A POSTCAPITALIST PARADIGM: THE COMMON GOOD OF ...

of energy of the planet are running out. The waste created by our manufacturing
and lifestyle and released into the atmosphere in the form of
toxic gases is threatening the life of billions of people by causing climate
change, desertification and extreme climatic events. If the extermination
of biological species continues at its present rate some thirty to seventy
species a day, as opposed to one species a year under normal terrestrial
conditions the earth’s greatest natural resource will be destroyed. The
ecological crisis, with its threat to human survival, will be the central
problem of the twenty-first century.
Secondly, Western societies and many developing and emerging countries
find themselves in a crisis concerning people’s relation to one another,
a crisis of social integration. The domination of profit under
neoliberal capitalism has dramatically deepened the social divisions in
societies and between them. Capitalist, patriarchal and ethnically or
racially based ruling hierarchies are dividing societies, and undermining
the solidarity that holds them together. At the same time, growing insecurity,
fear, poor working and living conditions and atomization caused
by precarious jobs, consumerism and egoism are generating anomie.
For growing sections of the population, work and commitment are losing
their significance as sources of social recognition and self-realization.
Thirdly, the grave aberrations and crises of neoliberal capitalism against
which the majority of the population feels powerless, are leading to an
erosion and a crisis of democracy and, in a number of countries, to
strong authoritarian tendencies. The established regulatory institutions
are failing to cope with social problems. Confidence in the institutional
framework is dwindling. A crisis in the relationship between citizens and
the institutions which they expect to look after their interests is also calling
the legitimacy of the rulers into question. The prevailing Western
order is becoming illegitimate, as it is losing touch with democracy and
human rights.
Fourthly, a threat to the security of the human race is another aspect of
the crisis of civilization. The danger of nuclear wars is increasing, and is
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