The effects of the recent financial turbulence cause resistance to mainstream economics, the crisis of US-led imperialism against the Washington Consensus, the rise of new centres of power against the US and the way of natural resources used against privatisation and individualism.

In East Europe, the "messages" of 1968 had a particular resonance: the ruling elite thought that the revision of state socialism from a self-governing perspective and the old "workers' council" programme of social self-management as more dangerous than the growing demand for western-style bourgeois democratic freedom rights and the devotion – based on illusions – to the "values" of the consumer society.

The chair of the international and non-partisan meeting in Paris on June 16-17, 2008 draws conclusions from the discussions. Whether a US- centred global financial system, and based on the dollar as a reserve currency, will continue for much longer is an open question. We must embark, from the beginning, on a directed, long-term strategy, initially based on public investment, while the fundamental issues are obscured by a superficial international regulatory discourse.

"1968" was long associated with the revolt against consumer capitalism and with the values of the new left but hegemonic capitalist ideology – as the winner – later appropriated it. The Slovene philosopher takes a unique angle in analysing the economic, social and ideological background of this shift. He also investigates what remains from the heritage of '68; the changing features of capitalism, whether the idea of communism remains valid in the contemporary "postmodern" world; and, if the answer is yes, then what is and how can an "up-to-date" criticism of capitalism be made.

The Wall Street meltdown is not only due to greed and a lack of government regulation of a hyperactive sector. It stems from the crisis of overproduction that has plagued global capitalism since the mid-seventies. The author raises and answers the frequently asked questions.