Thanks, Louis for the great analysis of Algeria. I hope there are other people who know about that country who can add as much. Louis mentions the distinction between Algeria and Cuba, with the latter being a case of a country that did break with capitalism. It is useful to clarify terminology: "state capitalism" refers to economic programs in places like Algeria, Mexico (in the past), perhaps Singapore, etc., in which a large chunk -- perhaps even the commanding heights -- of the means of production are owned and controlled by the state, but there is no break with capitalism as an economic system. There's no effort to permanently get rid of capitalist hierarchies in production, the reserve army of the unemployed, the market-orientation of production, profit-seeking, or private ownership of the remainder of the means of production. On the other hand, what I call "bureaucratic socialism" (BS) and others on the list have called "bureaucratic statism," etc., refers to the old USSR and similar economic systems (including Cuba). There, efforts were made to abolish capitalism root and branch, with the state ending up holding all the cards. However, the state was controlled by the CP bureaucracy, so we don't see "democratic socialism." I don't want to quibble about terminology (a major indoor sport on the left), but instead to emphasize the qualitative difference between places like Algeria and places like Cuba in terms of their economic structure. in pen-l solidarity, Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://clawww.lmu.edu/fall%201997/ECON/jdevine.html Econ. Dept., Loyola Marymount Univ. 7900 Loyola Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90045-8410 USA 310/338-2948 (daytime, during workweek); FAX: 310/338-1950 "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- K. Marx, paraphrasing Dante A.
