Economic Fallacy #2

Investment Analysis Clubs Macro Economic Trends and Risks
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What is good for the US economic interest is good for the world economy. Pax Americana/Exceptional nation.

We have been selling that propaganda* for years. And now others nations view it as a variation of the Emperor’s Clothes fable.
https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3180953/eyes-ot…
In the eyes of others, the US is not the benign power it thinks it is
When I started teaching at Harvard’s Kennedy School in the mid-1980s, competition with Japan was the dominant preoccupation of US economic policy.
I remember being struck back then by the degree to which the discussion, even among academics, was tinged by a certain sense of American entitlement to international pre-eminence.

In reality the US is an aggressive nationalistic country. Other nations & some US citizens might wonder how we actions in Afghanistan, Syria, Libya & Iraq differ from Russian actions in the Ukraine.

In truth, other countries would rather live in a world without domination, where smaller states retain a fair degree of autonomy, have good relations with all others, are not forced to choose sides, and do not become collateral damage when major powers fight it out.
The sooner US leaders recognise that others do not view America’s global ambitions through the same rose-tinted glasses, the better it will be for everyone.

The US perpetual war/regime change foreign proved a failure in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria & Libya.
What did the US learn from those failures. Nuthing honey. Our sights are now set on China after Russia has been dealt a defeat.
Many nations have not joined with the US & NATO nations sanctions on Russia.
Mexico has tossed a spinner into the Summit of the Americas by not attending protest the US exclusion of Cuba & Venezuela. Mexico in effect sez:”Enough! No more of your attempted exercise of hegemony over its Latin America

*https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2022/06/12/a-case-study-in…
Here’s a joke I recently heard a Russian tell:

A Russian is on an airliner heading to the US, and the American in the seat next to him asks, “So what brings you to the US?” The Russian replies, “I’m studying the American approach to propaganda.” The American says, “What propaganda?” The Russian says, “That’s what I mean.”

We are well aware of Russian oligarch influence/control in the Russian economy. Yet we don’t have such awareness of corporate oligarchical influence upon the US economy by hospital, pharmaceutical, defense industry, tech industry, NRA, & other special using their free speech rights upon the US citizenry & campaign contributions on governments representatives to move the system/economy toward their benefit.

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tj,

We are all well aware. Most of us are profiting off of all of it. All of us are living longer because of it. That last bit is not true in Russia.

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was tinged by a certain sense of American entitlement to international pre-eminence.

“Master race” thinking has been a part of USian ideology for a long time, spanning, at least, from the “manifest destiny” narrative of 150 years ago, to the “American exceptionalism” and “shining city on a hill”, of today, which I mock as “Shinyland”.

Steve

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“American exceptionalism” and “shining city on a hill”, of today, which I mock as “Shinyland”.

And I’m happy that you do!

Sincerely,
'38Packard

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tjscott0 posts,

<<Here’s a joke I recently heard a Russian tell:

A Russian is on an airliner heading to the US, and the American in the seat next to him asks, “So what brings you to the US?” The Russian replies, “I’m studying the American approach to propaganda.” The American says, “What propaganda?” The Russian says, “That’s what I mean.”

I read a read a story a while back that the Aussies are souring on Rupert Murdock. For a long time, he was regarded as one of the greatest Australians.

https://www.crikey.com.au/2021/12/10/kevin-rudd-murdoch-repo…

intercst

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We have been selling that propaganda* for years.
*https://consortiumnews.com/2022/06/14/patrick-lawrence-biden…
And to Presidents Luis Arce of Bolivia, Xiaomara Castro of Honduras, Alejandro Giammattei of Guatemala and Nayib Bukele of El Savador. They all pointedly declined to join President Joe Biden at his Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles last week, joining to protest Biden’s refusal to invite Miguel Díaz–Canel, Nicolás Maduro and Daniel Ortega, the presidents of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua respectively.

Add it up. Eight of the region’s 33 nations were absent when Biden convened the summit “to demonstrate the resurgence of U.S. leadership in the region,” as the government-supervised New York Times forlornly put it. Don’t they ever get tired of these long-exhausted phrases over on Eighth Avenue? </B.

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…“to demonstrate the resurgence of U.S. leadership in the region,” as the government-supervised New York Times forlornly put it.

“Leadership” in correct thought. The Galtieri and Pinochet juntas were “correct thought”. Communist Cuba, Sandinista Nicaragua, and Chavez’s Venezuela, are “wrong thought”.

I don’t know where that publication comes off with the “government supervised” swipe at the NYT. According to some luminaries, the NYT “hates America”.

Steve

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According to some luminaries, the NYT “hates America”.

Likely just those sitting at home clutching their Bibles & guns. LOL

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Likely just those sitting at home clutching their Bibles & guns. LOL

I was watching O’Reilly the night he went on a tirade about how the NYT wants to “break down the white, Christian, male, power structure”, more than a dozen years ago.

Why was I watching O’Reilly and Hannity? I want to know what they are saying, without it being filtered by other media luminaries.

Steve

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Thank you for recommending this post to our Best of feature.

Why was I watching O’Reilly and Hannity? I want to know what they are saying, without it being filtered by other media luminaries.

Smart move!

It works the other way too: conservative to liberal or liberal to conservative.

Each media group knows the bias of their audience and panders to it.

The ONLY media outlet I know of that posts BOTH sides is the Drudge Report which links to EVERYBODY*!*

https://www.drudgereport.com

VISITS TO DRUDGE 06/15/2022
26,797,836 PAST 24 HOURS
723,383,226 PAST 31 DAYS
8,233,077,331 PAST YEAR

(Note the links to the world at the bottom of all three columns.)

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In reality the US is an aggressive nationalistic country. Other nations & some US citizens might wonder how we actions in Afghanistan, Syria, Libya & Iraq differ from Russian actions in the Ukraine.

I agree with your first sentence. Regarding the second sentence, while our record is far from perfect, I don’t recall the U.S. having a policy of wholesale leveling of cities, civilians be damned. The strategy may be similar, but the tactics aren’t.

AW

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In reality the US is an aggressive nationalistic country. Other nations & some US citizens might wonder how we actions in Afghanistan, Syria, Libya & Iraq differ from Russian actions in the Ukraine.

Our argument in the ME is with theocracies. Our solution is to hang onto cold war dictatorships. This is why the US senate is squaring off with Iran. Neither side will budge. That is going to cost us. Does not matter if it costs Iran it is our foolishness to pick this cost.

The Russian exercise in the ME is to level cities in Syria and elsewhere for brutal dictatorial power.

We can either fine tune our objectives by understanding them or keep showing up with a hammer when there are no nails.

Putin will not be interested in fine tuning a damned thing. There is not other republican or democratic small r and d voices in Russia to sway his ignorance.

We stand a chance of swaying our ignorance in the US senate.

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Regarding the second sentence, while our record is far from perfect, I don’t recall the U.S. having a policy of wholesale leveling of cities, civilians be damned. The strategy may be similar, but the tactics aren’t.

Not in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria or Libya. We did utilize that strategy on Japan & Germany and won. The Russians utilized that strategy in Syria to Keep Assad on the throne of power and succeeded.

It would appear that a sanitized version of war is unsuccessful while the merciless, ruthless, relentless application of violence does.

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I don’t recall the U.S. having a policy of wholesale leveling of cities, civilians be damned.
…
We did utilize that strategy on Japan & Germany and won.

We didn’t have smart bombs or cruse missiles during WWII.

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Not in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria or Libya. We did utilize that strategy on Japan & Germany and won. The Russians utilized that strategy in Syria to Keep Assad on the throne of power and succeeded.

Two of these are different than the others.

Japan and Germany declared war on the United States.

AW

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I don’t recall the U.S. having a policy of wholesale leveling of cities, civilians be damned.
…
We did utilize that strategy on Japan & Germany and won.

We didn’t have smart bombs or cruse missiles during WWII.
True dat. Also drones.
And today there instantaneous reporting. Bad news for democracies conducting warfare. Their citizens don’t like to see mommies & kiddies being blown up. It is unavoidable regardless of technological level of weapons used.
The US & I suspect other nations have difficulty distinguishing between groups os individuals as to whether they are combatants or civilians. So we err on the side of caution-“kill em all & let God sort them out.” A nation engaged in total warfare ignore civilian casualties. Because if you are concern about innocents; you really aren’t pursuing victory. Of course that isn’t the propaganda dispensed to the public. That messaging is;”We are doing everything to avoid civilian casualties.”

And one must pick their conflicts carefully. Iraq, Syria, Libya, & Afghanistan aren’t ready for peaceful democracies. Because the populations of those nations are at odds against each other & are willing to commit violence on each other.

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And one must pick their conflicts carefully.

One must be careful to not pick unnecessary conflicts.

The Captain

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And one must pick their conflicts carefully.

B>One must be careful to not pick unnecessary conflicts.

The Captain

Well said. I sit corrected.
The US has an abominable record in that regard.

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… Regarding the second sentence, while our record is far from perfect, I don’t recall the U.S. having a policy of wholesale leveling of cities, civilians be damned. The strategy may be similar, but the tactics aren’t.

"You mean you’ll put down your rock and I’ll put down my sword and we’ll try to kill each other like civilized people, is that it?”

~ the Man in Black - Princess Bride

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