The next global hegemon

Anarchist perspective on the next hegemonic world power and the capitalist development towards it.

Submitted by Dennis3434 on April 15, 2015

I’ve been personally pondering the question of the next world power for some time now. Living most of my life in a country (Romania) historically dependent on world powers and geopolitical shifts, it is a subject of importance to me, beyond mere interest.

After the end of the Cold War and the geopolitical realignment, many pundits shamelessly proclaimed total victory and even the “end of history”, unequivocally embracing the USA and the west, foreseeing a kind of perpetual dominance of the west, without any considerable challenge.

That idea eventually fell through or got “revised”, the hegemony remained, but the idea of Western supremacy was shaken, not only because of the failed Western incursions into “democracy” and “liberation", in Afghanistan and Iraq, but also the ever evolving Frankenstein state of China, which presented capitalism with a shortcut to profit, without the lip service paid to “democracy” and “human rights”.

But still, after a quick glance over the history of capitalism, the nation state, and the current economic and geopolitical scene, on a global scale, the image becomes pretty clear. The role of the nation state (as conceived after the late 18th century, and most of the 19th century) as the framework under which capitalism is to function, i.e. the legal framework on which this very system exists, is running out.

The need for it becomes superfluous, for the social class that is the bourgeoisie is beginning to transcend it, as capital accumulation arrives at a point which begins to outgrow and out power anything on earth.

As we see it, the top 100 corporations in the world produce more than any country, or, in some cases, maybe more than most countries combined. Globalization internationalizes their business and the old “protectionist” and even “mercantile” system of doing capitalism becomes, yet again, superfluous, with no need for too much state involvement.

As we see in their constant demand for less and less regulation. Regulation that, I might add, was either created for them, to set “market forces” on certain parameters in which they can function, or as a concession to popular classes, which arrived at a pivotal moment of their consciousness.

On the other hand, with more power gained, they ask for more “rights”. These are achieved through treaties that are promoted by the US (TPP - America , Asia - Pacific , TTIP - Europe – America, and other „free trade” agreements), which stipulate that these multinationals not be required to comply with national legislation.

Everything is done under the guise of "investor protection”. If the people of a country want to do anything that would harm a company (for example, new regulations to protect the environment or public health), then the people must pay for decades of compensations for affecting profits.

The US oligarchy hopes that the Chinese oligarchy will join the Euro-American one, and form the true driving force of the world. And in the near future, it might well do so.

The „corporate state” and its functions already started replacing the functions of the old nation state at many levels, starting with the concessions they granted, to certain regulations which helped them at one time. From the military, to public transportation, to healthcare, everything is being privatized in a big push.

The rises of euroscepticism, isolationism, paleoconservatism etc. are the last cries of the “petite bourgeoisie” and left out capitalists, which didn’t integrate into the global financial system. Thus these tendencies have reactionary, “traditionalist” and retrograde stances, many of them interjecting with American „libertarianism”, and other think tank grown, ideological contraptions.

Class friction exists inside established social classes, such developments shouldn’t amaze us. For example, it explains the liberal elite’s infatuation with immigration and socially progressive politics, whilst being hardline neoliberals.

The bourgeoisie is preparing everyone for this upcoming „corporate state”, through all means, there is no doubt about it.

Christopher Hitchens, a self-proclaimed „bourgeois romantic”, former Trotskyist, whose hedonism and self-interest made him change sides, as easily as most of his Trotskyist friends did, once stated that capitalism had become the more revolutionary economic system, welcoming globalization as "innovative and internationalist".

Which it is, it innovates and internationalizes labor, although not for us. As they once did when the very concept of the nation state was created, telling people about "sovereignty", "democracy", "universal rights", now they are solidifying the next chapter in capitalist development, and use the argument of "free trade", "innovation", "free movement" etc. Duping everybody in accepting the system as simple truism.

It seems my concern with the next world power shouldn't be what nation takes the place of the US, but what conglomerate will be the master of the future corporate dystopia we're heading towards.

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