In principle I agree, but in many ways Wall Street types are Capital’s greatest slaves. Since they are dealing with other’s money, they also must meet their client’s literal unwitting demands. All the analysis in the world won’t placate the client screaming “AI! AI! BUY AI!”
Big money managers (large hedge funds and asset management firms like Citadel and Blackrock) make their own decisions/strategies and clients rarely if ever have any input. It’s only the small local bank branch types that listen to their clients
The loud ones (Elon, Trump) are the morons who lucked their way into everything. A lot of quiet ones are really good at intentful exploitation
What I mean by “unwitting demands” is the implicit “make me more money, or I will go somewhere else” that unconsciously pervades even Blackrock. They don’t actually have to physically listen to understand the investment flow is going towards one market or another. They are excellent surfers, but they aren’t making the waves.
in many ways Wall Street types are Capital’s greatest slaves.
They’re really, really not.
Taking specific job-related actions, which are not particularly demanding and are firmly within the confines of the job you are hired to do, which pays you very well and transfers lots of the spoils of empire to you, and which you can comfortably quit at any time with no adverse consequence, does not make you a slave.
There are still tens of millions of actual slaves around the globe, people who are trafficked, blackmailed, restricted, or otherwise coerced into labor that they will never be paid comfortably for.
Let’s not dilute the depravity of capitalism with something that may seem vaguely affectively equivalent for a couple hours a day.
In principle I agree, but in many ways Wall Street types are Capital’s greatest slaves. Since they are dealing with other’s money, they also must meet their client’s literal unwitting demands. All the analysis in the world won’t placate the client screaming “AI! AI! BUY AI!”
Big money managers (large hedge funds and asset management firms like Citadel and Blackrock) make their own decisions/strategies and clients rarely if ever have any input. It’s only the small local bank branch types that listen to their clients
The loud ones (Elon, Trump) are the morons who lucked their way into everything. A lot of quiet ones are really good at intentful exploitation
What I mean by “unwitting demands” is the implicit “make me more money, or I will go somewhere else” that unconsciously pervades even Blackrock. They don’t actually have to physically listen to understand the investment flow is going towards one market or another. They are excellent surfers, but they aren’t making the waves.
Big money makes all the waves and other big money will react to that how they want
See: SoftBank causing a massive tech rally by buying boatloads of call options
http://ft.com/content/75587aa6-1f1f-4e9d-b334-3ff866753fa2
They’re really, really not.
Taking specific job-related actions, which are not particularly demanding and are firmly within the confines of the job you are hired to do, which pays you very well and transfers lots of the spoils of empire to you, and which you can comfortably quit at any time with no adverse consequence, does not make you a slave.
There are still tens of millions of actual slaves around the globe, people who are trafficked, blackmailed, restricted, or otherwise coerced into labor that they will never be paid comfortably for.
Let’s not dilute the depravity of capitalism with something that may seem vaguely affectively equivalent for a couple hours a day.