At 07:17 PM 5/21/98 -0500, Carrol wrote:
>Did I miss a post? Has someone mentioned what the "Tobin Tax" is? I have
>never heard of it and the discussion I've read so far gives no clue.
Some time ago I picked up a one-off copy of the 1996 UNCTAD Review which had two articles reviewing these proposals. UNCTAD has been a focus within the rambling UN structures for those with third world perspectives, which of course tend not to get very far. It is the sort of body liable to cuts whenever the US government wishes to make its point by witholding its contributions to the UN.
The articles are necessarily technical, and quite honestly although the technical debate is needed, what *we* need is the courage to make the sort of incisive comments that Richard Marens has made about the politics behind the debate, so we do not fall into the liberal trap of thinking that it is all as dry as dust.
Chris Burford
London.