MARCO+MARCO,+CRISTINAarco+Marco,+Cristina

Weekend homework: 1-Why Argentina and Brazil stopped listening to the International Monetary Fund 2-How Bolivia and Iceland decided not to pay their “illegitimate” debts. 3-Can a European country become another David vs Golliath?

** POLITICS **

Whenever we turn on the television, access to the Internet or read a newspaper, we are immediately surrounded by negative news about the current economic crisis. The global financial crisis really started to show its effects in the middle of 2007 and into 2008 in USA with the Real Estate Bubble, spread out rapidly and affected nearly every county in the world. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight.

Due to the exceptional magnitude of the present world crisis, to avoid bankruptcy, many leaders are forced to apply for a bailout loans to the World Bank and to the International Monetary Fund. However, when the IMF and the WB lend money they impose several conditions in the form of policy prescriptions called "structural adjustment policies" which affect economic and social policy and austerity. F urthermore, in some cases, those conditions increases poverty and, instead of recovery growth and getting out of debt, many countries have experienced recession, and many are still trapped. In this context, in which there was no benefit for the population, the public debt is an illegitimate debt.

The list of countries that are considered affected by the global economic crisis is long. Some specific examples are Brazil and Argentina which came into the crisis in 2001 when their foreign debts exceeded their earnings and they were not able to repay them. These countries overcame the crisis only after suspend temporary foreign debt payments and following an opposite polity to that recommended by the IMF. Other examples are Bolivia and Iceland, which were in no condition to negotiate better terms with banks and the IMF and, like David vs Goliath, they refused to pay their illegitimate debts and began the process of economic recovery.

En Europe, the heads of state or government signed an accord in which they said they were facing the crisis and the debt problem through a series of common measures such as the reform of the pension, health and education systems and the labor market. However, examples such as those mentioned above clearly demonstrate that budget cuts actually provoke increases in the national debt by damaging the economy. This is why I am convinced that none of them will be the next David unless they follow the opposite direction confronting the International Monetary Fund recommendations. =** Excellent **= ** POLITICS **
 * CORRECTIONS **

Whenever we turn on the television, access the Internet or read a newspaper, we are immediately surrounded by negative news about the current economic crisis. The global financial crisis really started to show its effects in the middle of 2007 and into 2008 in USA with the Real Estate Bubble, spread out rapidly and affected nearly every county in the world. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight.

Due to the exceptional magnitude of the present world crisis, to avoid bankruptcy, many leaders are forced to apply for bailout loans to the World Bank and to the International Monetary Fund. However, when the IMF and the WB lend money they impose several conditions in the form of policy prescriptions called "structural adjustment policies" which affect economic and social policy and austerity. F urthermore, in some cases, those conditions increases poverty and, instead of recovery growth and getting out of debt, many countries have experienced recession, and many are still trapped. In this context, in which there was no benefit for the population, the public debt is an illegitimate debt.

The list of countries that are considered affected by the global economic crisis is long. Some specific examples are Brazil and Argentina which came into the crisis in 2001 when their foreign debts exceeded their earnings and they were not able to repay them. These countries overcame the crisis only after temporarily suspending foreign debt payments and following an opposite policy to that recommended by the IMF. Other examples are Bolivia and Iceland, which were in no condition to negotiate better terms with banks and the IMF and, like David vs Goliath, they refused to pay their illegitimate debts and began the process of economic recovery.

En Europe, the heads of state or government signed an accord in which they said they were facing the crisis and the debt problem through a series of common measures such as the reform of the pension, health and education systems and the labor market. However, examples such as those mentioned above clearly demonstrate that budget cuts actually provoke increases in the national debt by damaging the economy. This is why I am convinced that none of them will be the next David unless they follow the opposite direction confronting the International Monetary Fund recommendations. =** Excellent **=