Americans like Romans

[JW Frogen]

Helian if what you say is true then defence spending is a burden on the US economy, not propping it up..

Sort of like saying Police don’t produce fast food or cheap consumer goods so why do we need them?

[freediver]

More like saying the police do not prop up our economy, or Mexico's.

[JW Frogen]

Free D you need to cut back on the fish oils, all those omega 3s are doing strange things to you.

[helian]

Helian if what you say is true then defence spending is a burden on the US economy.

That was my point further back. The question is whether the US taxpayer can tolerate ever greater spending on military operations each year. I would guess that most Americans are not aware of even the relatively easily found figures over and above the near 500 billion outlay for the DoD. Figures well over one trillion can easily enough be sourced. The real figure, however, would include so-called "black appropriations" for "black programs". These are projects that are so highly classified that even the government will not officially acknowledge their existence until they result in a product (i.e. the stealth bomber). Their outcomes and their outlays (obviously including budget overruns) are undeclared. Many claim this is a violation of the US Constitution but as the executive does not acknowledge a black program, they contend there is nothing to declare. Some estimates put the total black appropriations budget at well over 500 billion. This means that Americans could be paying nearly 2 trillion dollars on their military.

Famously President Eisenhower was the first to raise the red flag about a possible vicious cycle of military spending and the US economy's dependence on this spending when he warned Americans of the "military-industrial complex". The original script for his speech had it as the "military-industrial-congressional" complex but be was warned off going that far.

No empire in history willingly dismantles itself. If the US crypto-empire follows the same path, it will be bankruptcy that will finally be the nemesis of US military overreach.

[JW Frogen]

This means that Americans could be paying nearly 2 trillion dollars on their military..

Let us accept this figure simply for arguments sake.

Given US GDP in 2007 was $13.84 trillion they can afford this.

Indeed, the US and the democratic world can not afford not to have the US spend this given the other possible candidates willing to hold the standard of democratic freedom.

[helian]

This means that Americans could be paying nearly 2 trillion dollars on their military..

Let us accept this figure simply for arguments sake.

Given US GDP in 2007 was $13.84 trillion they can afford this.

Indeed, the US and the democratic world can not afford not to have the US spend this given the other possible candidates willing to hold the standard of democratic freedom.

The world now waits to see whether the US can sustain a multi trillion dollar military expenditure while enduring the fallout from a once-in-a-century financial meltdown.

[JW Frogen]

Uncle Sam has waded through worse shit than this.

That freaky bearded bastard will make it through singing the star spangled banner all the way to Kalamazoo!

Besides, if Uncle dies who is going to buy all that Chinese crap?

The French? Get real!

[helian]

Uncle Sam has waded through worse shit than this.

That freaky bearded bastard will make it through singing the star spangled banner all the way to Kalamazoo!

Besides, if Uncle dies who is going to buy all that Chinese crap?

The French? Get real!

More to the point, who's gonna pay for the stuff already bought?

Wait... I can hear a song coming on...

"When the banks melt down in your neighbourhood,
Who ya gonna call?
TAX PAYERS!
From the invisible hand in the market place,
Who ya gonna call?
TAX PAYERS"

What a great idea!! Privatise the profits, socialise the losses.

http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jRM ... oK_snULqrw

[JW Frogen]

II was not a proponent of the banking deregulation Clinton rammed through Congress.

But if buyouts are necessary to keep millions loosing their homes, then so be it.

I do believe such buyouts should then be accompanied buy a demand that it gives the government a right to more carefully control lending practices.

Still, David Brooks wrote a wonderful article that reveals there is more going on here than just deregulation. The two major banks that failed, Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac were highly regulated.

There is a convergence of global forces at work here, the huge influx of foreign capital that flowed into the US since the 90s, increasing the ability to lend. The huge rise in global wealth (and increasing money supply with the rise of South East Asia and China.

And he warns that regulatory prescriptions in of them selves will not entirely solve what is a birthing pang of global evolution, the creation of the first real global economy. Nor would it always be fair. For instance Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac vastly expanded home ownership to the poor and working class by lowering the lending requirements. Most will survive these crises and keep their homes. Tighter regulatory practice such as was enforced in the 60s and 70s would have never seen them own a home.

Yet the great expansion of credit and allowing people at the lower ends of the economic spectrum to buy homes certainly was inflationary and created a housing bubble.

So the issue is far more complex than just typical right free market vs. left regulatory economics.

None of this however speaks much to the US’s ability to remain a world power, it is a credit crises, one that will be resolved by pain or gain, but resolved it will be, but GDP is still adequate, even right now, to continue the pax Americana for some time.

[Jasin]

Is the American empire like the Roman one? Were the Roman's hated and feared universally in the conquered lands? how could they have improved their image? Has America leadership sunken to complete decadence yet? Are the democrats capable of improving the American image? Is Obama like Nelson Mandela, in any way other than the colour of his skin?

Well here's a good find.
Yes, the USA was formulated on the Roman Republic, the Athenian Democracy with Liberty and Confederation thrown in.
Adopting this was the answer to something alternative than the British Political way.
Even the Italians and Greeks knew their ancient political ways were crap.
Hence why America is the way it is now - crap.
Just a nation run by the Media with 'fake' politics.

They travelled West, back into the Past.