A few months ago I wrote an essay arguing that the *only* reason water doesn't cost a fortune now is because capital doesn't yet have the control technology to survive the desperation-driven protests which would surely follow such a move.

I was reasoning from first principles but TIL that in 2015 the Irish actually did revolt against a proposed water tax:

"The movement has not withered away as the establishment hoped or expected, even in the face of Garda repression and mainstream media denunciation. There is the sense that there is always some action going on somewhere, and that protest or dissent in general has become a sort of national pastime."

This is exactly the kind of thing capital fears, and exactly the reason water doesn't cost a zillion dollars.

Irish revolt: https://libcom.org/article/water-revolt-ireland-2015

My article: https://chez-risk.in/2023/01/29/state-violence-the-diamond-water-paradox-and-an-invisible-axiom-of-classical-economics/

#Water #Ireland #IrishWatetRebellion #Capitalism #Resistance #Protest #StateViolence #Anarchism #Economics #UseValue #ExchangeValue #ParadoxOfValue #DiamondWaterParadox #Capitalism #Government #GovernmentTechnology

A significant part of the value of money lies in the fact that it can be exchanged for labor. The value of money depends on a reliable supply of workers-for-hire. But if people aren't willing to work for money then that part of money's value is gone. Without a sufficient pool of laborers for hire having a lot of money doesn't mean much. But without police people may choose to work directly for subsistence or other reasons rather than for money. The more people that make this choice the fewer workers for hire are available, so the less value money has. The labor theory of value in some sense incorporates a police theory of value.

This idea is part of a long-term project of mine to understand the ramified role police play in creating the modern world. It's important to me b/c I think all mainstream economic theories omit the role of the police in maintaining capitalism. Just for instance they all treat labor supply as a natural resource rather than something painstakingly created and maintained through police violence. Here's a recent installment in this project:

https://chez-risk.in/2023/01/29/state-violence-the-diamond-water-paradox-and-an-invisible-axiom-of-classical-economics/

#Abolition #Anarchism #Economics #ACAB #Police #PoliceAbolition #LaborTheoryOfValue #DiamondWaterParadox #UseValue #Anarcy #Police #PolicePower

State Violence, the Diamond/Water paradox, and an invisible axiom of classical economics.

This essay is part of a larger project on the invisible role that violence plays in capitalist economic theories. My feeling is that conceivably all its paradoxes can be resolved by making the role of violence visible.

So for instance, it's no paradox that water is cheap and diamonds are expensive even though diamonds are close to useless compared to water. Without violence no diamonds would be mined, but also without violence none would really be bought either. And if water is cheap now it's only because capital hasn't yet figured out a stable way to charge money for it.

https://chez-risk.in/2023/01/29/state-violence-the-diamond-water-paradox-and-an-invisible-axiom-of-classical-economics/

#StateViolence #Anarchism #Economics #UseValue #ExchangeValue #ParadoxOfValue #DiamondWaterParadox #Capitalism #Government #GovernmentTechnology

The diamond/water paradox only seems like a paradox because economists mostly don't want to face the fact that the very existence of the economy relies on state-directed violence.

#DiamondWaterParadox
#ParadoxOfValue
#StateViolence
#Anarchism
#AnarchistEconomics

https://chez-risk.in/2023/01/29/state-violence-the-diamond-water-paradox-and-an-invisible-axiom-of-classical-economics/