Monday, October 8, 2007

World Bank Debate on BBC

I have come across this site www.tvants.com that allows me to watch TV on the Internet.  I can tune into CNN, BBC News, BBC World and ESPN News among other channels.

I spent Sunday afternoon watching a BBC debate from Washington, DC about the World Bank.  Six non-American guests and a female BBC moderator spoke a lot of bureaucratic mumbo-jumbo about getting rid of poverty.  Not once, did I hear the words Markets, free trade, creating wealth, Property rights and rule-of-law.  I heard words like pro-active and multi-lateral. 

The African representative was full of regional grievances.  Africa was having trouble because it was discriminated against was his basic message. (Though his idea of discrimination was that Africa was not fairly represented in World bureaucratic bodies.  This lead to a discussion of having non Americans head the World Bank.  As if the only reason Africa was impoverished was because an African was not president of the World Bank)

That the company president, the sole private sector representative, was most able to use the bureaucratic gobbledygook-gook was distressing.

The only practical solution offered by any of the guests was made by an former Afghan Finance Minister who said the organization should be downsized from 8000 to 300 people.

No solutions to poverty as long as the BBC is dealing with the issue.

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