatred of socialism ideas. “I don’t want my taxes to pay for someone’s healthcare” is exactly what is holding back USA.
Representing the collective anything is Not what a society or government is for. It must work for the good of every Individual, NOT the collective. That's called tyranny of the majority, and it's tyranny just the same as slavery is tyranny.
@@CharonTFM if the government does something that benefits me, then that's peachy keen, wonderful! If the government does something that benefits someone else then that's socialism and an evil abomination...
@@CharonTFM exactly. But no one seems to care that their taxes are being used to wreak terror upon innocent foriegn peoples.
@@havenbastion government exists simply to wield a monopoly on violence to protect the capitalist class from the working class.
Don’t forget that in the 80s, as USSR was declining and became less and less of “viable alternative”, capital started getting bolder in its effort to increase exploitation
Yes, but the demise of the Soviet Union, which the capitalist West presented to itself as the defeat of communism and the victory of the West, let loose a "neoliberalism" that was in many ways a jump back into the 19th century. This, for example, just 2 years after the dissolution of the USSR, Ontario, Canada lifted all restrictions on working hours, allowing an unlimited working week, precisely what 19th century capitalists enjoyed in their exploitation of labour.
In my own lifetime, (I'm 89), I saw Sweden change from a sensible country to a downright evil one!
Right after China proclaimed the start of a new copntry- the People's Republic - the Soviet group immediately came to establish diplomatic relationship with China. 5 or 6 months later, Sweden, followed by 3 other northern European countries, came to recognize China, thumbing their nose to the powerful US. I think they did the right thing. Two thumbs up for them.
Look at them today, particularly Sweden, behaves just like the rest of the West--- KowTowing to the Super E**l!!!
I feel sorry for them, the Swedes.
I went there in 1966, I was so welcomed. At the inn in Dalana, the other Swedish guests took turn to ask me to have afternoon Tea with them. A university girl working at the inn for the Summer practically wanted to come home with me!
Today, it's all changed. To the Chinese tourists,"please, don't come! You are not welcome!"
Chinese are still the same. Only richer, far more powerful, far more advanced than the West and the Japanese.
And yet the Swedes hate us!
I really feel sorry for them!!!
There is no such hattred towards people from China.
But you have to remember that China is not a democracy and doesn't behave like one either.
America poisons everything in one way or another
@@hurri7720 To those who always cite "democracy", they mean Election. And nothing more.
Well, mob rule is democracy too, by the same token.
Democracy, to me at least, is to put people at the top of the agenda. China does just that---- all those millions of infra structure are precisely for improving, enriching, People's life.
Tell me, which other countries are doing that?
So, democracy is just a word?!?
@@paulmak4765 China is a failure. When China goes up in flames of corruption and greed then you will know the horrible truth. The Chinese "leadership" has stolen all the money.
@@paulmak4765 well, during the Cold War it was the socialist bloc that proclaimed itself the “democratic camp” and the West stood for “freedom and liberty”. The idea of a “Western liberal democracy” only came about after the collapse of the socialist bloc and several social democratic concessions had to be made.
Also, I find it Interesting that China’s foreign rhetoric has been returning to the idea of “people’s democracy” when countering western accusations. Previously it was the same old boilerplate phrases like “respect non-interference and sovereignty”
As an American, I recall my first few work trips to France. After a couple visits, I realized just how far America had decended into a cultural and human rights disaster, not in spite of, but absolutely as a result of, our economic system.
Exactly !!!
Same situation in Norway. Both government the msm are simply the lackey of big business. Socially conservative and moralistic folks, like think of how Norwegians from the Midwest act and then add some oil money vulgarity and you have suburban Oslo and the rural areas are even worse. And yet we Scandinavians get lauded as some kind of successful and daring societal paradise, which only goes to show how grim things can get l suppose.
@Stuart
Without God, money and greed will always corrupt.
It sounds very similar to what's happening in Canada as well.
@@Keepskatin :) Tell that to the Church. I guess it corrupts without democratic control...period!
I think these outcomes can all be laid at the feet of expanding wealth inequality.
The USA could never let Socialism be successful without slowly subverting it and turning it into the failed Capitalism we live with here. Our CIA has many projects all over the world and they're working on ruining Socialist countries around the world.
Thanks for bringing to light what Sweden has become. Very revealing interview.
Looking at what medicine costs in the world, why would anyone wish to privatize it? Once in a while I look at what the US pays per capita for medicine vs anyone else and it almost gives off a rank odor.
Thank god someone is saying this. As a Finnish citizen, I can say practically all Eleanor said about Sweden is true also of Finland. That model is dying, and we need to go much further in our leftism. Scandinavian social democracy was a half-measure and it's already mostly destroyed even here. The world needs a much more radical ideal to strive towards.
We probably need to work together far more, us socialists in the north.
More of what doesn't work...that's the ticket.
If we were to strip the rich of their wealth, of which they have stolen from workers, and put ownership of production into the ownership of workers though direct democracy, we should not expect to see such an agenda again.
@@ProleDaddy Since this wealth totals about 5 trillion in the U.S. which is now less
than a single year of the expenditures of the federal government and very little of
it is actually "productive" that you would see much of "anything" after such
a move, will quickly become the reality. Be careful what you wish for...and direct democracy
cancelled Socrates, pemanently.
absolutely! The social democratic model was supported by the global economic Bretton Woods system post WW2. But in the 70s the collision between labor and capital became unsustainable. You either had to abandon the capitalist system or bend to it. Social democrats pretty much bend the knee in the 80s and now its been in free fall. Every election is how much should the taxes be lowered or deregulations/ privatisations of various sectors. Its probably not possible to go back now. We need something new. The climate and ecology is gonna force changes sooner or later anyway. I fear that the facists will be the ones doing it.
This is weird. I'm Swedish. We have never, ever called Sweden "socialist". Social democratic, yes. Big difference. I'll have to continue listening, maybe they will get to that.
Social democracy started to be dismantled in the early 90ies, to embrace Thatcherism, and the wellfare state is now a husk of it's former self.
Sweden like all OECD countries is a 'liberal democracy with a 'free-market capitalist economy. The tax burden is high due to the generous social programs. The tax burden in the US is low as the social programs are much less generous. Nothing "socialist" about this!
Problem with your argument is that Sweden has lower taxes then the US, its a tax heaven
@@johnparmlid9097 Q1: What is the argument? Q2: Regarding taxes, are you referring to corporate, income, VAT, etc? And how does that connect with Q1?
It's an American thing. Nobody in Europe has ever called the Swedish system socialism. It's always been a capitalist country, previously with a very good provision of social services, benefits, and labour laws.
I so love listening to Professor Wolff. I wish he was running the US
Professor Wolff, please make a series of interviews of Scandinavian, (i.e. Norway, Finland, Denmark) socialists!
@@BettBeat_Media why not "all of the above?"
Social democratic capitalists?
@@larsboobies615 see how that works.
@@improvisedsurvival5967 Is this not working well in scandanavia. I was under the impression that their economic system is social democratic capitalism.
@@larsboobies615 that’s what we have and it’s not working either
No one I know, friends, family, colleagues in my entire 7+ decades of life could have or even desire to listen to and discuss any of this. They only gossip or mumble inanities. The isolation I feel is suffocating. At least there is Prof. Wolff and others I can tune into and know there are others out there somewhere by the comments and maybe before I die can have a face to face intelligent conversation with someone, anyone. What a depressing situation.
Its like you're reading my mind sir... i am here. I feel the isolation too. Still trying to separate friendships and family from my views. Its a soul-crushing exercise. Bot sure where i would be without finding this channel and hearing intelligent debate
The same here! I watched Chris Hedges speak in front of a congregation about, in part, our isolation and it heartened me to see the folks listening to him.
Hedges' talks, hellishly grim as they are, are a huge comfort to me. We aren't totally alone in our horror of this hellish world.
....at least there's that solace.....
@@kateoneal4215 wow ! are you on a lot of medication for that ?
I totally understand. I seek out sane intelligent conversation and community from channels like her partner Lee Camp, The New Atlas, I Earl Grey, The Duran, here, Black Revolutionary Socialist, The Duran guys, Multipolarista, Hedges, The Left Lens, Abby Martin, free Russian history class via Professor Michael Rossi, Scott Ritter etc. I turned on NPR the other day as wifi iffy as I sewed fir first time since March and the war monger unipolar propaganda in four stories was so clear and outrageous. Take Care
@@bobsaturday4273 Wow! Too bad there's no medicine for nasty.
She seems more informed & educated than a whole graduating class in the u.s.
Very well-articulated.
Wonderfully informative but sad to hear. Once again thank you for making the effort to educate us! It looks like tough times ahead.
Ahead? What about last 30-40 years?
Right you are!
Great conversation with Goldfield. I appreciate her perspective of Sweden.
Sweden was not the first country in Europe to introduce pensions. Pensions were introduced by Germany's Bismark as part of a general social safety net including guaranteed healthcare for German workers in 1881.
Yeah, I was thinking of "Bismarckian socialism" and pensions in the 1880s when I heard her pensions claim lol.
Thank you Prof Wolff!
I tweeted this out :) Thanks 🙏🏼 Mr. Wolff
So much for all the videos on youtube asserting that Sweden is ranked number 1 as the best place in the world to live in and the happiest country in the world.
Although Norway is moving away from it, all the best places became the best places by stealing from, exploiting, and killing people in other places.
I mean the U.N. does do worldwide surveys of data to formulate Human Development Index scores. Idk if Sweden is #1 but it's usually very high. Doesn't mean it can't be improved.
What a great episode Professor, and a very important guest giving us some facts about Sweden we didn't know of.
Better you react quickly ! If bot you ginna be paralyzed for the system( unrestricted Capitalism) and you way of life will bena dream
Great interview but a bit short. I've followed R. Wolff for many months now, Liking videos he makes. He always made sense and speaks justly. A great silence has befallen me however, and I had nothing to say, in praise or in defense. Perhaps being so different from the mainstream in my conclusions, that I felt nothing good could come from me speaking. After many years of outrage, I needed temperance, which I found in meditation.
If trading money is the way to do things, then you wish to give out as little as possible, and accumulate as much as possible. The boss is antagonistic to the worker, and vice versa, of course. Complex relationships become impossible. Love between people becomes impossible. Money creates a zero sum game of society.
My country of Canada is undergoing devastation. 60% of people have trouble not going hungry every month. Megacorps are buying up all the houses and renting them back to people. And if you don't have shelter in Canada, you freeze to death in december. They've got us by the balls. I followed the hunger statistics of my country for years and they kept rising, no matter what the media propaganda reported. I moved back in with my mother many years ago, foreseeing the coming problems, and also for health reasons. Together, we manage to hang onto a house and freely choose what we want to eat at the still (for now) stocked grocery store. We're part of the lucky 40% of Canadians, despite gov taxes and ever rising prices at the store. Even my meat loving mother is interested in going vegetarian, for health and cost reasons.
Govt debt is such in Canada and the USA that increasing the money supply is the sensible thing to do, or so the bosses feel. The lenders should of just been smarter! This will antagonize the lenders greatly. Conveniently, a war broke out, and there's talk of a new Iron curtain. Despite Capitalism and commerce being everywhere now. The Euro, which was worth more than the Dollar, is now at parity. Oil and gas are through the roof. The old order of the world is preserved. But at what cost? Food is climbing in price everywhere. The war could spiral out. Europe might lose access to vital gas. But Europe and its uppity workers are being brought to heel. Canada, which still has 35% unionization rates, is being gutted of vitality. I feel that South America and Africa are watching and they will decide that war is a bane they cannot afford. But even a division into continental strongholds is fundamentally unacceptable to Capitalism, which wants to have its goods sold everywhere, and ever fears the new idea that will upend things. Only a global system will suffice, and countries are melting down, like ore for smelting, in the heat. As the interview seemed to indicate, Sweden is melting into NATO.
But the old order is that of petroleum, coal and gas. Solar power is now cheaper than coal in most places. This means industry will favour the sun belt of the Earth. But you can have panels anywhere these days. The means of production are going global and they are up for grabs. The iron grip will loosen. It already has thanks to the internet : I can watch Prof. Wolff! Not in a million years would the corporate media of my youth have allowed this. But the fear of Capitalism, that they might lose out, means they have to keep the gates open, at least a little. Where once all I got was a few RATM songs on the student radio station and my own alienation, I now get Left Lens, Yanis Varoufakis, R. Wolff, ChapoTrapHouse and more! So, like Prof. Wolff, I am now more hopeful than ever. But my fear is more lively too. So... I nurtured my silence.
Most older folks post about the decline they've felt, perhaps a few boast about their money. Middle age people like me post about how hard they have it and the joy of their children. The youth want to find their place, which increasingly means McDonald's for most, it seems. Getting splashed by hot grease is not fun. How to survive this world? Most millennials in China are home owners, so there's that. But is this mixture of Capitalism and Socialism tenable? Capitalists always fear the technical attack on their monopoly, so they need information and the ability to buy competitors. It's why there's 50 kinds of ketchup in the store, because someone might start up a competing brand. They plug the hole. They also want low wages for their employees. I'd say it's not tenable : the Capitalist will assail the social economy without respite. I could be wrong, but China has had to imprison quite a few billionaires.
I decided to forgo children. I don't regret it, but it makes me sad. The old world still has it's fangs in me however. I could not offer the best in life. Perhaps in my 80s, when technology and world peace make the amazing Jetsons sci-fi future possible, then I'll have em. As you scrimp and save for a house and car in a world with more empty houses than homeless people, or, perhaps, gloat with your investments, perhaps spare a thought for the loss you have to have to earn that money. Greed has a cost.
Well, I hope you all have a good day. Till next week!
The Roe decision isn’t just about a women’s right to choose whether to have a child. It is also about bodily autonomy in general; not just for women, but for other marginalized folks. It is also about the right to privacy. Clarence Thomas’s response made this quite clear. With no explicit right to privacy, the door is open to a whole host of controls (and yes, I am aware that this re-enforces and strengthens the surveillance state we already live in).
Thanks as always Professor Wolff for the in-depth, informative Conversation.
There is nothing in-depth or informative contained here...and one would think that
the failure to properly identify what "socialism" means...would be a strong indication
that directly contradicts the reality of what you have claimed.
@@jgalt308 true. I am surprised they would so vague about defining what true socialism is really, which is state ownership and control over the means of production, central planning, no markets or private ownership, etc. That isnt what Scandinavia or Sweden is. These are capitalist countries with strong welfare states.. or social democracies.. but that is not socialism. And maybe that's the best we can do because whenever actual socialism as i defined above is implented, it leads to economic disaster and totalitarianism.
@@hv3115 Lex Fridman just did a 3.5-hour interview with Steve Keen exposing
the failure of economics and the contradictions in Marxism/socialism.
Reformism has a dead end street approach to socialism, and at the end of that progression is the existence of capitalism which inevitably either stalls development or pushes it back. This is the end of reformism, this era, as a Nordic country resident myself I can tell you more radical movements are already rising here to take the step beyond reform.
Hopefully they take the time to look at what parties are benefiting from particular outcomes. There’s been a widespread capture of groups and media the left rely on. It’s never been perfect but the last two years was unlike anything seen before. Things like the ACLU going from long standing positions of mandates and lockdowns massively hurting the poor and minority communities and loudly declaring it being ripe for abuse. The Guardian the other day arguing for WW3 as long as it’s not called WW3 is a great example. Climate change is another area that’s ripe for abuse and we can see that playing out already. People need to ask themselves, if they can look to the left and to the right and there are corporations eager to assist the cause while the party in power has their arm over their shoulder and seem to have stolen the words from their mouth… they just might want to reevaluate what the hell is going on.
Exactly. The idea that the collection of parties headed by Melenchon would or will make a substantive difference if they ever come to power, is either incredibly naive or incredibly hopeful. Calling them a strong-strong left is bizarre because so far from truth.
Thank you for the video, Prof. Wolff. Very informative as usual.
I talk to a Swedish friend very frequently including about Swedish politics. One element you probably did not have time to cover is the issue of immigration, which seems very powerful in Sweden just as it is used by the right wing in the USA. Immigrants are blamed for some of the social problems in Sweden, which will sound very familiar to Americans. Incidentally, so far as I am aware, I am not related to Eleanor.
Off topic, I love when Eleanor Goldfield joins Lee Camp on his podcasts. She is quite delightful and funny!
She's luscious hehe ❤️ n very astute n knowledgeable imo
Lee Camp? Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't he turn into a shitlib during covid? Cheering on masks and vaxx?
Lee and Eleanor are a committed couple with a new baby born last year. Yes, she is great, funny, talented, and very beautiful.
Eleanor is awesome. If you haven’t watched A Hard Rode of Hope do yourself a favour and find it now.
I haven't watched it but love the title. It immediately reminded me of Friedrich Hayek's, "The Road to Serfdom."
@@daniellarson3068 it’s great documentary. It’s about the union mine workers war with the Pinkertons and the federal government in West Virginia in the 1800s and mountaintop removal ongoing today.
Great show, Richard. Crystal clear analysis of all topics discussed by both you and Elanor.
Keep doing the superb job you are doing of countering the M. S. M. neoliberal propaganda machine.
I have a Swedish friend who worships Reagan (peace be upon him). He would have been in his mid twenties at the time. There must be more to this transition than what is being discussed here. Sounds like neoliberalism took root there as well. Greed can be an enticing concept.
Imagine Prof Wolf as President of the US. What a completely different world we would be living in.
Elinor makes every middleaged swede like me cry. Sweden was well on its way being The best wellfare state in The universe. 1930-1980 as The good years. Socialism have never been The system in Sweden, but workers and ordinary People had a say. When it comes to parties and politics they have all become liberals. Who ever killed Palme marked The date when we went from socialdemokrati to neoliberalism. Its quite sad, actually!
Croatian Ustase killed Olaf
Croatian Ustase assassinated Palme
Socialism doesn't really mean owned by the state.
You're right, it literally means "means of production owned by the worker".
yeah, it means owned by the society, hence socialism, the state is just the manager
The MoP should be owned by the state. And if the political system is truely socialist and democratic, then the state and people would be the same. An alienated state is liberalism.
if its under the guise of a worker state, then its socialist
@@Maat-ka-Ra yeah this could also be a correct way of viewing it
Prof Wolff I will be tuning into your BRICS content. Thank you for being the only voice of truth
18:43 In 1913 the Swedish parliament voted for pensions for all citizens. The motion carried with a broad majority consisting of parties on the right-wing and left-wing.
Every Fed chair in my lifetime has said their primary job is to keep wage inflation down. So these people believe their job is to keep us down. Most of the ones after retiring from the system apologized to the people but kept their money.
Stable prices and full employment are their two directives, which they seem to try to f@ck up all the time. Austrian school economics is the only economic discipline that shows what the FED really is, and that's a tool for the corrupt bankers and politicians...
Germany introduced a pension scheme under Bismarck in 1889. But otherwise I found the lady incredibly informative.
There was more rubbish than that in her speech.
@@hurri7720 Such as?
Here in Canada...there are some small companies that are run and owned by its employees... they are an example of a form of cooperative whereby everyone has an equal share and has a say in the future of the company 🤔
ua-cam.com/video/-VdbFzwe8fQ/v-deo.html
Brilliant interview & overall the show brought so much needed information on important topics, especially for people, who like me live in the U.S..
I would like to see a similar discussion about Venezuela, although it has some serious corruption problems.
It's got its problems but they've recovered and are in a way better place now than in 2017 or 2018, thanks mostly to Iranian oil technicians who got production going again
Excellent talk. Thank you.
I can see Sweden becoming more like the US. Years ago I heard Sweden designed an assault rifle. The rifle was a hot topic of weapon enthusiasts. I was surprised the Swedes were designing weapons like the US.
Much appreciated you both!
Making me wanna move to France here. I don't think I can survive much longer in the US.
@@Jj-gi2uv I can't afford it in the US, so I'm not seeing the purpose of the question.
The ironic part is that the bible says that life starts after the child has left the womb and taken its first breath.
Abortion shall and will not be tolerated, you baby killer
Yep! I think they are just trying to keep women down.
Do you know which part? So I can own the prolifers?
@@MisanthropicTsundere genesis 2:7 when god breathes life and a soul into Adam
@@Walter-Anderson God didn't do that for me. The birthing person's placenta stepped in upon conception and provided me with everything I needed.
It's amazing that she was born in Sweden, lives in Sweden, and is a Swedish citizen, yet as an American, I would think she was American with zero foreign accent at all. How is that possible?
Good job. Love the depth of the content. Many areas you have covered are so significant food for thought and good for insights.
As an American living in Stockholm, Sweden I have felt many changes throughout my 31 years living here. I learn much more today about what's going on. Sweden is still a great place to live so far. Although I am now looking to live in the south of France where the weather is like my home state L.A. California. Winters in Sweden are too long.
Dear professor Wolf. I’m a long time listener. I deeply appreciate your work and its wonderful impact in our communities. In this one specific post. Please let us not keep naming the real center the far left because we have no far left in this country. I’m sure our kids will identify this period as the modern barbarians.
Very well said!
Thanks. You represent a light in the capitalist darkness
Sweden may be the first country in the world according to her, but the U.S. had a pension after the Revolutionary War. The last payment went out in 1906 I believe. The U.S. has also had Civil War pension programs, and Theodore Roosevelt added the age (65) as pension-eligible during his presidency 1901-1912.
I only became aware of how far Sweden had slipped from being the soc-dem poster- child, when I encountered people on the libertarian right claiming Sweden was more capitalist than the U.S. and then praising the coutnry for the early non-interventionist stance on covid and performing all sorts of mental and statistical gymnastics to explain Sweden's poor performance against neighbouring countries in this period. Very sad situation
Greed destroys socialism from within by pretending socialism is flawed.
This is Human Nature :)
@@volvogoodtruck1117
"human nature"🧛
@@volvogoodtruck1117 exactly right. Richie, like most liberals, always leaves human nature out of the equation.
@@volvogoodtruck1117
No such thing as human nature
@@The1Elcil I'm not interested in outliers. So rare that they're not worth mentioning. Sad but the reality. Policy should never be based on the exceptional. Most humans are corruptible. Some are ruthless about it. Others put up a good front and rationalize their actions when they find themselves tempted. Humans are the best at that. Why do you think the Salvation Army collection box you find at Christmas time at your local Walmart has a lock on it? Surely the people donating their time to ringing the bell for a good cause would never steal. Think again, Sunshine.
Very interesting show. Quite fascinating to hear Eleanor's perspective on Sweden
Lately I've heard politicians pit different groups against each other as a means to discourage the government providing benefits to one group vs another. The example was truckers vs those with student loans. I felt to say, as someone who went to college, "fine, I dont want to pay for a road for a trucker that I don't personally go down!" I don't feel that way, actually, but rephrased, this thinking shows politicians pray on our most base emotions.
And soon as the baby is born they are on their own
As George Carlin put it,
"If you're Pre-born you're ok, if you're Pre-school you're fucked!"
Social democrats betraying socialist ideals? Who would have thought! lol
You mentioned worker's Co-ops. Are you familiar with something called the Mondragon experiment in Spain? I heard about it many years ago and it seemed an interesting system.
Yes he is. He normally brings it up durning many of his debates or whenever he talks about worker co-ops
Excellent information, as usual, thanks for the vid I want to know about Norway. Have you had or will you have any Norwegian guests on?
the first priority in the nordic nations must be moving from socdem economics to socialism to get rid of the exploitation and imperialism(which is direct imperialism not even soft imperialism like china does) done to the imperial periphery/third world.
Prof Wolff's comments on how the Stock Market has impacted crypto is very interesting and needs to be discussed more; bitcoin was just as much a victim of capitalism as everything else.
While I agree with both of your statements, I think Prof Wolff misinterprets the purpose of Bitcoin, which is not "to escape capitalism" but to empower people to do worldwide transactions without having to trust a third party.
Just look at who owns most Bitcoin now; large investors. It is corrupted like everything else by the parasite class.
@@swaeyl3883 just look up who owns most of them now is...
Well spoken guest. Thanks.
This makes me sad, but I'm glad you posted this information.
richard wolff believes that social democracy is a type of socialism. the three main trends of socialism are reformism, anarchism, and communism. reformism (social democracy) was seen as part of the socialist tradition that believed that they can "reform" their way into socialism (which we all know doesn't work in the case of allende in chile). this is probably why richard wolff views "social democracy" as being "socialist." however personally, i don't see social democrats or social democratic countries to be socialist as they don't seek to change the mode of production and property relations. sure, social democrats may engage in nationalizations, wants an increase of the public sector, along with giving healthcare and education. the major differing line between social democracy and socialism are production, ownership, and property relations. there are also problems that comes with social democracy namely imperialism since it doesn't seek to change the capitalist mode of production and expanding markets to eventually export capital.
Sweden actually came probably the closest to achieving socialism along a reformist path in the 70s and early 80s, with a system called the wage-earner funds (löntagarfonderna) - basically an additional tax levied on larger companies that went towards buying out the company and turning it over to the workers. Unfortunately, the wage-earner funds became the poster issue for the capitalist backlash which ultimately led to the Swedish social democrats abandoning socialism.
@@iangraham-white5717 Agreed, I'd say they're one of the best ways to transition capitalist-owned corporations into worker-owned co-ops, the problem is just maintaining it long enough against the inevitable reaction.
That means the virus started here in the usa.
Interesting.
High tax isn’t socialism. Rational isn’t radical.
Very interesting, thanks. When talking about Sweden and a changing Swedish society, I think you have to address immigration also, as this is having a big impact on public spending and the social fabric of Swedish society.
I was wondering when the Professor would address crypto. I looked into it last year, found all kinds of weasels infesting the landscape and decided against it. After all, as long as it was valued by how many dollars it was worth, it wasn't anything different than anything else.
Cryptocurrency is a Ponzi Scheme. A great video came out on 1st January that addressed this ...
Just goes to show you the fight for equality never ends. Even if you achieve it, there will always be forces there trying to take it away.
I never realized till now. That the "Powell Memorandum" (1971 The Powell Memo: A Call-to-Arms for Corporations) had such an effect on the rest of the World, in terms of getting control of just about everything that was Socialistic in any way!
I love to listen to professor Wolf!!!
Why did she leave out the Swedish General Strike of 1919, the real beginning of Swedish Social Democracy?
Vote 3rd party
New Zealand instituted a small pension in the 1890's
I think Bismarck in Germany may have done that beforehand
This video touches on something I've been thinking about more recently and that's getting rid of the utopia stigma and messaging around socialism. Like every system before it, it will have to deal with human greed and corruption and thinking about these things now will help implementing it and improving the things that come with it.
Having lived in Cuba and spent many of the post Chávez years amongst Venezuelans it is interesting to listen to this professor so protected by capitalism ramble on about the benefits of Marxism which he clearly has never experienced.
Well said. For one thing, or maybe I am not well informed, Sweden was never, at any time in its history considered a "socialist" country. What I remember, growing up in one of the classical "socialist heavens," Sweeden was always considered a capitalist country with "a human face." That is it, that is all. Why did this woman of Prof. Wolff call this "socialism" ???? I would appreciate is someone could explain this to me.
@@pttk9491 very true. The Scandinavian countries have well deserved reputations.
Capitalist countries with good if not occasionally excessive social programs.
Any Marxist worth their salt knows this. What you witnessed was Communist misdirection to deliberately prey on the ignorance of the masses and poorly informed students in particular to advance their cause. Classic communist agitprop.
"Clearly" how? "Protected by capitalism" LMAO
When did you live in Cuba and for how long? Also your personal anecdotes are not equal to all experiences of all people in the planet by the way, neither are the right wing Venezuelans you met with.
@@alexanderplatypus3664 your Marxist professor lives in the USA. This is a capitalist country. You can be sure he has a lovely home and income.
Tell me your experience living in Cuba and I will tell you mine. The people live in fear of the government. Food rations are a sad joke.
Venezuelans as they try to survive now provide the cheapest labor all over South America. They are at the bottom of the socio economic ladder often living in the streets a over South America and all thanks to the Bolivarian Socialist Revolution!
I understand this is terribly upsetting to Marxist ideologues.
Shall we discuss the 100 million plus that Mao, Stalin and Pol Pot starved and murdered?
@@alexanderplatypus3664 And note how they never mention the brutal sanctions regimes applied by U.S. and friends on a forever basis. Nor all the accomplishments especially by Cuba helping the poor of the world, more doctors sent out than any other country. etc.
I found her comments on the Left making itself irrelevant by concentrating on niche issues spot on. The right has captured the mainstream issues.. time to drop Woke!!!!
I think the irrelevancy is a function of media, more correctly propaganda, from the elite as the public has been weaned from education and prosperity. Woke sucks!
@@alexanderdvanbalderen9803 Are they? The woke are not exactly on the front lines of socio-economic issues.
I watched that election carefully, it was heartwarming.
There is that common time line event and common denominator once again. That Thatcher/Reagan shift in the late 70's/early 80's, with the Neoliberalism, which shifted the paradigm, which threw everything into reverse. As here in the U.S. as apparently slowly as so with the Swedes as well.
Great content, Money is worthless until you put it to work.... I made my 1st million invested into Stock market. Making money is the plan and with Crypto/stock Investment your plans can be fulfilled.
At the crucial time, telling anyone about crypto currency trading isn't financial advice by all factors. It is life advice
@@LisaRomero. I agree with you... I had a senior colleague at work who was doing well but never had an investment. Unfortunately he lost his job and went from living a comfortable life to hardship. There would had been something to fall back on if he had an investment
@Chris Hoffman Long-term investors know that the market. It will recover eventually, and investors should be positioned for such a rebound, gained $150k from just g4 of 2021. before the market crash and now I'm buying again. I am going to sit back and observe how this all plays out, adding more at a time. Having a good entry and exit strategy, will make succeed in the stock/Crypto market
@Susan Karen The best strategy to use in trading stock is to trade with a professional who understands the market quite well, that way maximum profit is guaranteed. Because I have learned along the way of my investment that research and analysis are important, note that experience is more needed than luck when it comes to the stock market.
I had a profit return of $127,000 trading with last week
Comments deleted willy-nilly
This channel is under attack
Love Prof. Wolff
Great!
🙏
Very interesting insight into the global system from the inside of Sweden. Scary indeed
In Italy is happening exactly what happens in Sweden. For health care now you pay almost everything 30 to 200 euros you have to pay.
Canada's healthcare is also under assault by the provinces
Socialists: Socialism is worker and community control over the means of production and there are different schools of philosophy and strategy.
Capitalists: So socialism is whatever any government does and welfare state and taxes?
Socialists: What? No, it's what I just said.
Capitalists: So, social democracy and welfare capitalism?
Socialists: .....No.....
Capitalists: oh ok, it's fascism then.
Socialists: That's literally you folks. Now turn around and face the wall. There's people in need and you're unnecessarily exhausting.
Great interview. Thank you
what Elenore is speaking about is really shocking and after eye opening i terms of healthcare and education privatization