Skip to main content

Systemic neoliberal “rationalism” recruited to prepare us for nuclear war?

Get used to it!

by system failure

Some thoughts on an article of NY Times under the title “The Lack of Major Wars May Be Hurting Economic Growth”:

The world just hasn’t had that much warfare lately, at least not by historical standards. Some of the recent headlines about Iraq or South Sudan make our world sound like a very bloody place, but today’s casualties pale in light of the tens of millions of people killed in the two world wars in the first half of the 20th century. Even the Vietnam War had many more deaths than any recent war involving an affluent country.” [!!!]

Which means that we must go backwards instead of evolving as humanity, creating mass bloodbaths for the benefit of the few?

This view does not claim that fighting wars improves economies, as of course the actual conflict brings death and destruction. The claim is also distinct from the Keynesian argument that preparing for war lifts government spending and puts people to work. Rather, the very possibility of war focuses the attention of governments on getting some basic decisions right — whether investing in science or simply liberalizing the economy. Such focus ends up improving a nation’s longer-run prospects.

Which means that we should play with fire just to make capitalism keep running?

It may seem repugnant to find a positive side to war in this regard, but a look at American history suggests we cannot dismiss the idea so easily. Fundamental innovations such as nuclear power, the computer and the modern aircraft were all pushed along by an American government eager to defeat the Axis powers or, later, to win the Cold War.

Possible translation: It may seem repugnant but get used to it!

War brings an urgency that governments otherwise fail to summon. For instance, the Manhattan Project took six years to produce a working atomic bomb, starting from virtually nothing, and at its peak consumed 0.4 percent of American economic output. It is hard to imagine a comparably speedy and decisive achievement these days.

Which means that the US must build a more effective weapon to destroy the planet faster in order to boost the economy?

Ian Morris, a professor of classics and history at Stanford, has revived the hypothesis that war is a significant factor behind economic growth in his recent book, “War! What Is it Good For? Conflict and the Progress of Civilization From Primates to Robots.” Morris considers a wide variety of cases, including the Roman Empire, the European state during its Renaissance rise and the contemporary United States. In each case there is good evidence that the desire to prepare for war spurred technological invention and also brought a higher degree of internal social order.

Internal social order? (!!!)

Naturally, the article ends with a preferable stance to peace, but the indirect warning "The real questions are whether we can do any better, and whether the recent prevalence of peace is a mere temporary bubble just waiting to be burst." sets the real goal:

Living in a largely peaceful world with 2 percent G.D.P. growth has some big advantages that you don’t get with 4 percent growth and many more war deaths. Economic stasis may not feel very impressive, but it’s something our ancestors never quite managed to pull off. The real questions are whether we can do any better, and whether the recent prevalence of peace is a mere temporary bubble just waiting to be burst.

Furthermore, the economic totalitarian throught is more than obvious here, as it puts in the same equation the increase of GDP by 2 pc and the death of maybe millions! As expected, the death of millions is not of course out of question, but only less preferable against these "big advantages".


As Paul Craig Roberts writes in recent articles:

... Washington thinks nuclear war can be won and is planning for a first strike on Russia, and perhaps China, in order to prevent any challenge to Washington’s world hegemony.

... US strategic doctrine was changed and the role of nuclear missiles was elevated from a retaliatory role to an offensive first strike role. US anti-ballistic missile (ABM) bases have been established in Poland on Russia’s frontier, and other bases are planned. When completed Russia will be ringed with US missile bases.

Washington has been convinced by neoconservatives that Russian strategic nuclear forces are in run down and unprepared condition and are sitting ducks for attack. This false belief is based on out-of-date information ..."



Some, like Roberts, are trying to warn us, that the Washington neocon "hawks" truly believe that they can win a nuclear war. Maybe they've already started the preparations using the mainstream media: From anti-Russian propaganda to natural acceptance of a nuclear war - brainwash. A sick neoliberal "rationalism" overdose - which in reality and out of our Matrix-world is pure madness - may be proved very useful, especially for the latest.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Trump Talks COLLAPSE SPECTACULARLY As Iran REFUSES DEMANDS & HUMILIATES HIM Again & Again!!

Secular Talk    

Προβλέψεις ...

GR elections Update (15/9): Αναθεωρημένες προβλέψεις (μετά το δεύτερο debate): ΣΥΡΙΖΑ 28-30% ΛΑΕ + ΣΧΕΔΙΟ Β' κ.λ.π. 20-23% ΝΔ 11-13% ΧΑ 6-8% ΚΚΕ 5-5,5% ΕΝΩΣΗ ΚΕΝΤΡΩΩΝ 2,5-3% ΠΟΤΑΜΙ 2,5-3,5% ΠΑΣΟΚ + ΔΗΜΑΡ 3-4% ΑΝΕΛ 2,5-3,5% Update (11/9): Αναθεωρημένες προβλέψεις (μετά το πρώτο debate): ΣΥΡΙΖΑ 25-28% ΛΑΕ + ΣΧΕΔΙΟ Β' κ.λ.π. 20-23% ΝΔ 11-13% ΧΑ 6-8% ΚΚΕ 5-5,5% ΕΝΩΣΗ ΚΕΝΤΡΩΩΝ 3,5-4% ΠΟΤΑΜΙ 2,5-3,5% ΠΑΣΟΚ + ΔΗΜΑΡ 3-4% ΑΝΕΛ 2,5-3,5% Update (04/9): Αναθεωρημένες προβλέψεις: ΣΥΡΙΖΑ 23-25% ΛΑΕ + ΣΧΕΔΙΟ Β' κ.λ.π. 20-23% ΝΔ 12-15% ΧΑ 6-8% ΚΚΕ 5-5,5% ΕΝΩΣΗ ΚΕΝΤΡΩΩΝ 3,5-4% ΠΟΤΑΜΙ 2,5-3,5% ΠΑΣΟΚ 3-4% ΑΝΕΛ 2,5-3,5% Update (29/8): Αναθεωρημένες προβλέψεις: ΣΥΡΙΖΑ 23-25% ΛΑΕ + ΣΧΕΔΙΟ Β' κ.λ.π. 20-23% ΝΔ 12-15% ΧΑ 6-8% ΚΚΕ 5-5,5% ΕΝΩΣΗ ΚΕΝΤΡΩΩΝ 4-4,5% ΠΟΤΑΜΙ 4-4,5% ΠΑΣΟΚ 3-4% ΑΝΕΛ 2,5-3,5% Update : Αναθεωρημένες προβλέψεις: ΣΥΡΙΖΑ 26-27% ...

The West's hypocrisy has been exposed: This is how

Geopolitical Economy Report   Donald Trump's attacks on longtime US "allies" have forced Western leaders to admit their warmongering foreign policy was hypocritical. Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney said the truth in his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos: the "rules-based order" was "false". Ben Norton explains how the global balance of power is shifting.

Iranian Women Resist Invasion, Hospitals Targeted & Petrodollar Collapse

MintPress News   MintPress News founder Mnar Adley, this essential interview with University of Tehran professor Dr. Setareh Sadeghi reveals the devastating reality of US-Israeli aggression against Iran that corporate media refuses to report. With over 307 medical facilities destroyed in one month, schools bombed, and universities targeted, Iran faces what officials describe as a genocidal campaign. Dr. Sadeghi exposes: • How BBC journalists calling for Iran to be "nuked" are tied to CIA-backed regime change networks • Why Iranian women are leading mass rallies in defense of their nation—not against it • The collapse of Western propaganda as independent Iranian creators go viral worldwide • How Iran's regulation of the Strait of Hormuz is accelerating the petrodollar's decline • UAE's covert complicity in war crimes while positioning itself as a neutral party • Why Russia and China are aligning with Iran against unipolar imperial domination As Trump threatens to ...

Greeks BLOCK Israelis From Entering Their Country

Revolutionary Change   In a continuing worldwide trend, Greeks are now attempting to block Israelis from entering their country amid them attempting to flee the consequences of their actions. Peter Hager delves into this recent trend.

Stephen Hawking confirms: The problem is Capitalism, not robots!

globinfo freexchange According to world famous physicist Stephen Hawking, the rising use of automated machines may mean the end of human rights – not just jobs. But he’s not talking about robots with artificial intelligence taking over the world, he’s talking about the current capitalist political system and its major players. On Reddit, Hawking said that the economic gap between the rich and the poor will continue to grow as more jobs are automated by machines, and the owners of said machines hoard them to create more wealth for themselves. The insatiable thirst for capitalist accumulation bestowed upon humans by years of lies and terrible economic policy has affected technology in such a way that one of its major goals has become to replace human jobs. If we do not take this warning seriously, we may face unfathomable corporate domination. If we let the same people who buy and sell our political system and resources maintain control of automated technology, the...

The dominant elite ready to break the "social contract"

Hyper-automation will allow the super-rich to “get rid” of the rest by system failure Since the French revolution and the new form of the urban states-democracies, the ruling class had to make the so-called "social contract" with the majority. From the moment that the dominant urban class took the power from feudalism and monarchy, should had to find a way to protect the means of production and the labor force. Therefore, the ethnic consciousness in each state served to bound the majority in order to shape national armies to protect the ruling class interests. In exchange, the ruling urban class had given the so-called social state, labor rights, etc., through the nation-state as a carrier and guarantor for all these benefits for the middle and lower classes. Since then, there have been a lot of battles and the majority managed to conquer some benefits. At the start of 20th century, the technology progress had brought the mass production. Western s...

Project Mythos: Too Dangerous to Release — So the U S Got It First

GVS Deep Dive   In the middle of rising geopolitical tensions and the Iran–U.S. conflict, a powerful new AI model quietly emerged—one that may reshape cybersecurity, financial systems, and the global economy. Built by Anthropic, the model—Claude Mythos—was reportedly considered too dangerous to release publicly. Instead, it is being tested under Project Glasswing by major tech companies like Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and cybersecurity leaders like CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks. The model has demonstrated the ability to detect and exploit software vulnerabilities across operating systems, web infrastructure, and critical digital systems—raising serious questions about cyber warfare, financial security, and national defense. With involvement from U.S. institutions like the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve, this may represent a major shift in how governments approach artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and global power competition. As AI capabilities a...

First predictions for the snap elections in Greece

Greek elections globinfo freexchange First predictions for the snap elections in Greece have started already. According to the German newspaper Bild, SYRIZA appears with heavy losses with a percentage of 28%. Close to SYRIZA is the right-Wing New Democracy with 25% (little less than 3% lower than in previous elections) and the new Popular Unity party that came from the split of SYRIZA, appears to gather 8% of the votes. All first polls show significant losses for Alexis Tsipras and SYRIZA. In the last few days, many members of the party have resigned and Tsipras has to deal also with the internal crisis in his party after the split according to the plan B of the Brussels bureaufascists. Most of the early predictions give Lafazanis' Popular Unity a percentage of 7-8%, while SYRIZA's partners in the coalition government, Independent Greeks, struggle to reach the crucial 3% to enter the new parliament. In any case, the split of SYRIZA creates an even...

Billionaires are social distancing in super yachts as tens of millions lose jobs

Everyday, it becomes clearer: the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting poor, working, and marginalized communities the hardest. Millions of workers – especially low-wage retail, food service, hospitality, and care workers – have faced the terrible choice daily between going to work and risking their health, or staying home and risking their paychecks. Many other workers don’t even have that choice, with around 30 million people in the US filing for unemployment in the past six weeks. But billionaires don’t face these same problems. As tens of millions have lost their jobs over the past two months, billionaire wealth soared by a whopping $282 billion between March 18 and April 10, according to a new study from the Institute for Policy Studies.  And while finding enough space to wait out the pandemic is something many struggle with, billionaires have been escaping to their second (or third, or fourth) homes to ride it out in luxury – all while they position themselves to ...