The Economist

The above is typical of The Economist. Marx wrote that 'capital comes into the world dripping, from head to foot, in blood and dirt", such is the barbarism used to uphold its existence and ongoing maturity. 

The language of The Economist here is to casualise and sterilise this barbarism - in this case, the brutal exploitation of low-wage labour in the 'undeveloped world' by multinational corporations. The entire process is presented as something natural: this type of employment, in 'gruelling' conditions is always being moved around geographically, it's just the way it works but maybe one day, the innovation propelled by the market will swoop in, save the day and ensure that robots, not humans are the ones stitching together the everyday fabrics of the Western world. 

The effect is to justify the political laziness of the Western reader: there is a whole other world of suffering out there but it's just the way it is - until the inevitable progress of the market resolves it, there's little I can do, so I'll just sit here and enjoy my consumerism for now. 

It'll be interesting to see how The Economist views the exit of Greece from the Eurozone, if it happens. The magazine insisted that lethal austerity was the only way to cure the PIIGS' ills in 2010. Now, in a country where unemployment has hovered above 25% for 3 years and where government debt has actually increased since 2010, we'll have to see what kind of logic is used to defend, explain and promote the resulting catastrophe.