Product Description

"Babylon and Beyond" provides the first clear and accessible guide to the economics of anti-capitalism. Anti-capitalism is a diverse movement: critics accuse it of knowing what it is against, but not knowing what it is for. Anti-capitalists want radical change, but what shape should that change take? The truth is that different sections of the movement advocate distinct - and sometimes contradictory - programmes for change. This book concentrates on perhaps the most divisive issue of all in the anti-capitalist struggle: how to transform the economy. There are greens who think we must hold back economic growth and Marxists who believe the economy must move forward along capitalist lines before there can be revolutionary change; there are those who remain faithful to notions of collective or state ownership of all aspects of the economy, and those who think various kinds of reform or regulation of capitalist practice is more appropriate. "Babylon and Beyond" is a modern guidebook to the complicated terrain of alternatives to global capitalism. Chapters cover Marxism, Autonomism, Anarchism, Ecosocialism, Capitalist reformers (like George Soros and Joseph Stiglitz), Green localists (like Colin Hines), and others. Unique in its coverage, clear and accessible, the book is ideal for activists, and anyone who is trying to find a useful way forward.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #122347 in Books
• Published on: 2005-09-09
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 220 pages

Review
"'A thoughtful and inspiring guide to capitalism and anti-capitalism. This really is the first book that carefully explains the different varieties of anti-capitalist thought... I thoroughly recommend that you read Babylon and Beyond.' Caroline Lucas, MEP There are far too many books on anti-capitalism out there already -- but with Babylon and Beyond, Derek Wall has removed the need to read most of them. Just read this one: a succinct, intelligent and witty summary of what it's all about.' Paul Kingsnorth, author of One No, Many Yeses: A Journey to the Heart of the Global Resistance Movement"

About the Author
Derek Wall is the author of five books including Earth First and the Anti-Roads Movement (Routledge, 1999) and, with Penny Kemp, A Green Manifesto for the 1990s (Penguin, 1990). He teaches Political Economy at Goldsmiths College, University of London.

Customer Reviews

Babylon and Beyond
Derek Wall has written this book as a guide to the economics of anti-capitalism. Unlike most books on caitalism and anti-capitalism where you need an honours degree in economics or politics to understand the fundamental issues. Derek has brought together lots of different ideas and has evolved an understandable guide to the economics of anti-capitalismwhich the man in the street would understand ( if he were interested ) Derek's history of capitalism is both very funny and very enlightening. He covers all aspects of the capitalist and anti-capitalist thoughts and philosophies from ( Marxism Derek himself being a Zen-Marxist )to Anachism (which I tend tend to favour ) Derek gives lots of insights into the alternatives as propounded by lots of famous economic and capilasist reformers, green reformers and eco-socialists

Babylon and Beyond
This is a very enjoyable read full of humour and literary references which explains what anti-capitalists believe and looks at practical alternatives to our present economic system. Wall shows that it is pretty much impossible for capitalism to continue without the complete wrecking of the planet unlike Jonathon Porritt who seems to have given up most of his radical green ideas. Babylon and Beyond shows how a community based grassroots economics can be based on social sharing. Here we find Marx for beginners plus all the other anti-capitalists including billionaire George Soros to radical greens. If you care about the planet and justice and are looking for a readable guide including what opponents of the present economic set are saying, I urge you to read this book, nice pictures as well including a great one of MEP Caroline Lucas

the protest movement is broader than you realise
This is a vital book for those who, like me, recognise that there is much to stand against in our current consumer culture, but who find themselves caught between light-bulb replacing platitudes on one side, and angry radicalism on the other. It turns out that the protest movement is broader and more diverse than I realised, and more thought-out and intentional than the news footage would imply.

Anyone with a social conscience and a eye on the newspapers knows that the consumer society is not all it seems, that there is a catalogue of atrocities behind the shiny veneer. We know that the gap between the rich and the poor is widening, that trade is unfair, that our consumption patterns are unsustainable, and that globalisation has not delivered its much lauded benefits evenly. The problem is, what do you do about it? How else could it work? And even if we can imagine an alternative, where do you start dismantling a whole world order?

Babylon and Beyond explores the many different answers to those questions. For some, the answer lies in reform of our financial institutions, making sure globalisation continues, but more fairly, at a workable pace. Others believe that the system is beyond repair, and we need communism instead, or to revert to peasant farming and self-sufficiency. Some want to focus on corporations, others on monetary reform. There are an awful lot of ideas and potential solutions out there, some good, practical and possible, others not so useful.

Derek Wall is a historian and an economist, and a leading member of the UK Green Party, which makes him the perfect guide through this maze of ideas. Wall knows which voices are the ones worth listening too, whether he agrees with them or not. So George Soros and Joseph Stiglitz get a whole chapter between them, as the leading voices for change within the capitalist system, a kind of `more but better' globalisation that Wall suggests `illustrates the truth that a bridge that only stands on one side of the river is no bridge at all'. David Korten and Naomi Klein, with their focus on corporations and brands, are another chapter. Localism, marxism and anarchism are also explored.

For me personally, the chapter on ecosocialism resonated the most, a marriage between green politics and a marxist understanding of capitalism. The view that capitalism is responsible for the current ecological crisis is self-evident to me, so I sympathise with the ecosocialist cause. I also value the insight that there are two kinds of environmentalism - north and south. In the north, environmentalism is a choice, an optional concern. In the south, it is a matter of life and death.

The future will undoubtedly pick and choose from many of the different philosophies here, but what I appreciate most is that Wall is confident that these movements are not wasting their time. Although some are not going far enough, and some are barking up the wrong tree, Wall sees hope in all sorts of places, like the slow movement, open source software, allotments. In fact underpinning the book is the belief that `economics can be bent towards serving the needs of humanity and nature rather than its own violent abstract growth', and that's an important message.