Karl Marx Park Avenue

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Recommended: Collective Bargaining in the Workplace

Park Avenue In New York there are two Park Avenues, divided only by the Harlem River. The Park Avenue located north of the Harlem River is one of the poorest congressional districts in the United States. Nonetheless, the Park Avenue located 10 minutes south is home to the richest of the rich, who know how to play the game just right. By looking at the two Park Avenues and seeing how vastly they differ economically, we can directly relate that to power. Power is the ability of people or groups to achieve their goals despite the opposition from others. Theorists Karl Marx and Max Weber have differing, but very similar views on what creates powers among individuals. Marx believed that power and wealth are determined by one’s work situation, …show more content…

740 Park Avenue is home to the most billionaires in the country. Some of the tenants are as followed: John Thaine, David Koch, and particularly, Steve Schwarzman. Schwarzman is one of the primary CEOs in lobbying for tax policies to favor the rich. What this means is that he wants to create tax cuts for the wealthy. To do this, Schwarzman donates money to high politicians that favor his economic views in attempt to bring these politicians to the top. A politician who was grandly sponsored by Schwarzman was ex-president George W. Busch. When these wealthy members of society are essentially buying politics, they’re widening the gap of social equality. How do members of lower class social statuses have any chance of being heard or moving up on the ladder of success? Well, if we glance at Marx’s or Weber’s ideology that would never happen because the goods received by the politicians would go right back to the business men, or their campaign would suffer due to them not being a higher social status than the business …show more content…

As stated previously, Karl Marx’s philosophy relates income and wealth to work situations and the relationship shared in means of production. Marx views capitalistic societies as having two classes: capitals and workers. In the documentary we see the fight of union workers vs. republican politicians. Republican Governor Scott Walker, who received a hefty sponsorship from the Koch Brothers, pushed to have a reduction in collective bargaining. With this, union workers (i.e. teachers and labor workers) would have their pensions demolished. By diminishing pensions from teachers and other union workers, alienation would develop. This goes hand in hand with Marx’s view on workers manufacturing the goods, but their goods not belonging to them. Teachers would be ultimately handing over their talents and receiving nothing in

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