[Marxism] Marx on management

["Jurriaan Bendien" <andromeda246@xxxxxxxxx>]

Dear Ahmet,

Thanks for your comment. You wrote:

Your assumption is incorrect.  No contrast between use-value and
exchange value is involved in (b).  We are simply saying that there is
no production in finance, hence no production AND productive labor.

I think that is a consistent approach insofar as the sphere of production is
clearly delineated, but can we really say that work in finance is "not
production"? That is the problem I have with it.

Implicitly thought the argument seems to be that it is not production of
use-values or commodities). But if it is not production, why is it then
legitimate to include it in the valuation of the Marxian gross product?
After all, the gross product measure refers to the gross output netted of
intermediate consumption, i.e. the new incomes generated by current
production, and local and foreign transfer income is excluded for that
reason.

Also, if the wages of unproductive workers in finance are part of a
secondary circuit, can we really say they are part of surplus-value rather
than, say, a circulating component of constant capital? Fact is, capital
must often be advanced first, to hire financial workers in order to claim or
realise the interest, dividend, premium etc. income, and it's not
necessarily the case that they are paid out of the interest & dividend flow
from current production. The accounting convention adopted is of some
importance, since the size of the non-productive workforce is large;
consequently, this affects the mass of surplus-value, and thus also the
various standard
Marxian ratios.

BTW I have great admiration for Anwar's and your work, which sets a new
standard for Marxian economic research. But the conceptual issues to which I
refer I have never been able to resolve satisfactorily. Implicitly, you and
Anwar seem to accept the official net output measure as broadly valid (with
a few exceptions). But can we really accept the NIPA derivation of the total
gross profit from a tax-based profit figure as valid? (I refer to Table 7.16
at
http://www.bea.doc.gov/bea/dn/nipaweb/TableView.asp?SelectedTable=296&FirstYear=2002&LastYear=2003&Freq=Year

Regards

Jurriaan



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