[Vnbiz] Not on Vietnam but may shed light on the inflation debate....a readers rsponse from

[Tran Dinh Hoanh]

Dear anh Craig & CACC,

What you said about alternating price support and
alternative-energy-research depending on economic conditions makes good
sense.  We ought to think about that seriously.  The world is so depending
on oil that world politics is so messed up due to oil.  Eventually we will
run out of oil anyway.  I think the world will be much more balanced if
solar energy becomes a main source of energy.  It will be a great equalizer,
just like Internet, because, with little variation here and there,  the sun
very much shines equally on all countries.

BTW, I wonder if there is any alternative energy research currently in
Vietnam?   Does anyone know the answer?

Have a great day!

Hoanh

On Sat, Mar 8, 2008 at 1:40 AM, Craig Stevenson <cstevenson2000 at gmail.com>
wrote:

> [ Vietnam Business Forum ]
>
>
> Dear CACC:
>
> Frankly, aren't oil reserves for VN nearing elimination.  Without
> resolution of the Spratley's (Sorry I do not know the VN name) crucial to
> any real further discussion of this.  Really, despite high costs at present
> shouldn't we be discussing taxes to be used for other generation of enrgy
> resources, alternatives.  Subsidy might lessen the blow to the consumer
> which is important to offset wage increase demands and perhaps to subsidize
> fertilizer to farmers etc to offset domestically produced food costs for the
> same reason.  Any talk of subsidy should also speak of taxes in the same
> manner marked to prices in the market.  Perhaps, oil rises and subsidies
> kick into place, oil falls and subsidies lessen or taxes kick in at certain
> prices which go earmarked to an energy indepndence fund, etc...
>
> Phong, in all reality, wouldn't current events seem to imply that the
> concept that "markets rule and should rule" is undermined to the very large
> imbalances in a world economy that isn't actually, fully dependent upon
> market forces.  All intervene in every market to varying degrees.  Further,
> it might be that the curent "market-supremacy model", built for/from
> political expediency in an era of the cold war, that currently
> philosophically reigns, might not actually be relevant, or lasting, in a
> world where, despite how we (would, might) prefer it be, doesn't exist in
> reality.  A peg distorts the market, as does a tax, as does financial
> globalization, inequality, interdependence, and speculation unfortunately.
> Might it not be that neither Hayak nor Keynes is right.  Of course neither
> should VN reutrn to a command economy, especially after the distribution of
> wealth effects of late, nor should it blindly follow a market rules
> philosophy. I believe the world misunderstands  the nature (and certainly
> misjudges the implications) of the fundamental shifts that could occur quite
> quickly do to global imbalances and I guarentee possible movement doesn't
> likely tend toward free market liberalism.
>
> Craig
> On Sat, Mar 8, 2008 at 12:39 AM, Tran Dinh Hoanh <tdhoanh at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> > [ Vietnam Business Forum ]
> >
> >
> > Dear brother Phong,
> >
> > Oil will never be a "market economy."  At least not in our lifetime.
> > Oil is a global monopoly.  Oil price is a monopoly price determined by
> > OPEC.  So the price of oil is not really ruled by supply and demand of a
> > market economy.
> >
> > That is why in a year when the American citizens paid exhorbitant prices
> > for gasoline and gas price rose continuously (and still rising as of
> > now), Exxon had a 41-billion-USD profits in 2007, the largest profit in the
> > US corporate history.  Four largest oil companies had more than 100 billion
> > USD of profit in 2007.
> > http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/economy/2008/02/01/exxons-profits-measuring-a-record-windfall.html
> >
> > And the US government is STILL subsididing US oil companies.
> >
> > Vietnam oil is controlled by two monopoly arms in import and export.
> > And the monopolies won't go away anytime soon because of the important role
> > of oil in the national security and economy and becasue the monopolistic
> > nature of the global oil industry.
> >
> > So any talk about "market economy" and the law of supply and demand in
> > oil is unrealistic.   It is "supply and demand" in a distorted and
> > monopolistic environment.  What we need to do is to understand the
> > monopolistic character of oil industry to structure production, distribution
> > and pricing in a way that is fair and good for citizens and the
> > national economy, and not to allow absurd things happen like in the US--the
> > government subsidizing oil companies, and in a year when citizens pay rapid
> > price increases, oil companies post record windfall profits.
> >
> > Have a great day!
> >
> > Hoanh
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Tran Dinh Hoanh, Esq., LLB, JD
> > Washington DC
> >
>
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