"Imperial Decline in the Straits of Hormuz"
-
The Treasury just declared the U.S. insolvent. The media missed it | Fortune
The Government Accountability Office can't even verify the books. Here's what Congress must do.
Fortune (fortune.com)
Remember that the US is a currency issuer, meaning it can never run out of USD & it never needs to borrow USD.
Remember the USD that poured into the economy during covid? It abolished poverty overnight.
That funding can be permanent - without causing inflation.
So-called US "debt" is an anachronism from pre-fiat-currency times. It's a bookkeeping figure - not repayable. & interest payments on bonds are covered by issuing new USD.
Stephanie Kelton | Speaker | TED
Stephanie Kelton is a leading authority on "Modern Monetary Theory," a new approach to economics that seeks to liberate global policymakers.
(www.ted.com)
-
"Imperial Decline in the Straits of Hormuz"
The US - the greatest imperial power of this era - is now visibly shooting itself in the foot (if not the head).
"The current U.S. intervention in Iran is the Suez Crisis". In 1956, Nasser cut off Europe’s lifeline to its oil fields in the Persian Gulf.
By the time Britain retreated in defeat from Suez, its currency was at the brink of collapse, & "its global empire was heading for extinction."
@DrALJONES So often countries with military supremacy think that military might equals victory and that the enemy is without counter moves. Blowing things up is easy, consolidation of control is hard.
-
@DrALJONES So often countries with military supremacy think that military might equals victory and that the enemy is without counter moves. Blowing things up is easy, consolidation of control is hard.
It occurs to me - since history screams all this at them - that, as long as they get their hands on the resources, they don't care.
Eg, Halliburton (Cheney) took over Iraq's oil fields within two weeks - "success". Do they need to care about anything else but the loot? All the rest - democracy, etc - is the cover story.
-
It occurs to me - since history screams all this at them - that, as long as they get their hands on the resources, they don't care.
Eg, Halliburton (Cheney) took over Iraq's oil fields within two weeks - "success". Do they need to care about anything else but the loot? All the rest - democracy, etc - is the cover story.
@DrALJONES Wars are often conducted to achieve multiple ends. This one seems to be have conducted at Israel's urging at short notice and praying upon Trump's aberrant psychology and minimal mental capacity. For him it also served as a distraction from his deep involvement in a child sex trafficking ring. It's also had the effect of greatly benefiting, Russia and its ability to continue to fund its war on Ukraine.
-
@DrALJONES Wars are often conducted to achieve multiple ends. This one seems to be have conducted at Israel's urging at short notice and praying upon Trump's aberrant psychology and minimal mental capacity. For him it also served as a distraction from his deep involvement in a child sex trafficking ring. It's also had the effect of greatly benefiting, Russia and its ability to continue to fund its war on Ukraine.
@DrALJONES I'm sure Trump had some idea planted in his head by Israel that Iran would fold easily after the targeting of their leadership and that there would be some sort of popular uprising and that the US would be able to install some puppet government.
-
@DrALJONES I'm sure Trump had some idea planted in his head by Israel that Iran would fold easily after the targeting of their leadership and that there would be some sort of popular uprising and that the US would be able to install some puppet government.
@DrALJONES The reality is far different with Iran. Well prepared for this sort of eventuality and able to maximize its geographic advantages and ability to threaten ship passage through Hormuz as well as directly target most of the Gulf's energy assets. The US and Israel have overwhelming air supremacy and the ability to strike targets at will will, but Iran maintains the ability to strike back and can probably if need render the golf unproductive for oil extraction for 5 to 15 years.
-
@DrALJONES The reality is far different with Iran. Well prepared for this sort of eventuality and able to maximize its geographic advantages and ability to threaten ship passage through Hormuz as well as directly target most of the Gulf's energy assets. The US and Israel have overwhelming air supremacy and the ability to strike targets at will will, but Iran maintains the ability to strike back and can probably if need render the golf unproductive for oil extraction for 5 to 15 years.
@DrALJONES If the Trump regime escalates further, so will Iran and they may be forced into a use it or lose it scenario in which they will probably simply destroy the gulf's oil production and export capacity, leaving the US the unenviable task of occupying at least coastal Iran and the various Islands and attempting to create a security environment in which rebuilding can occur. I think that's a very hard proposition in the era of long-range drones.
-
@DrALJONES Wars are often conducted to achieve multiple ends. This one seems to be have conducted at Israel's urging at short notice and praying upon Trump's aberrant psychology and minimal mental capacity. For him it also served as a distraction from his deep involvement in a child sex trafficking ring. It's also had the effect of greatly benefiting, Russia and its ability to continue to fund its war on Ukraine.
Yes, agree, this war is clearly multifactorial. From my reading, a key factor does appear to be Trump's (understandable) fear of the colossally deadly Netanyahu-Mossad machine. He's accepted $100s of millions from Israeli donors & promised them the (Palestinian) earth. Kirk's murder wouldn't have helped.
-
@DrALJONES If the Trump regime escalates further, so will Iran and they may be forced into a use it or lose it scenario in which they will probably simply destroy the gulf's oil production and export capacity, leaving the US the unenviable task of occupying at least coastal Iran and the various Islands and attempting to create a security environment in which rebuilding can occur. I think that's a very hard proposition in the era of long-range drones.
@DrALJONES I guess we'll see in the coming weeks what demon manages to whisper in Trump's ear the most and last, at which point we'll see whether the US launches a Marines oriented invasion of the Strait and possibly Kherg island, or whether Trump declares himself satisfied with what he's achieved, a sizable reduction in Iran's military and industrial capacity.
-
@DrALJONES I guess we'll see in the coming weeks what demon manages to whisper in Trump's ear the most and last, at which point we'll see whether the US launches a Marines oriented invasion of the Strait and possibly Kherg island, or whether Trump declares himself satisfied with what he's achieved, a sizable reduction in Iran's military and industrial capacity.
@DrALJONES He'll probably also mumble something about their nuclear program, without actually having seized the sizable amount of nuclear material that they've already produced.
I think Trump is going to take his football and go home and leave the huge mess that he's created as a problem for others to solve. The question I have in that scenario is how does Israel continue to act and what do the other nations who wish to continue extracting oil from the Gulf do about that aspect of the problem.
-
R relay@relay.mycrowd.ca shared this topic
