>How do you think the situation in Japan reflects on Keynes' theory? Is it a
Well, Doug said that Japan confirms Marx rather than Keynes. I am not
exactly sure whether a protracted slump is a confirmation of Marx, while a
protracted expansion such as the one taking place in the USA is proof that
Marx is irrelevant. After all, when Japan was expanding in the late 1970s
and early 1980s, all the pundits--especially Thurow--argued that the
Japanese model must be adopted by the stagnant USA. Why look at it in terms
of monetary policy? Isn't there something more fundamental going on, namely
competition between nations based on the production of automobiles,
computers, and capital goods such as machine tools? In the world capitalist
economy, there are winner nations and loser nations just as within a
capitalist economy there are success stories like Bill Gates and loser
stories.
>From NY Times Magazine
http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000319invisible-poor.1.html
IN THE SHADOW OF WEALTH
San Jose, Calif. Thomas A. McConnon, in his car outside an Innvision
homeless shelter.
Photograph by Jeff Riedel
"I work as a night auditor and a bellhop at a small hotel, here in San
Jose. And I've been in the National Guard for 15 years. About six months,
I've been living here in the car. I divorced my wife recently, and I ended
up like this from complications from the divorce. There aren't always beds
at the shelter, but I can park outside and use the shower and get mail and
get food.
"I sleep in my clothes, and keep the tie on. I don't know why, part of that
military thing, the discipline. You can get used to anything. They ask me
at work how I'm doing. And I say fine, and of course I'm lying. But the
boss recently said I didn't look so good. And I told him what's been going
on. And so they just offered me a raise at work. I don't know how much it's
going to be. I think a dollar would be too much. I want to earn it. Maybe
50 cents.
Louis Proyect
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