|
|
Way to Russia Talk Lounge
Way to Russia warm-up: place both your hands in front of you and then count one word for each finger, starting from the left thumb: "Conversation Is a Way of Finding Out What You Think".
WayToRussia.Net Blog & Updates:
Subscribe to Way to Russia News Feeds:
  | Latest Forum Posts:
Talk Lounge Posts at Your Fingertips:
|
|
| Author |
Message |
Rimski
Frequent Guest
Joined: 12 Sep 2007
Posts: 62
|
 Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 12:08 pm Post subject: Free Market: The Origin of Poverty of Nations |
 |
|
Let's have a look to the optimistic point of view of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) about free market:
| Quote: |
Recent decades have seen rapid growth of the world economy. This growth has been driven in part by the even faster rise in international trade. The growth in trade is in turn the result of both technological developments and concerted efforts to reduce trade barriers. Some developing countries have opened their own economies to take full advantage of the opportunities for economic development through trade, but many have not.
...
The resulting integration of the world economy has raised living standards around the world. Most developing countries have shared in this prosperity; in some, incomes have risen dramatically. As a group, developing countries have become much more important in world trade—they now account for one-third of world trade, up from about a quarter in the early 1970s. |
for IMF experts, opening the economy to free trade is THE solution for prosperity. Free Market is their religion...
| Quote: | | Policies that make an economy open to trade and investment with the rest of the world are needed for sustained economic growth. The evidence on this is clear. No country in recent decades has achieved economic success, in terms of substantial increases in living standards for its people, without being open to the rest of the world. |
source: http://www.imf.org/external/np/exr/ib/2001/110801.htm
Last edited by Rimski on Tue Oct 06, 2009 7:20 pm; edited 4 times in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Rimski
Frequent Guest
Joined: 12 Sep 2007
Posts: 62
|
| Posted: Thu Jun 18, 2009 8:28 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Adam Smith (1723-1790) is often identified as the father of modern capitalism. He and his followers will not desagree with IMF experts. Like IMF experts, Smith is very optimistic about free market. He believes that free trade is good for all. He wrote a famous book where he explains his point of view. It's called: "An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations"
| Quote: | | But the annual revenue of every society is always precisely equal to the exchangeable value of the whole annual produce of its industry, or rather is precisely the same thing with that exchangeable value. As every individual, therefore, endeavours as much as he can both to employ his capital in the support of domestic industry, and so to direct that industry that its produce may be of the greatest value; every individual necessarily labours to render the annual revenue of the society as great as he can. He generally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry, he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention. Nor is it always the worse for the society that it was no part of it. By pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it. I have never known much good done by those who affected to trade for the public good. It is an affectation, indeed, not very common among merchants, and very few words need be employed in dissuading them from it. |
source: http://www.iep.utm.edu/s/smith.htm#H3
Last edited by Rimski on Wed Aug 12, 2009 8:26 pm; edited 5 times in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Rimski
Frequent Guest
Joined: 12 Sep 2007
Posts: 62
|
| Posted: Fri Jul 31, 2009 1:24 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Here's an another article that tells us how free a market benefits everyone. This article explain what is the division of labor or the law of comparative advantage...
| Quote: |
I speak of the division of labor, also known as the law of comparative advantage or the law of comparative cost, and also known as the law of association. Call it what you will, it is probably the single greatest contribution that economics has made to human understanding.
...
This law shows how it is that people can gain, materially and in every other way, by working together rather than working in isolation. They don't just gain the sense of satisfaction that comes with participation in solidarity with one's fellow man; they can actually gain in the real stuff of life, the goods and services that are available to us all. |
Then comes an example of division of labour: producing bagels and pies... and finally the conclusion:
| Quote: | The law was formalized by David Ricardo in England, and further emphasized by economists ever since. The significance is impossible to exaggerate: It means that it is not necessary that all people of the world have the same talents in order to benefit from cooperation. In fact, it is the very diversity of the human population that makes it advantageous for them to work together and trade to their mutual benefit.
What this means is that isolation and self-sufficiency lead to poverty. Cooperation and the division of labor are the path to wealth. Understand that, and you can refute libraries full of nonsense from both the Left and the Right |
To read the full article (very interesting): http://mises.org/story/3015 |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Rimski
Frequent Guest
Joined: 12 Sep 2007
Posts: 62
|
| Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 4:47 pm Post subject: |
|
|
ok. if you believe in Santa Claus you will certainly agree with all these points of view. If you don't beilieve in Santa Claus, let's continue and discover how free market works on the field.
first, here is the story of the United Fruit Company: http://www.mayaparadise.com/ufc1e.htm
Now, you have seen what capitalists can do to peoples only for bananas. I let you imagine what they can do for more... oil for example. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Rimski
Frequent Guest
Joined: 12 Sep 2007
Posts: 62
|
| Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 9:35 pm Post subject: |
|
|
A big economic porblem that the south (the poor countries) faces is agricultural export subsidies (dumping) of the north countries, US and EU especially. These export subsidies make prices of agricultural producs (wheat, corn, coton etc...) very low on the international market. As a result of this policy, developing countries suffer a lot. South's economies are based on farming. there is no industries there. US and EU export subsidies are "killing" the only economic activity of most developing countries: farming.
In WTO negociations, the US and the EU on one hand, ask the poor countries to remove taxes on agricultural imports and on the other hand, they maintain agricultural export subsidies (more than 350 billions a year). Poor countries can't develop because of this policy. the US and the EU contribute directly to spread poverty allover the world with export subsidies policies. How nice is free market.
See the consquence of the dumping on one country (Mexico) and one product (corn). read this article: http://www.mindfully.org/WTO/2003/US-Mexican-Oxfam27aug03.htm |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
Get this Forum's Posts / Topic at Your Fingertips:
   
(If you subscribe, you will be able to track new posts in this specific forum / topic. You can use your personal Yahoo or Google page, as well as specialized RSS readers.)
WayToRussia.Net - p-h-p-B-i-B-i |
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
