Episode 31: Marx’s Crisis Theory: New Spanish Defense

Brendan and Andrew welcome back Guillem Murcia López, a translator of the Spanish edition of Reclaiming Marx’s “Capital.” They discuss a forthcoming Spanish book collection that defends various dimensions of Marx’s work. The interview focuses on a chapter by Guillem that pushes back against the criticisms––in an influential book by Spanish leftists Luis Alegre and Carlos Fernández Liria––of Marx’s falling-rate-of-profit theory and its place within his theory of economic crisis. Guillem argues that their criticisms rest on a discredited “physicalist” misinterpretation of Marx. He and the co-hosts also discuss the related criticism of Marx’s law put forward by Monthly Review author Michael Heinrich—to which Andrew, Brendan, and others responded—and political implications of these debates.

This episode’s current-events segment focuses on the wave of police-reform measures approved by voters throughout the US in this month’s elections. The co-hosts refer frequently to a Vox article by Rachel Ramirez that surveys these “first step” victories and quotes several activists in the struggle against police violence.

Radio Free Humanity is a podcast covering news, politics and philosophy from a Marxist-Humanist perspective. It is co-hosted by Brendan Cooney and Andrew Kliman. We intend to release new episodes every two weeks. Radio Free Humanity is sponsored by MHI, but the views expressed by the co-hosts and guests of Radio Free Humanity are their own. They do not necessarily reflect the views and positions of MHI.

We welcome and encourage listeners’ comments, posted on this episode’s page.

Please visit MHI’s online print publication, With Sober Senses, for further news, commentary, and analysis.

Click here for more episodes.