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Quote by Michael Yates

“I think the two issues, racism and chauvinism, are linked. Look at how much weaker was support for U.S. actions in Iraq among black people.”

Quote by Michael Yates

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Michael Yates
Michael Yates

Michael Yates is a renowned economist born in 1946. He has made significant contributions to the field of economics, particularly in labor economics and the structure of capitalist economies. more

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“The system has a way of convincing people that because they live in the USA they are better off than all other people in the world. This gets them focused on the wrong things, of course, but it has been a tried and true way of deflecting class struggle, something I don't think Marx didn't fully anticipated. The education system, and the whole culture really, has a lot to do with how these feelings are transmitted to each new generation. When parents say their kids were heroes when they died for nothing in Iraq, you can see the power of this.”

PeopleThinkingWorldWayHas BeensWholeFeelingsKidsCultureCoursesParentClassStruggleGenerationsHeroDiedIraqFocusedUsaBetter OffConvincingWrong ThingsEducation SystemNew GenerationClass StruggleDeflecting
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“Capitalism is a powerful producer of output, crisis-mongering on the left notwithstanding, and this too makes the system seem to have a lot of promise. This is why it is so important to agitate against the system in good times and bad. We can't depend on some super crisis to get folks thinking but instead have to focus on all of the contradictions of the system which cannot be ultimately resolved by it.”

ThinkingImportantSeemsLeftPowerfulFocusDependsPromiseCapitalismCrisisFolksProducersContradictionGood TimesOutputAgitate
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“We must not forget either that some of the system's resilience is due to its ability to coopt people with money and prestige. It is easy to get sucked right in. Those who grasp the system are also likely to be talented and capable of doing well within the system. Who will turn down a lot of money? Who doesn't have an ego? A compromise here, another one there, and pretty soon, you are sucked right in.”

PeopleWellsTurnsEasyAbilityForgetEgoCapableDuesResilienceCompromiseLots Of MoneyPrestigeEasy To Get
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“Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless consumption isn't much of a life. And work offers us very little satisfaction. Plus our work and consumption is destroying the environment. And this is in the rich countries. Add starvation, etc. to the mix, and you have a lot of people in the world pretty unhappy with things as they are. Modern communications make all of this known to people far and wide, and we see the fundamental unfairness of it all.”

PeopleThinkingKnowsWorldFeelsLittlesCountryKnownRichEnvironmentModernCommunicationOffersFundamentalsAddFolksSatisfactionWideUnhappyBeing TrueEtcPlusDestroyingConsumptionStarvationUnfairnessRich CountriesDestroying The EnvironmentModern Communication
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