The Pathology of Wealth
As the planet moves closer to environmental catastrophe, the captains of industry, the robber barons of the age, could hardly be bothered. They have more important matters to consider. Making money. And they better be on the ball and deliver those dividends because if they don’t they will soon be replaced. Profits uber alles is the guiding mantra. Environment schvironment. It gets in the way. Sure they’ll recycle paper and glass but forget about doing anything substantial. Pursuing new corporate earning opportunities and wealth accumulation are in capitalism’s DNA. The owners of the economy, the 1%, are operating from the tar sands in Alberta to fracking in Pennsylvania. They have got their eyes on the only prize that matters to them. The lust for lucre continues unabated.
Recorded at La Pena Cultural Center.
Speaker
Michael Parenti
Michael Parenti was a leading independent political analyst, scholar, and author. Cornel West called him “a towering prophetic voice.” He taught at major colleges and universities in the U.S. and abroad. He is the author of numerous books, including Democracy for the Few, Power and the Powerless, and Against Empire. He passed away on January 24, 2026, at the age of 92.
Questioning the Unquestionable
“It is not demanded of readers that they embrace my views, but that they reflect upon their own. How seldom we bother to explore in some critical fashion the fundamental preconceptions that shape our understanding of social and political life. How frequently, as if by reflex rather than reflection, we respond to certain cues and incantations, resisting any incongruous notion. Our opinions shelter and support us; it is an excruciating effort to submit them to reappraisal. Yet if we are to maintain some pretense at being rational creatures, we must risk the discomfiture that comes with questioning the unquestionable, and try to transcend our tendencies toward mental confinement.” – Michael Parenti
teri –
Here is Michael delivering this very speech in Berkeley last January 6th. . The Blessed wonders of the internet!
http://climateandcapitalism.com/2012/01/12/michael-parenti-democracy-and-the-pathology-of-wealth/
jose carrillo –
Michael Parenti is my main man when it comes to political ideas and speech: he’s passionately serious about the issues, a tough writer, and he’s so funny. He cares.
Randall Loomis –
If only we could have these words implemented into the political process of America.