| This question <23|152-3> overall <23|25> Hans: <21|26>. |
| Question 68: How can labor time be the measure of value, of a social quantity, if it seems the private matter of the producer whether he or she spends much or little time, and others may not even know? |
| [24] Hans: A Clarification Squeezy [22] and Cleo [23] thought Question 68 asks about the principles a Marxist or socialist economy. This is a misunderstanding. 68 is a question about commodity production. The wording is a little ambiguous: “How can labor time be the measure of value” seems to ask how value should be measured. But the second half of the question makes it clear that commodity production is meant. Only in commodity production is it “the private matter of the producer whether he or she spends much or little time”. |
| The study questions must always be seen in the context of the assigned readings. The topic of Marx's Capital is capitalism, not socialism. Question 68 is the basic question answered in the presently assigned readings. First Marx says that value is measured by labor time, but then he brings some objections to it, after which he modifies his initial statement. Question 68 phrases these objections a little differently than Marx does, but if you make the effort to follow the argument in the readings, then you should be able to answer this question. |
| Squeezy obviously read the assignment, but he nevertheless considered the question to be about socialism. Squeezy advocates a political decision process, in which necessities like vegetables are valued higher than luxuries like diamonds. In the Soviet Union type socialist countries, this was put into practice. Bread was very cheap and subsidized, and luxuries like cars or TVs very expensive. This was not a good solution. Based on this artificial price system, nobody knew which production method was most efficient. And as long as everybody has a decent income, it is not necessary to sell bread at 25 cents a loaf. |
| It is important for socialist production that it is transparent and based on simple principles. The simplest principle that comes to mind is that everybody should get the same hourly wage. This is a viable principle as long as education is free, and it makes a polical statement: everybody is valued equally. Every good that is for sale should have its labor content stamped on, and the prices should be approximately that labor content, with a premium if there is excess demand and a discount if there is excess supply. The system which I think would work best is therefore closer to Cleo's system than to Squeezy's. Cleo was a B+, because it was mainly assertions without reasoning, and where Cleo reasoned I could not follow. I don't see how the fact that everyone works for the common good eliminates laziness; one might as well argue that it invites free riders. Squeezy's grades are private. |
| But let me repeat: Capital is a book about capitalism, not socialism. And the study questions are about capitalism too. Any future homework submissions which do not understand that will get bad grades. I did not penalize Squeezy and Cleo, since the wording of this question was ambiguous. |
|
|
|||||