The Fallacy of Full Spectrum Dominance

Hey, George, I just finished listening to this podcast and I was so moved by it that I had to write in and commend you on an exceptionally good show; I only wish it were longer. I am curious why the US specifically out of all the G8 nations is so prone to this set of outcomes, particularly economic bankruptcy. Are Europe, Australia, Canada any better off? Are our industrial capabilities not fleeing our countries as well? I think particularly the atmosphere right now in France and the implications of its recent election paint a similar picture from which many parallels could be drawn.

I look forward to your next show.

Mike

Again George, top guest and fascinating interview.

@Mike: You are right in stating that the US exhibits most of the same systemic failures of other G8 countries, except that they are substantially more exaggerated — just like everything in the US is bigger and more extreme compared to Europe (cars, violence, religion, fast foods, etc..). Inequality, outsourcing, de-localizations, individual and national debt, illegal immigration, dependence on oil, for example, are more problematic in the US. And all this is built on the house of cards which is the hegemonic dollar shell-game. So yes, G8 countries will suffer, but not as drastically as the US will.

So the question remains, where to move to?

UK: Definitely not. It’s turning into a police state with more surveillance than any other country.

France: The arrival of neocon-a-la-francaise Sarkozy promises police state measures, a stripping of the social welfare system and rising inequalities.

Rest of Europe: Probably quite similar to UK/France since 80% of all laws passed in EU countries come directly from Brussels and they all have the same monetary system. Brussels will accelerate inequality, delocalizations and the destruction of the welfare state.

Canada: Forget it. Canada is being assimilated into the North American Union (www.spp.gov), have its spine welded directly to Mexico’s with the help of the super-corridor (www.nascocorridor.com) and ultimately follow a similar fate to the US.

Australia: Being the butt-buddy of America and passing even more drastic police state and copyright laws, I have little hope for the ozzies.

South America: After the IMF, World Bank and globalization have finished with them, I doubt there will be much left for soon-to-be-overthrown Chavez to save.

Russia / Middle East / China: Need I say more…

Africa: Well, I’m not personally a fan so that’s not an option.

Switzerland: will probably be assimilated into EU eventually.

Nordic countries: seems like they respect individual freedoms but then taxation is very high.

Japan: I don't know enough to judge.

Mars anybody? 

Ridiculous to comment on the 'police states' in the US and Australia. Absolutely silly. It is an inconvenient fact that thousands upon thousands of people outside the the US and Australia would love to exchange their police for ours. Would thoroughly enjoy our softie brand of torture (you don't burn villages? Thats nice). Suggest you watch the bit about Nigeria's slums in the news to see what oppression looks like. When the end comes to the present financial system, I plan to be in America, putting up with surveillance while villages burn from the Nile to the Yangtzee.

@Harold:

So you set your standards by that of the worst offending countries then? Well, with that kind of logic, we would conclude even Stasi Germany would be a better “softie” alternative to Nigeria.

I’ll admit the US/Australia/Britain aren’t police states… yet. But the trend is unmistakable. And long term, it is the trend that is crucial. Are we going towards more freedom or less freedom?

Just look at the Patriot Act I/II, Military Commissions Act, Real ID Act, NSA wiretapping, torture, rendition, illegal wars, rampant cronyism, construction of KBR detention camps, activist judges, rigged elections, concentration of power, free speech zones, militarized police, enemy combatants etc. etc. etc… Another decade of this madness and I ask you, what will distinguish us from a dictatorship?

So, no, I won’t put up "with surveillance while villages burn from the Nile to the Yangtzee" because if I did, my village would eventually be the next one in line to burn.

Some of the comments appear to be from those who have yet to read Dr. Johnson's work. The difference between the US and the other G-8 nations is that only the US insists on gargantuan military expenditures with virtually no oversight.

Johnson's article in Harpers Republic or Empire: A National Intelligence Estimate on the United States provides an excellent synopsis of his view that Military Keynesianism is our Achilles heel.

Great interview, George. I admire Chalmers Johnson and since moving to Japan have sought out his comments and articles. Thank you for arranging the interview and for your excellent questions.

Kevin M. — I live in Japan (a rural area), love it, and think it may fare better than the USA for several reasons, but ultimately IMO all industrialized countries will suffer as resource depletion effects take hold. Japan imports 90% of its oil and gas and 60% of its food.

A small country with a non-developed economy, cohesive society, and at least the prospect of self sufficiency, is a safer route. Yes, that would mean a different way of life.

But nowhere (except your suggested destination of Mars perhaps) is sure bet. As the government slogan in the movie "Brazil" goes, "we're all in it together".

The Police state is a rather ambiguous term these days, because the only examples of it seem so extreme; no modern example properly compares and so we tend not to notice the practices of our governments in the same light.

Right now I am living and studying in Paris, and I can tell you, this city is so oppressed and carefully watched over that I feel actual fear when I see the police units strutting the streets, the metro, the park.

I have seen a gang of police stop 'randomly' black youth in a commuting swarm of Parisians, singling them out, shoving them to a wall and searching them physically, so many times I cannot recall. I have seen metro police, men who are no different from public transit supervisors, walking through the metro, taking the lines to and fro with automatic machine guns. During the election, i was at the Bastille during the results, and I saw a peaceful protest consisting of several thousand Parisians assaulted by riot police for the crime of assembly; the next day the papers world wide called the protesters 'trouble makers'.

No, France may not be a police state, but i wouldn't trip over my tongue trying to say how it isn't. The similarities are disgusting, the racial targeting, the meticulously planned ghettos, the oppression of free assembly, the fear of terrorism that allows the military and the police and even the meter-maids to carry assault rifles, checking anyone they please without any probable cause whatsoever.

When I see a Cop, I keep my distance.

Excellent show. On the subject of trade imbalances and tariffs, Warren Buffett wrote a short article (pdf) a few years ago with a good straightforward explanation of the problem and his idea of how to address it. The article is just a few pages long, and well worth reading.

Hi George, I keep thinking about this interview with Chalmers and his advice to get the f*ck out of here if you are able. Events of fascist outbreak are increasing by the hour. The OBB tape in which Bu$hco hopes to immunize themselves against "wild conspiracy theories", the whistleblown nukes, the assault on Rev. Yearwood, etc.

If only I was in a position to heed my own internal advice to flee...

What he said about Betrayus is very revealing, especially considering that Betrayus just testified (oops, Ray McGovern asked that the general be sworn but was arrested for doing so, cheeky bastard) about the heck of a job he is doing in Iraq.

"He is the kind of officer who would marry the commander's daughter to get ahead and that is just what he did."

Betrayus is the new Colin Powell, a dependable brown noser eager to embrace treason.