Restructuring Political Economy: Social Needs Versus the Needs of Capital

Abstract

Orthodox economic ideas, theories, and practice present us with a fundamental paradox. On the one hand they tend to dominate our thinking, social values in society and our way of life, while on the other hand, for most people, they appear woefully inadequate as a method for understanding or tackling urgent questions concerning the economic management of our economy. For example there appears to be no available economic theory, within orthodoxy, which could decide upon how to allocate the £50 billion of oil revenue which accumulated from 1979 to 1985 — and which has been largely used to pay for the costs of rising unemployment.

The task I am trying to achieve is to make you see.

D.W. Griffith