Thanks Jim. I automatically delete any post that contains merely a link with no discussion from the sender. But in this case the source cited was clearly of great importance, as you make clear below.
Carrol > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] [mailto:pen-l- > [email protected]] On Behalf Of Jim Devine > Sent: Wednesday, June 19, 2013 10:06 AM > To: Progressive Economics > Subject: Re: [Pen-l] JP Morgan to eurozone periphery: Get rid of your pinko, > anti-fascist constitutions « Austerityland > > from this link: > Leigh Phillips writes:it [the JP Morgan manifesto] is >> the first > public document Ive come across where the authors are frank that the > problem is not just a question of fiscal rectitude and boosting > competitiveness, but that there is also an excess of democracy in some > European countries that needs to be trimmed. [calling Samuel > Huntington!!] > > In the early days of the crisis, it was thought that these > national legacy problems were largely economic: over-levered > sovereigns, banks and households, internal real exchange rate > misalignments, and structural rigidities. But, over time it has become > clear that there are also national legacy problems of a political > nature. The constitutions and political settlements in the southern > periphery, put in place in the aftermath of the fall of fascism, have > a number of features which appear to be unsuited to further > integration in the region. When German politicians and policymakers > talk of a decade-long process of adjustment, they likely have in mind > the need for both economic and political reform. [Emphasis added] > > Yes, you read that right. Its in dry, banker-ese, but the authors > have basically said that the laws and constitutions of southern Europe > are a bit too lefty, a product of their having been written by > anti-fascists. These deep-seated political problems in the > periphery, say authors David Mackie, Malcolm Barr and friends, in > our view, need to change if EMU is going to function properly in the > long run. > > You think Im perhaps exaggerating a smidge? They go into more detail > in a section describing this journey of national political reform: > > The political systems in the periphery were established in the > aftermath of dictatorship, and were defined by that experience. > Constitutions tend to show a strong socialist influence, reflecting > the political strength that left-wing parties gained after the defeat > of fascism. > > All this is a load of historical horse-lasagna anyway. Italy for > example never went through a process akin to Germanys denazification, > and in Spain, the democratising king, Juan Carlos, played a major role > in the transition. Only in Greece and Portugal were there popular > socialist insurrections that resulted in or contributed to the > overthrow of the regimes: the Athens Polytechnic Uprising played a key > role in the Metapolitefsi or polity change (although much, much more > than the crushed student protests were involved here, including a > failed coup detat and the Turkish invasion of Cyprus), and in > Portugal a proper left-wing rebellion, the Revolução dos Cravos or > Carnation Revolution, brought down the Estado Novo regime. Although it > is true in the case of the latter three countries that their > late-in-the-day construction of welfare states in the 70s and 80s was > largely carried out by social democratic forces, the architects of the > Italian post-war state were the Christian Democrats, who dominated > government for 50 years. > > Political systems around the periphery typically display several > of the following features: weak executives; weak central states > relative to regions; constitutional protection of labour rights; > consensus building systems which foster political clientalism; and the > right to protest if unwelcome changes are made to the political status > quo. The shortcomings of this political legacy have been revealed by > the crisis. Countries around the periphery have only been partially > successful in producing fiscal and economic reform agendas, with > governments constrained by constitutions (Portugal), powerful regions > (Spain), and the rise of populist parties (Italy and Greece). > > Lets parse that paragraph, shall we? Weak executives means strong > legislatures. That should be a good thing, no? Let us remember that it > is the parliament that is sovereign. The executive in a democracy is > supposed to be the body that merely carries out the bidding of the > legislature. There is a reason why liberal democracy opted for > parliaments and not a system of elected kings. > > Oh, and we want strong central states. None of this local democracy > nonsense, please. > > JP Morgan, and presumably the EU powerbrokers they are ventriloquising > for, finally are being honest with us: they want to do away with > constitutional labour rights protections and the right to protest. And > there has to be some way to prevent people electing the wrong parties. > > Thankfully though, the authors note, There is a growing recognition > of the extent of this problem, both in the core and in the periphery. > Change is beginning to take place. > > In particular, they highlight how Spain has begun to address some of > the contradictions of the post-Franco settlement and rein in the > regions. > > But other than that, sadly, the process of de-democratization (okay > Im calling it that. They call it the process of political reform) > has barely begun. > > Well, the JP Morgan paper may have been written in English, but there > is a venerable Spanish phrase that that all good anti-fascists right > across the eurozone periphery know and is probably the simplest and > best response to such provocation: ¡No pasarán!<< > > > > On Wed, Jun 19, 2013 at 7:33 AM, Louis Proyect <[email protected]> wrote: > > http://blogs.euobserver.com/phillips/2013/06/07/jp-morgan-to-eurozone- > periphery-get-rid-of-your-pinko-anti-fascist-constitutions/ > > _______________________________________________ > > pen-l mailing list > > [email protected] > > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l > > > > -- > 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 _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
