IMF/WB overhaul; US tax breaks violate trade rules; post-N30 middle class anarchists

[Max B. Sawicky]

. . . Although the populist left's critique of the Bretton Woods
institutions focuses heavily on a) the way in which the policies of these
institutions aid and abet the power of the transnational corporations
(similar to the populist left's analysis of "corporate welfare") and b) the
"unelected and unaccountable" status of these institutions, the populist
left fails to recognize that a) bears a similarity to the libertarian gripe
and b) bears a similarity to the isolationist gripe, setting the stage for
many an unholy political alliance. . . .

No similarity at all, except in targets.  The
populist left (PL) is interested in the corporatist
and elite character of international financial
institutions.  Such a critique implicit points
to the need for non-corporatist, anti-elite
(i.e., social and democratic)
institutions; some parts of the PL are more
explicit about this than others.  The others
are being opportunistic, not principled. There
is no conceptual commonality with a libertarian
or isolationist position against any international
financial institutions.

<<<<<<<
. . . I found the piece on the WTO declaring that tax breaks for offshore
affiliates of U.S. TNC's to be unfair "export subsidies" hilariously ironic
b/c there is no room in the populist left's conceptual toolkit to make sense
of this event. How could the WTO come out against U.S. TNC's ? Because the
WTO is simply a mediator between different blocs of global capital, not the
system itself, something you rarely hear from the populist left. . . .
>>>>>>>

 . . . because evidently you rarely listen.  Nobody doubts
there is competition among capitalist nations.


><,,....????????>>>>>>
In fact, since the populist left is such a stauch opponent of "corporate
welfare" (which in certain respects puts them in the same league as
libertarian advocates of the "night watchman state"), in this case, using
their own standards of judgment, they'd have to celebrate the WTO's ruling
against "corporate welfare" for U.S. TNC's !!!
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Actually the trade gang is not too much involved in
tax policy, and vice versa.  The WTO decision, if
implemented (which it won't be), would improve the
U.S. tax system but reduce U.S. competitiveness.
Since this involves all of $4 billion a year, a
change or lack of one isn't going to make too
much difference.

Chances are the trade people will oppose the WTO
on this and the tax people will hold their tongues.
Anti-free trade has more radical political juice
than goo-goo tax policy.

Of course, there is no problem if you junk the
corporate income tax and replace it with a
progressive consumption-based tax system.

mbs