“Good ideas out of context are like shiny objects lost in a dark field,” American writer Seth Godin once said. “They catch your attention, but have no real utility.”
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Argentine President Alberto Fernández have been making headlines for a proposal to create a common currency between Argentina and Brazil. The idea for a common currency arose about 25 years ago in an article written by two renowned economists and, in the context of the time, made sense. This idea has now been resurrected as a political opportunism play with a hint of ideological propaganda, but it lacks real utility.
João Marco Braga da Cunha holds a doctorate in electrical and electronics engineering from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro. He has a master of science in economics from Fundação Getulio Vargas.
