Name: Lauryn Gallagher Date: 25 October 2010 Class: Anth. 366 Smith
It amazes me the labor some men exceed in countries to make a little bit of money. People take for granted what it is to work hard because in our country we have it easy. For example, in Malaysia and Sedaka the owners of rice paddy fields work long hours just to make their rent for their land, which is paid in rice. It takes a lot of work and hours to produce this crop and to finally make a little wage. In chapter ten of Robbins it examines the reactions and resistance of peasant farmers to the expansion of capitalism, and to their increased marginalization in a world of extensive agriculture. On the other hand, in Chapter two of Collier’s book it talks about widespread protests both national and international, through marches and a wide variety of creative actions, quickly forced the Mexican government to declare a cease-fire and to pull back its troops from the Zapatista's most immediate zone of influence only weeks after the uprising began.
This response is more from our lecture yesterday when we spoke about the "moral" economy. In the U.S. we are provided certain rights as workers, rights to breaks and lunches, maternity leave, etc. I currently manage a private club/bar with a primarily middle aged & senior citizen clientele. There has recently been some "worker protests" because a few members argued that we were not entitled to the same (breaks)benefits because we worked in a private club. At first myself and the other workers ignored it, until hearing about it became too much to handle. We called the Department of Labor and Industry and printed off our worker's rights and posted them up all over the bar. We also started keeping a stop watch so we could ensure we were not being cheated from a break. It has died down a little once the members realized we would not back down from the issue. After thinking about this in class yesterday, it makes me realize that even with the hassle of having to go through all of it, I am still happy to live in a country where I DO have those rights and can fight against those who say I do not. It's hard to believe some of these revolts/revolutions took so long to happen. It only took us less than two weeks at my job to start fighting back, I couldn't imagine years of being exploited before finally saying enough. Meghan Elder
Robbins - Chapter 10 focuses on three types of peasant rebellion around the world. The common thread among all three seems to be a disruption of traditional ways combined with economic need of the marginalized indigenous populations. It’s interesting to note that these rebellions were spurred on not just by outsiders forcing there ideals upon native peoples (as in the case of Kenya), but also by groups that supposedly share the common traits of a nation-state as in Malaysia and Mexico. The rebellions seem to be more about the widening gap between those who have and those who do not. It’s also about basic survival needs, food, shelter, water and the lack thereof because a traditional way of life (subsistence farming) was taken away, and without these basic needs, there is little foundation upon which to build up from poverty. I truly hope at some point the elite of the world will learn that destroying traditional ways, destroys a culture, and this in turn destroys a different perspective that provides an opportunity to learn and benefit from in the long term.
Robbins chapter 10 is all about peasant protest. The Zapatistas were a group of badly armed peasant farmers that claimed to represent the people of Mexico. The Zapatistas protest was very interesting to me. It was an example of protest that marked the expanding culture of capitalism. This uprising of trade was not beneficial to these farmers. They lost their land and became dependent on irregular wage labor. This rise of capitalism had a very harsh effect on the poor which caused the rebellion.
Name: Lauryn Gallagher
ReplyDeleteDate: 25 October 2010
Class: Anth. 366 Smith
It amazes me the labor some men exceed in countries to make a little bit of money. People take for granted what it is to work hard because in our country we have it easy. For example, in Malaysia and Sedaka the owners of rice paddy fields work long hours just to make their rent for their land, which is paid in rice. It takes a lot of work and hours to produce this crop and to finally make a little wage. In chapter ten of Robbins it examines the reactions and resistance of peasant farmers to the expansion of capitalism, and to their increased marginalization in a world of extensive agriculture.
On the other hand, in Chapter two of Collier’s book it talks about widespread protests both national and international, through marches and a wide variety of creative actions, quickly forced the Mexican government to declare a cease-fire and to pull back its troops from the Zapatista's most immediate zone of influence only weeks after the uprising began.
This response is more from our lecture yesterday when we spoke about the "moral" economy. In the U.S. we are provided certain rights as workers, rights to breaks and lunches, maternity leave, etc. I currently manage a private club/bar with a primarily middle aged & senior citizen clientele. There has recently been some "worker protests" because a few members argued that we were not entitled to the same (breaks)benefits because we worked in a private club. At first myself and the other workers ignored it, until hearing about it became too much to handle. We called the Department of Labor and Industry and printed off our worker's rights and posted them up all over the bar. We also started keeping a stop watch so we could ensure we were not being cheated from a break. It has died down a little once the members realized we would not back down from the issue. After thinking about this in class yesterday, it makes me realize that even with the hassle of having to go through all of it, I am still happy to live in a country where I DO have those rights and can fight against those who say I do not. It's hard to believe some of these revolts/revolutions took so long to happen. It only took us less than two weeks at my job to start fighting back, I couldn't imagine years of being exploited before finally saying enough.
ReplyDeleteMeghan Elder
Week 6-Peasant Rebellions
ReplyDeleteRobbins - Chapter 10 focuses on three types of peasant rebellion around the world. The common thread among all three seems to be a disruption of traditional ways combined with economic need of the marginalized indigenous populations. It’s interesting to note that these rebellions were spurred on not just by outsiders forcing there ideals upon native peoples (as in the case of Kenya), but also by groups that supposedly share the common traits of a nation-state as in Malaysia and Mexico. The rebellions seem to be more about the widening gap between those who have and those who do not. It’s also about basic survival needs, food, shelter, water and the lack thereof because a traditional way of life (subsistence farming) was taken away, and without these basic needs, there is little foundation upon which to build up from poverty. I truly hope at some point the elite of the world will learn that destroying traditional ways, destroys a culture, and this in turn destroys a different perspective that provides an opportunity to learn and benefit from in the long term.
Josh Murphy
ReplyDeleteRobbins chapter 10 is all about peasant protest. The Zapatistas were a group of badly armed peasant farmers that claimed to represent the people of Mexico. The Zapatistas protest was very interesting to me. It was an example of protest that marked the expanding culture of capitalism. This uprising of trade was not beneficial to these farmers. They lost their land and became dependent on irregular wage labor. This rise of capitalism had a very harsh effect on the poor which caused the rebellion.