Free trade and Democracy:
Free trade has become synonomous with democracy. To cons, they are congruent, and to Dems they are inextricably linked, and to Pros they are diametrically opposed.
There are several problems with the linking of freemarkets to democracy. First off, there are the problems in the definitions of each word.
Defining Free trade:
Are we talking about free trade as in Adam Smith? Or are we talking free tradeas in Alan Greenspan?
Are we talking about regulated free markets, or unregulated free markets?
Or are we talking about free trade, status quo?
more after the bump...
Each of these definitions are different, each are held by a different segment of the population, and each are used differently in depending upon the situation.
Defining Democracy:
Are we talking true democracy, representative government, republican government, or the will of the people?
Given the ambiguous nature of the definitions, and the sources of our information, it should come as no suprise that nearly all factions in mainstream American politics support free trade and democracy, and many of those factions believe that they are inixtricably linked.
Which brings us to the second problem with the linking of free trade to democracy.
Where do we get our information:
The majority of Americans as well as the majority of Kossacks get their information from the mainstream. Oh, we may think we get it from alternate sources, but that is a relatively new phenomena for most of us. Those of us under 40 have gotten nearly all of our information from corporate sources, from sources that believe that the guiding hand of the 'free market' is the only path to success. Those older than 40, I am not willing to speak for.
I submit that the younger we are, the more apt we are to believe that democracy and free trade are closely linked. I believe that this is a myth.
Now on to my point.
I was thinking about how much of a crackpot I am because I do not believe that free trade is necessarily positive. I wanted to come up with a simple concept to show how free markets and free trade are not the magical dream that most of us seem to think they are.
I came up with a simple illustration of the natural unfairness, or the propensity for abuse that are inherent in free trade and free market ideology, and that illustration is a game of poker.
Poker as Free Market Competition:
Now poker is a relatively fair game, and has quite a bit in common with freetrade and free market ideology. If one is skillful and has a working knowledge of the rules, one stands a good chance of doing well in a poker game. Sometimes you bluff, sometimes you cut your losses, sometimes you win, sometimes you go all in and lose. It is a competition that pits your wits, your pocketbook and your skill against the same attributes of your opponent for personal gain. This is not much different than competing in the marketplace.
This is about as far as the information given to Americans about the market goes. If you are skillful, wise, and take risks, you can succeed. Unfortunately, there is another aspect of free market ideology that is rarely brought up by the proponents of that ideology, and that is the stakes.
The stakes, in poker, are absolutely the determing factor, not just in who wins, but in who can even sit at the table.
Excercise:
Take a few of your free trading friends, and sit down to a table with a deck of cards. Give the most vehemently capitalistic person at the table 15 pennies, and Give the least capitalistic of you 500. Set the ante at $.05 and play poker.
Instantly, that monster capitalist will want to become a socialist. He will want some of your money. He will decry the inherent unfairness of the game. Odds are, he won't play. If he does play, and he loses, tell him you will give him 2 pennies for every beer he brings an active player.
You could also loan him .10 cents at a time with the stipulation that he has to give you 10% of his winnings.
This is how free markets, status quo, operate.
The game of global free trade economics is inherently unfair. Haiti does not even have enough money to sit at the free trade table. They can't even go 'all in' in our global poker game, the big money will simply raise them out of the game.