Global Connect

You might get the answer, but you might not like the answer either.

“Man is a credulous animal and must believe something. In the absence of good grounds for belief, he will be satisfied with bad ones.”

- Bertrand Russell- philospher and winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature (1950)

I find it funny when people complain about politicians and other leaders being out of the “mainstream.” What is “mainstream” anymore?  What is “normal?” Just to give some examples: I have a friend that is an atheist, feminist, Republican.  Another that is a free-spirited, used to study to be a female Catholic priest, wanna-be mountain hippie (unapologetically).  Another that is a feminist, neo-Democrat male from Texas. And yet another that is a gay, successful executive that wants to marry a woman.

What the heck is “normal” anymore???

Well, it has come to my attention yet again that certain people in the world have a problem with “out of touch, ivory tower intellectuals. Do these people forget the value of education?

What is a cornerstone of a successful market-oriented democracy? *DING DING DING* Times up.

Your answer is: an educated middle-class.

Free flow of information and ideas drives our economy just as much as it threatens our politics. Its easy to sit back and tell people what they should think and what they should do… but I don’t find many of these critics asking questions.

Yes, our intellectuals may sit above the world when it comes to understanding how the world works (or even some that just pretend to). They may be worried about getting tenured at their accredited institutions, but America and the world economy wouldn’t be so dynamic if it weren’t for them.

Critics tend to forget that intellectuals ask more questions and disagree amongst each other than most people. For example, a theory as old as Comparative Advantage is still debated to this day. David Ricardo must be turning in his grave with the literature. What’s the result? We LEARN. We learn about trade theory and learn about what’s wrong with it and what’s right with it (a terrible run-on sentence I know).

We have specialists in certain professions because we know that they know more than us. You don’t go to a banker to ask what’s wrong with your heart, and you don’t go to a doctor to ask him where you should invest (or maybe you do). The point is: it is unreasonable to attack the intellectuals simply because what they say isn’t what you want to hear.  Most intellectuals stay out of politics for a reason- it’s not their place. Intellectuals ask the questions, so get ready for the answers.

P.S. One of my favorite arguments is that the Nobel Prize Committee is socialist. Did you forget they have a specific Economics Prize, too?

P.S.S. Karl Marx and Ronald Reagan- some of our greatest socialists never got it.

If they are so good at it, why blame poor countries for it?

There is a fairly famous story in the political economy of development regarding corruption:

There are two high level government officials from two different developing countries.  Country B’s official visits Country A to see the progress they have made in implementing many of the Washington Consensus economic reforms. Upon arrival she goes to visit Country A’s official who has recently received a grant from the World Bank to develop a modern highway to the countries port, linking its resource development industries from inside the country (infrastructure improvements).  The loft outside the capital city is stylish, modern, European- NOT cheap.

B’s official asks A’s: “How can you live so lavishly in such a poor country?”

A responds: “Look out the window and tell me what you see.”

B: “I see a highway being constructed through a forest.”

A responds: “I see 20%.”

A few months later, Country A’s official visits Country B under similar circumstances.  Walking into Country B’s place, it looks even grander than his.

A exclaims: “Your country is even poorer than mine!  How can you afford such nice things?”

B: “Look out the window and tell me what you see.”

A: “All I see is a forest.”

B: “I see 100%”

This is the sort of corruption that hinders development, and it is one that we are indirectly responsible for- given that we as citizens of industrialized countries give efficacy to our governments which give efficacy to places like the World Bank and IMF. Foreign aid given to develop government and private capacity is the wrong kind of capital we can spend in our development strategies towards LDCs (least-developed countries). What really needs to happen is industries which can be competitive on the world market need to be given the chance to do so.  Please read my blog about agricultural subsidies and you will see why (it has a pretty good discussion on Facebook’s Farmville as well). No one will be able to convince most economists or political scientists that trade reform isn’t a good place to start if we are to develop a coherent strategy towards the global South.

Corruption can’t be blamed for the woes of LDCs, but let me just say I’M NOT ADVOCATING CORRUPTION AS A MORAL ALTERNATIVE TO DEVELOPMENT.

Let’s take 2 examples: imitation of products and the so-called “greasing the wheel” argument

1. Imitation of products is a natural result of product-process innovation.  Ever wonder what happened to VCRs? In short, the US invented them, they showed up on the Japanese market, they improved it through their own technological innovation and started selling it for cheaper on ours. Then- DVD players came about. I’m glossing over a lot of important details, but the notion is still there. Imitation can be good for development. It can create industries in countries to export. Exports = good for development and it can lead to diversification in the economy.  Look at Japan now. Looks like they are sitting next to us at the G7 (or 8 or 9 or 20 now?)

2. Greasing the wheel is a phrase you might use for such things as…ummm… bribes. We don’t like it here in the US for moral reasons, but if you have ever been traveling abroad- especially in an LDC- it is likely you encountered it at some point. In the larger, more grander scheme of things, bribes can be used to give preference to certain companies and industries. This is probably what happened in the development of keiretsu, or Japanese conglomerates who had much contact with government. To this day, keiretsu is still hotly debated. Infant industry protection is important in development, so greasing the wheel can’t hurt. It’s just not a good idea to keep up with those practices.

Corruption is bad, but it isn’t to blame. What you need to remember about corruption is that it is just as much a political question as it is an economic one. Blaming the woes of LDCs on corruption, when the industrialized world doesn’t give LDCs a strong chance at dipping their feet in the big golden capitalist pool is hypocritical. After all, we didn’t develop because of a free market. So, blame yourselves for supporting the Farm Bill, tariffs, NTBs, and not protecting your citizens from the social ills of not having a safety net when we finally get that free market we are looking for.

They must have heard DIck Cheney wanted to marry Limbaugh and Robertson- otherwise this doesn't make much sense.

I don’t even know where to start with this one… If anybody can be blamed for the ills our country and the world have- I’d choose these guys over President Obama any day.

First of all, Pat Robertson has new people to hate- the Haitians! Go figure, not only are gays & lesbians to blame for Hurricane Katrina and 9/11, now the Haitians are to blame for enduring a tragic hurricane AND being the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. I didn’t know that Mr. Robertson had such juicy conversations with the big guy upstairs, and last time I heard most Christian denominations (if not all) taught that God has a preferential option for the poor.  Doesn’t make much does it?

Then, to add insult to injury- Rush Limbaugh decides that President Obama wants to score political points from African Americans for sending aid to Haiti. Maybe while Rush was in Hawaii, and he so tragically did not die from heart problems, he forgot that during the Tsunami of 2004 President George W. Bush asked Presidents Clinton and H.W. Bush to lead the American relief effort to South Asia. Was he trying to score political points with Asians. Who knows, but either way they didn’t vote overwhelmingly for McSame and Failin’ in 2008.

At least we know that we as Americans are good at one thing: politicizing tragedies. I just finished watching JFK, the 1991 film staring Kevin Costner and that was an interesting, semi-fictional account of doing the same following the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Then you have Dick Cheney who apparently has nothing else to do with his life but criticize every move by the Obama administration. I know Wyoming is really boring, but not THAT boring. I guess it speaks to the intelligence of the past administration when W keeps his mouth shut and Cheney does all the talking.

So, in the spirit of Dickology- I think these three should really think about supporting gay marriage.  They have so much in common it might actually work.

In other news I talked to my friend in London today: Stephanie. She’s still waiting for me to buy my ticket to visit the GB so we can go dancing. I’m so confused why European Stephanie loves dancing while American Stephanie hates it? The more I think about it I think that European Stephanie might hate going after I show up, but then again I can’t be blamed for free flowing tequila shots, gin and tonics, excessive dancing at the Cuff, people drinking themselves sick in Belltown (Seattle) and hogging the bathroom all night…

Then again, maybe Europe just hasn’t gotten enough of me yet.  Guess Stephanie and I will just have to change that soon.