[AstralTraveller (David)]

Originally Posted by Glenhuon

Its the way the capitalist cookie crumbles, always has and always will.

True. It isn't a stable system - it always has boom-bust cycles, with all the associated hardship for the working classes. We've seen 1840, 1890, 1930 just to mention the major depressions. The massive destruction of capital during the '39-'45 war postponed the next cycle but I'd suggest we are now overdue. Perhaps this will be a major depression, perhaps not; I don't know. But if this isn't the biggie then we can look forward to it in 5-10 years.

The problem is that capitalism requires constant growth and that just isn't possible - if for no other reason than we are on a finite planet. Capitalist crises are unique in history in that they are not caused by a shortage or underproduction. There is enough food (though not distributed evenly) and production is rattling along, yet the economy goes belly up. So long as we persist with this anarchic system we condemn the world to the barbarity of wars and depressions.

I saw a quote yesterday that sums up the present situation nicely: 'a game that privatizes profit but socializes risk'.