Potato Prices, Crime & Confronting Reality

Psychology 101.

One of the challenges alcohol and drug counselors face is getting their patients to admit they have a problem. Sans such recognition, progress is impossible. If you don’t know or can’t acknowledge that you have a problem, it’s extremely unlikely you’ll be able to solve it.

Politics 101

Politicians, many of who seem almost genetically inclined to avoid confronting problems, are in a category of their own in this regard. When politicians fail to acknowledge problems, the issue morphs from an epistemological matter into a moral one. Just as priests have an obligation to members of their parish, so do politicians have an ethical duty to their constituents. They have a moral obligation to help solve problems that affect society at large. When they fail to do this, they betray not only their own interests but also those of the entire society.

Manejando El País

Just as a drunk shouldn’t get behind the wheel of a car, a politician blind to reality shouldn’t be in the business of governing people. Sadly, this is exactly what we have in Argentina under President Nestor Kirchner. Consider Cabinet Chief Alberto Fernandez’s recent comments about inflation:

“In Argentina inflation doesn’t exist because inflation assumes that there is a generalized increase in prices and nobody is willing to recklessly affirm such a thing. People see that the price of a potato goes up and they talk about the potato, but we don’t have a generalized increase in prices just because potato prices go up.”

Strictly speaking, this much is true. If in all of Argentina, the only prices to rise were those of potatoes, it would be disingenuous to say inflation was affecting the whole economy. But the notion that only potato prices are rising is patently ridiculous. Prices of virtually all products and services – from ice cream to avocado and used cars to movie tickets – have risen consistently, and often abruptly, since the currency devaluation in 2002. Increases this year have been particularly painful for consumers and many economists say real inflation is likely around 20%, or double what the government says. Fernandez is either mendacious or grossly out of touch with reality. Neither option is appealing.

Acknowledging Reality

Polls show Argentines are more concerned with inflation than anything except crime. They worry about inflation not because they fear it may hit them someday, but because it is pinching their pocketbooks right now. Crime is a big worry, as well. But here too the government has had trouble with reality. Consider what Interior Minister Anibal Fernandez said in a radio interview last year:

“The…level of crime in Argentina is more similar to that in Europe than in (Latin) America,” Fernandez said, noting that crime was down measurably. When asked to disclose crime data so journalists could confirm this, Fernandez balked. “I’m not going to deal with the statistics because doing so would show a lack of respect for families of the victims. But I’m very aware of what is happening.”

Democracy, Information & Counseling

Come again? Since when did proving that life is getting safer become an offense to anyone? Fernandez later said he had “put his foot in his mouth,” but he never did release comprehensive data. People have a right to know if their government is doing its job. And those in the government have an obligation to share the progress of their work so people can make informed decisions about whom to vote for. The very functioning of a democracy depends on this access to information. If citizens don’t have access to accurate information, how can they make wise decisions in an election?

Since at least last year, Kirchner’s government has been tight-lipped about the real nature of crime in Argentina. Moreover, according to fired officials who job was to measure inflation, Kirchner has been lying since January about the nature of inflation. It is bad enough to manipulate inflation data, thus trying to con people into thinking the economy is stronger than it is. But it is an even more egregious insult, and a sorry abdication of duty, to flat out lie about reality and pretend that inflation doesn’t exist.

Perhaps we could all pretend that the government itself didn’t exist, and that the country had better leaders. Wouldn’t that be nice? But that’s not reality and to really believe it would be a problem, the type of problem that requires counseling. To overcome a problem, you first have to acknowledge that you actually have one.