I was never sympathetic to the idea of historical determinism. If anything, I've always had a knee-jerk reaction to it. I've even written a bit about it, and about how it's not only an untenable theoretical position, but also how it's symptomatic of a deeper despair from which we’re suffering. However, lately, I feel like I maybe get the appeal. Not that I'm actually entertaining the idea of historical determinism, but by the same token, I suspect that I'm not alone in feeling like history's wheel turns because of forces that dwarf any of us.

I always liked Marx's description of capitalism where he spoke of it in terms of the story of the Sorcerer's apprentice. Like Mickey Mouse in Fantasia, capitalism has unleashed such awesome forces that not even the most powerful capitalist is capable of controlling them.

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