I'm aware of the existence of a business school which was until recently was majorly staffed by Marxists. That was basically their response as well. "We know capitalism better than anyone, all we do is study it."
I've found that it's a bit better to recommend "Value, Price, and Profit"[1] rather than Capital I because it gives you the gist of the most important part (the first three chapters) while being much smaller and a little less dry.
Reading Capital is still totally worthwhile. I've read volume I four or five times at this point, and I always find new things that are relevant to today... that said, it is difficult for a new reader.
I have no clue how people who don't understand Marxian political economy can understand things like the huge dot-com bubble in the late 1990s, and then the crash. Or the (sub-prime) real estate bubble. Or how the finance sector is growing, in GDP percentage wise and in power, relative to the economy which produces real commodities.
Then again, according to polls (and my experience), the majority of Americans believe "every word of the Bible is literally accurate", and that "the Virgin birth, the angelic proclamation to the shepherds, the Star of Bethlehem, and the Wise Men from the East" are "historically accurate". Over 70% believe in "God, Heaven, the resurrection of Christ, survival of the soul after death, miracles, the virgin birth, the devil and hell". If blindness to the way the world really works is so overwhelming with these fantasies, expecting people to understand how wealthy people discretely work the economic system is way, way beyond most people.
I have no clue how people who don't understand Marxian political economy can understand things like...
Your statement implies that economic events must be analyzed from the standpoint of base & superstructure, but there is no rule or law that requires it.
> Then again, (...) [o]ver 70% [of Americans] believe in "God, Heaven, the resurrection of Christ, survival of the soul after death, miracles, the virgin birth, the devil and hell". If blindness to the way the world really works is so overwhelming with these fantasies, (...)
There is a way to phrase this sentiment without alienating quite as many decent people. Try to find it next time.
(I, too, am an atheist; but I don't see a need to enforce atheism on HN.)
I personally do not really mind "alienating" the "earth is 5,000 years old" crowd by not respecting their complete and total disrespect for science and logic.
If your wife told you that she was pregnant, but it wasn't your kid--would you believe her if she said the sperm just sort of came out of nowhere? Or would you say that it's not how conception (or marital faithfulness) actually works?
(note: that's a general non-specific "your" up there, which does not refer to an actual wife, who if you have one I do not mean to in any way impugn)
This has been the key lesson of my career as a programmer and entrepreneur. Reading Marx made me a better capitalist.
I tell people that ask for book recommendations to read Marx all the time and they sneer at me even though they know I'm not a Marxist.