Not Paying the Rent: Imagining a Fairer Capitalism

Description

This is a conversational book with chapters directly followed by responses from experts. The main authors propose that the failure in development is not due to capitalism but rather rentism, which is earnings based on political rather market returns. Rent prevents development and ingrains social and economic inequalities. Using the case study of Brazil’s economic development, it is shown how development fails because policies Brazil and other low to middle-income countries promote do not overcome the main obstacle to development - rent. The overcoming of rent would occur within a model of globalisation whereby the advanced economics still prosper concurrently as the poorest countries grow, all underpinned by international organisations defending a rule-based globalisation.  Not Paying the Rent: Imagining a Fairer Capitalism presents a new application of the theory of rent, both historically in the case of Brazil, and in practical terms in tackling it through modern international organisations. It will be relevant to students, researchers, and general readers interested in inequality and development economics. Foreword: Scenario of the Transition to a Terrible World Acknowledgements Contents Notes on Contributors Part I 1 Introduction Synopsis Contents of the Book Style of the Book The Threat of Rent to Economies Identifying Rent as a Threat to Capitalism Overcoming Existing Rent-Based Systems The Global Relevance for Overcoming Rent A Choice Between Two Futures: A Capitalist or a Rent-Based System? Bibliography 2 Inherited Underdevelopment? Introduction Status Quo and Underdevelopment in Brazilian History A Tropical Country Left Out in the Cold A Change Is Gonna Come…but Not So Fast Bibliography 3 Overcoming Underdevelopment? Something New Under the Sun The End of Slavery The Arrival of Capitalism Coffee Valorisation Plan Domestic Convoy System Disillusionment Bibliography 4 Brazilians, the Architects of Brazil? Brazilian Economic Modernisation and Catching-Up Processes Brazil State-Directed Development Recurring Missed Opportunities Bibliography 5 A Neanderthal in Spacesuit Adjustments to Keep Growth Coming Deindustrialisation and Growth Remedying the Rentiers? Disenfranchising Rentiers Enfranchising Labour Production Diversification International Markets Final Remarks Bibliography 6 Institutional Complementarity, Not Rent, Is the Recipe of Brazil’s Economic Failures Challenging Problems, Complex Solutions Final Remarks Bibliography Part II 7 Defending International Organisations in a Liberal International Order: Case Study of the World Health Organization A Liberal International Order “Crooked Trajectory” of an International Organisation: Example of the World Health Organization During the Covid-19 Pandemic Conclusion Bibliography 8 Rating the Liberalism of International Versus World Society: Global Health as a Case in Point Bibliography 9 Development Through International Trade: UN Conference on Trade and Development International Opportunities for Development Through Trade: UNCTAD’s History of Non-reciprocal Trade Agreements Domestic Policies for Development Through Trade Conclusion Bibliography 10 Global Trade: The Return of Protectionism and Isolationism 11 Empowering Labour to Save Capitalism and Role of the International Labour Organization The Source of Underdevelopment: Labour Marginality A Stones-For-Cash Scheme A Stones-For-Cash Scheme: Overcoming Marginality and the ILO Relevance Conclusion Bibliography 12 Fixing the Labour Surplus in Existing Economic Structures Bibliography 13 Economic Development Through Social Movements Social Movement Strengthening Themselves Through Capitalism The Case of the US Civil Rights Movement—An Example UK Trade Unions Requirements for Economic Development Through Social Movements Conclusion Bibliography 14 Economic Emancipation in a Sustainable Society: Bridging the Gaps Between Economic and Environmental Justice Agenda Introduction The Environmental Justice Movement The Synergy Between Environmental Justice and Social Activism in Brazil Conclusion Bibliography Index