The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
Colette Francis -
In my first year of business school I sat on a fold-down seat in a crowded lecture theatre, listening to a professor with a Texan drawl hammer home the central principle of modern economics. I looked around to see hundreds of eighteen-year-olds swallow his words like bait on a hook. Self-interest is good. Self-interest is better. Self-interest is best. Tentatively I raised my hand.
"Excuse me, sir,’ I asked. ‘Shouldn’t we care about poor people?"
He started up...
The G20 was not about bringing about the 'new world order' touted by Britain's Gordon Brown. It was an attempt to maintain the 'old world order', contends Leo Panitch, Professor of political science at York University and author of "The American Empire and the Political Economy of Global Finance." In his view, the G20 countries have come together with an agreement around a bunch of rhetoric and some "not insignificant measures." The rhetoric is that they are united...
Democracy Now -
Tens of thousands of protesters from around the world have gathered in London to demonstrate against the G20 talks and call for economic justice and environmental accountability. Amy Goodman of Democracy Now interviews Walden Bello of Focus on the Global South to get his perspective on the G20.
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AMY GOODMAN: President Obama is in London today ahead of the G20 summit, where world leaders are gathering to discuss the global economic crisis. It marks Obama’s first trip to Europe since...
There's been an outcry in America about the financial rescue plan unveiled by the Obama administration under the leadership of Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner. The Obama administration plans to buy up $2 trillion in toxic financial assets. The plan is being denounced by economists in the mainstream press, as well as commentators in the alternative media. Pepe Escobar also provides excellent commentary of Geithner's PPPIP (Public-Private Partnership Investment Programme), which he refers...
Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen -
Current debates on the motor industry rescue plan remind me of the origins of the term "Hobson’s choice". The phrase draws from a Mr. Hobson that rented out horses, and gave his customers no choice as to which horse they would rent. By limiting the choices available to customers, Mr. Hobson ensured that he both managed his stock, and ensured a rotation of horses.
South African motor industries, through skilful lobbying, are arguing that the rescue plan is the only option...
Democracy Now -
The worldwide financial crisis is forcing some to rethink the neoliberal policies widely blamed for the financial collapse. Democracy Now's Amy Goodman speaks with University of Cambridge economist Ha-Joon Chang. He is an economist specializing in developmental economics. In 2005, he was awarded the Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought. Chang is also author of the books "Kicking Away the Ladder: Development Strategy in Historical Perspective" and, his...
