[p2p-research] Haiti and debt

[Ryan Lanham]

On Sat, Jan 16, 2010 at 1:25 PM, Kevin Carson <
free.market.anticapitalist at gmail.com> wrote:

> On 1/14/10, Ryan Lanham <rlanham1963 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> As Chomsky has pointed out (re NAFTA among other things), when
> two-thirds of the bipartisan policy establishment agrees on a measure,
> and two-thirds of the American public is against it, guess which side
> wins?
>

The trouble with cancelling debts is that it is real money and someone must
pay.

In the case of the IDB, the debts are sold to banks the world over to back
savings, etc. They are AAA rated.  If you cancel Haiti's debt, someone must
pay for Duvalier's crimes.  Should it be a saver in Taiwan or Tokyo?  That
hardly seems fair.  The IDB is controlled by debtor nations.  If they carry
the brunt, then those nations get less credit.

The trouble is with debt default in general is that someone ultimately pays.
 The US and many of its states, not to mention the UK, Japan and other
industrial/non-commodity nations are in the same place.  Debt is killing
them.

On NAFTA, it was a huge benefit to Mexico and especially Canada.  It was
disasterous for US industry which will probably never recover.  US farmers
also took a hit. The real winners were Canada where it led to great wealth
creation.  Canada has 10% of the US population but 35% of the pharmaceutical
production, etc.   It is the largest oil exporter to the US.  NAFTA has been
a huge positive jolt to their economy.  Compare Vancouver and Seattle...20
years ago Seattle was much better.  Now it isn't close...Vancouver is much
better.

In Mexico, corruption took much of the money out of the system though
standards of living there definitely rose sharply.  In genral, free trade is
bad for developed nations and good for developing ones.   The irony of this
is that both sides thought the opposite.  If Africa could become a free
trade zone with Europe, Africa would take off.  That's why it will never
happen.  Strawberries grow quite well Mozambique.  So would cell phones.
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