Thursday, October 25, 2018

Now Available on Kindle "Cuba’s Caribbean Marxism: Essays on Ideology, Government, Society, and Economy in the Post Fidel Castro Era"



I am happy to report the publication of Cuba’s Caribbean Marxism: Essays on Ideology, Government, Society, and Economy in the Post Fidel Castro Era (Little Sir Press 2018; ISBN: 978-1-949943-00-9 (pbk); I SBN: 978-1-949943-01-6 (ebk)). The book includes a brilliant Foreword by Flora Sapio.  The book is available on Kindle and through other eBook distributors. Order Kindle edition HERE.  Other ordering information to follow.

Over the course of future posts I will be introducing  readers to the book. This post includes the Detailed Table of Contents and Summary Introduction.

HERE for the video recording of the launch event for Cuba's Caribbean Marxism: Essays on Ideology, Government, Society, and Economy in the Post Fidel Castro Era, which took place 12 November 2018 at Penn State






Contents
Foreword                                                                                               xi
                  Flora Sapio
Preface and Acknowledgements                                                                           xvii
                  Thanks                                                                                                               xvii
                  Acknowledgements                                                                                        xviii
List of Terms and Abbreviations                                                                 xxii

Introduction                                                                                     1

Chapter 1: Pearl of the Caribbean and Mother of Marxism      5
            1.1 Cuban Transformation Since European Discovery          6
            1.2 Organization of the Chapters that Follow                       11
            1.3 References                                                                         16

Chapter 2: The Centrality of Ideology to Caribbean
            Marxism                                                                                19
            2.1 Ideological Paths Toward Socialist Modernization:        
                        China Versus Cuba                                                    22
                        2.1.1 The Centrality of Ideology                                25
                        2.12. The Cuban Ideological Path—From
                                    Revolution To Lineamientos                             27
                        2.1.3 The Consequences of Ideology for State and
                                    Party Organization and Function                   29
            2.2 The Consequences of Ideology on Economic
                        Reform: Occupational Licensing, Cooperatives
                        and Ley 118                                                                36
                        2.2.1 The Cuban Legal Context                                 36
                        2.2.2 China and Alternative Paths to Marxism
                                    Leninism                                                         39
            2.3 Ideology and Transition—Cuba at a Crossroads             43
            2.4 Conclusion                                                                        45
            2.5 References                                                                         48

Chapter 3: Cuban Leninism as Praetorian Marxism                 55
            3.1 Cuba in a Wider Marxist-Leninist Context                     56
            3.2 The Comparative View from North Korea                      58
            3.3 Conclusion                                                                        68
            3.4 References                                                                         69

Chapter 4: “Order, Discipline, and Exigency:” From
            Ideology to Lineamientos and Reform with Cuban
            Characteristics                                                                        71
            4.1 The Lineamientos                                                                       79
                              4.1.1 General Provisions                                            81
                        4.1.2 Education                                                           84
                        4.1.3 Sport                                                                  93
                        4.1.4 Culture                                                              95
            4.2 Moving Forward                                                               98
            4.3 Conclusion                                                                        111
            4.4 Appendix A                                                                      112
            4.4 References                                                                         113

Chapter 5: The Current State of Political Ideology:
            Caribbean Marxism from Lineamientos to
            (Re)Conceptualization  of the Political and
            Economic Model                                                                  119
            5.1 The Process of the 7th PCC Congress: A Step Back
                        from the 6th PCC Congress or a Step Forward for
                        Socialist Democracy?                                                  125
            5.2 The Substance of the 7th PCC Congress: ‘Reform
                        and Opening Up’ or a Failure to Adjust to a
                        New Era?                                                                    135
            5.3 Conclusions and Implications                                          150
            5.4 References                                                                         154

Chapter 6: The Ideology of Central Planning in the
            Economic and Social Development Plan 2030               159
            6.1 The Plan Nacional de Desarrollo Económico y
                                    Social Hasta 2030 (National Economic
                        and Social Development Plan 2030) (PNDES)         163
                        6.1.1 Introduction (¶¶ 1-11); ONDES Section 1       164
                        6.1.2 Guiding Principles and Thematic Categories
                                    for the Elaboration of PNDES                       165
                        6.1.3 National Vision 2030; PNDES Section III        166
                        6.1.4 Strategic Themes; PNDES Section IV              167
                        6.1.5 Identification of Strategic Economic Sectors
                                    (¶¶ 221-251); PNDES Section V                   174
                        6.1.6 Definitions and Glosses on Key Terms            177
            6.2 From Theory to Decision-Making Structures: How
                        PNDES Informs Approaches to Development
                        Without Market Mechanisms                                    180
                        6.2.1 Extracting and Restating PNDES as
                                    Algorithm                                                       182
                                    1. Core Vision                                                 183
                                    2. Second Order Calculus for
                                                Discrete Decision Making                  185
                                    3. Putting the Equations Together                 191
                        6.2.2 The Caveats                                                       193
            6.3 Conclusion                                                                        195
            6.4 References                                                                         196

Chapter 7: Sovereign Finance, Odious Debt Doctrine,
            and Reform                                                                          199
            7.1 Traditional Odious Draft Doctrine                                  205
            7.2 From a Focus on the Debtor to a Focus on the Lender   210
            7.3 Application to the Situation in Cuba                               217
            7.4 The Silver Lining                                                              221
                        7.4.1 Mandatory Terms and Safe Harbors                 225
                        7.4.2 Presumptions of Benefit                                    226
                        7.4.3 From Repudiation to Responsibility Shifting   226
                        7.4.4 Limiting the Bite of Complicity While
                                    Managing its Occurrence                                227
                        7.4.5 Normalizing Systems of Management of
                                    Global Debt in Global Institutions                228
            7.5 Conclusion                                                                        229
            7.6 References                                                                         230

Chapter 8: The Role of Labor Cooperatives in Cuban
            Reform                                                                                  237
            8.1 Economic Organizations in Cuba—Limiting
                        Power of Individuals to Aggregate Capital or
                        Labor Absent State Oversight                                    242
                        8.1.1 Resetting the Regulatory
                                    Context—The Lineamientos                           242
                        8.1.2 Economic Organization—The Omnipresent
                                    State Sector                                                     248
                        8.1.3 Private Enterprise                                              249
            8.2 The Cooperative in Cuba—An Increasingly Flexible
                        Post-Revolutionary Device                                         254
                        8.2.1 History of Cooperatives in Cuba Post 1959     254
                        8.2.2 Cooperatives in the Lineamientos and
                                    Beyond—Party Line and Legal Changes        255
                        8.2.3 The Cooperative as Proletarian Corporation    258
            8.3 The Cooperative in Global Context—Theory and
                        Engagement in Cuba and the ALBA Zone                 268
            8.4 Conclusion                                                                        272
            8.5 References                                                                         274

Chapter 9: The Challenge of Regulatory Reform: The
            Example of Labor Cooperative Regulation                     279
            9.1 The PCC Guidance for Labor Cooperative Regulation    282
                        9.1.1 The Lineamientos                                                       283
                        9.1.2 The Thrust of the PCC Guidance                      287
            9.2 The December 2012 Regulatory Framework                   287
                        9.2.1 Consejo de Estado Decreto-Ley No. 305
                                    (Consejo de estado 2012ª)—
                                    The Corporate Law of Cooperatives               288
                        9.2.2 Consejo de Estado Decreto-Ley
                                    No. 306—Governmental Impositions
                                    and the private sector contributions
                                    to the National Social Security System          299
                        9.2.3 Council of Ministers Decree                            
                                    No. 309—The Implementing Regulations     300
                        9.2.4 The Ministerial Resolutions
            9.3 The Problem of Labor and the Construction of
                        Socialism in Cuba                                                       306
                        9.3.1 The Lineamientos Point to Conceptual
                                    Differences Among PCC Factions                  307
                        9.3.2 The Economic Reforms May be
                                    Impeded by the Need for Legal Reform        310
                        9.3.3 The Regulations Produce the Form of
                                    Rule of Law Frameworks but Preserve
                                    the Political Discretion of the State
                                    to Make the Rules Available to Individuals   311
            9.4 The Problem of Labor Under the Regime of Capital       313
            9.5 Conclusion                                                                        316
            9.6 References                                                                         317

Chapter 10: Globalization and the Caribbean Marxist
            Multinational: Cuba and Regional Trade                        321
            10.1 The Grannacional—As Concept, Project, and
                        Enterprise                                                                    326
            10.2 From Theory to Practice: Just Commerce,
                        Grannacional Organization, and the Misones                       336
            10.3 Points of Conflict and Intersection Between
                        ALBA ‘Just Commerce’ Principles and
                        International Human Rights Standards                     347
            10.4 Conclusion                                                                      359
            10.5 References                                                                       360

Chapter 11: Reform and Global Corporate Social
            Responsibility: Inbound Investment, and
            Outbound Economic Activity                                            367
            11.1 The Emerging Structures of Global Human Rights      370
                        11.1.1 The UNGPs                                                     370
                        11.1.2 The OECD Guidelines for MNEs                   371
                        11.1.3 The UN Global Compact                                372
                        11.1.4 BITs with Human Rights Components          372
                        11.1.5 Third Party Standards                                      373
                        11.1.6 MNE Internal Norms as the ‘Internal Law’
                                    of the Enterprise                                             373
            11.2 Cuban Investment Structure                                         374
                        11.2.1 Inbound Investment                                        374
                        11.2.2 Outbound Investment                                     376
            11.3 When Global Regulation Initiatives Collide                 377
                        with Cuban Practice
                        11.3.1 Convergence Through Trade and Trade
                                    Practice                                                           378
                        11.3.2 Pressure from MNE Trading Partners and
                                    Investors                                                         380
                        11.3.3 Pressure from International Financial
                                    Institutions (IFIs)                                          381
                        11.3.4 Convergence Through Trade Agreements      386
            11.4 Flash Points and Conflict Zones                                    387
            11.5 Conclusion                                                                      389
            11.6 References                                                                       390

Chapter 12: From Ideology to Cuban Constitutional Reform 397
            12.1 A New Constitution for Cuba: Principles and Reform 401
            12.2 The Constitution as Nkisi: Hope, Desire,
                        and Distrust in Cuban Constitutional Reform          410
            12.3 Popular Referendum and Popular Constitution:
                        Socialist Democracy in Caribbean Marxism              417
            12.4 Conclusion                                                                     422
            12.5 References                                                                       423

Afterword                                                                                         427

 
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Introduction
      This book is about ideology.  Ideology is the conceptual foundation for the individual and societal self-constitution. Ideology is the “fiat lux” (Genesis 1:3) of human organization, of self-awareness translatable into the organization of self and the self’s relations with others, and the development of systems for their orderly operation. It is the constitution of the basic taboos and compulsions that produce self-awareness and the referents from which the world can be known--and ordered. Ideology is the way in which objects are signified, and the way these can be made to point to truth or to lie.
         The theory and practice of ideology is usually of relevance in the margins of the study of law, politics, economics and the like.  It is sometimes understood as “after the fact” posturing or rationalization of little intrinsic value except perhaps to students of propaganda.  It is sometimes assumed that ‘nobody believes it;’ ideology is also said to be used and consumed but never embedded in the way people or institutions think or operate. This book will suggest that ideology quite consciously delimits but also makes possible the development of the principles through which individuals and communities can understand the world around.  That fundamental understanding, made possible within the basic premises for ordering the world that constitutes ideology, is the essential understanding the sufficiency of which makes possible the ordering of social, political and economic lives and institutions, from and around these basic building block premises.  
         This book is also more particularly about Cuba. Cuba serves as an ongoing living experiment in the possibilities of molding individuals and the society along the lines suggested by application of a quite explicit set of grounding principles. Is it possible to view the world solely from a very specific set of premises--in this case derived from European Marxist-Leninism and forged in the context of the socio-political effort of a small state to protect an autonomy from a powerful neighbor expressed as fundamental differences in social, economic, political and cultural organization? In the striving for that answer lies sometimes profound insights into the way that the interaction of ideology and social organization produces quite specific and sometimes predictable approaches to organization and protection of belief systems and their expression through self-disciplining institutions--even in the face of sometimes overwhelming external threat (or the blandishments of substantial material riches). Since 1959, the Cuban experiment with its own increasingly unique brand of Marxism-Leninism has been undertaken with extraordinary transparency. Like other important ideology producing states--the United States, China, and the European Union, Cuba has made it easy to examine the arc of inter-relationship between the development of ideology and the efforts, only sometimes successful, to embed that ideology in the operations of the institutions of Cuban politics, economics, culture, and international relations.
         The essays that comprise the twelve chapters of this book are drawn from a decade and more of thinking about Cuban ideology and its application in the wake of the passing of Fidel Castro, the charismatic founder of what these essays identify as Caribbean Marxism. Many of the chapters were first presented at a number of annual conferences of the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy,  a non-profit, non-political organization incorporated in the state of Maryland in 1990 affiliated with the American Economic Association and the Allied Social Sciences Association of the United States. Together, these essays consider the arc of Cuban development during a crucial period from the effective assumption of power by Raúl Castro to the beginnings of efforts to prepare for the conclusion of the period of Cuban history dominated by the generation that brought to success the 1959 Revolution that ushered in the current socio-political system. 
The book is divided into twelve chapters, including this one. They are informally divided into two parts. The first seven chapters develop the conceptual framework for understanding Caribbean Marxism as a theory and the challenges that theory poses in the face of reform necessitated by changes in historical condition.  Chapters 2 and 3 develop the baselines of Caribbean Marxism as to its normative principles (Chapter 2) and its organizational structures (Chapter 3). Chapter 4 then considers the role and principles of reform within those structures. Chapters 5 and 6 consider the way that reform has altered basic theoretical premises (Chapter 5), and the principles through which economic activity is conceptualized and organized (Chapter 6). Lastly, Chapter 7 takes Caribbean Marxism outward by examining the way it sees itself in the world and in shaping global discourse in the context of sovereign finance and its political ramifications.
The book shifts focus in Chapters 8 through 12. Where Chapters 1 though 7 examine Caribbean Marxism in more abstract terms, Chapters 8 through 12 focus on the concrete manifestation of these abstract structures in several key areas--economic organization of the private sector, trade and investment, and lastly the project of constitutional reform.  Chapters 8 and 9 consider the labor cooperative as a specific example of the way that ideology shapes reform, and constrains implementation.  Chapters 10 and 11 turn to the outward expression of Caribbean Marxism.  If Chapter 10 considers the projection of Caribbean Marxism outward, Chapter 11 considers the projection inward of global standards to Cuban economic activity. Chapter 12 ends this collection of essays by return to where they started--in an examination of the way that ideology shapes the core organization of the administrative state itself. Its focus specifically is the 2018 Cuban Constitutional reform initiative, through which ideology is incarnated in the organs of state.
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