I found this article quite informative. Not surprising since I know so
little about WSA. Brenner's remarks about workers being separated from
the means of production echo my own feelings about the importance of
ownership and/or control of the means of production being an essential
feature of capitalism. Originally, I was critical of Wallerstein's
rejection of the national state as the unit of analysis but on reading
this article I see Wallerstein does not mean to deny the significance
of the nation state in the world capitalist system.
I do not have a clear idea of the concepts of core and periphery
and their relations and/or how this explains changes in the system.
Seems to me that there are core and peripheral areas within nation
states.
For example, features of prairie development can be seen in terms of
core ( Ontario, central Canada) periperhal relations. The periphery
was an outlet for manufactures investment, etc. source of resources
for the core area etc. It also explains continuing
western alienation and certain institutions such as co-ops, credit
unions, etc. that were responses to the feeling that westerners were
being ripped off by metropolitan capital etc. There is a kind of
within nation imperialism. This imperialism is evident in treatment of
aboriginals or northerners. Mines, hydro power, etc were often
developed with little attention paid to "peripheral" populations.
Cheers, Ken Hanly
Mine Aysen Doyran wrote:
