Beyond Leviathan: Critique of the State by István Mészáros

Author:István Mészáros
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: NYU Press
Published: 2021-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Himalayan Obstacle: Conclusion to Part Two

This is the size of the mountain we must climb and conquer. Some time ago I spoke of the “Himalayan obstacle.” This seems like a real understatement. Our mountain is many Himalayas on top of one another. And there are no native Sherpas to be exploited for the hard work. We must do it ourselves, and we can do it only if we are willing to confront the real stakes and the real obstacles.

The contingencies of our situation, highlighting the limits of our social metabolic order, are not only painful, they are inalterably global contingencies, with their sobering implications. For if the size and resources of our planet were, say, ten times bigger than they happen to be, in that case capital’s destructiveness could be carried on for quite some time. But they are not ten times bigger, but only as big as they actually are. If nothing else, the ongoing domination and destruction of nature should make it palpably clear that there is a limit to everything. And capital’s absolute limits demonstrate their destructive untenability not only in this respect but also on several other scores.

No ideal or utopian states can be envisaged under the urgency of time. The longing for ideal solutions constantly recurring in the past may tell us something irrepressible about humanity’s legitimate aspirations. But they need to be set on more secure foundations.

Despite distorting accusations, no unrealizable claim is involved in the advocacy of the necessary socialist alternative. What that alternative appeals to is the tangible requirement of historical sustainability. And that is also offered as the criterion and measure of its feasible success. In other words, the test of validity is defined in terms of historical viability and practical sustainability, or not, as the case might be.

Naturally, no social metabolic order can function without its orienting principles. Indeed, their historical sustainability depends on the practical viability of their rival orienting principles. This is why the socialist order can only be envisaged on the material ground of the rationally planned and determined appropriation of surplus labor produced by each and every one of society’s freely associated individuals, who realize and fulfill their aspirations in the spirit of their disposable time, on the basis of their substantive equality, in full solidarity with one another and with their socially shared aspirations.

This is what makes feasible the conquest of the mountain we must climb.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.