Late-stage Capitalism

This post is based on a talk I gave at the IDEAs Conference on Bangkok

What is late stage capitalism?

Late-stage capitalism, a term often used in critical discourse, refers to the contemporary phase of capitalism characterized by specific economic, social, and technological features. In the context of today’s fast-paced, technologically driven situation within late capitalism, several characteristics stand out:

Rapid Technological Advancements: Late capitalism is marked by unprecedented technological innovation and advancements. The rapid development of information technology, artificial intelligence, automation, and digital communication has transformed industries, economies, and daily life.

Globalization: The global interconnectedness of markets, economies, and cultures is a defining feature of late capitalism. Companies operate on a global scale, leading to complex networks of production, distribution, and consumption that transcend national borders.

Digitalization of Economy: The economy (local and global) is becoming increasingly digital, with online platforms, e-commerce, and digital services playing a central role. This has led to new business models, changes in consumer behavior, and the emergence of digital platforms as key economic actors.

Financialization: There is an increased dominance of financial markets and financial institutions in shaping economic activities. Speculation, financial instruments, and the prioritization of shareholder value have become central aspects of economic decision-making. Financial instruments and speculation often have a profound impact on various economic sectors.

Flexible Labor Markets: Late capitalism is characterized by a shift towards flexible labor arrangements, including gig work and temporary employment. Job insecurity, precarious employment, and a focus on short-term profits are prevalent in this economic landscape.

Consumer Culture: Consumption plays a central role in late capitalism. Advertising and marketing techniques are sophisticated, contributing to a culture of constant consumption and a desire for the latest products and experiences.

Commodification of Everyday Life: Late capitalism tends to commodify various aspects of life, turning even social interactions, cultural products, and personal experiences into marketable entities.

Surveillance Capitalism: The widespread collection and analysis of personal data have become integral to many business models. Companies (and in some cases governments) leverage user data for targeted advertising/propaganda, personalization, and other purposes, raising concerns about privacy and surveillance.

Inequality: Late capitalism is associated with growing income and wealth inequality. The benefits of economic growth are often concentrated among a small elite, leading to social and economic disparities.

Acceleration of Time: The pace of life in late capitalism is often described as accelerated. Rapid communication, instant access to information, and the expectation of quick results contribute to a sense of urgency and constant activity.

Crisis as Normalcy: Periodic economic crises are considered normal within late capitalism. Financial downturns and recessions are seen as inherent features of the system, leading to a cycle of boom and bust.

Environmental Challenges: The pursuit of profit often comes at the expense of environmental sustainability. Late capitalism is associated with environmental degradation, resource depletion, and climate change, prompting concerns about the long-term viability of current economic practices.

These characteristics contribute to a complex and dynamic socio-economic environment, prompting ongoing discussions and critiques about the nature of contemporary capitalism and its impact on society.

The Issue

Internet and social media: We are constantly exposed to the .00001% of top performers (good-looking people, at amazing locations, doing awesome things, 24/7/365 … Twitter - OMG Apocalypse! … Facebook - everyone has amazing lives, families, etc.)

“Everyone in their Instagram post wants you to believe that the key to a good life is a nicer job, or a faster car, a prettier girlfriend or a selfie on a beach.”

We seem to be living on a hedonic treadmill: “More, more, more!”
The “can-do” society: “You can be whatever you want to be!” leads to “entitlement” (a delusional belief to move you from reality, i.e., life is tough!)
The Digital Panopticon: Today, the entire globe is developing into a panopticon. Google and social networks, which present themselves as spaces of freedom, are assuming panoptic forms. Today, surveillance is not occurring as an attack on freedom, as is normally assumed. Instead, people are voluntarily surrendering to the panoptic gaze. They deliberately collaborate in the digital panopticon by denuding and exhibiting themselves. The prisoner of the digital panopticon is a perpetrator and a victim at the same time. Herein lies the dialectic of freedom: freedom turns out to be a form of control.

Freedom turns out to be a form of control.

Positive vs Negative Power

The negative power of prohibition and limitation in disciplinary societies vs the positive power of freedom and achievement in neoliberal societies.

The positivity of can is much more effective than the negativity of should. Therefore, the social unconscious switches from should to can.

Positive power is more effective and insidious, as it turns people into self-exploiting narcissists who are constantly working on themselves as personal projects

The Achievement Society

Psychopolitics is an extension of Foucault’s biopolitics. You don’t need a gun to people’s heads because in the pursuit of endlessly maximizing their abilities, they’ll spend the rest of their lives going crazy about never being good enough, never doing enough, never being efficient enough. If there’s ever a moment where they’re not spending their time being as productive as they possibly could towards making themselves more valuable, they will actually feel bad about it.

Loss of other / Terror of the Same

Consequences of this positive power include the loss of the other, the terror of the same, the crisis of connection and love, and the rise of depression and anxiety.
Authenticity and diversity: Authenticity is an ad campaign of neoliberalism. It’s a self-absorbed nightmare.
Loss of other: People avoid encountering differences and negativity.
Terror of the same: Everything becomes the same and meaningless.
Crisis of connection (and love)
Technology and social media isolate people
Information vs knowledge, thinking and calculating: The importance of contemplation and depth: Meaning, knowledge, truth, are things that only come when you contemplate how the present moment connects to the past and the future.

The psycho-politics of neoliberalism

Auto-exploitation
Commodification of oneself
Tendency towards narcissim: The narcissistic individual is not the cause of the world being more narcissistic. The ethos of the world (late-capitalism) makes narcissism an extremely common lane for people to fall into.
Rise of depression, anxiety, mental illness

Threat to Democracy

The disappearance of public space