• gowan@reddthat.com
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    1 year ago

    Funny I would say the sane about the Marxists here most of whom seem to only be educated through social media/forums and most of whom seem to have no formal education in sociology/anthropology/and most especially economics. The number of times where it becomes clear that a Marxist is arguing from a conclusion is too high to be ignored.

    • CyborgMarx [any, any]@hexbear.net
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      1 year ago

      Watch out people we got an econ 101 grad amongst us, if we’re not careful he’ll pull out his Mas Colell textbook and start babbling about maximizing utility curves and general equilibrium

      • gowan@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        Nah you have someone with a political science degree and a minor in econ. I have talked to many people who seem to have no formal education in the listed fields and refer back to things like breadtube as a valid source.

        I can’t speak fir your education but I have chatted with someone who claimed to be a Marxist who was convinced that DPRK is a communist state rather than a hereditary autocracy. Not ever Marxist is educated and some are bad at reasoning.

        • Satanic_Mills [comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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          1 year ago

          political science degree

          Imagine boasting about having a degree in modern-day phrenology.

          You see, this graph shows the Slavic brainpan cannot comprehend liberal institutions …

        • 420blazeit69 [he/him]@hexbear.net
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          1 year ago

          you have someone with a political science degree and a minor in econ

          Not even trying to dunk, just realize that this is not impressive, and certainly not authoritative. When someone questions your expertise the two acceptable responses are:

          1. Yes, I am an actual expert, with extensive schooling and/or relevant work experience.
          2. I’m not claiming to be an expert, but here’s where I’m getting my information, where are you getting yours?
          • gowan@reddthat.com
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            1 year ago

            They said I have 101. I have a greater understanding then that which is what Im replying to. Im not pretending to be an expert and frankly I don’t know why you would think that.

            We know where they are getting the information from the problematic people Im talking about do not understand their sources and frequently decide that Marx was right and avoid learning when he was wrong ir when we have gained a clearer understanding.

            For fucks sake some seem to think Marxism ended with Marx

            • CyborgMarx [any, any]@hexbear.net
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              1 year ago

              You claim to know something about Marx, ok let’s test that knowledge of yours with the simplest possible question

              According to Marx what are the sources of capitalist profit?

              • @[email protected]

                Just giving you a second chance to answer the simplest possible question about Marx. I’m guessing you didn’t see the notification the first time given you’ve been active after it was posted, and you could very easily demonstrate your knowledge of Marxism.

                You know, cause otherwise people are going to think you were lying about learning about Marxism.

                • gowan@reddthat.com
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                  1 year ago

                  You are going to have to ask me "the simplest question about Marx"again because the button that should link me to the context isn’t working right now. I definitely missed it the last time.

                  • ThereRisesARedStar [she/her, they/them]@hexbear.net
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                    1 year ago

                    According to Marx what are the sources of capitalist profit?

                    I thought that was too easy, so bonus question

                    how does automation contribute to the tendency of rate of profit to fall according to Marx?

                    Edit: as of edit it’s been 8 hours, with this users last activity being 3 hours ago.

        • ThereRisesARedStar [she/her, they/them]@hexbear.net
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          1 year ago

          Nah you have someone with a political science degree and a minor in econ. I have talked to many people who seem to have no formal education in the listed fields and refer back to things like breadtube as a valid source.

          So the two most “priesthood class of capital” useless degrees lol.

          Read Capital, the economics you’ve learned still haven’t grappled with it successfully.

          Edit: you claim to have read Marx. Please, tell me how automation connects to the tendency of the rate of profit to drop according to Marx. It’s one of the core parts of his analysis so it should be easy to remember.

        • GarbageShoot [he/him]@hexbear.net
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          1 year ago

          The DPRK is socialist and not a hereditary autocracy. It has been the consistent direction of the head of the executive branch to diffuse authority to other offices, but nearly everything you have ever heard about this country was a lie.

          • gowan@reddthat.com
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            1 year ago

            It literally has handed power down from father to son twice. That is a hereditary system. As the citizens cannot advocate for a change in leaders, a change in direction of the party or an entirely new political system they are authoritarian.

            DPRK is a hereditary autocracy.

            • GarbageShoot [he/him]@hexbear.net
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              1 year ago

              It literally has handed power down from father to son twice.

              It has had sons win elections and then hold the office twice. We can call it dynastic in a sense similar to US political dynasties, but that’s different from being literally hereditary.

              As the citizens cannot advocate for a change in leaders, a change in direction of the party or an entirely new political system

              Citation needed

                  • gowan@reddthat.com
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                    1 year ago

                    Do you have a source for that claim because I have only seen the opposite from elections experts. The fact that almost every single person votes is of course a MASSIVE red flag.

          • Frank [he/him, he/him]@hexbear.net
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            1 year ago

            The only field more embarrassing than PoliSci is arguably EvoPsych, with the caveat that most academics don’t consider EvoPscyh to be a real field.

    • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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      1 year ago

      Bro I’m completing a dissertation in political economy and I hate myself for it. The world is an easy place if you assume the gospel drivel spewed in orthodox econ departments is all there is. How about you go read up on the Cambridge Capital debate and then tell me how robust a “science” economics is. While you’re at it eat a crayon, maybe you’ll shit out a more intelligent comment next time.

      • gowan@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        First why do you think that you or only Marxists are aware of the limitations of social sciences? If you really do have a background in the subject surely you remember this is frequently discussed or it least it was in my programs.

        Second if you do have a degree or are pursuing one then you aren’t the person Im talking about. Im talking about the person who-reads Marx and maybe Kropotkin and decides things ended there.

        For someone attacking my intelligence/education, which you know nothing of, you are making a ton of unsupported statements. Hypocrisy isn’t a good look

        • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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          1 year ago

          I’m not talking about the inherent limitations of social science, I’m responding to your absurd attitude that somehow formal education makes your ideas inherently superior/above critique, and I named a specific example of theoretical failure of orthodox economics as an example of the entire project being basically woo. Lots of aristotelean scholastics wrote the dumbest shit imaginable about physics for a thousand years, and their thought was funded, reproduced, and taught as authoritative by formal education the entire time; progress was only made when criticism came from outside the academy and overcame it. Much like then, our contemporary “Political Science” and “Economics” departments are nearly completely captured by a dead-end ideology/research project, but still have the support of the ruling class so they keep cranking along misinforming more and more students every year. You claiming advanced understanding of the matter is the equivalent of an Aristotelean physicist or Lamarkian biologist sticking their nose up and saying learning outside of the academy is somehow less than their own. That’s worse than just being wrong, it’s wrong and using elitism to refuse to recognize it. The Black Panthers went into the poorest and least educated communities in America, and they taught people Marxist theory while they taught them to read. What do you think well to do Nixon Republicans had to say about their education? That’s where you stand right now looking down on folks engaging in education outside of the academy itself.

          Also, lots of Marxists are tired of dumb liberals reciting the same garbage authoritatively while never questioning basic undercurrents of their own ideological world view. So sorry they have reached a conclusion and don’t want to rehash baby’s first socialism with every shmuck who thinks their poli-sci degree makes them an expert.

          • gowan@reddthat.com
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            1 year ago

            My point is that some subjects, like modern economics, are best taught in academic situations because of how complex they are. There is simply too much higher level math in neoclassical economics to learn on your own unless you are a math wiz.

            Why are you presuming liberals are dumb? Liberal societies are functioning in the real world while the most successful attempts at socialism are those that moved towards hybrid economies (Vietnam and China).

            Arguing from a conclusion means you have decided what is correct and then seek proof to demonstrate that which is the opposite of how scientific reasoning works. You should probably be familiar with that term if you are not.

            • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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              You’re still not getting it lol. Neoclassical economics is theoretically standing out way over a cliff and simply refusing to look down like Wiley coyote. Your appeal to mathematics is unintentionally hilarious, because it was physics envy and the chasing of mathematical models over real life evidence/coherent theory that led the field astray to begin with lmao. You can come up with all kinds of fancy models and as much mathematics as you like, but none of it matters if you’re basing it on incorrect axioms.

              “Functioning in the real world” - oh yeah for sure. Burning the environment down and cooking the biosphere while forever chemicals and microplastics permanently saturate the ecosystem. Liberal societies are “Functioning” in so far as they’re not actively failed states this very moment, but that is accomplished on the back of neo-imperialism, unequal exchange with the global south, and unresolvable contradictions inherent to neo-liberalism/capitalism. A car driving 80 mph towards a cliff is working, sure, but is that a desirable state of affairs?

              Also take a quick look around my guy. We’re not in a laboratory. I’m calling you an idiot on the internet. Not every conversation is the platonic ideal of scientific pursuit you nerd.

              • gowan@reddthat.com
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                1 year ago

                And Im trying to remain a better class of person than you because you have demonstrated nothing other than that you are the exact type of uneducated person Im talking about. Your incapability to reason civilly or rationally will not help you even in the most utopian Marxist society.

                • GarbageShoot [he/him]@hexbear.net
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                  1 year ago

                  Idk, if it was so plainly “false” and “uneducated” then it seems like it shouldn’t be that hard to provide a refutation of, especially since these are criticisms that even several liberal economists have been making for decades, e.g. “assume a can-opener” discourse.

                  And he is talking about axioms, so you don’t even need to worry about correctly notating your fancylad mathematics.

                • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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                  1 year ago

                  Hear that @[email protected]? I’ve been a bad boy! Come frown at me for hurting the widdle wiberals feelings. He was just using elitism to disparage his interlocutors and maintain a worldview that harms people every day! Why did I have to go and be so uncivil! Whoa is me.

                  Classic liberal. When confronted with arguments you don’t understand or have a retort to, you pearl clutch and complain about tone.

                  • Frank [he/him, he/him]@hexbear.net
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                    1 year ago

                    Nah, Libs are like this everywhere. The self righteousness, the aggressive ignorance, the near absolutely inability to recognize their own limitations, the incuriousness. I think it’s mostly a consequence of living in a hegemonic cultural and media environment where they never encounter any meaningful challenges to their world view. Liberalism is all they know, and the only thing outside of it that they even casually encounter is fascism through the lens of Lib media venues, so they’re just completely unprepared to critique their own beliefs or situation.

              • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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                1 year ago

                Goddamn. You both treated him with more respect and time/attention than he deserved AND savaged him. I love Hexbear users. I was running out of patience and felt my fingers itching for a ppb soon.

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                1 year ago

                You do not know what I do and do not know. I am aware that the theoretical path to communism is not the same for all but China keeps moving further away from ANY path to socialism or communism. Heck they really doubled down on authoritarianism when they allowed Xi to permanently hold office. Is a dictatorial state run for privately profit a path to socialism? Oh shit no it isn’t

                • ThereRisesARedStar [she/her, they/them]@hexbear.net
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                  1 year ago

                  There really isn’t any democratic argument for term limits.

                  “Oh but it will consolidate power”

                  Do you think the voters are too uneducated to factor that into their voting patterns?

                  “You can’t trust the masses like that!”

                  Sounds kinda anti-democratic doesn’t it.

                  • gowan@reddthat.com
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                    1 year ago

                    No because he was elected. If he got the office right after TDR held it as the first POTUS and then it was passed to another Roosevelt then yes I would think he’s a dictator.

                    Im unaware of ANYONE claiming DPRK has fair elections. If you have a valid source that makes this claim I would love to see it because on the surface they are clearly fraudulent.

                  • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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                    He’s pretty clearly misunderstood entirely or at least the point of 80% of what I said alone. This man is a weenie and the absolute epitome of someone who took Econ 101 and now thinks they know the secrets of the universe. It’s incredible how much air economics departments blow up their students ass. That just can’t be safe for the human body.

                    I STILL WANT MY MAN’S THOUGHTS ON THE CAMBRIDGE CAPITAL DEBATE.

                    "It is important, for the record, to recognize that key participants in the debate openly admitted their mistakes. Samuelson’s seventh edition of Economics was purged of errors. Levhari and Samuelson published a paper which began, ‘We wish to make it clear for the record that the nonreswitching theorem associated with us is definitely false. We are grateful to Dr. Pasinetti…’ (Levhari and Samuelson 1966). Leland Yeager and I jointly published a note acknowledging his earlier error and attempting to resolve the conflict between our theoretical perspectives. (Burmeister and Yeager, 1978).

                    However, the damage had been done, and Cambridge, UK, ‘declared victory’: Levhari was wrong, Samuelson was wrong, Solow was wrong, MIT was wrong and therefore neoclassical economics was wrong. As a result there are some groups of economists who have abandoned neoclassical economics for their own refinements of classical economics. In the United States, on the other hand, mainstream economics goes on as if the controversy had never occurred. Macroeconomics textbooks discuss ‘capital’ as if it were a well-defined concept — which it is not, except in a very special one-capital-good world (or under other unrealistically restrictive conditions). The problems of heterogeneous capital goods have also been ignored in the ‘rational expectations revolution’ and in virtually all econometric work."

                    (Burmeister 2000)

                    Awh gee, I wonder where our Poli-sci wonderboy got his degree curious-marx

    • ZzyzxRoad@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Or some of us might have multiple sociology degrees and/or are in academia. But I’m sure if they wrote comments about Marx (or Weber or Gramsci or Veblen etc) you’d just assume they got it from wikipedia anyway. Though I’m not sure why that’s a bad thing. It’s not like it makes a difference whether someone read primary texts online or overpaid at the college bookstore. It’s the same information. The fact that anyone has a desire to learn, better themselves, and then try to use that knowledge is admirable and a service to society at large. More people should try it.

      • gowan@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        Im not talking about people who are educated with degrees taught by experts. Im talking about the person who only learns about this stuff through places like facebook, tiktok, youtube and to a lesser extent reddit (one of the major mods on the econ subs, /u/robthorpe, is a Marxist).

        The problem with learning from forums is as a novice you have no way of telling that the person running the forum has any idea what they are talking about.

        I think some subjects are better learned when you have actual experts to turn to and you might not have that on say the facebook group you ran across.

        For example there’s a reply here from someone complaining that modern economics still hasn’t answered everything from Kapital which ignores that modern economics and economics of Marx’s time are very different in methodology and focus.

    • anachronist@midwest.social
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      1 year ago

      Marxists are hardly alone in arguing from a conclusion. That pretty much describes all of economics and most of political science. Liberal economics in particular could easily be retitled Just So Stories, With Jargon.

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        1 year ago

        That’s simply not true and strongly suggests that you either did not understand who I am talking about or ypu have no education in the field.

        Im talking about the people who come to Marxism by deciding it is correct and then seek to only pursue information or sources that back Marxism rather than learning about the various flaws that absolutely exist in Marxism as they do in any ideologically driven perspective. If you actually study econ you should have some grasp on the flaws of a system in broad terms.

        • anachronist@midwest.social
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          1 year ago

          Liberal economists do exactly the same thing and if you can’t see it, it’s the water you’re swimming in.

          • gowan@reddthat.com
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            1 year ago

            The fact that you are assigning an ideology to neoclassical economists strongly suggests you have no formal education in the field. Most economists abandoned the idea of “schools” in the 1960s.

            • Frank [he/him, he/him]@hexbear.net
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              1 year ago

              Fun fact: Everyone has an ideology. Just yelling “I abandon my ideology” doesn’t change that. Go ask an anthropologist they’ll explain it too you.

              • MemesAreTheory [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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                1 year ago

                You see, the Political Scientist major brainpan is maladapted to reflection, and quite simply incapable of grasping such remarkable and sophisticated concepts like “Hegemony.”

    • Zoboomafoo@yiffit.net
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      1 year ago

      The number of times where it becomes clear that a Marxist is arguing from a conclusion is too high to be ignored.

      That’s just how Marxism is, he claimed that our course of economic history is the only way it could have gone with a single data point then concluded that the current system (in 1850) would imminently collapse.

      I don’t know why anyone lends credence to his theories

      • gowan@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        Because he was correct about some things. Modern neoclassical economics abandoned the stuff that is no longer correct or is not relevant after the movement towards empiricism.