3979  Free market and tango

Date: Sat, 12 Nov 2005 04:55:10 +0000
From: Sergio Vandekier <sergiovandekier990@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Free market and tango

Jay says:

"IMO Politics as it affects the reception of American and European travelers
to BsAs is indeed entirely appropriate to the list."

BBC News reported "According to my friend, who has lived all his life in
Buenos Aires, every time Argentina achieves stability and economic success,
the Yankees have to spoil it all."

***The attitude and feelings of the average Argentine citizen with respect
to foreign tourists (IMO) is a positive one. I doubt very much that an
individual American visitor would be made a scapegoat for the foreign
policies of the Department of State.

Traditionally Argentina has had full employment to the point that the
economy was able to absorb a steady flow of immigrants. In the 90s. the idea
of the "Global economy" was adopted and this country became the "Model
pupil" of those policies for a while.

It was required to "open" its economy, which meant to sell all the companies
to foreign corporations. Those companies introduced new technology and
equipment that resulted in dismissing thousand of workers. The nation was
required to acquire a huge foreign debt "to fuel development".

As the national deficit increased the IMF (International Monetary Fund)
required " deeper changes to "modernize the economy"" -cuts in expenditures
- this meant to cut on all kind of social services, to decrease workers
benefits, to remove working laws that protected and prevented the dismissal
of workers without due compensation all this "to flexibilize the economy"
and to make the "Argentine Market more attractive to the foreign investor".

In the meantime the foreign investment and flow of loans caused a degree of
corruption never seen till then. The institutions started to decay, this
degree of decadence was perceived as being fueled by the policies of the
IMF.

Now the Model Pupil of the global economy, had sold all its companies, had a
huge foreign debt to service, a high degree of unemployment, high degree
of corruption and decay of institutions (the three powers and the police
became highly inefficient to control mounting poverty and crime rates.

Foreign companies pushed to make and sell more cars, (more congestion, more
pollution), they opened their huge Department Stores (Wall-Mart, Carrefour,
etc) causing the small entrepreneur to go out of business. The streets
previously busting with activity now showed empty stores all over, empty
buildings difficult to rent or to sell.

They started to charge for everything that had been free till then,
including for tap water.

They pushed tobacco and alcohol with all sort of advertisement. Now all of a
sudden we have unemployment, crime, lots of extreme poverty, some extreme
wealth like we had never seen before, school desertion, inefficiency at all
levels, corruption, prostitution, alcoholism and drug addiction.

All this achieved by 10 years of "Global Economy".

This happened to all the so called "Emergent Markets": Russia, Thailand,
Indonesia, Turkey, Malaysia, etc, they all one after the other suffered the
same consequences.

Argentina saw the worst economical crisis of its entire history (even worse
than in 1930) in the year 2001. This in turn brought an institutional
crisis of mayor proportions. Several governments came and went in a short
period.

In the middle of all this disaster the USA and the IMF insisted that
Argentina had to deepen the "modernization of its economy".

The present government said "enough" we are going to think about our people
first and later about the foreign corporations.

Its new economical measures caused a rapid recovery of the economy. Now Bush
and the IMF congratulate President Kirshner for his policies.

President Clinton had promoted, an area of free trade for the Americas with
relative success , he traveled to Argentina several times and was received
with respect and admiration.

He danced a tango with the daughter of the Argentine president and Madeleine
Albright caused sensation dancing tango till late in the night. Hillary
tried a few steps as well with Carlos Menem (the then president).

Mr. Bush obsessed with the Middle East, completely forgot about our
hemisphere.

So when all of a sudden, he comes down to Mar del Plata to push for the
"ALCA" a free market zone for the Americas from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego,
it should be understandable that a vast sector of the population wishes to
oppose such an idea.

The Argentine government would like to be part of such a project but it
requires that the subsidies paid to sectors of the American economy
(agriculture) be dismantled, so that trade could be fair.

Argentina at present is part of the third largest free market area
"Mercosur" . This area includes full members: Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay,
Paraguay and the recent addition of Venezuela; and associate members: Chile,
Bolivia, Peru. Observer Members : Mexico.

The EU (European Union) wishes to form an area of free market with Mercosur.

This is long enough, so I wish to enfasize the fact that foreign tourists
are needed, respected and welcome in Argentina, as they are perceived as
being an stimulus to the economy in general.

Best regards, Sergio