Αφιερωμένο

"...As experienced over the long decade, it is clear that the IMF programme was not simply to "stabilise" the economy, but went much further: to radically alter the social structure of the country. The executing actors of the programme included political circles, top level bureaucrats and finally some intellectuals attached to these groups. They shut their ears to reactions coming from different segments of society and were extremely intolerant to any criticism including very innocent ones. The behaviour of these groups was far distant from what can be given as the sine qua non of any democracy..."

"Turkey and the long decade with the IMF", By A. Enric Yeldan; Professor of Economics, Bilkent University, Ankara

"...Πού οφείλεται όμως αυτή η ξαφνική επανεκτίμηση των «προσόντων» της Τουρκικής Δημοκρατίας από τα εθνικά υπερήφανα ΜΜΕ μας;
Μάλλον όχι στις οικονομικές επιδόσεις της γείτονος αυτές καθαυτές. Άγνωστό πού βρήκε π.χ. ο Παπαχελάς την «ανάπτυξη 6%» που τον εντυπωσίασε, αφού σύμφωνα με τα επίσημα στοιχεία της Άγκυρας το τουρκικό ΑΕΠ μειώθηκε μέσα στο 2009 κατά 4,7% (AFP 31/3/10). Δύσκολα μπορεί επίσης να ζηλέψει κανείς μια κοινωνία όπου ο επίσημος κατώτατος μισθός δεν φτάνει καν τα 300 ευρώ, ενώ το μέσο μηνιαίο εισόδημα των φτωχότερων οικογενειών κυμαίνεται γύρω στα 150 ευρώ (Le Monde Diplomatique, 9/2008). Εκτός κι αν θαμπώνεται από το «επίτευγμα» ότι 35 Τούρκοι φιγουράρουν στη λίστα των πλουσιότερων ανθρώπων της υφηλίου!..."

"Η γοητεία του τουρκικού μοντέλου", Ιος Ελευθεροτυπίας, 2.5.2010 

"...The least irrelevant news was not good at all: The attendees (G-20) agreed to quadruple IMF funding to $1 trillion. Anything that bolsters IMF authority cannot be good for countries forced to submit to its austerity plans. They are designed to squeeze out more money to pay the world’s most predatory creditors. So in practice this G-20 agreement means that the world’s leading governments are responding to today’s financial crisis with “planned shrinkage” for debtors – a 10 per cent cut in wage payments in hapless Latvia, Hungary put on rations, and permanent debt peonage for Iceland for starters. This is quite a contrast with the United States, which is responding to the downturn with a giant Keynesian deficit spending program, despite its glaringly unpayable $4 trillion debt to foreign central banks [....] In fact, Iceland ( where I’m writing these lines) looks like a controlled experiment – a very cruel one – as to how deeply an economy can be “financialized” and how long its population will submit voluntarily to predatory financial behavior. If the attack were military, it would spur a more alert response. The trick is to keep the population from understanding the financial dynamics at work and the underlying fraudulent character of the debts with which it has been saddled – with the complicit aid of its own local oligarchy..."

"The IMF Rules the World", M. Hudson, Counterpunch, 6.4.2009

Εξαιρετικά αφιερωμένα στο φίλο μου το Σάκη, ο οποίος αν και είναι από τους ευφυέστερους ανθρώπους που έχω γνωρίσει, συνεχίζει για κάποιο ανεξήγητο λόγο να διαβάζει Καθημερινή και Παπαχελά σαν Ευαγγέλιο.