> cases where it seems like purely a tragedy of capitalism
We have evidence the Hudson Bay was being overfished for oysters in the decades preceding European settlement. Any explanation beginning and ending with capitalism is about as useless as blaming every problem on greed.
Your single example of over-exploitation outside of capitalism doesn’t refute my point at all. Nobody thinks it’s impossible to over-exploit without capitalism, it’s that without capitalism we don’t have a huge incentive to do it, and it happening on a GLOBAL scale. But yeah, ok, some declines in oysters in one body of water.
Capitalism has been the dominant economic system for over two hundred years. It is more specifically pertinent to this time and place than some inborn human characteristic or tendency.
Do you have a link to more on indigenous/pre-colonial overfishing of oysters in Hudson Bay? Google is not turning up anything but contradictory sources for me.
> link to more on indigenous/pre-colonial overfishing of oysters in Hudson Bay?
Sure! It’s from this book [1].
Decreasing oyster size (implying younger harvests) in New York mounds was explicitly contrasted with the sustainable extraction from the Chesapeake Bay. (None of your sources mention the Hudson.)
Better delineation than capitalist and indigenous might be trading and non-trading.
> trigger warning
This is a needless way to undercut oneself. (It’s also mean.)
Thanks. You're right, those sources do not mention Hudson Bay, despite my Google search including the words. I should know better.
I've recently started enjoying oysters and other shellfish so I'll add the book to my reading list. Looks very interesting!
edit: "New York mounds" -- is this about Hudson Bay (the one in Canada) or the Hudson River estuary, in New York?
The first source I linked doesn't mention the river either, but second source does claim no prehistoric declines of oyster sizes in the Hudson River estuary. Still going to read the book and then make my up my mind
We have evidence the Hudson Bay was being overfished for oysters in the decades preceding European settlement. Any explanation beginning and ending with capitalism is about as useless as blaming every problem on greed.