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Monday, October 31, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Economic Developement in Cuba
Economic Developement in Cuba: The American far left, such as Michel Moore and Oliver Stone, continue to view Cuba as a role model. The European left is even more admiring of Cuban socialism.
But don't be fooled by the selective propaganda. Cuba is extremely poor. Here is a picture my friend took when in vacation in Cuba a few weeks ago.
One explanation the left offers for Cuba’s poverty is sanctions by the United States. The sanctions imposed by the American capitalists certainly hurt, but there are plenty of other countries Cuba can trade with other than the U.S if it had something to sell.
Another excuse is that Cuba started poor. True, but so did other Latin American countries which developed while Cuba stagnated.
Lets compare Cuban growth with that of Chile and Costa Rica. Similar to Cuba, Chile was led by brutal dictators for long periods in recent history. Augusto Pinochet's right-wing dictatorship murdered at least 3.200 people. Fidel Castro similarly murdered 5.000-12.000 political opponents. Costa Rica instead was mostly a democracy.
Costa Rica and Cuba started at a similar level of development, while Chile was somewhat richer in 1950. Yet while Costa Rica and Chile developed, Cuba’s economy lagged behind. Only in recent years, when the tourism sector was opened to capitalism, has Cuba had some limited growth.
Socialism killed a half century of growth in Cuba.
One defense of Cuba is that it has high life expectancy. Sure, but really no higher than either Costa Rica or Chile. At any case, the Cuban dictatorship is almost certainly manipulating data regarding infant mortality and life expectancy, because those are their “storefront” figures used to manipulate gullible westerners. Communist dictatorships commonly put a lot of resources into boosting a few key statistics to use in propaganda.
For instance, the nice hospitals showcased to sympathetic westerners such as Michael Moore are for the Cuban elite and for foreigner. The health care ordinary Cubans have access to is of far lower quality.
Socialism has been a complete failure in terms of producing a high standard of living for the Cuban people. It is boring to have to kick in open doors like this. But young leftist in the west, such as those demonstrating against Capitalism in New York, desperately want to be fooled. Sadly it appears each generation of young people has to rediscover what a miserable failure socialism is.
But don't be fooled by the selective propaganda. Cuba is extremely poor. Here is a picture my friend took when in vacation in Cuba a few weeks ago.
One explanation the left offers for Cuba’s poverty is sanctions by the United States. The sanctions imposed by the American capitalists certainly hurt, but there are plenty of other countries Cuba can trade with other than the U.S if it had something to sell.
Another excuse is that Cuba started poor. True, but so did other Latin American countries which developed while Cuba stagnated.
Lets compare Cuban growth with that of Chile and Costa Rica. Similar to Cuba, Chile was led by brutal dictators for long periods in recent history. Augusto Pinochet's right-wing dictatorship murdered at least 3.200 people. Fidel Castro similarly murdered 5.000-12.000 political opponents. Costa Rica instead was mostly a democracy.
Costa Rica and Cuba started at a similar level of development, while Chile was somewhat richer in 1950. Yet while Costa Rica and Chile developed, Cuba’s economy lagged behind. Only in recent years, when the tourism sector was opened to capitalism, has Cuba had some limited growth.
Socialism killed a half century of growth in Cuba.
One defense of Cuba is that it has high life expectancy. Sure, but really no higher than either Costa Rica or Chile. At any case, the Cuban dictatorship is almost certainly manipulating data regarding infant mortality and life expectancy, because those are their “storefront” figures used to manipulate gullible westerners. Communist dictatorships commonly put a lot of resources into boosting a few key statistics to use in propaganda.
For instance, the nice hospitals showcased to sympathetic westerners such as Michael Moore are for the Cuban elite and for foreigner. The health care ordinary Cubans have access to is of far lower quality.
Socialism has been a complete failure in terms of producing a high standard of living for the Cuban people. It is boring to have to kick in open doors like this. But young leftist in the west, such as those demonstrating against Capitalism in New York, desperately want to be fooled. Sadly it appears each generation of young people has to rediscover what a miserable failure socialism is.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Tack Finland
Tack Finland:
Idag blev det klart att Finland bygger sin sjunde kärnkraftsreaktor i Pyhäjoki, 16 mil från Skellefteå. I en tid när tyskarna lägger ner fullt fungerande kärnkraft och andra gör allt för att sätta käppar i hjulet för nya reaktorer är det skönt att åtminstone ett land agerar rationellt. Det finns ett stor behov av energi och det går inte att tänka bort kärnkraften om vi både vill bryta vårt beroende av fossila bränslen och få ner koldioxidutsläppen. Sverige kommer att drabbas av den tyska avvecklingen som, även om den skulle stanna upp halvvägs, kommer att driva upp våra elpriser. Utökad kapacitet i Finland är positivt för oss. Men det räcker inte för att motivera en fortsatt svensk låsning där nuvarande producenter har getts monopol på byggandet av nya reaktorer.
Monday, October 10, 2011
Friday, October 7, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Taxing times
Taxing times:
Which governments take the biggest chunk from a $100,000 salary?
DENMARK has the highest rate of income tax for a person earning $100,000, according to a survey of effective tax rates in 93 countries published on September 29th by KPMG, an accounting firm. But employee social-security contributions in Denmark are only 0.2%, and once such contributions are taken into account, high earners in several countries, including Belgium, Greece, Germany and France, take home less than the Danes. Belgium’s government grabs the highest share from earnings of $100,000, at almost 48%. Between 2003 and 2009, the highest tax rates on personal income declined. But last year they increased by 0.4% as governments sought to reduce deficits. Sickly euro-zone economies such as Iceland, Ireland, Spain and Portugal were among the countries who levied more on their top earners. Countries that have suffered natural disasters, like Japan, may introduce temporary taxes.
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