DIY exploitation 2 of 2

Tthe other limit to this "lowering wages" tactic is "class struggle". Workers don't like having their wages cut. They fight against it. Their resistance can take the form of isolated acts of sabotage/slowing down/stealing... It can also take the form of organized collective action- strikes, unions... If there is a decent rate of unemployment, your best weapon against this is to just fire the troublesome workers and hire new ones. You can use violence or the threat of violence to break a union. For instance, a popular tactic is to find the leaders of the union and have them tortured or killed.
Another way to lower the cost of reproducing the worker: make the standard of living cheaper. If the capitalists that make consumer goods like food/housing/clothes/gas find ways to reduce the costs of their commodities, this will lower the cost of reproducing the worker, thus making it possible to lower wages.
If slashing wages isn't possible for whatever reason make them work harder and more efficiently. This raises S relative to V, thus raising the rate of exploitation. There are many ways to do this. The most obvious is to just force your workers to work faster- set production quotas, threaten them, abuse them, limit bathroom breaks, etc.
But these tactics are most effective when combined with more efficient tactics. If you want to increase the output of each worker you are going to need to make the production process more efficient.
How much more surplus can you get from reorganizing production in a more efficient way? Given your current machines and workspace you will eventually hit a limit. That is why it is important to constantly be investing in new machines, new factories- investments in c. Even though constant capital can't produce surplus, more efficient technologies can allow workers to produce more surplus. So if you buy faster computers for your office, faster machines for your assembly line or faster sewing machines for your sweatshop, your employees can work faster, producing more surplus.
Throughout the capitalist world capitalists are always trying to find ways to speed up production. In situations where workers don't have any power to resist this speed up production can take on a dizzying pace. As you introduce these "labor-saving" technologies into your production you won't need as many workers. This is a great time to fire people. This has the effect of increasing unemployment which is very good for you. Unemployment drives down wages and makes it easier to replace workers who resist exploitation.
Investing in new machinery is one of the most popular ways of getting more work out of workers. It produces far more surplus than any of the other methods we have discussed. It also seems to have no limit. Of course, once your new innovative machinery allows you to start outselling other capitalists in the marketplace they are going to want one too. You can try to keep your technology secret, patent it, etc. but eventually other capitalists are going to catch up with you. Once this happens the "socially necessary labor time" it takes to make your commodities goes down. This brings the value of your commodities down. This means that you are no longer extracting as much surplus per worker as you were before. Now what are you going to do?
Invest in newer machines! The race goes on. Capitalists are constantly adding new technologies, reorganizing production, cutting wages, using all of the strategies I've just discussed in and endless quest to raise the rate of exploitation. But as soon as those new technologies and strategies become standard across an industry they are forced to come up with new strategies. Competition never ceases! Innovation never ceases. Class struggle never ceases.
This constant quest to squeeze more profit from your workforce may be viewed by some as immoral. Yes- as a capitalist you have an extraordinary amount of social power. Your decisions have a direct effect on the lives of many people- sometimes all of society. If you worry about the social consequences of your decisions it will interfere with your ability to maximize profit. Whenever you are being less immoral, some other capitalist is being more immoral. When the two of you meet in the marketplace, you will lose. This is why capitalist culture has generated a world view in which capitalists believe that 1. they are providing a positive social function by "providing quality products to consumers" instead of providing quality lives to workers; and 2. That following the profit motif is morally justifiable because if they don't do it someone else will. If you can get yourself to believe these 2 things you should do fine as a capitalist.

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[Downfrodeo]

Everything this guy says is right, but it's right out of Marx.

He certainly makes it more digestible and relative, via modern english, but anyone with half a brain should read up on Marx.

[brendanmcooney]

yes, all my videos are about marx as I state clearly on my page and in my bibliography video.

[topicalone]

Be glad Brendan isn't a capitalists... He'd be the most efficient.

[crud4]

Business owners across the nation are watching this video in order to learn ways to SQUEEZE more profits from their workers. I'm reminded of working in production home building a decade ago. Day in day out work faster faster faster harder harder harder and the boss always said he was "losing money" while I was living in 400 sq foot studio apartment and he in a 5000 sq foot luxury home. After my body gave way I was replaced. Thats capitalism. Now I work for myself by myself at my own pace.

[SirLoin21]

This series of videos is awesome.

[brendanmcooney]

I would not interpret any of my comments as endorsing any one type of political strategy.

[giorgioxyzb]

Another great video! Thanks for posting it.

Question: do you think that taking possession of the means of production through a revolution (by force) can be the only solution? At least this is how I read the word TAKE in your message above.

Otherwise, do you think a gradual transition would be

possible? E.g. through the growth of strong international

unions, cooperatives, parties.

[satisatisati]

Brendan, I love you.

Just wanted to say that.

[brendanmcooney]

If we accept the current political climate as the only possible terrain of discourse then, yes there is very little room to discuss post-capitalist societies. But then, the whole point of revolutionary theory is to think out of the box- to not be intimidated by the present situation, but to think big and long term. I think too many times people dismiss the entire critique of capitalism and discussions of post-capitalist societies just b/c "it won't happen tomorrow".

[1studentoftruth]

Yes, why not? Maybe because "Big Brother"(forgive me for the cliche) is watching us at this moment. Maybe because, excluding you, a lot of those people talking that "good game" won't bust a grape in food fight. But I guess we will have to see. Maybe they will one day get fed up to spark a revolution, until then the "fight club" route seems the only practical idea. But, keep in touch.

[brendanmcooney]

Yes, a socialist society has to be a society, not just a commune in the woods. Small communities of people might be able to find the $ to buy some land to collectively own, but this is not enough for a fully functioning society. Interacts in the market w/ capital bring one under the influence of capitalist social relations.

This is why socialism will never come about by waiting for isolated individuals to save up enough money to buy small plots of land. Why not TAKE the means of production?