Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism | 82 comments (82 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (4.00 / 3)

It was a system of fealty -- mutual obligations with a definite asymmetry in power relationships. There was formal loyalty, but it was usually very calculated. That aspect has been taken over by lawyers and employment contracts in our societies but the asymmetric power relationships remain. The real change is from one in which everyone had presumed universal rights under the laws of one's state to one in which one's rights are contingent on the contract and one in which one's loyalty was to the state has been superseded by loyalty to the corporation - often transnational in nature. There are no longer a large number of potential employers and they all have access to far more information about the individual than was previously the case.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Mon Jan 10th, 2011 at 01:25:42 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (4.00 / 7)

There's an important difference between classical feudalism and modern feudalism: The classical feudal nobility was just as much tied to the land as the peasants were. Yes, there was a strong asymmetry of power, but the feudal lord offered an important benefit over no feudal lord: He was extracting his rent from the same peasants and the same land year after year, so he had an interest in keeping them a viable going concern (as opposed to passing marauders and mercenary armies who had no lasting interest in the lands they pillaged).

Transnational corporations today are not tied to any particular workforce, country, capital plant or anything else that gives them comparable interest in maintaining society as a going concern. That can change virtually overnight if the guys with the guns decide to change it, of course, but so far the guys with the guns seem to like the looting and pillaging that results from purely mercenary transnationals.

- Jake

Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.

by JakeS (JangoSierra 'at' gmail 'dot' com) on Mon Jan 10th, 2011 at 07:00:26 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (4.00 / 2)

Transnational corporations today are not tied to any particular workforce, country, capital plant or anything else that gives them comparable interest in maintaining society as a going concern.

Therefore no one has a compelling reason to maintain any particular society so individual societies can confidently await shredding by The Market®. This may well end with which ever significant country that DID NOT buy into the "supremacy of the market" being the new hegemon, as the social basis of all others will have been destroyed.

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."

by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Mon Jan 10th, 2011 at 11:33:54 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (4.00 / 2)

Transnational corporations today are not tied to any particular workforce, country, capital plant or anything else that gives them comparable interest in maintaining society as a going concern.

A key point and one (it seems) very carefully overlooked by politicians and other Decision Makers.

She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre

by ATinNM on Mon Jan 10th, 2011 at 12:27:03 PM EST
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Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (4.00 / 3)

Only because acknowledging it would force them to start making it not true, and they would really rather not do that.

- Jake

Friends come and go. Enemies accumulate.

by JakeS (JangoSierra 'at' gmail 'dot' com) on Mon Jan 10th, 2011 at 12:29:16 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (4.00 / 3)

Modern feudalism can only be a highly unequal society with non universal law but relations written in personal contracts. My only point is that we did have these kind of countries in the past in South-America, and all of them became more equal over time.

When chinese and Indian and Indonesian modern feudal lords appear the same thing will happen again, there.

Actually, one could argue that Mexico fifteen years ago was a perfect example of the modern feudal system (and it is has large areas with pure classical feudal system), and it was less unequal that any classical feudal system that it ever existed.

A pleasure

I therefore claim to show, not how men think in myths, but how myths operate in men's minds without their being aware of the fact. Levi-Strauss, Claude

by kcurie on Mon Jan 10th, 2011 at 04:17:46 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Indeed, which transnational corporation ... (none / 1)

... one is working for within the modern system can change as easily as one's ultimate lord could change in the feudal period due to the complexities of succession or due to your direct lord changing his own lords.

I've been accused of being a Marxist, yet while Harpo's my favourite, it's Groucho I'm always quoting. Odd, that.

by BruceMcF (agila61 at netscape dot net) on Wed Jan 12th, 2011 at 06:09:28 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism (none / 1)

Classical feudal lords were only tied to the existence of a domain to exploit ~ just like modern trasnational corporations, they were only tied to any particular domain by the lack of an opportunity to gain a better domain somewhere else and if, as when William of Normandy decided that England looked like a tasty morsel ripe for the plucking, new more lucrative domains opened up, they very readily picked up and moved to take on new titles in new lands.

I've been accused of being a Marxist, yet while Harpo's my favourite, it's Groucho I'm always quoting. Odd, that.

by BruceMcF (agila61 at netscape dot net) on Sat Jan 15th, 2011 at 07:29:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Neo-feudalism and neo-nihilism | 82 comments (82 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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