[P2P-F] important debate: fighting cuts in an age of powerdown

[Michel Bauwens]

please note someone inserted a wrong address for our list, i.e.
p2pfoundation at lists.ourproject.org

instead of: p2p-foundation at lists.ourproject.org

would be nice if you could resend your recent emails to the right address,
so the others can share in your insights and the discussion,

Michel

On Fri, Mar 18, 2011 at 6:07 PM, Walton Pantland <waltonp at gmail.com> wrote:

> Good points.
>
> This argument has its manifestation in the UK in the form of David
> Cameron's Big Society. Superficially it's a good idea: let's do away with
> heavy handed state bureaucracy, and a faceless centralised system that runs
> things with no regard for local needs, and replace it with a system where
> active citizens run things at local levels. This sounds good, and generally
> I am in favour of subsidiarity.
>
> However, after Cameron came into power, the real meaning of the Big Society
> became apparent: the Government would massively cut funding to public
> libraries, community centres and a number of other institutions. If local
> people wanted to keep them open, they could volunteer to run them, for no
> remuneration. So the plan was to replace paid public servants with
> volunteers, and in some cases compel the unemployed to 'volunteer' to keep
> services open.
>
> In the end, a Big Society needs infrastructure - a Commons that everyone
> can access.
>
> Cheers
>
> Walton
>
> On 18 March 2011 10:40, Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> thanks Jean!
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Mar 18, 2011 at 5:30 PM, jean lievens <lievensje at yahoo.com>wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Michel,
>>>
>>> Sorry, cannot use Outlook because I am in Sweden...
>>>
>>> In my opinion, there is no real contradiction there, only two sides of
>>> the same coin.
>>> I think that capitalism is faced with a whole range of contradictions
>>> that cannot be solved if the present system is maintained.
>>> I’ve been reading a lot about ‘happiness’, the paradox of choice,
>>> behavioral economics etc. lately and what strikes me is that all these
>>> studies can be used in two ways: it can be used in defense of the system
>>> (rich people are not necessarily more happy than poor people, envy makes you
>>> unhappy, religious people are often more happy than non-believers, etc.),
>>> the system is rational but people are not… But on the other hand, I think
>>> these studies contain far more arguments in favour of a more just,
>>> egalitarian and far less materialistic society. I think ordinary people will
>>> gladly accept ‘cuts’ if they do not need to worry about their basic needs
>>> anymore (and that means extending the public sector, not cutting it), have
>>> more free time and far more control over their own lives. This means a fight
>>> for real political and economic democracy. Only in creating a system that is
>>> not based on the profit motive, but on the fulfillment of human needs, can
>>>  the present contradictions be solved.
>>> But this is off course a general idea. The question is: how to get there?
>>> I think the role of the state and government are crucial here. We will not
>>> be able to jump from ‘here’ to ‘there’ in one leap as for example Chomsky
>>> seems to suggest. In order to get there, working people need to take over
>>> the control of the state, but at the same time turn the state institutions
>>> around and run them in a democratic manner. I think that self-organizing
>>> coordination groups over the internet will play a major role in this
>>> democratization process, but we need to develop this further.
>>> And in the meanwhile, we need to stand firm in defending working people
>>> and civil servants against unfair cuts. The elite will use any argument to
>>> let people swallow their austerity, including 'limits of growth' (as in the
>>> seventies) and the protection of the environment.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
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>>
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>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Walton Pantland
>
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