Mike Lebowitz writes: > Take Julio's suggestions that maybe the reason that Cuban economists > place less emphasis upon direct worker management than I do is because there > are 'large upfront social costs involved in implementing and sustaining > generalized direct workers' management under current conditions in Cuba', > that the return on this huge investment will be low, that 'the future > benefits of direct cooperation' may be discounted heavily by workers (who > are 'more concerned with immediate solutions'), that maybe 'there are > hardened conditions, conditions that cannot be abolished overnight', etc. > The bottom line is maybe the focus on markets exists because, in Cuba's > situation, '"trade gains" are the easier ones to reap. The gains from direct > cooperation are much harder to come by.'
In this cost/benefit analysis, we should ask "who is making the decision?" It seems to be the Cuban economists -- or, more likely, the government officials they work for. Decisions about economic reform -- and the cost/benefit analysis -- are not being made by Cuban workers or communities in a democratic way, are they? Please correct me if I'm wrong. The fact that officials make the decisions means that the weighting of costs and benefits in order to add them up (allowing cost/benefit comparison) quite likely fits well with their own interests. As with most people, their vision of the "public interest" likely includes a strong admixture of self-interest. One of the factors that may be included in the C/B analysis is paternalism, that officials have to make the decisions because workers and communities are "more concerned with [only] immediate solutions." But officials make decisions to seek immediate solutions, too. Part of those immediate solutions might reflect the need to preserve officials' positions in society, along with the institutions in which they work. In the past, Fidel Castro has complained about "sociolismo," the clubbiness of many officials. (In addition, we should not presume that "immediate solutions" are always wrong.) Note that I am not saying that the officials and the economists are doing a bad job. It's quite possible that they're doing as good as job as possible given the situation which Cuba is in (the blockade, etc.) Imperialism likely implies that workers' democracy may be a luxury that Cubans cannot enjoy. Rather, my point is that the results of _any_ cost/benefit analysis depends on the perspective of the ones commissioning and doing the analysis. There is no objective C/B analysis. -- Jim Devine / "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- Karl, paraphrasing Dante. _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
