Institutional Disdain and Neo-Marxist Mischief: A Comedy of Economic Errors
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Sadhika Pant
 November 29 2023
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    There is a growing tendency towards the embracing of communism and neo-Marxism, and the casual disregard of systems and institutions, among the young, educated people of modern societies. Especially in universities. 

    Of course, endless debate has been carried out on the whys and hows of this phenomenon, and endless solutions offered by personages wiser than I am. However, I offer a wild solution, with absolutely zero data on whether it will achieve the desired outcome.

    I think there is a lot of emphasis on the teaching of modern history in schools. That is, history of wars and nations, and economic history post the 1800s era. What happened before that is generally covered in very little detail and usually not beyond elementary school. (Of course, I speak from the point of view of education in my own country, and I’m aware that the structure would be different in every country.)

    Here’s a wild idea - teach young children about the economic history of our civilisation in much greater detail, (especially the pre-industrial era). Teach them about the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, the Iron Age. About the advent of paper currency and the history of the banking system. About the Northmen, the Mongols, and what it was like to live in fear and insecurity, how the prevalence of that sentiment led to the yearning towards establishment of stabler systems. About the richer Asian economies of China, India and the Middle East. About how maritime trade developed, about the domination of trade routes by bandits and by conquerors. About the textile and spice industry. About explorers and their expeditions. About how nations achieved self-sufficiency in the production of grain, the invention of the loom, tubewell, threshing machines and the printing press. About the history of the plumbing system and important advances in medicine. About the history of labour laws. 

    The boons of the modern era are often taken as granted by young people today. Discussions on capitalism versus communism, the failure of economic systems, financial crises and their (mis)handling, etc. are predicated with far too many presumptions. Some of the brilliant ideas of the past came to become modern presumptions, that we take as given in our discussions. How and what came to be given, and who gave it, is glossed over in the process of education. 

    I have a sneaking suspicion that teaching these things might inculcate more gratitude about the gifts of civilisation and the painful journey undertaken by our ancestors to get us here, and young people would not carelessly and arrogantly denigrate the institutions that they stand to benefit from. After all, an economic history of the world, is nothing other than a history of privation and human efforts to overcome it.

    politics neo-marxism culture economics economic history history education youth institutions capitalism society modern philosophy cynicism
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