THE REFORMATION HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN:

The Ireland of the East: Slovakia is an investor's paradise and a model of economic growth promoted by neoliberal measures. But dissatisfaction is growing among the population and the next elections promise historic changes. (Der Spiegel, 5/31/06)

Only ten years ago, the capital city was as gray as socialism itself. Now boutiques, pizzerias, sushi parlors and cocktail bars crowd the renovated city center. There is full employment here. The country may have come to capitalism late, but it has become a model country in record time -- an Ireland of the East.

Experts are predicting six percent economic growth for this year; unemployment has fallen from 18 to 11 percent during the past three years. Foreign corporations, especially those in the automobile industry, are waiting in line to invest. Kia, Volkswagen and Peugeot Citroen are all profiting from low wages and taxes and rejoicing over investment assistance. People are already talking of a "Detroit of Europe."

Folks who despair of Iraq and the Middle East ought to consider the following: as recently as thirty years calling a country the "Ireland of the East" would have been a pejorative, rather than the highest compliment in the Euro-lexicon, and the idea that an Eastern European nation could be booming would have seemed fanatstical.

MORE:
The blessed calling of business: The greatest threat to privatization, tax cutting, deregulation and other unfinished economic reforms is no longer from the left, but from the right. (Stefan A. Bielski , 5/29/06, Warsaw Business Journal)

"The free market is the most efficient instrument for utilizing resources and effectively responding to needs."

"Overseeing and directing the exercise of human rights in the economic sector ... belongs not to the state but to individuals and to the various groups ... which make up society."

Are these the words of a classical economist or an editorial in The Economist? Or perhaps a chamber of commerce or free-market politico?

Though written by a Pole and a good Catholic, they seem to be ideas alien to Poland's current government, which is conservative, Catholic and distrustful of the market. In today's world, this puts Poland in quite a rare spot: The greatest threat to privatization, tax cutting, deregulation and other unfinished economic reforms is no longer from the left, but from the right.

"The state could not directly ensure the right to work for all its citizens unless it controlled every aspect of economic life and restricted the free initiative of individuals."

In 2006, this criticism could be directed at the two populist parties, one far-left and one far-right, that have joined the government. However, like all quotations in this essay, it was written 15 years ago this month in the aftermath of Communism's fall by Pope John Paul II, in his encyclical Centesimus Annus. [...]

Alas, in Poland, history is heavy, and her burliest neighbors throwing their weight around has made the deepest impression. But Poland's past domination - or betrayal - by foreign powers need not lead to a fear of foreign ideas and capital. Centuries of freedom-friendly traditions, such as limited government and cosmopolitanism, cultivated Poland's Golden Age. Even in an era when across Europe both Church and state were more autocratic, Poland limited their respective powers by never having a divine-right monarch and instituting extreme checks on state power such as the Liberum veto and Nihil novi. Toleration of other nationalities and creeds brought not only their accompanying goods and ideas, but helped develop an entrepreneurial, high-trust culture.

These will serve Poland well in its return to Europe. Unfortunately, some wrongly believe this entails forsaking spiritual wealth for material riches. We can help change this debate, in part, by showing religious leaders and their flocks that free-market economics is not only compatible with, but complements their moral principles. Moreover, it's an essential tool in their social goals, such as eliminating poverty, as the "free exercise of economic activity ... will lead to abundant opportunities for employment and sources of wealth."

Posted by Orrin Judd at May 31, 2006 1:28 PM