‘Capitalism is dead. Now we have something much worse’: Yanis Varoufakis on extremism, Starmer, and the tyranny of big tech::In his new book, the maverick Greek economist says we are witnessing an epochal shift. At his island home, he argues it’s now the ‘fiefdoms’ of tech firms that shape us
You must log in or register to comment.
He’s not wrong. We’re only a few years away from the big five in the US owning all of our land in one way or another. It’s like a corporate showdown at this point. The government did nothing to stop this conglomeration of assets and wealth.
He’s referring not to a land grab but cloud capital charging rent to the capitalist class. Essentially creating a class as far above the capitalist as the capitalist is above the worker.
Listened to a good interview with him on a podcast last night after trying to read this shit article.
At his island home
… is where he lost me. He can call back when he has to choose between electricity and rent.
To be fair, rich (and effectively retired) people have more time to think about larger issues, whilst the rest of us are trying to make enough for rent and food. So while one can make the argument that he is out of touch, one can also argue that if it were up to the single parent working two jobs to think about global issues and write books about them, it probably wouldn’t happen.
Isn’t this the former finance minister of Greece? Not just some guy.
Yup. He’s the guy who told the rest of Europe that Greece shouldn’t have to pay back their bailout loans. You know, the ones other countries have paid with their own taxes. That’s a great way to get very popular in your own country, and being hated by the rest of the continent.
The island home might be a result of his time at Valve (the company that has the biggest share of pc game distribution, Steam - which takes a 30% cut on all sales). I don’t think it was funded by people’s tax money.
This is a weird take. Just because someone is (or has been) successful he can’t speak about or for socialism?
You can’t be successful and a socialist? Is that it? That’s a very narrow and simply wrong view which has resulted in a lot of damage in societies which adopted it.
Socialism needs succes stories. Otherwise, what’s the point? Mediocrity for all? That will never fly or become popular.
deleted by creator
He’s spoken on the topic elsewhere, at least a few interviews (on youtube). That’ll be better than this slop - edit: the Guardian was co-opted by the UK securlty state after cops raided them soon they did their reporting on Edword Snowdon.
Yeah, this interview is pretty bad.
But this post did turn me onto his ideas and found an interview with him on a podcast last night that was really good.
But this post did turn me onto his ideas and found an interview with him on a podcast last night that was really good.
Nope but I will give that a listen too! So thanks for the link.
I’m interested in getting his book also.
Oh, so which interview did you listen to then?
deleted by creator
Whatever they call it, it’s shit for humans to live in.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
What could be more delightful than a trip to Greece to meet Yanis Varoufakis, the charismatic leftwing firebrand who tried to stick it to the man, AKA the IMF, EU and entire global financial order?
The house is where Varoufakis and his wife, landscape artist Danae Stratou, live, year round since the pandemic, but in August 2023 at the end of a summer of heatwaves and extreme weather conditions across the world, it feels more than a little apocalyptic.
Stratou and Varoufakis are a striking couple, as glamorous as their house, a cool, luminous space featuring poured concrete and big glass windows overlooking a perfect rectangle of blue pool.
“I have no issues with luxury,” he says at one point, which is just as well because the entire scene would give the Daily Mail a conniption, especially since Aegina seems to be Greece’s equivalent of Martha’s Vineyard, home to a highly networked artistic and political elite.
I’d messaged a bunch of people to ask them what they would ask Varoufakis, including McNamee, and precised the book to him – that two pivotal events have transformed the global economy: 1) the privatisation of the internet by America and China’s big tech companies; and 2) western governments’ and central banks’ responses to the 2008 great financial crisis, when they unleashed a tidal wave of cash.
This encouraged business models that promised world-changing outcomes, even if they were completely unrealistic and/or hostile to the public interest (eg the gig economy, self-driving cars, crypto, metaverse, AI).
The original article contains 2,683 words, the summary contains 252 words. Saved 91%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
So the bot thinks this story is about his house and his wife, which isn’t surprising. The article is unbelievably florid, I couldn’t get through it.
Like seriously shut the fuck up about the setting in which you had the interview. Are these people paid by the word? And why does every phrase need to be couched three layers deep in entendre and negatives? Just say what you mean, ffs. Every time I felt like it was starting to get to the meat of the issue they got distracted talking about some completely unrelated bullshit.
That’s just capitalism. But I guess when you benefit so greatly from the system, you can’t risk rocking the boat by talking about it openly. So you have to invent scary new names to smokescreen the root of the matter. “Technofeudalism”, “Neo feudalism”, “corporatism”, “crony capitalism” etc, is such crap. It’s still just capitalism.
Ignoring the ridiculous manner in which the article is written, look at the clownish arguments being made.
He charges rent. Which isn’t capitalism, it’s feudalism.
I know you have an island home dickhead, but the rest of us have been paying plenty of rent under capitalism.
Oh god, here come the liberals and communists
