Tag: Weimar

Article: The Global Reserve Army of Labor and the New Imperialism

Loyalist Arms Factory
Image by Burns Library, Boston College via Flickr

I managed to read this article while having coffee today in a exquisite café in front of the Palace Museum in Weimar. It was very hard to try understanding the author’s ideas while he refuses to accept that the value of a product is the result of an objective theory of valuation done by the consumers and sellers in specific contexts. He gives for granted that labor force is the one deterministic condition behind production and trying to get his point seems quite difficult at points. Nonetheless, this is a great opportunity to understand the mainstream ideas of Karl Marx theories in regard to Globalization and what some of them call “Global Capitalism / New Imperialism”. Here’s the intro and then a link to the article via EbscoHost,

The article discusses the ways in which the growth of the global capitalist labor force has altered the imperialistic nature of global capitalism, as represented by powerful multinational corporations, by negatively affecting wages in both developing and wealthy countries. The authors rely heavily on philosopher Karl Marx’s theories on the industrial reserve army and capital accumulation, which posit that wealth accumulation will invariably lead to increased suffering for the working masses. They go on to explain the exploitative nature of global labor arbitrage, which essentially means a corporation’s benefiting from low wages in developing countries. The process of arbitrage is related to the development of massive global supply chains.
Read more: The Global Reserve Army of Labor and the New Imperialism. (AN 66933797) Academic Search Complete. FOSTER, JOHN BELLAMY; McCHESNEY, ROBERT W.; JONNA, R. JAMILMonthly Review: An Independent Socialist Magazine; 11/01/2011

Finding the secret of the Prince of Persia in Weimar

Video: Placido Domingo interprets “Nessun Dorma” from Puccini’s opera Turandot

One of the most wonderful events that a human being could get to see in his lifetime is the opera Turandot. And for the first time in History, in October 14, 2011, the Middle Eastern citizens had the opportunity to attend to a presentation of Turandot at the Royal Opera House Muscaz; Oman‘s premier venue for musical arts and culture last  with a production by Spanish tenor Plácido Domingo1

The decision of choosing Turandot was also specially significant to the history of such a wonderful region because the opera tells a story from the famous Persian collection of stories know as The Book of One Thousand and One Days in which the character of the princess of “Turandokht” was found.This princess was to marry the prince who would solve her three riddles; failing was to result in the death penalty.  First, The Prince of Persia tried to win Turandot, and failing he was going to be executed. in his way to Death he gets to meet Princess Turandot and falls profoundly in love who manages to free himself and make evident his intentions to take Turandot’s challenge. He wins her challenge by answering her riddle but Turandot doesn’t wants to marry him.  In exchange, the prince says to the princess that he doesn’t wants to force the prince to marry him; and that, if she guesses his name before sunrise, he will let her kill him.

In this part, the opera takes you to the most wonderful scenes on Earth while Turandot is trying to guess the Prince’s first name. The Prince manages to kiss princess Turandot she realizes that she also loves The Persian Prince. In an emotional act he tells her his first name is Calaf waiting for her to love him more; however, she is full of anger and arrogance and thinks that he had just revealed the secret she so eagerly looked for. She goes to her father and addresses the Imperial Court; she reveals that the name of his lover is: love.

I remembered this story today while walking alone in the beautiful streets of Weimar seeking for an epiphany. I found it and cried in front of a copy of Auguste Rodin‘s sculpture L’âge d’airain (The Age of Bronze). And just as the Princess Turandot did, I found love today.

Auguste Rodin - The Age of Bronze

Recommended links:

Analysis and Background
Libretto, Discography, and Listenable Media

1 Check the list of all the performances of the Royal Opera House Muscat. Performances

Rendez-vous with History. Weimar, Germany (4-6 November, 2011)

City hall of Weimar

“Hatred is something peculiar. You will always find it strongest and most violent where there is the lowest degree of culture.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Today I’ll be traveling to Weimar, Germany to participate in the Festival “Rendez-vous de l’histoire”.  The theme of the 3rd. Year of this “Rendez-vous with history” in Weimar is: Human Violence, Human Violence.

AS the website of the conference reads,

‘Violence’ is complex and disturbing. It is a historical, present and future threat. “Violence” in all its forms, including counter-violence and non-violence as a deliberate departure from the traditional and new power relationships will be discussed at the Weimar festival. Human societies as always dream of peace – but at the same time, violence is a constant and seemingly unavoidable part of our personal and political relationships.

Weimar’s international history festival will address not only the cruel dimensions of violence in history, but also ask for their anthropological origins and its liberating potential.

In about 20 panel discussions and lectures be at Weimar history festival tensions between freedom and violence, beauty and violence, explored “legitimate” and “illegitimate” violence – the relationship between media and violence, language, literature and violence, violence and reconciliation presented. The spectrum ranges from the Middle Ages to the year 2011, and is not geographically limited. But the focus is primarily on Europe – in particular the countries of the Weimar Triangle – and also to Weimar and Thuringia.
A film series and cultural evenings will complete the program.

Some of the lecturers are:

And many other wonderful lecturers!

I hope to share with you news and insights from this interesting event!