"Democracy" in the World Economy

Over the last few weeks, I have noticed that we have, on several occasions, questioned the democracy of national and international financial institutions. In the reading for today's class, Stiglitz criticized the IMF's aversion to democratic practices.  Stiglitz claimed that, in the example of post-Soviet Russia, the IMF too often serves powerful interest groups and often disregards what would be most beneficial to the people of the nation's they set out to help.  He was also critical of the organization's lack of transparency, a characteristic that allows for the organization to avert blame for its actions by keeping interested parties in the dark.  The nature of the organization could be defended with what our class is now referring to as a "Wolf-like" argument: where would we be without the IMF?  This raises an age old debate in politics, especially American politics, where the desire for freedom and liberty is pitted against the desire for security.  This organization, while not exactly democratic in nature, provides the United States and the rest of the world with a sense of global economic stability.  In exchange for this stability, people are willing to sacrifice some of their values, especially people in seemingly desperate situations.  This creates an environment where people are willing to sacrifice the liberty they desire for the protection they need.  In the global economy, perceptions of the democratic nature of the IMF are very dependent on the economic circumstances facing different groups of people.  Critics of the IMF say that it is driven by the interests of powerful nations.  As citizens of a powerful nations, I think we have to wonder if the actions of this body reflect the ideals of that our nation claims to hold dear.

On a semi-related note, Stiglitz's description of the IMF made me think of this years FIFA scandal. FIFA is dealing with a major bribery scandal regarding the 2022 World Cup and is being criticized for its lack of transparency.  The recent developments are that FIFA has now completed an internal investigation, but won't tell anyone what they found...

Here are some links for anyone unfamiliar to the story:
                                            
http://www.ibtimes.com/fifa-bribery-scandal-qatar-2022-issues-casting-shadow-over-brazil-2014-1596296

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/29337509