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As I write, in late April of 2009, the citizens of rich capitalist societies are watching their jobs, wealth, and life plans being laid waste by an economic collapse every bit as ferocious as the crisis of the 1930s. Conservative parties and policies that only a short while ago were called midwives to an age of limitless prosperity built on free markets, small governments, and a stoical acceptance of the sufferings of the poor are now objects of popular ridicule and disgust. Employment and incomes are falling at a sickening rate, with the official American unemployment rate rising from 4.8 percent of the labor force in January 2008 to 8.5 percent as of April 2009. Even the most sober economic analysts are suggesting that one in ten American workers may be out of work by year's end. A housing boom turned bust has destroyed a global financial system once cited as proof that unregulated finance could convert greed into a cornucopia for the masses—if only ham-handed governments kept out of business affairs.

Describes cultural change occurring in Latin America due to the influence of market reforms; focuses on the phenomenon of "McOndo", which refers to a global, diverse, urban Latin American culture that is increasingly present in television, literature, music, art, fashion, film, and journalism. The title and "McOndo" spoof the magical realism found in the novels of Colombian novelist Gabriel García Márquez and the imaginary, magical town of Macondo which appears in Márquez' works; "McOndo" is also the title of a 1996 anthology of new Latin American literature co-edited by the author.

Der Neoliberalismus der Chicagoer Schule hat - vermittelt durch eine nicht geringe Zahl von russischen Anhängern dieser Richtung - nach Ansicht des Autors den Verlauf der russischen Wirtschaftsreformen sehr negativ beeinflußt. Er zeichnet die theoretische Entwicklung nach, die schließlich in die Durchführung der "Schocktherapie" in Rußland mündete, und stellt anschließend ausführlich die bereits früh von einer gemeinsamen Gruppe von amerikanischen und russischen Wirtschaftstheoretikern - darunter auch der Autor des Beitrags - vertretene Gegenposition dar. Die Gruppe wies wiederholt darauf hin, daß der von der russischen Regierung eingeschlagene Kurs nicht zu einer Reformierung, sondern vielmehr zu einer Kriminalisierung der russischen Wirtschaft führen werde. Der Autor betont, daß mit den Ausarbeitungen dieser Gruppe eine theoretische Alternative zur "Schocktherapie" zur Verfügung stand, die leider weder von seiten der russischen Regierung noch von seiten der internationalen Finanzwelt genügend zur Kenntnis genommen wurde. (BIOst-Mrk)