22.04.2021, Moscow.
A factor that led to the post-covid surveillance capitalism was the Protestant belief that Man is evil and unchangeable, and that this evil can be used for the good of development, political scientist and the leader of the Essence of Time movement Sergey Kurginyan said on April 6 on the Evening with Vladimir Solovyov program on the Russia One channel.
Discussing the mutations of capitalism after COVID-19 appeared and all the related changes in the world, the political scientist noted that the discussions of the future of the humanity are reminiscent of a Soviet-period joke, “A man has lost his money, and he is checking his pockets, ‘This one is empty, oh my God!’ ― ‘Why wouldn’t you check that other one?’ ― ‘What if that one is empty, too?!’”
Kurginyan believes that those who discuss this post-covid capitalism are afraid to hear the answer to the main question, “What kind of a life model does capitalism offer humanity after having transformed into its new, post-covid form, which has already been called ‘supervision capitalism’ or ‘surveillance capitalism’? Is this form at least a little humane? In other words, does it imply humanism in life at all?”
According to the expert, the origin of “surveillance capitalism” stems from the conviction typical of Protestants that Man is originally evil and unchangeable, that he is “a beast with mind,” and that there is no sense changing him. This is the conviction that became the basis for capitalism.
Within capitalism, the humanity and Man are supposed “to build a framework and a sort of life within which he, while remaining unchangeable, will use this evil for a good cause.”
The war of all against all can be confined in the framework of law, and this war will move history forward. “Competition would take place, and it would drive progress.” This is how the analyst and philosopher explained one of the basic principles of the capitalism world order.
Kurginyan reminded what the Faustian principle is, which allowed Faust to use Mephistopheles allegedly for a good cause, “This is the hope that Man as he is can be placed in a certain framework, and then his evil would be evil for a good cause.” Oswald Spengler called humanity following this principle “Faustian.”
“This is what capitalism had become by the 19th century. It had said that Man did not need to be changed. And that, by determining a certain framework, a good, a very good society could be built. It would be peaceful, it would move forward, it will produce more and more wealth, it will reveal certain human capabilities as people compete,” the political scientist explained.
“What did this end with? With World War One,” he concluded.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
