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Finance, Mexican Style:Parasite state perfected as dollars head south
The super-rich elite and political hierarchy of Mexico have figured out the ideal way to keep their country afloat with minimal investment on their part. In fact, the worse these corrupt cronies run their country, the better the scam works. Talk about creative financing! It works like this: the Mexican government fails to make minimal investment in infrastructure, education and employment, thereby forcing the most energetic (and desperate) of its citizens to leave the country to seek work in the U.S. The Mexican expats then send home a rather tidy amount estimated to be over $14 billion annually. Remittances constitute the second-highest source of hard-currency income for Mexico althouigh el Presidente Fox remarked in September 2003 that remittances "are our biggest source of foreign income, bigger than oil, tourism or foreign investment." Of course, this is $14 billion which has left the American economy, just as surely as if it were a trade deficit. While many of these American dollars go toward basic living costs for relatives, some also paves roads, digs wells and builds infrastructure expenses which are generally considered the job of government. But not in Mexico. It is estimated that there are around 20 million Mexicans living in the U.S., so we are talking about many small remittances foreign aid financed by busboys and maids. Therefore the prosperity of the cash-sending workers is important to politicians because it means a secure cash flow for Mexico. It naturally helps when little items like healthcare are financed by American taxpayers since it leaves more money available for remittances. No wonder that the Mexican government complains about such things: it says Mexicans in the U.S. are shown disrespect if they don't receive benefits because of illegal status, but the concern is really about more money for Mexico.
THE ADVANCED POLITICAL SCAM
Will there be any American gardeners left with such neighbors? Fox has been energetic in utilizing remittances for his political advantage. He created a program that encouraged Mexican emigres to invest in new businesses in his state. He took over the program Casas Guanajuato, a quasi-government service organization which sets up offices in American communities which have large infiltrations of Mexicans from that state. When Fox left the governor's post, the number of Casas offices was 33. As part of his election pledges, he promised to press for an international agreement that Mexicans living in the U.S. would have access to healthcare. Presumably he meant free services financed by American citizens. Remember that former President Zedillo was an active lobbyist to overturn Prop 187. Fox has been vocal since his election about opening the border in a European Union-style arrangement. (Of course, the EU consists of countries with similar levels of economic growth and development, so the relationship is one of approximate equals, not of a parasite and host). He claims that an open border will allow Mexico's economy to expand and thereby reduce the need for his countrymen to flee for economic opportunity in El Norte. Mexicans think this is an excellent idea. Fox also promised to work for higher wages for Mexicans, but low wages are the attraction for the big corporations seeking cheap labor. Sure enough, the last couple years have seen thousands of maquiladoro jobs sent to China. Why pay a Mexican $1 an hour when you can get a Chinese to work for $.25? These days a statuette of the Virgin of Guadelupe might be made in China. by Brenda Walker
FURTHER READING:
Murder, Money and Mexico
History Moving North
Southwest shall secede from U.S., prof predicts
Latin American Billionaires
Reconsidering Immigration: Is Mexico a Special Case?
What Americans Should Know About Immigration and President Fox of Mexico
(Vicente) Fox in the Hen House
Mexican Aggression and Its American Collaborators
Population pressure and conflict
Why all the bowing, scraping toward Mexico?
Golden State is home to one-third of nation's Latinos
Mexican pols press for immigration, neglect home front, critics say
A Better Idea for Bush's Mexico Trip
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