- Capitalism and Alternatives -

Expropriation anyone?

Posted by: Stoller on November 18, 1999 at 19:08:54:

In Reply to: Commodity fetishism and fantasy 'rights' posted by Samuel Day Fassbinder on November 18, 1999 at 16:33:30:

David:
If you own a farm and want to employ a farm hand to help to bail hay, then you may do so, assuming that you find someone to want to work for you.

Funny how the farmer's 'right' to own property ALWAYS creates the situation where there 'just happens' to be a farm hand who doesn't own ANYTHING but labor-power.

David:
That farmer has the right to free association, he may hire who he pleases or no one at all.

The landless farm hand (remember enclosure?) hardly sees his / her BIOLOGICAL NECESSITY to sell his / her labor-power (piecemeal) at rates advantageous to the farmer (after the farmer has monopolized all the land) as 'FREE' association.

Stepping back a minute...

David:
If you own a farm...

SDF:
And if you don't own a farm you of course have the right to get together with the vast majority, the working class, and COLLECTIVIZE the farm, so as to defend the society where you have a right to life...

Moving more to the left, Sam?

I thought intentional community types only wanted to BUY some land for themselves.

But if you're talkin' expropriation, doncha know that you can count me IN.




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