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1096 Primakov - victory against neo-liberalism -- rank: 1000

In the principal contradiction within Russia between international finance capital and the Russian people, the massive election of Primakov by the Duma is a major victory and a major, major blow against neo-liberalism world wide. These statements rely in no way on faith in any one individual but from an analysis of what these individuals represent. This is not, as is the case with Hong Kong a question of admiration for the skill of the capitalist monetary authorities and for the determination of ...

Document Size:	9365
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sat Sep 12 07:06:13 PDT 1998

1097 A bad Tripp -- rank: 1000

One of the more perceptive legal observations on the international news networks, tonight is that all the sexual detail of the Starr report (easily accessible I found at CNN.COM) can only be quoted because of Linda Tripp's tapes. Otherwise as evidence it would just be "he said - she said". But Starr only has the opportunity of using these sexual details to try to prove perjury because they are corroborated by the Tripp tapes. Tripp is said to be the link who was meeting Jones's lawyers ...

Document Size:	6422
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Fri Sep 11 13:30:50 PDT 1998

1098 currency board -- rank: 1000

At 06:11 PM 9/9/98 -0400, you wrote: <snip> >Gregory P. Nowell >Associate Professor >Department of Political Science, Milne 100 >State University of New York A very helpful note. This morning I was interested in the calm way the CNBC reporter on Hong Kong discussed the suggestion that HSBC shorting itself was a scandal. He denied it was a scandal and explained that as HNBC provides a dealing service in Hong Kong which has included the ability to short (sell something you don't ...

Document Size:	6452
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Thu Sep 10 23:48:45 PDT 1998

1099 LETS in Russia? -- rank: 1000

Does anyone know if there has been concious discussion in Russia of LETS - Local Economic Trading Schemes, favoured by some Greens? Because in the course of the struggle to survive, it seems likely that this is being explored in practice in the absence of circulating currency. Chris Burford

Document Size:	4632
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Thu Sep 10 00:30:28 PDT 1998

1100 Virtual presidents -- rank: 1000

Clinton joked self-deprecatingly in Ireland after signing the first virtual trade treaty, that soon it would be possible to dispense with real presidents: it would be sufficient to have virtual ones. It was almost as if he were wishing he could have been that virtual president: the country, the economy, the campaigns, run by teams, and he could just be the crafted figure head. Able to concentrate on being virtual if not virtuous. Although the drama will focus around personal psychology - who is ...

Document Size:	6164
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Thu Sep 10 00:17:54 PDT 1998

1101 And now for Gore? -- rank: 1000

At 10:41 AM 9/8/98 -0400, you wrote: >Re Brad De Long's: "So now the left tries to keep the developing >economies of the world as poor >as possible--lest they pollute?" > >So, now the left says let's: (a) develop a language of economics that >takes a more accurate accounting, in all nations, of social costs that >are now merely "negative externalities," and (b) pursue economic >development along sustainable lines, as recommended, e.g., by E. F. > ...

Document Size:	7627
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Tue Sep 8 15:59:26 PDT 1998

1102 Apologies -- rank: 1000

I mistakenly copied a post about potatoes as money in Russia for the Capital Reading Group, to LBO talk, thereby also going over my three posts. Apologies. Chris Burford

Document Size:	4433
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Sep 7 15:40:06 PDT 1998

1103 Potatoes as money -- rank: 1000

In the last seven days there have been a number of dramatic accounts of how the people of Russia have been persevering in surviving through this currency crisis. For example a five minute documentary from around Moscow, illustrated how people come out to the farms to dig up potatoes by manual labour. They are paid in potatoes and give the surplus to the farmer. Then people use sacks of potatoes as currency. For example several were shown delivered as payment for school fees. Para 9 as Sven has c ...

Document Size:	7599
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Sep 7 15:24:34 PDT 1998

1104 Hong Kong Soars -- rank: 1000

At 09:24 AM 9/7/98 -0400, Louis wrote: >>Capitalism is still capitalism but the Chinese Asian economies look as if >>they are coming out of this crisis having struck a blow against >>short-termism. This is a significant victory in the fight back against >>neo-liberalism. >> >>Chris Burford > >This is ridiculous. There is no such thing as "neo-liberalism." You must be >referring to capitalism. As the passage quoted shows, I was indeed referri ...

Document Size:	6792
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Sep 7 14:55:56 PDT 1998

1105 Gore -- rank: 1000

At 04:03 PM 9/6/98 -0400, Louis quoted: >Chris Burford, referring to Albert Gore: >>OK so this devil is one we must sup with, with a short spoon! It may be >>easier to expose his weakness and his dependence on capitalism, if people >>try to push him, on specific reasonable reforms. and then followed up with a non-sequitur that shifted the terms of the argument. >It is very important for people to work hard at compromise, especially when >they are in a relationship. Whe ...

Document Size:	7891
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Mon Sep 7 00:30:46 PDT 1998

1106 Hong Kong Soars -- rank: 1000

Asian markets have risen strongly this morning. Part of this is the effect of the weakening of the dollar, helped by Greenspan's public hint that interest rates may come down. (He is thereby backing the strategy for reflating the world economy by printing dollars to fund free imports to the USA!) But the Hang Seng rose by percentage even more than the Nikkei. It is dangerous to go on any one movement and I do not have week to week figures, but my impression is that over the last few weeks where ...

Document Size:	5779
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Sep 6 23:54:18 PDT 1998

1107 Russia - Europe v. USA -- rank: 1000

We should note a contradiction potentially opening up between Europe and the USA about Russia... A cloud not bigger than a man's fist. It surfaced very indirectly in the absence of the British Foreign Secretary from a meeting in Austria to coordinate Europe's policy towards Russia. This was followed by an invitation from Britain to the senior officials of the Group of 7 to a meeting in London about Russia. Now it looks on the surface that on this, as on the hostilities with Iraq last year, as wi ...

Document Size:	6498
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Sep 6 15:15:04 PDT 1998

1108 The Gore -- rank: 1000

At 11:58 AM 9/6/98 -0400, you wrote: >greetings- > >Thanks so much Chris for another great link. >I'm not superstitious or religious or anything, but Al Gore is the devil, >pretty darn sure. OK so this devil is one we must sup with, with a short spoon! It may be easier to expose his weakness and his dependence on capitalism, if people try to push him, on specific reasonable reforms. So don't lets ask for an outright gift from the US Treasury to save the Guatemalan rain forest, but ...

Document Size:	6530
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Sep 6 12:39:01 PDT 1998

1109 S Africa: exchange controls/Tobin tax? -- rank: 1000

At 01:24 AM 9/6/98 +0000, Patrick wrote: >Thanks for this, Chris. Sure. And thanks for coming back and for some of the challenges under the Gore thread title, which help to sharpen up the debate. I think there, as Gary suggested, both points of view are right. I suggest what is happening is that we are hovering on the verge of what the internet can really do. Every single post is going to be one sided. But until we can find ways of linking through the network - not each one of us personally b ...

Document Size:	17324
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sun Sep 6 01:38:52 PDT 1998

1110 And now for Gore? -- rank: 1000

At 04:11 PM 9/4/98 -0700, you wrote: > I would just say that it would be very unwise to be fooled by Gore. If >one looks at his record as Senator and as vice-president (where he sided >in the adminstration) he is more conservative than Clinton. He voted >against women's right to abortion, very lukewarm toward labor, a >free-trader, and worst of all he has betrayed the environmental movement. >I want to puke when I hear him touted as an environmentalist (supposedly >Bush w ...

Document Size:	7562
Author:	Chris Burford
Date:	Sat Sep 5 03:03:06 PDT 1998