Marx and His Lazy Readers

"The problem is that Marx has smatterings of arguments about the instability of capitalism strewn about all four volumes of capital, and few readers have taken the time to compile and assess his claims. One of his arguments, made in Volume III and quite modern, indeed, is this:

The ultimate reason for all real crises [recessions/depressions] always remains the poverty and restricted consumption of the masses as opposed to the drive of capitalist production to [produce as much output as possible.] (p. 484)

This idea is now central to all modern mainstream theories, and interestingly, it is an insight into capitalist processes that is gathering considerable current attention. Many economists, including prominent ones in the U.S., are beginning to fear that the increasing inequality in the distribution of world income is creating just such a "restricted consumption of the masses." Such economists suspect that consequent underconsumption could bring the world economy into a serious depression, if not worse."

Charles Sackrey & Geoff Schneider

The End of History

«The Marxist realm of freedom is, in effect, the four-hour working day: that is, a society so productive that man's labor in the morning can satisfy all of his natural needs and those of his family and fellows, leaving him the afternoon and evening to be a hunter, or a poet, or a critic. In a way, real-world communist societies like the Soviet Union or the forme r German Democratic Republic achieved this realm of freedom, since few people put in more than four hours of honest work a day. But the remainder of their time was seldom spent writing poems or criticism, since this could promptly land them in jail; it was spent waiting on line, drinking, or scheming for the opportunity to take a vacation in a crowded sanitarium on a polluted beach. But if the "necessary labor time" required to satisfy basic physical needs was four hours on average for workers in socialist societies, it was on the orde r of an hour or two for corresponding capitalist societies, and the six or seven hours of "surplus labor" time that rounded out the working day did not go only into the pockets of capitalists, but allowed workers to buy cars and washing machines, barbecues and campers. Whethe r this constituted a "realm of freedom" in any meaningful sense was another matter, but an American worker was far more fully liberated from the "realm of necessity" than his Soviet counterpart.»

Francis Fukuyama (The End of History and the Last Man, 1992)

The Butterfly Effect #2

Desenho sobre papel livre de ácido; 200 g/m²;  21 cm x 29,7 cm (formato A4).

Drawing on acid-free paper; 115 lbs; 8,3 in x 11,7 in (A4 format).

Paz podre

"A erosão da relação que devia ser organicamente tranquila, harmónica, justa e bela, não pode ser atribuída a greves, lutas sindicais e conflitos sociais. Muito pelo contrário. Greves, lutas sindicais e conflitos sociais, como estudamos através da história social do trabalho, são responsáveis por impor níveis decentes de civilização e cultura."

Raquel Varela (historiadora)

Salgueiro Maia completaria 75

A Revolução dos Cravos completa hoje 45 anos e 3 meses.

No mês em que nasceu Salgueiro Maia (1 de julho de 1944), o herói revolucionário entretanto falecido, posicionamo-nos no Largo do Carmo. Neste lugar emblemático protagonizaram-se momentos-chave no 25 de abril de 1974.

Ao fundo, a poucos metros, temos o histórico quartel da Guarda Nacional Republicana.

Doggy Beach

Yesterday we were with a friend watching the sea from Estoril.

Costah, The One and Only

Eis o nosso amigo Costah, um dos mais extraordinários artistas portugueses (talvez a História da Arte um dia lhe faça a merecida referência)!

A recente ação conjunta, que acima se vê, sobre uma superfície lisboeta, recordou saudosos tempos antigos sempre presentes, que na altura resultaram numa colaboração mútua que chegou a ser publicada em livro.
Abraços!

Personal and Free

"Graffiti is a form of communication that is both personal and free of everyday social restraints."

Jane Gadsby

Como fazer

Tutorial (a sort of).

A Mass of Semi-Slaves

“Capitalism is disappearing, but Socialism is not replacing it. What is now arising is a new kind of planned, centralized society which will be neither capitalist nor, in any accepted sense of the word, democratic. The rulers of this new society will be the people who effectively control the means of production: that is, business executives, technicians, bureaucrats and soldiers, lumped together by Burnham, under the name of “managers.” These people will eliminate the old capitalist class, crush the working class, and so organize society that all power and economic privilege remain in their own hands…. The new “managerial” societies will not consist of a patchwork of small, independent states, but of great super-states grouped round the main industrial centers in Europe, Asia and America. These super-states will fight among themselves for possession of the remaining uncaptured portions of the earth, but will probably be unable to conquer one another completely. Internally, each society will be hierarchical, with an aristocracy of talent at the top and a mass of semi-slaves at the bottom.”

George Orwell

Outra vez no Chiado

Estênceis que cabem na palma da mão.

Bring More of That Black Paint!

Mais tinta, mais estragos.

A new box of fresh paint has just arrived.

Bombing Chiado

Discretamente.

A Quiet Sign of Rebellion

"Initially the act of writing was a gesture of activism, a sign of rebellion. Graffiti gave me strength and built my character. I started out shy and quiet but found I had a voice, I had something to say."

Lady Pink (legendary graffiti writer)

The Butterfly Effect

Desenho sobre papel livre de ácido, 200 g/m²,  21 cm x 29,7 cm (formato A4).

Drawing on acid-free paper, 115 lbs, 8,3 in x 11,7 in (A4 format).

Une tribute à Invader

Nous avons été avec Space Invader près du pont Saint-Michel et de le quai des Orfèvres, situé le long de la rivière Seine, sur l'île de la Cité dans le premier arrondissement à Paris.

Politically Focused

"I do graffiti. It just so happens that I’m a politically focused person. I am IMPEACH, but I also mean to say IMPEACH. I wish to add to the conversation, listen, and argue. We are not getting anywhere riding the fence. Censorship comes only from the buff, getting gone over, or arrest. My ideas may be wrong, but I won’t be able to know unless we discuss things openly, safely, and without censorship. Information about war, bailouts, torture, the federal reserve, and voices of dissent against them are suppressed. They deserve billboards to combat lies and untruths. I’m just joining the war of information and keeping track of history."

IMPEACH (political graffiti artist)

Andre the Giant Has a Posse

ikari + Shepard Fairey + Dalaiama = Lisbon

¿Por qué no un salario mínimo europeo?

"On peut commencer par évacuer l’argument faussement naïf qui fait semblant d’imaginer un salaire minimum uniforme dans tous les pays. Compte tenu des considérables différences de salaires, il serait soit trop bas, soit hors d’atteinte. Mais la proposition n’est évidemment pas celle-là. Quand on parle de salaire minimum européen, il faut comprendre : système de salaires minimum. Il y aurait dans chaque pays un salaire minimum dont le niveau prendrait en compte son degré de développement. Il ne s’agit donc pas d’une valeur absolue, mais d’une valeur relative. L’objectif est de définir une norme sociale européenne commune mais adaptée aux réalités de chaque pays. 

Il y aurait dans chaque pays un salaire minimum dont le niveau prendrait en compte son degré de développement De même que le seuil de pauvreté est mesuré par rapport au revenu médian, le salaire minimum serait défini en proportion du salaire médian (la moitié des salariés gagne moins et l’autre moitié gagne plus). Et comme la pauvreté salariale est elle aussi définie par rapport au salaire médian, l’objectif principal est clairement affiché : la faire reculer."

"Se puede comenzar eliminando el argumento falsamente ingenuo que pretende imaginar un salario mínimo uniforme en todos los países. Teniendo en cuenta las diferencias considerables en los salarios, sería o bien demasiado bajo, o fuera de alcance. Pero la propuesta obviamente no es esa. Cuando hablamos del salario mínimo europeo tenemos que entender: sistema de salarios mínimos. En cada país habría un salario mínimo cuyo nivel tendría en cuenta su grado de desarrollo. No se trata pues de un valor absoluto sino de un valor relativo. El objetivo es definir una norma social europea común, pero adaptada a las realidades de cada país. 

Al igual que la línea de pobreza se mide en relación con el ingreso mediano, el salario mínimo se definiría en proporción al salario mediano (la mitad de los asalariados gana menos y la otra mitad gana más). Y como la pobreza salarial también se define en relación con el salario mediano, el objetivo principal está claramente definido: hacerla retroceder."

Michel Husson (economista y miembro del Consejo Científico de Attac-Francia)

Flying Again

Someone emailed us and very politely asked if we could repaint this spot, which had been vandalized in 2016. We got touched by her kindness! Thanks!

So here it is refreshed with a new artwork. Hope you like it ;)

Back To Downtown

Home Sweet Lisbon Sweet Home.