where are todays great thinkers?

[plimsoul]

my fear is that no one is talking about how to fix this mess that we're in. where is our keynes? where is our new way forward?

[bigbadwolf]

Stuck in the S bend.

[HAL9000]

There is no way forward for civilisation as we know it. We are just marking time before a transition to a completely different world with a much lower population. We might be able to influence whether the transition is smooth and controlled rather than violent and catastrophic, but that is all. IMHO.

[mockney piers]

Keynes, partly responsible in a weird way.

But granted, no real statesmen. Mind you not everything can be fixed as such, we'll muddle through.

[SteveT]

Karl Marx said many years ago capitalism only works in an expanding economy but will not sustain itself during imploding years.

I wonder if that is why we are sucking in immigrants.

[mockney piers]

Great thinkers to immigrants, in one step? really? Wow.

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

don't be silly MP - Karl Marx was an immigrant!

[immaterial]

SteveT Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Karl Marx said many years ago capitalism only

> works in an expanding economy but will not sustain

> itself during imploding years.

Not quite the exact wording, SteveT, but I'd concur with the sentiment nonetheless.

With respect to the title of the original posting, I believe that there are candidates-a-plenty.

Take a look at the writings of Antonio Negri (a particularly interesting essay in Radical Philosophy a few months ago which addressed the issue of Keynes.); Michael Hardt; Franco Berardi and Sylvere Lotringer, to name but a few.

Contemporary political philosophers are attempting to get to get to grips with this current phase of capitalist implosion, but you've got to seek them out!

http://www.generation-online.org

http://www.semiotexte.com/

http://info.interactivist.net/

[reggie]

strange how you are equating thinkers to economists

methinks thinking is on a higher plane than where our economy is heading

just a thought

[????]

In the true spirit of philosophy, great thinkers are great thinkers their academic speciality is an irrelevance surely?

[LegalEagle-ish]

Noam Chomsky is my favourite.

[Narnia]

reggie Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> strange how you are equating thinkers to

> economists

> methinks thinking is on a higher plane than where

> our economy is heading

> just a thought

Try the 'Is there a God' thread. Plenty of thinkers there!

[KatoTheCat]

WHY!? todays great thinkers are right here! on this amazing forum!

We ALL in east dulwich know this!

i am living proof!

>:D<

[PeckhamRose]

Today's great thinkers include AC Grayling and Richard Dawkins.

Today's politicians won't touch great thinking, even political thinking, with a barge pole. Politicians are in an age where there is so much selfishness ( as a result of a lot of us having lived through GOOD times that we don't want to let go of, and a lot of poverty watching telly seeing what the rest of us have ) yet everything in public life has to be done to committee, not individuals.

I think we will "muddle through" (well put) because we won't all die all at once so there is no option but to muddle through. Something like swine flu or a worse variation popping lots of us off might make a difference, and then the great thinkers will be the white coats working out the antivirals!

[Brendan]

I?m right here. I?ve just given up on mankind as they either just don?t get it or insist on observing the world from the inside of their own colons.

[Brendan]

This thread is a classic example. It may as well be entitled, ?People who say things that I agree with.?

[SteveT]

It was once explained to me that without masses of imported energy this country could sustain around 4 million.

Anyone interested in discussing population control?

[Jeremy]

SteveT, perhaps start a new thread on immigration if you fancy it... as it's a bit off-topic.

(but as a side-note, I thought that the UK only recently became net importers of energy)

[Windom]

John Ralston Saul would be near the top o my list

[mockney piers]

Im rather partial to Umberto Eco. Top chap and big anglophile too.

[sonofnun]

mostly banned from blogs by zealots, BRING BACK SNORKY !

[Horsebox]

Liberties, yo.

Snorky wasn't banned. He ran off wiv hiz tail between hiz legs, innit.

[fractionater]

I thought he was a loon in the early days, but if you can get past the "Reptillian" stuff, then David Icke has a lot of interesting stuff to say, especially in our current day and age.

[SeanMacGabhann]

For those of us who can't, any chance of a quick precis?

[Mick Mac]

I second Richard Dawkins - simple uncomplicated thinking. Thst for me is a deep thinker.