Como enérgicamente explicaba el presidente de Estados Unidos en su último mitin de campaña en Cleveland para las elecciones legislativas de este dos de noviembre, la única estrategia política de los republicanos, y por extensión, del “Tea Party”, se basa en asumir que todos tenemos amnesia.
Amnesia al pretender que, mediante la manipulación y la apelación al miedo, a la incultura y a la ignorancia al más puro estilo Bush, olvidemos que esta crisis la crearon ellos y sus ideales de ultra-desregulación financiera.
Que olvidemos que fueron ellos quienes pusieron el sistema al borde de la quiebra con su absurda adoración del laissez-faire radical y del ideario reaganiano, reduciendo el estado a la más mínima expresión, eliminando cualquier tipo de regulación, supervisión y control sobre los mercados financieros e incitando a los bancos a que hicieran lo que hicieron, es decir, guiarse única y exclusivamente por la codicia.
Como todo el mundo debería saber, la codicia rompe el saco. Con ello nos arrastraron a todos y obligaron a los que vinieron después, Obama y los demócratas, a solucionar la terrible papeleta de evitar nada más y nada menos que el derrumbamiento del capitalismo a base de tirar de endeudamiento público. El estado, una vez más, al rescate del mercado.
Es curioso como las voces que hoy claman y reclaman contra el tamaño excesivo de la deuda pública no dijeron ni mú al aprobarse los tremendamente gigantescos paquetes de ayuda a los bancos de Wall Street. O, remontándonos unos pocos años antes, como no dijeron ni mu cuando su gran querido Bush, que heredó superávit de Clinton, dejaba hechas trizas las arcas públicas con las aventuras de Afganistán e Irak.
Mucho más curioso resulta aún que, precisamente lo que nos metió en todo este fatal embrollo, a saber, la minimización absoluta del estado, sea la solución que los republicanos, y en esencia, el “Tea Party”, presenten al tendido. ¿Se creen que somos tontos? No, creen que tenemos amnesia.
P. D. La viñeta superior nos ilustra de una manera cómica, pero sutil, lo equivocado de la idea de que el estado no sirve para nada.
P. D. La viñeta superior nos ilustra de una manera cómica, pero sutil, lo equivocado de la idea de que el estado no sirve para nada.
H. F. C.
5 comentarios:
Hector,
I found your blog post via Facebook. My Spanish is quite lacking, so I used Google Translate, haha. Though the translator has its problems, I believe it captured the essence of your post well, but excuse me if I misunderstood anything.
I found your post to be well-informed and correct on many accounts, but there a few things you got wrong. First of all, the people who complain about the massive debt now were complaining when Obama signed for the stimulus and the aid packages. That has been consistent throughout.
A lot of your post has to do with the economy, and the exit polls do confirm that was the #1 issue in the US elections the other day. However, close behind it was the health care reform. The majority of Americans abhorred the reform. Sure, there were plenty of Democrats crying for health care for all, however, the polls consistently showed that it was unpopular for the majority when it was signed. Obama ignored this. That has been the most significant cause of the huge backlash on Obama. Personally, I disagree with the health care reform, but I think it's too early to judge what Obama has done economically. The finance indices are rising at the moment, though jobless rates have not decreased. It remains to be seen if they will.
Universal health care may work in Europe and elsewhere, but it will not in America. The system is set up against it. America has some of the best doctors in the world because they are very well paid. I know doctors that are moving to foreign countries because they don't want to put up with this shit. Furthermore, my dad would not be alive today if we had universal health care, because the money would not have been there to fund the research that led to the removal of his deadly cancer. Obama passed an unpopular bill which change the way an inherit system in our country works and will affect us very, very poorly long term.
Furthermore, many of our government systems are broken. I am still waiting for a serious solution to fix Social Security. Until then, I may never be able to retire, unless I accumulate enough of my own wealth, which probably won't happen, because of all the taxes that will hit me because of universal health care and high government spending.
Just trying to show a different perspective. This perspective is the more popular one, as shown by the American polls. What do you think?
Patrick! first of all i want tell you i´m so happy for the fact read you my blog, and now, we can share our opinions between two sides of Atlantic.
Entering in the issue, I understand that in a private sanitary system it can be more stimulus, more money and resources for investigate and solve the most complicated medical problems. Of course, you have more specific information about the bill than me, but, as far as I know, the health care reform keep the two ways of health. The private and the public. And under reform, the folks can choose what kind of health care wants. If somebody wants take the private way, can take it. The freedom of choose is kept.
I think that the health care reform is intended to the people who can´t pay a private health care insurance, that according the data, is too much people in the country, and not for remove to the people the freedom of choose if they want pay or not a health care insurance.
The freedom is the true genius of america, and with the health care reform, nobody lose this genius, unlike, you have more options to choose, the private or the public way. And not as before, where you only had the private way.
In my opinion, the health care is a inalienable right, that it must be guaranted for all people.
The goal of my article is to do understand to the people that the Obama´s economic stimulus packages, i know that increase the deficit and public debt, but are intended to revive the economy, create more jobs and overcome the crisis.
Because, according Keynes, the most influence economist of twentieth century, in crisis, nobody spends, and the only one who can do it is the state. And when everything work again, the state must retreat and with the return of the dinamism the defecit and the public debt is reduced. What do you think?
Patrick, thank you a lot for expressing your opinion. If we continue our debate about this issues in the next days, next weeks and next months i´ll be grateful.
I hope that your father is well, and i hope too everything is well for you.
A big hug and greetings from Europe. I wait your opinions.
Hector,
I am very glad to be able to able to discuss these matters with you as well! Your opinions are certainly well-informed and educated... I wish more Americans would be that way.
I think you are right about the private and public forms of insurance... however, I still contend that it is not fair to the average American to pay for the people who previously cannot afford health care. I realize that that probably sounds like a cold-hearted, conservative-American perspective, but I have always been of the opinion that if you work for you money you should be able to keep it... those who keep a steady job have earned good health care. I see this bill as encouraging hand-outs and raising the taxes. Obama does not often mention who exactly pays for the increased coverage. If he did, maybe more than the 56% of the voters last Tuesday (according to polling) would be against the bill. I appreciate the thoughts for my dad... he received a bone-marrow transplant in Seattle in 2007 and in one year and a half can be declared cured of cancer. I do not underestimate good health care!
I agree with your economic perspective, in theory. The government does need to spend for it's people when they don't want to. How did we get out of the Great Depression? Two reasons: 1) Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal and massive government spending on new jobs programs 2) Public and Private sector spending on World War II.
Many would say that Obama, however, has increased spending too haphazardly. See this USA Today article as an example: http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-11-10-1Afedpay10_ST_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip I like his spending on new, sustainable energies, though. Solar power companies and electric vehicle companies are getting massive amounts of money from the government, and they wouldn't be financially viable without it. So, when you talk about his work on the economy, I agree with it for the most part, but some spending just seems plain unnecessary. It also remains to be seen how his NASA cuts (The Constellation program has been cut.) will work out, but at least that shows that he is not all about expanding government.
I look forward to more blog posts... especially after my adventure in Europe I like to keep up with European news, and hearing a global perspective from Spain certainly helps me be mindful of how American actions affect everyone else! How are you doing these days?
Patrick
Patrick,
I´m agree with the idea that if you work hard and you keep the job, you deserve the best healt care, i´m agree with that. But that, would be perfect if everyone born and grow in the same conditions. Unfortunatly it is not so.
We have to know that a lot of people are born in certain conditions which do not allow them to achieve good jobs and be able to afford health insurance. And they don´t have the fault for born in this conditions.
For this reason, i believe that the most important goal of the goverment is guarantee that, everybody have the same conditions and from this point, everybody has to compete freely, work hard and be the best for to have the best.
I believe in the free market system, is the best way for the progress, but i believe too, that the goverment has to guarantee the same minimal conditions for all, and in this minimal conditions the most important is the health care.
I believe if there is a good reason for pay a tax, is for guarantee health care for everybody. At least for that.
Thank you very much for your opinions Patrick! i appreciate your coments wich give me an other perspective of the problems and allow me learn more.
In the next days i´ll write more posts, i´ll inform you and we´ll discuss it.
Patrick tiene razon, al igual que "ojete moreno"
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