Grace Blakeley on Why The Far-Right are Gaining Momentum | Audible Sessions

Grace Blakeley is a British economic and political commentator, as well as a published author, and in her new book Vulture Capitalism she unpicks just what is going wrong with the world and how we got here. She offers some interesting solutions, breaking down how the far right has gained traction worldwide, and looks at how to stop the cycle of individualism that is preventing the UK from thriving.
Listen to Vulture Capitalism on Audible now: adbl.co/3VcmLUJ
CHAPTERS:
00:00 - 02:14 The origins of Vulture Capitalism
02:15 - 03:55 The Maxrist perspective of true democracy
03:56 - 06:37 Brexit Referendum and the erosion of democracy
06:38 - 09:16 Where Grace believes the far-right movement stems from
09:17 - 11:59 Experiments in Socialism and a rigged system
12:00 - 13:24 How Margaret Thatcher helped cultivate the mindset shift to individualism
13:25 - 18:13 Keeping optimistic on changing the public's mindset to collectivism
SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE 🔔: adbl.co/3fGaeSf
About Audible UK: We Unleash The Power of The Spoken Word.
Audible is the world’s largest producer and provider of spoken-word entertainment and audiobooks, and podcasts enriching the lives of our millions of listeners every day.
Find Audible UK on:
➡️TWITTER: adbl.co/2y8B8Bo
➡️INSTAGRAM: adbl.co/2Z25RuZ
➡️FACEBOOK: adbl.co/2Z25HDT
Or visit our website: audible.co.uk
#graceblakeley #politics #interview #capitalism

[@dlevans72]

I’ve read Vulture Capitalism and a lot of what Grace says is true. Having all of her observations consolidated so well in one book makes for a great insight into how our world operates. In years gone past it seemed a bit more effort was made by corporations and govts to operate covertly, these days they just don’t seem to care. Which for me is a greater concern. These forces against the collective good appear to operate without any fear of retribution.

[@00Platypus00]

It is so interesting that Amazon is hosting this. They have zero preoccupation with opposition, unfortunately.

[@muteloch2798]

I could listen to Grace speak all day ❤

[@user-td5pt9nw9n]

Then you are lost in 1970’s political nonsense, start studying what’s happening in Silicon Valley and in China then tell me left right politics is of any relevance today 😉

[@thomaswikstrand8397]

​@@user-td5pt9nw9n obviously it is as relevant as ever.

[@jansamohyl7983]

Gracefully explained!

[@politika8087]

I think it's not just the people in power that stand in the way of changing society. We need to account for those who don't have power and are not capitalists themselves but are benefitting from the systems currently in place and will fight tooth and nail to maintain the status quo. One example is investing in the fossil fuel and defense industries. Average investors will be opposed to anything that decreases the value of their portfolio. Thanks Thatcher.

[@PaulEleftheriou-we7vr]

If Grace ran for office, she would get my vote.

[@musicdev]

She literally wouldn’t get anything done, and that’s kind of the point of what she’s saying. You can’t get socialism by voting people like Grace in, because we don’t live in a democratic society. Class struggle and revolution is how we accomplish socialism. Now get to it. Go organize your workplace

[@MrNerdyBrit]

@@musicdev I was literally about to say this :P

[@musicdev]

@@MrNerdyBrithaha which part? Anyway glad someone gets it

[@MrNerdyBrit]

@@musicdev Pretty much all of what you said.

[@eliasE989]

She's excellent!

[@stenchofjustice]

Weaponizing the real and legitimate resentment we feel from being disenfranchised by the system, and using it to further entrench the hierarchy, with even less accountability.

[@manusmcmanus9330]

Weaponising "alienation" is what Marx did.Like a pied piper.

[@rrni2343]

Capitalism is essentially a squid game. Workers are basically forced to compete for survival due to the nature of the game. Then the politicians say 'its in our nature to be competitive', it's not, it's in our nature to survive. Capitalism says compete or die, kill or be killed, while socialism is cooperation, where it is in our best interest that everybody is capable of participating according to their ability, and be compensated so they can flourish as individuals.

[@tubester4567]

Well I dont know, the history of the world is war and conquest. Including all the native cultures. The other thing is, nobody is forced into the capitalist game. You can buy a cheap plot of land in the country and grow your own food. You can be like the Amish, totally reject the state and be self sufficient.

[@eveningchaos1]

Isn't the fusion of public and private power to ensure that wealth can be extracted from the workers just plain old fascism?

[@Ludicanti]

❤

[@batsoup7031]

Real democracy has never been tried.

[@robertwilson214]

Brexit - you can vote against and speak out against....the people we point at....that's freedom.😂

[@willrelf1377]

Power has to be taken by violent force.

[@manusmcmanus9330]

The Long March is already there

[@stevenhanson6057]

I could look at Grace all day ❤

[@Ludicanti]

We will work together, pk? ⭐️

[@manusmcmanus9330]

How much crypto does she own?

[@LPW638]

Considering she is contemptuously dismissive of crypto and its proponents....none whatsoever, i'd presume??

[@Borabas]

I think, Blakeley explains quite well, what capitalism really is. I wonder, what she thinks about the industry powered by fossil fuels, because I think, extractive industries that steal wealth from local communities and future generations are the biggest problem. Most industries, especially the bigger ones, are extractive.

[@jackstrop7520]

i agree with grace on many things but where she falls down is insisting that an alternative view is automatically faaaaar right! it really demeans her argument which is a shame!!

[@scooble]

Which part of the video does she say that?

[@robertwilson214]

Yes,they've done such great work siphoning money to the top and starting wars.... especially in the 1930s

[@reilysmith5187]

People have hated their government for over a century but in the past they at least werent as terrible as now.

[@manusmcmanus9330]

?

[@andrewnelson3681]

She wants “economic and political transformation” but is disparaging of the “ far right” who want to “burn it all down” 😂

[@stevenhanson6057]

How much wealth another has, will not affect your life. Unless of course, they sign your paycheck.

[@nealmctaggart7229]

Clearly you need to read Grace’s book.

[@JAI_8]

Who taught you that? A rich guy, I expect.

[@alebeni5006]

Wrong, the wealth that can be produced is limited for several reasons, contrary as capitalists will tell you. That means people accumulating more and more wealth are impoverishing the rest.

[@JAI_8]

That’s just plain wrong Im sorry to say. In our theoretically “free market” economy we compete with the rich for assets. That includes, for example, residential real estate. Over the past several decades THIS is the reason why residential real estate price inflation has been vastly greater than regular consumer goods. As the rich (or their proxies, the financial institutions that the rich own and control that issue mortgages) have begun since the 1980s to accumulate proportionally vastly greater wealth than the median working class person they have been looking for investments to make (the reason the stock market seems to be growing ever more entirely out of touch with the working class economy … because it is out of touch … the rich are the ones buying it and selling it and setting it’s prices) and assets to buy … like residential properties for example. So, therefore it’s THE PRICE THE RICH BUYERS / INVESTORS ARE WILLING TO PAY not only in competition with you, a wage earning working class person, but also in competition with OTHER RICH BUYERS / INVESTORS. The residential housing market is experiencing this phenomenon EVERYWHERE there has been neoliberal capitalism that has transitioned to the new “finance capitalist” services based model in the world’s so-called “advanced” capitalist democracies. The countries where more political control has been ceded to the rich banker class, and the richer the highest 1 or 2% have become, and the higher the residential housing prices have spiraled. So your message is just wrong. In a capitalist society, we compete for assets with everyone, including the super wealthy. You cannot outcompete them for assets. And since the value of their assets is based upon scarcity, they will fight you at every opportunity to prevent you from creating an abundance of an asset they purchased while scarce. They will fight to maintain artificial scarcity. Food gets thrown away. Clothes shipped to vast distant valley dump sites, and residential houses are prevented from being built by a variety of means. If the super rich are permitted to become as exceedingly wealthy as they are now in the USA and also gain complete control of the political system then you have no chance at all to compete against them at all for assets and critical resources. Your statement is one of the favorite little bits of false consciousness the phony intellectual rich bow-tied playboy toff followers of French anthropologist René Girard (“Mimetic Desire”) spew on and on with their “we must stop the politics of envy”. It’s utter bulls**t in a capitalist society. They know it, and they only prattle on about it in the vain hope all the shy working class intellectual boys who haven’t yet completely figured out their sexuality can be “turned” conservative if they think that the well dressed bow-tied Girard boys are kinda cute and maybe they’re on to something about needing to “transcend materialism and envy”. That’s some hilarious sh*t coming from the oak paneled home library crowd, young “sensitive intellectual” sons of men who have been comfortably members of the 1% for at least two or more generations already and sucking up more and more of the nations wealth, resources and assets for their next generation every day. It’s a class war. They know it is. You know it is. Wealth and assets IS life. And wether we like it or not we currently compete for assets with those that are wealthier than us. Vastly wealthier sometimes. If wealth of others is so unimportant then you won’t mind a 5% wealth tax imposed upon the those whose wealth exceeds say 10 million dollars, scaled up to 25% for anyone whose wealth exceeds 500 million dollars, and 50% on all the billionaires. Do I hear some words of protest? I hope not. See, I believe wealth distribution is very important to the proper function of a society and a sure fire way to destroy a well ordered civil, law-abiding, country-loving, entrepreneurial society and nation is to permit the kind of wealth and asset inequality we’ve permitted to occur since a Reagan set the mechanism in motion in the 1980s. It’s long past time to remedy it, before the rich and their ideology and bitter brutal class war hidden by a cynical ugly and possibly soon to be violent culture war destroys what’s left that is good in the country.

[@JAI_8]

@@alebeni5006 And also, very importantly, outcompeting them for limited resources and assets, like residential properties (houses). It’s why house prices have gone up so much higher than regular consumer goods.

[@finianlacy8827]

Mostly agree..excepting her grossly inaccurate description of AFD in Germany

[@BrianandGage]

Nah I’ll keep what I own, thank you very much

[@coreyc1685]

Well said, Tarquin. You tell those pesky plebs. See you at the fox hunt tomorrow, old chap. Tally ho.

[@00Platypus00]

You must enjoy the taste of boots

[@BrianandGage]

@@00Platypus00 I love the taste of money😂

[@00Platypus00]

@@BrianandGage You are confusing private and personal property. Confusing money and capital.

[@winterskiU]

She lives in a dream world. Nice idea but far removed from reality. For every example she provides, you can easily show examples of the opposite. Might work for small local communities won't work for nation states.

[@LPW638]

You weren't listening were you?? She explicitly said that "you can't transform an entire nation with just a few democratically run community enterprises", but she also pointed out the fact that we can't begin to imagine broader transformational changes until we can first imagine transformation at the local level. I think that is 100% spot on.

[@loring5784]

I used to see capatalism this way when I was twelve. It is a profoundly low resolution critique and a mistepresentation of the flaws in the system. What capatalism needs to function correctly is a moral and vigilant society that holds the line of accountability through lawmakers and politicians otherwise it will be corrupted by the worst of us. Is our capitalistic sytem corrupted. It absolutley is because we allowed it to happen. Was it socialism that lifted more people out of poverty in the last 70 years than any system in human history? No, that was capatalism. Socialism, however has killed hundreds of millions of people in the same time frame. Im happy to discuss what has become of capatalism since the inception of the federal reserve that led to criminal banking practices and the eventual merging of coroorate and state power that have led us to our current position of being ruled by a technocratic oligarchy perpetuated and protected by a profoundly corrupt government that gaslights its people into believing that our constitutional republic and its citizens have democratically elected representation. More than happy to discuss this and possible solutions. However, I will not be told by a couple of brats that have benefitted from capatalism their entire lives that Socialism is a superior model. If you want to live in a socialist country than you should do that and I wish you luck. Or start a commune in your home country that you seem to despise. Socialism is a cancer because it fails to understand the psychology of humanbeings. And this nonsense about the far-right is just rediculous. The western world is indeed full of extremists at the moment and they are all lefty progressives, communists and Sharia law type Islamics. Ive had my fill of this clown activism that is detached from reality.

[@jazmynleenelson3349]

Because everyone is sick and tired of governments that do not have the people’s best interest including me and I’m not political at all best person for the job I don’t care about parties.