I'm not sure I agree that such an absurd plan is necessarily bad for Ukraine. It could well be that they do well selling minerals for batteries and solar energy. Unleased compelled to, the reason they would be selling it is that the prices would be artificially high due to subsidies and to taxes and restrictions on the alternatives.
As long as the Ukrainian government doesn't make their own citizens do the same thing, the country could do quite well. It is the other European consumers and taxpayers who are getting screwed.
I appreciate your point. I relates to the larger essay I did not write ... because I still puzzle over it.
It is "Lebensraum." Or, more gently: How should the resources of Ukraine be deployed, and were they not already being efficiently deployed pre-2022?
Maybe not by some metrics. The biggest issue in January 2022 was not debate over the new Competition Law but debate over the Land Reform. The bogeymen there included entities like Monsanto. (Monsanto is like the Microsoft/Google of Agribusiness, although I think the Monsanto people are very smart and have a lot to contribute. I've had the privilege of talking to some of them.)
The Ukrainians' big concern with respect to "Land Reform" is very Dickensian: Small land-holders might get bought out--not a bad thing, necessarily--but then they find themselves driftless, just the kind of people who might start agitating. Whole, rural communities find themselves depleted. The authorities worry about "social instability". they have a lot of historical experience with it.
Oversimply: I imagine the WEF perceives Ukraine as a version of "Lebensraum," as a great field of solar panels... Yes, if a single word illuminates my hazy intuition and concern, it's "Lebensraum:" "territory believed especially by Nazis to be necessary for national existence or economic self-sufficiency"
I follow https://grahamseibert.substack.com/ who managed to find a second life in Kiev. Not particularly focused on UA politics but more on life a bit outside of the city.
My read is that Zelensky has systematically purged many of the oligarchs. Many had ties to Russia so their assets have been confiscated. In a way the Ukrainian gangs and the Russian gangs have been decimated as a product of the war. I'm sure Zelensky has maintained good relationships with his sponsors in the process. OTOH, I see he has the opportunity to clean up the place and is doing so. With the war he has become an independent man, or so it might seem. In terms of his owning loads of stuff, he was fairly rich pre-war as a result of his TV talent.
Regarding the WEF, Zelensky is likely to play their silly game. I suspect he sees a new future for Ukraine post-war where most of the young don't leave. That requires some high tech promises and industry. I'm sure he will milk resources wherever he can to achieve a newer vision. Once Putin is sent packing, a lot will be needed to rebuild. The army of consultants will arrive to get their piece.
I remember seeing a video clip of economist Kevin Murphy gingerly making the politically-incorrect point that South Korea (under Park Chung Hee) and Chile (Pinochet) stand out as successful experiences in development. Both were serious about the integrity of property-rights, the stuff that can make markets work for small entrepreneurs. They were on to something.
On a related point, you might get something out of this article in The TransAtlantic. How does a certain lecture from the Post on Russian imperialism through western words contrast with the material imperialism of US/EU capital?
I'm not sure I agree that such an absurd plan is necessarily bad for Ukraine. It could well be that they do well selling minerals for batteries and solar energy. Unleased compelled to, the reason they would be selling it is that the prices would be artificially high due to subsidies and to taxes and restrictions on the alternatives.
As long as the Ukrainian government doesn't make their own citizens do the same thing, the country could do quite well. It is the other European consumers and taxpayers who are getting screwed.
I appreciate your point. I relates to the larger essay I did not write ... because I still puzzle over it.
It is "Lebensraum." Or, more gently: How should the resources of Ukraine be deployed, and were they not already being efficiently deployed pre-2022?
Maybe not by some metrics. The biggest issue in January 2022 was not debate over the new Competition Law but debate over the Land Reform. The bogeymen there included entities like Monsanto. (Monsanto is like the Microsoft/Google of Agribusiness, although I think the Monsanto people are very smart and have a lot to contribute. I've had the privilege of talking to some of them.)
The Ukrainians' big concern with respect to "Land Reform" is very Dickensian: Small land-holders might get bought out--not a bad thing, necessarily--but then they find themselves driftless, just the kind of people who might start agitating. Whole, rural communities find themselves depleted. The authorities worry about "social instability". they have a lot of historical experience with it.
Oversimply: I imagine the WEF perceives Ukraine as a version of "Lebensraum," as a great field of solar panels... Yes, if a single word illuminates my hazy intuition and concern, it's "Lebensraum:" "territory believed especially by Nazis to be necessary for national existence or economic self-sufficiency"
I follow https://grahamseibert.substack.com/ who managed to find a second life in Kiev. Not particularly focused on UA politics but more on life a bit outside of the city.
My read is that Zelensky has systematically purged many of the oligarchs. Many had ties to Russia so their assets have been confiscated. In a way the Ukrainian gangs and the Russian gangs have been decimated as a product of the war. I'm sure Zelensky has maintained good relationships with his sponsors in the process. OTOH, I see he has the opportunity to clean up the place and is doing so. With the war he has become an independent man, or so it might seem. In terms of his owning loads of stuff, he was fairly rich pre-war as a result of his TV talent.
Regarding the WEF, Zelensky is likely to play their silly game. I suspect he sees a new future for Ukraine post-war where most of the young don't leave. That requires some high tech promises and industry. I'm sure he will milk resources wherever he can to achieve a newer vision. Once Putin is sent packing, a lot will be needed to rebuild. The army of consultants will arrive to get their piece.
I remember seeing a video clip of economist Kevin Murphy gingerly making the politically-incorrect point that South Korea (under Park Chung Hee) and Chile (Pinochet) stand out as successful experiences in development. Both were serious about the integrity of property-rights, the stuff that can make markets work for small entrepreneurs. They were on to something.
On a related point, you might get something out of this article in The TransAtlantic. How does a certain lecture from the Post on Russian imperialism through western words contrast with the material imperialism of US/EU capital?
https://open.substack.com/pub/thetransatlantic/p/kiev-to-kyiv-the-word-wars-western?utm_source=direct&r=21pn59&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Many thanks for the lead. I will read it.
This Ukraine business, including the post-Ukraine planning we are hearing noises about, is puzzling.