Inqaba ya basebenzi Number 2 April 1981 - DISA

14
.USA REACTION
As US president Reagan recovers from
the bullet of a would-be assassin, the
question remains— where is America
going under this right-wing administration?
The election of ex-cowboy film-actor, Ronald Reagan,
as President of the United States reflects the crisis of the
ruling class as well as widespread disillusionment of a
big section, perhaps even a majority, of the American
masses.
Only 52% of ihe voters bothered
to go to the polls—a drop from 54%
in 1976 and 62% in 1964. This was
despite the fact that 10 million 18-21
year olds were voting for Ihe first
time in the 1980 election.
Reagan's victory shows the combination
of apathy and uncertainty
among the voters which has destroyed
the ability of either of the two
pro-capitalist parties—Republicans
or Democrats—to build long-term
majority coalitions. This instability
is rooted in the crisis of capitalism.
In 1976 the American voters
placed Carter in office because he
promised full employment, a balanced
budget, and low prices. Four
years later none of the promises had
been fulfilled. Instead the economic
situation had worsened—unemployment
at 8 million, inflation running
at 12.5% and the government
spending far exceeding what it
received by 27.5 billion dollars.
The new President has also come
into office with promises—of lax
cuts to "stimulate investment",
reductions in government interference,
lower inflation and a "healthy
vigorous growing economy" to
reduce unemployment.
But even the capitalist experts
hold out little hope for him being
able to measure up to his lofty
promises. The Economist (Novem-
THE SADDLE
BUT RIDING FOR A FALL
by Teboho Ptiiri
he will be judged by 1984 to have
failed.,." It goes on to speak of
"another one-term failure".
Thus even these spokesmen of
capitalism have realised the inherent
instability that bedevils even the
strongest capitalist power.
To understand the crisis of
American capitalism, it is necessary
to look closely at the rise and fall of
the dollar and the changed position
of the United States in the world
economy after World War II.
Bretton Woods
The USA emerged enormously
strengthened after World War II,
the only real victor among the
capitalist powers. It controlled
nearly 50% of world capitalist
production, 70% of capitalist world
trade, and had 80% of the capitalist
world's gold in its vaults.
Thus in 1944 the United States
was able to impose the Bretton
Woods monetary agreement on the
dollar, its value fixed at 35 dollars to
the oz of gold, became the main
currency of the world trade. It was
on this basis that the American
government was able to print
massive quantities of currency that
were not backed by gold or the real
value of production.
In the years after Bretton Woods
the United States poured out dollars
overseas at a far greater rate than it
was getting back. It did this through
Marshall Aid, buying and investing
in industries in Europe, and military
expenditure in acting as policeman
of world imperialism.
Dollar crisis
As long as the US remained the
major capitalist power, with the
dollar the unchallenged world currency,
she could continue with the
policy of printing more dollars. But
with the emergence of West Germany
and Japan as serious trade
competitors of the American capitalists,
her position declined.
The policy of printing dollars
eventually led to the crisis of the
dollar. The fiction could no longer
be maintained that an ounce of gold
was worth only 35 dollars. And the
US government could not provide
gold for all the dollars it had printed.
To avoid complete financial
collapse the US was forced to abolish
the right of holders of dollars to
exchange them for gold. The dollar
was devalued. Capitalists around the
world holding dollars rushed to cash
them in for other currencies and the
ber 1980) writes "The odds are that rest of the capitalist world. The dollars piled up as reserves in the