I'm sorry, Patrick, I thought I covered this. Can't we unite with the
liberals against the common enemy just this once? :)

"Objection: Muhammad Yunus is not Jesus Christ Almighty. His
presidency might not represent a real break from the policies of the
Washington Consensus.

To which the answer is: if so, that makes him a better candidate. If
you are trying to overturn a dictatorship, you don't necessarily run
the most progressive candidate. You might run a candidate who can
unite all the democratic forces. After you've run the dictatorship out
of town, there will be plenty of opportunities for food fights among
the democratic forces."

I also figured that my "brief resume" of Yunus' qualifications would
make clear that I was not arguing that he was the greatest thing since
sliced bread:

"Here is a brief resume of Yunus' qualifications for this position:

   * He is an economist.
   * He won the Nobel Peace prize in 2006 in conjunction with the
Grameen Bank, for efforts to extend credit to the poor.
   * He is not an American."

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/6/1/123630/4493


From: Patrick Bond <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: PEN-L list <[email protected]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Sat, 02 Jun 2007 08:35:36 +0900
Subject: [lbo-talk] Announcing Muhammad Yunus' Candidacy to Head the World Bank
Robert Naiman wrote:
> Announcing Muhammad Yunus' Candidacy to Head the World Bank Hotlist
> by Robert Naiman Fri Jun 01, 2007 at 09:43:04 AM PDT
> http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/6/1/123630/4493 (with poll)

No thanks, comrade Robert...


International Journal of Health Services
<http://baywood.metapress.com/app/home/journal.asp?referrer=searchresults&id=300313&backto=searcharticlesresults,11,53;>

        Issue:          Volume 37, Number 2 / 2007
<http://baywood.metapress.com/app/home/issue.asp?referrer=searchresults&id=Q27L32T00T58&backto=searcharticlesresults,11,53;>

        Pages:          229 - 249
        *URL:*          Linking Options
<http://baywood.metapress.com/app/home/linking.asp?referrer=linking&target=contribution&id=9160Q66727253412&backto=contribution,1,1;searcharticlesresults,11,53;>


*Microcredit Evangelism, Health, and Social Policy*

*Abstract:*

The awarding of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus, founder of
the Grameen Bank, provides an opportunity to consider the use and abuse
of microfinancing, especially because credit continues to be touted as a
poverty-reduction strategy associated with health education and health
care financing strategies. Not only is the Grameen diagnosis of poverty
dubious, but many structural problems also plague the model, ranging
from financial accounting to market failures. In Southern Africa, to
illustrate, microcredit schemes for peasants and small farmers have been
attempted for more than 70 years, on the basis that modern capitalism
and peasant/informal system gaps can be bridged by an expanded financial
system. The results have been disappointing. A critical reading of
political economy posits an organic linkage between the "developed" and
"underdeveloped" economies that is typically not mitigated by capitalist
financial markets, but instead is often exacerbated. When applied to
health and social policy, microcredit evangelism becomes especially
dangerous.


(full is available offlist from [EMAIL PROTECTED])

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