mercantilism
At 2003-07-15 21:04 -0700, Ian wrote: Right but the dictionary entry is saying 1873. I'm reading a review of Heckscher's book [it's Tuesday and I don't have a tv :-)] and I'm asking in an historiographical and nominalist sense... The complete Oxford English Dictionary which I have on disc, gives as its earliest citation 1873 P Fitzgerald, Dumas The picture of 'literary mercantilism', described by this great writer [Balzac], shows that Dumas had only borrowed his system from journalism and social life. The other citations are from a little later. My guess is that the term was loosely used in economic affairs in the earlier part of the 19th century, and the citation above shows a metaphorical borrowing into literaray criticism of a business term. I guess towards the end of the 19th century mercantilism was being formulated as a concept to be attacked by the advocates of free trade. OED quotes the Contemporary Review in 1881 asking critically Is it possible that merchants, bankers, should all be led astray by the sophism of 'mercantilism'? Hence getting into the 1885 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britanica, with the more subtle historiographical comment, It has been justly observed that there are in him [Hume] several traces of a refined mercantilism. So my expensive OED on disc cannot illuminate the earlier reference Carrol found from OED online of 1838 but Google links The New Moral World to Robert Owen, and records that Engels contributed several articles to it. Microfilm editions of this are available at Sheffield University. I suspect that the historiography would have to search for mercantilisme in French sources. My recollection is that the terms is used in connection with Colbert's vigorous policies under Louis XIV for building a sort of state national capitalism. Google searches for mercantilism and Louis XIV readily produce standard student essays on this theme. English sources would perhaps not wish to give much attention to the economic policies that built France, but even if Colbert and his contemporaries did not use the term mercantilism I think it looks incontrovertible that he was following a definite policy, (which might still have some interest today in resisting the self-reinforcing domination of free trade). Someone would have to check French historiography. Chris Burford London
Death of British WMD expert
The sensational death of Dr David Kelly is part of the accelerating fall-out from the Iraq war. It seems almost certainly stress-related and very possibly suicide. The results of a post-mortem have not been announced yet, but may be later today. http://politics.guardian.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12956,1001435,00.html Chris Burford London
Rich and Poor in New Zealand today, or why the wealthy may have to put up bigger fences in the future
(note: 1 NZ dollar = 0.57 US dollar) Down and out on the Poor List New Zealand Herald, 19.07.2003 By TIM WATKIN The annual parade of elite wealth hit the streets yesterday as the business weekly National Business Review published its latest list of the country's wealthiest 183 individuals and families. With the list came the usual homilies, explicit and implied - that these people have succeeded in the eyes of society, should be a source of inspiration for the rest of us, and should be celebrated. Many, certainly, are creating jobs, products and national income to the benefit of us all. Each has shown financial acumen, and such lists provide some sort of picture of just what that acumen has gained them. We are left with the impression of increasing prosperity, as the NBR's estimation of the list's total net worth has risen from $5.3 billion in 1986 to $18.358 billion this year. As the wealth of those on the Rich List grows - we had our first individual billionaire in Graeme Hart last year, which was interpreted as a significant step for the nation as a whole - it's easy to forget just how many New Zealanders never get to stand on the same street as the wealth parade, let alone join the procession. At best, they hear the distant strains from the band. Even the middle classes are struggling to keep up; the poorest are nowhere to be seen. In offices tucked between panelbeater yards and the motorway in South Auckland, staff at the Manukau branch of the Salvation Army's Community and Family Services Centre are reading a different report. Director Gerry Walker and service centre manager Ross Richards have the latest quarterly Poverty Indicator Project report from the Council of Christian Social Services, and there's not a lot to celebrate in it. This is New Zealand's Poor List, and while there are no names here, the reality it's describing is grim and extends far beyond 100 people. It takes a lot to walk through our doors, because you're subconsciously saying, 'I've failed and I'm at the bottom', says Walker. And we get 5000 people a year. That's people, most of them with a family, so multiply that by three or four at least and then you're starting to talk about the numbers we're dealing with. Where New Zealand's median household income is $713 each week, for the families who came to the Sallies' Manukau foodbank in the first quarter of this year it was $300 - less than half the national median and $20 down on last year. Take away housing costs, and all these folk had left in their hands each week to pay for their food, power, clothing, everything, was $161. That's $7 less than last year. At the other end of the scale, Craig Norgate, the highest-paid salary-earner before he was dumped from Fonterra last month, earned $38,000 a week last year. And he wouldn't have been close to making the Rich List. To manage on what they do is remarkable. It's amazing they do as well as they do, says Richards. Most find a way of managing, until a sudden cost appears. If the washing machine breaks down, for example, there's never any money left to repair it. So they have to go into debt. They go to Winz to get a debt and then they just have to pay that back. If repayments are set at $10 a week, their $161 can become $151 for months. Even that can be managed. But what if the car or the fridge breaks down at the same time? They're sunk, Richards continues. I saw a lady the other day, hadn't had a fridge for six months. It broke down and she couldn't afford to repair it. When that happens they have to go down to the dairy all the time and groceries cost nearly double what they'd cost at the supermarket. Once things start going badly it's a real downward spiral, and that's where we pick them up and try to get them back on to some sort of footing. Susan St John, senior lecturer in economics at the University of Auckland and a member of the Child Poverty Action Group, has an economist's word for what Richards is seeing: cumulative. Everyday costs increase and their incomes - be they from benefits or casual labour - aren't growing at the same rate. So the degree of poverty is getting worse. Take housing costs. Forget home ownership - that's so far above those on the Poor List as to be farcical. Consider the impact of the booming rental market. Inflation-adjusted benefits and the accommodation supplement are not keeping up. The very growth being celebrated by those owning investment properties is forcing others on to the street. That kind of economic growth makes their participation in society even less possible, says St John. The same goes for so many everyday costs, from groceries to movie tickets, taking the social interaction many of us take for granted out of reach. What concerns St John most is that for tens, if not hundreds of thousands, of New Zealanders, the music from the wealth parade is getting further away. Statistics on elite wealth in this country are severely limited. We know that the wealthiest 10
New nuances in the bourgeois approach to women's liberation: prostitution is not nice
NZ brothel law condemned at UN 19.07.2003 By HELEN TUNNAH, deputy political editor Members of a key women's committee at the United Nations have asked the New Zealand Government to overturn the law to decriminalise prostitution. Hungarian Kristina Morval told the UN committee prostitution treated women like pornography. It was humiliating and oppressive, she said in New York this week. French delegate Francoise Gaspard asked if the laws would help women get out of the sex trade or do anything to stop people trafficking. The criticism came as the special 23-nation committee was hearing the Government's report about how New Zealand is meeting its obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Just three weeks ago politicians voted 60-59, with Muslim MP Dr Ashraf Choudhary abstaining, to decriminalise prostitution, and allow brothel-keeping and pimping. The measure divided women's rights advocates here, was opposed by religious bodies but was welcomed by groups such as the Prostitutes Collective. It was not a Government law, but was sponsored by Labour MP Tim Barnett through a member's bill. Women's Affairs Minister Ruth Dyson presented the report to the UN committee and was told New Zealand should avoid becoming complacent just because it has women as Prime Minister and Governor-General. The UN committee's formal report on the meeting said experts questioned the new prostitution laws, and listed their concerns. Ms Morval, one of 23 men and women on the committee, wanted the Government to reconsider the laws. She said New Zealand considered pornography harmful because it created inaccurate stereotypes and encouraged inappropriate behaviour towards women. With all due respect, was that not an outline of what the Government had done to women's equality by legalising prostitution, she said. Regardless of whether it was a matter of free choice, prostitution was oppressive and humiliating, for it was about men paying money to use women as less than human beings. Ms Gaspard asked if prostitution was now considered a profession just like any other in New Zealand. Ms Dyson told the committee the new law allowed for a review of the policy in five years. She said the Government would monitor closely how the new laws worked. She faced questioning over the impact of health reforms and about the ongoing problems with the gender pay gap between men and women. There was also concern about the wellbeing of migrant, Maori and Pacific women, and the high suicide rate of young women. New Zealand signed up to the UN convention in 1985, and is one of 174 signatories. It is touted as a bill of rights for women and requires nations to meet 16 articles outlawing discrimination. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3513506thesection=newst hesubsection=general
Re: Death of British WMD expert
BBC 13:11 GMT 14:11 UK Police have confirmed a body found in Oxfordshire woodland is Dr David Kelly, as Tony Blair comes under intense pressure over his death. A spokesman said a post-mortem revealed the death was caused by a cut to the left wrist and a knife was found nearby, along with a packet of pain killers.
Re: Death of British WMD expert
suicide? or murder? calling Miss Marple! Jim -Original Message- From: Chris Burford [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sat 7/19/2003 6:38 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: Subject: Re: [PEN-L] Death of British WMD expert BBC 13:11 GMT 14:11 UK Police have confirmed a body found in Oxfordshire woodland is Dr David Kelly, as Tony Blair comes under intense pressure over his death. A spokesman said a post-mortem revealed the death was caused by a cut to the left wrist and a knife was found nearby, along with a packet of pain killers.
Re: Death of British WMD expert
Probably some of both, I would say - although in order to understand this, one would need to do an investigation beyond a legal verdict of homicide and suicide. It's dreadful, regrettable news, but even so, it never ceases to amaze me how, in bourgeois society, a social and political issue (in this case a bloody, illegal war against Iraq against a background of genocide in that country) is always reduced and individualised to a focus on just one personality, making any serious and comprehensible political discussion difficult. It's like that Beatles song, where paternalistic petit-bourgeois incomprehension is voiced in the sentiment She's leaving home, what did we do what was wrong, we didn't know it was wrong, that's what comes to mind. In this case, it's like a postmodernist nightmare. It's one thing to read a crime novel (see Ernest Mandel, Delightful Murder: A Social History of the Crime Story, Pluto Press, or Eric Hobsbawm, Bandits, The New Press), it's another thing when it's reality. Sometimes I think that in the epoch of television, where we have things like Reality TV and war hoaxes, the distinction between reality and fiction has become blurred to the extent that reality presented as fiction, and fiction presented as reality, has become acceptable, provided that, in the judgement of media experts, Johnny citizen is able to understand the difference. And the question arises, can Johnny citizen understand the difference ? What truth criteria should be applied to reveal reality as it really is ? It's not an easy question. J. - Original Message - From: Devine, James [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Saturday, July 19, 2003 4:19 PM Subject: Re: [PEN-L] Death of British WMD expert suicide? or murder? calling Miss Marple! Jim -Original Message- From: Chris Burford [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sat 7/19/2003 6:38 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cc: Subject: Re: [PEN-L] Death of British WMD expert BBC 13:11 GMT 14:11 UK Police have confirmed a body found in Oxfordshire woodland is Dr David Kelly, as Tony Blair comes under intense pressure over his death. A spokesman said a post-mortem revealed the death was caused by a cut to the left wrist and a knife was found nearby, along with a packet of pain killers.
Innovation (was Of Coase)
Carrol Cox wrote: Why this lust for innovation? Most innovations are either (1) destructive or (2) desperate attempts to compensate for the destruction brought by prior innovations. within the engineering world that i am familiar with, the lust for innovation is one of several things: 1.) the owners/execs of a enterprise want to take their capital and find new areas to invest in (because they are not making so much anymore in the areas they are already invested in). 2.) the owner/exec sees another company making inroads in a new area. this other company is either a direct competitor via its existing products or will be by its new products. therefore the owners/exec feel the need to fight strategically via innovation. 3.) the owner/exec wants to make a show of innovation to the stockholders as a way of gaining confidence in management decisions or control. why, we just started a line of yada yada yada which has the potential to earn us yada yada yada. so they throw some money at, or raise some money for, a new line. the fourth item is so infrequent in the business world today, its almost a sin to include in the same list with the other three. 4.) someone has a good idea and works their ass off to develop it. it perhaps has never been done before and even the company owners/execs are reluctant to back it. there was an engineer at Honda who had an idea for vastly increasing overall fuel economy using dual sets of valves. as i recall, he basically worked it out w/o much management help. in other words, most of the need for innovation in business is really a disguise for figuring out how to keep alive any particular company and its current (possible sickly) business plan and much much much less to do with creatively solving the needs of homo sapiens. regarding Carrol's insistence that capitalism MUST innovate is an unacceptable answer: rather, it DOES innovate when the owner(s)/execs need to achieve something in the business planning end of things which has nothing to do w/ classical innovation a la freedom and human creativity. and it DOES NOT innovate when said owners have only for the moment to sit quietly atop their profit mechanisms. for example, there are many old-style companies where the owners are content with the profits they make even if their engineers would love nothing better BUT TO INNOVATE in related areas. i can't count the number of engineers i know who went to work for companies excited about their innovative environment, only to realize later that this environment was just a front for the owners/execs to do what they had to do to stay in business. the number of innovative projects which are dropped, thereby wasting said working engineers time (and aspirations), has got to be staggering. as is the amount of needless competition between engineers in competing companies (secrecy, duplication, patents shmatents, etc): there is also destructive competition within innovation. as just ONE example, an engineer friend of mine who worked for many years at Xerox tells me that the split between development of laser printers and (the later innovation of) ink-jet printers was destructive from the point of view of what COULD be achieved within a different social/production structure. (i know, blueprints of the future). in terms of destructiveness: innovations in biology (DDT), physics-engineering-materials (weapons), etc. and we now have an explicit new ideology for innovation which is to first innovate for destructiveness (military programs) followed by using the cool stuff for human needs. they call 'em spinoffs. under the category perhaps of wastefulness but masquerading as innovation: the product/creation of new NEEDS simply for the sake of creating MARKETS for COMMODITIES. i am not arguing __against__, for example, cell phones (from what i understand they are hugely popular in Third World countries), but am arguing that the owners/exec of the electronics firms in question had business needs to solve and couldn't care less about Third World needs -- i feel stupid even having to state that! -- or innovation. if someone came along at the same time and developed, say, widget XXX with the same projected market growth, they might have chosen widget XXX instead. or if someone came along and said, oh lets do this marketing drive for existing product WWW instead of putting money into new products (err, innovations) and we'll add this much market share, you could kiss cell phones goodbye. and we all know the stories of owners/execs at Company ZZ-Bot who nixed widget YYY at one time, only for it to be acceptable to Company ZZ-Top later on and it made them millions. does Intel care about innovation??? http://www.intel.com/labs/features/cn02031.htm Integration -- the Key Innovation In creating the wireless-Internet-on-a-chip technology, Intel engineers overcame complexities associated with separate optimization paths for communications and
Cause for Alarm
Victim of a trade recession, engineer Nick Marlow has reached the end of his rope. When he finally gets a job offer from the Spartacus Machine Tool Company to take charge of their branch office in Milan, he is relieved to be working once again. Without any strong convictions about politics in general or fascism in particular, he seems--like all Eric Ambler heroes--an unlikely candidate for intrigue. But in short order the hero of the newly reissued Cause for Alarm finds himself shoulder to shoulder with a Soviet spy in a high risk bid to stave off a new World War. After arriving in Milan, he is visited by a Nazi agent, a retired General named Vagas, who is described as a tall, heavy man with sleek, thinning grey hair, a brown, puffy complexion and thick, tight lips. Fixed firmly in the flesh around his left eye was a rimless monocle without a cord to it. He wore a thick and expensive-looking black ulster and carried a dark-blue slouch hat. In his other hand he held a malacca stick. After Vagas leaves his office, Marlow is left wondering why General Vagas thought it necessary to carry a sword-stick. Of course, in this genre, that is an invitation to turn the page to the next chapter to find out why. We discover that Vagas is anxious to find out the status of Italian armaments. Since the Spartacus corporation is an important supplier of machinery used to turn out artillery shells, Marlow has knowledge that is worth a lot to the Nazis. In exchange for delivering information about his own company's involvement and the status of the Italian armament clients he visits regularly, he will be paid handsomely. Even though the Germans and the Italians are in an alliance, they don't quite trust each other. Like Mafia gangsters who periodically form syndicates, they always have to look over their shoulder to see if a knife is about to be plunged into their back by a partner. As it turns out, the affinity with the Mafia is not just metaphorical. We learn that a branch of the fascist secret police has murdered Marlow's predecessor after they find out that he too had been funneling information to Vagas. Called the Organization for the Repression of Anti-Fascism, or OVRA, it is the Italian counterpart of the Gestapo. As a peculiarly Italian wrinkle on repression, it is composed largely of ex-Mafia gangsters. As is the case with many of the historical allusions in an Ambler novel, this organization actually existed. Zaleshoff, the Soviet agent who is trying to recruit the engineer to a sting operation that will pit the Nazis against their Italian allies, explains the origins to Marlow: The word 'Ovra,' Mr. Marlow, is formed by the initial letters of four Italian wordsOrganizzazione Vigilanza Repressione Anti-fascismo, vigilant organisation for the repression of anti-fascism. In other words, Mr. Marlow, secret police; the Italian counterpart of the Nazi Gestapo. Its members are as nice a bunch of boys as you could wish to meet. You've heard of the Mafia, the Sicilian secret terrorist society? Well, those birds were the inventors of protection racketeering. Anyone who didn't or couldn't pay was beaten up or shot. In the province of Palermo alone they bumped off nearly two thousand in one year. Chicago was a kiddies' play-pen compared with it. But in nineteen-twenty-three, the Fascisti had an idea. They smashed the Mafia. It took them some time, but they did it. It was, they claimed, one of the blessings of Fascismo. But, like some other Fascist blessings, it was mixed. Some of the Mafia hoodlums emigrated to the United States and took their trade with them, which was very nice for the Italians but not so good for the American public. The big majority of the boys, however, were recruited by the Ovra, drafted to different parts of the country, so that they couldn't get organised again, and set to work on behalf of the Government. That wasn't so good for the Italian public. The Ovra's first big job was to liquidate the opposition: the Liberals and the Socialists. That was in nineteen-twenty-four. They did a swell job. The murder of the opposition leader, Matteotti, a few hours before he was due to produce documentary evidence in support of a speech indicting the Fascist Government, was an early success. But it was only a beginning. These were the holy fathers of American gangsterism and they knew their stuff. Although the exciting plot and vivid characterization suffice to make Cause For Alarm a literary treat for any reader jaded by the typical contemporary navel-gazing postmodernist fare, the relationship between Marlow and Zaleshoff should be of special interest to leftists. (Although they represent themselves as Americans, Marlow--and the reader--will immediately recognize the Zaleshoffs as Soviet operatives.) It expresses in literary form the aspirations of the popular front in the west, which was seeking to humanize the Soviet Union. Andreas Zaleshoff and his sister Tamara are deeply sympathetic characters. Although they
Re: Innovation (was Of Coase)
Another material basis might be, where the employment contracts of higher executives are based, in part or as a whole, on performance, and this performance may be evaluated according to the ability of the executive to solve new problems which arise in the conduct of business. Therefore, the executive might be placed in a situation of, innovate or lose your pay and later your job. What was it that Marx said about piece wages again ? J.
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Re: Innovation (was Of Coase)
Les is correct about innovation. Most studies indicate that innovation is much more rapid in depression conditions. During booms, firms have less pressure to innovate. I don't have time to elaborate, since I am under deadline to finish the index for my new book. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Innovation (was Of Coase)
i forgot one category of innovation lust: 3a.) the sales/marketing departments of a company decide it's current product line is old in the tooth and sales people are requesting something they can go out and sell more enthusiastically. Some years ago someone in the company said why don't we make XXX. So sales/marketing goes to owners/execs and ask for a new line of XXZ (a little different from original idea). management plays what if, how much games. and then calls in engineering and tells them to suspend work on that problem we were all worried about last year and get cracking on new product XXZ. you have 9 months to produce a prototype that we can demonstrate at the Hanover Fair, and you must be in production 3 months after sales does its annual trade fair in Phoenix. the engineer who originally suggested XXX specified it would take 2 years to complete development, now they are given one year to get to market. les schaffer
In Support of the NOAC's Call for a Unified Anti-War Action in the Fall
I sent the following joint statement to the United for Peace and Justice Steering Committee Staff (http://www.unitedforpeace.org/) International ANSWER organizers (http://www.internationalanswer.org/), in support of the Northeast Ohio Anti-War Coalition's call for a Unified Anti-War Action in the Fall. Please encourage organizations in which you are involved to issue a public statement in support of the NOAC's call and send it to the UFPJ SC Staff and ANSWER organizers. Dear Northeast Ohio Anti-War Coalition organizers, the UFPJ Steering Committee and Staff, International ANSWER organizers: At 7:56 AM -0400 7/19/03, Diane S Schurr wrote: Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003 07:56:02 -0400 From: Diane S Schurr [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [ufpj-disc] Follow up on the call for a Unified Anti-War action in the Fall X-Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Greetings: We in NOAC appreciate your posting on the UFPJ list serve NOAC's Call for Unity of the U.S. Anti-War Movement. We also appreciate the action taken earlier by UFPJ at your June conference establishing a liaison committee to work with other peace groups to promote unity and cooperation in the movement. We are writing you now to urge that you accept ANSWER's invitation to cosponsor the October 25 demonstration as stated in their communication to you: We would propose that there be an equal sharing of responsibility for logistics and mobilization and for the creation of the program on the day of the demonstration. It seems to us that in the face of the brutal and repressive U.S. occupation of Iraq, we all have a responsibility to the people there, to the GIs who want to come home, and to the international anti-war movement to unite all forces for the largest possible turnout on October 25 to demand an end to the occupation and for U.S. troops to be brought home now. All other factors are, relatively speaking, subordinate to this overriding responsibility. NOAC has endorsed the October 25 action and is working hard to build it. As you know, a delegate from our coalition attended the UFPJ conference in June to urge unity for a fall demonstration. We renew that appeal now in relation to the planned October 25 demonstration. The movement throughout the world, which seeks to curb U.S. colonial and expansionist plans, will warmly welcome the united sponsorship of both major coalitions for October 25. If unity fails, people who are the victims of those colonial and expansionist plans, especially the Iraqis, will not understand why. We hope that you will poll the UFPJ steering committee expeditiously for approval of the unity proposal. The sooner the two coalitions come together on a coequal basis to plan and organize October 25, the better for both and for the cause of peace on a worldwide basis. In solidarity, Northeast Ohio Anti-War Coalition (NOAC) cc: ANSWER USLAW For Mother Earth (North-American Coordination Team) and the Student International Forum at the Ohio State University support the Northeast Ohio Anti-War Coalition's call for a unified action on October 25, 2003 and seek United for Peace and Justice's prompt endorsement of it. The Student International Forum will hold an educational event highlighting Palestinian refugees' plight and the refugees' Right of Return on Thursday, September 25, 2003, in solidarity with the Al-Awda/ANSWER/UK Stop the War Coalition's International Days of Action against the Occupation and Empire, and join the October 25, 2003 action to Bring the Troops Home Now End the Occupation of Iraq. The Ohio State University's Committee for Justice in Palestine will hold an action against the Israeli occupation on Friday, September 26, 2003, to be part of the Al-Awda/ANSWER/UK Stop the War Coalition's International Days of Action, and join the October 25, 2003 action. On July 19, 20, 21, Solidarity (Columbus), the Central Ohio Peace Network (of which Columbus Campaign for Arms Control is a part), and the Central Ohioans for Peace will have their respective meetings, and we will work to encourage them to officially support the Northeast Ohio Anti-War Coalition's call for a unified action and endorse the October 25, 2003 action. We ask all organizers and activists to do the same. Let's work to overcome our respective weaknesses, gather all our strengths, unite all who can be united, and remobilize our communities for joint actions. Yoshie Furuhashi, Columbus Campaign for Arms Control/Committee for Justice in Palestine/Solidarity/Student International Forum Mark D. Stansbery, For Mother Earth/Columbus Campaign for Arms Control/The Community Organizing Center [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED], 614-252-9255 -- Yoshie * Calendars of Events in Columbus: http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html, http://www.freepress.org/calendar.php, http://www.cpanews.org/ * Student International Forum: http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/ * Committee for
Bending to Protests, Hong Kong Leader Will Revisit Security Bill
NYTimes.com Bending to Protests, Hong Kong Leader Will Revisit Security Bill July 18, 2003 By KEITH BRADSHER HONG KONG, July 17 - Retreating further in response to street protests, Hong Kong's leader announced this evening that he would begin another round of public consultation over controversial internal-security legislation, but stopped short of saying he would accept changes to it. The new round of consultations could push a final vote on the bill well into the autumn and possibly much later, allowing tempers to cool after three large rallies since the start of July. A march on July 1 drew a half-million protesters and prompted Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong's chief executive, to tone down the bill and announce, on July 7, that he would defer legislative review for at least a few days. Mr. Tung's announcement this evening followed the resignation on Wednesday night of two top officials, Regina Ip, the secretary of security, and Antony Leung, the financial secretary, a setback for Beijing because the two had the reputation of enjoying particularly close ties to top Communist officials. Mr. Tung said today that he was determined not to step down himself. If I say I'm leaving my post, I believe that's irresponsible and will bring more uncertainties, he said. For that reason, I must stay firm in my post. Mr. Tung plans to fly to Beijing on Saturday for talks with China's rulers. His stance today would make it more difficult for Beijing to remove him without looking as though it is meddling in the politics of Hong Kong and backing down in the face of public pressures here. Emily Lau, a member of the Legislative Council and the leader of the Frontier, a pro-democracy political party, said she wanted Mr. Tung to resign but did not want Beijing to become involved in Hong Kong's affairs. We are not inviting Beijing to sack him, we do not want Beijing to interfere, she said. A weak economy is further undermining Mr. Tung's efforts to hold on to his job. Mr. Tung discussed his plans at a news conference just an hour after the government announced that unemployment, already a record at 8.3 percent, had risen further to 8.6 percent for the period from April through June, mainly because of SARS. The protest on July 1 was mainly about the internal-security legislation, which would have set long prison sentences for offenses like sedition or even the handling of documents that the government deemed seditious. But after Mr. Tung said on July 7 that he would delay the security bill for at least a few days, speakers at rallies on July 9 and last Sunday called mainly for greater democracy. Mr. Tung said this evening that he would allow ample time for public discussion of constitutional reforms over the next several years. But he declined to answer three separate questions about whether he felt that the next chief executive should be chosen by popular vote. An 800-member committee dominated by Beijing appointed Mr. Tung in 1997 and reappointed him to another five-year term last year. Ma Lik, the secretary general of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, the largest of the pro-government and pro-Beijing political parties, said he thought Mr. Tung had done enough to address public concerns. Mr. Ma, an outspoken backer of the security legislation, endorsed Mr. Tung's decision to call for further consultation of the public, saying, To win their support is more important than to have a timetable to legislate.
New Loan Sharks Making Big profits By Preying on Low-Income Americans
A special announcement for Facing South readers: July 2003 NEW LOAN SHARKS MAKING BIG PROFITS BY PREYING ON LOW-INCOME AMERICANS New issue of Southern Exposure looks into the burgeoning poverty industry of subprime home lenders, payday check-cashers and other financial institutions that take advantage of the economically vulnerable DURHAM, N.C. Subprime home lenders, payday check-cashers, pawnshops, and other financial businesses that target consumers made vulnerable by discrimination and financial need are no longer fringe banking * they are one of the fastest growing and most profitable sectors of Wall Street. That's the conclusion of a special issue of Southern Exposure released this week. The dramatic rise of predatory finance institutions doesn't make front-page news, but it's hitting millions of ordinary people where it hurts most, in the pocketbook, says Gary Ashwill, Southern Exposure managing editor. This issue of Southern Exposure is one of the most comprehensive looks at how the new loan sharks gouge consumers * and how they get away with it. The special edition, guest-edited by acclaimed journalist Michael Hudson, features four investigations into the fast-growing poverty industry: *** Banking on Misery: Citigroup, Wall Street, and the Fleecing of the South, by Michael Hudson, which shows how millions have been ensnared by subprime home lenders who target the neediest, most vulnerable consumers. Hudson uncovers the shady and exploitative practices at the heart of one of Citigroup's most lucrative affiliates, CitiFinancial. *** Perpetual Debt, Predatory Plastic, by Dr. Robert Manning, author of Credit Card Nation, reveals how credit card companies lock borrowers in a cycle of debt through exorbitant late fees and over-limit penalties. *** From Pawnshops to 'Financial Supermarkets', by Mary Kane, a look at how fringe bankingpayday lenders, check cashers, and pawnshopshave gained a foothold in the mainstream. *** Simple Courtesy, by Taylor Loyal, an investigation into how banks increasingly use overdraft fees to boost profits at customers' expense. The special issue also features Seven Signs of Predatory Lending, and other tools for consumers on how to know when they're being targeted by predatory lenders. The cover section ends with several inspiring stories of grassroots activists who have challenged the new loan sharks to win improvements for consumers. According to Hudson, the marginal banking industry has expanded dramatically in the past decade. Subprime mortgage lending, for example, has grown more than 500 percent in just a few years, from $34 billion in 1994 to $213 billion in 2002. Payday lendersstorefront operations that offer small loans at interest rates as high as 400 percenthave grown from an uncounted scattering in the mid-1990s to a 25,000-strong multitude today. Some of corporate America's biggest names, including Citigroup, through its subsidiary CitiFinancial, a subprime mortgage lender, have pushed their way into the fringe market, using their capital and clout to sustain investor enthusiasm and legal sanction for unfair and unsavory practices. They've found a rich market in the South, where economic inequality, racial discrimination, weak consumer laws, and pliable regulators create a ripe atmosphere for abuse. The summer 2003 edition of Southern Exposure also includes regular features about people and events in the South, including: *** Towers of Power, a look at the impact of the Federal Communications Commission's new rules on media ownership for African-American broadcasters; *** Nina Simone: Freedom Singer, music and social critic Dave Marsh's tribute to the talent and political commitment of the late artist; *** Subversive Southerner, a review of Catherine Fosl's landmark book about legendary Southern activist Anne Braden. Southern Exposure, now in its 30th year, is published by the nonprofit Institute for Southern Studies. Southern Exposure's 1993 investigation into the newly-emerging predatory lending industry, Poverty, Inc., was a finalist for the National Magazine Award and winner of the John Hancock Award for Business Journalism. Copies of the summer 2003 issue are available for $5 at www.southernstudies.org or by writing to Southern Exposure, P.O. Box 531, Durham, NC 277702. Yearly subscriptions are $21.
Re: New Loan Sharks Making Big profits By Preying on Low-Income Americans
Come on Robert Manning, chime in here and tell us more. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
NYTimes.com Article: U.S. May Be Forced to Go Back to U.N. for Iraq Mandate
This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by [EMAIL PROTECTED] / advertisement ---\ Explore more of Starbucks at Starbucks.com. http://www.starbucks.com/default.asp?ci=1015 \--/ U.S. May Be Forced to Go Back to U.N. for Iraq Mandate July 19, 2003 By CHRISTOPHER MARQUIS The Bush administration is being forced to turn to the U.N. because other nations are refusing to contribute troops or cash without U.N. approval. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/19/international/worldspecial/19DIPL.html?ex=1059642763ei=1en=ed7e594cdf3b6767 - Get Home Delivery of The New York Times Newspaper. Imagine reading The New York Times any time anywhere you like! Leisurely catch up on events expand your horizons. Enjoy now for 50% off Home Delivery! Click here: http://www.nytimes.com/ads/nytcirc/index.html HOW TO ADVERTISE - For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company
the fed and the yuan
Hi, What do people make of the nearly unanimous call for China to revalue the yuan and/or go off the dollar peg? Industrialists, US senators and now Alan Greenspan and EU officials have jumped on the bandwagon. Cheers, Jonathan 2003-07-16 Financial Times http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStoryc=StoryFTcid=1057562469743http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStoryc=StoryFTcid=1057562469743 by Alan Beattie and Christopher Swann Alan Greenspan, chairman of the US Federal Reserve, on Wednesday warned that the Chinese authorities could not continue to peg their currency without endangering their domestic economy. The comments, in front of a congressional committee, add to a chorus of concern among policymakers about China's insistence on fixing the renminbi against the dollar. Mr Greenspan suggested that the renminbi would have to be allowed to float, saying the current campaign of intervention to support it was unsustainable. It has required them to. . . be very heavy purchasers of US dollar-denominated assets, Mr Greenspan said. At some point they will no longer be able to do that, because it will create an inability of their monetary system to function well. Asked directly if the authorities should let the renminbi float, Mr Greenspan said: I think that from an economic point of view, it's going to be increasingly evident that that is what is going to have to happen if the existing cost structures around the world remain as they are. And I think the Chinese are sufficiently sophisticated to understand that. Inflows of hot money into China have recently forced the central bank to buy an average of $600m a day to keep the currency steady against the dollar. This pushed China's foreign exchange reserves above $340bn by the end of June from $316bn at the end of March. The surge is viewed by many as evidence of the undervaluation of the currency. Mr Greenspan noted that John Snow, the US Treasury secretary, had already advised the Chinese authorities that they should float their currency. The Fed chairman's words are part of an increased willingness among American policymakers publicly to discuss floating the renminbi. Though they have generally avoided directly pressing China on the issue - believing that it might be counter-productive - US officials have praised moves towards greater flexibility in the Chinese exchange rate. Mr Greenspan on Wednesday questioned whether public pressure on the Chinese would actually help move their private discussion along. The US administration is also under pressure from the US business lobby, particularly manufacturing, which says that Asian currency manipulation is costing American jobs. China's trade surplus with the US grew from $28.2bn in 2001 to $43.3bn in 2002. Commenting on the US economy, Mr Greenspan sought to correct a false impression that he had completely ruled out the use of unusual measures such as buying Treasury bonds outright to combat deflation. Bond yields rose sharply on Tuesday after Mr Greenspan said that such measures were most unlikely to be needed. The Fed chairman said it was not clear whether resurrecting the 30-year Treasury bond, which was discontinued in 2001, was a good idea even in view of the mounting deficits faced by the US.
Re: the fed and the yuan
- Original Message - From: Jonathan Lassen [EMAIL PROTECTED] Hi, What do people make of the nearly unanimous call for China to revalue the yuan and/or go off the dollar peg? Industrialists, US senators and now Alan Greenspan and EU officials have jumped on the bandwagon. Cheers, Jonathan == Didn't WTO accession give them to 2006 to end the peg? Ian
Re: the fed and the yuan
Ian, They don't believe so: China has the right to decide its exchange rate policy and no international agreement forbids that. from: http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200307/01/eng20030701_119224.shtml But they've agreed in principle to gradually phase out capital controls in the future (as part of the concessions they made for WTO accession), and have signalled they are going to let the rmb float within a wider band. I'm sure one thing the Chinese gov. is worried about is deflation. Lowered demand for China's exports and cheaper imports would make that worse, no? I think I might have to take a look at Brenner (Global Turbulence) again. I just can't figure out why there's suddenly a unanimous call for revaluation. Especially since foreign firms account for such a significant portion of exports from China (more than half I think). Curious, Jonathan At 15:46 2003-7-19, you wrote: - Original Message - From: Jonathan Lassen [EMAIL PROTECTED] Hi, What do people make of the nearly unanimous call for China to revalue the yuan and/or go off the dollar peg? Industrialists, US senators and now Alan Greenspan and EU officials have jumped on the bandwagon. Cheers, Jonathan == Didn't WTO accession give them to 2006 to end the peg? Ian
Bush visit
Here's a report from Senegal on Bush's visit. The report has been circulating among folk music forums. -- Subject: Bush's visit to Senegal Dearest friends, As you probably know, this week George Bush is visiting Africa. Starting with Senegal, he arrived this morning at 7.20 AM and left at 1.30 PM. This visit has been such an ordeal that a petition is being circulated for this Tuesday July 8th to be named Dependency Day. Let me share with you what we have been through since last week: 1- Arrests : more than 1,500 persons have been arrested and put in jail between Thursday and Monday. Hopefully they will be released now that the Big Man is gone. 2- The US Army's planes flying day and night over Dakar. The noise they make is so loud that one hardly sleeps at night. 3- About 700 security people from the US for Bush's security in Senegal, with their dogs, and their cars. Senegalese security forces were not allowed to come near the US president. 4- All trees in places where Bush will pass have been cut. Some of them have more than 100 years. 5- All roads going down town (where hospitals, businesses, schools are located) were closed from Monday night to Tuesday at 3 PM. This means that we could not go to our offices or schools. Sick people were also obliged to stay at home. 6- National exams for high schools that started on Monday are postponed until Wednesday. Bush's visit to the Goree Island is another story. As you may know Goree is a small Island facing Dakar where from the 15th to the 19th century the African slaves to be shipped to America were parked in special houses called slave houses. One of these houses has become a Museum to remind humanity about this dark period and has been visited by kings, queens, presidents. Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton, and before them. Nelson Mandela, the Pope, and many other distinguished guests or ordinary tourists visited it without bothering the islanders. But for security reasons this time, the local population was chased out of their houses from 5 to 12 AM. They were forced by the American security to leave their houses and leave everything open, including their wardrobes to be searched by special dogs brought from the US. The ferry that links the island to Dakar was stopped and offices and businesses closed for the day. According to an economist who was interviewed by a private radio, Senegal, which is a very poor country, has lost huge amounts of money in this visit, because workers have been prevented from walking out of their homes. In addition to us being prevented to go out, other humiliating things happened also. Not only Bush did not want to be with Senegalese but he did not want to use our things. He brought his own armchairs, and of course his own cars, and meals and drinks. He came with his own journalists and ours were forbidden inside the airport and in places he was visiting. Our president was not allowed to make a speech. Only Bush spoke when he was in Goree. He spoke about slavery. It seems that he needs the vote of the African American to be elected in the next elections, and wanted to please them. That's why he visited Goree. Several protest marches against American politics have been organized yesterday and even when Bush was here, but we think he does not care. We have the feeling that everything has been done to convince us that we are nothing, and that America can behave the way it wants, everywhere, even in our country. Believe me friends, it is a terrible feeling. But according to a Ugandan friend of mine, I should not complain because in Uganda one of the countries he is going to visit, Bush does not intend to go out of the airport. He will receive the Ugandan President in the airport lounge. Nevertheless, I think I am lucky, because I have such wonderful American friends. But there are now thousands of Senegalese who believe that for all Americans the world is their territory. Love to you all, Codou -- -- You can fool some of the people all of the time, and those are the ones we need to concentrate on. George W. Bush, Washington DC, March 2001 - END OF THE TRAIL SALOON Live music, comedy, call-in radio-oke Alternate Sundays, 6am GMT (10pm PDT) http://www.kvmr.org I uke, therefore I am. -- Cool Hand Uke I log on, therefore I seem to be. -- Rodd Gnawkin Visit Cool Hand Uke's Lava Tube: http://www.oro.net/~dscanlan
Re: it's over!
Would we be out of the recession without the Boskin inflation adjustments? -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: the fed and the yuan
- Original Message - From: Jonathan Lassen [EMAIL PROTECTED] Ian, They don't believe so: China has the right to decide its exchange rate policy and no international agreement forbids that. from: http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200307/01/eng20030701_119224.shtml But they've agreed in principle to gradually phase out capital controls in the future (as part of the concessions they made for WTO accession), and have signalled they are going to let the rmb float within a wider band. I'm sure one thing the Chinese gov. is worried about is deflation. Lowered demand for China's exports and cheaper imports would make that worse, no? I think I might have to take a look at Brenner (Global Turbulence) again. I just can't figure out why there's suddenly a unanimous call for revaluation. Especially since foreign firms account for such a significant portion of exports from China (more than half I think). Curious, Jonathan = Perhaps some clues here: http://www.bof.fi/bofit/seminar/bon1701.pdf
Re: it's over! - indexation
The Boskin Commission found that the CPI is overstated by as little as .6% and as much as 1.5%, from what I can figure out, the upward bias being probably in the range of 0.65 percent, down from 1.1 percent for the 1995-6 period.. I haven't read Robert Gordon's paper though, and the percentage error margins cited aren't very meaningful unless you can review the whole methodology (classifications, questionnaires, estimation procedures, consumer patterns, and regimen). Robert Gordon discovered that when workers net real incomes decline they go and shop at cheaper stores, and on the other hand, that if supermarket chain monopolies develop, this may also be a factor in the choice of store. Congress decided not to change the CPI methodology. In Western Europe, accelerating price inflation combined with changing consumption patterns during the long postwar boom led some trade union federations to produce alternative indexes of price inflation. In general, you could say that statisticians tend to distrust large fluctuations in a data distribution, particularly if they are unprecedented or do not conform to an already existing pattern in the data. The effect of retrospective revisions has a higher likelihood of smoothing out data series. http://www.raleightavern.org/wilson.htm http://www.moaa.org/Legislative/Retirement/CPI.asp On quality adjustment, see http://www.boj.or.jp/en/ronbun/01/cwp01e06.htm J. - Original Message - From: Michael Perelman [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, July 20, 2003 1:12 AM Subject: Re: [PEN-L] it's over! Would we be out of the recession without the Boskin inflation adjustments? -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: it's over! - indexation
The Concord coalition has some useful articles on overstatement and understatement, see e.g. http://www.concordcoalition.org/entitlements/cpi0598.html
Question - US National Debt
Does anyone know of literature where an attempt is made to express the current magnitude of the US National Debt (and more specifically total local/central government internal/external debt, and total private internal/external debt) in comprehensible, meaningful comparisons ? Doing a rough calculation, I imagine that the US national debt must currently amount to something in the vicinity of $20,000 dollars for every man, woman and child living in the USA. An average wage in the USA would be about $30,000 so, then the average debt burden per household, based on a standard nuclear family, would currently be something in the order of two or three year's salary. What I wanted to get to, was some sort of figure which showed, that in order to pay off the national debt, every American worker would have to work about 3-5 years for nothing, or at any rate that American citizens were effectively borrowing several years of their life from the rest of the world. Thanks, J.
Re: quick question
You should not send in such nice quotes without giving a more precise source so that I can steal them. .. From a rhetorical standpoint, a description is a verbal representation of some object to some audience, such that the speaker is able to change the audience's attitude toward the object without changing the object itself. Thus, the trick for any would-be describer is to contain the effects of her discourse so that the object remains intact once her discourse is done. In descriptions of human behavior, this is often very difficult to manage, as the people being described, once informed of the description, may become upset and proceed to subvert the describer's authority. [Steve Fuller] 'perceptual fault lines' run through apparently stable communities that appear to have agreed on basic institutions and structures and on general governing rules. Consent comes apart in battles of description. Consent comes apart over whose stories to tell. [Kim Scheppele] -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Question on real net new investment in the US
Of course, the measurement of depreciation represents a major hurdle for getting net investment. On Thu, Jul 17, 2003 at 06:18:19PM -0400, Max B. Sawicky wrote: http://www.bea.gov/bea/dn/nipaweb/SelectTable.asp?Selected=N#S5 -Original Message- From: PEN-L list [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Jurriaan Bendien Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 5:24 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Question on real net new investment in the US Does anybody have any data on the trend in real net new investment in the US economy in recent years ? I am referring here to net additions to fixed assets, adjusted for inflation, in total and for the major economic sectors (manufacturing, agriculture, services etc.), this is sometimes referred to a gross fixed capital formation, and sometimes disaggregate data are available according to asset type. Thanks J. -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: quick question
- Original Message - From: Michael Perelman [EMAIL PROTECTED] You should not send in such nice quotes without giving a more precise source so that I can steal them. == Quote #2 is in the archives as similar issues have come up before: [Kim Scheppele in Another Look at the Problem of Rent Seeking by Steven Medema, Journal of Economic Issues Vol xxv # 4] Quote#1: Steve Fuller Philosophy, Rhetoric the End of Knowledge: The Coming of Science and Technology Studies. U Wisconsin Press, 1993, p. 95] .. From a rhetorical standpoint, a description is a verbal representation of some object to some audience, such that the speaker is able to change the audience's attitude toward the object without changing the object itself. Thus, the trick for any would-be describer is to contain the effects of her discourse so that the object remains intact once her discourse is done. In descriptions of human behavior, this is often very difficult to manage, as the people being described, once informed of the description, may become upset and proceed to subvert the describer's authority. [Steve Fuller] 'perceptual fault lines' run through apparently stable communities that appear to have agreed on basic institutions and structures and on general governing rules. Consent comes apart in battles of description. Consent comes apart over whose stories to tell. [Kim Scheppele] -- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929 Tel. 530-898-5321 E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Degrees of Freedom Fw: Re: Eco-Math
[A lesson worthwhile for those engaged in political economy-ecology. From the Ecological Society of America...] - Original Message - From: Patrick Foley [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Friday, July 18, 2003 5:48 PM Subject: Re: Eco-Math Warren, Mathematics is very powerful in physics because the laws of physics are simple. Ecology, while ultimately dependent on physics, is far too messy to follow simple axioms and provide exact results. As Burnham and Anderson point out in their 2002 book, Model Selection and Multimodel Inference, the actual number of degrees of freedom in ecological models is so large that it might as well be infinite. Our attempts to use parsimony as a guide are often just dumb (that's me speaking not B and A, I think). Often the most elegant and beautiful theory is the correct one in physics. Not so, in ecology. Patrick Foley (ecologist and recovering mathematician) [EMAIL PROTECTED] Warren W. Aney wrote: How useful and basic is mathematics in the field of ecology? I'm not talking about just using mathematics (and statistics) to describe, model, and test. I'm talking about the basic idea posed by Edward O. Wilson that there is a natural body of mathematics that will serve as a natural language for biology and hints that mathematics may even provide a bridge that unifies all sciences (Consilience, pp. 103-104, 212-214). An article by Max Tegmark in the May issue of Scientific American discusses the correspondence between mathematics and physics (and, presumably, natural sciences in general) and how it goes back to Greek philosophy: According to the Aristotelian paradigm physical reality is fundamental and mathematical language is merely a useful approximation. According to the Platonic paradigm, the mathematical structure is the true reality and observers percieve it imperfectly. (page 49) Elsewhere in the article Tegmark says that scientists discover mathematical structures rather than create them and quotes physicist Eugene P. Wigner: the enormous usefulness of mathematics in the natural sciences is something bordering on the mysterious. I guess I tend to have an Aristotelian view of mathematics, but E. O. Wilson probably has advanced to the Platonic view. I could expand on this, but I'd like to hear other viewpoints instead. Warren W. Aney Senior Wildlife Ecologist
China
Enter the dragon China is growing with bewildering speed. When Tony Blair arrives for a historic visit, he will find a country undergoing social upheavals on the way to becoming an economic superpower, reports Jonathan Fenby Sunday July 20, 2003 The Observer Conventional wisdom insists that nations ruled by Communist parties are regimented, unimaginative failures. Yet nowhere on earth is changing so fast and on such a scale as in China, where market economics and rampant consumerism meet the remnants of Maoism, throwing up paradoxes with profound implications for its 1.3 billion people - and for the rest of the world. Tony Blair will arrive tomorrow for a two-day visit, during which he will hear evidence of the change from politicians in the capital, Beijing, and businessmen in the fast-expanding commercial centre of Shanghai. It is not clear, however, if even the leadership in its heavily guarded Beijing compound knows exactly what is going on in the 3.7 million square miles between the booming development zones of the coast and the huge deserts and mountains on the doorstep of Central Asia. China is racing to meet its future, confident it will grow into a superpower within a couple of decades, with all that implies for the West and for its Asian neighbours. Yet it remains stunted under the authoritarian hand of a Communist Party for which the retention of power has become an end in itself. It is the main motor of international expansion, but it contains an uncomfortable expanse of shady zones and, owing to its size and diversity, is very hard to control. China's gleaming airports put Heathrow to shame. The size of construction projects have led to the joke about the crane being the national bird. The tycoon class has expanded so substantially that the American business magazine Forbes produces an annual list of China's 100 richest. Car production is rising by millions of vehicles a year. There are about 300 million mobile phone users. Shopping malls are crammed with designer clothes, real and counterfeit. Top tickets for Real Madrid's forthcoming game against a Chinese team are priced at £125 each. Figures issued last week showed that, despite a dip last spring because of the Sars epidemic, China's economic growth should still hit the 7 per cent target for the year, with industrial production up by 16 per cent in the first six months. Though there are doubts about the precision of official figures, this rate is even higher in the special economic development zones where big, modern factories ally automation with low-cost labour Having started by making cheap goods, Chinese firms are moving on to more profitable ones as their country's membership of the World Trade Organisation guarantees them access to world markets. From toys to computer chips, just about everything seems to come from China these days. Despite Sars, exports in the first half of this year bounded by 34 per cent to the equivalent of £120 billion. Foreign investment, bringing money, technology and expertise, rises by the year as Western and Japanese executives put the country at the top of their plans. A recent article by an American economist was headlined: 'What happens when everything is made in China?' That raises concern about foreign jobs being exported to China - as in the decision by Waterford Wedgwood crystal to close British factories and shift production to China for lower costs. But, while international pressure on Beijing to revalue its currency upwards grows, economic expansion is making the mainland a major importer of raw materials, machinery and factory components. Its purchases of crude oil rose by a third in the first half of this year and it could be the salvation of the world steel industry. On his drive from the airport, Blair will see Beijing engaged in a huge building programme running up to its staging of the 2008 Olympics. In Shanghai, a new business district has gone up on marshland, and gleaming blocks of flats line the eight-lane roads into the city. A German magnetic levitation train whisks passengers in from Shanghai's new Pudong airport at 250mph, and a Japanese 'bullet train' is likely to link the city to Beijing. Shenzhen, a pioneering economic development zone across the border from Hong Kong, has grown from a small town into a city of millions attracted by work in its fast-growing factories. Chongqing, capital of the biggest province, Sichuan, is being transformed from a shabby city notorious for its nasty climate into what aims to be a model of growth in a special zone containing 30 million people. The Three Gorges dam, with its enormous hydro-electric potential, has gone into operation, and there are plans for a mammoth waterway across the country to check the recurrent pattern of droughts and floods. Visit city centres from the once-isolated Kunming in the lush south-west to Manchuria on the border with Russia, and you find the same lines of glass and concrete offices, shops and
yet another giveaway
washingtonpost.com How a 401(k) Loophole for the Rich Can Mean a Windfall for the Poor By Albert B. Crenshaw Sunday, July 20, 2003; Page F04 In the name of closing a loophole in the anti-discrimination rules covering 401(k) plans, the Bush administration last week issued what seems to be a nationwide invitation to businesses to take advantage of it. The loophole involves what is called bottom-up leveling, a process by which businesses, especially small ones, can, by tossing a few dollars to a very-low-paid employee or two, allow their top executives to put more money into their own retirement accounts than the rules would otherwise allow. The laws governing 401(k) and other retirement plans are designed to keep companies from structuring their plans so that the well-paid executives can take full advantage of them while leaving the lower-paid workers behind. One key rule says that the share of pay that highly paid workers can set aside must be about the same as, or only slightly higher than, the share that has actually been set aside by the lower-paid workers. As is so often the case in regulation, however, the devil is in the details -- in this case the way workers' shares of income are calculated. And at least some companies have figured out a neat way around the barrier. It works this way: Under the law, employers are allowed to put money into a worker's account, whether the worker asks them to or not. Such contributions are called QNECs (pronounced cue-necks) for qualified non-elective contributions, and are normally benign, even desirable, ways for employers to boost workers' retirement savings. Under current rules, highly compensated workers' ability to contribute to their own accounts is restricted if the low-paid workers don't contribute enough, as measured by percentage of salary. If a company finds this rule is biting its top people, it can find a very-low-paid worker -- say, a guy who quit in January -- and give him a QNEC. If the worker made only $1,000 before leaving, a $250 QNEC will show up as 25 percent of pay for this worker. And since each worker's contribution rate is counted equally -- one man, one vote, as one expert put it -- a few workers with what appear to be very high contribution rates can move a small company's average quite a bit. It's called bottom-up leveling because you pick the guy with the smallest salary, give him a QNEC and see whether that pushed the average up enough. If not, you pick the second-least-paid guy and do the same thing until the numbers work, said former Treasury benefits tax counsel J. Mark Iwry. The process enables the employer to achieve the numbers it wants at minimal cost, Iwry said. Big businesses are less able to move their averages with QNECs, simply because of the large number of people involved. They do, however, sometimes use them to avoid having to make small refunds to higher-paid workers because the company ran afoul of the anti-discrimination rules, said Robyn Credico, a senior consultant in the Washington office of benefits consultants Watson Wyatt Worldwide. Before the passage of the 2001 tax-cut bill, the value of bottom-up leveling was limited because in a 401(k) plan, worker contributions -- the worker's own plus any employer money -- could not be more than 25 percent of pay. Under the new law, though, the limit is 100 percent of pay, up to an overall dollar ceiling. Thus, if the company can find a worker who made $1,000 and give that worker a $1,000 QNEC, that worker shows up in the anti-discrimination calculations as having put 100 percent of pay into his or her account. The regulations proposed last week would treat a plan's QNECs as impermissibly targeted if less than half of all the company's lower-paid workers get them. It would also deem impermissible any QNEC that is more than double the QNECs that other lower-paid employees are receiving, measured as a percentage of pay. The regs would also change the formula by which a lower-paid worker's contributions are measured. It appears that the rules would accomplish their objective -- but not until they become final. In the meantime, small businesses that want to let their highly paid workers squirrel away more pretax retirement money have a handy guide to how to do so. Treasury benefits tax counsel William F. Sweetnam Jr. said the agency's only real alternative would have been a temporary regulation, but officials are uncertain about how much abuse there actually is, and in the meantime wished to proceed carefully. We wanted to put out a proposal and get people's comments before we shut it down. We don't know what's going on out there, and we want to make sure [the proposal] is not unadministerable or would have unintended consequences, Sweetnam said. And he said the door will be closing soon. This is not going to be a regulation that is going to sit out there in the proposed state for a long time, Sweetnam said. Until then, though, companies have a clear path
