Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Everything I ever needed to know about capitalism and democracy, I learned from pirates
Great (but too short) interview with the author of a new paper on pirates, where he shares some parallels between 17th century pirate organization and modern democracy-capitalism. Says a bit about the current financial crisis too.
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Ah the romance of the privateer and the capitalist when successful. The following perhaps comes from an elementary school operetta, it certainly sounds that way, but in reading the pirate/capitalism reference this memory of lyrics came flooding in... Prince of the privateers
that's what I will be
sailing the sea.
Bold as a free adventurer
flying the owner's ensign
high on the mast.
Privateer for many a year
I'll sail home at last.
I ship a crew or so of
mates to the sea
faithful to me .....
and on it went but my memory of it does not. Was capitalism endoctrinating us to become pirates of the corporate world? Or does youth need the romance of other imaginary worlds where imagination can fill in the unspoken? I think the latter.
Just like in the days of old, the great enabler of the privateers is the state.
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