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AlJazeeraEnglish on Oct 29, 2011
The Slovenian philosopher and critical theorist. He talks to Al Jazeera about the momentous changes taking place in the global financial and political system.
Slavoj Zizek on the global financial and political system
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Slavoj Zizek: ‘Now the field is open’
Al Jazeera English
29 Oct 2011
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In his distinct and colourful manner, he analyses the Arab Spring, the eurozone crisis, the “Occupy Wall Street” movement and the rise of China. Concerned about the future of the existing western democratic capitalism Zizek believes that the current “system has lost its self-evidence, its automatic legitimacy, and now the field is open.”
“I think today the world is asking for a real alternative. Would you like to live in a world where the only alternative is either Anglo-saxon neoliberalism or Chinese-Singaporean capitalism with Asian values?
I claim if we do nothing we will gradually approach a kind of a new type of authoritarian society. Here I see the world historical importance of what is happening today in China. Until now there was one good argument for capitalism: sooner or later it brought a demand for democracy…
What I’m afraid of is with this capitalism with Asian values, we get a capitalism much more efficient and dynamic than our western capitalism. But I don’t share the hope of my liberal friends – give them ten years, [and there will be] another Tienanmen Square demonstration – no, the marriage between capitalism and democracy is over.”
see
Occupy The World! To the barricades comrades? By William Bowles + Slavoj Zizek at Occupy Wall Street
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