By: Rev. Renaldo C. McKenzie
We cannot get rid of economic recession and joblessness, because they serve the ruling-class interests. When the economy is tight, the wealthy and those capitalists can strengthen their hegemony over the masses.
In effect, they are in a better position to exploit the one production factor controlled by the Working Class, labor. So, with jobs scarce, and unemployment high, the ruling class dictates the terms of employment by cutting salaries and benefits with much favor and without fear from the masses. In a depressed economy, with the illusion of limited jobs created by the ruling class to weaken the bargaining position of the working class will result in inequity or unequal distribution of income and wealth.
Recently, the US Census reported that more people are poor since the recession and over the last five years the income of the wealthy has increased while the reverse has happened among the working class, their income fell 5%. Similarly, Jamaica has experienced the same fate. In fact, in 2007 poverty was at 9.9%, now it’s at 16.5%. Moreover, the government has collaborated with the business class and Unions to freeze wages and salaries because of the illusion of joblessness arguing that such a move prevents further redundancies or job cutting.
Moreover, the ruling class can now undermine the value of the working-class labor and improve their profit margins by reducing or cutting the rewards or the compensation packages of the working-class’ labor. Hence, we are forced to settle for earnings half of what our labor is truly worth. This is a strategic evil.
Why should we accept a 15 days’ pay for 30 days’ work? Should we allow ourselves to be exploited like that? Why should we acquiesce to less than what we are worth when the ruling class are still getting big bonuses and compensation packages in, what economists and professionals, who are lackeys for the elites describe as, a recession.
I know, because there is either no real recession but a conspiracy to weaken the bargaining position of the working class, cut wages and salaries and redistribute more of the profits to the rich capitalists thereby creating more inequity. But what is the response of the working class to this exploitative tool by the ruling class?
Well, I am still waiting…we have been all but reticent. I guess it is difficult to respond because we are so busy attempting to make a living for ourselves and competing among ourselves for what’s left of the wealth and the scarce benefits that it doesn’t even matter or occur to us that we are being exploited. In fact, the ruling class use the tea party who themselves are poor to fight the poor and those policies which are seeking to obliterate this hegemonism and diabolical approach by the ruling class.
Unknowingly, they too become lackeys for the rich. A friend of mine puts it well, when he says, the masses in Jamaica are too repressed to create a response. I would further argue that the masses are like sponges sucking up the waste that is left for them, or they are too myopic to their individual plight. one Jamaican scholar puts it well when he writes that Jamaica in the 1970’s the poor were poor, and they didn’t even know it.
And it is this ignorance that creates further poverty. There is no class conflict between the rich and masses, but an in-class conflict among the masses. The working class are like crabs in a bucket trying to get out, but they are constantly at each other pulling down the other thereby creating this futile life cycle of regression. Marx’s predictions failed to materialize, or his hypothesis remains a hypothesis because the capitalists created a way to prevent any such occurrence.
Their is much infighting than cross fighting in a society driven by unfair competition and the false notion of a “Dream”. The field is so unleveled and tilted towards the few that the few will always win and masses are left to compete for the scarce benefits and spoils. Unless we pursue the truth and defend justice and equity, the masses will be exploited and poverty a constant reality.
Written by Renaldo McKenzie et al.
The views expressed above are not necessarily those of The NeoLiberal Corporation.
Ignorance and False truth: a Theory of Exploiting the Masses
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