Venezuela's Economy the worst performer in Latin America

[protocol rv]

The statistics continue to be grim for Venezuela. According to this article, we're suffering from both the highest inflation rate and the most negative economic development rate. For example, data for the 4 quarter 2009 shows:

Colombia up 2,5%,
Perú up 3,4%,
Uruguay up 4,5%.
Brasil up 4,3%,

Argentina up 2,6%
Ecuador up 0,3%

México down 2,3%
Venezuela down 5,8% <-------the worst------

USA up 5,6 %

So it looks like the crisis of capitalism is nearly over, but the crisis of 21st century socialism is going strong.



http://www.eluniversal.com/2010/04/03/eco_art_venezuela-es-la-econ_1818068.shtml

[Joe Chi Minh]

1. No, grim for the corproate shareholders, whose wealth is your criterion of

a healthy economy.

And as for your signature, "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it," unfortunatey, for you and your tribe, the people of Latin America do indeed remember the past, and won't be turning the clock back any time soon, if they can help it.

[protocol rv]

2. Hey Joe

Our criterion for a healthy economy is the same as the criterion used by other rational thinking human beings. We don't like a falling GDP, we don't like inflation, we don't like to see unemployment go up.

And by the way, I don't belong to a tribe. I belong to the majority in Venezuela. If you like to insult people, I suggest you go do it somewhere else, it doesn't work here.

And this isn't about turning back the clock. This is about voting to kick the bums out of office. I suppose that's something communists don't get. You can be kicked out of office. And you shall.

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ChangoLoa]

8. Aren't you confusing profit with production there?

GDP in Venezuela has really nothing to do with corporate shareholders.

[AlphaCentauri]

4. Interesting how a "socialist" economy is measure using capitalist parameters

My guess is that socialist economies should be measure by social accomplishments not by wall streets indexes

[naaman fletcher]

5. What do you propose?

There is a very good point to the idea that of course money isn't everything. If it was, the rich would be happier people than the poor... they are not.

That being said, nobody seems to have come up with a viable alternative.

[Wilms]

6. While extremely subjective, there is the Gross National Happiness model.

A second-generation GNH concept, treating happiness as a socioeconomic development metric, was proposed in 2006 by Med Jones, the President of International Institute of Management. The metric measures socioeconomic development by tracking 7 development area including the nation's mental and emotional health.<4> GNH value is proposed to be an index function of the total average per capita of the following measures:

1. Economic Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of economic metrics such as consumer debt, average income to consumer price index ratio and income distribution

2. Environmental Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of environmental metrics such as pollution, noise and traffic

3. Physical Wellness: Indicated via statistical measurement of physical health metrics such as severe illnesses

4. Mental Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of mental health metrics such as usage of antidepressants and rise or decline of psychotherapy patients

5. Workplace Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of labor metrics such as jobless claims, job change, workplace complaints and lawsuits

6. Social Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of social metrics such as discrimination, safety, divorce rates, complaints of domestic conflicts and family lawsuits, public lawsuits, crime rates

7. Political Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of political metrics such as the quality of local democracy, individual freedom, and foreign conflicts.

The above 7 metrics were incorporated into the first Global GNH Survey.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gross_national_happiness

[Judi Lynn]

7. This is really interesting. First time I've heard of it. Thanks! n/t

[protocol rv]

9. But Venezuela is still having the worst economy

I realize the first thing some people do is try to change the metrics when the metrics turn agaisnt them. GDP is a very simple measure, and it's hard to fake. This is why here in Venezuela the Central Bank issues the numbers, and there's little the government can do to stop them.

I would be supportive of creating a measurement other than GDP. Not necessarily the Gross Happiness Model your aquaintance proposes, but something a little different than just measuring GDP. However, the truth is that if GDP is negative, you can measure all the happiness you want, and if it stays negative, then you're going to end up with people who may be happy and starved to death. So when things are as negative as they are here, and the quarterly figures are very very grim indeed, then it's a little futile to discuss happiness. Right now, my friend, this isn't a theoretical discussion. This is about a collapsing economy with inflation thrown on top. And we really don't look forward to being another Zimbabwe or another Cuba.

[protocol rv]

10. My proposal

here's my proposal for a measure beyond GDP

1. Economic Wellness: per capita GDP, Current Account Balance, inflation rate

2. Environmental Wellness: Lung Cancer rate.

3. Physical Wellness: Life expectancy, child mortality, tobacco consumption per capita

4. Mental Wellness: Suicide Rate

5. Workplace Wellness: Unemployment rate, workplace injuries per million hours worked

6. Social Wellness: Murder Rate, Vehicle Accidents per Km, percent of families living in their own home (ie they own the property), literacy rate, percent of students going to public schools, internet connections per capita, internet freedom (ie no government firewalls)

7. Political Wellness:

Amount of time a President from the same party has been in power - the shorter the better.
Percent of the time the Supreme Court rules against the President and Congress. The higher the better.
Use electronic voting machines without a traceable paper record? If yes, penalize.
Does the government use political background or party membership as a litmus test for employment? If yes, penalize.

8. Religion wellness. Do public schools hold prayers or allow teaching of a religion? Yes or No.

9. Business Freedom Index: Percent of the population employed in private versus government work - the more government work, the lower the score.

10. Corruption index: Does the government bid all contracts over $100,000? Yes or no.

What I don't know is how to weigh all of these to give us a viable unitary figure. So until then...