Worker unrest in China sends tremors through world capitalism

[Donnachaidh]

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2011/jun2011/pers-j25.shtml

The eruption of protests by workers in Zengcheng has sent a tremor through global financial circles, underlining just how dependent the world economy is on the super-exploitation of the Chinese working class.

The Financial Times and Wall Street Journal both published worried articles about the ability of the Chinese police state to contain any mass movement of the working class. A Financial Times editorial speculated on the number and intensity of protests in China, then declared: “The perception that local protests might be gaining a broader national coherence is deeply threatening to China’s Communist Party.”

This prospect is also deeply threatening to the international bourgeoisie. Even a local social explosion in Zengcheng—known as the “Jeans capital”—has reverberated throughout the world. The satellite city of Guangzhou produces one third of the world’s jeans, for some 60 different international brands. Zengcheng is only one of many manufacturing “capitals”, each specialising in a single commodity, mainly for export.

Broader industrial unrest in China would have far-reaching ramifications for international corporations, ranging from German machine exporters to the mining giants in Australia and Brazil. General Motors now produces more cars and trucks in China than in the US and Walmart is dependent on China for most of its cheap consumer goods. Apple’s iPhones and iPads are made by huge sweatshops run by Foxconn. Foreign-owned subsidiaries directly employ 16 million Chinese workers, with many millions more involved in complex supply chains for transnational corporations.

More at the link --

[napoleon_in_rags]

1. Woah, put that in your pipe and take a long smoke.

Lately I have been looking at some "big picture stuff", the way the massive debt is being used to prop up the petrodollar, etc. China is propping us up in some ways right now, that's why people in the know say our relationship is "complex". Europe is teetering due to its own issues. So you have a situation where a "communist revolution" in "communist china" could push things over the edge for everybody, and start a snowball that could collapse the current global capitalist system. What?

Things are truly dizziness these days: I don't need to take drugs to feel like I'm in wonderland, I just think about world politics. :)

[eleny]

2. I figured that the Chinese were supposed to be the next big bunch of conumers

Making Americans obsolete to the moneyed barons. But those barons haven't done their homework when it comes to the history of the working/slave class. They do erupt from time to time and have even held general strikes.

The "upper crust" is blinded by its deep greed.

[jwirr]

3. Hmmm, I can't help but support those exploited workers. There are

so many of them and for years they have been taught the communist workers philosophy about standing together. I do not think they can be controlled much longer. Hang on it is going to be a bumpy ride.

[BOG PERSON]

5. that's not communist workers philosophy as such

it's just practical.

[disillusioned73]

4. Wow..

"The number of US dollar billionaires in China has leapt from none in 2002 to 189—the largest group outside the US."

I truly hope the Chinese people are able to wake up from their collective/suppressed slumber.

[intaglio]

6. OMG!!111!! What if China becomes Socialist or COMMUNIST!

oh ....

wait ...

Errrr

:evilgrin:

:sarcasm:

[Ganja Ninja]

7. Imagine if the workers rose up and seized the means of production.

And imagine if the government let them. :rofl: