Re: Markets and democracy

Rick, to put it another way, when it collapses, they don't say "the
invisible hand" will rebuilt it or correct it, they ask/expect
government(s) to do so. From the depresssion to the recent east asian
crisis, i want to believe that if left to itself (without government(s)
making interventions at the time of crises), most aspects of capitalism
will have collapsed a while back. It is too convenient to say that it is "a
correction" when during the crises, actual inteventions are made.

Think of a vessel on a turbulent sea which its advocates tell us needs no
navigational instruments or any interference or intervention, then it gets
lost, they reach for the same instruments, still proclaiming "we don't need
instuments" then the vessel springs leaks, they ask for help, still
proclaiming, see, the invisible hand is "correcting" , then it loses power,
and they need a "bail out"... but still they proclaim this vessel can
continue wit the help of "the invisible hand"

For all their associations with libertarianism and freedom, will they allow
people, any group of people, to freely choose a socialist economy (whatever
conception or pemutation they may come up with) and rush to its rescue
(like our vessel above) without saying, see, socialism doesn't work when
the same or similar procedures are adopted to rescue capitalism repeatedly.


Ismail Lagardien
Office of the Chief Economist and
Senior Vice President of
Development Economics
The World Bank
Washington DC
USA

202 473 9603

Visit the World Bank Chief Economist page at:
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