Re: BOOK REVIEW: The decline of the US economy



On Fri, 23 Dec 2005, Old Pif wrote:


Straydog wrote: 
On Thu, 22 Dec 2005, Old Pif wrote:


drocillo wrote: 
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/GL17Dj01.html


Dec 17, 2005


BOOK REVIEW
The decline of the US economy
Three Billion New Capitalists by Clyde Prestowitz Buy this book

Reviewed by Dmitry Shlapentokh


In many ways, the US has become similar to the USSR in the last decade
of its existence, when the Soviet Union had only one first-class and
efficient organization - its military force.


I like the analogy, although I would not call Soviet military
first-class and efficient organization. For one, effective military
force does not sell its arms to enemy when fighting (Afghanistan).


The USA outsells everyone in the world when it comes to military weaponry.
It helps our balance of trade and it gets underling countries under the
wing of the USA and keeps them poor, too. China and Russia are #2 and #3,
or vice versa, on this stuff.


It is different. You are talking about government sanctioned sails.
What I have in mind is the sell of weaponry and explosives by field
commanders for cash and drugs to enemy combatants.

Well, we had Ollie North in the Iran-Contra scandal and we really -- I'm willing to bet money on it -- should suspect that all manner of other arms deals (eg. CIA financed stinger missles, etc. to the Afghan rebels, etc) are going on regardless of the actual mechanism of the "illegal" arms deals. There was also a famouns GAO study back in the '70s-'80s(?) during the Contra/Nicaragua business where the US was backing the anti-Nicaraguan govt and the GAO found out that of all the foreign aid (military and monetary) coming from the USA, they could only account for 50% of it. So, where did the rest go? Good question. However, I don't follow that history, so I can only speculate.

But, to acknowledge your own implication of, by example, the rumors about Soviet field commanders even trading guns for vodka, etc., I believe that surely happens.

I don't recall any 
cases like this done by the US army in Vietnam or now in Iraq. Can you
imagine a Roman soldier selling his sword to barbarians?

Well, it would depend on the circumstances. But, now that I think about it, during the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the "barbarians" from the north were winning, but its also funny that at about that time the Romans actually were hiring "barbarians" into the Roman army to fight for Roman causes. So, the Romans were both giving a sword and paying a wage to the barbarians (that was supposed to be a little bit funny, I mean you to laugh at that).

For all 
practical purposes Soviet army does not qualify to be called an army in
the last decade of its existence.

Yes, and to get the Soviet army to protect Yeltsin, Yeltsin had to raise the pay of the army before the commanders would open fire on the building in Moscow that held the politicians trying to take Yeltsin down (they almost pulled a putsch on Grobachev, too, according to one story I read).

And, all of the Soviet navy was back in ports at that time because they were so poor they could not even buy fuel for the ships.

A person who wrote review of the book
in question apparently does not follow the newspapers on this subject. 

Hey, there is a lot of this problem out there!!!


By continuation, China becomes US, Europe stays Europe and we can
expect somebody as stupid as Gorbachev comes to power in the US and
finishes the country.


Maybe we should trade Bush for Putin? ;-)


Can we give him up for free?

I'll vote for that, but I was trying to be a sly capitalist and sell a worthless thing for something that might actually have some value. ;-)

Russians don't have vice president 
position and we don't need president position. It looks like a perfect
match.


We could throw in Connie, Rummy, Cheney, too.? Anyone I left out?

How about Greespan? Do you think he did us any good?


Old Pif


.

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