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[ Episode #30 // Austerity + Hope ]

Through the transfer of private debt to balance sheets of governments around the world, we've entered an age of austerity where citizens are experiencing drastic cuts to basic necessities. Civil unrest has resulted from people demanding that corporate greed should be punished instead of individuals. As the Occupy movement reaches a transition point, have we witnessed the spark of global anti-captialist movement or has it just been a brief glimpse of the anger developed from decades of economic injustice? Are there true reasons for hope with an increasing number of youth facing diminished opportunities for participating in the promises that capitalist markets once offered? Is this truly a turning point in history? If so, what does it mean to live in the midst of a global revolution?

In Extraenvironmentalist #30 we speak with David McNally about themes from his book Global Slump: The Economics and Politics of Crisis and Resistance, that draw on examples of successful populist uprisings around the world to demonstrate that in the Western world we too have options for resisting the tyranny of an age of austerity. We discuss the natural evolution of the Occupy movement and the potential to ensure that the movement grows while keeping food on the table and meaningful work available for the unemployed. Have elites secretly been preparing for unrest as they use taxpayers to bail out an unsustainable industry built on the pipe dream of perpetual growth? Are youth willing to accept their role as movement builders instead of iPhone owners?


 

 

// Music (in order of appearance)
Pretty Lights - Finally Moving via Et Musique Pour Tous
Hezekiah Jenkins - The Panic is On  via Ghostcapital
Makana - We Are The Many
Connor Youngblood - Will You Be There (Michael Jackson Cover) via Pigeons and Planes
Aarab Muzik - Let it Go via SkeetBeatz

// Extended Clips (in order of appearance)
America's New Poor Fending for Food Stamps
Doug Stanhope - Fear in the US News Media
Steve Keen on BBC Hardtalk
WBEZ on Oligarchy: How the Super Rich Defend Their Wealth
Public Sector Workers Strike in the UK