Turbulence, Resilience, Distance

Abstract

On August 15, 1971, the gold standard, the conversion of the dollar into gold, was suspended. Two years later, the currency exchange became “floating,” which meant that from now on, the rate of exchange would be determined by the state of market fluctuations. And it was in this manner that the Bretton Woods Agreement, which had regulated the international financial system since 1944, came to an end. What happened at that time with regard to important economic data is something that obviously has an important bearing on how we largely structure our present—such a fluctuation of the exchange rate has largely favored speculation on currency and a disconnection of the speculative sphere, its autonomization from the so-called “real” economy. However, we shouldn’t convert this economic data too quickly into a hastily formed explanation for what should be more properly described as a major epistemic change, even a change in civilization, a major upheaval in the way we think about science, politics, the economy, as well as ecology and the environment....