In May I spent five days in Emilia Romagna, a region of four million people in northern central Italy. There, over the last 150 years, a network of consumer, farmer and worker-driven cooperatives has come to generate 30 percent to 40 percent of the region’s GDP. Two of every three people in Emilia Romagna are members of co-ops.
The region, whose hub city is Bologna, is home to 8,000 co-ops, producing everything from ceramics to fashion to specialty cheese. Their industriousness is woven into networks based on what cooperative leaders like to call “reciprocity.” All co-ops return 3 percent of profits to a national fund for cooperative development, and the movement supports centers providing help in finance, marketing, research and technical expertise."
The fact is that these counter economic experiments in Italy began in the Hot Autumn of the early seventies. They also gave rise to the autonomist movement of the working class in the cities who took part in rent strikes and food strikes, where they decided the price of the products they would buy. A different kind of wage and price control regime than that of the State which was also embracing this during the economic crisis of the time.
http://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2006/07/free-market-economicscooperatives.html
[Proofreader's note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on July 11, 2006]
Note: http://plawiuk.blogspot...
Free Market Economics = Cooperatives
Posted on Tuesday, July 11 at 10:34 by AnonymousContributed By
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But, I for one believe in a totally free market, and smaller government. Not nessecarally 'weaker' government. Just completely removing business backed lobbiests from the equation.
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"I think it's important to always carry enough technology to restart civilization, should it be necessary." Mark Tilden
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What I do get is you are a pawn in another mans game.<br />
Your opinion has been shaped from birth and like a good little automaton you freak at anything that attacks those instilled beliefs.<br />
Now there is a possibility that my assessment based on your offerings here are out of whack. I will give you the benefit of doubt that you may have an open mind after all and will know by your response to that which I now include.<br />
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<a href="http://www.lookingglassnews.org/viewvideo.php?vid=cen_of_self1">http://www.lookingglassnews.org/viewvideo.php?vid=cen_of_self1</a> <br />
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I concur. But I also have doubts the idea of anarchist-socialism will light too many bulbs on this forum. The range of opinions here seems to be between social democracy AND "strong governemnt" to neo-liberalism ( AND also strong government). Perhaps some of the regulars would like to prove me wrong?<br />
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That you and many others have doubts comes as no surprise due to the fact emotionally charged labels and their definitions have been programmed into mass consciousness.<br />
In order to actually see what is going on one must divest themselves from well over half a century of state sanctioned mind control.<br />
The very foundations of thought have been deliberately constructed so’s that there will be predictable outcomes.<br />
I invite any who would challenge this to view the video series to be found at the included address.<br />
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<a href="http://www.lookingglassnews.org/viewvideo.php?vid=cen_of_self2">http://www.lookingglassnews.org/viewvideo.php?vid=cen_of_self2</a> <br />
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for more on the “Engineering of Consent” select any from this address<br />
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<a href="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&rls=GGLG%2CGGLG%3A2006-17%2CGGLG%3Aen&q=engineering+consent+%2B+Edward+Bernaise">http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&rls=GGLG%2CGGLG%3A2006-17%2CGGLG%3Aen&q=engineering+consent+%2B+Edward+Bernaise</a> <br />
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<p>---<br>The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing.... : Albert Einstein