The Jungle: True or False?

[Lumpen Bourgeois]

Most have heard of the 20th century "muckraking" book entitled The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair. Some say that it's one of the hallmarks of progressivism because it putatively exposes some of the unsavory practices of the meatpacking industries.

According to the wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jungle), Theodore Roosevelt sent two inspectors to verify whether or not the claims of the book were true. Unsurprisingly, at least in my opinion, the inspectors found the conditions in the meatpacking factories "revolting". The findings led to some lax regulation of those particular industries.

This notwithstanding, right-wing libertarians, ancaps, and other free market fundamentalists are deeply suspect of Sinclair's claims. And I'm not surprised that they're doubtful. According to them, free markets don't permit such business practices to occur. In their view, consumers will just stop patronizing businesses that engage in such detestable behavior and they will eventually close down as a result. According to one revisionist Mises Institute article (http://mises.org/story/364), "investigation after investigation of the meat packing industry showed Sinclair’s claims to be false", although the author doesn't cite any sources regarding this particular claim.

So what do you think? I especially want to hear from the free marketeers and I also want to know if anyone has any conclusive evidence regarding the state of the meatpacking industry during that laissez-faire period in history.

[synthesis]

Miseans and their ilk are the kings and queens of historical "revisionism". They are the intellectual equivalent of Fox News. I have long abandoned the desire to treat their claims with any credibility whatsoever.

[IcarusAngel]

Miseans don't just promote bad history and bad economics. Nearly everything written on that site is against the modern findings in the of doctors, of scientists, of social scientists and sociologists, and so on.

It is a cult that gives even Randianism a run for its money.

For example, Randians claim to be "objective" through their ratioanlity. Miseans claim that they are right prior to all existence. It's just absolutely pathetic and a big reason why no one takes it seriously.

[Robert]

In their view, consumers will just stop patronizing businesses that engage in such detestable behavior and they will eventually close down as a result.

Utopian blather. Much like what I read ... in other places. :lol:

[IcarusAngel]

What is your pragmatic solution to ensure that there are no monopolies or oppressive corporations then?

[Comrade B]

The man that introduced me to communism was a teamster organizing slaughterhouse workers on the west coast.
The shit is still fucked up.

[Random Precision]

This notwithstanding, right-wing libertarians, ancaps, and other free market fundamentalists are deeply suspect of Sinclair's claims. And I'm not surprised that they're doubtful. According to them, free markets don't permit such business practices to occur. In their view, consumers will just stop patronizing businesses that engage in such detestable behavior and they will eventually close down as a result.

This sets "consumers" up as some artificial group aside from producers. The fact is that most consumers are workers, who are forced by the "free market" to buy whatever products can meet their basic needs for the lowest amount of money. Sure, consumers can boycott products they are unsatisfied with... but in most cases that is actually a form of class struggle which Miseseans of course are opposed to.


According to one revisionist Mises Institute article (http://mises.org/story/364), "investigation after investigation of the meat packing industry showed Sinclair’s claims to be false", although the author doesn't cite any sources regarding this particular claim.

If the author doesn't cite sources, in my experience, you should not take what they say seriously.

The Jungle is actually very derivative of Émile Zola's work, which by the way is much better literature than anything from Sinclair. I suggest you check out Germinal and/or L'Assomoir- these are thoroughly researched fictional accounts of proletarian life in France's Second Empire.