The motorcar is a perfect example of how production for profit alters the entire world in the image of the commodity, potentially even at the expense of future human life on earth. A foldable 8-page booklet that you can print at home on both sides of 2 sheets of paper (and staple twice in the middle fold between pages 4 and 5) was created in .pdf format for your interest. You will be able to download the 4 .pdf files at the end of this short introduction. It is Andre Gorz’ brilliant 1973 critique (originally in French) of the ideology of the motorcar, the prime example of capitalist individualism and mass consumption at the terrible expense of the quality of human life. It is, in this author’s opinion, one of the finest political articles ever written of an anti-capitalist nature. This author has produced it to hand out to fellow bicyclists at Critical Mass events, or simply to hand out to pedestrians he passes while on his bike. It concludes with a brief paragraph penned by this author to point newcomers to this website and thus to socialist ideas. Members and non-members alike (especially fellow cyclists!) are strongly encouraged to print this up in your home and to hand out to random fellow citizens.

motorcar.pdf

Capitalism has been widely celebrated for its capacity for rapid technological advance. Thus Marx in the Communist Manifesto of 1848: “The bourgeoisie cannot exist without constantly revolutionizing the instruments of production.” A century later Joseph Schumpeter declared that “creative destruction” is “the essential fact about capitalism” (Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy, 1942). And surely this fact has never been truer than it is today, in the age of microelectronics and bioengineering?

The technological dynamism of capitalism is undeniable, especially in comparison with earlier historical formations. This, however, is only half the story. The functioning of capitalism also entails the shelving or suppression of many useful inventions. One common cause of neglect is the limited purchasing power of those who stand to benefit from some discovery, as in the case of drugs to treat tropical diseases (see “Nonprofit Production: Wave of the Future?” in last month’s issue). Another key factor behind the non-use of inventions is the patents system.

The law treats physical property and intellectual property (IP), much the same despite the fact that IP requires practically no labour to reproduce and does not spoil or wear out. The primary purpose of laws preventing people from copying music, software, literature, and other information, then, is to effect an artificial scarcity which helps secure profits for IP owners.

Independent software developers, angry with the restrictions imposed by commercial IP owners, began to voluntarily license their software copyrights under terms which guaranteed that the software would always be free for others to use, study, copy, and modify. Since most new software is created by refining and combining existing pieces of software, this licensing scheme essentially returned control of the means of production of software to the community.

In signing the recent executive order creating a new National Space Policy, President Bush has announced that the US will reject future arms-control agreements that might limit US military manoeuvrability in space. The document further announces that the US “will preserve its rights, capabilities and freedom of action in space … and deny, if necessary, adversaries the use of space capabilities hostile to US national interests.”

“Freedom of action in space is as important to the United States as air power and sea power,” the policy declares and that to “increase knowledge, discovery, economic prosperity, and to enhance the national security, the United States must have robust, effective, and efficient space capabilities.”

Last year, the Trotskyist online newspaper World Socialist Web Site, or WSWS (no relation to us and the World Socialist Movement), published a press release and an open letter to the Madrid based magazine Amanecer del Nuevo Siglo accusing them of translating and reprinting WSWS articles without their permission [10,8]. The charge was compounded by the allegation that the Spanish magazine had deliberately misrepresented the source of the articles either by attributing them to their own editorial staff and writers or by removing the byline altogether.

The WSWS staff was understandably surprised and upset at this unsanctioned reproduction, but more surprising still were the threats and capitalist tinged language contained in their accusations. Terms such as “piracy” and “stealing” were used to describe the actions of the Amanecer, implying that the unauthorized copying of political literature is the equivalent attacking a ship, looting its cargo, and kidnapping or killing the people onboard. The WSWS claims its articles enjoy special status as “protected literary works”, as if to imply that copyright laws exist to prevent their articles from destruction or damage by malicious third parties.