Remember, an economist is someone who will promise to tell you tomorrow why what he predicted yesterday didn't happen today
The G20's Continuing Free Market Disease - a Religious Saga?
by Stephen Zarlenga AMI
What do you get when a religion masquerades as a science?
You get what's know today as "Economics!"
* Why do we identify it as a religion? Because it is a belief system based on faith,
* Where enshrinement of those beliefs is independent of evidence, pro or con;
* Where its bad effects are regularly dismissed as "anecdotal;"
* Where it's high priests, the economists, such as Ludwig Von Mises, assert that their theories (beliefs) cannot be dis proven by mere facts (!);
*And where they actually get away with those statements that are so destructive to sound thinking methodology.
A recent example is the official 18 point statement released by the G20 group of countries after their emergency meeting last Weekend (Nov. 15th and 16th). Lawmakers and citizens should regard it as an insult to the intelligence of all thinking and working Americans.
Most of its 16 points refer to actions that common sense and decency would have required them to have already been performing, especially over the past lawless decade. So it all reads much like closing the gates after the thundering herd has run off. The first reaction to it is therefore "yeah sure," followed by a big yawn. But its worse than that. Particularly points # 2 and # 12, quoted below from the official G-20 Statement on Financial Markets and the World Economy:
"2. Over the past months our countries have taken urgent and exceptional measures to support the global economy and stabilize financial markets. These efforts must continue. At the same time, we must lay the foundation for reform to help to ensure that a global crisis, such as this one, does not happen again. Our work will be guided by a shared belief that market principles, open trade and investment regimes, and effectively regulated financial markets foster the dynamism, innovation, and entrepreneurship that are essential for economic growth, employment, and poverty reduction."
This is horrible. They are saying that one of the main causes that facilitated the problem – the notion of so called free market ideology – must still reign unchallenged. This while the only reason anything is still standing in their ridiculous financial world is because of our government.
And they do it again in point # 12:
"12. We recognize that these reforms will only be successful if grounded in a commitment to free market principles, including the rule of law, respect for private property, open trade and investment, competitive markets, and efficient, effectively regulated financial systems. These principles are essential to economic growth and prosperity and have lifted millions out of poverty, and have significantly raised the global standard of living. Recognizing the necessity to improve financial sector regulation, we must avoid over-regulation that would hamper economic growth and exacerbate the contraction of capital flows, including to developing countries."
There's that old destroyer again – "Free market principles." Its their heavy artillery in the class warfare those who these people represent are committed to. You see how desperate they are to bolster this ideology. But Greenspan has effectively destroyed it (Thanks Alan!). See or request my recently sent essay on Greenspan's Admission of Methodological Error.
Well a week later the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation group meeting in Lima Peru, issued a two page statement, that continued to promote this failed market religion. It included these two pledges, which continue to ignore and evaluate the negative effects of the theory, in order to support the religious belief in the market as God:
"We reiterate our firm belief that free market principles, and open trade and investment
regimes, will continue to drive global growth, employment and poverty reduction."
and:
"We reaffirm our commitment to the Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific as a key organizing principle and driving force for APEC."
But reading their statement, the only proposed actions that make sense are those promising greatly increased regulation, rules and governmental oversight. In other words, with curtailing the religious free market experiment. That is hopeful.
Friends, its interesting that many of the free market people, being libertarian oriented, would probably qualify as agnostics or atheists, when it comes to the mainline religions. Yet their great need to kneel and worship the market God, demonstrates a powerful, if misplaced psychological need for a religious experience. They even conjure up "holy ghosts," and call them invisible hands!
The first step in eradicating a sociopaths destructive behavior is to recognize the problem. Sad to say, the G20 and the APEC have not yet done that. Lets hope President Obama receives better advice and Counseling!
As Congressman Dennis Kucinich said in his election victory speech:
"We have to look at the role of the Federal Reserve...That isn't a Democratic or Republican issue.Its an issue that relates to whether were going to control our own government. The Banks took over the government with the bailout. We borrowed money from the banks to give to the banks so they could offload their toxic debt or hoard the money or use the money to buy other banks! Our country is in jeopardy because of this and the only way out is to take a new look at the way we create money in our society...we have to not only prime the pump of the economy the way Roosevelt did but we also have to look at the structures in our society that are causing this acceleration of wealth upwards."
See the inspiring 3 minute conclusion at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2Xez11JfVM
Sincerely ... Stephen Zarlenga AMI.
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