lunes, 30 de junio de 2008

BIS Warns of Deepening Contraction...world wide

BIS Warns of Deepening Contraction (Not for the Fainthearted)

The newly-released annual report of the Bank of International Settlements sounds as if it is unusually lively reading. Most official documents strive for an anodyne tone, while this one appears to be unusually blunt. However, while some reporters have their hands on it, the report is not yet up on the BIS website, so those of us among the great unwashed will have to wait a day or two.In the meantime, we'll turn to Ambrose Evans-Pritchard's write-up at the Telegraph, and assuming his summary is faithful, the BIS author, Bil White, is a man after my own heart. There is a lot of meaty stuff in the BIS report: criticism of bubble-enabling central banks, a forecast of a burst of inflation followed by nasty deflation, and skepticism about the wisdom and viability of fiscal stimulus (explicit and implicit government obligations are already too high). The BIS also charges the regulators (the Fed appears particularly guilty) with having excessively low policy rates and being asleep at the switch as the shadow banking system grew in size and importance.Not even goldbugs can take cheer from this survey. From the Telegraph:
A year ago, the Bank for International Settlements startled the financial world by warning that we might soon face challenges last seen during the onset of the Great Depression. This has proved frighteningly accurate.The venerable body, the ultimate bank of central bankers, said years of loose monetary policy had fuelled a dangerous credit bubble that would entail "much higher costs than is commonly supposed".In a pointed attack on the US Federal Reserve, it said central banks would not find it easy to "clean up" once property bubbles have burst.If only we had all listened to the BIS a long time ago. Ensconced in its Swiss lair, it has fired off anathemas for years, struggling to uphold orthodoxy against the follies of modern central banking.Bill White, the departing chief economist, has now penned his swansong, the BIS's 78th Annual Report, released today. It is a disconcerting read for those who want to hope the global crisis is over."The current market turmoil is without precedent in the postwar period. With a significant risk of recession in the US, compounded by sharply rising inflation in many countries, fears are building that the global economy might be at some kind of tipping point," it said."These fears are not groundless. The magnitude of the problems yet to be faced could be much greater than many now perceive," it said. "It is not impossible that the unwinding of the credit bubble could, after a temporary period of higher inflation, culminate in a deflation that might be hard to manage, all the more so given the high debt levels."Given the constraints under which the BIS must operate, this amounts to a warning that monetary overkill by the Fed, the Bank of England, and above all the European Central Bank could prove dangerous at this juncture.European banks have suffered worse losses on US property than American banks. Their net dollar liabilities are $900bn, mostly short-term loans that have to be rolled over, a costly business with spreads still near panic levels. Mortgage and consumer credit has "demonstrably worsened".The BIS cautions the ECB to handle its lending data with great care. "The statistics may understate the contraction in the supply of credit," it said.The death of securitisation has forced banks to bring portfolios back on to their balance sheets, while firms in need are drawing down pre-arranged credit lines. This is a far cry from a lending recovery.Warning signs are flashing across Eastern Europe (ex-Russia) where short-term foreign debt is 120pc of reserves, mostly in euros and Swiss francs. Current account deficits are 14.6pc of GDP."They could find it difficult to secure foreign funding if global financing conditions were to tighten more severely," it said. Swedish, Austrian and Italian banks have drawn on wholesale markets to lend heavily to subsidiaries across the region. This could "dry up".China is not immune, although the BIS has dropped last year's comment that growth is "unstable, unbalanced, unco-ordinated and unsustainable".The US accounts for 20pc of China's exports, but that does not capture the inter-links across Asia that ultimately depend on US shopping malls. "There is a risk that China's imports overall could slow down sharply should the US economy weaken further," it said.Global banks - with loans of $37 trillion in 2007, or 70pc of world GDP - are still in the eye of the storm."Inter-bank money markets have failed to recover. Of greatest concern at the moment is that still tighter credit conditions will be imposed on non-financial borrowers."In a number of countries, commercial property prices are beginning to soften, traditionally bad news for lenders. These real-financial interactions are potentially both complex and dangerous," it said.Do not count on a fiscal rescue. "Explicit and implicit debts of governments are already so high as to raise doubts about whether all non-contractual commitments will be fully honoured."Dr White says the US sub-prime crisis was the "trigger", not the cause of the disaster. This is not to exonerate the debt-brokers. "It cannot be denied that the originate-to-distribute model (CDOs, CLOs, etc) has had calamitous side-effects. Loans of increasingly poor quality have been made and then sold to the gullible and the greedy," he said.Nor does it exonerate the watchdogs. "How could such a huge shadow banking system emerge without provoking clear statements of official concern?"But there have always been excesses in booms. What has made this so bad is that governments set the price of money too low, enticing the banks into self-destruction."The fundamental cause of today's emerging problems was excessive and imprudent credit growth over a long period. Policy interest rates in the advanced industrial countries have been unusually low," he said.The Fed and fellow central banks instinctively cut rates lower with each cycle to avoid facing the pain. The effect has been to put off the day of reckoning.They could get away with this as long as cheap goods from Asia kept a cap on inflation. It seduced them into letting asset booms get out of hand. This is where the central banks made their colossal blunder."Policymakers interpreted the quiescence in inflation to mean that there was no good reason to raise rates when growth accelerated, and no impediment to lowering them when growth faltered," said the report.After almost two decades of this experiment - more or less the Greenspan years - the game is over. Debt has reached extreme levels, and now inflation has come back to life.The easy trade-off has metamorphosed into a vicious trade-off. This was utterly predictable, and was indeed forecast by the BIS, which plaintively suggested in this report that central banks might like to think of an "exit strategy" next time they try such ploys.In effect, this is an indictment of rigid inflation targets (such as Britain's), which prevent central banks from launching a pre-emptive strike against asset bubbles. In the 1990s, they should have torn up the rule-book and let inflation turn negative in light of the Asia effect.The BIS suggests that a mix of "systemic indicators" should be used. The crucial objective is to slow credit growth and make sure that the punchbowl is taken away before the drunks run riot. "We need policy measures to lean against credit-drive excess," it said.If there are going to be more bail-outs on both sides of the Atlantic - as there will be - the "socialised risks" should be taken on by political systems, and not dumped on the books of central banks."Should governments feel it necessary to take direct actions to alleviate debt burdens, it is crucial that they understand one thing beforehand. If asset prices are unrealistically high, they must fall. If savings rates are unrealistically low, they must rise. If debts cannot be serviced, they must be written off."To deny this through the use of gimmicks and palliatives will only make things worse in the end," he said.Let us all cheer Dr White off the stage.
Posted by Yves Smith at 3:23 AM
Topics: , , ,

MSG: The Slow Poisoning of Humanity..MSG..hides behind 25+ names...



MSG
- The Slow Poisoning Of America
MSG Hides Behind 25+ Names,
Such As 'Natural Flavouring' MSG
Is Also In Your Favorite Coffee Shops
And Drive-Ups 9-12-5

I wondered if there could be an actual chemical causing the massive obesity epidemic, so did a friend of mine, John Erb.

He was a research assistant at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, and spent years working for the government.

He made an amazing discovery while going through scientific journals for a book he was writing called "The Slow Poisoning of America".

In hundreds of studies around the world, scientists were creating obese mice and rats to use in diet or diabetes test studies. No strain of rat or mice is naturally obese, so the scientists have to create them. They make these morbidly obese creatures by injecting them with MSG when they are first born. The MSG triples the amount of insulin the pancreas creates; causing rats (and humans?) to become obese. They even have a title for the fat rodents they create: "MSG-Treated Rats".

I was shocked too. I went to my kitchen, checking the cupboards and the fridge. MSG was in everything: The Campbell's soups, the Hostess Doritos, the Lays flavoured potato chips, Top Ramen, Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper, Heinz canned gravy, Swanson frozen prepared meals, Kraft salad dressings, especially the 'healthy low fat' ones.

The items that didn't have MSG marked on the product label had something called ''Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein'', which is just another name for Monosodium Glutamate.

It was shocking to see just how many of the foods we feed our children everyday are filled with this stuff. They hide MSG under many different names in order to fool those who carefully read the ingredient list, so they don't catch on. (Other names for MSG: 'Accent' - 'Aginomoto' - 'Natural Meet Tenderizer', etc) But it didn't stop there. When our family went out to eat, we started asking at the restaurants what menu items had MSG.

Many employees, even the managers, swore they didn't use MSG. But when we ask for the ingredient list, which they grudgingly provided, sure enough MSG and Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein were everywhere:

Burger King
McDonalds
Wendy's
Taco Bell

And every restaurant like: TGIF, Chilis', Applebees and Denny's use MSG in abundance.

Kentucky Fried Chicken seemed to be the WORST offender: MSG was in EVERY chicken dish, salad dressing and gravy. No wonder I loved to eat that coating on the skin, their secret spice was MSG.

So, why is MSG in so may of the foods we eat?

Is it a preservative or a vitamin?? Not according to my friend John. In the book he wrote, an expose of the food additive industry called "The Slow Poisoning of America" he said that MSG is added to food for the addictive effect it has on the human body. http://www.spofamerica.com

Even the propaganda website sponsored by the food manufacturers lobby group supporting MSG at: http://www.msgfactscom/facts/msgfact12.html explains that the reason they add it to food is to make people EAT MORE OF THEIR PRODUCTS.

A study of the elderly showed that people eat more of the foods it is added to.The Glutamate Association lobby group says eating more benefits the elderly, but what does it do to the rest of us? 'Betcha can't eat just one', takes on a whole new meaning where MSG is concerned! And we wonder why the nation is overweight?

The MSG manufacturers themselves admit that it addicts people to their products. It makes people choose their product over others, and makes people eat more of it than they would if MSG wasn't added.

Not only is MSG scientifically proven to cause obesity, it is an addictive substance! Since its introduction into the American food supply fifty years ago, MSG has been added in larger and larger doses to the pre-packaged meals, soups, snacks and fast foods we are tempted to eat everyday.The FDA has set no limits on how much of it can be added to food. They claim it's safe to eat in any amount. How can they claim it safe when there are hundreds of scientific studies with titles like these? :-

'The monosodium glutamate (MSG) obese rat as a model for the study of exercise in obesity'. GobattoCA, Mello MA, Souza CT, Ribeiro IA.Res Commun Mol Pathol Pharmacol. 2002.

'Adrenalectomy abolishes the food-induced hypothalamic serotonin release in both normal and monosodium glutamate-obese rats'. Guimaraes RB, Telles MM, Coelho VB, Mori C, Nascimento CM, Ribeiro Brain Res Bull. 2002 Aug.

'Obesity induced by neonatal monosodium glutamate treatment in spontaneously hypertensive rats: an animal model of multiple risk factors'. Iwase M, Yamamoto M, Iino K, IchikawaK, Shinohara N, Yoshinari Fujishima Hypertens Res. 1998 Mar.

'Hypothalamic lesion induced by injection of monosodium glutamate in suckling period and subsequent development of obesity'. Tanaka K, Shimada M, Nakao K, Kusunoki Exp Neurol. 1978 Oct.

Yes, that last study was not a typo, it WAS written in 1978. Both the "medical research community" and "food manufacturers" have known about MSG's side effects for decades! Many more studies mentioned in John Erb's book link MSG to Diabetes, Migraines and headaches, Autism, ADHD and even Alzheimer's. But what can we do to stop the food manufactures from dumping fattening and addictive MSG into our food supply and causing the obesity epidemic we now see?

Even as you read this, G. W. Bush and his corporate supporters are pushing a Bill through Congress called the "Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act" also known as the "Cheeseburger Bill", this sweeping law bans anyone from suing food manufacturers, sellers and distributors. Even if it comes out that they purposely added an addictive chemical to their foods. Read about it for yourself at: http://www.yahoo.com. The Bill has already been rushed through the House of Representatives, and is due for the same rubber stamp at Senate level. It is important that Bush and his corporate supporters get it through before the media lets everyone know about 'MSG, the intentional Nicotine for food'.

Several months ago, John Erb took his book and his concerns to one of the highest government health officials in Canada. While sitting in the Government office, the official told him "Sure, I know how bad MSG is, I wouldn't touch the stuff." But this top level government official refused to tell the public what he knew.

The big media doesn't want to tell the public either
, fearing legal issues with their advertisers. It seems that the fallout on fast food industry may hurt their profit margin. The food producers and restaurants have been addicting us to their products for years, and now we are paying the price for it. Our children should not be cursed with obesity caused by an addictive food additive. But what can I do about it?... I'm just one voice.

What can I do to stop the poisoning of our children, while our governments are insuring financial protection for the industry that is poisoning us.

This e-mail is going out to everyone I know in an attempt to tell you the truth that the corporate owned politicians and media won't tell you. The best way you can help to save yourself and your children from this drug-induced epidemic, is to forward this email to everyone. With any luck, it will circle the globe before politicians can pass the legislation protecting those who are poisoning us. The food industry learned a lot from the tobacco industry. Imagine if big tobacco had a bill like this in place before someone blew the whistle on Nicotine?

If you are one of the few who can still believe that MSG is good for us, and you don't believe what John Erb has to say, see for yourself. Go to the National Library of Medicine, at http://www.pubmed.com. Type in the words "MSG Obese" and read a few of the 115 medical studies that appear.

We the public, do not want to be rats in one giant experiment and we do not approve of food that makes us into a nation of obese, lethargic, addicted sheep, feeding the food industry's bottom line, while waiting for the heart transplant, diabetic induced amputation, blindness or other obesity induced, life threatening disorders. With your help we can put an end to this poison. Do your part in sending this message out by word of mouth, e-mail or by distribution of this print-out to all your friends all over the world and stop this 'Slow Poisoning of Mankind' by the packaged food industry.

Blowing the whistle on MSG is our responsibility, get the word out.



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World Muslim Population by Country/Region

An analysis of the World Muslim population by Country / Region

Region
Country
Total Population
%age Muslim pop.
MuslimPop.
Asia & Pacif.
Afghanistan
26,813,057
99.0%
26,544,926
Eur
Albania
3,510,484
70.0%
2,457,339
N.Af. & M.E.
Algeria
30,791,000
99.0%
30,483,090
Africa
Angola
10,366,031
25.0%
2,591,508
L.Am.&Carib
Antigua Barbuda
66,970
0.0%
-
L.Am.&Carib
Argentina
37,384,816
2.1%
785,081
Asia & Pacif.
Armenia
3,336,100
1.0%
33,361
L.Am.&Carib
Aruba
70,007
5.0%
3,500
Asia & Pacif.
Australia
19,357,594
0.1%
19,358
Eur
Austria
8,150,835
2.2%
181,764
Asia & Pacif.
Azerbaijan
7,771,092
93.4%
7,258,200
L.Am.&Carib
Bahamas, The
297,852
0.0%
-
N.Af. & M.E.
Bahrain
645,361
100.0%
645,361
Asia & Pacif.
Bangladesh
131,269,860
88.0%
115,517,477
L.Am.&Carib
Barbados
275,330
0.0%
817.00
Russian states
Belarus
10,350,194
5.0%
517,510
Eur
Belgium
10,258,762
3.6%
369,315
L.Am.&Carib
Belize
256,062
0.0%
-
Africa
Benin
6,590,782
20.0%
1,318,156
Asia & Pacif.
Bhutan
2,049,412
5.0%
102,471
L.Am.&Carib
Bolivia
8,300,463
0.0%
-
Eur
Bosnia-Herzegovina
3,922,205
60.0%
2,353,323
Africa
Botswana
1,586,119
5.0%
79,306
L.Am.&Carib
Brazil
174,468,575
1.1%
1,919,154
Asia & Pacif.
Brunei
343,653
67.0%
230,248
Eur
Bulgaria
7,707,495
11.9%
914,880
Africa
Burkina-Faso
12,272,289
50.0%
6,136,145
Asia & Pacif.
Burma
41,994,678
4.0%
1,679,787
Africa
Burundi
6,223,897
20.0%
1,244,779
Asia & Pacif.
Cambodia
12,491,501
1.0%
124,915
Africa
Cameroon
15,803,220
55.0%
8,691,771
N. Amer.
Canada
31,592,805
1.5%
473,892
Atlantic Ocean
Cape Verde
405,163
0.0%
0
Africa
Central African Republic
3,576,884
55.0%
1,967,286
N.Af. & M.E.
Chad
8,707,078
85.0%
7,401,016
L.Am.&Carib
Chile
15,328,467
1.0%
153,285
Asia & Pacif.
China
1,273,111,290
3.0%
38,193,339
Asia & Pacif.
Christmas Island
2,771
10.0%
277
Asia & Pacif.
Cocos (Keeling) Island
633
57.0%
361
L.Am.&Carib
Colombia
40,349,388
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Comoros
596,202
98.0%
584,278
Africa
Congo, Dem. Rep. of the
53,624,718
10.0%
5,362,472
Africa
Congo, Republic of the
2,894,336
15.0%
434,150
L.Am.&Carib
Costa Rica
3,773,057
0.0%
0
Africa
Cote d'-voire
14,762,445
60.0%
8,857,467
Eur
Croatia
5,004,112
1.2%
60,049
L.Am.&Carib
Cuba
11,184,023
0.0%
0
Eur
Cyprus
744,609
33.0%
245,721
Eur
Czech Republic
10,264,212
2.0%
205,284
Eur
Denmark
5,352,815
2.0%
107,056
Africa
Djibouti
427,642
94.0%
401,983
L.Am.&Carib
Dominican Republic
8,581,477
0.0%
0
L.Am.&Carib
Ecuador
13,183,978
0.0%
0
N.Af. & M.E.
Egypt
69,536,644
94.0%
65,364,445
L.Am.&Carib
El Salvador
6,237,662
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Equatorial Guinea
431,282
25.0%
107,821
Africa
Eritrea
3,427,883
80.0%
2,742,306
Eur
Estonia
1,423,316
0.7%
9,963
Africa
Ethiopia
57,171,662
65.0%
37,161,580
Asia & Pacif.
Fiji
782,381
11.0%
86,062
Eur
Finland
5,175,783
0.2%
9,316
Eur
France
59,551,227
10.0%
5,955,123
Africa
Gabon
1,172,798
1.0%
11,728
Africa
Gambia
1,204,984
90.0%
1,084,486
N.Af. & M.E.
Gaza Strip
923,940
98.7%
911,929
Asia & Pacif.
Georgia
5,219,810
11.0%
574,179
Eur
Germany
83,536,115
3.7%
3,090,836
Africa
Ghana
17,698,271
30.0%
5,309,481
Eur
Gibraltar
28,765
8.5%
2,445
Eur
Greece
10,538,594
1.5%
158,079
L.Am.&Carib
Guatemala
12,974,361
0.0%
0
Africa
Guinea
7,411,981
95.0%
7,041,382
Africa
Guinea Bissau
1,151,330
70.0%
805,931
L.Am.&Carib
Guyana
712,091
15.0%
106,814
L.Am.&Carib
Haiti
6,964,549
0.0%
0
L.Am.&Carib
Honduras
6,406,052
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Hong Kong
6,305,413
1.0%
63,054
Eur
Hungary
10,106,017
6.0%
606,361
Eur
Iceland
277,906
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
India
1,029,991,145
14.0%
144,198,760
Asia & Pacif.
Indonesia
228,437,870
88.0%
201,025,326
N.Af. & M.E.
Iran
66,094,264
99.0%
65,433,321
N.Af. & M.E.
Iraq
21,422,292
97.0%
20,779,623
Eur
Ireland
3,840,838
2.0%
76,817
N.Af. & M.E.
Israel
5,421,995
14.0%
759,079
Eur
Italy
57,460,274
2.4%
1,379,047
L.Am.&Carib
Jamaica
2,665,636
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Japan
125,449,703
1.0%
1,254,497
N.Af. & M.E.
Jordan
4,212,152
95.0%
4,001,544
Asia & Pacif.
Kazakstan
16,916,463
51.2%
8,661,229
Africa
Kenya
28,176,686
29.5%
8,312,122
Asia & Pacif.
Korea, North
21,968,228
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Korea, South
47,904,370
1.0%
479,044
N.Af. & M.E.
Kuwait
1,950,047
89.0%
1,735,542
Asia & Pacif.
Kyrgyzstan
4,529,648
76.1%
3,447,062
Asia & Pacif.
Laos
5,635,967
2.0%
112,719
Eur
Latvia
2,385,231
0.4%
9,064
N.Af. & M.E.
Lebanon
3,776,317
70.0%
2,643,422
Africa
Lesotho
1,970,781
10.0%
197,078
Africa
Liberia
2,109,789
30.0%
632,937
N.Af. & M.E.
Libya
5,445,436
100.0%
5,445,436
Eur
Lithuania
3,610,535
0.1%
5,055
Eur
Macedonia
2,104,035
30.0%
631,211
Africa
Madagascar
13,670,507
20.0%
2,734,101
Africa
Malawi
9,452,844
35.0%
3,308,495
Asia & Pacif.
Malaysia
19,962,893
52.0%
10,380,704
Africa
Maldives
270,758
100.0%
270,758
Africa
Mali
9,653,261
90.0%
8,687,935
Eur
Malta
375,576
14.0%
52,581
Africa
Mauritania
2,336,048
100.0%
2,336,048
Africa
Mauritius
1,140,256
19.5%
222,350
Africa
Mayotte
100,838
99.0%
99,830
N. Amer.
Mexico
101,879,171
0.0%
0
Russian states
Moldova
4,431,570
0.2%
8,863
Asia & Pacif.
Mongolia
2,496,617
4.0%
99,865
N.Af. & M.E.
Morocco
29,779,156
98.7%
29,392,027
Africa
Mozambique
17,877,927
29.0%
5,184,599
Africa
Namibia
1,677,243
5.0%
83,862
Asia & Pacif.
Nepal
22,094,033
4.0%
883,761
Eur
Netherlands
15,568,034
5.4%
840,674
Asia & Pacif.
New Zealand
3,864,129
1.0%
38,641
L.Am.&Carib
Nicaragua
4,918,393
0.0%
0
Africa
Niger
9,113,001
91.0%
8,292,831
Africa
Nigeria
126,635,626
75.0%
94,976,720
Eur
Norway
4,438,547
1.0%
46,161
N.Af. & M.E.
Oman
2,186,548
100.0%
2,186,548
Asia & Pacif.
Pakistan
144,616,639
97.0%
140,278,140
L.Am.&Carib
Panama
2,655,094
4.0%
106,204
Asia & Pacif.
Papua New Guinea
5,049,055
0.0%
0
L.Am.&Carib
Paraguay
5,734,139
0.0%
0
L.Am.&Carib
Peru
27,483,864
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Philippines
74,480,848
14.0%
10,427,319
Eur
Poland
38,633,912
2.0%
772,678
Eur
Portugal
10,066,253
0.5%
50,331
L.Am.&Carib
Puerto Rico
3,937,316
0.0%
0
N.Af. & M.E.
Qatar
547,761
100.0%
547,761
Africa
Reunion
679,198
20.0%
135,840
Eur
Romania
21,657,162
1.0%
216,572
Russian states
Russia
145,470,197
10.2%
14,837,960
Africa
Rwanda
7,312,756
14.0%
1,023,786
N.Af. & M.E.
Saudi Arabia
19,409,058
100.0%
19,409,058
Africa
Senegal
9,092,749
95.0%
8,638,112
Africa
Sierra Leone
4,793,121
65.0%
3,115,529
Asia & Pacif.
Singapore
3,396,924
17.0%
577,477
Eur
Slovakia
5,414,937
0.2%
10,830
Eur
Slovenia
1,951,443
1.6%
30,247
Africa
Somalia
9,639,151
100.0%
9,639,151
Africa
South Africa
41,743,459
2.0%
834,869
Eur
Spain
40,037,995
1.2%
480,456
Asia & Pacif.
Sri Lanka
18,553,074
9.0%
1,669,777
Africa
Sudan
31,547,543
85.0%
26,815,412
Asia & Pacif.
Suriname
436,418
25.0%
109,105
Africa
Swaziland
998,730
10.0%
99,873
Eur
Sweden
9,800,000
3.1%
303,800
Eur
Switzerland
7,283,274
3.1%
225,781
N.Af. & M.E.
Syria
15,608,648
90.0%
14,047,783
Asia & Pacif.
Taiwan
22,370,461
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Tajikistan
5,916,373
85.0%
5,028,917
Africa
Tanzania
29,058,470
65.0%
18,888,006
Asia & Pacif.
Thailand
58,851,357
14.0%
8,239,190
Africa
Togo
4,570,530
55.0%
2,513,792
L.Am.&Carib
Trinidad and Tobago
1,272,385
12.0%
152,686
N.Af. & M.E.
Tunisia
9,019,687
98.0%
8,839,293
Eur
Turkey
66,493,970
99.6%
66,254,592
Asia & Pacif.
Turkmenistan
4,149,283
87.0%
3,609,876
Africa
Uganda
20,158,176
36.0%
7,256,943
Asia & Pacif.
Ukraine
48,760,474
0.5%
219,422
N.Af. & M.E.
United Arab Emirates
3,057,337
96.0%
2,935,044
Eur
United Kingdom
58,489,975
2.0%
1,169,800
N. Amer.
United States
278,058,881
3.5%
9,732,061
L.Am.&Carib
Uruguay
3,360,105
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Uzbekistan
23,418,381
88.0%
20,608,175
L.Am.&Carib
Venezuela
23,916,810
0.0%
0
Asia & Pacif.
Vietnam
79,939,014
1.0%
799,390
N.Af. & M.E.
West Bank
2,090,713
75.0%
1,568,035
N.Af. & M.E.
Western Sahara
222,631
100.0%
222,631
N.Af. & M.E.
Yemen
13,483,178
99.0%
13,348,346
Eur
Yugoslavia
10,677,290
19.0%
2,028,685
Africa
Zambia
9,159,072
15.0%
1,373,861
Africa
Zimbabwe
11,271,314
15.0%
1,690,697

Total
6,036,972,881
0.0%
1,480,083,062

Investment Property Specialists / Project Development & Finance & Off Plan Sales

World Fact Book

Legend: Definition Field Listing Rank Order

Introduction
Panama
Top of Page
Background:
Explored and settled by the Spanish in the 16th century, Panama broke with Spain in 1821 and joined a union of Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela - named the Republic of Gran Colombia. When the latter dissolved in 1830, Panama remained part of Colombia. With US backing, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 and promptly signed a treaty with the US allowing for the construction of a canal and US sovereignty over a strip of land on either side of the structure (the Panama Canal Zone). The Panama Canal was built by the US Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914. In 1977, an agreement was signed for the complete transfer of the Canal from the US to Panama by the end of the century. Certain portions of the Zone and increasing responsibility over the Canal were turned over in the subsequent decades. With US help, dictator Manuel NORIEGA was deposed in 1989. The entire Panama Canal, the area supporting the Canal, and remaining US military bases were transferred to Panama by the end of 1999. In October 2006, Panamanians approved an ambitious plan to expand the Canal. The project, which began in 2007 and could double the Canal's capacity, is expected to be completed in 2014-15.

Geography
Panama
Top of Page
Location:
Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Colombia and Costa Rica
Geographic coordinates:
9 00 N, 80 00 W
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 78,200 sq km land: 75,990 sq km water: 2,210 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than South Carolina
Land boundaries:
total: 555 km border countries: Colombia 225 km, Costa Rica 330 km
Coastline:
2,490 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm or edge of continental margin
Climate:
tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainy season (May to January), short dry season (January to May)
Terrain:
interior mostly steep, rugged mountains and dissected, upland plains; coastal areas largely plains and rolling hills
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Volcan Baru 3,475 m
Natural resources:
copper, mahogany forests, shrimp, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 7.26% permanent crops: 1.95% other: 90.79% (2005)
Irrigated land:
430 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
148 cu km (2000)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 0.82 cu km/yr (67%/5%/28%) per capita: 254 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
occasional severe storms and forest fires in the Darien area
Environment - current issues:
water pollution from agricultural runoff threatens fishery resources; deforestation of tropical rain forest; land degradation and soil erosion threatens siltation of Panama Canal; air pollution in urban areas; mining threatens natural resources
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note:
strategic location on eastern end of isthmus forming land bridge connecting North and South America; controls Panama Canal that links North Atlantic Ocean via Caribbean Sea with North Pacific Ocean

People
Panama
Top of Page
Population:
3,292,693 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 29.8% (male 500,579/female 480,635) 15-64 years: 63.6% (male 1,061,446/female 1,033,675) 65 years and over: 6.6% (male 100,780/female 115,578) (2008 est.)
Median age:
total: 26.6 years male: 26.3 years female: 26.9 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.528% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
21.15 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:
5.52 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
-0.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 15.62 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.95 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 75.17 years male: 72.71 years female: 77.73 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.65 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.9% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
16,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
fewer than 500 (2003 est.)
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: intermediate food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea and hepatitis A vectorborne disease: dengue fever and malaria water contact disease: leptospirosis (2008)
Nationality:
noun: Panamanian(s) adjective: Panamanian
Ethnic groups:
mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 70%, Amerindian and mixed (West Indian) 14%, white 10%, Amerindian 6%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 15%
Languages:
Spanish (official), English 14%; note - many Panamanians bilingual
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 91.9% male: 92.5% female: 91.2% (2000 census)

Government
Panama
Top of Page
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Panama conventional short form: Panama local long form: Republica de Panama local short form: Panama
Government type:
constitutional democracy
Capital:
name: Panama geographic coordinates: 8 58 N, 79 32 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
11 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia) and 1 territory* (comarca); Bocas del Toro, Comarca Kuna Yala, Comarca Ngobe-Bugle, Chiriqui, Cocle, Colon, Darien, Herrera, Los Santos, Panama, San Blas*(Kuna Yala), and Veraguas
Independence:
3 November 1903 (from Colombia; became independent from Spain 28 November 1821)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 3 November (1903)
Constitution:
11 October 1972; major reforms adopted 1978, 1983, 1994, and 2004
Legal system:
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Justice; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Martin TORRIJOS Espino (since 1 September 2004); First Vice President Samuel LEWIS Navarro (since 1 September 2004); Second Vice President Ruben AROSEMENA Valdes (since 1 September 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Martin TORRIJOS Espino (since 1 September 2004); First Vice President Samuel LEWIS Navarro (since 1 September 2004); Second Vice President Ruben AROSEMENA Valdes (since 1 September 2004) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice presidents elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms (not eligible for immediate reelection; president and vice presidents must sit out two additional terms (10 years) before becoming eligible for reelection); election last held 2 May 2004 (next to be held on 3 May 2009); note - beginning in 2009, Panama will have only one vice president election results: Martin TORRIJOS Espino elected president; percent of vote - Martin TORRIJOS Espino 47.5%, Guillermo ENDARA Galimany 30.6%, Jose Miguel ALEMAN 17%, Ricardo MARTINELLI 4.9% note: government coalition - PRD (Democratic Revolutionary Party), PP (Popular Party)
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Asamblea Nacional (78 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - in 2009, the number of seats will change to 71 elections: last held 2 May 2004 (next to be held 3 May 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRD 41, PA 17, PS 9, MOLIRENA 4, CD 3, PLN 3, PP 1 note: legislators from outlying rural districts are chosen on a plurality basis while districts located in more populous towns and cities elect multiple legislators by means of a proportion-based formula
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of Justice or Corte Suprema de Justicia (nine judges appointed for 10-year terms); five superior courts; three courts of appeal
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Change or CD [Ricardo MARTINELLI]; Democratic Revolutionary Party or PRD [Hugo GUIRAUD]; Nationalist Republican Liberal Movement or MOLIRENA [Gisela CHUNG]; Panamenista Party or PA [Juan Carlos VARELA] (formerly the Arnulfista Party); Patriotic Union Party or PU (combination of the Liberal National Party or PLN and the Solidarity Party or PS)[Jose Raul MULINO and Anibal GALINDO]; Popular Party or PP [Rene ORILLAC] (formerly Christian Democratic Party or PDC)
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Chamber of Commerce; National Civic Crusade; National Council of Organized Workers or CONATO; National Council of Private Enterprise or CONEP; National Union of Construction and Similar Workers (SUNTRACS); Panamanian Association of Business Executives or APEDE; Panamanian Industrialists Society or SIP; Workers Confederation of the Republic of Panama or CTRP
International organization participation:
BCIE, CAN (observer), CSN (observer), FAO, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Federico HUMBERT Arias chancery: 2862 McGill Terrace NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 483-1407 FAX: [1] (202) 483-8416 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Honolulu, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico), Tampa
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador William A. EATON embassy: Edificio 783, Avenida Demetrio Basilio Lakas Panama, Apartado Postal 0816-02561, Zona 5, Panama City 5 mailing address: American Embassy Panama, Unit 0945, APO AA 34002 telephone: [507] 207-7000 FAX: [507] 227-1964
Flag description:
divided into four, equal rectangles; the top quadrants are white (hoist side) with a blue five-pointed star in the center and plain red; the bottom quadrants are plain blue (hoist side) and white with a red five-pointed star in the center

Economy
Panama
Top of Page
Economy - overview:
Panama's dollarized economy rests primarily on a well-developed services sector that accounts for two-thirds of GDP. Services include operating the Panama Canal, banking, the Colon Free Zone, insurance, container ports, flagship registry, and tourism. Economic growth will be bolstered by the Panama Canal expansion project that began in 2007 and should be completed by 2014 at a cost of $5.3 billion (about 30% of current GDP). The expansion project will more than double the Canal's capacity, enabling it to accommodate ships that are now too large to transverse the transoceanic crossway and should help to reduce the high unemployment rate. The government has implemented tax reforms, as well as social security reforms, and backs regional trade agreements and development of tourism. Not a CAFTA signatory, Panama in December 2006 independently negotiated a free trade agreement with the US, which, when implemented, will help promote the country's economic growth.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$34.51 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$19.74 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
11.2% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$10,300 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 6.6% industry: 16.4% services: 77% (2007 est.)
Labor force:
1.362 million note: shortage of skilled labor, but an oversupply of unskilled labor (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 15% industry: 18% services: 67% (2006)
Unemployment rate:
6.4% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line:
37% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 0.7% highest 10%: 43% (2003)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
56.1 (2003)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.2% (2007 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
20.1% of GDP (2007 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $5.505 billion expenditures: $4.822 billion (2007 est.)
Public debt:
52.8% of GDP (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products:
bananas, rice, corn, coffee, sugarcane, vegetables; livestock; shrimp
Industries:
construction, brewing, cement and other construction materials, sugar milling
Industrial production growth rate:
10.5% (2007 est.)
Electricity - production:
5.661 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - consumption:
4.735 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports:
51 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports:
55 million kWh (2005)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption:
93,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
4,140 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - imports:
92,170 bbl/day (2004)
Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2005 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2005)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance:
-$1.579 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$9.312 billion f.o.b.; note - includes the Colon Free Zone (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
bananas, shrimp, sugar, coffee, clothing
Exports - partners:
US 39.8%, Spain 8.1%, Netherlands 6.7%, Sweden 5.6%, Costa Rica 4.5% (2006)
Imports:
$12.63 billion f.o.b. note: includes the Colon Free Zone (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals
Imports - partners:
US 27%, Netherlands Antilles 10.1%, Costa Rica 5.1%, Japan 4.7% (2006)
Economic aid - recipient:
$19.54 million (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.935 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$10.45 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$NA
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$NA
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$5.074 billion (2005)
Currency (code):
balboa (PAB); US dollar (USD)
Exchange rates:
balboas per US dollar - 1 (2007), 1 (2006), 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications
Panama
Top of Page
Telephones - main lines in use:
432,900 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
1.694 million (2005)
Telephone system:
general assessment: domestic and international facilities well developed domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity is approaching 70 per 100 persons international: country code - 507; landing point for the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1), the MAYA-1, and PAN-AM submarine cable systems that together provide links to the US, and parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to the Central American Microwave System
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 101, FM 134, shortwave 0 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
38 (including repeaters) (1998)
Internet country code:
.pa
Internet hosts:
7,078 (2007)
Internet users:
220,000 (2006)

Transportation
Panama
Top of Page
Airports:
116 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 54 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 18 under 914 m: 29 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 62 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 50 (2007)
Heliports:
2 (2007)
Railways:
total: 355 km standard gauge: 77 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 278 km 0.914-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:
total: 11,643 km paved: 4,028 km unpaved: 7,615 km (2000)
Waterways:
800 km (includes 82 km Panama Canal) (2007)

Merchant marine:
total: 5,764 ships (1000 GRT or over) 159,649,801 GRT/240,190,316 DWT by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 1,940, cargo 1,034, carrier 3, chemical tanker 507, combination ore/oil 6, container 710, liquefied gas 191, livestock carrier 7, passenger 46, passenger/cargo 72, petroleum tanker 522, refrigerated cargo 288, roll on/roll off 129, specialized tanker 22, vehicle carrier 285 foreign-owned: 4,949 (Albania 1, Argentina 8, Australia 4, Bahamas 2, Bangladesh 1, Belgium 11, Bulgaria 1, Canada 17, Chile 8, China 473, Colombia 4, Croatia 6, Cuba 11, Cyprus 15, Denmark 32, Dominican Republic 1, Ecuador 2, Egypt 13, Estonia 3, France 15, Gabon 1, Germany 38, Greece 505, Hong Kong 137, India 25, Indonesia 37, Iran 4, Ireland 1, Israel 2, Italy 10, Jamaica 1, Japan 2,151, Jordan 11, South Korea 316, Kuwait 1, Latvia 5, Lebanon 3, Lithuania 5, Malaysia 14, Maldives 1, Malta 2, Mexico 4, Monaco 11, Netherlands 14, Nigeria 6, Norway 60, Oman 1, Pakistan 5, Peru 15, Philippines 12, Poland 15, Portugal 9, Qatar 1, Romania 8, Russia 9, Saudi Arabia 14, Singapore 83, Spain 61, Sri Lanka 3, Sweden 9, Switzerland 26, Syria 24, Taiwan 306, Thailand 10, Turkey 53, Turks and Caicos Islands 1, Ukraine 8, UAE 108, UK 35, US 115, Venezuela 10, Vietnam 10, Yemen 5) registered in other countries: 1 (Venezuela 1) (2007)
Ports and terminals:
Balboa, Colon, Cristobal

Military
Panama
Top of Page
Military branches:
no regular military forces; Panamanian Public Forces or PPF includes the Panamanian National Police (PNP), National Maritime Service (NMS), and National Air Service (NAS) (2008)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 851,044 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 673,103 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
males age 16-49: 30,348 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
1% (2006)

Military - note:
on 10 February 1990, the government of then President ENDARA abolished Panama's military and reformed the security apparatus by creating the Panamanian Public Forces; in October 1994, Panama's Legislative Assembly approved a constitutional amendment prohibiting the creation of a standing military force but allowing the temporary establishment of special police units to counter acts of "external aggression"

Transnational Issues
Panama
Top of Page
Disputes - international:
organized illegal narcotics operations in Colombia operate within the remote border region with Panama
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - (2008)
Illicit drugs:
major cocaine transshipment point and primary money-laundering center for narcotics revenue; money-laundering activity is especially heavy in the Colon Free Zone; offshore financial center; negligible signs of coca cultivation; monitoring of financial transactions is improving; official corruption remains a major problem
This page was last updated on 19 June 2008

sábado, 28 de junio de 2008

"If the American people ever allow private banks to control
the issue of their currency
,

first by inflation,

then by deflation,

the banks and corporations that will grow up around them

will deprive the people of all property

until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.

The issuing issuance of the currency power

should be taken from the banks

and restored to the people,
to whom it properly belongs."

- Thomas Jefferson,

Letter to Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin (1802)

In Panama today, we are being robbed
of our national territory,
natural resources and left propertyless
by private banking and corporate interests, national and foreign.

viernes, 27 de junio de 2008

work for the public interest

Elections, Capitalism, And Democracy
By Charles Sullivan26/06/08 "ICH" -- -

Because so many of the people on the political left fear that John McCain will become the next president, they have allowed themselves to see the very moderate democratic candidate, Barach Obama, as a desirable alternative to the decidedly ghoulish McCain, rather than supporting a genuine progressive like Dennis Kucinich, Cynthia McKinney, or Ralph Nader.

They thus perceive Obama to be far more progressive than he really is. Such comparisons lead us down a dichotomous pathway that assures a continuous drift to the right.Each election cycle the people on the left find themselves out-flanked by those on the right by allowing them to frame the debate and to define who we are. So each election we end up supporting a very moderate candidate rather than a truly progressive one.

Because all of the mainstream candidates are intensively influenced by corporate lobbyists and the electoral system is owned by capital, democracy has remained as elusive as capturing the ghost of a saint with a piece of duct tape.According to Ambrose I. Lane Sr., host of Pacifica radio’s “We Ourselves,” John McCain has the third most conservative voting record of anyone in the senate. Running an extremist from the opposite end of the political spectrum forces the democratic candidate further to the right than he or she already is.

So when progressives fall into this trap, as they so often do, it is a win-win for the corporate lobbyists pulling the strings behind the curtain. They end up supporting a candidate they think can compete against extremists rather than one who actually represents their values.

If you have to become like your opponent in order to defeat them, what can you honesty say has been won?Progressives cannot gain ground by ceding their ideology to their conservative opponents in order to gain office. Without having a viable candidate coming from the far left of the Democratic Party, progressives cannot reasonably expect to push the debate back toward the political center, much less to the left of center. You can make a good case, however, that the democratic leadership under Howard Dean has no real desire to move to the left or to represent traditional progressive values. It likes the status quo just fine; a position that has served its corporate funders well.

Because it has been co-opted by corporate lobbyists—who always hedge their bets—the Democratic Party no longer houses a genuine left-wing faction that can effectively compete for votes in a way that emulates the success of the far right. Because right-wing extremism and corporate fascism are portrayed in the corporate media as reasonable centrist positions beneficial to the people—that is how they are perceived by those who receive their political education from those sources.

Thus extremism packaged as democracy is widely considered to be the norm when, in fact, it is not; it is fanaticism couched as something much more benign or beneficial, even if it is a poison pill. Yet it is this extremism that undermines the interests of the nation’s working class people and keeps them subservient to corporate fascism. Voting for meaningful change is like running on a treadmill and expecting to actually go somewhere.

The problem is that capital, rather than informed citizens interested in democracy, is in control of the electoral process. Capital furthers the interest of capital, rather than the interest of the people, and this creates an irreconcilable conflict with genuine human interests. So we end up with a sociopolitical system that is not only fundamentally unjust; it is also predatory and cannibalistic. It consumes the very people who feed it and give it the appearance of legitimacy: the great unwashed working class.

Capitalism flourishes, for a short time, at least, by socializing costs and by privatizing profits and this concentrates and centralizes power into the hands of a select few. Its real purpose is not to serve people; it is to exploit them. Capitalism isn’t even a natural system; it is a purely human construct that has no basis in nature. It is a synthetic system and, as we have seen through chemistry, synthetic systems tend to become mutagens, and thus promote cancer.Due in part to their extreme political naiveté and to delusional thinking, too many people have accepted corporate fascism as a centrist or “normal” position.

Thus they have unwittingly allowed predatory and cannibalistic forces—unregulated marketsto determine the fate of the nation and its people. Neoconservatives and neoliberals, alike, have defined the free market as an unregulated market, which has become their concept of democracy. The so called free market is not under the control of human beings in any meaningful sense, and it does not respond to human needs. Like a creation of Frankenstein, it is a man-made monster that has escaped from the laboratory and is wreaking havoc across the countryside, menacing everyone and everything in its gargantuan steel-booted path.By themselves, markets are not necessarily a bad thing.

Certainly people need commerce and trade. However, it is when markets are deregulated—as required by the adherents of Milton Friedman and the Chicago School of Economics—that they turn upon people and become predatory, undemocratic, and cannibalistic. When markets are given more power and more rights than people, people will cede not only their power to them, but also their humanity. This is how markets have become all-powerful entities that have no soul or conscience and are answerable to no one: monstrosities in every sense of the word.

I would argue, however, that the object of commerce and trade should be to serve people and to benefit the whole of society, rather than to generate enormous profits for the benefit of a select few. Commerce without democracy cannot help us toward a free and democratic society; it can only undermine our every effort at genuine democratization.Either you work for the public interest or you work for self-interest. It is this assertion that finally brings us back to our starting point—the electoral process. Because the process is under the control of capital rather than working class people, it undermines the democratic process and substitutes something else in its place. That process has led us to where we are and it can never take us back to where we started from. Nor can it ever lead us to genuine democracy or to justice. It can only bear the fruit of its own seeds; it can only provide us with more of what it has already produced.

If we the people are serious about real democratic government, we must work for it outside of the electoral process, as well as from within.

We must organize a revolutionary force so powerful that it cannot be ignored or denied. We must institute effective and prolonged economic boycotts. We must organize work slow-downs, work stoppages, and general strikes in order to make corrupt government feel our pain. We must create labor unions that genuinely fight for worker’s rights while simultaneously transitioning the country away from an exploitive and self-destructive capital economy toward a people-oriented economy based upon need, rather than privatized profit subsidized by public funds.

These are the means to creating a democratic workplace and bringing malignant capitalism to a grinding halt.

The electoral process does not provide the tools for revolution; it subverts the process and only delays the inevitable.While Barach Obama has run for the presidency on the premise of change, his ideology is fundamentally the same as the presidents who came before him: the economic theories of Milton Friedman and the belief in corporate deregulation; profits before people. Obama’s economic advisers subscribe to the same economic theorem that brought us the trickle down economics of Ronald Reagan and his disastrous foreign policy.

Obama’s foreign policy advisers subscribe to the same philosophy that brought us the invasion of Iraq and the Israeli occupation of Palestine; every one of them a war-mongering imperialist with close ties to the military industrial complex with its nexus of profiteering.

His energy policy team has great faith in clean coal and safe nuclear energy, neither of which exists.Because the Obama team is anything but revolutionary, it is unreasonable to expect them to produce polices significantly different than the ones that are already in play. We saw this with Bill Clinton who campaigned on promises to do one thing but, once elected, did another. Clinton won office by being more right-wing than his republican opponent. That was no victory for progressives. How could it be?This is not to say that Barach Obama is a bad person in any way.

Certainly, he is an intelligent man of reasonably good character and a fine orator, but that does not qualify him as representative of the people or the democracy they so desperately need.

Is he a better choice than John McCain? Without doubt he is. But then, so is almost anyone else. A toadstool would be a better choice than McCain. We must remember that Obama has been groomed to become president some day and that grooming was provided by special interests whose unstated purpose is to undermine genuine democracy by substituting an imposter in its place. They are convinced that the American people won’t know the difference. So don’t expect any significant changes under Obama, despite all of the campaign rhetoric to the contrary.The presence of McCain makes the very moderate Obama an appealing alternative and that assures victory for the status quo.

It frightens progressive voters away from supporting real progressives like Dennis Kucinich or Cynthia McKinney. Barach Obama was the real choice of the established orthodoxy all along. The marketing strategists have used John McCain to funnel the votes toward Obama and away from genuine progressives. That is where the real fight was.

You can call it voting in the absence of real choice because that is precisely what it is. The same policies that have been in play for decades will continue on and we will keep getting a similar result.Obama’s recent endorsement of warrantless wire-tapping is not only evidence of his belonging to the established orthodoxy; it directly connects him to the draconian policies of the Bush regime and to those of Senator McCain. No true progressive would want to be associated with the unlawful and unjustified surveillance of law-abiding citizens. This is a red flag that must not be ignored.

This is why the country continues to quietly drift further to the right: there is no real choice in elections and we continue to behave as if there are. It is the capitalist system that is at fault, not the candidates themselves who play the game according to the dictum of its inventors. They, too, as despicable as some of them are, are its unwitting victims.

What hope is there for genuine progressives in a game that is rigged? If we are ever to become responsible citizens, we must learn how to separate the contents of the box from the fancy packaging. The same old ideology, regardless of who espouses it, will not lead to meaningful change; nor will pursing the same old methods. If we are going to be satisfied with that, then we can continue to be pawns in a rich man’s game and accept the results of the game without complaint.

If we expect better, then we must begin by demanding better of ourselves by recognizing what is being done in our name and doing something about it. But first we must awaken from our stupor and come to the realization that democracy means direct citizen action.

Charles Sullivan welcomes your comments at csullivan@copper.net

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