Re: [A-List] Argentina: Salvation Lies in an Underground Economy (sp)

["Julio Fernández Baraibar" <julfb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

¿De donde salió esta literatura anarcoide que es, ni más ni menos, que
una vulgar apología del libre mercado y una propuesta para que Argentina
pierda toda perspectiva nacional. Si, por ventura, creemos que la vuelta
al trueque, es decir la abolición precapitalista del dinero, sin abolir
la mercadería, puede significar un avance en nuestras condiciones de
vida y en nuestra capacidad para liberarnos del imperialismo, muchachos,
estamos sonados.

> A nationwide informal economy in Argentina not only has the potential
to
> embarrass foreign political leaders, but it also has the potential to
> illustrate to the citizens of the world that the masses could rise up
> against statist economic oppression, in a people's economic revolution
> driven by the ideas of Rothbard, Mises, and Hayek.

Ignoro si el Hayek citado es el mismo Hayek, el ultraliberal
antiestatista austriaco, teórico de la escuela de Chicago, pero es
evidente que el neoliberalismo tiene apólogos de derecha, que ya
conocemos, y de izquierda, que empezamos a conocer.

Julio Fernández Baraibar
julfb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Julio Fernández Baraibar
julfb@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

----- Original Message -----
From: "Anne Williamson" <annewilliamson@xxxxxxx>
To: <a-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, June 14, 2002 12:20 PM
Subject: Re: [A-List] Argentina: Salvation Lies in an Underground
Economy


> Friday, June 14, 2002
>
> A People's Economic Revolution
>
> by Harry Valentine
>
> [Posted June 13, 2002]
>
> People's revolutions generally have their origins in inappropriate
> governmental behavior. This behavior may be exploitative, it may be
> oppressive, tyrannical, or even despotic. In rare instances, the
opportunity
> may present itself whereby the people may rise up and overthrow an
otherwise
> unpopular government. Not all successful uprisings, such as the
Bolshevik
> Revolution or Iran's anti-American revolution, are to the long-term
> advantage of all citizens.
>
> The recent monetary and economic upheavals in Argentina, caused by
state
> behavior in the monetary system, now make that country ripe for a
peaceful
> people's economic revolution. The foundational ideas of such a
revolution
> have been written up in the works of economists such as the late
Murray
> Rothbard. Rothbard argued that an absence of forcible coercion in
human
> relations and freedom of peaceful action would form the basis of a
free
> society as well as a viable free-market economy.
>
> The meltdown of Argentina's monetary system leaves the bulk of the
> population there with little choice but to peacefully take economic
control
> away from their government, through a nationwide informal or
underground
> economy. Ludwig von Mises advised in his writings that people would
revert
> to bartering in the event of monetary destabilization.
>
> In recent weeks, large numbers Argentineans have in fact been turning
to the
> underground economy as a means of economic survival. Most of the
> participants may never even have heard of Mises or Rothbard, yet their
ideas
> offer hope to large masses of people who are willing to peacefully
engage in
> a voluntary exchange of goods and services.
>
> In Argentina today, there exists a small number of people who have
actually
> read the works of Mises, Rothbard, and Hayek and are familiar as to
how
> these ideas and theories can apply to a real-world economic
environment. The
> central leadership idea offered implicitly by Rothbard's theories is
that a
> peaceful mass revolt and mass rejection against centralized economic
power
> and centralized economic control is possible through mass underground
> economic action involving the majority of a nation's population.
>
> This implicit idea can put the collective decision making of the
masses of
> individual people who are engaged in peaceful and private economic
planning
> in direct control of Argentina's economic recovery, as well as its
future
> economic evolution. Whereas political opponents may imprison a Mandela
or
> assassinate a Gandhi, a peaceful revolution led by a well-formulated
idea
> presents the opponent with a far more perplexing adversary.
>
> A successful nationwide informal economy operating in Argentina, one
that
> benefits large masses of citizens, has the potential to politically
> embarrass governments of other nations. The tools of production that
are
> available today are far more advanced and far more efficient than
their
> predecessors of bygone eras, when bartering flourished. Far higher
> individual levels of productivity, involving large numbers of people,
are
> possible today. Modern computer technology enables accurate tracking
of
> credits and debts incurred in local regions by participants in the
> underground economy.
>
> Argentina has a long history of oppressive governmental behavior as
well as
> of state economic misbehavior. Severe state action to combat mass
informal
> economic activity is almost a foregone conclusion, despite the fact
that
> over half of Argentina's 37 million overtaxed citizens live below the
> poverty line.
>
> Argentina's elitists, mercantilists, and statist parasites would
inevitable
> resort to oppressive measures to rob the masses of control of their
economic
> destiny. Foreign assistance to Argentinean governmental forces in this
> regard is also a foregone conclusion, despite it having the potential
of
> precipitating a return to oppressive state behavior in areas beyond
the
> economic arena. Argentina's elitists are practically guaranteed
support from
> players in Washington and Brussels in this regard.
>
> A nationwide informal economy in Argentina not only has the potential
to
> embarrass foreign political leaders, but it also has the potential to
> illustrate to the citizens of the world that the masses could rise up
> against statist economic oppression, in a people's economic revolution
> driven by the ideas of Rothbard, Mises, and Hayek.
>
> The well-being of the majority of a nation's economically
disenfranchised
> citizens could be realized without any state control of the nation's
money
> supply or state regulation of peaceful economic activity. It is a
lesson
> that the IMF, the World Bank, and a few national leaders would prefer
that
> it never be illustrated in the real world. It is a lesson that could
inspire
> entire populations of economically disadvantaged citizens living
elsewhere
> in the not-so-free world to wrest control of the economy away from the
> statist elitists.
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
------
> ----
>
> Harry Valentine, a commentator on economic issues, lives in Canada.
Send him
> MAIL.
>
>
>
>