Open Thread 2021-63
News & views ...
Posted by b on August 19, 2021 at 13:24 UTC | Permalink
next page »@ J Swift | Aug 19 2021 13:31 utc | 1
Re:
“Such a level of research carried out by the highest-ranking analytical corporation in the United States raises suspicions of a significant decrease in the quality of the American analytical community. This is no longer military science, but lobbying.”
Oddly perhaps, I have always thought of those 'think tank' organisations as lobbyists, When have any of them been 'off message' when it comes down to it?
Posted by: MarkU | Aug 19 2021 13:56 utc | 2
Oddly perhaps, I have always thought of those 'think tank' organisations as lobbyists, When have any of them been 'off message' when it comes down to it?
Posted by: MarkU | Aug 19 2021 13:56 utc | 2
Yes, that's the one thing that annoys me in the Russian analysis, the Rand type think tanks have always been a high-tone version of BellingCrap, there has been no real degradation of talents there, they have always been tools. Whatever military intellectual excellence there ever was here, it was not in the think tanks, ever. They are propaganda and PR outfits.
Posted by: Bemildred | Aug 19 2021 14:15 utc | 3
Mike Pompeo is a good example of "excellence" of thought in the US... first in his class at West Point! Must be a genius!
Posted by: Simplicius | Aug 19 2021 14:22 utc | 4
Sorry, may have given a bad link. Try this:
https://russtrat.ru/en/analytics_/17-august-2021-2332-5589
Posted by: J Swift | Aug 19 2021 14:22 utc | 5
as long as it's not the USM itself that is to blame for the "debacle" in Afghanistan, as long as donkeys and elephants bray at each other, the military gravy train, the central hub of corruption around which the wheel of US society revolves, will keep on rolling. but it is curious how it was not the white house or DOS or HUD or Treasury or Dept of Ed that was running the evac from Kabul.
Posted by: rjb1.5 | Aug 19 2021 14:26 utc | 6
Most Russians dream of "USSR with gadgets"
I think that this poll's results reflect more the reality of the Russian Federation than of the USSR. Experts lose too much time trying to decipher what makes the USSR so luring when the key is not that the USSR was an utopia, but that the Russian Federation is a failure.
If the Russian Federation wasn't such a monumental failure, Russian people wouldn't miss the USSR so much.
Also, it seems the researchers are the ones falsifying History: the shortage of goods started with the Perestroika, not with the old-style Soviet socialism. The interviewed can't forget what never happened.
--//--
Wrong. The USA, by definition, cannot "devise a strategy with allies to compete". It is a capitalist nation, therefore, the decisions of investment are entirely private ("free") and, as such, anarchic. The State cannot intervene on such decisions, therefore it cannot devise any strategy on investment.
The moment the USA is able to plan investment on a strategic level, it will no longer be a capitalist, but a socialist nation, with a centrally planned economy.
That's why smarter but still patriotic people like economist Jack Rasmus come up with more sophisticated theories:
Afghanistan & the American Imperial Project
But whatever the current decade portends, it is clear that after 20 years of wasting nearly $30 trillion on wars, tax cuts, and dealing with two great recessions and their economic aftermath, US elites realize they cannot pay any longer for middle east wars and confront simultaneously the costs of the new challenges to maintain the empire. The focus henceforth will be on the Great Technology War with China, cybersecurity conflicts with Russia, while attempting to raise investment as well to deal with the other war the US is now clearly losing: Climate Change. These are the key strategic interests of the American Empire in this decade and beyond—not Afghanistan.
Rasmus proposes that sheer existential pressure from China (and, to a lesser extent, Russia) will act as some kind of super-overriding factor on the "animal spirits" of the American capitalist class, in a way they will suspend the normal laws of free market competition (i.e. profitability) so that the American Empire can build another forced industrial surge like that of FDR in the 1940s.
Thing is: there's no sources that corroborate with that. What Rasmus stated is merely the will of president Joe Biden, not a capitalist manifesto of the American capitalist class. The problem is the same: Biden is just a POTUS, and, as such, he has negligible margin of maneuver. He can declare wars because he has the Pentagon machine at his disposal, but, when it comes to the economy, the POTUS is essentially powerless. He will be able to use the federal budget to try to build something, but its a drop on the ocean.
Another problem is that FDR's forced industrialization only happened because a literal total war was waged against the Empire of Japan. Before the war was declared, FDR's "New Deal" was a abject failure. The American capitalist class needs much more than a conceptual-theoretical existential threat: they need a literal existential threat, i.e. a hot war of annihilation against the Communists.
Question: What is going on with "toppled" vice-president Saleh in Afghanistan?
I read on some media that this person is very defiant to the newly imposed Taliban authority and uses extremely tough words agains them, also self-proclaming as the "Acting President".
What justifies this provocation? There's no way they can topple the Taliban. What is he trying to achieve?
I suspect that the cautious and moderate approach of the Taliban regarding post-war rules (no retaliation, etc) is taking many anti-Taliban actors off guard and they need to show a tough stance to get a political role (or as a bargain chip in a negotiation table).
What's your comments about it?
Posted by: Andres | Aug 19 2021 14:44 utc | 8
Posted by: J Swift | Aug 19 2021 14:22 utc | 5
I was just about to tell you about the broken link, but in any case I checked a different article in that site and had a good laugh. It is about the Space Station toilet and the hole that someone drilled in it up in space. I had read before that during the incident investigation the US astronauts unlike the Russian cosmonauts declined to pass a polygraph test, suspicious to start with.
But according to that funny article the whole story was that the US ultra-technological shithole stopped functioning and the astronauts had to do with pampers, plus a hysterical she mate that drove everybody crazy, so someone up there after being refused to take the nervous lady down to earth since the taxi is Russian and not cheap, decided to cause a force-majeure to have a good shit back home, evidence of malfaisance would be destroyed with the module burning on return, but... Russian make do, first someone drilled in the wrong place since they hit a steel frame, and the russkies fixed the hole, like the Beatles, hilarious.
The supper duper technological shithouse remembered me of a fantastic US space pen that would function upside down, at a cost of thousands of dollars, the Russians took pencils to space. In any case I should not be surprised, I've seen them both work and know pretty well their ways.
https://glav.su/blog/2274/1566253/
Posted by: Paco | Aug 19 2021 14:47 utc | 9
Re - Taliban etc. the corporate, for-profit, CIA media is all about mass popular uprisings breaking out all over Afghanistan against Taliban rule. I guess it's a color revolution free for all with CIA sleeper cells embedded to provoke bad behaviors. Does the Taliban care about western media propaganda?
Re: Iran etc. Hezbollah is warning US/Israel not to interfere with an Iranian oil/gas tanker on its way to Lebanon, and promising many more to follow. Can the evil-mongers refrain from striking the match to light the fuse to ignite the wet-dream of war with Iran? (aka madness.)
Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 14:53 utc | 10
Forgot to put this interesting article:
How China’s Gorbachev Was Flushed in 1989
What happened in China during that period was much more complex than a mere battle between Marxists and Transhumanists, but an interesting case nonetheless.
--//--
Who has a demographic problem?
Who Has the Cure for America’s Declining Birthrate? Canada.
The endless fountain of youth from Latin America will dry out eventually.
--//--
I disagree. The Islamic fundamentalists won't change their minds, but the rest of the world is seeing the whole thing for what it really is: a huge L in the American Empire curriculum.
This isn't Antiquity or the Middle Ages. Religion is not a factor in the grand scheme of things anymore.
@last_thread:152 Snake, who said (my paraphrase):
Afghan go analog. Keep insiders in, and outsiders out. Bootstrap the economy on internal extant mat'ls & skills, suffer for a while till you become self-sufficient. Don't bond to outside-bigger-than-you forces till you've got the size to defend yourself, or you'll become a puppet.
=======
I agree with a lot of what you're saying. It's got issues:
a. Not going to get help from Big Players unless you play ball. They want transit-access, and minerals. If big guys aren't on-side, you get re-squashed by West
b. Got to feed the many. The Afghanistan economy has been badly warped by 20 yrs of massive distortions (easy money; a lot of the baksheesh got spent locally, right?). That's going to require a lot of jobs to get all those kids (big 25-yr-old contingent). Public works being the only likely entity, under any scenario, to gen up that many jobs. Where are you going to get payroll? If you take outside lending and outside investment off the table..that leaves a pretty big hole.
c. Generating internal industry for energy, cement, steel, fertilizer, irrigation are all going to take expertise and up-front capital. From what little (and it is surely little) I know of Afghanistan's existing economy, there isn't much indigenous industry, and not a wide range of indigenous materials (like oil and cement and wood).
Remember that a good bit of Cuba's storied rebuilding - at least in the early years - happened because the Soviets bought their sugar from Cuba. Cuba had a valuable export crop, and that made a lot of diff in the early years.
Lastly: How much copper? A lot. I've read "twice as good assay as Chile" and "2nd biggest mine in the world" hyperbole. Probably quite a lot, tho, and plenty to fund all that public-works infrastructure you recommended, and to pay the workers in copper coins, redeemable at State stores for groceries and building materials and fuel.
They have iron ore, too. Got coal, too, but not all that readily accessible at the moment. Got the basics for local steel production. Need more power gen stuff if they're going to value-add into rebar, pipe, etc.
What say you?
Posted by: Tom Pfotzer | Aug 19 2021 15:02 utc | 12
Even at MIT
https://twitter.com/stephanieseneff
https://www.csail.mit.edu/person/stephanie-seneff
https://ijvtpr.com/index.php/IJVTPR/article/view/23/51
Posted by: Mina | Aug 19 2021 15:03 utc | 13
One more, Snake:
US geological survey report on Afghanistan cement production potential (2010).
It's a PDF.
Summary: they've got plant in place, and raw mat'ls available in-country. Gear's outdated, needs energy infrastructure to scale up.
Posted by: Tom Pfotzer | Aug 19 2021 15:12 utc | 14
Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 14:40 utc | 7
"The moment the USA is able to plan investment on a strategic level, it will no longer be a capitalist, but a socialist nation, with a centrally planned economy."
I feel that you are being a little simplistic here. If the capitalists dominate the state (e.g. Wolin's Inverted Totalitarianism) and use it for their own benefit, including some required planning for the benefit of a major segment of the capitalist class it is still some form of capitalism. Was Japan not state capitalist during its heyday (before the US and the Japanese Central Bank helped destroy much of that planning), did the US state not carry out significant planning activities in the post-WW2 miracle years? What about South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan? Could we not call it authoritarian capitalism? Capitalism is the private ownership of the means of production (including cultural production), and the dominance of society by the bourgeoisie, "free" markets are not a requisite.
The issue with the US is not that it would not be capitalist if it planned effectively, it is that it is now so corrupted and focused on rentier activities and easy labour arbitrage that it is unable to plan effectively. The scum has risen to the top and infected much of the rest, a natural product of 40 years of neoliberalism and financialization. Why plan when you can recycle $trillions to your buddies through the war money laundering process, or just print $trillions and give it to yourselves during a "crisis".
Below the true elite owner group, the effective planners and managers have been turned into courtiers - all about saying what is required to keep the money spigot open and pointed at the elites rather than being effective for the national interest (the raison d'état), "failing upwards" captures this so well. Obama truly perfected this art and is being well rewarded, but we have now gone a step forward where obvious imbeciles (Blinken, Harris, Buttegieg, Pompeo, most if not all senior military personnel etc.) are placed in senior positions. It is sad when you miss Bush Sr., Nixon, Eisenhower etc; they may have been imperialist bastards, but at least they were competent ones! Trump was of course the natural product of this process of degradation.
The US$ reserve currency status is the self-licking ice cream at the centre of this process. I trust that the planners in China and Russia understand the craziness that would ensue if the US elites suddenly realized that the basis of their wealth was about to be turned off and therefore plan a slow and steady withdrawal process. Addicts can get very nasty when their supply is threatened.
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 15:14 utc | 15
By now I should no longer be surprised, but I am - whenever the disgusting Western propaganda machine is ramped up again for any reason, be it the propagation of another war, be it preparations for another regime change attempt, be it, as is currently the case, the continuation of a lost war with economic means.
What particularly outrages me is the legitimisation of these actions with the defence of human rights, while in each case it is obvious that countless members of the population concerned are being harmed by the Western machinations. When, for example, Afghanistan is cut off from all sources of money, including international reserves, humanitarian aid, etc..
Instead of finding it encouraging that the inevitable civil war phase after the withdrawal of the nato invaders turned out to be as short as possible and thus many lives were saved and infrastructure was not destroyed, all western efforts are now directed at undermining Taliban rule and thus returning the country to civil war as quickly as possible. These are the famous Western values. It could hardly be more mendacious.
Posted by: pnyx | Aug 19 2021 15:26 utc | 16
@ Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 15:14 utc | 15
Then why is Japan four decades and counting in stagnation?
You cannot use the post-war miracle period as the rule for capitalism. During that period, the flow of capital was controlled internationally; there were no tax havens, and the USD was pegged to gold. Plus, there was the USSR at the apex of its international prestige, putting immense pressure on the capitalist classes of the First World to give in to their unionist movements (that's why the building of the welfare states are from this time). Profit rates were through the roof thanks to the reconstruction of Europe and Japan, so capitalists didn't need to be that much creative to get extremely rich.
Put it simply: the international financial architecture still didn't exist during the post-war miracle.
Capitalist States can "herd" the private sector through what the neoliberals and Keynesians call "monetary policy", i.e. they can toy with the tax structure, base interest rates and sovereign debt emission. Indeed, that's what Keynesians insist even today: that the State just need the spark to ignite the "animal spirits" of the capitalist class (private sector); it is the private sector - not the public sector - that will work the magic. What the Japanese State did during the post-war miracle wasn't planning, but using the savings of its working class to finance private initiative in heavy industry. Note the difference: the will to invest on heavy industry already existed in Japan; the State merely acted like demand and gave it money it already had.
@vk #17
I can't say I agree with your statement that "the Russian Federation is a failure, which is why the USSR looks good".
Most people don't look at the big picture: the cost of maintaining troops and subsidies to the Baltics, rest of Warsaw Pact esp. East Germany, etc.
It is easy to pretend a magical world where the above economic burdens were shed but full state control over Russian natural resources is retained (thus preventing the rise of the oligarchs), but it was never likely that any form of sovereign authority could be kept once Gorbachev waved the surrender flag.
And it is precisely the failure of USSR sovereign authority which enabled the cleaning of the slate - both economically and societally.
Posted by: c1ue | Aug 19 2021 15:30 utc | 18
Roger@15
your observation about the "elite" in the USA is spot on. I want to add another example of a person who spectacularly failed - Petreus - who should have been courtmartialled, but is again seen in the media spouting his idiocies. What is missing in the media, is the absence of other elitic heads Wolfowitz, Perle, Nuland, and her husband...One is tempted to make a list of the US "elite"...!
btw. similar process of elites dumbing down is occurring in Europe, especially in Germany.
Posted by: bystander 04 | Aug 19 2021 15:34 utc | 19
More COVID fun:
San Francisco vaccinate mandate for indoors to start August 20
CNBC on vaccine mandate in SF
Israel: more vaccines, more COVID
Israel hits 6 month high in COVID
Vaccines = less COVID = bullshit
Charles Ferguson in NYT
Most national media coverage and government statements have portrayed the Delta surge in both cases and hospitalizations as primarily driven by states with low vaccination rates and/or anti-masking laws, implying that states with higher vaccination rates and/or stronger regulation are being spared. This is flatly false. Over the last month, the state with the highest growth rate in new covid cases in the entire U.S. is Vermont, which also has the highest vaccination rate of any U.S. state. Covid cases in Vermont grew nearly a factor of ten in the last month (from a seven day average of 10 cases on July 12 to a seven day average of 95 on August 12 – and 126 new cases on August 12 alone). Over just the last two weeks ending August 12, high vaccination states with higher covid case growth rates than Texas and Florida include not only Vermont (263% growth in the last two weeks) but also Hawaii (176% growth over the last two weeks), Oregon (144%), Washington state (146%), New York (108%), and Washington DC (158%), versus Texas with 72% growth in covid cases over the two weeks ending August 12, and Florida with only 50% growth. California is slightly behind Florida with 48% growth.Furthermore, high-vaccination states are also experiencing high growth in hospitalizations. The seven day average for hospitalizations over the two weeks have increased 425% in Vermont, 140% in Hawaii, 70% in Washington state, and 128% in Oregon. This is not to say that vaccination rates and masking policy are unimportant. Without question, the policies of Florida, Texas, and other “resistant” states have worsened their problems, and the health care systems of Florida and Texas are already under severe stress:
California overall numbers:
Peak July 2020 COVID hospitalizations: 8820
August 17, 2021 COVID hospitalizations: 8132
July 30, 2021 COVID hospitalizations: 4374
Upward trend showing zero decrease so far.
ICU available bed numbers are stable but this is fairly meaningless since the supply varies quickly and considerably, plus there is a 6 week to 2.5 month lag between new COVID case spikes and ICU spikes.
Posted by: c1ue | Aug 19 2021 15:39 utc | 20
@Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 15:00 utc | 11
China and Shoxk Therapy
Ehret's take on what happened to China's economic policy in the 1980s is extremely simplistic, as well as very Eurocentric. A much more nuanced version is provided by Isabella M. Weber is "How China Escaped Shock Therapy". The book is based on extensive interviews with participants and documentation of meetings etc., and shows that even Deng was in two minds between shock therapy and incremental change. Its a shockingly excellent book, one of the best that I have read over the years.
Canada and Immigration
On Canada and immigration, the main effect has been to turn the "Golden Horseshoe" around Toronto into a crowded, over-built shit-hole with tract houses in second-tier cities going for C$1 million+. Even more so for Vancouver. At the same time, incomes are held back by very low rates of productivity growth - wait, you increase the supply of labour and labour productivity is held back? Some of the issues are a lack of business investment and also some of our best talent leaving for the US (so we ship out our best talent and replace it with immigrant lesser talent). A good take on this in the article below. Canada is still fundamentally a digger of holes for exporting raw materials, it did a good attempt at escaping the "staples trap" in the 1950s and 1960s but fell back into it in the past few decades.
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 15:42 utc | 21
Very interesting writeup on the US closing of the gold window (temporary hah):
Ronan Manly/Bullionstar writeup on the closing of the gold window
Long story short: Lots of people in government knew it was coming. Discussions on both sides of the Atlantic - and it was not just France but the UK that comprised the final straw. But France definitely withdrew the most gold...
The question today, of course, is what now with the massive US dollar reserves held by foreign CBs plus foreigners.
The CBs have basically stopped buying US Treasuries, overall, since 2012. Overall "foreign" purchases are up but it isn't clear if these are really foreigners or just offshored American money.
But no one disputes that the US debt has grown enormously and will continue to grow - so what will give? There isn't a "dollar window" to close here in the US, but there are dollar windows abroad...
Posted by: c1ue | Aug 19 2021 15:43 utc | 22
Posted by: c1ue | Aug 19 2021 15:39 utc | 20
Thanks. It is getting more and more difficult to maintain the Covid narrative.
And as the current Delta variant rages (which to actually test for is much more than a pcr test and also suggests mass psyops in play) and of course, the discredited, fraudulent, and soon to be abandoned PCR test is still in use to drive the numbers. And, of course, those going to a hospitable for whatever reason who test positive with the PCR becomes a "Covid case."
I know it's hard to admit one has been duped. But it's getting more and more difficult to pretend not.
Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 15:50 utc | 23
@ Posted by: c1ue | Aug 19 2021 15:39 utc | 20
Yes, the USA lost the war against the COVID-19 pandemic. It is expect to succumb to the delta variant soon.
The Taiwan situation, especially its very weak army, similar in that respect to Afghanistan, is addressed by Politico here . ."The fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban may not have immediate implications for the credibility of U.S. commitment to Taiwan. But the Afghan National Army’s rapid collapse and the American military’s hasty withdrawal highlight an important fact for decision makers in Washington, Taipei and Beijing: The U.S.’ future commitment to defending Taiwan is inherently interconnected with Taiwan’s own commitment to defending itself."
Posted by: Don Bacon | Aug 19 2021 15:52 utc | 25
@ Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 15:50 utc | 23
The reason PCR tests don't work against the delta variant is that the delta variant doesn't breed in the upper throat (from where muck samples for the PCR are taken). Instead, it goes straight to the lungs.
The issue with the US is not that it would not be capitalist if it planned effectively, it is that it is now so corrupted and focused on rentier activities and easy labour arbitrage that it is unable to plan effectively. The scum has risen to the top and infected much of the rest, a natural product of 40 years of neoliberalism and financialization. Roger | Aug 19 2021 15:14 utc
This is also a necessary footnote of the Afghan misadventure and misadventures to be completed -- Iraq and Ukraine come to mind. 20+ years ago the "best minds of the West" had a beautiful concept: grab the control of several countries, and foster shining examples of prosperity and democracy that will erode hostile authoritarian states as their populations will envy the lucky and happy neighbors.
However, the missing detail was that they lost the concept of effective economic planning. It was as if the modern chemistry were abandoned in favor of phlogiston theory and outright alchemy. And they are not even aware of that.
Posted by: Piotr Berman | Aug 19 2021 16:00 utc | 27
@gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 15:50 utc | 23
I know it's hard to admit one has been duped. But it's getting more and more difficult to pretend not.
Many were duped, some were not and some knew exactly what they were doing.
Posted by: Norwegian | Aug 19 2021 16:08 utc | 28
Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 15:52 utc | 26
Well, the PCR test itself is worthless (as are the 'vaccines' evidently).
But how can there be a daily dose of delta variant counts when it's not being tested for? Where is the info coming from? It's all BS.
As I say, I realize it's hard to admit being duped...
Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 16:11 utc | 29
@1 J Swift
Looks like Rand has hired Donald Trump as special foreign policy advisor.
Posted by: m | Aug 19 2021 16:16 utc | 30
"American media pivoted from "think of all the women & children we're leavijg behind in Afghanistan" to "think of the lithium & other minerals we're leaving behind in Afghanistan" in like 3 days"
--//--
@ Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 16:11 utc | 29
Testing the blood of the patients. Since the variant was born in India, a lot of people died with a new set of symptoms until they decided to investigate. Then they discovered the new variant and mapped its genome.
@Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 15:29 utc | 17
"Then why is Japan four decades and counting in stagnation? ... What the Japanese State did during the post-war miracle wasn't planning, but using the savings of its working class to finance private initiative in heavy industry. Note the difference: the will to invest on heavy industry already existed in Japan; the State merely acted like demand and gave it money it already had."
Its actually three decades and counting in stagnation, and I clearly stated that the planning apparatus was very significantly degraded (as well as the US doing a full court press of Yen appreciation and import curbs on Japanese memory chips etc.). Significant financial deregulation also helped in creating the financial bubble that burst in the 1990s (the documentary "Princes of the Yen" argues for this being a consciously guided effort). This dovetails with the start of Japan's stagnation.
So redirecting savings (there was also a role for straight directed credit creation but I digress) toward private industry investment is not some form of planning? You are arguing against yourself.
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 16:23 utc | 32
@ J Swift | Aug 19 2021 13:31 utc | 1
well the usa / uk and gang could try growing up! i doubt they will though.. instead they will continue to listen to the advice of the intel agencies just as michael hudson articulated so well in that link gordog left a few days ago... here it is again.... thanks..
Biden forfeits his Afghan victory by defending his Deep State advisors
bonus! new article from michael hudson today! video.. transcript not up yet..
Posted by: james | Aug 19 2021 16:25 utc | 33
What about 29 February 2020 and 3 March 2020 and the agreements between 1) The Unhinged States of Not Negotiable and the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan which is not recognized by the United States" as a state and is known as the Taliban? and 2)The Unhinged States of Not Negotiable and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan?
What about who authorized the 3 March 2020 attacks? Either the Orange Clown signed off on deceit that can only destroy whatever slim chance of an agreement between the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan which is not recognized by the United States" as a state and is known as the Taliban and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and a better outcome or he was sabotaged as usual by his quislings, eurgh, I mean, underlings, through a clear-cut case of insubordination worthy a demand from those responsible of their resignations. Rather than trust the media, he could have (at least in theory) declare an emergency, require broadcast and cable media to air a press conference / address /whatever and demand resignations along with explanations why.
Of course, everyone was in charge, saying and doing their own things, except the one who is supposed to be in charge since day one and we would likely end up with an impeachment that even Repugnants as well as Demonbrats can get on board for and end up with Mike Pence, so perhaps I have just answered my implied question as to why he did not do this.
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 16:27 utc | 34
A timely reminder for Ukraine:
America’s hasty retreat from Afghanistan should be warning to Ukraine that it can’t count on Washington – Russian security chief
This is indeed something that should worry the puppet regime.
Posted by: Norwegian | Aug 19 2021 16:31 utc | 35
@ Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 16:23 utc | 32
No. The Japanese Government is merely investing money on an already-existing private enterprise. It cannot control what this enterprise will do with the money, except for the fact that it must pay back in x years. It is engaging the market as a player like any other - albeit a very big player with the monopoly of violence (law).
@ Tom Pfotzer (#12), agree with Snake on sovereign money and self-reliance. It seems like he wants that Afghanistan to become North Korea (communism too?)?
The “script” idea isn’t pragmatic and doesn’t address Afghanistan’s internal and external CHALLENGES. Also, Iraq under Saddam tried it from 1993 to 2001, and it didn’t work. In fact, it is a strategy used by the Financial Empire to box a country to capture it at a later time. The Empire wanted to pursue the Eastern Europe in 1990s, so it boxed Iraq then after 1991. In the present times when the Empire wants to capture all nations, your idea doesn’t provide security in the long run.
Iraq issued its own money in 1990s. However, the Empire counterfeited its currency and used its only friend Jordan as a conduit to introduce those counterfeit bills in Iraq. What did Saddam do? Similarly, the Empire will counterfeit those bills again and introduce them through Pakistan. The real challenge comes not from adversaries but TRAITORS. Please read “International Monetary Power” by David Andrews to understand Empire’s financial shenanigans.
Where does the Taliban get their funding? Primary sources of the Taliban funding ($300 million to $1.6 billion annually): drug trafficking ($400m), extortion & ransom ($160m), mineral exploitation ($464m), tax collection, donations . The Afghan administration budget for 2020 was $5.55 billion. Money is extorted from shopkeepers, farmers, drivers,... Taliban’s biggest expenses are salaries, weapons and training. Bullies don’t want to work. The scrip idea won’t address challenges of extortion crimes and neither minimize corruption. How will these challenges be addressed in the analog world?
$ Bloc vs Non-$ Bloc
The Financial Empire dreams of a global empire and wants to capture and control nations. Afghanistan needs to align with the Non-$ Bloc to achieve security and maintain sovereignty. The strategy of the Non-$ Bloc needs to be driven by the realistic perception that they could resist the forces of the Empire. ASEAN is pursuing a strategy of nations being sovereign and only engaging in the external sphere on common interests and international trade. Afghanistan can pursue a similar strategy and align with its neighbors like ASEAN. Among the three powers, Russia and the U$A, have attacked it. It can explore a relationship with China on common interest. Since China wants to gain credibility and legitimacy in the external sphere, the probability of it attacking and exploiting is low. So the key focus needs to be on the common interest and sovereign security.
ANALOG vs DIGITAL
Analog and digital arenas are like fire. They are both tools to be used as needed. They can be beneficial when contained and channeled, but when "set free" they consume everything in their paths. The only way to achieve the right usage is by living the value of integrity.
Hopefully, Afghans will do the right thing for a better future! Best wishes...
How should nations address Monetary Imperialism & enslavement?
Posted by: Max | Aug 19 2021 16:38 utc | 37
Of course, imagine if James Earl Cater did not listen to Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzezinski and Afghanistan was still "communist" (socialist).
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 16:39 utc | 38
@J Swift " they have published a new opus suggesting that the very best way for the US to backfoot Russia and China is to be baffling and unpredictable."
Maybe bring back Trump?
Posted by: ian | Aug 19 2021 16:45 utc | 39
"
Ground-breaking autopsy report shows the vaccinated had toxic spike proteins all over the body"
"According to the report, researchers found that the patient’s entire body had become overrun with high viral RNA loads, also known as vaccine-induced spike proteins. This has been reported by many investigators and even further research on what really is in the vaccine. [Read Covid vaccines not as effective as you think to learn more].
This indicates two things.
1. The mRNA from the vaccine is not localized to the injection site where it’s supposed to be but spread on other organs. [Read New evidence explains how mRNA vaccines cause organ damage to see the evidence.]
2. We know the decedent was exposed to Covid-19. The virus was in every organ in his body. Based on what we know about coronavirus vaccines in the past, this could be seen as a signal of antibody-dependent enhancement [Read What is pathogenic priming? And Briefing document on Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine shows evidence of pathogenic priming among older adults]
This means that the vaccine cannot stop the virus from spreading [in Pfizer’s briefing document to the Food and Drug Administration, they already intimated about this..."
I am looking for info on natural immunity. It might be a problem too.
Posted by: David G Horsman | Aug 19 2021 16:45 utc | 40
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 15:14 utc | 15
Great analysis.
Love how you put O'bummer together with Imbeciles like Blinkered Blinkin' Blink'n, Hairy Harris, Buttgig, Pompous.
I would add to that list the failing upwards champion, Bidet Biden, that compulsive obsessive hair-sniffing dotard who can't organise a retreat without begging his enemy for more time.
Posted by: kiwiklown | Aug 19 2021 16:46 utc | 41
https://asiatimes.com/2021/08/china-russia-are-stage-managing-the-taliban/
Posted by: jo6pac | Aug 19 2021 16:48 utc | 42
@ james (#33), so Michael Hudson finally starts using the term “Financial Empire”! He has followed us in using some other terms, “Monetary Imperialism,” “Dollar Empire”... It will be interesting when he uses the term “public credit” or “public credit for private gains”.
Posted by: Max | Aug 19 2021 16:50 utc | 43
Posted by: pnyx | Aug 19 2021 15:26 utc | 16
Another great analysis.
Except that where your very last sentence speaks to mendacity, I would ascribe malice, evil, doing satan's work.
Posted by: kiwiklown | Aug 19 2021 16:51 utc | 44
vk @31:
"American media pivoted from "think of all the women & children we're leavijg behind in Afghanistan" to "think of the lithium & other minerals we're leaving behind in Afghanistan" in like 3 days"
Me: So the commentators and those above them in mainscream media realize that they need lithium, maybe their lack of insight is not as bad as I thought and perhaps their is hope for them yet.
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 17:15 utc | 45
@Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 16:33 utc | 36
The money was given out in a planned fashion, directed by MITI to industries that were viewed as serving the national interest. The state was very much an active player in the state-corporate partnership. Chalmers Johnson covered this in "MITI and the Japanese Miracle"
This is very much the same as the US "hidden planning apparatus" in the National Institutes for Health, DARPA, Nuclear Laboratories, that were critical to the development of US high technology industries. Mazzucatto covers this very well in the "Entrepreneurial State".
Planning is of course only one variable among others, as Vogel so well covers in "The Four Little Dragons" (and yes you can fuck up now and again as in Vogel's "Japan As Number One" and still write good stuff - his book on Deng Xiaoping is excellent).
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 17:27 utc | 46
@ Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 17:27 utc | 46
You used the right term: player.
Capitalist States can engage the free market as players. The rules of the free market are still valid, regardless if the player is "active" or not. The very fact that the State is considered "Entrepreneurial" already gives in to the fact that it cannot change the laws of the free market.
Being a big player in the free market is not planning. Planning that happens inside corporate walls is not central planning, because the endgame is different: stakeholders and CEOs operate with the goal of profit.
The Japanese government still washes its main private companies (keiretsu) with cash from the working class' savings in banks. The reforms of the 1990s didn't change that.
The difference between the Chinese State (a socialist state) and the rest lies in the fact that any free market is conditional, a borrowed privilege, a right of existence bestowed by the State to the private sector. In the capitalist nations, it is the opposite (i.e. the private sector fully controls the State; any freedom of planning the State gets is bestowed by the private sector). Put in simpler terms, it is a matter of who has the real power.
@15 Roger: gotta be the most accurate, succinct and devastating summary of our situation I've seen. One of these days let's ask b to put up a thread on "how to fix this mess" and use your summary as the article lead.
@37 Max.: I knew I was gonna get pounded, and so it came to be.
issue 1: script doesn't work. By scrip (I think that's the right spelling) do you mean something like "company money" where coal miners would get paid in poker chips, and redeem them at the company store? For a lot of public works projects, esp. in the boonies, Max, that might work great. In fact, for a big portion of the area of Afghanistan, exc. the pop centers, it'd work fine. And it wouldn't require any new infrastructure @ outset.
For those txns that need more currency mobility, then you need either printed currency, or electronic currency. I think we all agree that copper coins only have limited utility as currency.
But the core point I was making is that copper is good as backing. You didn't seem to "see" or acknowledge the fundamental importance of getting any currency accepted and trusted. You seemed to gloss over that, and it's not a gloss-able step. It's vital.
We agree that counterfeiting is a big deal. Great way to undermine. Long, long history of success of that tactic.
So, copper backing is both highly possible (got copper), and it works. Better than gold, actually, because it's harder to steal. Weighs too much per unit value. And in that environment, that's not such a bad thing.
issue 2: digital .vs. analog. You might not like the anti-digital stance, but it's got a few key things going for it:
1) simpler to set up, and might be more appropriate for the people _where they are now_. If you don't hook the train to the box car, by going to where the box-car actually _is_, and coupling to it, your train is gonna leave without the box-car. How many of the people, and how much of the physical space, is ready for digital anything? (I don't know, Max - I'm talking thru my hat here, so if you or anyone's got good demographic data to share, this might be a good time)
2) it's a lot harder for remote meddlers to meddle.
The utility of communications has distinctly come at the cost of freedom and privacy, Max. If it's online, it's available. When you've got a dicey situation just getting its momentum, it's tough to keep things on-track when your adversaries know darn near everything you're doing. And they're bigger than you are.
I interpret Snake's remarks to be more on the lines of protecting a young country's internal prerogatives until it's strong enough to stand on its own. That's not such a bad idea, Max.
So, can we agree with Snake's basic notion: preserve your independence. Don't beat yourself. Play smart. etc. ? If so, then we're on the same page with respect to your "any tool can be mis-used" point.
Your para on block .vs. non-block is really good. No grumbles on that one.
Lastly, the point on where Taliban gets their funding is quite pertinent, and I think that's why everyone got into the econ devel issues even while the news was breaking about the political / military stuff.
After the joyous exuberance of kicking out the interlopers subsides, now the Taliban has to make the leap to hyperspace: from resistance/obstructionism to actual governing.
From shake-down to generating wealth. Mafia to Entrepreneurs. Tribe to team. Gonna be a tough transition, and may take quite a while.
Ironically, that's exactly what the United States has to do, only on a much more massive scale. It's going to much harder for us.
Posted by: Tom Pfotzer | Aug 19 2021 17:45 utc | 48
Paco @ 9
Thank you LOL
That reminded me of one of my favourite Donovan Songs
I was impressed like everyone,
When man began to fly,
Out of earthly regions,
To planets in the sky.
With total media coverage,
We watched the heros land,
As ceremoniously
They disturbed the cosmic sand.
In awe with admiration,
We listened to the talk.
Such pride felt they,
Such joy to be
Upon the moon to walk.
My romantic vision shattered,
When it was explained to me,
Spacemen wear old diapers
In which they shit and pee.
Oh, the intergalactic laxative,
Will get you from here to there.
Relieve you and believe me,
Without a worry or care.
If shitting is your problem,
When you're out there in the stars,
Oh, the intergalactic laxative
Will get you from here to Mars.
They don't partake like you and I,
Of beefy burger mush.
Their food is specially prepared
To dissolve into slush.
Absorbed by multi-fibers
In the super diaper suit,
Otherwise the slush would trickle
Down inside the boot.
Oh, the intergalactic laxative,
Will get you from here to there.
Relieve you and believe me,
Without a worry or care.
If shitting is your problem
When you're out there in the stars,
Oh, the intergalactic laxative
Will get you from here to Mars.
You may well ask now what becomes
Of liquid they consume.
A pipe is led from penis head
To a unit in the room.
The water is recirculated,
Filtered for re-use.
In case of anti-gravity -
Pee gets on the loose.
Oh, the intergalactic laxative,
Will get you from here to there.
Relieve you and believe me,
Without a worry or care.
If shitting is your problem
When you're out there in the stars,
Oh, the intergalactic laxative
Will get you from here to Mars.
Wherever man has conquered,
On the quest for frontiers new,
(Da da da da)
I'm glad that he's always had to do
The number one and two.
It makes it all so ordinary,
Just like you and me,
To know the greatest heroes,
They had to shit and pee.
The intergalactic laxative
Will get you from here to there,
For cosmic constipation
There's none that can compare.
If shitting is your problem
When you're out there in the stars,
Oh, the intergalactic laxative,
The intergalactic laxative,
The intergalactic laxative,
Will get you from here to Mars.
Posted by: ld | Aug 19 2021 17:54 utc | 49
Daily Mail had an article a few days ago about "newly unearthed" information re a third Hunter Biden laptop missing, drugs, prostitutes, Russian agents, blackmail, porn, etc. I guess it wasn't news here as I heard nothing about it. I don't want to risk screwing up the format of MoA by making a link posting error, so I've only posted the guts of the link below. Apologies if this has been mentioned already.
news/article-9881213/Unearthed-video-shows-naked-Hunter-Biden-claiming-Russian-drug-dealers-stole-laptop.
Posted by: spudski | Aug 19 2021 18:01 utc | 50
In the recent past, there have been no reports, or even rumors, about the John Dunham Special Prosecutor investigation -- does anyone know if it is still functioning? If yes, is his Grand Jury still empanelled?
Posted by: chet380 | Aug 19 2021 18:13 utc | 51
I am looking for info on natural immunity. It might be a problem too.
Posted by: David G Horsman | Aug 19 2021 16:45 utc | 40
DGH, you might be interested in an interview with Robert Malone on Darkhorse podcast wherein he discusses natural immunity and its interplay with vaccine-induced antibodies, the spike protein spreading all over the body, the (Pfizer?) data that showed concentrations of spike protein in marrow and ovaries, and the paucity of evidence for ADE at this stage. I've brutally summarised the 3 hours of thoughtful, nuanced discussion into one paragraph.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGv_QnEvX-w
Posted by: Deltaeus | Aug 19 2021 18:20 utc | 52
Successful "resistance" countries in Latin America so far: Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, all took power through a dedicated, radicalized armed cadre. Bolivia is similar and more recent-- while they took power through the ballot box the miners and farmers fought and died for years and became a formidable force as shown during the general strike during the one year of fascist rule. The Taliban ARE the military in the new Afghan government.
Castillo's people in Peru don't have the guns or the military. Same goes in Ecuador, Brazil and Chile. However, one key weakness of the right wing militaries especially in tribal countries like Peru is that the grunts have extended families who can influence them which gives countries like Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Guatemala a chance to break the fascist chain that binds them. Bottom line... it's hard to shoot your cousins.
Castillo is being challenged daily and might not survive but my guess is the resistance will not back down, especially given the support and coaching from neighboring Bolivia
https://orinocotribune.com/peru-a-coup-brewing/
Look for China to ramp up their presence in Latin America. They are being well received. The U.S.? not so much
https://orinocotribune.com/cuba-china-latin-america-and-the-world/
Posted by: migueljose | Aug 19 2021 18:29 utc | 53
@ Tom Pfotzer (#48), we agree on the overall good intent.
The concept of SOVEREIGN MONEY is driven by the nation’s administration. It decides what is the best solution for its environment based on pragmatism. This is the overarching theme. The administration or preferably the monetary authority (MA) decides the money format based on their resources and policies. Also, it is the MA that drives its acceptance, adoption, confidence and trust. Backing of currencies has always failed in the long term based on the economic history, so doesn’t matter. Hopefully, this address the gist of issue 1.
Regarding issue 2, Afghanistan needs to address the crimes of extortion and corruption, to stabilize the situation. Paper bills don’t bring an end to these challenges but enable them. This is main rationale for suggesting paper bills in small denominations (< 100) and digital transactions using sovereign money and debit cards for bigger transactions (>1000). What is a bigger challenge in the short term, “freedom & privacy” or “crimes and corruption”? I would say the latter.
The challenge for us in America is to put people with integrity and competence in the top layer. We need a president like Vladimir Putin along with a great team for economic and national security, who can stand up to the Global Financial Syndicate and other powerful interests. There are good qualified Americans who are marginalized and ignored. Also, Americans need to seek reality and speak up truth.
I too back your suggestion for b to put up a thread on "how to fix this mess”. It needs to have a realistic overview of the Financial Empire along with its mechanism of private money, privatization, financialization, neoliberalism, securitization, captured corporate media, fake international laws,...
Thanks for an interesting engagement. Enjoyed it!
Posted by: Max | Aug 19 2021 18:39 utc | 54
Posted by: chet380 | Aug 19 2021 18:13 utc | 51
There is reporting that Durham is currently presenting before a Grand Jury. There is speculation of coming indictments for some in FBI. We'll see how deep it is permitted to go.
Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 18:52 utc | 55
Please share your thoughts on why people don’t seek truth. Why promote media’s propaganda?
A wise individual stated, “[Many] like ugly lies, and dislike beautiful truth.” When asked, why? They stated, “the former flatters their EGO & the latter flattens that ego.” Ego drives INERTIA (?), which heralds ignorance, rigidity, decline, and downfall. Most individuals find quite soothing to adopt ego-defending stories. Imagine the surprises... ARROGANCE is borne out of ignorance.
One needs to have a deep insight about one's "dark" side that affects their ability to seek truth and develop the Authentic Self vs. blinders of the ego. Listening for the truth...
"Americans are not particularly concerned with the pursuit of truth. In fact, they do not mind being deceived; indeed, they seem to positively invite it. Why? Because Americans are more interested in being entertained than informed. They are eager to avoid unpleasant realities and pursue, instead, the path of least resistance." Thoughts on the crux of this quote. Thanks.
Posted by: Max | Aug 19 2021 19:04 utc | 56
Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 15:00 utc | 11
"This isn't Antiquity or the Middle Ages. Religion is not a factor in the grand scheme of things anymore."
Perhaps not, at least in the West. But the lack of religion is very much a factor in the grand scheme of things.
In Russia the Orthodox faith may be making a huge difference.
And consider Islam in Iran (and Afghanistan?).
Religion matters. In its different forms it binds people together.
Posted by: Hal Duell | Aug 19 2021 19:48 utc | 57
Posted by: ld | Aug 19 2021 17:54 utc | 49
Thanks for that one, that particular song was unknown to me, not so Donovan, great sound, listening to refresh, the season of the witch.
Posted by: Paco | Aug 19 2021 19:56 utc | 58
@Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 17:43 utc | 47
We are in the realm of debating the meaning of English words, so I will desist as there is no benefit going further in this discussion. Reminds me of some of the meetings at Left Forum events debating exactly what a certain man meant when he wrote something a century and a half ago.
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 20:12 utc | 59
Texas governor Gregg Abbott is being treated for COVID-19. Guess which drug he's taking. Hint: it is not Ivermectin:
Texas Governor Gregg Abbott receiving treatment called Regeneron
Re: vk @ 11
Ask for religion not being a factor, weaponized fake versions are. The fake Islam of Saudi Arabia and the fake Christianity of End Times Protestantism comes immediately to mind. I am not so sure Catholicism and the rest of Protestantism is really any better. All we've gotten are politically motivated burnings of heretics and witches (Inquisitions, Witch Trials) in the case of both. Wahhabi, Catholicism, Protestantism, aren't they like Oceania, Eurasia and Eastasia?
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 20:16 utc | 61
We should expect a lot of Muslim solidarity and particularly of Turkish-Afghan Sunni solidarity (sic)
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2021/08/turkish-airstrikes-claim-yazidi-lives-iraqs-sinjar
Posted by: Mina | Aug 19 2021 20:17 utc | 62
@ Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 20:12 utc | 59
Central planning is completely different than being a player in the free market.
In a true central planning system, the State knows before hand all the inputs, outputs and growth rates of the entire economy of the nation-state before the fiscal year even begins. It knows it because it politically decided them beforehand, in the Politburo, the central control commission(s) and the Supreme Soviet. The only theoretical limitation to central planning is nature itself and the present stage of the development of the productive forces.
The free market is decided by the profit rates, which are a completely different - much more limited - system. More importantly, it is (and must be) anarchic by definition: the State can try to predict, but it must never know for sure, which the inputs, outputs, growth rates etc. etc. will be by the end of the year, trimester, etc. etc. It cannot know because it doesn't own them, just observe them (in the quantum sense of the word: when it observes it, it affects it to some degree, e.g. taxation, but it doesn't change the otherness and nature of the system).
Posted by: vk | Aug 19 2021 20:13 utc | 60
You forgot to mention Abbott was fully "vaccinated". Oops.
Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 20:18 utc | 64
William Haught @34, @38:
.....Repugnants as well as Demonbrats.....
Yeah, you called them spades, SPADES! And I feel your pain. These rots in our society are likely to linger on for a while yet, since I see no urgent fear among anybody, academia/intelligentsia/socialites/JesusFreaks, et al., waking up to the pain that you're feeling and wanted something done. Sigh!!!
As for James Earl Carter, I'm sort of surprised that we haven't heard a beep from him or his cohorts on this travesty that just passed. Mayhaps Ole Jimmy is in a deeper lull than the babbler sitting in that House on Penn Ave.
Posted by: Oriental Voice | Aug 19 2021 20:22 utc | 65
David G Horsman @40:
OMG! That's really scary. And I took two jabs of Pfizer.
Posted by: Oriental Voice | Aug 19 2021 20:26 utc | 66
@ Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 19 2021 20:18 utc | 64
With the Pfizer vaccine, which we know not to be effective against the delta variant (it is below 50% threshold, at just 41%).
Then why is Japan four decades and counting in stagnation?Regarding conversation between, VK <==> Roger I'm interested in this because of how it applies to the U.S. I don't know why, but I see the what. Both Japan and the U.S. have central banks that have sustained massive govt deficits by keeping interest rates low ... forever. If interest rates are 0% then the annual debt service is manageable. Here are to links showing that Japan has been doing this for a long time ... https://tradingeconomics.com/japan/government-debt-to-gdp https://tradingeconomics.com/japan/deposit-interest-rate
I always thought that the annual debt service on the U.S. budget was going to be what killed the U.S. govt budget but our Fed just buys it all up. We don't need foreign or domestic investors but we have to pay the price somewhere don't we?
What is the price of keeping interest rates artificially low to sustain govt deficits?
My conclusion is ... low GDP growth.
I don't know why. This is just what I see. I know that most think it will be inflation. I'm in the 'current inflation is temporary' camp but that is not good news. It just means we are going over a different cliff.
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Aug 19 2021 20:37 utc | 68
How about checking out what Chris Martenson of Peak Prosperity is saying. In his last two or three videos the picture that emerges with the Delta strain becoming dominant is that we have a version with an R(0) of between 5 and 9 (spreads perhaps as fast as chickenpox) according to various studies and an IFR perhaps as low as about .05% (perhaps about as deadly as the common cold if we ignore spread) that will take us to herd immunity in about two months. He suspects that infections are far higher than claimed, for there are recently vaccinated (less than 14 days after second dose, if not even afterwards (I'm not clear on that)) with the same viral loads throwing caution to the winds.
Of course, hospital systems could still collapse despite a very low IFR if R(0) is so high, at least when 1) hospitals need 80% ICU capacity or they cannot service debt on their highly leveraged operations and can only go to maybe 125% or so before collapsing and 2) we have a very severe fractional reserve bedding problem. He mentioned an article on one metro area that has 2.3 million people, but only 180 hospital beds. That is a ratio of .0008% (percentage ratio, not fractional ratio which would be .000008). I doubt/bet hospitals are even legally required to even have hospital beds. As is the case with demand deposits in the U.S. since the early '90s, the legal reserve ratio requirement for fractional reserve bedding is probably the same as fractional reserve banking: 0%.
The good news is that we should be at herd immunity very soon bar a new strain developing, especially one in a recently vaccinated individual where a mutation much better at evading vaccine-induced immunity occurs (which can cause very bad things to happen).
I only saw his free videos, since half are behind a paywall. Anyone else saying the sames stuff or contradicting it (besides feral, eurgh, I mean federal agencies and spin tank shills of the official narratives, of course)?
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 20:48 utc | 69
to VK, Roger, re: Japan, and U.S.
I just wanted to add that both Japan and the U.S. have been their CB to drive their interest rates to 0% to fund massive deficit spending. Japan is actually further down than the U.S. It looks like the cost of doing this is low GDP growth.
I don't know why, that's just what I see. I think the current inflation data in the U.S. is temporary but that's not good news, it just means we are going over a different cliff.
Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Aug 19 2021 20:50 utc | 70
PS Peak Prosperity videos: https://www.youtube.com/c/PeakProsperity/videos https://vimeo.com/user23554896
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 20:51 utc | 71
USA doesn't seem to have god idea's. They are just making poor or bad politics. So mayby the Rand report is the only what they have left: acting like a fool because the US administration canät find good solutions.
The only good solution to the USA is bring their science and real economy again to the top.
Posted by: Mikkael | Aug 19 2021 20:53 utc | 72
Religion matters. In its different forms it binds people together.
Posted by: Hal Duell @ 57
This being an open thread, and for those wishing to understand how it matters in Russian Orthodoxy, do take time, if you haven't seen it, to watch "The Island" by Ostrov. I used just those three words and it came up immediately for me, with English subtitles. Warning: you may end up watching it again and again. I know I will.
Posted by: juliania | Aug 19 2021 20:55 utc | 73
Ping The Horseman, oops, I mean Horsman: I think you probably took the wrong test:
Posted by: William Haught | Aug 19 2021 21:05 utc | 74
Iran's raised the stakes at the table, and Hezbollah's answered:
"Press TV: Unless the “Axis of Resistance” members take the initiative and move from a defensive to an offensive position and impose new equations that prevent starvation of the population, this pressure will remain and even increase with time. Writes @ejmalrai https://presstv.ir/Detail/2021/08/19/664759/Lebanon-maximum-pressure-Hezbollah-Iran-support
"Exactly what #Hezbollah SG Sayyed Nasrallah did today: Imposing a new Rule of Engagement and moving one step forward into an offensive approach by equating the attack on any Ship coming from #Iran to #Lebanon to the attack on the country: #Israel will pay." [My Emphasis]
There's further context in this Magnier article. Its Intro:
"Lebanon is under unprecedented economic and social pressure, paying the price for Hezbollah’s military capability that causes a threat to Israel. The options offered by those (US, EU and Israel) effectively participating in cornering Lebanon -notwithstanding decades of domestic corruption and mismanagement – are limited to two: either disarm Hezbollah or push Lebanon toward a failed state and civil war. However, the 'Axis of the Resistance' has other options: Iran has responded to the request of Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah by regularly sending to Lebanon food supplies and medicine. It is now sending oil tankers, which are expected to reach the country in the coming weeks via the Syrian port of Tartous. Iran is rushing to support one of its strongest allies in the “Axis of the Resistance”, Hezbollah, which is suffering severe domestic pressure, as are the entire Resistance Axis members in their respective countries. Hezbollah’s supporters of all persuasions are affected by the acute socio-economic crisis. But will Hezbollah succeed in overcoming the inevitable result of the current long-term crisis? How serious are the challenges?"
As I wrote on the Afghan thread, there's lots happening that we're not talking about.
Iran's raised the stakes at the table, and Hezbollah's answered:
"Press TV: Unless the “Axis of Resistance” members take the initiative and move from a defensive to an offensive position and impose new equations that prevent starvation of the population, this pressure will remain and even increase with time. Writes @ejmalrai https://presstv.ir/Detail/2021/08/19/664759/Lebanon-maximum-pressure-Hezbollah-Iran-support
"Exactly what #Hezbollah SG Sayyed Nasrallah did today: Imposing a new Rule of Engagement and moving one step forward into an offensive approach by equating the attack on any Ship coming from #Iran to #Lebanon to the attack on the country: #Israel will pay." [My Emphasis]
There's further context in the Magnier article whose link is censored. Its Intro:
"Lebanon is under unprecedented economic and social pressure, paying the price for Hezbollah’s military capability that causes a threat to Israel. The options offered by those (US, EU and Israel) effectively participating in cornering Lebanon -notwithstanding decades of domestic corruption and mismanagement – are limited to two: either disarm Hezbollah or push Lebanon toward a failed state and civil war. However, the 'Axis of the Resistance' has other options: Iran has responded to the request of Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah by regularly sending to Lebanon food supplies and medicine. It is now sending oil tankers, which are expected to reach the country in the coming weeks via the Syrian port of Tartous. Iran is rushing to support one of its strongest allies in the “Axis of the Resistance”, Hezbollah, which is suffering severe domestic pressure, as are the entire Resistance Axis members in their respective countries. Hezbollah’s supporters of all persuasions are affected by the acute socio-economic crisis. But will Hezbollah succeed in overcoming the inevitable result of the current long-term crisis? How serious are the challenges?"
As I wrote on the Afghan thread, there's lots happening that we're not talking about.
Iran's raised the stakes at the table, and Hezbollah's answered:
"Press TV: Unless the “Axis of Resistance” members take the initiative and move from a defensive to an offensive position and impose new equations that prevent starvation of the population, this pressure will remain and even increase with time.
"Exactly what #Hezbollah SG Sayyed Nasrallah did today: Imposing a new Rule of Engagement and moving one step forward into an offensive approach by equating the attack on any Ship coming from #Iran to #Lebanon to the attack on the country: #Israel will pay." [My Emphasis]
There's further context in the Magnier article whose link is censored. Its Intro:
"Lebanon is under unprecedented economic and social pressure, paying the price for Hezbollah’s military capability that causes a threat to Israel. The options offered by those (US, EU and Israel) effectively participating in cornering Lebanon -notwithstanding decades of domestic corruption and mismanagement – are limited to two: either disarm Hezbollah or push Lebanon toward a failed state and civil war. However, the 'Axis of the Resistance' has other options: Iran has responded to the request of Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah by regularly sending to Lebanon food supplies and medicine. It is now sending oil tankers, which are expected to reach the country in the coming weeks via the Syrian port of Tartous. Iran is rushing to support one of its strongest allies in the “Axis of the Resistance”, Hezbollah, which is suffering severe domestic pressure, as are the entire Resistance Axis members in their respective countries. Hezbollah’s supporters of all persuasions are affected by the acute socio-economic crisis. But will Hezbollah succeed in overcoming the inevitable result of the current long-term crisis? How serious are the challenges?"
As I wrote on the Afghan thread, there's lots happening that we're not talking about.
A LOT OF people who visit this website on a regular basis "don't have a high regard" for "actions of the US" and have a much higher regard for China. These people overlook that the economic situation in China is much "weaker" than many people are aware of. E.g. the chinese debt-to-GDP ratio is (much) hihger than in the US. But there are more countries that have a higher debt-to-GDP than the US. Australia, UK, New Zealand and Canada come to mind. 2 countries in the Far East that have a higher debt-to-GDP ratio are called South Korea and Japan.
Posted by: Willy2 | Aug 19 2021 22:16 utc | 78
@David G Horsman, 40
This means that the vaccine cannot stop the virus from spreading
At most, Pfizer et al claimed that the gene therapies mitigated symptoms to prevent hospitalisation. The treatments never provided sterilising immunity so would not stop the virus being transmitted and mutating. The current hospitalisations of people with two injections in regions with a high uptake of the injections looks like Antibody Dependent Enhancement in action. So much for the efficacy of the gene therapy treatments. How many of the human experimental subjects will have to sicken and die before the experiment is halted?
Posted by: cirsium | Aug 19 2021 22:20 utc | 80
Another interesting news item out of Nigeria:
Those Taliban, with their no-revenge pledge, really are inspiring.
As to the specific process for evacuating Afghan interpreters and others from the airport in Kabul to Canada, the Halifax Reporter has it covered! It goes like this (according to Stephen Watt of Northern Lights Canada):
1) get the Afghans to the airport from their safe houses. This requires passing through Taliban checkpoints. Delays can cause missed flights.
2) get past the US military checkpoints at the airport to get to the plane. This requires showing a G-number which proves you are in Canada’s system. Because of slow responses from Ottawa, large numbers of would-be evacuees have no G-number. Now, the Canadian Embassy in Lebanon has informed Watts that all evacuees must have a medical test. Not clear whether that is just for Covid or not.
Meanwhile, according to Russia’s Foreign Ministry, Russia has arranged with the Afghan authorities to fly any Afghan nationals to any country on civil airplanes. (Maybe not to Chechnya though, yeah?)
https://tass.com/politics/1327935
Posted by: Bruised Northerner | Aug 19 2021 22:45 utc | 81
@Posted by: Willy2 | Aug 19 2021 22:16 utc | 75
"the chinese debt-to-GDP ratio is (much) hihger than in the US"
The Chinese total debt to GDP ratio is NEARLY THE SAME as that of the US
- US: 281.7% of GDP
- China: 289% of GDP
China has both a higher long-term GDP growth rate (2% to 5-6%) AND much of the debt is within the state sector, therefore making is easier to manage/forgive. China also has a current account surplus, and a surplus on net foreign assets.
Some other countries:
- Canada: 352.6%
- UK: 303.1%
- Japan: 433.4%
- Germany 200% (has an even slower longer term growth rate than the US, probably about 1%)
My source. We have to be very careful about comparing apples-to-apples as many sources use government debt and don't take into account all the private debt (which people like Michael Hudson identify as being the real problem).
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2021-coronavirus-global-debt/
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 23:33 utc | 82
@ Willy2 | Aug 19 2021 22:16 utc | 75 hey willy... good to see you posting... how are things in france with the lockdowns and etc?
it is true what you say, in some respects, but i think a closer examination shows the strength of the western economies is more of a facade, while the strength of china is not a facade... listen to the first 10 minutes of that link i left @ 33 from michael hudson... you might pick up on the differences that i am not able to articulate as well.. here is the link again.. cheers james
here is a musical friend of mine playing a song we wrote together - fall of 2020... he's a great piano player.. i know you play piano, so you might enjoy it..
improv song - fall of 2020 - solo piano cued up.
Posted by: james | Aug 19 2021 23:36 utc | 83
@Posted by: Willy2 | Aug 19 2021 22:16 utc | 75
"But there are more countries that have a higher debt-to-GDP than the US. Australia, UK, New Zealand and Canada come to mind. 2 countries in the Far East that have a higher debt-to-GDP ratio are called South Korea and Japan.
- Australia: 256.5% (LESS than the US)
- South Korea: 256.7% (LESS than the US)
- New Zealand: 223.6% (LESS than the US)
- Russia is only 131.1%, France is 370%!
Same source.
For UK, Canada, Japan see my previous post.
Posted by: Roger | Aug 19 2021 23:47 utc | 84
@ 79 roger... here is another source you might appreciate.... cheers james
Private Debt To Gdp - By Country
Posted by: james | Aug 19 2021 23:52 utc | 85
i would be curious about public debt to gdp but i don't see anyone sharing this info... maybe i don't understand it all as well as i need to...
Posted by: james | Aug 19 2021 23:54 utc | 86
@Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Aug 19 2021 20:50 utc | 69
The inflation data in the US is heavily manipulated downwards, reducing government expenditures (inflation uplifts for social security etc.), inflate real GDP figures (and thus underrepresent Debt to GDP figures) and to hide the long-term decline in living standards for the bottom 90%. The Shadowstats web site does a good job of covering this.
We are at the zero bound of interest rates, and given the extreme levels of debt combined with low GDP growth rates, interest rates cannot be allowed to go up by much at all. Any normalization (e.g. 6% mortgagee rates at least) would crash the economy. The can will be kicked down the road until we run out of road.
The only way out, as Mr Hudson keeps reminding us, is massive debt forgiveness. Easier to do if the financial system is predominantly owned by the state, as in China, or most of the debt is with the State as in Japan (45% monetized by the Central Bank). In other nations debt forgiveness would massively shrink the private banking sector, and thus the profits of the rentier financial elites. It would also serve to free the masses from peonage. Why Biden immediately about-faced on student-debt forgiveness, debt peonage is a great way to keep the serfs under control - until they stick a pitch fork through you (that's where the Democratic Party comes in to sooth the flames of revolution and redirect into meaningless SJW BS etc.).
Posted by: Roger | Aug 20 2021 0:03 utc | 87
@Posted by: james | Aug 19 2021 23:54 utc | 83
"i would be curious about public debt to gdp but i don't see anyone sharing this info... maybe i don't understand it all as well as i need to..."
Its usually called National Debt to GDP, or Government Debt to GDP, from Trading Economics
https://tradingeconomics.com/country-list/government-debt-to-gdp
Posted by: Roger | Aug 20 2021 0:09 utc | 88
@Max #43
I suggest you read the first paragraph of Super Imperialism.
Hudson wrote it in 1972.
Posted by: c1ue | Aug 20 2021 0:10 utc | 89
Religion is, as religion does. Period. Being kind to all and generous, would be a good start, keeping in mind that self defense is the right of all living things on earth.
Live your beliefs, other than that, make up your own religion, the others did.....
Posted by: vrtinLA | Aug 20 2021 0:11 utc | 90
just sitting around, idly wondering how this empire will finally end. I hope it's with a whimper, but that's me being optimistic.
Posted by: pretzelattack | Aug 20 2021 0:13 utc | 91
Karlof @74:
Am wondering why RF doesn't ignore the US embargo and bring fuel, food and emergency supplies into Lebanon as it has recently done in Cuba and Venezuela, which are also under formal US sanctions.
Perhaps it does not want to undercut Hezbollah or Iran, but is there not an opportunity to do this in partnership with Iran?
Does RF perhaps imagine that Israel might attack a ship under its protection?
Posted by: Paul Damascene | Aug 20 2021 0:18 utc | 92
Posted by: james | Aug 19 2021 23:52 utc | 82
Luxembourg and Ireland are financial tax havens, so their data is very misleading.
Canada has been in a debt bubble for a long time, with a slow-growing economy (2% at best) and a current account deficit, and no reserve currency, and a huge share of GDP in FIRE (Finance, Insurance and Real Estate) and building housing and condos, and an economy which predominantly exports raw materials. Even worse in Ontario where I reside, when the shit hits the fan it will be epic .....
Posted by: Roger | Aug 20 2021 0:24 utc | 93
Lively discussion on debt! I’ll add this opinion piece from the Toronto Star. There is one small comment in here that may be relevant: “Total debt excludes debt of the financial sector because it is assumed to lend only to the other three sectors and we don’t want to double-count debt.” The three sectors being debt of government, debt of households and debt of non-financial corporations. I suppose - theoretically - in a country with a troubled financial sector, there debts/risk of default might be somewhat hidden in these results?
Noticed that in data james linked to Greece is better off than Germany. How’s that for irony?
Posted by: Bruised Northerner | Aug 20 2021 0:36 utc | 94
@Posted by: Bruised Northerner | Aug 20 2021 0:36 utc | 91
The wrinkle in the "financial repression" process for reducing debt is labour-arbitrage and the extremely weak unions, together with high rates of immigration increasing the workforce. Higher levels of inflation may end up not feeding through to incomes, as management can offshore and better maintain flat wages, squeezing the working people who are already stretched at nearly zero percent mortgage rates. Also, negative interest rates are very bad for the banking system and high inflation is usually bad for equities (as with the 1960s). We have blown a massive debt bubble, heavily driven into real estate prices, and cannot grow the economy out of it.
The "jingle mail" (house keys mailed to the bank) of the late 1980s may return to Canada at some point, it is well overdue.
Posted by: Roger | Aug 20 2021 0:53 utc | 95
@ 90 roger.. thanks! i see you and bruised northerner are getting some insights off that link i provided... for someone who knows how to interpret the data, there is a lot of data to pull from on that site.. unfortunately it is missing some countries data like china for example...
Posted by: james | Aug 20 2021 1:21 utc | 96
@ c1ue (#86), who said it before Hudson? What terms was Michael using between 2010-2015?
Also, did you watch his video about the “Global Financial Empire”? What key things are missing and have been distorted?
Posted by: Max | Aug 20 2021 1:23 utc | 97
roger - meant to thank you for your response @ 85... regarding canada and the debt bubble... i don't completely understand how this works, but from my limited understanding the dynamic here in canada is unsustainable... real estate is insane off the charts crazy... unless more people are going to be living on the streets - and that is hard to do in most parts of canada, excluding perhaps the west coast and vancouver island, i just can't see this as working out... great for investment corps that are buying up and renting what they buy... very bad for the younger generation, unless they are inheriting from their parents and even this i consider very bad... i don't think this bubble is sustainable and yeah, i think it is a bubble too..
Posted by: james | Aug 20 2021 1:25 utc | 98
As the worldwide economic system toddles towards complete collapse and as the Earth's ecosystem also heads towards collapse, the barflies discuss how Afghanistan might join the party?
Issue currency! Build infrastructure! Adopt western "democracy". Blow up the mountains in order to get the minerals! (Blowing up Buddha structures is a travesty, but blowing up mountains is the modern way to go). Is it really the best course for Afghanistan to join the world's race to destruction, just in time to overthrow centuries of sustainable living in order to become unable to feed themselves when the collapse is complete?
Meanwhile, barflies cluck over Japan's 30 years of "stagnation" and "declining birth rates". I'm not an expert on Japan, but I can look up statistics and see that their population tripled since 1900. Is that really a "demographic catastrophe"? Are the Japanese, in their "stagnation", starving? Living under bridges? Shooting up heroin and nodding off on the streets? If Americans who live in a robust and expanding economy live in such perilous circumstances, the Japanese must be worse, right?
It is also pathetic to see Americans unable to process basic data available to all which has proved that the experiment with the mRNA product has failed. The widely advertised product was promised to stop infection, provide herd immunity and whiten teeth, but has now been shown to do none of those things. Bummer.
Undaunted, befuddled and scientifically illiterate Americans continue to insist that if the experiment failed, it is only because not enough people participated! Everyone must get inoculated and then it will surely live up to its promised benefits. If fear didn't work, and bribes didn't work, then surely repression will. So now we move into medical apartheid, with the population divided into the clean and unclean, and the unclean are forbidden to participate in normal society, while the clean jeer at them and wish upon them painful deaths, and, (what the heck), removal to concentration camps where they are unable to contaminate their betters.
This is not going to work out well.
Posted by: wagelaborer | Aug 20 2021 1:38 utc | 99
Posted by: wagelaborer | Aug 20 2021 1:38 utc | 96
boom...
Posted by: gottlieb | Aug 20 2021 1:43 utc | 100
The comments to this entry are closed.
We had a discussion here a few months back about a major RAND report outlining their new recommendations to annoy and undermine Russia. It came across more as petty than thoughtful. Now apparently with almost eerie timing, published just before the Afghanistan meltdown, they have published a new opus suggesting that the very best way for the US to backfoot Russia and China is to be baffling and unpredictable. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RBA448-1.html
A pretty well written analysis summarizes the RAND report discuss how idiotic and dangerous this advice is. https://russtrat.ru/analytics_/17-avgusta-2021-2332-5589 Among other things they point out is that this amounts to a tacit admission by RAND that they they are out of ideas, and is in essence advice that if you’ve tried everything and nothing seems to be working, rather than trying not acting for a bit, it would be better to spin around in circles like a crazed chihuahua, nipping randomly at the world (because lots of action, even if undirected, keeps the cash flowing). But as also pointed out by this analysis, the RAND study does not take into account how their brilliant advice would be received by Russia and China, and how unpredictable actions could lead to rapidly escalating reactions. A few nuggets from the Russian analysis:
“Everything that could be done has already been done, and what is not done rests on the natural limits of the capabilities of technology and organization. RAND experts hardly know the case better than the specialists of the Pentagon and the CIA. In addition, there is no analysis of the possible reactions of China and Russia to the increase in the operational unpredictability of the United States.”
“Such a level of research carried out by the highest-ranking analytical corporation in the United States raises suspicions of a significant decrease in the quality of the American analytical community. This is no longer military science, but lobbying.”
“Unfortunately, it will not be possible to increase the unpredictability of the United States. This country is extremely predictable even when it decides to start fighting for unpredictability. Apparently, the United States no longer has any other relatively safe methods against its rivals.”
Posted by: J Swift | Aug 19 2021 13:31 utc | 1