The Socialist Party of Great Britain
Part of the World Socialist Movement
November 8, 2018
The trend of economic ‘globalisation’ has been the focus of heated debate and protest in recent months. Bodies such as the World Bank, World Trade Organisation (W.T.O.) and International Monetary Fund (I.M.F.) are the subject of much criticism for their role in the globalised economy. Here we shall view the policies of these institutions within …
The call for a Tobin tax—a tax on financial transactions—is not “anti-capitalist”, as some in the “anti-globalisation movement” seem to think. It is all very well being against something but if this is to be anything more than permanently protesting against some never-ending problem you’ve got to be for something too. Most of those who …
The World Trade Organisation represents the interests of the capitalist class and is a product of the lessons they have learned for protecting their system. The World Trade Organisation is not to blame. Capitalism is. Although the WTO has emblazoned itself in everyone’s consciousness as the unacceptable face of globalisation—indeed as the secretive cabal directing …
We look at the economic background to the rioting and looting in Argentina, and the factors which led to the social crisis there. Argentina, the one time darling of the IMF, held up as an example of how a country should stringently adhere to structural adjustment programmes, is presently standing as a shining example of …
November 7, 2018
The revival of currency crankism. In the course of our over one hundred years of socialist activity, one of the ideas that we have had to deal with from time to time has been currency crankism—the idea that economic and social problems are caused by some flaw in the monetary system and that what is …
“The global capitalist system… is coming apart at the seams”. So declared capitalist and arch-speculator George Soros before a US congressional enquiry on 19 September 1998. He has since expanded on this in a book entitled The Crisis of Global Capitalism. What has he in mind? By “global capitalist system” Soros doesn’t mean what we …
Everyone thinks they can control money until it starts to control them In the sphere of ideas one of the more fruitful results of May 1968 was the spread, in France and elsewhere, of the criticism of the commodity as representing the reduction of useful things to objects of commerce and of social and personal …
What is the rate of profit? The rate of profit measures the return on invested capital over a given period and is usually expressed as a percentage. So, if a capital investment of £ 100,000 turns over in a year and the profit is £20,000 then the rate of profit is 20,000/100,000 or 20 per …
Read more “An introduction to Marxian economics 2: the rate of profit”
The Labour Theory of Value is a theory in the science of political economy to explain how the working class are exploited under capitalism and how capitalist society works. This article also explains such phenomena as wages, prices, and profits.Why is the labour theory of value important? Capitalism is the stage in the development of …
Read more “An introduction to Marxian economics 1: the labour theory of value”
When capitalist political parties are in disagreement, the issue of taxation often looms large. Should income tax be reduced or increased? What should be done about local government taxation? Why all the fuss about taxation—is it so important? Why Taxes? To begin with it is worth looking at why we have taxes in the first …