e-Con e-News

Why, by interweaving our destiny with that of any part of Europe,

entangle our peace & prosperity in the toils of European ambition,

rivalship, interest, humor or caprice?

– George Washington, Farewell Address, 17 September 1796

Under no circumstances, from here to eternity,

will we ever let any critical sphere of our country

or our people’s lives depend on Western investment or technology.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, 4 June 2022

‘Some people are threatening action against

those who say we must go to the IMF,

but then what is the alternate plan?’

– SJB MP Harsha de Silva, 18 August 2022

‘We are grateful to India, which encouraged us to go to the IMF.

Finance Minister (Nirmala) Sitharaman & External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar

played a role in that. India was the only country, the only partner,

which stepped up without us having any kind of program.’

– Sri Lanka High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda, 3 Sept 2022

‘There is no sight of the said IMF package.

The Government has no plan or program with its creditors’

– SJB MP Harsha de Silva, 2 January 2023

‘The public must not fall victim to extremist elements & Marxist slogans

that have continuously worked towards the downfall of this country…

…No country has developed by heeding Marxist slogans,

there must instead be a proper vision & plan.’

– SJB National-list MP Imtiaz Bakeer Markar, 2 Jan 2023

ee does not know if it’s due to their Marxism, that the US & the IMF are demanding that the Sri Lankan government un-employ 10,000s of soldiers with ‘skills in wielding weapons’. However, if the military were to announce fresh recruitment drives instead, as this ee Focus records, 10,000s would rush to line up and join the forces – the author sees no irrationality in their options.

Between one man carrying a gun & another carrying a tool,

the more important of the two is the man with the tool.

We’ve taken up arms to defeat the Portuguese,

but the whole point of driving out the Portuguese

is to defend the man with the tool.

– Amilcar Cabral of Guinea-Bissau

ee Focus’ story on the IMF cutting the forces alternatively recommends redeployment in various vital military-civilian functions like drug-wars, disaster-management & peace-keeping, etc. ee finds a more resonant resolve, however, in continuing the story of The Humble Origins of Modern Japan’s Machine Industry. This history recalls the origins of Toyota and Suzuki, Nissan and Daihatsu, etc, in the artisans who learned from making weapons to promote development of machine-making workshops.

Machine tools have been described as the ‘machines nobody knows,’ and for good reason…

Lathes & milling, drilling, or grinding machines – all of which are machine tools –

are ungainly slabs of steel & iron that cut metal using brute force.

But they vary… ‘as much in power, size & complexity in the field of metal cutting

as do elephants & earthworms in the animal kingdom.

Machine tools are in fact the mother or master machines,

the machines that make all machines.

Every manufactured product is made either by a machine tool

or by a machine that was made by a machine tool.

(Max Holland, From Industry to Alchemy)

Full Report

IMF Machinations to Demobilize Sri Lanka’s Army