Fred B. Moseley wrote:
Hi Doug, you are right that the appropriate unit of analysis is the world
economy, and that surplus-value produced by e.g. Chinese workers is
appropriated by US capitalists. But since this surplus-value is
appropriated by US capitalists, it is mostly included in the estimates of
profits in the US NIPAs.
But this international aspect does mean that the estimates of the ratio of
unproductive labor to productive labor in the US are overestimated.
Comradely,
Fred
I think there has also been a tendency to forget and neglect the
expropriation of surplus from independent commodity production that has
occured in the past that has been a major factor in profits, including
in the 'golden age of capitalism'. Perhaps the most important sector was
agriculture where surplus in production was expropriated through
monopoly power (agribusiness the railways, banks) and shows up as
profits of agribusiness, railways, banks, food processors, etc. The
depressed state of primary agricutlture (fisheries, independent forestry
operators) has meant that there has been precious little surplus to
expropriate through the monopolized price mechanism. I would suggest
that this may also be a factor in the failure of the profit rate to
recover to the levels of the "golden age."
Paul Phillips,
Economics,
University of Manitoba
