Debailleul, Co en in; Bichle , Shimshon; Ni zan, Jona han
A icle — Published Ve sion
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
Re iew o Capi al as Powe
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
The Bichle & Ni zan A chi es
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Debailleul, Co en in; Bichle , Shimshon; Ni zan, Jona han (2018) : Theo y and
P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y, Re iew o Capi al as Powe , Fo um on Capi al As Powe
- Towa d a New Cosmology o Capi alism, s.l., Vol. 1, Iss. 3, pp. 40-57,
h p://bna chi es.yo ku.ca/539/
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40
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
Sugges ed ci a ion:
Debailleul, Co en in, Shimshon Bichle and Jona han Ni zan (2018), ‘Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical
Theo y’, Re iew o Capi al as Powe , Vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 40-57.
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice,
P ac ical Theo y
CORENTIN DEBAILLEUL, SHIMSHON BICHLER and
JONATHAN NITZAN
1
Ques ions o Bichle and Ni zan
by Co en in Debailleul
n hei mos ecen con ibu ion o he Wo king Pape s on Capi al as Powe , ‘The CasP
P ojec : Pas , P esen and Fu u e’ (2015 now published in Vol. 1, No. 3 in his jou nal),
Shimshon Bichle and Jona han Ni zan in i e eade s o engage c i ically wi h hei
heo e ical amewo k, known as capi al as powe (CasP). This call o u he esea ch,
eac ions and c i iques is he pe ec occasion o aise a ew ques ions ha ha e g own in my
mind in eading Ni zan and Bichle ’s wo k.
In hei book Capi al as Powe : A S udy o O de and C eo de (2009), Ni zan and Bichle ejec
bo h neoclassical and Ma xis pe spec i es in poli ical economy, and hey dedica e wo ull
chap e s o a c i ique o Ma xism. The c i ique ocuses mainly on he labou heo y o alue, as
he au ho s iden i y i as he co e ounda ion o Ma x’s wo k. And indeed, he concep o
exploi a ion – so cen al o many poli ical pa ies, unions and ac i is s – is buil on his e y
heo y. Hence calling in o ques ion he labou heo y o alue shakes no only he g ound on
which all Ma xis economics es s, bu also all Ma xis p axis, o he wo go hand in hand.
1
Co en in Debailleul esides in B ussels. Shimshon Bichle eaches poli ical economy a colleges and uni e si ies in Is ael.
Jona han Ni zan eaches poli ical economy a Yo k Uni e si y in Canada. All o Bichle and Ni zan’s publica ions a e
a ailable o ee on The Bichle & Ni zan A chi es (h p://bna chi es.ne ). Resea ch o hei a icle was pa ly suppo ed
by he SSHRC. The en i e exchange is licenced unde C ea i e Commons (A ibu ion-NonComme cial-NoDe i s 4.0
In e na ional).
I
41
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
None heless, while hey dismiss neoclassical economics as an ob usca ing ai h, Ni zan and
Bichle acknowledge ha Ma xism has some me i s, bo h in hei 2009 book and elsewhe e.
Fo example, in hei a icle, ‘Capi al as Powe ’ (Bichle and Ni zan 2012), hey main ain ha
many Ma xis insigh s a e laudable:
. . . bo h Ma x and he neo-Ma xis s ha e had e y meaning ul hings o say abou he
wo ld. These include, among o he hings, a comp ehensi e is a o human his o y – an
app oach ha nega es and supe sedes he pa icula his o ies dic a ed by eli es; he
no ion ha ideas a e dialec ically embedded in hei conc e e ma e ial his o y; he link
be ween heo y and p axis; he iew o capi alism as a o alizing poli ical-powe
egime; he uni e salizing-globalizing endencies o his egime; he dialec ics o he
class s uggle; he igh agains exploi a ion, opp ession and impe ial ule; and he
emphasis on au onomy and eedom as he mo i a ing o ce o human de elopmen .
In my iew, his ambi alen ela ionship wi h Ma x and his ollowe s dese es u he
examina ion, as i could – h ough a dialec ical p ocess o emb acing, ejec ing and o e coming
a ious Ma xis s ances – allow o he de elopmen o CasP. The ollowing in e oga es he
imb ica ions be ween Ma xism and CasP and can be seen as an in i a ion o s a his
con on a ion.
Wha is he ole o social classes, class ela ions and class s uggle in he CasP amewo k? Can
a mode o powe be de ined by he na u e o and ela ions be ween i s cons i u ing social
classes? In Ma xis heo y, classes a e de ined by hei posi ion in a gi en mode o p oduc ion.
A e classes in CasP, in some kind o pa allel o Ma xism, de ined by hei posi ion in global
powe ela ions? Is he e a uled class in insically a wa wi h a uling class, o ins ance?
Ma x s essed he impo ance o consis ency be ween heo y and ac ion. As he amously
s a ed, ‘Philosophe s ha e hi he o only in e p e ed he wo ld in a ious ways; he poin is o
change i ’. Su ely, wha Ma xis s ha e p oposed o done in he name o Ma x is ex emely
a ied. Bu wha CasP p oponen s ha e o o e in e ms o p axis la gely emains o be
explo ed. In hei mos ecen pape , Ni zan and Bichle w i e:
. . . when ac i is s ask us, ‘OK, so wha do you ecommend we do?’ ou answe is simple:
es ablish en au onomous esea ch ins i u es a ound he wo ld, and you will ha e
aken he i s s ep owa d changing i . The e is eno mous pen -up au onomous ene gy
in he wo ld, bu mos o i is undi ec ed and he e o e was ed. In o de o change he
wo ld, you need o know wha kind o wo ld you wan ; in o de o know wha you wan ,
you need o know wha exis s; and in o de o know wha exis s, you need adical,
au onomous – and he e o e non-academic – e-sea ch.
While he p oposal o c ea e au onomous esea ch cen es is ce ainly in e es ing, i does no
seem o me o go a enough. Acco ding o he Ma xis ale, he wo king class is assigned he
ask o o e h owing he capi alis class and e en ually abolishing all classes and p oducing
communism. . . . Because CasP p esen s i sel as a adical c i ique o capi alism, one could
42
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
expec i o en ision some pa h o he aboli ion o his o de – in Hegelian e ms, i s Au hebung
o dialec ical anscendence. Fu he mo e, someone inspi ed by ana chis hough may
wonde whe he he aim o such a e olu ion should be he c eo de ing o a new (be e ) mode
o powe , o whe he he end o all modes o powe should be a ou ed ins ead. He e, he ough
issue o de ining ‘powe ’ a ises.
Finally, I wan o s ess one poin ha has o en been mobilised o c i icise Ma xism: i s
economic de e minism, o endency o link e e y single hing o he mode o p oduc ion o so-
called base. Ni zan and Bichle ha e de eloped a concep ualisa ion o capi al ha seems o
encompass many (i no all) human in e ac ions. Thei Mum o dian depic ion o ou social
o de as a megamachine dedica ed o capi al accumula ion – which hey call he s a e o capi al
– migh be subjec o simila accusa ions o de e minism and educ ionism.
Hence he ques ion: wha exac ly is he ele an a ea o CasP in oday’s globalising socie y? To
wha does i and does i no apply? A e he e ela ions ha canno be desc ibed as powe
ela ions? O ha canno be labelled ‘capi alis ’? Tha a e legacies om pas modes o powe ,
o ins ance? O ha p e igu e he wo ld ‘we’ wan o c ea e?
These ques ions mus be add essed bo h p ac ically and heo e ically, indi idually and
collec i ely. This in e en ion is in ended as an in i a ion o Ni zan and Bichle o a icula e
o cla i y hei posi ions, and o o he s o join he discussion as well.
43
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
by Shimshon Bichle and Jona han Ni zan
In his in e en ion, Co en in Debailleul aises se e al ela ed ques ions, o which h ee seem
pa amoun : (1) Wha a e he o e laps and di e ences be ween CasP and Ma x? (2) How does
CasP ela e o he concep s o class and class s uggle? And pe haps mos impo an ly, (3) wha
is he CasP p axis?
These ques ions a e no new. They ha e been aised o en and in a ious o ms, mos ly by
scep ical-, o me - and pos -Ma xis s wishing o build b idges be ween he old and he new.
Ou wo books, The Global Poli ical Economy o Is ael (Ni zan and Bichle 2002) and Capi al as
Powe : A S udy o O de and C eo de (Ni zan and Bichle 2009), along wi h he g owing body
o CasP esea ch, p o ide some insigh in o hese ques ions. Bu hese insigh s o e no mo e
han a s a ing poin . As we indica ed in ‘The CasP P ojec : Pas , P esen , Fu u e’ (Bichle and
Ni zan 2015), he e is a need o a much deepe , b oade and mo e sys ema ic explo a ion, an
inqui y ha we in i e o he s o pa icipa e in and which we hope o con ibu e o in ou
ongoing s udy o Concep s o Powe , Modes o Powe . In his a icle we o e a ew in e im
hough s ins iga ed by Debailleul’s que ies.
Communis s and Ana chis s
In 2001, he Is aeli Communis Pa y in i ed us o p esen ou newly published Heb ew book,
F om Wa P o i s o Peace Di idends (Bichle and Ni zan 2001), a he pa y’s local in Lowe
Hai a.
The in i a ion was somewha su p ising. The Is aeli ( o me ly Pales inian) Communis Pa y
was ne e a model o open-mindedness and au onomy. Founded in he 1920s, i s
‘ e olu iona y p axis’ has been ma ked by nume ous wis s, u ns and uneasy adap a ions.
The Pa y managed o s omach he So ie pu ges o he 1930s, in which many o i s own
Comin e n ounde s/suppo e we e execu ed; i su i ed he na ionalis -socialis spli
ushe ed in by he 1936-9 A ab Re ol in Pales ine; i b a ed he 1960s con lic be ween he
Nasse i es and p o-Moscow ac ions; i endu ed he con adic ions be ween A ab na ionalism
and uni e sal socialism; i kep i s eyes wide shu in he ace o Moscow’s ealpoli ik in he
egion (including i s abandonmen o communis p isone s in Egyp and I aq); du ing he
Second Pales inian In i ada, i walked he igh ope be ween suppo ing na ow-minded
eligious e o ism and p omo ing enligh ened secula bi-na ionalism; he lis goes on.
I was ne e en i ely clea whe he hese ‘ e olu iona y p ac ices’ aligned wi h o con adic ed
he Pa y’s ‘ e olu iona y heo y’ – o maybe nei he was e olu iona y, and i was simply a
case o an a ophied Pa y oliga chy igno ing a igid heo y ha no longe sui ed i s a ious
manoeu es. One way o he o he , he in i a ion o e ed us a golden oppo uni y o engage
wi h one o he las S alinis pa ies on ea h – and ha alone was wo h he e o , i only o
he an h opological expe ience.

44
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
The i s ows o he lec u e hall we e all aken by Pa y elde s, many holding walking s icks
and wea ing hea ing aids. Thei iew o capi alism was delinea ed by clea duali ies. As a as
hey we e conce ned, he wo ld was spli be ween base and supe s uc u e, economics and
poli ics, de e minism and i alism and heo y and p axis, and hese duali ies, mos o hem
belie ed, held oge he o ell apa depending on he ups and downs o class consciousness
and class s uggle – o , in mo e ‘poli ical’ e ms, he wisdom o he Pa y and he zeal o i s
ollowe s.
The elde s we e pa icula ly keen o hea om us ha he Is aeli occupa ion o Pales inian
e i o ies and he coun y’s e usal o allow o a Pales inian s a e we e oo ed in ‘objec i e
economic in e es s’. They wan ed us o con i m ha , in he inal analysis, he his o y o he
Is aeli-Pales inian con lic was ancho ed in p oduc ion, exploi a ion and accumula ion à la
Ma x and impe ialism à la Lenin.
We ied o explain o hem ha his ype o naï e Ma xism-Leninism was no longe
ashionable. Leading Ma xis s like Ha y Magdo , we poin ed ou , had al eady shown hi y
yea s ea lie ha accumula ion was no longe dependen on he di ec occupa ion o colonies
and ha he Uni ed S a es in aded Vie nam no in o de o en ich a ew banke s and a ms
deale s, bu o p o ec he en i e capi alis sys em om he so-called domino e ec o c eeping
communism (Magdo 1969, 1972, 2003).
Simila ly wi h Is ael. The coun y’s la ges co po a ions had no use o occupied Pales inian
land. Is ael’s dominan capi al, we old he poli icos, had gone global long ago, and i s
di e en ial accumula ion was by now nea ly pe ec ly co ela ed wi h he U.S. NASDAQ. I
ce ainly didn’ depend on he cheapness o Pales inian labou , le alone he iny Pales inian
ma ke . E en he mos basic cos -bene i analysis showed ha Is aeli capi alis s we e se o
gain om a ‘new Middle Eas ’ à la Shimon Pe es: wi h he Is aeli-Pales inian con lic esol ed,
hey would be able o in es eely in he egion, gene a ing ‘peace di idends’ a la ge han
hei o me wa p o i s.
Ou ailu e o economise he occupa ion didn’ endea us o he die-ha d S alinis s, and some
o hem we e isibly dozing. Bu when we in oduced ou heo y o Middle Eas Ene gy
Con lic s, hey quickly s aigh ened hei backs and adjus ed he olume on hei hea ing aids.
The issue, we explained, is no ha he occupa ion is un ela ed o accumula ion, bu a he ha
his ela ionship has o be unde s ood in he much b oade con ex o he global poli ical
economy and he ways in which Is ael has been embedded in he egional and global logic o
capi al.
Ou audience was again a en i e. Regional wa s, we old hem, we e in ima ely connec ed o
di e en ial oil p o i s, and ha connec ion was enough o ekindle exci emen . P o i , hey all
knew, was a ‘ eal’ economic a iable, and wi h his ancho ha ing been sa ely secu ed,
e e y hing else ell in o place: he ex ac ion, e ining and consump ion o oil in ol ed
ela ions o p oduc ion; ela ions o p oduc ion connec ed o class con lic ; and class con lic
45
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
was in e wined wi h domes ic poli ics and in e na ional ela ions – i.e., wi h he Pa y’s
exclusi e expe ise.
Bu he exci emen quickly izzled. We demons a ed o he senio lumina ies ha di e en ial
p o i s in he oil business we e dependen almos en i ely on di e en ial p ices, and ha
a ia ions in p oduc ion (i.e., he ‘ eal economy’) we e ela i ely insigni ican . And ha
demons a ion was oo much o hem o bea .
One ocal opponen – an eme i us p o esso o physics – was pa icula ly labbe gas ed. The
p o esso – who inciden ally was a o me s uden o Da id Bohm when he la e , on his
escape ou e om Ame ican McCa hyism, augh b ie ly a he Is aeli Technicon – was
puzzled by ou indi e ence o ‘ma e ialism’. How could oil p o i s – whe he absolu e o
di e en ial – be independen o he physical p oduc ion o oil? Why do we insis on he
p imacy o p ices and inance when i is pa en ly clea ha accumula ion is oo ed in he
‘ eali y’ o p oduc ion? As a heo e ical physicis , he s ead as ly belie ed ha economic eali y
was ul ima ely a ma e o use alues (‘s u ’), and ha accumula ion mus be coun able in uni s
o p oduc ion and consump ion. E e y hing else – om p ices and money o c edi and inance
– was me e e lec ion, specula ion, accoun ing icks o simple hallucina ions. We poli ely
poin ed ou ha he himsel had ne e seen a single ‘ eal’ a om, le alone an elec on o a p o on,
and ha his en i e physics was symbolic, based on no hing bu chemical hallucina ions, bu he
was un azed.
All in all, we ailed o imp ess he on owe s. Ou dogma ic esea ch was ob iously no ma ch
o he e e nal heo ies o Ma x, Lenin and S alin. Bu hen, when he Q&A session inally ended
and he ga he ing came o a close, we we e app oached by a young, a hle ic guy wi h b oad
shoulde s and pie cing eyes. ‘I’m an ana chis ’, he announced wi h a hin o a smile. ‘I ha e no
pa ience o heo e ical dogma and ancy wo ds. I wan e olu iona y p axis. Jus gi e me he
bo om line: who do I need o shoo ?’
A ow in he Blue
And so he le inds i sel in an in ini e eg ess, oscilla ing be ween he a ow and he blue.
2
The men and women o ac ion, ee e ing on he e ge o p axis, look o clea guidance. They
wan an ‘objec i e’ empla e o ell hem wha is o be done. Bu his objec i e empla e is
nowhe e o be ound. The old heo e ical sc ip u es no longe o e unequi ocal ins uc ions.
Ha ing been sanc i ied, immo alized and ossilized, hey shed less and less ligh on he apidly
changing wo ld. They can no longe be simply ead and ollowed. They need o be
decons uc ed, in e p e ed and adjus ed o he e e -changing eali y. They equi e poli ical
leade s, academic pundi s, media in ellec uals and o he media o s who know how o pick and
2
In A hu Koes le ’s au obiog aphy A ow in he Blue (1952), he a ow was a me apho o ac ion, he blue o
con empla ion. Koes le engaged in bo h, bu claimed he could ne e engage wi h bo h a he same ime.
46
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
choose he igh wo ds ha he ai h ul can easily ollow. Bu hen, i he ‘co ec ’ ac ion is
e ed by go-be weens, who needs objec i e heo y o s a wi h?
And indeed, nowadays e y ew ac i is s hink hey do. The an i-globaliza ion and Occupy
mo emen s o he new millennium s a ed hei jou ney wi h lo y au onomous ideals and
plen y o media co e age, bu soon enough ound hemsel es alling back on new/old slogans.
They condemned impe ialism and inancialism, called on go e nmen s o na ionalize he
banks and de-subsidize he la ge co po a ions and demanded ha income be edis ibu ed
downwa d and deb s be cancelled. Bu slogans do no p oduce new insigh o ell us how he
wo ld ac ually wo ks. Lacking con ic ion, hey ebb and low wi h he s ock-ma ke cycle. They
a e no ma ch o , le alone o e an al e na i e o, he ising adical igh .
To democ a ize socie y, o unleash au onomy, o plan o a be e , sus ainable u u e, we need
o unde s and how capi alism ope a es – bo h in gene al and in de ail. The eason o his
equi emen is e y simple. Social change, no ma e how adical, is ne e comple e. I ne e
c ea es a clean sla e, an en i ely new socie y buil om sc a ch. Lineages om he pas always
emain, and hese emaining lineages end o be, a leas in he beginning, much mo e
impo an han hose han ha e been se e ed. This e e -p esen , dialec ical en oldmen o he
pas wi hin he p esen means ha , o change o be e ec i e, we mus unde s and exac ly
wha is i ha we seek o al e . And such an unde s anding equi es ha we gi e up ou
heo e ical ixa ions and ideological igidi ies.
His o ically, one o Ma xism’s g ea es poli ical appeals was i s o alizing na u e. Du ing he
1930s, many communis s, pa icula ly in Eu ope, we e con inced ha Ma xism o e ed hem
a ‘ heo y o e e y hing’. I p omised insigh in o all aspec s o socie y, and his insigh , hey
belie ed, would enable he Communis Pa y o change e e y hing. This belie gal anized
ac ion, cemen ed con ic ion and mus e ed he ype o social ene gy ha only eligion can
amass. Bu i also sowed he seeds o he heo y’s own demise.
As Hegel poin ed ou , no heo y o socie y can anscend i s his o ical epoch. Fo social heo y,
no ma e how elegan , obus and comp ehensi e, is always pa o he e y socie y i seeks
o desc ibe, p ese e o change. The pu pose o a heo y, we migh posi , is o c eo de – o
c ea e he o de o – socie y. In he language o Ul Ma in (2010), heo ies o capi alism and
he social s uc u e hey cons uc a e ‘ope a ional symbols’ – ha is, symbols ha desc ibe
and o ganize o he symbols. And ope a ional symbols a e o en au opoie ic: sel -c ea ing and
sel - ans o ming. In o he wo ds, when a heo y imposes i s logic on and ans o ms socie y,
i necessa ily unde mines i s own p io cohe ence and he e o e mus be e ised o disca ded
al oge he .
47
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
F om Ma x o CasP
Al hough we a e c i ical o key aspec s o Ma x’s heo y, his wo k is deeply en olded in ou
own. The ollowing pa ag aphs, aken om ou book Capi al as Powe (Ni zan and Bichle
2009), summa ize some o hese lineages – as well as he eason why hey mus be e-
examined:
As adical hinke s, we ind i a mo e di icul o c i icize Ma x han he neoclassicis s.
So much o ou hinking abou capi alism o igina es om his w i ings. The e y concep
o he ‘capi alis sys em’; he iew o capi al as a poli ical ins i u ion and o poli ical
c i ique as pa o he class s uggle; he emphasis on he uling class and he socio-
his o ical con ex in which i eme ges; he dialec ical de elopmen o his o y in gene al
and o capi al accumula ion in pa icula ; he impe a i e o empi ical esea ch; he
uni e salizing endencies o capi al – hese ideas and emphases a e all due o Ma x. I
is ha d o app oach con empo a y social phenomena – om globaliza ion, o economic
c isis, o mili a iza ion, impe ialism, ecology, p ice mo emen s, he mode n
co po a ion, cul u al de elopmen , eli e dynamics and echnical change, o name a ew
– wi hou eeling indeb ed o Ma x and he con o e sies he opened up. His insigh s,
along wi h he deba es among his ollowe s and c i ics, a e deeply embedded in ou
cu en hinking.
Bu hen i is p ecisely his c ucial impo ance o Ma x – along wi h his emphasis on
dialec ical hinking – ha o ces us o e-examine his unde lying amewo k.
Capi alism, he a gued, is a sys em o commodi ies, d i en by he accumula ion o capi al
and denomina ed in p ices. To deciphe he sec e s o his p ocess is o look behind he
on window o p ices, and o do so we need a heo y o alue. This is he s a ing poin ,
he ‘algo i hm’ ha Ma x uses o de elop much o his subsequen concep s and analysis.
Ma x chose o de elop a alue heo y based on labou , and i is he e ha his analysis
wen w ong. Ou pu pose in his and he nex chap e is o examine why. Wha a e he
inconsis encies in Ma x’s logic, how has he de elopmen o capi alism unde mined
ha logic, and mos impo an ly, wha can we lea n om hese heo e ical and
his o ical conside a ions as we seek o de elop a adical al e na i e? (84)
One o he key sho comings o Ma x’s app oach is ha i accep s – howe e c i ically – he
libe al duali y o economics e sus poli ics and in so doing makes i ha d i no impossible o
anscend he ‘ma e ialis ’ no ion capi al. As we no ed in Capi al as Powe (2009), ini ially
he no ion ha capi al was a pu ely economic ca ego y ha dly seemed p oblema ic.
Wi h economics conside ed sepa able om poli ics, wi h agg ega e concep s ye o be
in en ed and di used, and wi h he basic social da a s ill o be c ea ed, i was possible
o belie e ha capi al was an objec i ely de ined economic en i y wi h a eadily
measu able quan i y. The e was eally no hing o con es ha belie . (41)
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Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
The dynamics o capi alism and he limi s, o asymp o es, o i s powe canno be easily educed
o s ic ly ‘objec i e’ condi ions. They depend on he abili y o he ule s o o ce hemsel es
on he es o socie y – and he con idence hey ha e in his abili y. Fo his eason, c ises in
capi alism ha e much o do wi h he ule s’ ea s – which, con a y o he Ma xis ision, a e
no a ic i ious elemen o inancial i a ionali y, bu a key dimension o capi aliza ion and an
in eg al aspec o accumula ion.
The ule s a e no mo e a ional o i a ional han hei subjec s. Indeed, he ema kable
esilience o capi alism hinges c ucially on i s abili y o subjuga e bo h ule s and uled o he
same ope a ional symbol o capi aliza ion.
Ea lie modes o powe made hie a chy explici and binding: hey di e en ia ed clea ly
be ween ule s and uled, hey limi ed and o en p e en ed upwa d mobili y and hey
gene a ed and en o ced signi ican ly di e en mind se s on a ious social g oups. Capi alism
is e y di e en in his sense. I is he only mode o powe ha denies powe . I la ens he
wo ld. I enounces hie a chy and glo i ies oppo uni y. I emo es o mal ba ie s o mobili y
and objec s, a leas in p inciple, o a ious o ms o disc imina ion.
The only legi ima e di e en ia o is money. I s ul ima e pu pose is said o be wellbeing (‘be e
li e’). All capi alis subjec s a e condi ioned o che ish he singula p inciple o indi idual
pleasu e (‘s anda d o li ing’), augh how o quan i y i (‘ne wo h’) and imagine ha hey y
o maximize i (‘ a e o e u n’). Bu hey assess hei success no di ec ly bu mone a ily
(‘being ich’), and hey seek i no absolu ely bu di e en ially (‘bea ing he a e age’). In o he
wo ds, hey hink hedonically bu ac con lic ually, o ce ully, iolen ly. And i is he
uni e sali y o his duali y – he ac ha e e yone, om capi alis s and wo ke s, o poli icians
and bu eauc a s, o he unemployed and he c iminal, li e and die by i – ha makes p axis so
elusi e.
In Nine een Eigh y Fou , Geo ge O well mocked Ma x by u ning his class-conscious p ole a ia
in o mindless p oles locked in an in ini e loop: ‘un il hey become conscious hey will ne e
ebel, and un il a e hey ha e ebelled hey canno become conscious’ (1948: 70). Bu
become conscious o wha and ebel agains whom? In he So ie Union, he backd op o
O well’s no el, he answe may ha e been p e y ob ious. Bu in capi alism, whe e, on he ace
o i , ule s and uled obey he same logic, a e condi ioned by he same alues and belie e hey
a e d i en by he same goals, he answe is no ha simple.
B idgehead
These conside a ions make p axis c ucially dependen on using poli ical ac ion wi h ongoing
empi ical and heo e ical esea ch. To illus a e his necessi y o know wha we a e doing,
conside he ollowing hough expe imen . Wha i , ins ead o c eo de ing he en i e ab ic o
socie y, we s a wi h a na ow b idgehead? Ra he han ying o e olu ionize he whole
hing, we ocus on one well-de ined sphe e. We injec in o his sphe e g ea e au onomy,

55
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
coope a ion and c ea i i y, and hen g adually ie hese changes wi h, pull in and ans o m
addi ional social sphe es and p ocesses, as well as ou e y unde s anding o socie y.
One p omising si e o such a b idgehead is he in e sec ion o housing and pensions. The apid
u baniza ion o he plane makes a o dable housing a key conce n – and inc easingly an
impossible d eam – o mos wage ea ne s. Simila ly wi h pensions. Acco ding o he
In e na ional Labou O ganiza ion, he as majo i y o he wo ld’s wo king-age popula ion –
up o 90 pe cen – is no co e ed by pension schemes capable o p o iding adequa e
e i emen income (Gillion e al. 2000). Le una ended, hese ends a e akin o social ime-
bombs. Used wisely, hough, hey migh o e a le e age o au onomous social change
a ound he wo ld.
I we could come up wi h a democ a ically managed sys em ha ploughs pension
con ibu ions in o a o dable housing and uses mo gage epaymen s and en o pay
pensione s, we migh be able o align wi h and mobilize la ge chunks o socie y. And ha ’s
jus o s a e s. A o dable housing can be ied o sus ainable u ban planning, wi h c ea i e
a chi ec u e and new o ms o public anspo a ion o coun e ac and e e se he ecological
de as a ion ushe ed in by uncon ollable sp awl. Those who li e in au onomously de eloped
u ban a eas and expe ience he democ a ic p ocess migh in u n wish o e o m he
educa ional sys em and b oaden hei sel -go e nmen . The concep ual challenges c ea ed
by a democ a ically managed pension-housing sys em migh gi e ise o al e na i e
accoun ing me hods based on compu a ions o public wel a e a he han indi idual u ili y.
Success in any o hese a eas could spill o e in o o he a eas o socie y, while ailu e would
encou age e hinking and explo ing o al e na i e ou es. Wha s a ed as a me e b idgehead
could g adually expand in o a b oad c eo de ing o socie y a la ge.
Can his hough expe imen be ansla ed in o p axis? Pe haps – bu only i we a e able o
concei e, de elop and implemen i in conjunc ion wi h ongoing empi ical and heo e ical
esea ch.
The e a e h ee ela ed easons o his equi emen . One is ha he changes ou lined abo e
cons i u e a di ec assaul on he capi alis mode o powe : o democ a ize housing is o
unde mine he concen a ion o p i a e eal-es a e owne ship and managemen ; o
wi hd aw pension unds om he s ock ma ke is o a es asse -p ice in la ion and dep i e
capi alis s o he nea ly o al le e age hey ha e o e middle-class incomes and he middle-
class way o li e; o demons a e he e icacy o sel -managemen in mo e and mo e ealms
o socie y is o delegi imize he sanc i y o p i a e en e p ise and sound he dea h knell o
accumula ion.
So dominan capi al and i s powe bel o go e nmen o icials, economis s and public-
opinion make s a e bound o igh his p ocess nail and oo h. They will dismiss i s
unde pinnings and a ack i s suppo e s. They will hwa i s planning and sabo age i s
implemen a ion. They will use s icks and ca o s, b ainwashing and h ea s, pe suasion and
56
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
iolence. The e is no way o us o wi hs and, esis and o e come hese a acks wi hou
unde s anding – in gene al and in de ail – he powe logic hey obey and he powe
s uc u es hey mobilize. And ha unde s anding equi es elen less, in-dep h esea ch.
Ano he eason is ha e en i we succeed and see ou b idgehead gaining ac ion and
sp eading in o o he a eas o socie y, ini ially hese a eas will ha e o coexis and in e ac
wi h pa allel s uc u es o capi alis powe . To pu his pa allelism in con ex , no e ha he
mode n capi alis p inciples o in es men and accoun ing, discoun ing and inance and
wage labou and inc easing e iciency eme ged in he ea ly pa o he second millennium
AD, bu ha un il e y ecen ly – pe haps as la e as he nine een h cen u y – hey ope a ed
wi hin and alongside he logic o eudalism. And i ha p o es o be he case wi h pos -
capi alis al e na i es, ou p axis will depend c ucially on unde s anding he e e -changing
dynamics o capi alis powe in which hese al e na i es exis .
Las bu no leas , en olding esea ch wi h p axis could boos he mo ale and op imism o
p og essi e g oups a ound he wo ld. To show ha democ a ic schemes such as pension-
suppo ed housing can ac ually wo k – i.e., ha hey se e he au onomy and wellbeing o
hei membe s while weakening he powe logic o capi al – is o demons a e ha we
unde s and capi alism and can do be e ; ha al e na i es o capi alism can be imagined,
planned and implemen ed.
This unde s anding, howe e , is di icul i no impossible o gain when we emb ace academic
dogma, cling o ou da ed poli ical slogans and shun empi ical esea ch. The only way o
achie e i – ce ainly on any meaning ul scale – is h ough a se ies o au onomous, non-
academic esea ch ins i u es ha a e in o med by and ca e o socie al ac ion. These a e no
me e sidekicks. In ou complex wo ld, hey ha e become a p e equisi e o e ec i e p axis.
57
Theo y and P axis, Theo y and P ac ice, P ac ical Theo y
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