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1216 Death of Tiny Rowland -- rank: 1000

If by "get real", Patrick means get concrete, that is fine. The background articles on Tiny Rowland were very interesting and illuminate the picture. But any suggestions that our main criticism of capitalists is that they are nasty, is wholly wrong. Capitalism would remain capitalism even if they were all nice, which quite often they try to be by a scattering of gestures of a sort that do not not undermine but rather support the existing social order. What is interesting is when for th ...

Document Size:	7542
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Jul 28 00:00:29 PDT 1998

1217 AT&T + BT -- rank: 1000

The joint venture in global telecommunications announced by AT & T and BT, provides an interesting insight into the relationship between capital and the state. a) readers in the USA may know of BT as the first of the big privatisations of the Thatcher government. However as I posted somewhere in marxism-space some time ago, it was not quite the flagship of free enterprise that it was made out to be. Inside revelations by a former conservative cabinet minister in the final days of the last go ...

Document Size:	6320
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Jul 27 00:00:49 PDT 1998

1218 Death of Tiny Rowland -- rank: 1000

Tiny Rowland is probably not known in the USA. But he is a revealing footnote in the development of capitalism. His death yesterday brought statements in his honour by Kenneth Kaunda and Nelson Mandela. Starting out with his business in ranching in "Rhodesia", he built Lonrho into a major player in African politics by aligning with emerging black politicians. The name of the company shows its transition from the era of imperialism to that of post-colonialism. The obituary statements vi ...

Document Size:	5296
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Jul 27 00:07:52 PDT 1998

1219 Blair and Jospin play footie -- rank: 1000

[Political health warning to B.M. on marxism-moderated: there is a degree of irony in this title.] Yesterday Jospin visited Blair in his English consituency. Both prime ministers made worthy efforts to give soundbites for their respective media. Blair generously congratulated France not only for winning the World Cup but also even more generously for the "elegonz" with which France had hosted the games, despite past protests at the favouritism in the way they prioritised the availabili ...

Document Size:	8875
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sat Jul 25 01:16:22 PDT 1998

1220 Germany -- rank: 1000

At 11:03 PM 7/22/98 -0400, you wrote: >Today's Financial Times has a piece on succession pressures facing the >Mittelstand, Germany's small- and mid-sized businesses that the paper >describes as "one of the anchors of the German 'social market' mode." This >is expected to lead to a greater role for a "vibrant stock-market culture," >as these firms go public (and become avaiable to foreign investors too). No >doubt European unification will intensify these tr ...

Document Size:	5208
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Wed Jul 22 23:28:39 PDT 1998

1221 Hong Kong's secret strength -- rank: 1000

At 12:22 AM 7/21/98 +0100, you wrote: >Chris B said: > >> Singapore also I gather, has remnants of the old imperial currency board >> system. >> >Chris, you're a monument like the Beefeaters, the Tower, Nelson's >Column, fish and chips etc. It's really charming that you think >what saved Hongkong was the old imperial currency board system. Those >of us still hanging to the tatters of Marx's frock coat, >however, still think that the presence of 500m ill-pai ...

Document Size:	5541
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Jul 21 15:57:04 PDT 1998

1222 The final result of the development of social economy -- rank: 1000

Dear Mr He, E-mail correspondence from the People's Republic of China is a valuable connection, and the first I have seen on mailing lists such as these. But first as far as I am concerned there are a number of communication difficulties. 1. Technical. Every time I have tried to go to your home page I have had a bug. It may be deliberate punishment by Geocities, but when I try to close the words from "one of our sponsors", put up by Geocities, it reports an error in Java script and my ...

Document Size:	16470
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Jul 21 00:27:56 PDT 1998

1223 Hong Kong's secret strength -- rank: 1000

At 12:41 PM 7/20/98 -0700, you wrote: >On a minor point, wasn't the reformer Henry George rather than Herbert? Thanks. >I don't know that a raid is not immenient. The stock market has fallen >dramatically and many of the banks are in a pretty shaky condition >according to a friend who is a specialist on the East Asian economy. While >land may not be owned, leases can be quite long (99 years plus) and are >themselves a commodity. Other reasons that have to be considered is the ...

Document Size:	5762
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Jul 20 14:36:32 PDT 1998

1224 Hong Kong's secret strength -- rank: 1000

One dog that has not barked, resides in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong dollar has not fallen. True there is recession and unemployment but speculators even as powerful as Soros have not been able to make a killing despite the fact that the People's Republic of China would have been embarrassed by its devalutation. Why? I was testing an old friend and comrade who for years has been citing the financial and especially the land policy of Hong Kong as an example of a reform possible under capitalism. How ...

Document Size:	9823
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Jul 19 14:23:36 PDT 1998

1225 New Labour cuts rentier interest payments -- rank: 1000

Whether the New Labour government's announcement yesterday of increase in public expenditure on health and education is that radical, compared to the level of the previous government, is debatable. But it is regarded as clever since it is not accompanied by tax rises. Indeed, helped by a fall in inflation figures, the London stock exchanges FTSE index went through the 6000 barrier on the day the Chancellor, Gordon Brown announced increased government expenditure over the next three years of 56 b ...

Document Size:	5992
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Wed Jul 15 16:07:55 PDT 1998

1226 Is value universal and transhistorical? - 2 -- rank: 1000

At 03:50 PM 7/11/98 Andrew wrote: I have already replied to the first part, yesterday. To continue where that broke off, Andrew argued: >"Form" can of course refer to many things. As my message to >Chris notes, even Marx's expression "value-form" refers to two >different things, (a) the form of appearance of value, i.e., >exchange-value, AND (b) the social form of the product of labor >(as in "The value-form of the product of labor is ... the most >un ...

Document Size:	21567
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Jul 14 00:12:26 PDT 1998

1227 Is value universal and transhistorical? -- rank: 1000

I appreciate Andrew coming back on this on 11th July, and for letting me have background material. I accept the point about the risks of taking isolated words, and am happy that Andrew has posted his whole summary. I was partly working myself into the subject. I have taken the liberty of widening the thread title. So far in the debate I feel it is even more important to argue that value is to be found in all human societies, including the present than that it is found at all times in history Mar ...

Document Size:	22145
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Jul 12 23:33:43 PDT 1998

1228 Control by TNC's -- rank: 1000

>The TNC’s of the major powers, ( USA EU, etc,) produce 30% of the world >goods, 70% of world trade, and 80% of world investments. These same TNC’s >direct their investments to 12 specially favored developing countries and >not to the 48 poorest ones This statement about the "transnationals" was sent to me in a private post. Is it broadly true? Chris Burford

Document Size:	4807
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Jul 12 09:42:54 PDT 1998

1229 Socialised health care -- rank: 1000

Britain has just been celebrating the 50th Birthday of the National Health Service. It remains very popular. It is a socialised part of a mixed economy. When are you going to introduce it in the USA? Chris Burford NHS compares well with other health services Financial Times p8, 15 June The NHS is a rational and equitable way of delivering health services to people, a new report has concluded. The Institute for Public Policy Research found that a tax-funded system largely free at the point of use ...

Document Size:	5290
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sat Jul 11 13:01:34 PDT 1998

1230 Is value transhistorical? -- rank: 1000

At 08:41 AM 7/10/98 -0400, you wrote: > > > > > >Chris Burford <cburford at gn.apc.org> on 07/09/98 06:53:08 PM > >Please respond to lbo-talk at lists.panix.com > >To: lbo-talk at lists.panix.com >cc: (bcc: Edwin A. Eppich/BCBS/DHP/AIDS/OPH/DOH) >Subject: Re: Is value transhistorical? > > > > > >>The German for form is "Form". The German for formula is "Formel". The >>plurals look more similar. The plu ...

Document Size:	7678
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Fri Jul 10 13:50:32 PDT 1998