US INTERVENTION UNJUSTIFIED

US INTERVENTION IN WWI, WWII, DEEMED UNJUSTIFIED

A secret US Congressional committee that has been meeting since 2 September 1945 has determined that US intervention on behalf of Europe in both WWI and WWII was completely and utterly unjustifed and in violation of international law.

US returns Austria, Sudetenland, Bohemia, Moravia, Poland, Denmark, Norway, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Yugoslavia, Crete, Libya, and Egypt to Germany, as well as apologizing and returning Albania to Italy.

The US State Department released a statement that given the illegality of US actions in Europe and the subsequent illegality of the Dutch Parliament, the findings of the Dutch Committee of Inquiry on Iraq was quite frankly irrelevant and it was waiting to hear what the Third Reich thought.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8453305.stm

Also quite frankly, the Dutch can go pound sand!

~Finntann~

Good News: China Now Buys as Much Crap as We Do

China Ends US Reign as Largest Auto Market

This looks like more bad news about America's decline, but it's actually good news.

China is running surpluses because it has basically been a Commie-capitalist slave labor camp for the past decade.  Money goes in and it gets stored up instead of going to the dirt poor workers keep the factories churning.  But even a Chinese Communist knows you can't deny the worker the fruits of his labor forever.

Building a Middle Class Ain't Cheap

Chinese workers have seen the future and are no longer satisfied to go around in pajamas and sandals and live in flintstone houses and cramped barracks.  The state has heard their cries and is now allowing them to amass middle class accoutrement like cars and TVs.

Meanwhile Americans tighten their belts...  
Bringing China's masses into the modern age costs money, so the stack that China sits on will get smaller, and much will flow back to the US as they purchase stuff from us that they can't yet make themselves.  That is how global economic imbalances get corrected.

Now, if we can just get the bloated pigs wallowing in the DC sewer to stop gorging on our hard earned money, we just may be able to turn this country around...

Don't Cry for US, Argentina

Less than a century ago, economic basket case Argentina was a great nation.  Could the United States be following in her footsteps? 
 

"The worst psychological state is a superiority complex coupled with an inferior status."
 --Jagdish Bhagwati, economist

When I discovered this quote, my first thought was of Argentina .  My next thought was of the  US...

Argentinians have a sneering disdain for the US, and her neighbors are resentful of the  perceived arrogance of her citizens.  I've often thought that we are two countries so much alike that we can't stand each other:  Mirror images at opposite ends of the hemisphere.  One major difference being we still have some economic and military strength.  All Argentina has left is pride.

For quite awhile now I've been recommending Americans read up on the sad decline of Argentina, because our nation is on a similar downward path: 

A venal political class insulated from the vagaries of real-life, seeking power through burgeoning bureaucracies, irresponsible social programs and out of control spending.   

Entitled citizens willing to swap votes for goodies from the public treasury and state-sponsored demagoguery of the "rich."   

Inability to adapt to changing global markets; weakening currency...  It's all there.

The road to economic hell is paved with excellent intentions—a desire to save troubled industries, relieve poverty, and bolster communities that support the present government.

But the higher the spending and the deeper the deficits, the worse the effects on productive enterprise and the heavier the penalty placed on thrift and enterprise.

As matters deteriorate, governments have a natural tendency to divert blame onto some unpopular group, which comes to be labeled in terms of class, income, or race.

Judd Gregg, Republican Senator from New Hampshire summed it all up:

“This deficit is driven by us,” New Hampshire Republican Sen. Judd Gregg candidly said Sunday [...]

“You talk about systemic risk. The systemic risk today is the Congress of the United States“ [...]

"we’re basically on the path to a banana-republic-type of financial situation in this country. And you just can’t do that. You can’t keep running these [federal] programs out [into the future] and not paying for them.

And you can’t keep throwing debt on top of debt.” “Standards of living will drop if we keep this up,” Gregg also said."

Why is it politicians only find such candor when they're on their way out?  Regardless, he's right.  Just ask the Argentinian mowing your neighbor's yard.

Are we in decline?  Further Reading:

American Conservative - US & Argentina
WSJ
Telegraph - Adam Smith
Telegraph - UN Currency
Samuelson - Downward Mobility
CNN - Judd Gregg

Lessons from Russia & Georgia

Teddy Roosevelt was right: "Speak softly and carry a big stick":
Georgia isn't the only former vassal state discomfited by Ivan's gaze. The Stans and other regions with names unfamiliar to us have been building their own economies, cooperating on energy and making deals with other neighbors, but they've been doing it quietly. Georgia impetuously jumped into Russia's carefully planned trap, setting back their heady post-Soviet progress.

Speak softly and carry a big stick, Pt 2:
A corollary to President Roosevelt's maxim is don't write checks you're not prepared to cash, even if you're a superpower. President Bush made a wonderful speech in Tbilisi back in 2005 extolling Georgians' virtues. He assured them the American people stand with them. It was beautiful and inspiring, but now it's all just so many scattered words... His administration is now trying to make good on those words. I pray they succeed.

Doing something poorly is often worse than doing nothing at all:
Leftist here and abroad have won the propaganda war against the US. They had plenty of help from their fellow travelers in the press who trumpeted our every mistake. Our credibility is shot, we have no moral authority. It's not right, but that's where things stand. What affect will this naked aggression have on our already shaky "Freedom and Democracy" agenda? Will other states teetering on the brink be more likely to throw in with us, or will they decide it's easier to bow and scrape to regional thugs and local potentates?

Military might matters. International organizations don't.
"If you build it, they will come" is from that Kevin Costner movie, Field of Dreams. In the real world it's more like, "If you build it, someone bigger will take it away from you." Despite what the "citizens of the world" say, it's still a Hobbesean world where life is nasty, brutish and short. Can the UN help? No. Russia, as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, has veto power over any resolution, which really doesn't matter anyway since UN resolutions have the value of toilet paper. If you have something worth keeping, you better have the means and the will to defend it.

We can't count on Europe
A weak collection of pacifistic states who depend on a ruthless military power for its energy needs have no influence over that ruthless military power. Russia will be rewarded for this aggression. Who will punish them? The Western Europeans? Remember how they dithered while Bosnia burned? They can't scrape together enough arms and willing men to organize a hunting party. Besides, Vlad the Impaler will pinch the gas pipe off, and winter is on the way. Mustn't anger the bear.

If you're not upset about this you need to dig a little deeper...

America is not in Decline ... According to a Liberal Brit

Will Hutton is a formidable British thinker and writer, a European Union cheerleader, and a critic of American conservatism. Why does it take a European progressive to tell us things here aren’t so bad?

Mr. Hutton relates the following facts about the United States:

* We have 37 of the top 100 universities in the world
* 20 of the world’s 50 top businesses ranked by R&D are American
* 52 of the world’s top brands are American
* The US is the world’s #1 exporter
* 66% of America’s imports come from affiliates of American companies

I may not agree with Mr. Hutton’s politics or his criticism of our capitalistic society, but I applaud his intellectual honesty. You can read his short article here. It is a refreshing antidote to the one-note sad song wailings of our stunted press and pandering politicians.