“Ms. Klein is to serious social thought as what a dog is to dancing”
To the Expositor:
In his note to this paper on January 13, an evaluation of the Paris Climate Fest was presented by William Jewell. Summarized as weak and probably ineffective, Professor Jewell goes on to praise ‘The Leap Manifesto’ as a recent initiative that “stands out.” Most readers will know of course that Naomi Klein is the face of the effort and the driving force behind the movement.
So what is it? A quick look at the title probably tells us everything we need to know about it. Klein denies that the Leap is a reference to Mao Zedong and The Great Leap Forward. What else could it possibly be given that it is used beside that other infamous word?
Here is a brief summary of the major economic items in the document: 100 percent of our electricity from renewable resources in 20 years; no new infrastructure projects that you wouldn’t want in your backyard; universal program to build and retrofit energy efficient housing; high speed rail powered by renewables and public transit to unite every community in this country; training for displaced workers in carbon-intensive jobs; invest in public infrastructure; develop a more localized and ecologically based agricultural system; end all trade deals, regulate corporations and stop extractive projects; expand sectors such as caregiving, teaching, social work etc.; universal basic annual income; and increase royalties, increase taxes on corporations and the wealthy, financial transaction tax, carbon tax.
So there it is. Support for the Manifesto and a few short years from now we will be able to hop on a “green” bus in Meldrum Bay which will scoot us to Little Current where we can get a transfer to Espanola just in time to connect with the high speed rail that will whisk us off to visit friends anywhere in the country. Instead of avocados imported from Mexico, we will be able to harvest them in our own greenhouses, powered by renewables of course. And, naturally, that flash new John Deere tractor will have to go. We can tear bits of it off and fashion them into plow components to be pulled by a fine young draught horse. Selectively bread to eliminate flatulence, the Green Police will be keeping an ear out for any transgressions in that regard.
What is it that drives people to propose such economic madness? A cursory look at the manifesto and the question soon looms–where does the money come from? It eliminates the fossil fuel industry, any and all extraction industry like mining and forestry, it replaces large scale farming with “ecologically based” systems–read no machinery. These industries and the manufacturing and financial support that is necessary for them to operate are wealth creators. Can anyone point to a single wealth creating initiative in the Manifesto?
As the economist Milton Friedman pointed out some time ago, these people are not evil in any way. They are to be commended for the care and concern that they claim to have for people. In this case, the response is the “collectivism” as represented by the Manifesto. However, like all systems, it should not be judged by what the proponents say they would like to achieve but look at the results. By this measure, place the Manifesto beside the experiences in Russia, in China, in Cuba, in Venezuela, and the list goes on. What starts out as the emancipation of the people without economic freedom always ends in disaster.
A most interesting case study is the experiences of two countries in the Americas, Chile and Venezuela. Chile, after suffering the trauma of the Allende and Pinochet years, the country has made a remarkable economic recovery. This recovery has been possible because of the sound economic policies it has adopted. Many of the people involved in the economic roadmap were trained in free market economics at the University of Chicago. And for this, Naomi Klein has made concerted attacks on Friedman. None of it sticks but she does keep trying.
Shift to Venezuela and the economic picture changes dramatically. This country is an economic train wreck. Hugo Chavez used the immense wealth of the county to buy himself the popularity necessary to prop up his political fortunes. He set about price controls, the demonization of the business community, anti-anything related to North America, and also subsidized fuel for the people of Venezuela and for Cuba. In short, a whole lot of things Klein approved of and she is on record offering full support for his “economic” initiatives.
Here is a sampling of 2015 economic indicators for Venezuela: GDP shrunk by 5.7 percent, manufacturing by 5.4 percent, inflation rate in excess of 100 percent. In short, any index one would care to look at indicates trouble ahead and serious trouble. Courtesy of Mr. Chavez. His economics were sourced from the same well as Naomi Klein.
A comment in The Economist magazine as part of a review of her book ‘The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism,’ “Ms. Klein is to serious social thought what a dog is to dancing. When it comes to the underlying message, and the evidence used to support it, ‘The Shock Doctrine’ is an economics disaster.”
So folks, when Ms. Klein or one of her proxies shows up at your door looking for you to turn over the lease for your farm or business, enjoy the conversation but know what you are dealing with.
Shane Desjardins
Mindemoya
