Good Read

Dear WSN,

I have just finished reading "The Spiral of Capitalism and Socialism," by
Terry Boswell and Christopher Chase-Dunn (Rienner Publishers, 2000). I
think the book would be of interest to many people on this list. 

In a recent ZNet Commentary, Michael Albert laments the fact that nearly
all of the writings of the left concentrate on what is wrong with the
current system, and very few tackle the job of specifically describing the
kind of system that would be both possible and desirable. I agree with
Albert, and my own impression is that the gap between what now exists ­- an
exploitive, unjust, corporate-dominated world-system ­- and what we would
like to see ­- an egalitarian, just, people-oriented world-system ­- often
seems a blurry chasm filled with agitational slogans, hyperbole, and vague,
disjointed images of a "better way," while being devoid of any specific,
realistic model of what the world could look like.

Now comes Terry Boswell and Chris Chase-Dunn with a book that goes a long
way in bridging this chasm, replacing the blurred images with a vision of a
future that derives many of its characteristics from existing institutions,
and is specific enough to provide the foundation for a first-round debate
on both goals and tactics. The model advanced in "Spiral" is based on the
idea of "market socialism," a concept promoted by John Roemer in his 1994
book, "A Future for Socialism" (Harvard Press). Boswell and Chase-Dunn
substantially tweak Roemer's notion, and present their own model in the
context of the movement for global democracy.

The first part of "Spiral" deals with a world-systems perspective on the
development of anti-systemic movements, and the "spiraling interaction"
between them and global capitalism. Much attention is given to how 20th
century state socialism fits into a broad, historical schema, and the
lessons to be learned from this experiment. The last part explores the
future of the world-system, and the possibilities that confront us. 

I found it to be a good read.

Patrick Loy
Baltimore, MD