theatlantic | As I wrote last week,
the profound impact of Piketty’s book is largely a result of the fact
that it was published at a time when growing economic inequality has
become an American preoccupation. Since the United States has proven so
adept at globalizing its anxieties and exporting its policy debates, the
Piketty phenomenon is extending to places where inequality has been
pervasive for so long that the public seemed inured to it and resigned
to passively accept it. Now, members of many of these societies are
actively debating how to bring inequality down.
In order for this discussion to be valuable, however, the problem
requires a more complete diagnosis. It is not accurate to assert that in
countries like Russia, Nigeria, Brazil, and China, the main driver of
economic inequality is a rate of return on capital that is larger than
the rate of economic growth. A more holistic explanation would need to
include the massive fortunes regularly created by corruption and all
kinds of illicit activities. In many countries, wealth grows more as a result of thievery and malfeasance than as a consequence of the returns on capital invested by elites (a factor that is surely at work too).
To channel Piketty, inequality will continue to rise in societies
where “c > h.” Here, “c” stands for the degree to which corrupt
politicians and public employees, along with their private-sector
cronies, break laws for personal gain, and “h” represents the degree to
which honest politicians and public employees uphold fair governing
practices. Corruption-fueled inequality flourishes in societies where
there are no incentives, rules, or institutions to hinder corruption.
And having honest people in government is good, but not enough. The
practices of pilfering public funds or selling government contracts to
the highest bidder must be seen as risky, routinely detected, and
systematically punished.
Most of the roughly 20 nations from which Piketty forms his analysis
classify as high-income countries and rank among the least-corrupt in
the world, according to Transparency International.
Unfortunately, most of humanity lives in countries where “c > h” and
dishonesty is the primary driver of inequality. This point has not
attracted as much attention as Piketty’s thesis. But it should.
7 comments:
Don't forget war, Major General Smedley Butler;"I spent 33 years
and four months in active military service and during that period I
spent most of my time as a high class muscle man for Big Business, for
Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer, a gangster for
capitalism. I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for
American oil interests in 1914. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent
place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenues in. I helped
in the raping of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit
of Wall Street. I helped purify Nicaragua for the International Banking
House of Brown Brothers in 1902-1912. I brought light to the Dominican
Republic for the American sugar interests in 1916. I helped make
Honduras right for the American fruit companies in 1903. In China in
1927 I helped see to it that Standard Oil went on its way unmolested.
Looking back on it, I might have given Al Capone a few hints. The best
he could do was to operate his racket in three districts. I operated on
three continents."http://www.barefootsworld.net/warisaracket.html
Brother CNu:
As I live and analyze the world around me - IT IS BECOMING CLEAR that THEFT of money and land from "a people" comes as a consequence of greater THEFT of items that are of GREATER VALUE:
1) Theft Of Their CONSCIOUSNESS As An Individual/Family/Community
2) Theft Of The COMPETENCIES - Their Belief That Their PURPOSE Is To Serve Their Virtual Group, Learning And Developing Themselves So That They Can Be LOAD BEARING PILLARS To Lift Up The Group To Their Desired Standard Of Living
3) Consumerism's THEFT Of Their Attention - Focusing Them Upon Material And Political Satisfaction Of Their WANTS And LUSTS - While STEALING From Them Their Propensity To Order Themselves, Via Their Institutions To MANIFEST These Desired Ends
4) THEFT Of Their CONGREGATIONALLY UPWARD THRUST - Where The Product Of Their "Struggle Motion" Is Diverted For The Uplift Of Some Entity - Other Than THEIR OWN.
Heaven Knows - the Chinese are now supplying more of the "American Consumer Dreams" than ever before. (As well as the Indian women who shave their heads to fulfill the fantasies of American women)
A little news from the home front: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/05/29/1302820/-Someone-finally-polled-the-1-And-it-s-not-pretty
Capitalism was phased out decades ago. This is Freudian Consumerism.
Did John Maynard Keynes ever see a television commercial?
Vic, you sure about this source? http://truth-about-kos.blogspot.com/2007/08/indictment-of-markos-ca-moulitsas-ziga.html
I figured the poll was legitimate because it backs up a lot of what we're seeing from the elites. Kos is a character. Some of the complaints I've seen about him make sense in light of your link.
“In many countries, wealth grows more as a result of thievery and malfeasance than as a consequence of the returns on capital invested by elites.” The economy of the United States of America is constructed on a foundation of thievery--the theft of Indigenous Peoples land and the theft of Afrikan labor. Four of the top five richest presidents of the US were slaveowners. This is the basis for much of today’s inequality.
http://ti.me/1bISByl
“Here, ‘c’ stands for the degree to which corrupt politicians and public employees, along with their private-sector cronies, break laws for personal gain…” The same thing happens when the private-sector and their political/public employee cronies either make laws for their personal gain, or fail to enforce laws for their personal gain.
https://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/01/08-0
http://onforb.es/SjOiAs
Then there is the enormous wealth generated when corrupt politicians launch wars as Splinter pointed out.
http://bit.ly/1kQPFBt
Corruption obviously pays, and not just in Russia, Nigeria, Brazil, and China.
http://bit.ly/1hiUKUc
Post a Comment