Marxist Solutions to the Economic Crisis?

November 30, 2011 3:02 PM

I'm keeping this question vague because everyone that discusses the "economic crisis" is vague. It seems to encapsulate the debt crisis, the whole banking fiasco, etc. So, I'll make my question simple. Can someone direct me to essays, books, etc. on this current "economic crisis" from a Marxist perspective? I would especially like it to be solution-oriented and not just rehashing the problem - and preferably solutions from a Marxist economist.

I don't want debate. I just want to read proposed solutions from a Marxist perspective.

As always, thanks in advance.

posted by Gerard Sorme to Society & Culture (9 answers total)

I googled "Marxist solutions to current economic crisis" and get links to what might be some relatively apolitical articles. Might be worth a look.
posted by rmhsinc at 3:08 PM on November 30, 2011

Response by poster: I actually did google this before I posted the question. I found mostly links to left magazines and such that write a lot about the crisis and are very general about solutions (if any at all). I'm hoping to find solid material on the internet or actuallly books(!) that proposes a way forward from, preferably, a Marxist economist.
posted by Gerard Sorme at 3:16 PM on November 30, 2011

For a Marxist take on contemporary economics, you can't go too far wrong with Doug Henwood.

Whether Henwood has commented extensively on the current crisis, I couldn't say. But Henwood would be a good place to start looking for Marxists who have.
posted by notyou at 3:26 PM on November 30, 2011

First as Tragedy then as Farce by Zizek

I think David Harvey has some pieces but can't think of them off top of my head.

Perhaps Commonwealth by Hardt and Negri is worth a look.

Good luck and let us know what you find from other venues.
posted by Jagz-Mario at 3:26 PM on November 30, 2011

He draws pretty strong distinctions between himself and traditional Marxism, but David Graeber's ideas about debt jubilee are pretty popular on the Marxist left right now.
posted by gerryblog at 3:33 PM on November 30, 2011

David Harvey is good for me (layman).
posted by larry_darrell at 3:44 PM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Three book suggestions:

• Global Slump by David McNally, a Trotskyist political scientist at York University.
• In and Out of Crisis: The Global Financial Meltdown and Left Alternatives, by Leo Panitch, Sam Gindin, and Greg Albo (three of McNally's colleagues at York).
• The Great Credit Crash, a collection of articles about the crisis by "some of the most prominent radical analysts of the modern market," published by Verso.

Robert Brenner wrote a couple of relevant books in the mid-2000s (i.e. before the crisis), specifically The Boom and the Bubble and The Economics of Global Turbulence. He appears to have written a few articles since early 2008, notably What is Good for Goldman Sachs is Good for America: The Origins of the Present Crisis.

Robin Blackburn wrote a pretty decent analysis for the New Left Review in the early days of the crisis. You might take a look at subsequent issues of NLR for more recent stuff.

In my experience, serious Marxist political economists tend to be pretty good at analysis, and less good at offering detailed, viable solutions. IMHO this is partly because the Marxist left has been rudderless and demoralized since the fall of the USSR, and partly because the people doing that sort of work tend to be academics.
posted by twirlip at 4:12 PM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: There is some great stuff here. Thanks so much! Henwood, I had read years ago, glad to see he's still running the LBO. Using his links to other sites took me to others of like mind.

I had forgotten about Professor Richard D. Wolff. That's just what I have been looking for:
http://rdwolff.com ... his site is loaded with what look like great essays, videos, audio.

Looking into David Harvey.

Graeber's stuff on the debt jubilee is fascinating. I'll read more and watch his interviews. He makes great points and seems to hammer home the fact that U.S. debt is war debt and it has been since the revolutionary war.

Thanks for Zizek. I've, just seconds ago, bought the Kindle edition of his book. Apparently a little bombastic, but maybe the times call for some of that.

twirlip, I was just going to hit 'post' when I saw, on preview, your excellent suggestions of book titles. I will look them over. Again, good stuff.

Please keep them coming. Marxist solutions: I've yet to run into much. I think it's very likely what twirlip said above.

Thanks to everyone.
posted by Gerard Sorme at 4:23 PM on November 30, 2011

Speaking of David Harvey, here's a long-form review from the LRB (what else would you expect?) on two of Harvey's books that you might find interesting re. Marx and crisis.
posted by webhund at 6:37 PM on November 30, 2011