TheMarketForIdeas

Habemus POTUS!

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 50, Nov.-Dec. 2024 After a decisive showdown that defied our expectations regarding the use of legal battles and allegations of fraud, Donald Trump emerged victorious in the US presidential race, becoming the second President of the United States (POTUS) to take a break between terms. The outcome was an anti-climax, as the vote went the way many polls and betting markets had predicted, with Trump winning by a clear popular and electoral college majority that could not easily be challenged. The financial disparities between the two candidates in favour of the Democrats could not compensate for Trump’s ability to communicate freely and charismatically with the crowd, and the Democrats failed to fully utilize the new campaign weapon, the political podcast, which surpasses traditional media in terms of audience. I don’t know if we can hope that this experience will make the Democratic Party rethink its flirtation with identitarian and economic extremism, or the way it let party cabals play games in removing Biden (who would have been a better presidential candidate) and selecting Harris, but Donald Trump managed to win record support from minorities and improve his score in absolutely all American counties. Kamala Harris has not managed to surpass Biden’s performance anywhere. But what will happen from 2025 on the external front? Will we witness a new Pax Americana or will the pessimism of the elites in the Euro-American mainstream come true? More

Liber Amicorum in Praise of Amfiteatru Economic My testimony for its 25th anniversary

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 50, Nov.-Dec. 2024 I shared the following thoughts before and they have already been printed in the pages of the book that tells the story of the most appreciated Romanian magazine of economic science. I also recommend the other testimonies collected between the covers of the volume edited by Professors Vasile Dinu and Laurențiu Tăchiciu, Amfiteatru Economic și dimensiunea colectivă a prieteniei intelectuale [Economic Amphitheater and the collective dimension of intellectual friendship]. Because, yes, beyond any metric, writing-for-communication endures only when it becomes writing-for-communion. More

Event-debate “European Citizens’ Agora – The European Union Enlargement Process, a Catalyst for Progress”

The Market for Ideas

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The EUROPE DIRECT Bucharest Centre, hosted by the European Institute of Romania, in partnership with the Faculty of International Business and Economics, the Bucharest University of Economic Studies, organized on Thursday, October 24, 2024, the event-debate entitled “European Citizens’ Agora – The European Union enlargement process, a catalyst for progress”. More

The Draghi Report: Whatever It Takes to Increase European Competitiveness

Silviu Cerna

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 It is often said that by declaring that he would do “whatever it takes”, the then President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, saved the Eurozone from the financial and sovereign debt crisis of 2012. His solutions for reviving the growth of the Union’s competitiveness European (EU) are presented in a much larger document (400 pages), published last week, but the general principle is the same: “whatever it takes” must be done. This organization needs, he claims, a “new industrial strategy” to stimulate economic growth, which involves additional investments of 800 billion euros annually. The amount represents 4.7% of GDP, more than double the American aid received by European economies through the Marshall Plan. But it is an “existential challenge”. More

The Missed Colossus How Russia’s authoritarianism hinders its future

Mihai Răzvan Nedelcu

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The $20 decillion ($20,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!) fine imposed by Russia on Google (The Washington Post, 2024) is largely symbolic but reveals the arbitrary and absurd despotism into which the Russian Federation has gradually transformed—a stark contrast to the 1990s, when Bill Clinton and Boris Yeltsin appeared to foster a spirit of friendship, and discussions of Moscow joining NATO were not (yet) laughed out of the room. More

Behind the Reaction and Counter-Reaction in the Middle East

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The US announcement of an imminent Iranian attack on Israel has sparked fears of a long-awaited escalation to open warfare in the Middle East. However, that attack was similar in size and intensity to the one in April 2024, came at a time of day when casualties were minimized, and was calibrated not to pose very great challenges to Israel’s layered missile defense system, assisted by American and, it seems, British forces. More

The Visible Hand: The Case for Government Enterprises in Ensuring Fair Competition and Market Stability

Emmanuel Olusegun Stober

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The phrase “invisible hand”, famously coined by economist Adam Smith, refers to the self-regulated nature of a free market. The notion suggests that individual pursuits of self-interest, when left unchecked, will guide the market toward efficiency and the collective good. However, history and modern economics have demonstrated that this “invisible hand” is not always adequate in fostering fair competition or preventing market abuses. When monopolies form, price fixing occurs, or firms seek only to exploit arbitrage opportunities, the market can fail to protect consumer rights, ensure price stability, or promote overall economic growth. This is where the “visible hand” of government enterprise and intervention becomes crucial. More

The Industrial Revolutions of Art Some reasons for studying this intersection, developed in an essay for Amfiteatru Economic

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The bonds between cultural studies and economic science – timeless, as they endure “materially” married, yet peripheral, as they seem “spiritually” divorced – need to be revisited and reviewed with the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0). It is in the midst of the debates on the future of “humanity” (understood as species and spirit) – given the new technologies that affect and alter micro-/meso-/macro-/mondo- business organizations, production processes, consumption habits – that this research endeavour unfolds. Both cultural facts and economic tools are subject to an intricate intellectual “stress test”, therefore scrutinizing the “4.0” cultural concepts/definitions and attitudes/behaviours, observable in markets’ as well as in policies’ deliverables will help us to fairly (fore)see what we might risk losing or stand to win, culturally, as communities, nations, human kind.Industrial Revolutions (IR) remain at the crossroads of several binomials: intellectual design and spontaneous emergence, institutions and technology, necessity and fortuity, and so forth. The shifts from mechanised production (IR 1.0) to mass production (IR 2.0) then to automated production (IR 3.0) and to the ascending scale/scope of digital transformation (IR 4.0) – with Artificial Intelligence (AI) as flagship technology – triggered mode(l)s of development, devised profound societal upheavals and fuelled worries about freedom and fairness. Culture(s) too host(s) such civilizational twists and turns – as spots of reflection on social disruptions, as sites of refuge from own uprooting, as spaces of sharable hidden energies – and IR 4.0 excites and upsets them via novel ideological biases, vanguard niche markets, public versus private spaces trade-offs, or geo-cultural/-political/-economic resets. More

The Three Seas Initiative: A Key for Enhancing Connectivity in Central Europe to Make EU More Resilient and Cohesive Public hearing in the European Parliament, Brussels, October 15, 2024

The Market for Ideas

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The Three Seas Initiative (3SI) is an original regional cooperation format among thirteen EU member states of Central Europe. The 3SI focuses on improving connectivity between the north and south of the eastern part of the EU, mainly through developing transport, energy, and digital infrastructure. It also aims at strengthening the resilience of the region by ensuring secure supply chains and by developing better access to regional ports and connections with eastern neighbours of the EU. So far, the geographic and infrastructural conditions have hampered the unleashing of the full potential of the region to strengthen the EU economy and innovativeness. There are 4 strategic partners to the 3SI: the European Commission, the USA and Germany, Japan. Two states have the status of associated participating states to the 3SI: Ukraine and Moldova.Central Europe has been developing dynamically in recent decades. To maintain the pace of development toward a highly innovative, interconnected, and resilient region, much more focus should be placed on regional cooperation. Thus, the aim of the conference was to present the 3SI concept of overcoming the indicated challenges and strengthening the EU. The conference brought together participants from different areas: politicians, scholars, experts, journalists and diplomats to discuss the results and prospects of the 3SI. This conference presented research findings of scholars and experts on the 3SI, adding our knowledge of regional cooperation and discuss its current status and serving to popularize scientific knowledge on regional cooperation. The main questions revolve around the up-to-date results of 3SI cooperation and its prospects. More

The Excessive Deficit of Romania – Context and Possible Sanctions

Dan Pălăngean

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 The excessive deficit procedure is a major factor in fighting the fiscal deficit for Romania, which is expected to rise to approx. 7% of GDP this year. Due to COVID-19, the EU suspended its budgetary rules for all Member States between 2020 and 2023 by activating the general escape clause. As of 2024, the general escape clause is no longer in effect. The EU has therefore relaunched the deficit-based EDP process under the new rules of the revised economic governance framework. More

Framing the American Commonwealth

Steven Alan Samson

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 Historically, American political and religious liberty can neither be divorced from each other nor be understood apart from the struggle between church and state that wracked early modern Europe. The American constitutional tradition of liberty and self-government is rooted in the biblical concept of the covenant. Sixteenth century Reformers used biblical and historical models to carefully develop the idea of covenanted self-government into a pillar of the ecclesiastical and political order, thus giving rise to covenant (or federal) theology and the idea of political federalism. What follows is a lightly edited excerpt from this writer’s Crossed Swords: Entanglements Between Church and State in America (1984), chapter 5, “The American Commonwealth.” It is a sequel to “Engines of Liberty: American Experiments in Self-Government,” The Market for Ideas, 25 (Sept.-Oct. 2020). More

Tim vs Jim: The Vice Presidential Debate Was the Revelation of the Election Season

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 On October 1^st 2024, the debate between the vice-presidential candidates in the US election campaign took place. The event is important as part of the American democratic ritual that legitimizes the process by which a historically large and diverse but now also divided people accept a leader for a very powerful unified executive position. After two decades of continual delegitimization of American Presidents for tactical reasons of political infighting, the ritual has become even more important, as can be seen from the exuberance of the national conventions of the political parties and the unifying language that is used. More

The Rise of the Concert Economy: A Modern Phenomenon with Afrobeats at the Forefront

Emmanuel Olusegun Stober

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 In recent years, the music industry has undergone a profound transformation, with live performances becoming increasingly central to artists’ revenue streams. This shift has given rise to the “Concert Economy,” where live music events play a crucial role in an artist’s financial success. This change is especially evident in the rise of Afrobeats, a genre that has significantly impacted the global concert economy. More

A Journey Through Another Dismal Science In memoriam Professor Silviu Neguț (February 1, 1945 - September 15, 2024)

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 49, Sep.-Oct. 2024 I first met Professor Silviu Neguţ as a name on a book cover, probably the noblest of encounters between a (timeless) master and a (future) disciple. In my wayward youth, I was enamoured of everything that resembled geography, a passion second only to football. I have matured since then into the fullness of my wisdom and subtlety of pursuits ;-), therefore I can no longer claim a passion for geography. I just… love it. (As for football, the passion remains, defying maturity, wisdom and subtlety :-D). More

Futurenomics: From Exploring to Exploiting Societal Mega-trends, Catalysts and Game-changers Call for articles by “ICBE 2025” organizing committee

The Market for Ideas

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 The exploration (aiming, inherently, at some kind of, at least, intellectual exploitation) of the future, as well as of the past, while differing on their basic ingredients – “visions” and “vestiges”, respectively –, shares a couple of adamant blemishes – our “incomplete information” and “bounded rationality”. We stubbornly compose mosaics (by means of imagination) about a past which we did not witness; and we, more or less superficially, extrapolate tendencies/trends (with a historical basis) for a future which we may or may not be there to witness. Inspired by a plethora of both “path dependencies” and “disruptive revolutions”, we can project scenarios, with varying degrees of confidence, on both past and future. However, “what comes next” is sensibly more concerning. More

Social Scoreboard – Romania vs. Poland in the EU

Dan Pălăngean

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Eurostat has published the state of play of the Social Scoreboard for Member States, summarised in the evolution of 16 profile indicators. In terms of GDP per capita at standard purchasing power parity, Romania is at 80% of the EU average, on a par with Poland and higher than Hungary, Croatia (76%), Slovakia (73%), Latvia (71%), Greece (67%) and Bulgaria (64%). More

May You Live in Interesting Times

Nicolas-Costinel Negrea

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 The current state of American politics is dire. A deepening polarization has taken root at the heart of American politics, affecting all aspects of discourse. The division between Republicans and Democrats is no longer solely based on policy, but on fundamental values and differing perceptions of reality. This has immediate consequences for the lives of ordinary citizens both within and beyond the borders of the United States. The global rise of populism and nationalism has had a particularly strong impact in the United States, transforming long-standing debates about American leadership in the free world and the enduring nature of the American dream into a climate of hostility, political violence, and hate. More

Transformations of the Socio-Political-Economic Systems at the Confluence with New Technologies: Revisiting the “Liberalism versus Statism” Dilemma in the Context of the Industrial Revolution 4.0 Call for articles by “Amfiteatru Economic” editorial board

The Market for Ideas

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Industrial Revolutions (IR) represent periods of scientific and technological transformation in which economic sectors, as well as social structures, in their broadest understanding, are subjected to “stress tests”, under the combined action of the forces of progress/modernization and conservation/tradition. These are processes that, for example, economists can examine in terms of delivering economic growth/development/sustainability or that political scientists can study, in turn, as fermenting in democratic/dictatorial/autocratic regimes. Holding two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retaining the ability to function is an inescapable challenge since putting social knowledge (for instance, scientific or technological) to good use is associated with the freedom of circulation of ideas, though also with their centralization, regulation and planning. More

An Uneasy Partnership: Medieval Church and State

Steven Alan Samson

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Western civilization, which emerged during the late Roman imperial period, is a mixture – perhaps even a synthesis – of Roman and Christian elements. Christianity rejuvenated the Roman world by introducing a dynamism and resilience lacking in earlier civilizations. The adoption and spread of the Christian faith inspired cultural, moral, and technological innovations within a Roman legal and administrative architecture which, through the generations, have transformed everyday life nearly everywhere. This article is drawn from the first part of chapter 3, “Early Christendom,” of Crossed Swords: Entanglements between Church and State in America (unpublished dissertation, University of Oregon, 1984), 101-19. It is a companion piece to “Early Christendom: Chrysalis of the West” published in the Mar./Apr. 2023 issue. More

SWIFT Economic dictionary wordplays

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Twenty-five years ago, during World Economic History class in university, our professor decided to “indulge in a bit of showing off” (this was long before the Romanian expression translated as “making an arrogance” [a face o aroganță – sic!] became an iconic idiom thanks to the local shepherd + real estate + football magnate Gigi Becali). My professor’s very first words during the very first class were Azúcar Moreno. It was the name of an acclaimed Spanish musical duo consisting of sisters Antonia and Encarnacion Salazar who topped the charts back in the day and had just finished a well-received concert in Romania. The name of the band itself meant “brown sugar”, a self-referential nod to the sisters’ Romani origins. During that semester, the professor took us through various historical eras peppered with hints and references to these two words, discussing at length about routes and resources, relations and regimes, all connected by the “red thread” of the savour of the goods (or the scent of money) and of the colour or the skin (along with the sound of suffering). He did not abandon his eccentricity even during the exam. Sensing a sports-related metaphor in my answer to a standard exam question, he issued me a challenge, again, long before it became a common practice on social media. To earn the highest mark, I had to not only enumerate ten sports teams from the US regardless of the sport or league, but to do it in the (chrono)logical order in which the terms associated with them entered the American vernacular. I walked away from that exam with an “A” (10) and the revelation that skilful wordplays could add value to scientific knowledge. More

The October Surprises Came Early

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 In American politics, there is talk of the “October surprise”, an event that precipitates a spectacular reversal of the situation just before the presidential elections at the beginning of November, having the potential to radically change the outcome of the elections. After a prelude to the presidential race on autopilot, in which President Biden and former President Trump avoided primary debates and were their parties’ presumptive nominees with few expected surprises, July brought shocking events on both sides, that may change the course of the elections. Firstly, the June 26 early presidential debate precipitated a crisis of confidence in Joe Biden. Later, on the one hand, we have the assassination attempt against Donald Trump, resulting in one of the most powerful political images in modern history and precipitating a crisis of confidence in key organizations and a new Republican populist radicalization. On the other hand, Joe Biden announced, just a month before the Democratic National Convention that would have confirmed him as the candidate of the Party he leads for the American Presidency, that he is withdrawing from a role of candidate that he has tenaciously held onto and that he supports Kamala Harris as his successor. Donald Trump, meanwhile, picked a campaign partner with ideological weight as a promise to his supporters about his second-term commitment to the populist causes he launched but rarely followed through on. There are still more than three months until election night, and after such an inauspicious start to the real presidential campaign, we should not be surprised that the “October surprises” may keep on coming. More

Romania, the Lowest Number of Working Years among the EU Member States

Dan Pălăngean

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Last year, Romania recorded the lowest number of years of work among EU member states, according to data published by Eurostat. With an average of only 32.2 years, we ranked below Italy (32.8 years), Croatia (34 years), Greece (34.2 years) and Bulgaria (34.5 years). Which, socio-culturally, shows that we are, simultaneously, both Latins and Balkans. More

Rising Temperatures and Rising Extremism

Nicolas-Costinel Negrea  Daria-Antonia Pătrașcu

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 The political temperature is rising within the European Union. The political landscape within the European Union is currently undergoing a significant transformation, characterized by a noticeable increase in extremist ideologies. This shift is particularly evident among the younger generation, who are becoming increasingly disenchanted with traditional political parties and with yesteryear radicals like the Greens. The established political order, which was once viewed as the foundation of stability and progress, is now being challenged by movements that promise radical change. More

Navigating the Intersection of Race and Identity: Understanding the Complex Tapestry of Human Experience

Emmanuel Olusegun Stober

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 The intersection of race and identity is a complex human experience with profound implications for individuals and society. To deepen the understanding of contemporary social issues and foster intellectual discourse, this article explores how race intersects with individual identity, shaping personal narratives and societal structures. It draws on scholarly research and real-life examples, in examining the multifaceted dynamics through which racial identity influences perceptions, experiences, and opportunities. More

The Inescapable Gap

Vlad I. Roșca

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Much awaited as any other major football tournament, the UEFA Euro 2024 brought along controversies regarding the competition format. Critics (or nostalgic fans) argued over the expansion of the tournament to 24 teams, considering that the old system, with 16 teams divided into groups of 4, would have been simpler and better. Better, meaning, more competitive (?). The current format sees the top two teams from each of the six groups (of four) qualify for the round of 16, joined by the best four third ranked teams of each group. More

“The American Claimants” Biden, Trump, Twain and America’s (Mis)Fortune

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 We know, the US is short for the USA, in turn an acronym for the United States of America, which could very well stand for The-Somehow-Still-United-Despite-Constant-Divisions-and-Bickering-States-of-America. Race and class, gender and religion, all craftily packed in (debilitating) ideologies, are some of the cruxes for (or rather, causes of) the many fault lines that stubbornly drive wedges within the highly regarded and widely praised “land of the free, home of the brave”. These boundaries date back to the time of pilgrims and pioneers and will endure in an idiosyncratic form of patriotism, just like their political coalescence has become, paradoxically enough, the driver of American society and statehood. The polarity between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, aka “the left” versus “the right”, aka “liberals” versus “conservatives”, keeps America in motion, even if the image of the debate (debacle?) Biden-Trump on the evening/morning of June 28/29, was one of an American political class that “went to pot” than of candidates “running for POTUS” (President of the United States). More

“The Future of Europe” – To Be Scrutinized by Academics and Practitioners Conference at the Bucharest University of Economic Studies

Ramona-Iulia Dieaconescu

No. 47, May-Jun. 2024 “The Future of Europe” International Conference, organized by the Faculty of International Business and Economics, of the Bucharest University of Economic Studies, on 24-25 October 2024 and marking this year its 15^th edition, aims to bring together academics and practitioners from all over the world to present research papers, share their knowledge and expertise, as well as to debate ideas in a wide range of thematic areas, including but not limited to:- international business, innovation and competitiveness, digital transformation, supply chain resilience, and sustainability challenges;- EU governance and enlargement, business cycles and economic crises, role of the state, mobility and infrastructure development, finance and banking in the EU, circular economy, climate change economics, green energy, and energy security;- multiculturalism & diversity across the European Union, with particular emphasis on business communication and negotiation, leadership, organizational culture, migration issues. More

The Political and Economic Impact of the Conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia

Mara-Andreea Tudor

No. 47, May-Jun. 2024 The Middle East, a region endowed with vast natural resources, notably oil, has historically been a hotspot of geopolitical tensions. Two of the region’s most influential nations, Iran and Saudi Arabia, have been at the heart of these conflicts. Their rivalry, deeply rooted in political, economic, and religious differences, significantly impacts regional stability and global economic trends. This article examines the historical context, economic influence, geopolitical tensions, international involvement, and the broader implications of the conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia. More

The Budget Deficit in the Last 20 Years. Some Observations

Dan Pălăngean

No. 47, May-Jun. 2024 Romania has systematically recorded a negative budget execution result over the last 20 years. Essentially, the idea of the normalcy of the budget deficit has taken root, with the only discussion being about its size. In fact, in the long term, we should aim for a balance between revenues and expenditures. Otherwise, everything we accumulate at specific points, for various reasons (be it justified or not), will translate into systematic interest payments. These payments represented no less than 2.1% of GDP in 2022 (note, 70% of the space allowed by the Maastricht rule of 3%), and in 2023 they represented 1.9% of GDP, one-third of the deficit recorded in public finances. More

Russia and China: The Limits of the Unlimited Partnership Have Not Been Reached Yet

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 47, May-Jun. 2024 The relationship between Russia and China is an important subject of debate for the West in the context of the war in Ukraine and of the invaluable support which China gives to Russia in order to hold its ground against the Western sanctions and to continue the fight against Ukraine. The two countries are, also, engaged in an ample project of organising the Global South and the major emerging economies (plus important non-aligned actors such as the United Arab Emirates and nominal US allies like Saudi Arabia) in structures parallel to the ones supposedly dominated by the West, capable of producing alternate governance models which mark the transition towards multipolarity. Under such conditions, could Western commentators hope for a moderate/-ing Chinese influence on Russia’s actions in Ukraine or for an eventual split between these two powers? More

Romania’s Odyssey to OECD Membership: A Journey of Progress and Promise

Viorela-Denisa Stroe

No. 47, May-Jun. 2024 Romania’s path to OECD accession and its development are examined in this article, which also presents the stages followed and conformity with the organization’s standards. Romania encountered difficulties throughout the accession process, its enacted reforms and fulfilling the technical requirements for membership. Key stages are highlighted: submission of the initial memorandum, the 2024 economic study, roadmap acquisition, and obtaining the first formal notice. Additionally, the article discusses the benefits of Romania’s OECD accession, reflecting on the ongoing efforts required for successful integration. It focuses on the broader context of the 2022 enlargement wave and emphasizes the significant role of democratic institutions in meeting OECD standards. It underscores the need for improving the educational system and internal challenges within the investment environment. The conclusion highlights how crucial it is to keep an eye on political and economic trends throughout the world in order to adjust plans accordingly, guarantee Romania’s preparation for OECD membership, and integrate Romania into international governance frameworks. More

Extractive Behaviours in Datacracy 4.0 New oldies

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 47, May-Jun. 2024 Planet Earth is both an immense habitat – our cradle – and a gravitational vehicle – with circumsolar motion. With its array of natural (im)balances, the Earth is a venerable 4.54 billion years old; the (industrial) imprint left by the human species on it, deemed not negligible, barely exceeds two centuries; and our digital/IT&C/virtual existence, in what we call cyberspace, makes us feel still too young. This quite new frontier to be conquered is competing with the expansive cosmic imagination (Universe), but inverted into a quantum-ritual dreamscape (Metaverse), somehow simplistically assimilated with the internet. Yet, cyberspace is more than the sum, it is the synergy of computers (and all assimilable devices), servers, routers, and other globally connective digital infrastructures (hardware), “animated” by software, including here the omni-technology of our utopias/dystopias, Artificial Intelligence. In our quest for space and sense we do struggle to understand whether AI is a friend or a foe. More

Preparing Students for the Labour Market: The Role of Theory-Based Economic Judgements Against AI-Supported Decision-Making Workshop at the Bucharest University of Economic Studies

Mihaela Iacob

No. 46, Mar.-Apr. 2024 Artificial Intelligence would not have been possible without the great thinkers – in both “hard” and “soft” sciences – who educated themselves, then developed theories to be tested in practice, and while they may have failed in solving resistant conundrums, they excelled in fighting for their reasoned convictions. More

The Puzzle of Political Trust in Romania

Nicolas-Costinel Negrea

No. 46, Mar.-Apr. 2024 In the field of political philosophy, the dynamic interplay between citizens and governance within the framework of a democratic system holds immense significance. The complex bond of trust forms the very foundation of this relationship, encapsulating the core essence of democratic governance. This trust, or its absence, gives rise to what I shall refer to as the "Puzzle of Political Trust in Romania," a puzzle that necessitates our meticulous examination. Romania, positioned in the crucible of historical and ideological transformations, presents a captivating case study for this enigma. As a nation that has experienced the ebb and flow of political systems and ideologies, the citizens of Romania find themselves at a critical juncture where the echoes of historical upheaval looms large over the present. Trust is not simply a theoretical idea; it functions as the essential connection that ties together the hopes of the public with the decisions carried out by their selected leaders. More

High Poverty - Low Education, the Vicious Circle

Dan Pălăngean

No. 46, Mar.-Apr. 2024 A recent report of the European Commission regarding country analysis on Social Convergence Framework (SCF) points out the problems of Romania, where high poverty - low education constitutes a vicious circle. Therefore, the quality, relevance and inclusiveness of education and training should be strongly tackled by public policies to support labour market and improve poverty rates. More

Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing, in the US Elections

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 46, Mar.-Apr. 2024 The 2024 U.S. presidential election will play a pivotal role in determining the strategic direction to be taken by the United States of America. In any event short of a quick decline, the U.S. will remain the most active and multivalent superpower in the world, even in a multipolar paradigm. If for nothing else, then for its willingness and ability to subsidise its key partners’ security, as well as freedom of navigation and the Global Institutions which have, among other things, facilitated China and other revisionist actors’ ascent and development. Combined with the already decades-long ongoing and bipartisan tendency of power accumulation under the “Unified American Executive”, to the detriment of the U.S. Congress, the American elections would have already been of a crucial worldwide importance. Therefore, the Super Tuesday electoral marathon was closely analysed in the hopes that it could signal a “sea change” in the primary elections of the two parties, especially of the Republicans. Instead, the hopeful noises made by the national and global observers have proven to be in vain, as there was neither an out-of-nowhere spoiler contestant nor a consensus by the party camarillas to remove the aging gerontocrats of American politics. The electoral configuration for November 2024 seems to be that of Biden versus Trump, Biden being accompanied by Kamala Harris, while Trump is still keeping the vice-president seat empty in order to negotiate with certain ideological factions or owners of political machines in his favour. Donald Trump’s favourability indexes look very good and he appears to be the leading candidate in the race as long as the sequential legal challenges he faces won’t succeed in creating a precedent leading to the downfall of a favourite presidential candidate. The situation is further complicated by the fact that the apparent persecution of Trump appears to augment his support among the Republicans and independents, not to mention that voters who are motivated by a candidate’s “respectability” have not yet had enough reason to abandon him. From this standpoint, the Democrats who put forward lawfare options for “doing away with a danger to the Republic” appear to be “playing with fire”. More

Models of Historical Interpretation

Steven Alan Samson

No. 46, Mar.-Apr. 2024 [Originally serving as two introductory lectures to my history courses, the following article was published at request of the editor in Contra Mundum 11 (Spring 1994): 12-20 under the same title. Long out of print, I hope these observations will prove to be of some value to another generation of readers.] More

Independence through Interdependencies Some thoughts on the regional cooperation mechanisms in which Romania is involved

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 46, Mar.-Apr. 2024 The study titled The role of regional cooperation mechanisms in the current geopolitical context – opportunities and challenges for Romania, authors: Octavian-Dragomir Jora (coord.), Marius-Cristian Neacșu and Cezar Teclean, under the auspices of the European Institute of Romania, attempts to offer a lecture entry-point – one of the many potential ones – regarding Romania’s regional cooperation mechanisms, useful not only to the purveyors of external policies, but to all those who internalize its shortcomings. This approach attempts to make itself useful by signalling the multitude of interpretations of the international reality, which goes from the level of the common citizen all the way to chancelleries and which demands a smart reconciliation and a sage reconnecting at maybe the hardest calculable parameter when it comes to the very existence and functioning of a state: the national interest.The formulated conclusions – out of which a brief excerpt is republished below – emphasise, rather than exhaust, the wide range of possibilities of regional cooperation, in a heterogeneous/eclectic set of catalogued formats/mechanisms, which must be detached, before anything else, from the realm of monotony and rigidity. We are talking about promising, uncharted fields, but also about upsetting redundancies; about lucrative components, but also about bureaucratic laziness; about room for national initiative, but also about convenient conformity. These aspects are further complicated by the upsurge of the contestation of the international rule-based order. Here is a concise inventory of some generic ideas – concentrated in 10 points – which emerged from the research process, while a bit more extensive summary, preceding the study in full (in Romanian) is to be retrieved here. More

Cryonics – Staying Chill Long live the deep-frozen ones! – MIND(s that filled) THE GAP(s) [XXII]

Elena-Maria Dobrin

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 Hey there, thrill-seekers! Ever wondered about outsmarting the ultimate opponent – death itself? Enter the fascinating realm where science, hope, and the human ambition collide – welcome to the extraordinary world of cheating the Grim Reaper! At some stage in our lives, most of us encountered the science fiction plot when somebody hops into a sealed chamber to freeze their body, envisioning a future revival in an entirely new world. Surprisingly, this scenario isn’t merely an exaggerated tale, as people have actually been undergoing cryopreservation since the 1960s! More

Techno-Socialism: The Illusions of Technology in Search of Utopia

Nicolas-Costinel Negrea

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 In the history of humanity, few ideologies have incited as much enthusiasm and controversy as socialism—a subject that has captivated the minds and hearts of many, stirring passions and igniting fervent debates. Its proponents proclaim it as the harbinger of a new dawn, promising to rectify perceived injustices and build a (utopian) society based on equality and solidarity. Socialism, in its various forms and iterations, purports to address the flaws of capitalism and create a fairer and more prosperous world. In a socialist society, it is believed that human nature will undergo a transformation; it will be purified of selfishness, and reshaped to create a new type of socialist individual. The desires of this individual will be compatible with the hard work, prosocial behaviors and devotion required to achieve the goals and fulfill the directives set by the socialist state. Socialism advocates for the abolition of private property, collective ownership of the means of production, and the centralization of economic power in the hands of the state, purported to be controlled democratically, but in actuality ruled by a dictator or a committee. Through this reordering of social relations, it is believed that a fair distribution of resources and wealth will be achieved, eradicating poverty, exploitation, and social stratification. More

The Fortune at the Bottom of the Cup Coffee unlimited – MIND(s that filled) THE GAP(s) [XXI]

Sara-Maria Matara

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 Coffee? What is coffee? A daily ritual enjoyed by billions of people worldwide. For hundreds of years, this magical beverage has forged connections between people, contributing to the exchange and distribution of information. In this era where everything has become digitized, and face-to-face socialization is increasingly rare, coffee inspires people to have discussions, write, read, stimulate their imagination, and encourages people to meet, communicate, have fun, or simply spend time together, becoming a social bond. Cafes have been and continue to be places where people unwind and feel at home, where culture, time, and social barriers merge. And coffee is the second most valuable export of developing countries and an important element of their economies. Its energizing effect has made it the most consumed beverage after water. More

The West’s Own Goal on Energy

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 The various World Economic Forum reports speak of poly-crises and perma-crises, which act as powerful stressors on our societies. Their effect has been visible in the area of energy, which is fundamental for the effective functioning of our economic, social and political lives. The effects of the American invasions in the Middle East and the civil wars that broke out after the so-called Arab Spring (including the emergence of Daesh, the so-called Islamic State) have proven that an increasingly integrated global energy system is also prone to cascading effects as a result of crises in demand, supply or risk perception. In recent years, we have seen the effects of the pandemic, resulting in a shrinking and then increase in energy demand, and the war in Ukraine (and sanctions against Russia) had significant effects on perceptions of security of supply and markets. We may soon see an impact from Houthi rebel attacks on energy shipping traffic through the Gulf of Aden, much of it aimed at Europe. Disturbances in the global energy markets increase the prices of almost all products, implicitly also increase inflation, lower living standards, bury companies, especially in energy-intensive fields or with fossil fuels as inputs and often strategic (metallurgy, petrochemicals, arms industry). However, not all of these effects can be attributed to exogenous shocks. They are also the result of a mix of ideology, special interest groups, civil society organizations, which have pushed many Western countries towards counterproductive energy policies, including for the desired reduction of carbon emissions (decarbonization), which have ended up exacerbating energy insecurity in the West. Especially in the case of Europe, the recurring crises in the field of supply, sustainability, and accessibility of energy for large consumers will sharpen trends of Western deindustrialization. There will be four ripple effects – a reduced competitiveness of Europe on the global stage, the economic stagnation of Western Europe after 2008 (with small exceptions such as the Netherlands or the Nordics) becoming chronic, the vulnerability of the Energy Union (resulting in more frequent blackouts) and an inability of Europe to rise to challenges such as the production of munitions and other war materials. From Romania’s perspective, even if we will not face supply crises, we will suffer secondary effects of the economic weakness of our main economic partners. Also, as we have not yet seen a country that becomes developed in conditions of high energy access costs, we can ask the question whether Romania and other Eastern countries will be able to enter the club of the developed after the limits catch-up growth will be reached, and countries will face middle income traps, which can produce long-term economic stagnation. More

The Soft Power of Manga Japanese pop art – MIND(s that filled) THE GAP(s) [XX]

Elena Diana Smaranda

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 Hayao Miyazaki helped popularize anime (i.e. cartoons drawn in a Japanese style) outside of Japan, playing a significant role in increasing global interest in this genre of animation. Studio Ghibli, his creations, has influenced not just the content of anime, but also the way this industry is perceived and appreciated around the world as a producer of art. And not only the anime industry, it also played an important role for manga, which are Japanese comic books which often inspire anime movies and series.His personality combined with the strict rules of Japanese society gave rise to a unique man. A man who could never be satisfied with his, or with other people’s efforts, someone who would have given everything for his passion and his work.He was always fascinated by this idea of drawing. He was especially drawing planes in the childhood. His family had military involvement, since they owned a company that built parts for fighter planes – Miyazaki Aircraft Company – and this is why he was so interested in them. The Miyazaki family received special treatment because of their company – everyone in the family was exempted from the responsibility of going to war. And they were quite rich. More

Enlightened Minds’ Derby: Oxford vs. Cambridge Rewarding rivalries

Octavian-Dragomir Jora

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 In the beginning, there was the… bludgeon – in an episode of the “town vs. gown” saga. The first faction – that of the trueborn townsfolk; the second one – of the academics – alien and politically privileged as opposed to the locals. In 1209, following a harsh clash between the two Oxford factions – NB: a town with academic activity dating as far back as 1096 –, several studious individuals fled to Cambridge and laid the foundation of the university with the same name, yet bringing with them the same social tension. Nicknamed “Oxbridge”, given their common historical and institutional features, the two venerable English universities have developed a mutual condescension over time. Though aristocratic and non-aggressive, it was seemingly even more defiant in its staunch refusal to “name the other”: i.e., to those in Cambridge, Oxford remains, bluntly, “the other place”. Centuries of “grey-matter” warfare, following the original battle of fists, led to these two universities accumulating both intellectual/human and financial capital. Their combined wealth: £21bn! More

Biden Throws His Hat in the Ring

Alexandru Georgescu

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 President Joe Biden recently announced his intention to run for a second term as President. His detractors mocked him for a message that was both alarmist and emotional, as well as for the fact that it had been pre-recorded and scripted, like most of the media appearances of the oldest American leader. However, the Biden Campaign cannot be underestimated. Despite its weaknesses, potential legal hurdles, and questionable performances, the Democratic Party will rally behind him as the only notable candidate capable of defeating Trump or a Trumpist successor like DeSantis. More

Employees Working Abroad, of Great Importance for Romania

Dan Pălăngean

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 For France, Romania and Belgium, the positive net balance of personal transfers and compensation of employees reduces their current account deficits significantly, according to data for 2022 published recently by Eurostat. For some countries, net inflows of personal transfers and compensation of employees are important sources of external funding and contributors to a recipient’s disposable income and GNI.Romania considerably reduced its negative current account balances through these net inflows, with €7.4 billion (see Figure 1). The current account deficit for Romania would have been €33.5 billion instead of €26.1 billion, which includes transactions related to personal transfers and compensation of employees. More

Loneliness as a Disease: A Bird in Its Cage and the Effects of Consumerism

Mara-Andreea Tudor

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 In the fast-paced society we live in, the divide between generations is more pressing than it has ever been. Parents and children have always clashed, but the general saying nowadays is that “things were better in my time”. Whether you translate this phrase in Romanian, put into Japanese hiragana or find its equivalent in Arabic, the general sentiment is the same: degradation is impending and people yearn for better times, as they were before.Where does this sentiment actually come from? Is it some sort of en-masse illusion? Maybe it’s just a stage that every person goes through once they hit their midlife crisis. Is there some sort of truth to it? As humans, we compare every experience we engage in with past situations, in order to find answers. We use these models due to the fact that they are all we know and we thrive on precedents. So, when people go metaphorically back in time, they actually romanticize the sense of comfort that their youth brought them. This is done on micro-levels too. A 70-year-old always remembers his 50s fondly. A 40-year-old yearns to be 25 again. Some would say it is just the nature of man, and I tend to agree.So, where does loneliness come into play? More

Heartland vs. Rimland

Mihnea Alexandru Ciocan

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 The last decade saw more and more thoughts on, opinions, and claims that a new world order is just around the corner and the old system of bipolar and then unipolar world will belong in the history books. The “Pax Americana” period is living its final days, marking the beginning of a not so long interregnum characterized by a vaguely-defined so-called “multipolar world”. Since it is unstable in the longer term, multipolarity will most likely segregate and in the end will lead to a world dominated either by a single power, probably China, or, more likely, by another bipolar world divided on an East-West gradient politically and economically, but, more importantly, on ideology and in terms of the proposed social model. This could mean the end of globalization as we know it in its Anglo-Saxon form, but does not mean that globalization itself will be gone completely. It just may very well take another shape, under a presumable new “Pax Sinica”, or a half-half globalization in case of bipolarity, meaning one type of international system in the Western, democratic and capitalist world and another form in the authoritarian states in Eurasia. Pretty much like in the Cold War, with the main difference that these two global systems can cooperate economically much more than in the previous setting. More

Human Rights and America’s “Empire by Invitation”

Steven Alan Samson

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 The idea of universal human rights is part of the borrowed capital the West secularized from its Biblical origins as the eternal kingdom of Christ. Cut off from its source is becomes sentimental, utopian, ideological and sometimes apocalyptic. Most of the damage to the idea of universal human rights was done more than 75 years ago through the ideological twist which was added at the insistence of the Soviet Union after the Second World War.The first twenty-one points of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) are classified as civil and political rights: “freedoms from.” These are best regarded, first of all, as liberties which deserve protection rather than rights which have standing in courts of law. The next seven, which the Soviets insisted upon, are social and economic rights – “obligations to” – various social and economic categories. These might best be characterized as collective rather than individual rights, sometimes as claims upon the government treasury. They are rights other people – ultimately taxpayers – owe to a distinct class of people rather than liberties for all which governments are obliged to protect. More

Unsupported Sport Spirit (International Edition) [Very short memories of geopolitical and geoeconomic foul play]

The Market for Ideas

No. 45, Jan.-Feb. 2024 “The ball is round” is a statement endowed with immeasurable explanatory power, a veritable theory of general relativity of human life, since it is often used in so many extra-football justifications. It’s a statement that should be a working premise in any setup in the world, whether it’s based on rough elbows and fine ankles or anything else. The ideal of football would be for it to represent the game of the ball, played with the feet, but by people with their heads up whether on the field, the side-lines, the boards of sports clubs or associative structures. Representing a distillate of human passions, football concentrates both humanity and nothingness and it does so regardless of jurisdictions, cultures, histories and horizons. Football, as a common denominator of a huge part of the population of the world map, preserves in high concentrations everything that brings us together and divides us too: solidarity and passion, excellence and mediocrity, justice and crookedness, joy and hatred. The “Copa Mundial”, Brazil 2014, started some time ago, on which occasion we saw once again that football exhibits and exhales planetary virtues and vices. More