World Bank on Bolivian Water

[Michael Perelman]

I have not read the article, but judging by the uprising that Tom Kruse
described 

|TI| Designing Pro-Poor Water and Sewer Concessions. Early Lessons
 from Bolivia.
|KW| WATER;ECONOMIC POLICY
|AU| Komives, K.
|AD| THE WORLD BANK; COUNTRY ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT, POLICY RESEARCH
 AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS, 1818 H STREET, N.W. WASHINGTON, D.C.
 20433, U.S.A. 32p.
|DP| 1999
|ID| A1.199 WP 2243
|AB| The Bolivian government awarded a concession for water and sewer
 services in La Paz and El Alto in 1997. One goal of doing so was
 to expand in-house water and sewer service to low-income
 households. Komives uses the Aguas del Illimani case to explore
 how the design of typical concession agreements (with monopoly
 private service suppliers) can affect outcomes in poor
 neighborhoods. She finds that outcomes in services can be
 affected by the concession contracts, by the contract bid
 process, by sector regulations, and by regulatory arrangements.
|JC| Q25;Q28

--
Michael Perelman
Economics Department
California State University
Chico, CA 95929

Tel. 530-898-5321
E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Re: Re: Re: why off list

[Max Sawicky]

We do on other things, not on this at the moment.

mbs


- Original Message -
From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2000 6:45 PM
Subject: [PEN-L:21444] Re: Re: why off list


> Let us know about your progress.  Are you working with OMB
Watch?
> --
> Michael Perelman
> Economics Department
> California State University
> Chico, CA 95929
>
> Tel. 530-898-5321
> E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
>

Re: Re: why off list

[michael]

Let us know about your progress.  Are you working with OMB Watch?
-- 
Michael Perelman
Economics Department
California State University
Chico, CA 95929

Tel. 530-898-5321
E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Re: why off list

[Max Sawicky]

hi mike.

I'm trying to recruit people to write for
EPI.  For money.

In any case I'd be happy to discuss the topic
on-list, tho I don't have much to say about it
right now myself.

max

- Original Message -
From: "Michael Perelman" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2000 4:07 PM
Subject: why off list


> Why do you want to discuss the OMB off list?  It sounds
like the sort of
> thing we should be discussing.
>
> --
>
> Michael Perelman
> Economics Department
> California State University
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Chico, CA 95929
> 530-898-5321
> fax 530-898-5901
>
>

Cost-Benefit Analysis

[Max Sawicky]

Any of you worthies interested in how the U.S.
Office of Management and Budget advises other Federal
agencies in the business of estimating the costs and
benefits of regulations, mandates, or public investment
projects?  Is it possible there could be minor flaws in
their methodology, not to mention their world-view?

If you are or have done work in this area, please
reply off-list.

max sawicky
EPI

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Sudan

[Michael Perelman]

This debate seems to involve only GP and Mine.  Unless other people are interested, 
please
carry it on off the list.

George Pennefather wrote:

> Mine: George, stigmatization of jews and arabs was just an example _among_ others. It
> applies to whoever it applies; the irish, kurdish, gypsies, african americans, etc...
> there is no indication in my rhetoric that I ignore the injustices done to Irish
> people by the british ruling class.  In fact, my point confirms your point.
>

--
Michael Perelman
Economics Department
California State University
Chico, CA 95929

Tel. 530-898-5321
E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Re: Communist Programme

[Michael Perelman]

What is the relevance of this here?

George Pennefather wrote:

> The relationship between the minimum  and the maximum programmes is an important one.
> Many trotskyists are of the view that the two programmes are bridged by the
> transitional programme. Their view is the minimum and maximum demands are bridged by
> transitional demands. The system of transitional demands are bridge, so to speak,
> between the two programmes.
>
>

--
Michael Perelman
Economics Department
California State University
Chico, CA 95929

Tel. 530-898-5321
E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Sudan

[George Pennefather]

Mine: George, stigmatization of jews and arabs was just an example _among_ others. It
applies to whoever it applies; the irish, kurdish, gypsies, african americans, etc...
there is no indication in my rhetoric that I ignore the injustices done to Irish
people by the british ruling class.  In fact, my point confirms your point.

George: You misunderstand. The English ruling class did actually seek to Anglicise the
Irish in its  colonisation of Ireland. It is often forgotten that Ireland is a
post-colonial society --although even to this day a sizable part of it is still a
colony of Britain. They did, to some extent, succeed in Anglicising the Irish. Some of
the historical evidence for this is my writing this letter in English.

Mine: My general point was that pan-arabization does not per se mean Islamization. I
agree with Michael in that respect.  Are Northern Sudanese people arabs? No. So where
does their fundamentalism come from?

George: According to one of the Encylopedias that I use nearly up to 40% of the
population of Sudan is Arab. Anyway I dont think I said that Arabisation and
Islamisation are an identity.

Mine: Although there is no unitary conception of pan-arabism because of the fact that
arabs are divided on many issues as you say,  historically speaking, par-arabism was a
nationalist bourgeois project aiming to unite Arabs on the basis of _Arabness_,  not
on the basis of some pure conception of  religion per se.

George: You write: "on the basis of _Arabness_". I see, to describe pan-arabism, you
use a form of this very very concept  --Arabness. If there is a valid concept,
Arabness, then it logically follows that there is a valid concept, Arabisation. Now
insertion of quotation marks does not make your use of the concept Arabness any more
or less valid. If I write that the regime based in the Northern part of Sudan is
promoting the Arabisation of all Sudanese then I dont see how this term is anymore
politically incorrect than similar terms used by you. I find that much of this modern
political correctness has a reactionary twist to it. It can serve as an ideology that
seeks to prevent people from making valuable observations, comments and even analysis.
It is a crude form of deconstruction that seeks to constrain thought and impose
censorship.

If a person, whose parents are Irish emigrate to Egypt, is born in Egypt and is reared
by those same English speaking Irish parents (notice the pun) is that person Arab or
Irish?  What is the difference between being Egyptian and Arab? If there is a
distinction between the latter two then it seems to me that term Arab is in many ways
a superfluous term. Lets then apply Occam's razor to establish the truth.

As I said the term Arab is in many ways an ideological construct designed to deceive,
confuse and even disarm the masses. It is a term that is used to assist in the
imposition
oppression. It was in this context that I was using it with regard to Sudan. The
northern regime in seeking to impose arabisation on all of Sudan is really seeking to
specifically oppress a section of the people that live in the Sudan that are not
regarded as Arabic. The arabisation of the Sudan is a specific form of oppression. I
dont, as you seem to think, use it as an ethnic term.

This same problem arises in relation to the Jews. We are forever being told that the
Jews were destroyed in the Nazi Holocaust. What is neglected is the large numbers of
people who were destroyed by the Nazis in concentration camps. The point is that the
term Jew is another false ethnicity. How can people who live all over the world, under
enormously different conditions,  be described as ethnically Jews. It is an absurd and
irrational concept  designed to confuse,disarm and deceive the masses --a bourgeois
ideological construct. Hitler maximised its use which culminated in the brutalisation,
torture and destruction of millions of human beings. The Jewish question is an
inherent part of the development of capitalism. It is a form of racism that exists as
an inherent part of capitalist development the effects of which foundas I just said,
its culmination in Hitlers use of the concentration camps to destroy millions of human
beings.

The point is that there is only one race --the human race. This thing of suggesting
that ther are different races or ethnicities just goes nowhere. It creates more
problems than it solves and has a racist underpinning to it. Thre are different
cultures but not different ethnicities. Ethnicity etc are ideological constructs
designed to create divisions among the masses. They are forms of oppression that
ultimately serve the interests of imperialism.

There are different cultures but there are not different ethnicities. The latter is an
ideological  construct of the bourgeoisie designed to maintain control over the
exploited masses in the interests of promoting its continued exploitation.


Comradely regards
George

Be free to check out our Communist Think-Tank web sit

Communist Programme

[George Pennefather]

The relationship between the minimum  and the maximum programmes is an important one.
Many trotskyists are of the view that the two programmes are bridged by the
transitional programme. Their view is the minimum and maximum demands are bridged by
transitional demands. The system of transitional demands are bridge, so to speak,
between the two programmes.

They argue against certain forms of reformism, stalinism and, what they call, centrism
which, they say,  insert a brick wall between the minimum and maximum programmes.
Their view is that the brick wall must be replaced by the transitional programme which
links both programmes together.

Some trotskyists are less clear in their understanding of the relationship between
these three programme. Consequently their understanding of programmatic issues tends
to have, at worst, a confused and, at most, a paradoxical character.

I question this way of posing the matter. Under capitalism in its imperialist form no
separation can be made between three different programmes. There is only one programme
the Communist Programme. The Communist Programme contains what are called minimum and
maximum demands. The Communist Programme is constituted in such a way that all its
demands form an integrated part of a dialectical system of demands. Consequently what
are called minimum or immediate demands bear an integral relationship to all the other
demands whether they are viewed as immediate or maximum demands or slogans. Minimum
demands dialectically dissolve into more advanced demands. The Communist Programme is
a dialectical system of demands whereby each individual demand implies all other
demands. Contained within an individual demand, however minimum it is thought to be,
are all the other demands. All of these other demands are implicit in any individual
demand just as a factory strike by workers contains within it the social revolution.
However social revolution is only implicit in the strike and must be made explicit. In
short for Communists the minimum and maximum programmes dissolve into the Communist
Programme.

Overall, then, there is no essential difference between the trotskyist programmatic
conception and that of the other political tendencies alluded to in this posting. They
all subscribe to a mechanical undialectical programmatic conception of struggle. The
trotskyists try to disguise this conception by inserting the transitional programme.
However they present this programme, at their best, as having an external mechanical
relation to the other two  programmes or, at their worst, as mish mash in which the
relationship between all three programmes takes on a blurred and confused character.

Comradely regards
George

Be free to check out our Communist Think-Tank web site at
http://homepage.eircom.net/~beprepared/

Subscribe to Revcommy Mailing Community at
[EMAIL PROTECTED]

Re: Re: Brookings Phillips Curve Paper

[Jim Devine]

At 09:41 PM 7/9/00 -0700, you wrote:
>Jim Devine wrote,
>
> >BTW, it's important to remember that the Brookings people aren't
> >monolithic.
>
>You mean some of 'em are paleolithic?

no, but a lot of 'em are monotonous.

Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] &  http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine

new trade theory

[Jim Devine]

In a recent post, I wrote:
 >There are two Paul Krugmans ... The first is the clever theorist 
described above [by PK's defender]. I have no real argument with that PK, 
since even when I disagree with his results, the assumptions are extremely 
clear so I can decide for myself whether his assumptions are wrong (so I 
reject his results) or my assumptions are right (so I reject my 
presuppositions). In most cases, his theory says something about the real 
world, but at the same presents a partial view of the political whole. 
(That is, he leaves a lot out.) So I agree that his style of modeling is a 
good thing.<

I just wanted to mention that this "good thing" is highly constrained by 
the unexamined assumption of constant attainment of equilibrium. For 
example,  PK's stuff on the "new trade theory" (which has gotten him the 
most applause from economists) assumes that each country has balanced trade 
at all times, something that's clearly unrealistic (especially in the US in 
the year 2000). He also ignores the role of money, which seems a return to 
pre-Keynesian times.

I would recommend Anwar Shaikh's theory of absolute advantage in trade 
instead (while I think that his assumption of the gold standard can easily 
be dropped).

Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] &  http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine

Krugman Watch: the standard of living

[Jim Devine]

 >June 18, 2000 / New York TIMES

 >RECKONINGS / By PAUL KRUGMAN

 >Turn of the Century <

The TV series "1900 House" about people trying to live a house designed to 
simulate living at the turn of the 20th century, i.e., >a London townhouse 
that has been carefully de-modernized -- electric wiring stripped out and 
gas lighting put back into service, plumbing degraded back to Victorian 
standards and so on. ... [It] makes extremely graphic a point much 
emphasized by the Berkeley economist [and pen-l star] J. Bradford DeLong in 
his already classic though not yet complete book "Slouching Towards Utopia" 
... economic statistics greatly understate the real extent of material 
progress over the last century.<

I don't know how anyone could conclude anything at all serious from this 
show, much less use it to endorse DeLong's conclusion. (I've never watched 
the show, so I won't pull a Bob Dole to criticize it; rather, my concerns 
are with what one can learn from it.) The first problem is that the show is 
about today's people with today's habits, tastes, needs, and expectations 
living in this house. Most of the experience with the house would be 
_adaptation_ to an alien environment, whereas people who lived in a vaguely 
similar house in 1900 were used to it and could eke out more enjoyment from 
it. In addition, the present-day folk have an obvious "life line" even if 
they aren't allowed to take advantage of the "modern" environment outside 
the house, they know that they will return to it. This deters them from 
successfully adapting to or enjoying the 1900 house. Further, it's quite 
possible that the folks who lived in the house like this one back in 1900 
saw themselves as on top of the world, since Britain still had its empire 
(upon which the "sun never set") and was still the world's industrial 
leader. The sense of purpose and self-satisfaction probably contributed to 
their welfare (even when is was at others' expense).

So this is parsecs from being any kind of controlled experiment that can 
reveal something to educated observers. In those terms, it's almost as bad 
as that show about those people "trapped" on an island that has luxury 
hotels on the other side and camera crews hanging around (though I haven't 
watched that show, "Survivor," either). (BTW, how does one cook rats? with 
a microwave? a crock-pot? with fava beans and a nice Chianti? do they taste 
like chicken?)

 >Some half-educated guesswork leads me to believe that the family that 
occupied the 1900 house in 1900 probably had an annual income that, 
corrected for changes in the consumer price index, would be in the range of 
$20,000 to $30,000 in today's money. That is above today's official poverty 
line, but hardly affluence; and of course a family in that income range 
today would not be able to afford that nice a house, and would certainly 
not be able to hire a maid to help with the chores -- which a Victorian 
family in that class very definitely would.<

I find this discussion to be very confused -- or contradictory. First, PK 
cites Brad saying that there's been a lot of material progress. But then, 
in the second paragraph, it sounds like there hasn't been. The 
"middle-class" family in 1900 would be not that far from the poverty line 
today (in 1998, $16,660 per year or $320 per week for a household of four). 
More importantly, it wouldn't be able to afford a key luxury that defines 
who the richer folks are in our society, i.e., "the ability to hire a maid 
to help with the chores." That's quite a fall in terms of affluence. Maids 
and the like meant that middle-class folks back in 1900 _did not need_ 
dishwashers, clothes-washer, and most of the other marvellous household 
devices we have today.  And on top of that, they "would not be able to 
afford that nice a house." So _my_ "half-educated guesswork" leads me to 
believe that the family that occupied the 1900 house in 1900 probably had 
an annual income that, corrected for changes in the consumer price index, 
would be significantly higher than "20,000 to $30,000 in today's money," 
since they could afford a servant and the house itself. But of course such 
comparisons are only parlor games.

In addition, it should be noted that PK is talking only about goods 
provided by the market. In his comparison, he doesn't even think about 
goods that are not provided by the market, e.g., leisure time, a clean and 
uncongested environment, and community. Though London led the way for the 
rest of the world in terms of pollution and congestion and so may not have 
changed much since 1900, capitalism typically destroys the non-market 
production of such goods (via tradition, grass-roots democracy, 
government), replacing them with marketed goods (so that the rich can most 
afford a clean and uncongested environment). Since the standard measures of 
"how well we're doing" (such as Gross Domestic Product) include only 
marketed goods, they almost automatically increases th

Krugman Watch: Stocks Overvalued?

[Jim Devine]

 >July 9, 2000 / New York TIMES

 >RECKONINGS / By PAUL KRUGMAN

 >The Pizza Principle

 >It has always been hard to have a rational discussion about the stock 
market: hope and fear, greed and envy get in the way. And it's even harder 
nowadays because politics has entered the mix. Not only do some ideologues 
believe that to love capitalism is to love its stocks, whatever their 
price; also, the promise of high stock returns serves the same purpose 
today that the Laffer curve served 20 years ago. That is, it helps 
politicians -- particularly politicians who want to privatize Social 
Security -- offer visions of sugar plums, of gain without pain <

I have no comments on what PK says here (and in the rest of the column), 
since it seems generally reasonable. Perhaps a stock maven could chip in

Jim Devine [EMAIL PROTECTED] &  http://bellarmine.lmu.edu/~jdevine

Re: Re: Re: racial disparity in wages

[Rudy Fichtenbaum]

Michael,

It has been a while since I have looked at the numbers.  The CPS does
collect data on the percentage of the population with earnings and if
that percentage has declined for Blacks it could create the illusion of
increase in wages.  If this has happened it is most likely due to a
decline in labor force participation among black males.  I think this
makes the welfare argument very suspect since most young males cannot
qualify for welfare benefits.

Rudy


begin:vcard 
n:Fichtenbaum;Rudy
tel;fax:937-775-2441
tel;work:937-775-3085
x-mozilla-html:FALSE
url:www.wright.edu/~rfichten/home.htm
org:Wright State University;Department of Economics
adr:;;3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy.;Dayton;OH;45435-0001;
version:2.1
email;internet:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
title:Professor of Economics & Chief Negotiator AAUP-WSU
x-mozilla-cpt:;-13936
fn:Rudy Fichtenbaum
end:vcard

anti-union action in cyberspace

[Perelman, Michael]

LPA () is a group of corporate managers that
lobby the US Congress and the US government, on behalf of
management, on issues such as labor union organizing or civil
rights for workers. Among the projects of the LPA is NLRB Watch
(, a web site and newsletter that
alerts employers to activities of the US National Labor Relations
Board (NLRB), and promotes various anti-union views. 

On July 8, 2000, the LPA wrote a six page letter to ICANN that
provided a full scale attack on the proposal to create a .union
top level internet domain, to be controlled by labor unions. For
background on the .union proposal, see: 


Many of the LPA's attacks on the .union proposal echo the similar
naive critics of new proposals for civil society Top Level
Domains. For example, much is made of potential disputes among
competing unions to get a domain such as boeing.union, where
multiple unions represent workers or are seeking to represent
workers. Mentioned only in passing is the fact that in such
cases the domain would be a gateway or portal to various unions
with interests in providing information about union activate with
of a particular firm or employer. While it is true that the
management of something like a .union TLD will involve choices
and decisions, the global labor union community is apparently
willing to take this task on. A group of international labor
organizations, lead to the International Confederation of Free
Trade Unions (ICFTU), has been holding discussions on this issue,
and is expected to come forward with a formal ICANN proposal at
some time.

The ICANN board meets in Yokohama on July 14, 2000, and will discuss
rules for TLDs like .union. Manon Ress of the Debs-Jones-Douglass
Institute () has proposed a resolution to the
ICANN non-commercial constituency that reads:

The .union TLD should be controlled and managed by labor
unions. With the exception of limited technical issues that
affect Internet navigation and stability, and the selection
of a bona fide global labor union body that will control the
registry, ICANN should not interfere with the management of
the .union TLD.

The July 8, 2000 letter from LPA opposing the .union TLD is
evidence that corporate management now sees the .union TLD
proposal as potentially a powerful labor union organizing tool,
and a significant threat to corporate management interests. The
LPA letter follows:

Jamie love

< LPA Letter to ICANN --->

July 8, 2000
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)
4676 Admiralty Way, Suite 330
Marina Del Rey, CA 90292

Re: July 2000 ICANN Yokohama Meeting Topic: Introduction of New
Top-Level Domains

To Whom It May Concern:

LPA is pleased to submit comments regarding the likely addition
of new top level domain names by the Internet Corporation on
Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). In particular, LPA registers
its strong opposition to the adoption of a .union chartered top-
level domain (TLD), which was mentioned as an example of a new
domain name in ICANN's June 13, 2000 background document. The
addition of a .union TLD would cause undue confusion among
Internet users, particularly among employees who are not
represented by a union. Moreover, a .union TLD would violate many
of the principles announced by Working Group C in its
supplemental white paper. At a minimum, LPA recommends that ICANN
refrain from accepting a .union TLD in the initial round of
expansion and instead draw on the lessons learned from the
implementation of other chartered top level domains that are
added before evaluating the viability of .union TLD.

LPA is an association of the senior human resource executives of
more than 200 leading corporations in the United States. LPA's
purpose is to ensure that U.S. employment policy supports the
competitive goals of its member companies and their employees.
LPA member companies employ more than 12 million employees, or 12
percent of the private sector U.S. workforce. LPA members have a
substantial interest in making sure that employees receive
accurate information about whether they are represented by a
union or not. The addition of a .union top-level domain could
prematurely undermine employee confidence in the use of the
Internet as a tool for communicating with employees.

I. The Creation of a .union TLD Would Create Confusion and
Administrative Problems

LPA believes that a .union TLD would create more problems than
benefits and should be dropped from consideration, particularly
at this stage of domain name expansion. The creation of a .union
TLD could confuse employees, especially those who are not
familiar with union organizing procedures. The .union domain name
would also likely require the chartering entity to put in place
sophisticated application and management procedures to reduce the
inevitable disputes that would arise among competing unions.
Mo

BLS Daily Report

[Richardson_D]

BLS DAILY REPORT, FRIDAY, JULY 7, 2000

RELEASED TODAY:  Total nonfarm payroll employment was little changed in
June.  Private-sector payroll employment rose by 206,000, following a
decline of 165,000 (as revised) in May.  The June increase in private
payrolls was largely offset by a decline in federal government employment,
as 190,000 temporary workers hired for the decimal census completed their
work.  The unemployment rate was 4.0 percent in June, about the same as in
May.  Average hourly earnings increased by 5 cents over the month and by 3.6
percent over the year. ...  

Black engineers, scientists, and computer specialists are opening a new
front in the battle over skilled foreign workers.  The black professionals
charge that politicians of both parties are scrambling to satisfy high-tech
industry demands for more skilled foreigners, while minority Americans are
being excluded from well-paying mid- and high-level technical and scientific
jobs. ...  Fewer technical degrees as a percentage of total degrees awarded
are noted, although the minorities report a higher number of high-tech
degrees granted.  But shortages in the tech field still loom.  According to
Marjorie Valbrun, writing in The Wall Street Journal (page A2), the Bureau
of Labor Statistics has projected that, over the decade ending in 2008, the
country will need nearly 1.7 million additional computer engineers,
programmers, and analysts.  That need is growing, even as the number of
American college graduates with high-tech degrees is falling, according to
the American Electronics Association.  The group estimates that 207,056
high-tech degrees were awarded in 1997, down 2 percent since 1990.  Although
the number of minorities with degrees in engineering, math, and computer
science has grown in the past decade, the totals remain relatively small.
...  

New unemployment insurance claims filed with state agencies decreased by
12,000 to a total of 296,000, after seasonal adjustment, according to
figures from the Employment and Training Administration of the Department of
Labor. ...  The Labor Department said claims fell because of seasonal
adjustments.  Not seasonally adjusted, "claims rose by almost 10,000 as
summer auto shutdowns began," a Merrill Lynch economist said in a commentary
(Daily Labor Report, page D-1)

New orders to U.S. factories in May took their biggest jump in more than 7
years,  But a more up-to-date report showed many of the nation's largest
retailers had sluggish sales in June, adding to signs that the economy's
pace is slowing.  A big burst in demand for electronics helped push factory
orders up by a larger-than-expected 4.1 percent in May, the Commerce
Department says.  It marked the biggest increase since December 1992 and
followed a 3.8 percent drop in April.  Separately, the Mortgage Bankers
Association of America reported that the number of Americans behind on home
mortgage payments declined to the lowest level in 28 years during the first
3 months of 2000.  Plentiful jobs and rising incomes have helped consumers
keep up with payments, pushing down the delinquency rate to a seasonally
adjusted 3.72 percent in the first quarter. ...  (Washington Post, page
E3)_Factory orders suggested that signs of a slowdown in consumer demand
are having only limited effect on manufacturers.  Orders rose as demand
increased for electronics, autos, and chemicals. ...  The gain in orders,
along with a separate Labor Department report showing claims for jobless
benefits fell to the lowest level in 5 years, indicates the record 9-year
economic expansion may not be cooling as much as the Federal Reserve would
like. ...  (New York Times, page C2)_Factory orders shot up in May,
driven by a significant increase in orders for electronics.  But the gains
aren't strong enough to cloud the recent picture of a slowing economy. ...
In recent weeks, new jobless claims had risen to their highest levels in
almost a year, supporting the picture of a softening labor market in the May
unemployment report.  But today's release of the June employment report will
be the best indicator of the direction of the labor market.. ...  (Wall
Street Journal, page A2).
 
Several retailers reported disappointing sales for June, signaling that
higher interest rates and fuel prices may be dampening consumer spending.
Overall, sales at stores open at least a year rose 2.8 percent in June from
a year earlier, according to Salomon Smith Barney's sales weighted index of
50 retailers. ...  (Wall Street Journal, page B4).


 application/ms-tnef

The Internet Anti-Fascist: Friday, 23 June 2000 -- 4:52 (#433)

[Paul Kneisel]

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__

   The Internet Anti-Fascist: Friday, 23 June 2000
  Vol. 4, Number 52 (#433)
__

Action Alerts: Ireland, 28 June 00
debate and discussion between Anti-Fascist Action and Shinn Fein
Book Reviews:
"Scapegoat: Jews, Israel and Women's Liberation" Take No Prisoners
News and Analysis of Hate As Act and As Speech
Reuters, "Yahoo exec dismisses order to police auction site," 16 June 00
Dan Ponder (Republican), "Hate crime speech in Georgia House of
   Representatives (excerpts)," 16 Mar 00
Tom Tolen ([Howell, Michigan] News), "Police arrest militia member
   wanted for murder: Fugitive was being sought in connection with
   shooting death of former Howell man.," 20 June 00
Rightwing Quote of the Week:
WOTC Celebrates Ben "August" Smith on 4 July   What's Worth Checking:

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ANTI-FASCIST ACTION ALERT:

Camlough/Bessbrook Ógra Shinn Féin will host an evening of debate and
discussion, including speakers from AFA, on Wednesday 28th June 2000 @ 8pm
in Camlough.

For further details visit our website

<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>

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BOOK REVIEWS:
Scapegoat: Jews, Israel and Women's Liberation by Andrea Dworkin (Virago)
$55.

Take no prisoners
Sydney Morning Herald
17 June 00

The age of 10, Andrea Dworkin would travel from her suburban home to attend
Hebrew school in the city. One day, she arrived to find the school closed,
so she went to her cousin's house to call her mother. She found her cousin
going crazy. "She was bouncing off the walls, I mean, I'd never seen
anything like it," says Dworkin. "It was April, and she said that every
April she remembered." Passover, which usually occurs in April, is the time
when Jews remember the Holocaust.

Dworkin's cousin was doing more than remembering. "She was having what we
now call flashbacks. At that point [in 1956] the Jewish community was not
talking about the Holocaust, and the survivors were not talking about it,
so I had the incredible experience - not of being there, but of really
seeing the viscera of somebody who had been there. I had no intellectual
defence for this. I could see what she was describing to me, even now, and
I would say something fairly stupid, like, 'But why did they do that?' She
described the babies being used as targets by the guy that Ralph Fiennes
played in Schindler's List and eventually we called my mother and she came
and got me and did something to help her, I'm not sure what."

Dworkin's cousin had been in the Krakow ghetto, then Plaszow, Auschwitz-
Birkenau and Buchenwald. Finally, she had survived a death march. When
Dworkin got to college, years later, the first thing she did was to "sit
down in the library with the Nuremberg trials and read them, volumes of
them. I've been very involved in trying to learn about the Holocaust and
trying to understand it, which is probably pointless. I have read Holocaust
material, you might say compulsively, over a lifetime."

Dworkin is, in the popular imagination, the spearhead of radical feminism,
of anti-pornography. Her books (with titles such as Woman Hating,
Pornography: Men Possessing Women, and Life And Death: Unapologetic
Writings On The Continuing War Against Women) are filled with descriptions
of what she considers the inherent violence of heterosexual relations, and
the sadism that permeates the sex industry.

The common view is that Dworkin began to write about porn because of her
own traumatic marriage, in which being beaten and kicked wasn't an
occasional incident, but the everyday. But now it turns out she is a woman
who, for almost all her life, has been drawn to horror. Since she first sat
down in the college library to find out what her cousin was raving about,
she has been reading about sadism. Fascism, misogyny, they're all the same
to her.

And now she has published what she believes to be her life's work, nine
years in the making; not another assault on gender relations or the sex
industry but a polemical account of modern Israel and the lessons it holds
for women.

Scapegoat: The Jews, Israel And Women's Liberation, sparked by a visit to
Israel in 1988, is a critique of Middle East politics which sees the whole
situation as a product of wounded and then enraged testosterone. It is an
analysis of the Holocaust and