Renata Salecl: The Paradox of Choice (Animated)

The paradigm of individual liberty and relatively unrestricted choice is, like all other social paradigms, something that came into fashion at a particular point in history and that will ultimately come to pass at some future time. There is no plausibility to the idea that capitalism can continue to be the dominant socioeconomic system for our planet. It simply isn't possible, ecologically speaking, for us to continue living in a world where this social paradigm reigns. We will soon have to recognize that coordinated action, significantly limited consumption and, by extension, production, and the voluntary restriction of the pursuit of individual preference satisfaction, is the only path to our continued survival on a planet with limited resources. Some other system will supplant capitalism. It is not a question of whether it will happen, but when. The socially evolved have recognized this, and are, instead of clutching the past, embracing the future by advocating for radical, progressive social change. What I find to be quite sad about the capitalist apologists is their own failure to recognize that the system they love and cherish so much will itself be made extinct in part by the fervency with which it is revered as the only socioeconomic system that can get us out of the problems it has, through our own self-interested and short-sighted agenda of consumption, allowed us to cause for ourselves.

Interesting point. Nevertheless I think it does not dismantle Renata's thesis: we all agree that a totalitarian power is not desirable but, is capitalism as we know it the only alternative?
The answer is 'yes' only if we stick to pragmatism.
We are witnessing more and more people around Europe and US demonstrating on the streets their tiredness and disagree with the system. This new wave of the hippy movement has a background of decades criticisms, worldwide thinkers and movements that claim for a real change, a new paradigm that evolves out the pragmatic production-consumption-based one. Not only radicals, teenagers and poets believe that the individual is undignified by modern capitalism, it's coming to general conciseness.

It's easy to defend the good old liberalism. Nobody reasonable wants a turn backwards, nor to the right neither to the left. It's time we contribute to this next-step thinking.

All this terrible choice anxiety would be alleviated if only there were some benevolent group of Platonic intellectuals to make choices for us. Then we would no longer suffer the horrors of responsibility. We would no longer have to make decisions. All this terrible stress of choice and guilt could be assuaged.

Perhaps some powerful group of elites such as the Rockefeller, Carnegie, and Ford foundations could use the media tell us when to go to war against Oceana, what clothing to wear for minimum ecological impact, what jobs we are genetically suited for, which serotonin modifying pharmaceuticals to take for maximum happiness, and the correct number of offspring to produce.

Of course this group of elites would need the full coercive power of the state to ensure their benevolent policies weren't subverted by a few mad deviants who felt they owned their own bodies.

If only such a situation existed. Hmmmmmm.

Great stuff, as always