U.S. Foreign Aid Is Embarrassing Itself
Three days ago the President of China Xi Jinping opened a Chinese financed a deep-water port in Chancay, Peru.
LIMA, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping launched a week-long diplomatic blitz of South America on Thursday by inaugurating a massive deep-water port in Peru, a $1.3 billion investment by Beijing as it seeks to expand trade and influence on the continent.
...
Xi and Peruvian President Dina Boluarte participated on Thursday by video link in the opening of the Chancay port, about 80 kilometres (48 miles) north of Lima on the Pacific Ocean, and signed a deal to widen an existing free trade agreement.Xi said that Chancay, a 15-berth, deep-water port, was the successful start of a "21st century maritime Silk Road" and part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, its modern revival of the ancient Silk Road trading route.
The U.S. is, according to Newsweek, considering Peru to be in its "backyard" (for the record: the distance between Washington DC and Lima, Peru, is 5,700 kilometer):
However, a Chinese state-owned enterprise running a deepwater port so close to U.S. soil has Washington worried. The project marks another significant expansion of China's presence in a part of the world the U.S. considers its sphere of influence."On the big geostrategic issues, the Peruvian government is not sufficiently focused on analyzing the benefits and threats to the country," an anonymous U.S. official told the Financial Times late last year.
.U.S. Southern Command chief Army General Laura Richardson characterized China's infrastructure projects across the Caribbean, Central and South America as a security threat. "They're on the 20-yard line, in the red zone to our homeland," Richardson told Newsweek last year, referencing China's closer proximity.
Not to be outdone by China's generous investment the U.S. decided to publicly counter it. A day after Xi opened the port megaproject U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken dropped into Lima:
Secretary Antony Blinken @SecBlinken - 2:28 UTC · Nov 17, 2024Today we announced that the United States will support the city of Lima in building a new passenger train line that will expand access to reliable and affordable transportation for over 200,000 people every single day.
Embedded video
In his speech Blinken said:
“Everybody loves the sound of a train in the distance.” Paul Simon, one of our great poets, wrote that line in one of his songs, and I think it speaks powerfully to each of us. Trains connect people. They bring communities together. They take distances down between us. And they are not just a symbol, but the practical manifestation of possibilities – the possibilities that come when we connect to each other. They’re so much a part of the national mythology of the United States, our own extraordinary construction project. And I’m so grateful today to be part of this project in helping create greater connectivity here in Peru.And so this is an exciting day in our partnership: The United States will support the City of Lima as it develops the new passenger train line that’s going to connect downtown to the eastern suburbs. The Caltrain rail system in California, as you’ve heard already, will contribute more than a hundred high-quality railcars and engines, and American companies will provide over 50 percent of the services for this project and the supplies for the project, from signaling equipment to railroad tracks to engineering and design expertise.
Caltrain? Why Caltrain?
Caltrain finds international buyer for retired diesel fleet - SFGate
Caltrain is sending its retired diesel fleet to Lima, Peru, where it will have a second chance at life by providing commuter rail service. On Saturday, the U.S. Department of State, Lima representatives and several world leaders will celebrate the next stage for the trains while gathering for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in the Peruvian capital.
...
“These trains have a long and proud legacy of service that we’re proud to pass along to the people of Peru,” Caltrain Board Chair Dev Davis said in a news release. “The F40s hold a special place in the heart of train enthusiasts, and there’s no better task for them than to keep helping people get where they need to go.”Caltrain received $6.32 million from the deal, which involved selling 90 passenger cars and 19 diesel locomotives. Sam Sargent, Caltrain’s director of strategy and policy, told SFGATE on Friday that there were other buyers interested in the fleet, but the department was drawn to the offer from the Municipality of Lima, Peru, since it wanted to purchase the fleet wholesale.
The locomotives Caltrain is selling(!) to the city of Lima are 40 years old. As are the passenger cars they will be pulling. The locomotives' exhaust fuming engines had been made inoperable to get funding for the new electric trains:
To send the trains to Lima for further use, Caltrain had to first procure a waiver from the Bay Area Air Quality Management District so the trains could still return to service.
The people in Lima will surely notice how much more the U.S. is caring about its 'backyard' than China is.
Posted by b on November 18, 2024 at 8:08 UTC | Permalink
next page »Remember the "Monroe doctrine":
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monroe_Doctrine
Posted by: WMG | Nov 18 2024 9:18 utc | 2
The emperor has no clothes. Or a wildly successful foreign aid program like China's. Or also unlike China a decent passenger rail system. No wonder United Snakes wants to fuck them up so badly.
The Privatized US Rail System is a Disaster...
https://www.commondreams.org/news/public-rail-system
"In recent years, the US rail system has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons..."
Posted by: John Gilberts | Nov 18 2024 9:20 utc | 3
At least Lima got something, however embarassing. California rail is in retrograde and has been for some decades.
Meanwhile China is shipping high speed railcar wheels to coachbilders around the world.
Posted by: too scents | Nov 18 2024 9:20 utc | 4
"On the big geostrategic issues, the Peruvian government is not sufficiently focused on analyzing the benefits and threats to the country," an anonymous U.S. official told the Financial Times late last year.
The arrogance of these people is off the charts.
Posted by: JamesBond | Nov 18 2024 9:21 utc | 5
I bet Blinken gave them some small pox blankets as a gift when he visited Lima, too. Nothing says the USA is a caring nation like selling them some well used trains. I wouldn't touch anything that was a part of the public transportation system here in California. The people running it aren't the most talented bunch.
In 2008, California voted yes on a $9 billion bond authorization to build the nation’s first high-speed railway. The plan is to construct an electric train that will connect Los Angeles with the Central Valley and then San Francisco in two hours and 40 minutes.That article was published Wed, May 17 2023, and I don't think much has changed.But 15 years later, there is not a single mile of track laid, and executives involved say there isn’t enough money to finish the project.
Posted by: lex talionis | Nov 18 2024 9:24 utc | 6
No wonder the EU is do adamant to conclude the Mercosur agreement.
While wiping our EU farmer's.
But who needs good security.
Who's counting carbon emissions from half way around the world.
It's business.
Everything else is sound bites for the serfs.
Posted by: jpc | Nov 18 2024 9:25 utc | 7
The arrogance of these people is off the charts.
Posted by: JamesBond | Nov 18 2024 9:21 utc | 5
Indeed it is.And no industrial capacity to actually backup anything.
Living off the silverware
Posted by: jpc | Nov 18 2024 9:31 utc | 9
The Privatized US Rail System is a Disaster.
Posted by: John Gilberts | Nov 18 2024 9:20 utc | 3
---
Railroad employees in the USA don't get Social Security and have other "special" labor carve outs.
Their retirement fund is screwed ==> https://www.rrb.gov/
Posted by: too scents | Nov 18 2024 9:32 utc | 10
And for your daily dose of pathos...
when the economy was so robust,
and high speed rail was a thing of the future,
@ about 1:15 into the song,
from across the hot delta,
you can hear that train a comin'
https://youtu.be/H117HdqWPvg?feature=shared
Posted by: john | Nov 18 2024 9:43 utc | 11
A report by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) found: 220,000 bridges, 36% of American total stock, need repair and 79,500 need to be replaced. They identify the states with the most “serious” or “worse” condition bridges as: Iowa (1,762 bridges), Oklahoma (922), Illinois (764), Pennsylvania (728), Missouri (700), and Louisiana (638). This should be alarming, but clearly we have disfunctional priorities.
On an A to F grading scale, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S.’ infrastructure condition a dreadful D+ and described investment in it’s improvement as “woefully inadequate.”
Here’s a breakdown of ASCE’s rating:-
Levees: D,
Roads: D,
Inland Waterways: D,
Dams: D,
Aviation: D-,
Bridges: C+,
Drinking Water: D+,
Energy: D+,
Hazardous Waste Management: D+,
Transit: D,
Rail: B,
Ports: C.
Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:00 utc | 12
Posted by: john | Nov 18 2024 9:43 utc | 11
And the steel rails still ain't heard the news
The conductor sings his songs again
The passengers will please refrain
This train's got the disappearing railroad blues
Arlo Guthrie - 'City of New Orleans'
Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:04 utc | 13
A little more on China's port building.
It is also done in software
China’s LOGINK: Securing Maritime Data in European PortsFebruary 22, 2024
A Chinese logistics software has quietly extended into ports in Asia and Europe. Its expansion is now in the spotlight due to the EU’s new port strategy and US ban.
The EU Parliament’s recent adoption of the Berendsen report, focusing on “building a comprehensive European Port Strategy,” marks an important step in dealing with the growing involvement of non-European actors in essential maritime infrastructure. This move comes at a time when there are increasing concerns about China’s role in global ports, including through the expansion of China’s National Transportation and Logistics Public Information Platform (LOGINK) in managing maritime data within Europe.
With LOGINK now operating in seven major European ports, it not only showcases China’s advances in logistics technology but also leads to concerns around data ownership, economic security, and the strategic consequences of foreign technological influence within the EU’s maritime sphere.
The Rise of LOGINK: From Domestic to International Platform
LOGINK was initially developed as a provincial initiative in China in 2007 with the aim of streamlining logistics data management and shipment tracking. In 2010, LOGINK achieved a major advancement by integrating information from the Northeast Asia Logistics Information Service Network (NEAL-NET), which initially focused on container ship activities in the ports of Ningbo-Zhoushan, Tokyo-Yokohama, and Busan. This marked the start of a joint initiative that, six years later, led to the network’s growth to encompass 11 Chinese ports, 5 Japanese ports, and 3 ports in South Korea.
Today, LOGINK aggregates data from a wide network, including 5 million trucks, over 200 logistics warehouses worldwide, various ports in China and abroad, and over 450,000 users in China that can use it for B2B purposes like electronic booking or price inquires and also in B2G context, such as custom clearances or dangerous goods declarations.
To encourage widespread adoption, the Chinese government has actively promoted the use of LOGINK by providing it free of charge to ports, freight carriers, and other organizations. However, this push for early market dominance in the logistics management platform sector raises concerns about unfair business advantages and the potential manipulation of data in economic coercion and achieving Chinese security interests.
continues ==> https://chinaobservers.eu/chinas-logink-securing-maritime-data-in-european-ports/
Network effects.
Posted by: too scents | Nov 18 2024 10:10 utc | 14
While we're on the subject:
The UN recently demoted the US to 41st, down from 32nd, in a global ranking based on its sustainable development goals. This index is focused on the quality of life of ordinary people rather than the creation of wealth. And, on this measure, the US comes just behind Cuba and just above Bulgaria. The US is “becoming a ‘developing country’,” one MIT economist said, based on this index. An example: in Chicago, a lack of funding at the city, state, and federal levels means that toxically high levels of lead in the water supply will not be dealt with.
The US is a country where nearly one in 10 adults have medical debts and a broken bone can boot you into bankruptcy. Where a city of more than 160,000 residents recently had no safe drinking water for weeks. Where life expectancy has dropped for the second year in a row and poor people sell their blood plasma in order to make ends meet. Where the maternal mortality rate of black women in the capital is nearly twice as high as for women in Syria.
The US prison system incarcerates more people than any other country in the world. Currently, there are over 2 million people in prisons, jails, and detention centers. This number represents 25% of all inmates in the world even though the US population makes up only 5% of the global population. A common opinion is that this system is broken and in need of repair.
The problems with the prison system only continue when one looks at the obvious racial and gender disparities. For example, while black inmates make up nearly 40% of the prison population, they only make up 13.40% of the total US population. Native Americans represent 2.30% of the incarcerated population and only 1.30% of the population. 58.70% of the prison population is non-white, which includes Hispanic Americans. The effect of this on children is astounding. African American and Latino children are more likely to have a parent in jail or prison. Thus the number of African American children living in poverty has increased since 1968.
Education: Consider this quote from an American education expert:
“The US has never been first in the world, nor even near the top, on any international tests. Consistently over the past half century, American students have typically scored near the median at best, but most often being in the bottom quartile. The historical record indicates that American elementary students are only average at best, their performance degrading year by year until high school seniors perform last in almost all international tests. The International Science Studies that began in high schools in the late 1960s and early 1970s found that 14-year-olds were below average and seniors scored last of all countries. In the International Mathematics tests that began in the 1960s, American high school seniors scored last of all nations. In the 1982 International Mathematics Study, high school seniors placed at the bottom on almost every test. In terms of the PISA tests, American students – placing last – are simply following the pattern that has been consistent for the past 50 years or more.”
And a quote from one news report: “In October of 2013 a new global report issued by the OECD found that Americans ranked well below the worldwide average in just about every measure of skill. In math, reading, and technology-driven problem-solving , the United States performed worse than nearly every other country… The US would have looked even worse if China had been included in this study. In basic literacy – the ability to understand and use basic written text – 80% of Americans reached only a level 2 out of 5. And in math and numerical proficiency, using numbers in daily life, they are worse … and 10% scored below level 1. Technological literacy and ability were worse too. In problem-solving in a technological environment and the use of “cognitive skills required to solve problems”, the Americans were at the bottom.” And that bottom is in math, vocabulary, language usage and technology, with Chinese students far surpassing the Americans even when using a language that is not their own.
(More at https://www.sott.net/article/472423-Dumber-than-the-average-human )
China is estimated to spend around $6bn a year on its space programme. Although that is almost $1bn more than Russia, it is still a fraction of the American space budget, which is around $40bn a year. Despite its large budget, the US made only 19 successful space launches in 2013, compared with China’s 14 and Russia’s 31.
The only thing the US manufactures now is arms, and they are designed not for use, but for optimum profit. Hence the expensive but inefficient and next to useless F-35, the expensive F-22 which can only operate for one day per week and is now being scrapped, the useless ‘Littoral Combat’ ships which are literally falling apart and now being scrapped, the very expensive new ‘Gerald Ford’ class carrier which has unending problems, and the Zumwalt’ destroyers, cancelled after two expensive and dis-functional examples. These latter sport two humps on the foredeck, which were supposed to be large calibre guns for shelling land targets. Gun technology is around 1000 years old - still, these guns were never made to work and are now abandoned!
And the UK and EU are not any better. 'High-speed rail' in the UK is an expensive joke, the RN destroyers can't destroy, and the aircraft-carriers have difficulty moving out of dock, the Swedish Navy runs its most expensive ship into a tanker then it sinks, the German destroyers have an unresolvable list to one side, - really, you could write a book about all this stuff. (I think Andrei Martyanov already has!)
Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:16 utc | 15
More on California (light) rail.
The Pacific Electric Railway was fully decommissioned in 1961.
https://www.google.com/search?q=pacific+electric+railway&udm=2
The perpetrators were found guilty of anti-trust fraud and sentenced to a fine of one US dollar.
Posted by: too scents | Nov 18 2024 10:18 utc | 16
You can get hand-me-downs and you should feel lucky.
Don’t accept new shinny stuff from those nasty Chinese, they’re evil!!!
And you are being silly comparing a 1 billion harbor with 6 million trains. After, review, refurbishment, transport, training , maintenance contracts, insurance interests, commissions, consulting and auditing, Peru will probably have to pay more for those trains than for the harbor.
It’s just the model, and it’s very close to the reason French are getting kicked out of Africa.
Posted by: Newbie | Nov 18 2024 10:21 utc | 17
For the "neocons"=jews we are all in their backyard. After all, according to the genocidal propaganda pamphlets they wrote, the sky pharaoh yahweh/god/yehova/allah/satan/whatever gave them the whole world.
And they taught the western countries to somehow think the same way, as if destroying the planet along with themselves for the chosen race somehow gives them, too, something. Maybe it's because "genghis khan"=george cohen the khazar, in his time, raped everyone and put a little khazar jew in all western people.
Posted by: Jack M | Nov 18 2024 10:36 utc | 18
"Blinken said: “Everybody loves the sound of a train in the distance.” Paul Simon, one of our great poets, wrote that line in one of his songs..."
The truth is Paul Simon was such a great poet he stole the Peruvian song 'El Cóndor Pasa'. He thought it was just another traditional folk when it was actually written by Daniel Alomía Robles in 1913. His son, the Peruvian cineasta Armando Robles Godoy, promptly sued Simon and Garfunkel for outright plagerism. Armando would always explain how cordial the trial was. Perhaps the great American poet had better days.
Armando and family later donated 'El Cóndor Pasa' to the Peruvian Nation. It is now considered to be Perú's national song.
Posted by: Andrew | Nov 18 2024 10:43 utc | 19
Thank you for posting -B-
Others here posted on the CA super duper train debacle, that ended with loads of CEO’s, architects & State employees pocketing the money and no high speed rail ever being built as the tax theft produced nothing.
China, being the #1 builder of high speed rail, must be laughing & making a deal to recycle the metal from the cars “donated”.
My experience, better not to take some “gifts”, Perú will never see a mile of rail laid.
Posted by: Trubind1 | Nov 18 2024 10:54 utc | 20
Blinken like a cowardly lion following the real big dogs bollocks players around the globe as he gets sucked down the shithole of history … did he take his guitar?
Posted by: DunGroanin | Nov 18 2024 11:07 utc | 21
Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:16 utc | 15
Excellent !
Ties in very nicely with this
The dislocation between the professional managerial class and the rest of the working class
https://billmitchell.org/blog/?p=62174
Posted by: Sun Of Alabama | Nov 18 2024 11:21 utc | 22
Enough is enough. We already have a huge number of NGOs in Peru teaching them about the wonders of anal sex among men, the need for the mutilation of child reproductive organs and how to destroy their economy to help Mother Gaia defeat the Sun God.
Now they want a deal on our outdated trains?
Posted by: My Comment | Nov 18 2024 11:29 utc | 23
Posted by: Ornot | November 18, 2024 3:21 UTC | 253 Thank you! These are not always my exact words, as I copy a translator and paste what remains in English...
I have been writing for fifteen years from a ruthless battlefield in an urban environment: political and police corruption, prosecutors at the service of drug traffickers, prostitution and official abuses to amuse the powerful...
Everything that is left over somewhere is missing somewhere else, the excessive well-being of a quarter of the world (or less?) guarantees the suffering of everyone else.
In my case, the fact that I put my time into this does not mean that I have eaten every day of the week, or that my life cannot be destroyed again tomorrow. My cameras and computers were stolen over and over again, my house dismantled over and over again, just for trying options other than the planned devastation of the great and powerful towards the defenseless and yet hopeful.
The world is a reflection of our admissions and omissions, the whole world begins with you, with me. To build a new world we may lose everything but... What are we really losing?
The glorification of violence, of violent response, is an effect of Hollywood and everything it represents: long-distance massacre, comfort as a justification for violence, power as an excuse, impunity as a permanent context for the owners of everything. It is not a place we should continue walking towards.
The only option for today's human being is to simplify, to stop accumulating, to stop exercising leadership and power as a tool of domination and submission at the service of total concentration, instead of an act of service.
War is a bitter memory, forever, for all those involved, in any way. Only the spectators find it fun like a football match. That is why politics is turned into a football game, because we find the result of crushing the other funny, and the result of building together inconsequential, as if we were not all part of the same society.
The planet is round, there is no way to escape or throw garbage outside, there is no moon to colonize, no aliens about to attack us, no meteorites that will destroy everything. We are the only ones responsible: you and I.
Thank you, every day counts.
"American companies will provide over 50 percent of the services for this project."
We all know exactly what will happen. I told the story of a guy called Hotelling who analysed ice cream sellers on a beach. The rail companies who service the line will all move to the centre of the beach and rig the prices between themselves and form a monopoly. To rent week and extract rent.
So whenever the Peruvians get a Tax cut or a pay rise they'll take it for themselves. The Peruvian workers will be no better off. When the rail companies want to take even more they will lobby the Peruvian government to increase the minimum wage.
Privatisation NEVER makes things cheaper the service always becomes more expensive. As they form monopolies all from the centre of the beach. Just like the ice cream sellers.
The main arguments is we need to privatise and save the tax payer. The tax payer money myth is always front and centre of the propaganda machine.
Once you know that taxes don't fund anything then the main reason to privatise falls apart. Private healthcare will NEVER be cheaper than a free health service at point of delivery. It is just another scam from which to extract rent.
Which also steals all the skills and real resources needed by the public health service. Then they stop funding the public health service until it is completely destroyed. Once again by using the tax payer money myth. So that rich people can jump The Q.
The Joe public who are dumb enough to believe their taxes fund these things. Always fall for the monetary silencing propaganda hook line and sinker. Vote against their own interests. Then 30 years later blame everyone else even though they were the ones stupid enough to fall for the bullshit in the first place. Kept moving the Overton window rightwards.
Posted by: Sun Of Alabama | Nov 18 2024 11:46 utc | 25
Posted by: Santi | November 18, 2024 11:42 utc | 24
My apologies, this was for the thread about Ukraine!
Maybe the US can sell Peru some 40-year-old F-16s and 39-year-old Patriot missiles along with its 40-year-old trains.
Posted by: Perimetr | Nov 18 2024 12:04 utc | 27
Well as usual Western MSM misses the whole point. China has built deep water ports on the American Pacific coast from the US border all the way down, now to Peru. The closest port Ensenada Mexico took most of the logistic business away from Los Angeles. And now, they are consolidating the logistics situation and are expanding. It's no problem for them to undercut American logistics since they are so much more efficient. Hutchinson Port EID. LOL A lot of the money is hidden but most of this development is right in the open. I noticed it in the first Thump administration when he halted some containers of avocados at the border to look tough. A major disaster for the Mexican farmers was averted when the shipments were immediately purchased and we on ships to China within days. What this tells me is that China is poised to scoop up all the organic resources now feeding the USA in the case that the USA tries to pressure Mexico with embargos. Thumps stupid enough to do it IMO, despite the fact that Mexico is the largest exporter of food to the US. Given the obesity epidemic in the USA it will probably be helpful. I hope they try it. Hunger might just spur some intelligence .
Posted by: Ralph Conner | Nov 18 2024 12:08 utc | 28
@sun#25
I agree with your sentiments. As for tax it is necessary to liquidate the money created by governments otherwise the stock of money constantly increases causing runaway inflation so tax is a necessary part of government spending
Posted by: Tim | Nov 18 2024 12:29 utc | 29
The absolute truth is, in a fully sovereign nation state with a free floating fiat currency. Which is spend then tax and not tax and spend like the Eurozone.
Any public service could be given for free to the public. Free from the rentier class.
Once you understand that taxes don't fund anything then public transport, healthcare, electricity , water, etc could all be given free to the public. Which would make The country a very cheap place to do business.
The only constraint is inflation. Skills and real resources and productive capacity you have. Finding the money is never a problem when you issue it.
As the government NEVER needs your money. The only reason to charge anything for these public services is for inflation purposes. Charge just enough to take everybody 's spending power away on aggregate to help control inflation.
You could wipe out a lot of parasitic FIRE sector and free the economy from the rent seeking class.
Why it is imperative the rentier class through the media they own. Keep the tax payer money myth alive and push it down everybody's throats 24/7. 365 days a year. Capture you As you walk through the school gates for the very first time.
TV is another example. To watch everything you want to watch nowadays costs an absolute fortune now that TV has been privatised. Unless, you buy a firestick and get it all for free. Then they just put up what they charge for broadband and get you that way. The price of broadband has more than quadrupled due to the Amazon firestick.
You used to get it all for the TV licence fee. The government didn't need your money so just charged enough to take a little bit of your spending power away. Why it was always such a very good deal.
Royal mail was very cheap and a fantastic service for all the same reasons as above. Now it is very expensive to send anything and their service abysmal. As they moved to the centre of the beach to extract rent.
With the public services now privatised. Households now pay double. They now have to pay rent to the rent seekers for their services and still have to pay taxes as the rent seekers keep pushing prices up. They are paying more taxes than they were before in many cases.
The public who voted for it all and kept moving the Overton window rightwards. Howl at the moon and blame everyone else.
Posted by: Sun Of Alabama | Nov 18 2024 12:37 utc | 30
And Joan Diaz stole gracias a la vida from Violetta Parra. Yup. I read today that some Trumpstein mouth piece is threatening to impose tariffs on any imports which transit through Chancay. Talk about stomp your allies. Hmmm. Well Chile sends a lot of fruit to murika, some of which will go via Chancay.... 60% tariff pretty much wipes out any possible profit. Are these people morons or simply mean?
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 12:46 utc | 31
Are these people morons or simply mean?
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 12:46 utc | 31
_______
Yes.
Posted by: malenkov | Nov 18 2024 12:50 utc | 32
Thumps stupid enough to do it IMO, despite the fact that Mexico is the largest exporter of food to the US. Given the obesity epidemic in the USA it will probably be helpful. I hope they try it. Hunger might just spur some intelligence .
Posted by: Ralph Conner | Nov 18 2024 12:08 utc | 28
_______
Might have the opposite effect on obesity rates. Fewer fruits and vegetables from Mexico could result in increased consumption of American wheat, corn, and (non-corm) sugar…
Posted by: malenkov | Nov 18 2024 12:53 utc | 33
Pardon me. Joan Biaz. Yes. Stole completely. No credit to the author. And how many times have you heard Khachaturian's ballet music in Hollywood movie sound tracks. Vicious spell check.
Back to Peru. Xi spent a lot of time praising the Inca accomplishments. Of course valid and well understood, BUT, the current dictatoress, who was installed with the aid of the former CIA person now mascaraing as an "ambassador," and who now maintains her shaky position with aid of Murikan troops, overthrew and jailed the elected president, who is from the up country, ie the home of Incas. Kind of a slap with a silk glove from one point of view. Blinkey may feel that Xi has stepped on his toes....
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 12:56 utc | 34
60% tariff pretty much wipes out any possible profit.
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 12:46 utc | 31
---
US tariffs will increase the profits of sellers where they are applied.
It works like this:
. Americans reduce their purchases because of the higher price.
. Yet the price floor moves up because of the tariff.
. Product destined to non-tariff customers rides the coattails of the tariff bump.
. Finally, the existence of ports will increase demand.
Posted by: too scents | Nov 18 2024 12:57 utc | 35
And how many times have you heard Khachaturian's ballet music in Hollywood movie sound tracks.
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 12:56 utc | 34
______
Part of the reason for this is that the West didn’t recognize USSR copyrights until 1973. For what it’s worth, up until then the USSR didn’t recognize Western copyrights either!
Posted by: malenkov | Nov 18 2024 13:04 utc | 36
"Maybe the US can sell Peru some 40-year-old F-16s and 39-year-old Patriot missiles along with its 40-year-old trains.
Posted by: Perimetr | Nov 18 2024 12:04 utc | 27"
It could be a lot worse. The U.S. could sell them brand new F35s, sitting in hangars all over the world.
Posted by: kupkee | Nov 18 2024 13:09 utc | 37
Peru is a model for neocolonialism and neoliberal policies.
Not surprised at all that it'll continue !
Posted by: W | Nov 18 2024 13:19 utc | 38
Quoth the Empire: "On the big geostrategic issues, the Peruvian government is not sufficiently focused on analyzing the benefits and threats to the country,"
Incoming "Color Revolution".
Peru better get ready for some "Democracy™", Libya-style.
Posted by: William Gruff | Nov 18 2024 13:26 utc | 39
Trains, eh ?
Lucky them. America is offering the UK the chance to host their nuclear weapons once again. To protect us from the Russian threat, naturally.
https://cnduk.org/resources/raf-lakenheath-us-nuclear-weapons-return-to-britain/
Posted by: Red Star | Nov 18 2024 13:56 utc | 40
China gets it and understands it fully. Why it is such a threat to the US and the West.
We manage to invest 18% of GDP in the UK. China invests 43% of their GDP.
Ideologues, won’t say “invest capital in training and automation and learn to do more with less” to business. They use cheap labour instead. Treat business like pets instead of cattle.
We saw with our own eyes from the furlough period that the vast majority of so-called private sector activity adds no more value than a cheque from the Treasury. Nobody missed it when it didn't happen.The productivity improvements in the private sector have been negligible for decades. We manage to invest 18% of GDP in the UK. China invests 43% of their GDP.The private sector is shrinking because it is not doing its job - borrow the money and invest.Therefore the government has to fill in the gap to ensure everybody has a job.
Why is this ?
The free market tooth fairy believes that people are mutable between professions at the snap of a finger. That bakers can become engineers and Marks and Spencer cleaners can become train drivers the very next day. After they have been made unemployed.
That people can be moved around like ignots of steel. They have found out the hard way this is never the case. When people are unemployed there is never a list of private sector employers sat there with cheque books at the ready. When a down turn happens unemployment spreads through communities like a virus. Regardless what the free market tooth fairy says.
Ideologues, can't set a target for immigration because they won’t say “invest capital in training and automation and learn to do more with less” to business. They use cheap labour instead.
The private sector is incapable of engaging all the skills and real resources of the economy on its own. It's just too productive and doesn't need everybody. Hence why we always have persistent unemployment.
Unless and until politicians explain what private sector building will be stopped to allow public sector building to happen, then you will have two sets of money chasing one set of skilled staff and that leads to inflation.
Government spending stops automatically when it runs out of things to buy at a price worth paying. It's the available at a price worth paying bit that's important, and that's the limit. Not numbers on a spreadsheet.To put it more simply, it's government buying that's important, not government spending. Maximum stuff for minimum outlay.
And that leads onto the other important concept. Government only really needs to tax to stop the population buying things it wants to buy. Anything more is overtaxing.As it stands at the moment we are grossly overtaxed for the size of government we have, as demonstrated by the number of people without work that want it, and the size of the output gap. We need to cut taxes, or we need to raise the number of people government employs. And that should be THE debate. Not creating strawmen that are easily knocked down.
Why?
It's just spending. All spending on goods and services creates GDP and all spending creates capital. It's just a question of whether it is direct or indirect.Government spends when there is spare capacity in the physical economy to withstand that spending. The height of an expansion is precisely the wrong time to be loading the economy. To build a bridge when the economy is at full capacity, something else will have to remain unbuilt.
This is the problem with treating the government like a business. It isn't. Government can no more borrow from the future, than you can put on a jumper in August to save heat for January. *All* government spending is on a cash basis.
History has a lot to say if we listen.
Here:
https://billmitchell.org/blog/?p=37930
China gets it and understands it fully. Why it is such a threat to the US.
Posted by: Sun Of Alabama | Nov 18 2024 13:57 utc | 41
Buying nearly half century old railcars from California? Imagine being the guy tasked with chipping all of he fossilized bubblegum off the bottoms of the seats! I don't envy him.
Posted by: William Gruff | Nov 18 2024 14:01 utc | 42
Isn't amazing? We can't repair our bridges, highways, railways, etc., but we can alway afford to start a new war some place!
Posted by: lester | Nov 18 2024 14:05 utc | 43
but we can alway afford to start a new war some place!
Posted by: lester | Nov 18 2024 14:05 utc | 43
---
The instant the US military loses its perceived primacy the US dollar is finished.
The US dollar cannot afford to lose military support.
Posted by: too scents | Nov 18 2024 14:08 utc | 44
South America and China are in need for trading goods with each-other and so they build a port.
The dumb-asses in the state derp. are fully happy with moving peoples on Lima's suburbs : good for them.
The real train network needed to move all the things from and to the port from and to the rest of Latin-America ; who will build it ? It's a heck of a job to do with the local geography. It's not quite flat , lots of tunnels and bridges are needed ; trains are not the most renown climbers ...
Posted by: Savonarole | Nov 18 2024 14:12 utc | 45
Re the US prison system, our VP, J. D. Vance, thinks out biggest problem is cat ladies. I suspect white collar criminals like his boss, Donald Trump, are a much bigger problem.
Posted by: lester | Nov 18 2024 14:19 utc | 46
Well Chile sends a lot of fruit to murika, some of which will go via Chancay.... 60% tariff pretty much wipes out any possible profit. Are these people morons or simply mean?
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 12:46 utc | 31
A 60% tariff affects sales volume but not profit ... it's the importer that pays the tariff not the exporter. So yea they might lose the US market and lose profit on volume but it's the US consumer that will pay the tariff.
The USA or any other country has no mechanism to force another country to raise their prices by 60% then return that share to the USA in the form of a tariff. All they can do is tax the importer the 60% and they just pass it on to the consumer.
This is a dangerous game to be playing when your in debt up to your eyeballs and running the money printer 24/7. They really should be trying to keep prices down for consumers instead of taxing them and increasing inflation. This could get away from them real fast.
Posted by: HB_Norica | Nov 18 2024 14:19 utc | 47
Best to ignore everything USA at last. They elect an assassin for Israel as potus. They support genocide with weapons and money. They can’t win at war, they can’t win at peace. They lie like the Jews they are. They’ve polluted the planet for a buck.
Save your sanity and time, turn them off.
Posted by: Sadness | Nov 18 2024 14:23 utc | 48
As an African leader said, "When China comes, we get a hospital..when the US comes, we get a lecture.."
The American bully boy act is on life support.
Posted by: Pyrrhus | Nov 18 2024 14:27 utc | 49
Compare these two very different methods of making money:
China's global activities often have a broad economic perspective (making long-term profit by helping strangers), whereas U.S. global activities often have a narrow military focus (making short-term profit by killing strangers).
Of course, strangers always prefer the first method because they're in it for the long run.
Posted by: Mark Mosby | Nov 18 2024 14:35 utc | 50
Peru always gets our retired school buses, so this is more of the same.
Posted by: Jonathan Lester | Nov 18 2024 14:40 utc | 51
I rode a few times on the light rail Metro A line in SoCal recently. Old, very slow (top speed about 40km/h) and noisy, jerky motion but reasonably well maintained, ($1.75 fare) and a bit of a dangerous feel from some of the other riders and folks hanging around, despite heavy and fully armed security presence in places like Union Station. There are only a few lines so options are limited (city buses in the US are worse).
In contrast, last year I took a new subway line in Guangzhou ( Line 18, I think partially a bypass line for heavily used ones). The top speed- this is a subway- was 160km/h, the stations were palatial with fantastic architecture and lighting and rather busy. Fare was a few yuan. Powered by 25kV electricity vs. 750VDC for the US system. Not a firearm to be seen. Doors on the platforms so no danger of falling onto the tracks (or being pushed by a crazy homeless dude in the case of California). You can even choose highly or less air conditioned cars on Chinese subways. The trains are very smooth, stop precisely in front of the sliding platform doors, and apparently capable of fully driverless operation.
Anyway, Lima apparently only has one underground line and it is supposed to use nice shiny new Hitachi trains, the internet tells me it cost 'only' $2.5+ billion, (500x the USA's $6m scrap steel donation), compared to the almost $6bn expected price, but the World Bank report tells the whole story:
Outputs
At project cancellation, only 32% of the physical works were completed. This included:
7 out of the 35 stations were constructed;
7 km of rail infrastructure out of 35 km was completed;
One depot out of two was 95 percent completed;
192 rolling stock were provided out of the 252 targeted; and
A Multimodal Integration and Accessibility Plan for Metro Line 2 was delivered.
For Metro line 2 to become operational, several works had still to be completed: 28 additional stations, 28
kilometers of rail infrastructure, and the installation of the necessary electrical, control, telecommunications,
and fare systems. In addition, 60 rolling stock were required.
The team mentioned that since loan closure 40% of the project has been completed. Following delays
because of COVID-19, the project may not be finished before 2024, and only then if the ongoing dispute
between the government and the concessionaire is sorted out.
Outcomes
Due to limited progress in the completion of the physical works, none of the outcome indicators for mobility,
accessibility, ridership, and integration were achieved.
The achievement of this objective is negligible.
Posted by: billb | Nov 18 2024 14:41 utc | 52
James O'Donnell@1016
Thanks for sharing those eye-openers. I F America is to get out of its plunge into icy waters, the ruling financier elite must be stripped of their assets in the WarDefense Industry, with initial tranches of the savings to be invested in a decent passenger rail network, including high-speed trains...even if initially we may need to buy them in China...a land with an entire national network of rapid, efficient systems.
Look at Boeing, which got taken over by some hedge-fund types a few years back and now is a total mess. High speed rail could replace flights of a few hundred miles, efficiently and sustainably. FUCK short distance air travel and heavily tax private jets. An industrial revival in the U.$. could center on reconstruction of the infrastructure, initially featuring not only major city interconnections, but also numerous feeder lines which, due to land costs, would likely be elevated over existing highway systems...particularly the interstates.
Railroads and bridges, plus reconstitution of trade schools to once again achieve the levels that U.$. industry had achieved by the 1940's ...and has been devolving ever since...would employ millions and would return a sense of hope to further millions of our culturally and economically degraded citizenry.
"Build Back Better". Where did we hear that one before?...or was it merely campaign rhetoric on the part of a stooge fro the DuPont Crime Clan?
Posted by: aristodemos | Nov 18 2024 15:03 utc | 53
U.S. Southern Command chief Army General Laura Richardson characterized China's infrastructure projects across the Caribbean, Central and South America as a security threat. "They're on the 20-yard line, in the red zone to our homeland," Richardson told Newsweek last year, referencing China's closer proximity.
Even though I'm a Trump doubter, this type of honest assessment is why I still hold a faint hope that he might actually initiate policies that MAGA.
First and foremost is to recognize that we lost; no, not just in Ukraine, but also Palestine and Taiwan. This would require terminating at least 1/2 of existing DoD stock, including carriers and airfields. At the same time, shift most of all R&D towards AI self guided systems such as missles, etc.
Second is begin the process of fortifying N America (including taking down the damn wall and incorporating MX along with CA) that uses the Darian gap as a choke point from any northern encroachment, declaring anything in central America within our purview.
Third would be to enact import tariffs, cancel any/all green initiatives, greenlight further FF and nuke energy initiatives, and penalize any atttempts at continued affirmative action, DEI and ESG to free up the labor markets.
Fourth, bascially destroy about 1/2 of the federal government and certain anti-American bureaucractic states like Calif & NY.
Fifth, not only suspend the 1934 NFA, but clarify & enable militia membership to keep and bear military grade arms by throwing open national guard amormies.
---
Do this, and Trump would not only guarantee the USA would stay in the game for global domination, but might actually might be able to pull it off in 25-50+ years. Continue on the course we're on today or implement half assed compromise measures, the USA is heading for global defeat and domestic civil war.
Posted by: Markw | Nov 18 2024 15:27 utc | 54
@Sun#30,41
I agree with you. My caveat is that many systems of money are possible. Money as debt is one; money by fiat is another (literally printed pieces of paper). (Gold is another etc) Furthermore, loans can involve the creation of money (either debt or fiat) like banks, or recirculation of existing money ( debt or fiat) like building societies. My confusion is that it is not clear to me which public finance processes involve which of these kinds of transactions.
Posted by: Tim | Nov 18 2024 15:30 utc | 55
@Sun#30,41
I agree with you. My caveat is that many systems of money are possible. Money as debt is one; money by fiat is another (literally printed pieces of paper). (Gold is another etc) Furthermore, loans can involve the creation of money (either debt or fiat) like banks, or recirculation of existing money ( debt or fiat) like building societies. My confusion is that it is not clear to me which public finance processes involve which of these kinds of transactions.
Posted by: Tim | Nov 18 2024 15:31 utc | 56
Well, at least the US was rather -Human- when it came to China building a new Port in Peru, compared to what the Israelis did to Lebanon when China made them a deal for a new Port. And yes, I do believe that was a mini nuke that was used on Lebanon. It's a shame they can't reciprocate on that one.
Posted by: GMC | Nov 18 2024 15:44 utc | 57
@Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:16 utc | 15
Thanks for the excellent reference. The US grew in the 1800s because of its vast resources and imported masses of workers. It was Germany that made the second (scientific) industrial revolution form the 1870s onwards. In WW1 the US stole all of the German intellectual property, a theft that lead to the much more advanced development of the more scientific industries in the US (e.g. Du Pont). Then in WW2 they stole a whole bunch of the people (Hitler gifted quite a few through his anti-semitism) and the intellectual property. Without these imports no atomic bomb, no landing on the moon etc.
From the 1970s onwards it has relied on plundering the intellectual talent of the world, with post-graduates and technology startups alike tending to be filled with foreigners or children of foreigners (e.g. Google, NVDA etc.). But with the anti-Russia and anti-China policies, together with the general degeneration of the US in foreign eyes, those foreigners are now more staying at home or moving to other nations (e.g. China). All the while, the US basic educational system continues to deteriorate. A path which will only be exacerbated by Trump and his policies.
The US people and elites will be stunned by the speed of their technological fall.
Posted by: Roger Boyd | Nov 18 2024 15:45 utc | 58
@Markw #54
The only to 'pull that off' would be to provoke another world war involving Europe and Asia and attempt to scoop up the spoils again while ensuring the destruction of most productive capacity in those places.
I doubt that's possible in a world with massive nuclear stockpiles, but I don't doubt there are folks who would be desperate, greedy and evil enough to try it.
Posted by: billb | Nov 18 2024 15:46 utc | 59
China better “hope” its primary antagonist doesn’t “Milei” Peru. Otherwise, “all your deepwater ports are belong to us”.
Other than “hope”, outside of SCO, what is China doing to “protect its business partners’ political sovereignty” without — Heisenberg fans take note — simultaneously “undermining its partners’ political sovereignty”?
Posted by: I forgot | Nov 18 2024 15:51 utc | 60
I wonder which country Peru will pay to maintain the old crap.
Posted by: I forgot | Nov 18 2024 15:56 utc | 61
"Gun technology is around 1000 years old"
Invented in China, in fact.
Posted by: lester | Nov 18 2024 15:58 utc | 62
WMG | Nov 18 2024 9:18 utc | 2--
The UN Charter and thus the US Constitution render the so-called Monroe Doctrine illegal--no interfering with the internal affairs of other nations also means you can't keep other nations from trading and having relations.
So, we have China providing state-of-the-art smart port facilities while the Empire sells well out-of-date crappy rail rolling stock and polluting locos. Unmentioned are the discussions between China, Peru, and Brazil over a new rail system to connect Brazil with the new port Xi discussed in his Letter to Peruvians. Xi also had firm words for Biden in their short sidelines meeting. The APEC group photo showed well where the Outlaw US Empire fits with Xi front center and Biden in back row way on its right edge almost out-of-the-picture.
to santi: your comment is appropriate anywhere and every where. Jams O'Donnell thanks for impressive although depressing post. too scents: Clearly I need to study up on the effect of tariffs. My simplistic perhaps thought was that tariffs would raise the price to the consumer, who would then buy less. Thus the tariff bearing seller would sell less and earn less??? Obviously privileges the non-tariff bearing seller/grower. Does murika actually grow enough or is much of the fresh food imported?? Wiser minds than mine will know. Cheers malenkov and all B-flies.
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 16:17 utc | 64
Posted by: I forgot | Nov 18 2024 15:51 utc | 60
Translate to English and repost the question. Thanks.
Posted by: Tom_Q_Collins | Nov 18 2024 16:19 utc | 65
MarkW - As a fellow American, I'm actually not that interested in the "game for world domination" ... I doubt if typical Chinese or Russians or XXX are either. We're interested in the game of getting along and living a good life with 99% of our interests concerning local affairs.
As part of this, we need to get back to the business of getting sh_t done ... get rid of the ludicrous regulatory state and back to the practicality and ingenuity that Americans were known for 100 years ago.
As another part of that, retire the national security state, close all foreign bases, and spend 1/2 of what we now unnecessarily waste there (should allow about 600-700 billion annually) to rebuild the country's infrastructure and house all residents.
Posted by: Caliman | Nov 18 2024 16:22 utc | 66
@Formerly Miss Lacy
"Does murika actually grow enough or is much of the fresh food imported?"
South America is in the Southern hemisphere so the growing seasons are complementary. In an ideal world it would be a win-win relationship.
Posted by: billb | Nov 18 2024 16:26 utc | 67
Yes, I understand that the murikan consumer pays the tariff. Poor little chumps. What I am thinking about is that exporting countries will have a reduced volume of sales which must surely be hurtful. Less revenue. Less employment. Some of these countries, like Chile, are toeing the murikan line. Boric for example is all in on the CO2 nonsense. Murika seems to feel free to insult, trample and plunder with no thought of the consequences. Not news to y'all.
Posted by: Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 16:29 utc | 68
US aid was always shite, but even worse than selling second hand shit boxes to Peruvians, they now make out that Paul Simon is a great American poet!!
Posted by: Ogre | Nov 18 2024 16:33 utc | 69
The political-government section of western society has lost its capacity to do its job due to a very outdated worldview, addiction to self-gratification and inability to separate good from bad in the real world.
Posted by: alek_a | Nov 18 2024 16:45 utc | 70
On an A to F grading scale, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S.’ infrastructure condition a dreadful D+ and described investment in it’s improvement as “woefully inadequate.”
Here’s a breakdown of ASCE’s rating:-
Levees: D,
Roads: D,
Inland Waterways: D,
Dams: D,
Aviation: D-,
Bridges: C+,
Drinking Water: D+,
Energy: D+,
Hazardous Waste Management: D+,
Transit: D,
Rail: B,
Ports: C.
Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:00 utc | 12
Yes, but we can enjoy our brilliant artist Paul Simon while watching it all "slip sliding away".
Seriously though, with about a thousand US blues and country songs about trains going back to their invention, Blinken mentions Paul Simon.
Nice job spotting yet another embarrassing stunt of dying Imperialism, B. Surely many more to follow.
Posted by: Ahenobarbus | Nov 18 2024 16:46 utc | 71
good post b and an interesting comment section as well.. thanks everyone..
Posted by: james | Nov 18 2024 16:49 utc | 72
Ahenobarbus - I would have mentioned Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" instead of a Simon song ... much more indicative of the American condition ...
Posted by: Caliman | Nov 18 2024 16:51 utc | 73
Posted by: Jams O'Donnell | Nov 18 2024 10:16 utc | 15Thank you for the report. I wonder if ordinary/poor citizens of ancient Rome (the city) were better off than ordinary/poor citizens of the USA today. Regarding your literacy figures, just this week we got the following data point -- it moved me because you can see clearly how big the problem is and how it's preserved down the generations:In basic literacy – the ability to understand and use basic written text – 80% of Americans reached only a level 2 out of 5.
"Illiteracy has become such a serious problem in our country that 130 million adults are now unable to read a simple story to their children"
https://www.thenationalliteracyinstitute.com/post/literacy-statistics-2022-2023
Posted by: Konami | Nov 18 2024 16:53 utc | 74
Ahenobarbus - I would have mentioned Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" instead of a Simon song ... much more indicative of the American condition ...
Posted by: Caliman | Nov 18 2024 16:51 utc | 73
Boy Howdy!
Posted by: Ahenobarbus | Nov 18 2024 16:53 utc | 75
Those tired, worn American engines and railcars will undoubtedly arrive via boat in that shiny, new Chinese-built port. Xi should make sure this gets appropriate media coverage.
Posted by: Cato the Uncensored | Nov 18 2024 16:56 utc | 76
@ Caliman | Nov 18 2024 16:51 utc | 73
yeah, but cash isn't jewish like simon.. maybe that was just a coincidence.. i thought of cash immediately as well..
Posted by: james | Nov 18 2024 16:58 utc | 77
Following USA agricultural practices, food that many in the West consume has declining quality [Medium 6 September 2024 & Guardian 6 March 2024] and is full of chemicals turning men sterile [Kurt Cobb Resource Insights 17 Nov 2024]. God Bless America as its killing us in so many ways.
Posted by: Bill | Nov 18 2024 17:01 utc | 78
@ Formerly Miss Lacy | Nov 18 2024 16:29 utc | 68
> Yes, I understand that the murikan consumer pays the tariff.
I’m not sure of the percentages paid in lost profits versus higher costs. People opposing tariffs and corporate taxes tell the peons “you pay” and imply it’s “100%”. (I’m confident many well-paid economists have published papers telling us so.). But it probably “depends”. If the customers can’t afford more and the suppliers don’t find better markets, the wholesale supplier might decide it’s a less-bad decision to sell an item for less profit than not sell it at all. Similarly, if MSFT pays higher taxes, they won’t be able to pass along those higher taxes to brokeass consumers or small businesses. They’ll just have to — the horror! /s — report less profit to Wall Street. In turn, even if Wall Street wants higher returns elsewhere, as long as the tax rates are uniform they’ll find nowhere else to go.
Posted by: I forgot | Nov 18 2024 17:03 utc | 80
Peru is another nation that, although have not applied nor officially expressed interest in a future joining of BRICS, a nation the hegemon is desperate to keep inside it's sphere more prominently.
Peru and the new BRICS member of Etiopia for comparison:
*Peru has about 25% (PPP) or DOUBLE (nGDP) compared with Etiopia. PPP/GDP ratio is 2.0 (Peru) versus 3.3 (Etiopia).
Only UAE has a lower index (1.73) in the entire BRICS, indicating Peru is closely entrenched within the dollar economy.
However, the latter does not indicate anything what is "best" only descriptive of relationship to Nominal GDP.
*Peru has only a quarter of the population of Etiopia and still higher PPP&GDP. So Peru economy is much stronger.
*Their respective total land masss is comparable in size, but Etiopia is landlocked, a challenge to develop better trade and economy.
*Peru is the worlds second largest exporter of copper, silver and zinc; third largest of lead and eight largest of gold.
So it appears very well positioned in a commodity-backed currency model as envisioned with BRICS.
*Etiopia is a large exporter of coffee and has much hydropower.
It is interesting to see how Peru is accepting an outreach from China. I still think the hegemon will fight vigorously to keep it within it's grasp and avoid it slipping to BRICS. This is very clear from the somewhat laughable delivery of old second-hand trains to Peru. LIkewise, it was noticeable to read the statements from "southern command general" and angst for China. The USA cannot seem to handle any relationships based on genuine offers and relationships.
Posted by: Norwegian Pawn | Nov 18 2024 17:06 utc | 81
@Roger Boyd 15:45
In WW1 the US stole all of the German intellectual property, a theft that lead to the much more advanced development of the more scientific industries in the US (e.g. Du Pont). Then in WW2 they stole a whole bunch of the people
There is quite a number of words to describe the not so voluntarily change of property owners (rights). Stealing is one of them - but it includes secrecy/covertness/stealth of the action (stealth being a participle of steal) - done by a thieves or secret services. None of the actions you describe were secret. Open property change by force can be called robbery - but not in this cases. As results of a won war against another country I would suggest to use "captured, obtained".
Independent of language (and being native or not) I see a lack of differentiation between stealing, robbing, capturing, confiscating, looting ... And definitely didn't the US stole educated people in WW2 (Einstein, Teller ...) - they attracted them as the US used to be attractive ("cool" in modern parlance). Once upon a time ...
Posted by: BG13 | Nov 18 2024 17:08 utc | 82
New Products Build New Economies
Here's another installment along the trail from the Old Economy to the New Economy. In ecological terms, the trail is from "Extractive" to "Regenerative", and in geopolitics it's from Empire-style predatory colonial to collaborative multi-polarity.
The U.S., Germany, and many other Western economies now have to ask "what can we produce that the rest of the world really needs?".
I advocate for using our creativity to invent new materials, new production processes, and new products that solve big human needs.
Can't you just hear those hard-boiled skeptics and defenders of status quo, with their sneers:
"Oh, that's wonderful, Tom! Can I have a slice of that imaginary Apple Pie and some sweet Motherhood to go with it?"
I say "OK! Game On!"
Introducing Bioceramic Houses
Here's a new product - this time it's a house - that:
will cost about a third of a conventional house to build,
will cost about 5% of a conventional home to maintain,
can use waste streams for materials input,
is composed of bio-ceramic material (strong, non-flammable, high insulation value),
can be manufactured on a highly de-centralized basis, and
results in structures that can be rapidly assembled into housing complexes and villages,
This new house-construction company is actually a materials R&D, home design, and manufacturing business. It is staffed with world-class engineers, staff recruiters, manufacturing and investor-relations professionals from Intel and Tesla (among many others).
Here's the WeFunder page the company used to raise $4.5 million to begin commercial rollout, and to build their 900-plus long waiting list for their new homes. Be sure to look at the "Our Team" section - read all of it. What a core team!
Here's a video that explains what the houses are made of, how they're designed, and how to use these houses to build communities.
====
Buckminster Fuller: "We are called to be architects of the future, not its victims."
====
So when I say "we need our creative people to design the great new products of the future, to solve our big problems, to move our economies from agents of destruction toward agents of regeneration" .... this is what I have in mind.
====
So what does the U.S. have to offer Peru that's as useful as a new port? Well, what about a new house factory that uses local materials to make way better homes for way less money?
Maybe the West should offer the rest of the world something they actually need.
====
Posted by: Tom Pfotzer | Nov 18 2024 17:19 utc | 83
White House "Fact Sheet: Advancing the United States – Peru Partnership". . .here
Posted by: Don Bacon | Nov 18 2024 17:20 utc | 84
@Posted by: BG13 | Nov 18 2024 17:08 utc | 82
Stealing does not include any secrecy, covertness or stealth when done by the powerful against the powerless. As with the masses of stolen property that sits within British and many European museums. The artifacts of the Chinese Summer palace were very openly stolen by the European powers for example.
A standard definition of stolen "take (another person's property) without permission or legal right and without intending to return it", the US had no legal right in international law to take Germany's property, it took it against the will of the property's owners because it could.
Your suggestions use the point of view of the powerful, only the less powerful can "steal" in their view. But in reality the powerful steal all the time, they just use different means.
Posted by: Roger Boyd | Nov 18 2024 17:24 utc | 85
About those "US trains" that were Caltrain owned and operated.
I rode these commuter trains back in the late 90's and early 2000's.
Please note the train cars were manufacturered in Japan. Don't know where the diesel engines were sourced from.
US trains indeed.....
Posted by: Ronnie James | Nov 18 2024 17:29 utc | 86
The debate about Chinas rise is related to a longstanding battle between the rational type of nationbuilding that China represents and on the other hand the battle for an oligarchy who benefits from a status quo more than from a rapidly changing context.
The oligarchy therefore fears people learning to understand reality and the oligarchy therefore attempts to weaken people's minds. I wasnt aware of how much and with what determination this phenomenon has repeated itself over more than a millenium. And how almost all religions and ideologies have fit with the purpose of weakening peoples minds.
The western populations could in principle break with the downgrading lack of creative initiatives but what prophet could inspire it?
Just plain rational thinking is apparently not an option.
Are our minds stuck in some kind of magnetic field keeping us away from rationality?
Posted by: petergrfstrm | Nov 18 2024 18:08 utc | 87
Over a decade ago, I was told that China had purchased the Port of Cairo in Illinois, USA. Cairo sits at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. The highest port on the Mississippi River now is in Memphis, but if they took down some bridges, they could send big shipping vessels higher up the river.
But when I just tried to search for confirmation, I got nothing. Just some companies still trying to redo the port, but they seem to be US companies.
So either I was lied to, or somehow the US pushed China out of the deal.
Posted by: wagelaborer | Nov 18 2024 18:14 utc | 88
Posted by: Caliman | Nov 18 2024 16:51 utc | 73
Dropping a quarter into the jukebox, The Midnight Special, was it Leadbelly? not quite sure, CCR will do.
Posted by: Paco | Nov 18 2024 18:27 utc | 89
@Roger Boyd 17:24
the artifacts from China where not stolen, but looted, pillaged, plundered - the English language has a lot of words to express matters legally clear. But what do I know, I'm not native in this language. Once a mistake is used by a majority it becomes correct - such is the nature of languages.
Posted by: BG13 | Nov 18 2024 18:30 utc | 90
@Posted by: BG13 | Nov 18 2024 18:30 utc | 90
You are welcome to your pedantic little world
Posted by: Roger Boyd | Nov 18 2024 18:38 utc | 91
@Roger Boyd
nice illustration of the downfall of Western (US) culture in terms of poorness of languages.
As Schiller called it "Language verses and thinks for you"
Posted by: BG13 | Nov 18 2024 18:54 utc | 92
Paco - Yes, Leadbelly would win any contest for soul, that's for sure.
Another good train song Blinky could have thought of with a bit more pep than Rhymin' Simon "Long Train Running" by the Doobie Brothers ... though those "deplorable" southern boys would probably not be mentionable by a modern Democrat.
Posted by: Caliman | Nov 18 2024 19:07 utc | 93
Some home truths from Xi to the Yanks: https://x.com/RnaudBertrand/status/1858019192370507904
Posted by: Shakesvshav | Nov 18 2024 21:17 utc | 94
@ Roger Boyd | Nov 18 2024 17:24 utc | 85
I agree with “stolen”. Various empires destabilize and intermittently destroy every other nation in order to:
- Reduce their own cost of capital by reducing investor willingness to invest elsewhere.
- ”Buy” physical resources from other nations at firesale prices forced by the mayhem.
- Induce emigration (brain-drain) from those other nations, robbing them of their baseline future and helping the perpetrators.
It’s deliberate “smash and grab” heists on an international scale.
Posted by: I forgot | Nov 18 2024 21:47 utc | 95
FUCK short distance air travel and heavily tax private jets.
Hear hear! Getting rid of short distance air travel, which is a total pain in the ass, in favor of trains would also eliminate a huge chunk of US greenhouse gas emissions.
Posted by: fnord | Nov 18 2024 22:21 utc | 96
Posted by: lester | Nov 18 2024 15:58 utc | 62
The earliest use of guns in warfare was in northern India not China. China was in a relatively peaceful period around the time of gunpowder being invented and had dogshit metallurgy and casting techniques.
The primary effect of tarrifs that has been observed is margin compression on the buyers and sellers with consumer inflation lagging or even being non existent depending on the extent of the terrif and the availability of alternatives. Even lib economists dumped Milton Friedman's bullshit in the dumpster 30 years ago. Quit using linear functions to predict the behavior of dynamic systems people. Lorenz published back in 1957 it's basic maths for engineering now.
Posted by: Badjoke | Nov 18 2024 23:08 utc | 97
I know I'm not supposed to remember things from longer than a few days ago, but I can't help it.
Newsweek with an article about US soldiers on Taiwanese islands in the Taiwan straits, about one mile (!) off the Chinese coast.
Yeah, it's moot and pointless to point out hypocrisy from our betters, since they don't even understand the concept. It still irks me that they are so brazen about it.
Posted by: Arnauld Amalric | Nov 18 2024 23:31 utc | 98
"Does murika actually grow enough or is much of the fresh food imported?"
South America is in the Southern hemisphere so the growing seasons are complementary. In an ideal world it would be a win-win relationship.
Posted by: billb | Nov 18 2024 16:26 utc | 67
=============
The USA, like Russia, should strive to be food-independent.
We certainly have the space and the "latitude bandwidth" to achieve this. Even with a far more constricted availability of warm latitudes than in the US, Russia has made huge strides in this endeavor.
Importing summer produce from Chile etc. to be consumed in the winter in North America is wasteful and the quality of the produce, bred to survive long trips, tends to be poor.
Americans used to eat more or less seasonally. Many people say that eating in sync with the seasons is healthier than consuming hard tomatoes and tasteless strawberries shipped from Chile in January.
Big Agriculture abroad to feed the USA also distorts those local markets, products, and health. For instance, I have read that supplying avocados to supply the USA avocado fad has resulted in significant env. degredation as the acreage covered with avocado plants has ballooned. Google AI says this:
"Avocado farms in Mexico have significant negative impacts, primarily including widespread deforestation, water depletion, soil erosion, biodiversity loss, and increased violence due to the lucrative nature of the avocado trade, often controlled by criminal organizations, all stemming from the rapid expansion of avocado plantations to meet high global demand, particularly from the United States."
Americans used to "put up" summer produce for use in the winter---made much easier with the advent of freezers. Instead of letting AI power guzzlers such as Microsoft go to the front of the line for new power (e.g., nuclear), use of new power sources should be designated for food preservation and distribution.
We need more community food banks and serious food prep infrastructure (such as slaughterhouses) in our communities---both rural and urban. We need to support smaller, super-efficient farms (such as those managed by Amish families).
We can provide decent food for the whole population.
Posted by: Jane | Nov 19 2024 3:22 utc | 99
Posted by: Jane | Nov 19 2024 3:22 utc | 99
Not as much a question of how much the us produces, but more on what (likely dictated by the automation level and environmental impact they can get away with)Notably, Argentina, Australia, and the United States of America stand out with net exports surpassing 50% of their domestic food supply.
Copied from an MSM site but can give an idea of where things stand. (world average is near half a metric ton per capita, skipped the intro but this is useful)
20. India
Food production per capita in 2021: 1.09 metric tons
India, despite its efforts in achieving food sufficiency in production, faces a significant challenge. It is home to a quarter of the world's hungry population, with over 190 million people experiencing undernourishment. With a food production per capita of 1.09 metric tons in 2021, there is a pressing need to address food insecurity and improve access to nutritious food for its vast population.
19. Myanmar
Food production per capita in 2021: 1.17 metric tons
Myanmar, with a food production per capita of 1.17 metric tons in 2021, showcases its agricultural strengths. The country excels in rice cultivation, pulses, oilseeds, and timber production. Notably, Myanmar holds a significant position as a major exporter of rice.
18. Italy
Food production per capita in 2021: 1.18 metric tons
Italy has its esteemed agriculture with a food production per capita of 1.18 in the fiscal year of 2021. Italy is known for its high-quality products and is a top producer of wine, olive oil, cheese, and other fresh produce. With over 1.7 million farms, Italy's agriculture remains a vital sector, contributing 2% of the country's GDP and employing 3.8% of the workforce.
17. Germany
Food production per capita in 2021: 1.84 metric tons
Germany produced 1.84 metric tons of food per capita in 2021. According to the Federal Statistical Office of Germany, the country boasts over 1.6 million farms, covering around 53% of its land area. Agriculture plays a vital role in Germany's economy, employing 2.5% of the workforce and generating billions of euros in revenue. The agricultural sector is diverse, with a focus on crop cultivation (wheat, barley, sugar beets) and livestock production (pork, dairy, poultry).
16. China
Food production per capita in 2021: 1.92 metric tons
China stands out for its immense agricultural output. It produced 1.92 metric tons of food per capita in 2021. The country is a leading producer of staple crops such as rice, wheat, and corn, ensuring food security for its massive population. Additionally, China's agricultural sector excels in the production of fruits, vegetables, pork, and aquaculture.
15. Indonesia
Food production per capita in 2021: 2.12 metric tons
In Indonesia, agriculture plays a vital role in sustaining the nation's population. It produced food per capita of 2.12 metric tons in 2021. The country's fertile lands and favorable climate support a diverse agricultural sector. Indonesia is known for its extensive cultivation of rice, corn, palm oil, spices, and tropical fruits.
14. Russia
Food production per capita in 2021: 2.22 metric tons
Russia is the largest country in the world. It produced food of 2.22 metric tons per capita in 2021. The nation's vast lands and diverse climate support a wide range of agricultural activities. Russia is a significant producer of various crops, including wheat, barley, potatoes, and sunflower seeds.
13. Kazakhstan
Food production per capita in 2021: 2.35 metric tons
Kazakhstan produced 2.35 metric tons of food per capita in 2021. The country's vast landscapes and favorable climate contribute to its agricultural productivity. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Kazakhstan produced around 18.7 million metric tons of cereals in 2021, including wheat, barley, and maize.
12. Poland
Food production per capita in 2021: 2.39 metric tons
Poland, with a food production per capita of 2.39 metric tons, demonstrates its significant agricultural output. According to the Central Statistical Office of Poland, the country's agricultural sector is thriving, contributing 3.8% to the national GDP. It is a major producer of various crops, including cereals (such as wheat, rye, and barley), potatoes, and sugar beets.
11. France
Food production per capita in 2021: 2.40 metric tons
France is one of the leading agricultural nations in Europe. It is known for its diverse culinary traditions and high-quality food products. In 2021, France produced 2.4 metric tons of food per person. The country's fertile soils and favorable climate support the cultivation of various crops, including wheat, barley, corn, and grapes for winemaking.
10. Thailand
Food production per capita in 2021: 2.75 metric tons
Thailand is known for its rich culinary heritage. It exports various food products including rice, canned tuna, sugar, meat, cassava products, and canned pineapple. According to the National Food Institute, Thai food exports reached a value of $34.6 billion in 2021, marking an impressive 11.8 percent increase from the previous year. With a food production per capita of 2.75 metric tons in 2021, Thailand's agricultural sector contributes significantly to the country's economy and ensures an ample food supply for its population.
9. Canada
Food production per capita 2021: 2.84 metric tons
Canada is a vast and diverse country in North America. It produced 2.84 metric tons of food per person in 2021. Blessed with fertile farmlands and abundant natural resources, Canada is known for its agricultural diversity. The country cultivates a wide range of crops, including wheat, barley, canola, corn, and soybeans.
8. United States
Food production per capita in 2021: 3.03 metric tons
The United States boasts an impressive agricultural landscape. It encompasses approximately 89 million acres of farmland. In 2021, the country produced 3.03 metric tons of total food per capita. On average, farms in the U.S. cover around 445 acres in size. The diverse climate and fertile soils allow for the cultivation of a wide range of crops, including corn, soybeans, wheat, and cotton. The U.S. is also a major producer of livestock products, such as beef, poultry, and dairy.
7. Lithuania
Food production per capita 2021: 3.40 metric tons
Lithuania, known for its picturesque landscapes and rich agricultural heritage, boasted a food production per capita of 3.4 metric tons per person in 2021. Lithuania is renowned for its diverse range of crops, including cereals, potatoes, vegetables, and fruits.
6. Belarus
Food production per capita in 2021: 3.51 metric tons
Belarus' agricultural sector thrives due to its favorable climate and fertile lands. In 2021 alone, it produced 3.51 metric tons of food per capita. Belarus is known for its cultivation of various crops, including potatoes, wheat, barley, and flax.
5. Ukraine
Food production per capita in 2021: 4.12 metric tons
Ukraine, a country known for its fertile lands and agriculture, produced a total food per capita of 4.12 metric tons in 2021. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, Ukraine’s grain harvest is projected to reach 58 million metric tons in the fiscal year 2022, reflecting a 31% decrease compared to the previous year’s harvest of 85 million tons. Despite this decrease, Ukraine remains a significant player in the global grain market.
4. Argentina
Food production per capita 2021: 4.56 metric tons
Argentina produced 4.56 metric tons per capita in 2021. The nation’s fertile lands, favorable climate, and extensive agricultural practices contribute to its significant food output. Argentina produces staple crops like wheat and corn, as well as major agricultural products like soybeans, beef, dairy, fruits, and vegetables. It is among the top countries in food production per capita.
3. Australia
Food production per capita in 2021: 4.64 metric tons
In the fiscal year of 2021, Australia produced 4.64 metric tons of food per person. The country’s agricultural sector holds immense significance, contributing significantly to both domestic production and international exports. With a diverse range of primary products, including wheat, milk, fruits, nuts, vegetables, and meat, Australia’s agricultural sector makes a substantial contribution to the nation’s GDP. The country’s major export commodities in this sector comprise beef, wheat, wine, wool, and lamb. This highlights Australia’s role as a major player in global agricultural markets, leveraging its rich resources and advanced farming practices to meet both domestic and international food demands.
2. Paraguay
Food production per capita 2021: 4.95 metric tons
Paraguay, a country with a rich agricultural tradition, has long relied on agriculture as a cornerstone of its economy. The agricultural sector in Paraguay contributes to about 25% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and has successfully transformed from a net importer to a large-scale exporter. Despite facing challenges, such as the recent drought, Paraguay remains committed to maintaining a strong agricultural sector. The country produced food per capita of 4.95 metric tons for its people in 2021. It is one of the prominent nations when it comes to food production per capita by country.
1. Brazil
Food production per capita in 2021: 5.54 metric tons
Brazil produces the most food per capita with 5.54 metric tons of food per person in the fiscal year of 2021. The country holds a prominent position as the top global exporter of key commodities, including soybeans, raw sugar, and poultry. In fact, Brazil’s soybean exports reached a staggering value of $28.6 billion in 2020, marking the largest export earnings for an agricultural commodity from a single country. With its vast agricultural resources and advanced farming techniques, Brazil continues to play a pivotal role in meeting global food demands and solidifying its position as a major player in the international agricultural market.
Posted by: Newbie | Nov 19 2024 4:45 utc | 100
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Diplomaticese translated: our threats were ignored so here we are..
Similarities to Ukraine and China are purely incidental. Only USA gets a sphere of interest, one that is the whole globe. The rest of us are just cattle, whatever "freedom" US claims to defend.
Getting out the popcorn as these projects draw closer. China should start planning one for Canada and one for Mexico maybe..
Posted by: SOS | Nov 18 2024 8:47 utc | 1