Thinking Allowed Sociologists and the financial crisis - Against security
Oct 17, 2012
Harvey Molotch, a sociology professor at NYU and author of 'Against Security', critiques the impact of safety measures on public enjoyment and dignity. He and sociologist Alberto Toscano discuss the failures of sociology to foresee the financial crisis and its deep societal inequalities. Molotch highlights how airport security breeds anxiety and dehumanization. Toscano emphasizes the need to rethink collective perspectives on work, challenging traditional economic models that hinder imagination beyond austerity.
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Crisis Terminology Limits Thinking
- Using the vague term "crisis" enables urgent policy pushes without clear long-term solutions.
- This limits thinking beyond short-term market-driven reactions and confounds sociological analysis.
Limits of Reformist Sociology
- Sociology clings to reformist ideas, imagining capitalism can fix itself.
- This hampers discussion on capitalism's limits and alternative societal arrangements, including rethinking work.
Sociology's Melancholy
- Sociology is afflicted by melancholy, yearning for a sanitized past of stability and full employment.
- This obstructs imaginative responses to today's complex, ongoing economic challenges.
