Antimarket: Capitalism Decarbonised https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v46/n07/william-davies/antimarket review of Review and discussion of: The Price is Wrong: Why Capitalism Won’t Save the Planet , by Brett Christophers

Liberal ideology imagine that ‘economic life’ (i.e. competitive egalitarian markets) still rules the roost. This myopia is manifest in the economics curricula of major universities, which have continued to exclude theories which emphasise power, uncertainty, monopoly and instability, and clung to an orthodoxy in which economic activity is chiefly determined by prices and incentives.

Politicians, meanwhile, cleave to liberal fairy tales about making work pay, social mobility, and ownership for all—which are increasingly divorced from a reality of in-work poverty, unearned wealth, and spiralling rents. And financial services masquerade as just another ‘sector’ among many, selling their wares in a marketplace like humble shopkeepers.

Brett Christophers, in The Price Is Wrong, adds to this list a potentially more drastic symptom: a failure on the part of policymakers to understand the energy transition on which the future of the planet hinges. The operating assumption of energy economists over the years has been that the key obstacle to the growth of renewable energy is its higher cost, which renders it unable to compete against fossil fuels in the energy market, and hence reliant on government subsidy. It was a moment of great excitement, therefore, when in 2015 the International Energy Agency reported that, finally, renewable technologies (primarily solar and wind farms) were ‘no longer cost outliers’ relative to gas, coal, oil and nuclear power generation.

the goods on which society depends have been privatised in the name of encouraging market competition, but with results that look nothing at all like a ‘free’ market, and with predictable beneficiaries. These goods haven’t just been privatised, but ‘assetised’, in the sense that they have been packaged up, quantified and managed in ways that suit the calculations and interests of financiers. (The difference in the case of renewable energy is how unusually treacherous the assetisation project has been, to the point where it has often proved impossible to get the necessary turbines and solar panels built in the first place.) The financial sector deals in the language of risk, but it seeks out situations in which profitability is effectively guaranteed, a certain level of return baked in.

the central fact of the climate crisis is that there is very little time, and the scale of the political challenge increases with each passing day. The importance of acting as swiftly as possible scrambles our usual political and moral coordinates, forcing us to look beyond the political and economic solutions we might usually hope for, and more favourably on those which are considered ‘realistic’.

Waiting for solutions to emerge in a bottom-up fashion, whether from activists or from markets, is not sufficient. Only the state has the power, the money and the coordinating capacity to direct capital investment at sufficient scale and speed towards the renewables sector. In practice, the distinction between a ‘de-risking’ state (which tops up private sector profits) and a Green New Deal (which builds new public infrastructure) may be less clear-cut than it appears on paper. The priority, as it has been now for decades, is to go as big and as soon as possible

https://theprint.in/india/governance/industrial-investment-railway-push-tourism-uptick-how-jammu-has-changed-post-article-370-abrogation/2051385/

While Kashmir takes the spotlight, Jammu, too, has several new projects coming up, especially in the industrial sector since then. These may be significant changes, but are not necessarily a product of abrogation of Article 370.

The Centre came up with New Industrial Policy (NIP) 2021 for Jammu and Kashmir that came into effect 1 April 2021. Launched by L-G Manoj Sinha, the benefits of this policy have been largely drawn by the Jammu region, primarily the districts of Jammu, Kathua and Samba.

Currently, the groundwork of around Rs 20,000 crore worth of industrial units is already underway that have come up in the last three years and are registered under the policy, according to official figures of the J&K government accessed by ThePrint.

A further break reveals that over Rs 16,000 crore worth of investments (or, 80 percent) are in Jammu division alone, while the rest of investment is in Kashmir, which is less than a fifth of overall investment.

”August 2019 changes had little to do with the rise in industries. It is purely this lucrative industrial policy that has given rise to industries in Jammu. Owing to security concerns and increased freight, people prefer their industries in Jammu than Kashmir,” the official said. “However, we are unable to make the most of the employment generated. There is a substantial lack of skilled labour in Jammu because of which people from outside take jobs.”

by AMOGH ROHMETRA

23/04/2024

For the underpaid, underrepresented Adivasi workers of Alipurduar and Jalpaiguri, elections are often a time to express their discontent. by Nolina Minj

https://scroll.in/article/1066783/view-from-the-margins-in-the-tea-gardens-of-bengal-neither-ram-mandir-nor-kashmir-is-a-poll-issue

Voting is often the only chance that many of India's marginalised groups get to express themselves. As national elections approach, Scroll's reporters fanned out across the country to talk to groups with little socio-political power as part of a series called the View from the Margins. The aim: try to understand how the powerless and the voiceless have fared under a decade of the Modi government.

View from the Margins: For Adivasis of Kerala, the state is not always a shining example of equality by Johanna Deeksha

https://scroll.in/article/1066510/view-from-the-margins-for-adivasis-of-kerala-the-state-is-not-always-a-shining-example-of-equality

Leela Santhosh, an Adivasi filmmaker, says her community suffers from prejudice and neglect, no matter which party rules at the Centre.

View from the Margins: A Dalit Christian explains why he will be voting for change by Johanna Deeksha

https://scroll.in/article/1066635/view-from-the-margins-a-dalit-christian-explains-why-he-wants-the-bjp-to-lose

The increasing attacks on minorities during Narendra Modi’s tenure have convinced Christuraj S that it is time for power to switch hands.

View from the Margins: Uttarakhand’s ghost villages embody the state’s economic challenges by Vineet Bhalla

https://scroll.in/article/1066545/view-from-the-margins-uttarakhands-ghost-villages-embody-the-states-economic-challenges

Limited economic prospects, poor infrastructure and natural calamities driven by climate change have sparked large-scale migration.

View from the Margins: A Lepcha activist describes the destructive development in Sikkim by Vaishnavi Rathore

https://scroll.in/article/1066047/view-from-the-margins-a-lepcha-activist-describes-the-destructive-development-in-sikkim

Mayalmit Lepcha has watched with dread as successive governments have sanctioned dams in the state despite its fragile geography.

View from the margins: How a Mumbai realtor is helping NRC-scared Muslims rectify their documents by Neerad Pandharipande

https://scroll.in/article/1065942/view-from-the-margins-after-caa-enforcement-muslims-rush-to-get-their-identity-documents-in-order

With the Citizenship Amendment Act implemented, will the National Register of Citizens be next? The question is tormenting many in Mumbai.

by Nolina Minj

22/04/2024

Rethinking Political Economy https://www.bostonreview.net/special_project/rethinking-political-economy/
Rethinking Political Economy begins with a world in crisis—after forty years of market fundamentalism—and asks how we build a new one. We debate new ways to think about protecting the planet, the relationship of equality and democracy, the need for racially inclusive prosperity, the promise of industrial policy, the dangers of concentrated economic power, and a revival of investment in public goods.

Observing that it ‘raises substantial issue of compliance of environmental norms,’ the National Green Tribunal recently took a suo motu cognisance of The Indian Express investigation report titled ‘Mumbai lost over 21,000 trees in 6 years to make way for Metro, road projects’ published last month.

Comment on WA: PS: This toothless body has suddenly sprung to life in election season. Is there an ulterior motive behind all the "credible" institutions of India, which have hitherto been supportive of environmental crimes and not of conservation, speaking up for it now?

Modi has been on a spree of ‘interviews’ with no interruptions, follow-ups, or counter-questions. https://www.newslaundry.com/2024/04/18/inside-indian-polls-modis-lies-fake-news-and-media-that-does-not-question Kalpana Sharma 18 Apr, 2024

We have many independent digital news platforms and channels, although if you are a person who principally gets news from mainstream media, when you listen and read what they report, you might think they are reporting from a parallel universe.

The other alternate universe is of fake and misleading news, of hate speech, of the deliberate twisting of facts to push forward a particular narrative.

The ANI Intervbiew: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcRW9evFZBw
smita prakash non-interviews modi | MEGHNERD REACTS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxP6i_CULCo smita prakash non-interviews modi | MEGHNERD REACTS

NEWSWEEK : Exclusive Interview: Narendra Modi and the Unstoppable Rise of India https://www.newsweek.com/2024/04/19/exclusive-interview-narendra-modi-unstoppable-rise-india-1888678.html Newsweek, could run an “exclusive” with Modi that reads like a series of press releases strung together. It is an “interview” without any questions. And it is the cover story that has Modi’s face and, in capital letters, the word “Unstoppable”.
BY DANISH MANZOOR BHAT ON 04/10/24

India elections: ‘Our rule of law is under attack from our own government, but the world does not see this’ https://theconversation.com/india-elections-our-rule-of-law-is-under-attack-from-our-own-government-but-the-world-does-not-see-this-226889 April 11, 2024 Led by the ideology of Hindutva, which perceives India’s history to be inextricably linked with Hindu religious practice, and with the help of a hand-picked committee of advisers, they have pursued a vision of India as a country run by Hindus for Hindus.

This is the story of how you build an authoritarian state, the legal way.

Step 1: reinterpret existing laws..Hindus attacking marginalised groups is no longer discrimination in India. But stating that powerful Hindu groups are attacking minorities is now hate speech or incitement

Step 2: introduce new laws. The second element of Modi’s strategy is the introduction of new anti-minority laws and criminal codes.

Step 3: silence the judges third strategy that India’s government has used to cement power and undermine democratic structures: the silencing of a once-independent, critical judiciary.

Step 4: revise history: To achieve complete control over public opinion, one final ingredient is required: one must use the now-subordinated legal system to promote a version of national history that falls in line with the government’s social and political vision.

At its heart, any authoritarian project – whether in the US, Russia or India – must set out to tackle the country’s legal system. To achieve the desired level of control, the project’s leaders know they must bring supposedly justice-producing institutions like courts and police into line with their political ideologies, or their ambitions for the country will fail.

NYAY GUARANTEES TO LIBERATE THE COUNTRY FROM BJP'S 10 YEARS ANYAY KAAL ✋🏾🇮🇳

Today the country is troubled, and people are frustrated -

✖ due to rising inflation
✖ due to increasing unemployment
✖ due to wrong GST
✖ due to increasing atrocities against women

👉🏾 On one hand, tax waivers and loan waivers worth lakhs of crores to a few billionaires
👉🏾 On the other hand, the general public is hit by inflation and higher taxes

⭕ Congress Party & INDIA Alliance have come together to guarantee justice against all these injustices

▪Yuva Nyay
▪Naari Nyay
▪Kisan Nyay
▪Shramik Nyay
▪Hissedari Nyay

How WhatsApp earns Money? | Secret Business Model of WhatsApp | Dhruv Rathee
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTwtK-H1_A0 It has over 2 Billion Users Worldwide and is completely free to use. It was acquired by Facebook (Now Meta) in 2014. But have you ever thought about how does it earn money if it's completely free to use? How did it come into existence? How did it become so famous and dominate similar apps like WeChat, Hike, Line, Viber, etc? Why did the founder of WhatsApp leave the Company? What is the Business Model of WhatsApp?

June 2018 How WhatsApp Makes Money: The INSANE Story of WhatsApp https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQd5bo9nIZs Aug 12, 2021

How Does WhatsApp Make Money? This mini-movie tells the story of WhatsApp, and the insane journey of Brian Acton & Jan Koum. Imagine this: you go for a job at Facebook and get rejected. A few years later, Facebook buy your company for $19 billion dollars. Well, for WhatsApp founders Brian and Jan, that’s exactly what happened. Unfortunately, for WhatsApp's users, the story perhaps doesn’t have quite such a happy ending… The story of how WhatsApp was built and scaled is both fascinating and worrying.
MagnatesMedia
https://www.youtube.com/@MagnatesMedia/featured

https://blog.whatsapp.com/why-we-don-t-sell-ads

Narendra Modi Is Preparing New Attacks on Democratic Rights https://jacobin.com/2024/04/narendra-modi-india-bjp-hindutva/ BY ACHIN VANAIK
Modi does not merely want to secure a majority of seats as before or return to power with its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners. It wants to elect 370 or more MPs, giving the party a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha (LS) after the elections.
RS MPs sit for staggered terms lasting six years, with one-third of the current 233 designates up for elections every two years, namely in 2024, 2026, and 2028.
the SC judges only mustered the courage after a seven-year delay to declare the electoral bonds scheme for large donations to political parties unconstitutional,
The BJP’s dominant influence over the big print and electronic media chains means that it is confident of minimizing the negative fallout from these revelations. The main thing is that the BJP got the lion’s share of such funding for campaigning and other purposes.
government agencies are arresting senior opposition leaders on the mere suspicion of financial wrongdoing, using a Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) that shifts the burden of proof onto the accused

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