I'm no economist, but looking around it seems to me that the economic recovery and the construction of any long-term (whatever that means) foundation for a sturdier economy here in Mexico (and in much of the vast elsewhere) will include, among other things, restoration of sustainable local economies, including sustainable local agriculture, and establishment of substantial use in all of Mexico of the internet. This is of course if one has the interests of all Mexicans, not just the very rich, in mind. As I've said before, the absence of general and frequent if not perpetual availability of the internet verges on a national tragedy. Even in areas where high speed connections are available, only the better off can afford those connections. A fair number of kids inhabit the many internet cafés, but mostly for instant messaging, games, etc. And only for short periods of time. At this point, satellite is available in addition to Mr.Slim's monopoly of DSL and Megacable and perhaps a few other cable companies. But even though satellite increases the possible resources for acquiring internet access, it is far beyond the reach of most families and schools. According to the Hughes in Mexico site, the initial cost for purchasing a satellite and installing it is $11,715.00 (pesos, or roughly 830 dollars) and the monthly fee is $765.00 (pesos, or roughly 53 dollars). TELMEX offers a cheaper DSL connection: it varies depending on the package you buy (i.e. do you buy message service, call waiting, national calling, etc.) and, depending on this, would cost between 250 and 380 pesos a month, or maybe between 24 and 28 dollars a month. And of course for both, you'd have to have a computer.
I don't need to explain that this is a lot of money for most Mexicans. Here you can see a list of average incomes by job for Mexicans in the formal economy. The salaries given are for employment in the FORMAL economy and only give part of the story. Teachers, for instance, are often placed far from home. Sometimes they have to buy their jobs, sometimes families kind of own the positions and keep them for themselves. And the official 38 hour work week for teachers any teacher knows is far from what a good teacher spends in grading, preparation, etc. Notice the length of the other work weeks while you're at it.
In addition, to the formal economy, there is the INFORMAL economy which employs over 40 percent of workers. These workers have no protection in terms of benefits, no vacation, no sick days, no minimum wage (which is around, possibly slightly more than, five dollars a day). Average wages are about two and a half times this. Our gardener and housekeeper work for us as a member of the informal economy.
This should give you an idea of how hard it is for most Mexicans to afford a private internet connection. Data from 2003 indicates that in 2003, 42 percent of public schoools had some computer availability (88% of private schools) and only 9% of public schools had internet capability (55% of private schools.) These are not reliable figures because it is hard to determine how many computers a school has, for instance, per student; what condition they are; what sort of internet connectivity actually exists. I don't know anyone of ordinary means in our colonia who owns a computer.
In a review of Paul Krugman's just-reissued book The Return of Depression Economics, Bernard Avishai discusses the importance of understanding how technological change has affected "the real economy" and how it must be taken into account in stimulating a recovery (or maybe we should say reinvention). This technology has stimulated much more rapid change of all sorts, not only in the technology business itself, but in all businesses. Knowledge of this change depends on rapid access to information for small businesses and agriculturalists as well as for invetsors. High speed access to information also allows for "sharing intellectual capital" affecting the production of goods. And for the estsablishment of small companies which can survive by networking with related companies. And for the development of independence from large employers who can keep workers under their thumbs, and for alternatives to employment in the drug trade.
As I've previously mentioned, there are all sorts of other advantages to internet access for Mexicans. In a country with few decent libraries accessible to the public, the internet offers unimaginable bounty. In a country where specialized instruction is hard to come by, the internet offers classes in abundance. Mexico's UNAM is a model of excellent distance instruction by means of the internet. Learning English, typing, cooking, health care, etc. etc. etc., is suddenly within reach. The gap between the "haves" and the "have nots" grows ever vaster if one includes the access of the "haves" to internet access.
Avishai quotes John Stuart Mill: "A thing not yet so well understood and recognized the the economic value of the general diffusion of intelligence among the people." Today, that diffusion of intelligence happens most efficiently via the internet, and people without access are left out in the cold.
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