CHICAGO BOYS

1. THE SEED
In 1955, a group of professors of economics from the University of Chicago went
to Chile to sign an arrangement with the Catholic University of Chile.

In 1956, the US invested in priority countries such as Guatemala and Chile over
7 million dolars to expose the threat of communism and its influence in the area.

Chicago was a prestigious university, but it was very conservative, it was what
today is called ‘Neoliberal’ or ‘Monetarist’.

Milton Friedman was the strong man of the School of Economics of the
University of Chicago. HE WAS AN EXTREME NEOLIBERAL.

The economic model: ‘The market knows’.

2. THE BRICK
Allende won the election. The left, the laborers, the farmers, the technicians, the
professionals, the intellectuals, triumphed in Chile.
On the other hand, the defeated sectors, the extreme right-wing has tried a
conspiracy.

The military coup was though of at first, in a structured manner, by civilians.

In 1968, Agustin Edwards together with some friends had formed a naval
brotherhood called ‘Cofradia Nautica del Pacifico Austral’. They share their love
for the sails and their fear of communism.

When Agustin Edwards turns to Nixon and Kissinger, what they want to provoke
is a military coup.

The Chicago Boys created an economic program for Chile apparently to 'carry
out an intellectual exercise.' Those leaves were accumulated by Kelly and would
become the famous 'The Brick'. He later carried out a military coup. Kelly gave
them to Merino and a few others.

De Castro: ‘In my opinion, the success of economic program is exclusively due to

the military leaders’. (Pinochet and Merino)

‘The freedom to set prices will raises the price, and that will incentivize people
to produce more. Those that have accumulated goods will sell them in order to
get money’. Have to open up the market and start trading.

The original intention of Pinochet and Leigh, was that they had to maintain a
state-controlled economy. That’s why the first few times a social market
 economy was spoken of (market economy is ‘human nature’). Friedman had a
meeting with general Pinochet.

‘As much freedom as possible, the state, as small as possible’. ‘What belongs to
everybody, belong to nobody’.

The extreme case of this was the implementation of economic policies, from 73’
to 82’, which were a pioneering example in the world of neoliberalism
extremism. And they had the media at their feet. THE OPPOSITION CANNOT
SPEAK OUT. HUMANS RIGHTS VIOLATIONS.

The freedom to enterprise but not the freedom to think and decide in a
democratic society.

3. THE HARVEST
‘The Chilean Economic Miracle’.
Chilean people: ‘The cause of inequality is neoliberalism’.
Markets cannot do the job by themselves, they need the orientation of society
and public policies.
The economy is made to serve to the people.