‘Testing’ the Labor Theory of Value with Metaphysical Alchemy BLAIR FIX March 2026 Economists have developed a timeworn algorithm for ‘testing’ untestable theories: they take what they can observe, which is usually monetary value, and declare that it measures what they cannot observe. I call this algorithm ‘metaphysical alchemy’. Here, I explore how Marxists use […]
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The Review of Capital as Power is pleased to announce that Isabella K. Sabatino has won the 2026 CASP Essay Prize for her landmark paper ‘Humbug Labor Values’.1 Sabatino’s paper takes aim at Anwar Shaikh’s method for ‘testing’ the labor theory of value. The backstory behind Sabatino’s work is that in 1974, Shaikh published a […]
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Humbug Labor Values ISABELLA K. SABATINO March 2026 In 1974, Anwar Shaikh published a landmark paper demonstrating that the Cobb-Douglas production function was in fact an accounting identity. As such, under fairly general conditions, the function would appear to ‘work’, even for nonsense data that spelled the word ‘HUMBUG’. In this paper, I argue that […]
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Abstract This paper investigates the timing of labour strikes in Hollywood. The occurrence of strikes, such as the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023, can make sense when we have the hindsight to piece together the historical details of what created rifts between labour and management. But why do strikes in Hollywood occur when they […]
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Abstract This paper presents a theoretical approach to the study of power in energy transitions that builds upon Capital as Power (CasP) theory and the critique of neoclassical growth theory. The approach integrates an understanding of capitalist power relations and a consideration of changes in societal energy capture. The approach includes two levels of social […]
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Abstract The study of energy transition is crucial to confronting the risks of climate change. However, it lacks a methodical approach to understanding relations of capitalist power, energy regime, and transitional dynamics. This study offers a systematic analysis of how business power shapes and controls socio-technical change under varying energy capture and power accumulation conditions. […]
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