ABSTRACT
There are two ‘obvious’ twenty-first-century phenomena which may be judged world historically significant – environmentally damaging changes in the earth’s climate and eco-system and structural changes in the world economy. This book is primarily about the latter. Economic changes differ from climate and environmental changes in not being causally produced. People act economically for reasons, and their actions have consequences – both intended and unintended. But reasons are not causes and consequences are not causally-produced effects. This does not mean that economic processes are entirely obedient to human will or volition, because they involve mass human interaction as well as action. In any economy effective action by some people is dependent on the actions of others (in supplying inputs or effective demand for example). Thus, the action or inaction of some is as effective an economic barrier to the action of others as any physical barrier. Changes in these patterns of economic interaction make new futures possible, but make return to past patterns impossible. This may have important political implications if many people have benefitted from surpassed patterns and want to return to them.
