Why you should be concerned about postmodernism

I have long had a fair number of friends who identify as “Marxist” or “socialist.” But I freely admit that relatively few of my friends have described themselves to me as “postmodern” or “postmodernist.” Chances are that your experience is much the same. That is, you probably don’t know too many people who identify themselves as “postmodern” or “postmodernist.” But, if we undertake to define what “postmodernism” is, we may find that we have a fair number of friends who fit this description. We may find that postmodern ideas underlie many other belief systems – from transgender ideology and identity politics, to feminism and critical race theory. We may thus find that a fair number of our friends are influenced, in one way or another, by various postmodern ideas. And, if we take the trouble to examine these ideas carefully, we may see that they cannot stand up to serious intellectual scrutiny. Postmodernism is (and remains) intellectually bankrupt. Thus, it may be worth the time to define this philosophy, then to gauge its prevalence, and finally to take the trouble to debunk it. Perhaps, then, we will be better able to arrive at philosophical truth.

Richard Rorty, postmodern philosopher

Struggle over the Marxist heritage: The battle for the ivory tower

Karl Marx attacked other socialist and communist schools in “The Communist Manifesto”

The debate over the Marxist heritage is at least as old as Marxism itself. In the nineteenth century, for example, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published a brief work called “The Communist Manifesto.” This remains one of the most influential tracts ever written on economic theory. In that same century, they also published a three-volume work called “Das Kapital.” Some would argue that this is the most talked-about book in the social sciences – or, at least, the work that’s most frequently cited in academic journals of the social sciences. These nineteenth-century works are thus among the most influential books in human history. But Karl Marx debated with others in the budding socialist and communist movements, even attacking many of them in “The Communist Manifesto.” For example, “The Communist Manifesto” contains specific attacks on “reactionary socialism” – including “feudal socialism,” “petty-bourgeois socialism,” and “German, or ‘true,’ socialism” (as it was then called). He also attacks “conservative, or bourgeois, socialism,” although he has more mixed feelings about “critical-utopian socialism and communism” – as he states in the work itself. (Source: Chapter III, Section 3) Thus, the debate over socialism and communism goes back at least as far as the nineteenth century. Nonetheless, it still continues in full force today. Thus, this post will give a brief overview of the debates within the Marxist community, in the years since Marx’s death at age 64. I will have to skip over the original words of Marx himself, since I cover them elsewhere. Therefore, this will include a special focus on both the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and the developments in Marxist thinking since the twentieth-century Russian Revolution.

Karl Kautsky

Karl Marx contradicted himself about zero-sum games

A “zero-sum game” is one where you can only gain to the extent that others lose

Marx once argued that the economy was a “zero-sum game” – or, in other words, that one can only gain to the extent that others lose. But he seems to have undercut this idea within one of the same chapters where he proposes the idea. Thus, this is one of many areas where he contradicts himself, as I will show with some quotations from his work “Das Kapital.” Incidentally, all of the quotations from that work in this particular blog post are from Volume 1, Chapter 5 of the work – as published by Marxists.org.

Karl Marx

A review of “Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel” (audiobook)

“What is rational is real; And what is real is rational.”

– Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel’s “Elements of the Philosophy of Right” (1821)

In his youth, Karl Marx described himself as a “Young Hegelian” (or follower of Hegel). He liked a number of things about Hegel – such as his “dialectic,” which influenced Marx’s theory of the evolution of societies, leading gradually towards communism. (This Marxist theory is sometimes known as “historical materialism,” an application of Marx’s version of the dialectic.) Marx would later break with Hegel on a number of issues, but Hegel’s influence upon him was nonetheless quite profound. More than any other thinker, Hegel helped to shape the thought of the young Karl Marx, who would in turn shape the future of socialism and communism.

A review of Karl Marx's “Das Kapital” (audiobook)

“A commodity appears, at first sight, a very trivial thing, and easily understood. Its analysis shows that it is, in reality, a very queer thing, abounding in metaphysical subtleties and theological niceties.”

– Karl Marx’s “Das Kapital” (1867), Volume 1, Chapter 1, Section 4

Those who know me would not be surprised to hear that I’m not exactly a fan of Karl Marx. He has long struck me as a nutball who was wrong about virtually everything he said, and who had very little to contribute to economic science. Nonetheless, he is someone that is worth learning about anyway for someone who debates about economic issues. Many a liberal is a disciple of Karl Marx, and does not shy away from making Marxist arguments. Thus, knowing about Marxist arguments is helpful to anyone who wants to debunk them as I do.

Because of this, I have long thought about reading Karl Marx in the original German – reading his short work “The Communist Manifesto” in German, and even his much longer work “Das Kapital” in German. I’ve read “The Communist Manifesto” in English translation, as it turns out, and have even read parts of “Das Kapital” in English as well. But I have never yet spared the time to read all of “Das Kapital” in any language (even English). Thus, on the off-chance that I would never have the German to tackle this in the original, I acquired an audiobook about it some years ago which gives some basic background information about the book, and which helps to place Marxism as he conceived it into the context of the times – one of the best investments I’ve ever made, in my opinion.

A review of “The Communist Manifesto” (audiobook)

I once read “The Communist Manifesto” itself in English translation in 2012, because it is a shorter work that requires very little time commitment. I am not a fan of this work, and tend to find it a bit on the nutty side. Nonetheless, I'm glad that I read it, and took the time to think about its ideas. Some years ago, I acquired an audiobook about “The Communist Manifesto” which briefly discusses its main ideas, and gives some historical background about it as well. This is the audiobook that I will be reviewing here.

Karl Marx and the “labor theory of value”

One of the central tenets of Marxism is the "labor theory of value," which is the idea that the economic value of something is determined by the number of hours that it took to make it. It should be acknowledged that labor really is (at least partially) relevant in determining the value of something. Nonetheless, it seems safe to say that Karl Marx takes this theory far beyond the evidence. It is his extreme form of this theory that will receive a response here. He introduces this theory early in his work, in the very first section of the very first chapter of "Das Kapital" (his longest book):

Karl Marx

Quote from Marx about "labor theory of value"

"A use value, or useful article, therefore, has value only because human labour in the abstract has been embodied or materialised in it. How, then, is the magnitude of this value to be measured? Plainly, by the quantity of the value-creating substance, the labour, contained in the article. The quantity of labour, however, is measured by its duration, and labour time in its turn finds it standard in weeks, days, and hours." (Source: Karl Marx's "Das Kapital," Part 1, Chapter 1, Section 1, as translated into English at Marxists.org)

Marx and Engels

Even Marx presented some qualifications to his theory ...

There are several problems with this theory, and much has been written describing the many flaws of using it to describe value. I will not touch on all of these problems, but only on one of them - the one that I find the most interesting. It can be demonstrated with a qualification that Marx himself made to this theory. Even Karl Marx, the greatest proponent of the labor theory of value, qualified his theory with the idea that only those labor hours that were "socially necessary" should be counted as adding value. Marx's concept of "socia[l] necess[ity]" is not very well-defined, but his definition's meaning is clear enough to show that it contradicts his labor theory of value, attacking its very basis as an explanation.

Iron and Coal, painting from 1855-1860 (during Marx's lifetime) about the Industrial Revolution

Are monopolies really as dangerous as Marx said they were?

"Competition engenders misery, it foments civil war, it 'changes natural zones,' mixes up nationalities, causes trouble in families, corrupts the public conscience, 'subverts the notion of equity, of justice,' of morality, and what is worse, it destroys free, honest trade, and does not even give in exchange synthetic value, fixed, honest price. It disillusions everyone, even economists. It pushes things so far as to destroy its very self."

- Karl Marx, in "The Poverty of Philosophy," Chapter 2, Part 3 (as translated into English at Marxists.org)

Most people today know Karl Marx was an opponent of free markets, and that he gave all kinds of objections to them in his writings. But lesser-known is an objection he gave to free competition: that competition inevitably destroys itself - through monopoly.

Karl Marx

Quote from Marx about competition "destroy[ing] its very self"

In the words of Marx himself:

"Competition engenders misery, it foments civil war, it 'changes natural zones,' mixes up nationalities, causes trouble in families, corrupts the public conscience, 'subverts the notion of equity, of justice,' of morality, and what is worse, it destroys free, honest trade, and does not even give in exchange synthetic value, fixed, honest price. It disillusions everyone, even economists. It pushes things so far as to destroy its very self." (Source: "The Poverty of Philosophy," Chapter 2, Part 3, as translated into English at Marxists.org)

Is it true that competition inevitably destroys itself through monopoly?

The idea that competition needs to be watched - that monopolies need to be guarded against - is held by many today, who are otherwise in favor of free markets. Competition is a good thing, many say; but it needs to be monitored. But ... is it true that competition inevitably destroys itself through monopoly?

Capitol Dome

My own history with this idea

I once believed that this was true, and that there was a needful function for anti-monopoly laws, such as the Sherman Antitrust Law of 1890. This was one of the arguments that fascinated me; because if it was true, then that meant that competition could be dangerous if unfettered, which would undermine my faith in the free market if true. Thus, I had to know whether or not this argument held water; and whether competition was something to be celebrated or feared.

Senator John Sherman, the principal author of the Sherman Antitrust Act

My change of heart in this matter

But I have since come to the conclusion that monopolies are not something to be feared - that there are many forces in place to prevent their rise; and which ensure that if they do appear, that they will not have much power. This might seem to be a strange argument, and I acknowledge that I once saw it as strange myself. But I have come to the conclusion that competition doesn't really destroy itself through monopoly - that free-market forces prevent this from happening, and that Mr. Marx exaggerates their dangers and effects.

Pleas for an open mind in the reader

I will present arguments in this blog post to support this point of view, and challenge Mr. Marx's objection to free-market competition. If this seems counter-intuitive to you, I ask only that you entertain my arguments with an open mind; and refrain from judging them until after you've heard them. So with that in mind, I will now turn to my arguments about free-market competition, and use some quotes from Dr. Thomas Sowell to support them. These will show why competition being destroyed through monopoly is not something that we should worry about.

Thomas Sowell

A few problems with “The Communist Manifesto”

"A spectre is haunting Europe - the spectre of communism. All the Powers of old Europe have entered into a holy alliance to exorcise this specter ... Where is the party in opposition that has not been decried as Communistic by its opponents in power? Where is the Opposition that has not hurled back the branding reproach of Communism, against the more advanced opposition parties, as well as against its reactionary adversaries? Two things result from this fact: I. Communism is already acknowledged by all European powers to be itself a power. II. It is high time that Communists should openly, in the face of the whole world, publish their views, their aims, their tendencies, and meet this nursery tale of the Spectre of Communism with a Manifesto of the party itself."

- Opening lines of "The Communist Manifesto" (1848)

I was recently told that I should write a blog post about why Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels were wrong - arguing not on values as I did in another post (though there is a place for that as well), but on facts and theories, challenging their dubious factual and theoretical claims.

Karl Marx

Friedrich Engels

In discussing problems with Marxism, where does one start?

To someone who's read and understood their book "The Communist Manifesto," that might seem easy - and in some ways, it is. But in trying to debunk it, I had one big problem: where to start. Despite "The Communist Manifesto" being a tiny book (which I read through in a day), it sometimes seems when I'm reading the book like its two authors were having a competition to see who could cram more fallacies into a small amount of space. And they both won.

Marx and Engels

Discussion of Marxist fallacies is practically a genre in its own right ...

I intend this blog post to be a short one, so I will only be able to summarize this book's problems. But if you're after a more thorough treatment of its fallacies, this is practically a genre in its own right, so there are lots of works to choose from.