You know its amazing how frequently it comes up, but my answer to the eternal question "Was the war on Iraq justified?" is this: Do you mean morally or economically? Morally no, violating the sovereignty of another nation is morally wrong, no if, ands, or buts about it (Kantian reasoning here). Economically? Hell yeah, we’re an expansionist culture; if we don't expand we rot from the inside, which we are actually doing right now.
Its not just the United States here, every country is feeling the limits of its borders, and the amount they feel it is dependent on how much technology and infrastructure they have to support their ever growing population. Right now the United States supports a large percentage of the world to keep them above the inevitable famine that would strike otherwise. It is doubtful Europe would be able to support itself even. China is in perpetual famine, but they don't care about human rights so they kill off their population before its gets so bad that the rest of the world notices how shabby they really are.
So one could justify it from a Utilitarian standpoint, as in if we don't prosper the rest of the world will not either. Eliminating a tyrant that is guilty of untold human rights violations, even more atrocious than the violation of sovereignty? Yup I think it could be justified. And screw WMD, who gives a rip? WMD are not, and never were, the reason behind it all. Kind of like saying slavery was the reason for the Civil War. Looks good in the history books, but is it true? No!
Wanna try the new whopper with extra cheese?
The United States is being accused of being unfair and anti-competitive with Iraq contracts and numerous other trade policies. And yet right now capitalism and fair competition is being declared "perverse" by our United States supported and subsidized neighbors in this "Americas Summit". I dare anyone to name a country that isn't greedy. I doubt you could find a country that is less corrupt and special interest oriented than the United States. So it’s not perfect, but who is?
Next window please.
How do you control the demand of an inelastic good? You raise the price, you always raise the price. To increase demand you spike the price, dropping to something about the same as it was before after about a week or so. To lower demand you raise the price steeply over time. Why can you do this? Because people are very predictable when it comes to something they "need" or "must have to survive."
Self-fulfilling prophecies (and the bandwagon principle):
If Allen Greenspan says the dollar will go up the dollar will go up. Why? Because people will invest in the dollar because it’s going to go up. Why? Because Greenspan said it would.
There is going to a fuel shortage. There is a run on the pumps. Now there is a fuel shortage. Why? Because you said there was going to be a fuel shortage.
We are an economy where the people have perfect knowledge. But they still act irrationally. Thus that perfect knowledge becomes perfect deceit.
Other example of irrational behaviour:
Gambling, the vision of getting something for nothing. Actually thats not true, somebody pays and somebody gets. The people who make out are those that provide the service. Big winners? The bookies and casinos.
Auctions, getting something cheap. Actually the reason you win something is because you are willing to pay more than market value of that good. The winner's curse as it is called. The winner? The auction house.
Day trading. Stocks go up, stocks go down. Who controls the price, the guy with the most stocks. The average joe? Pays all his "winnings" to the broker.
Would you like fries with that?
(Editor's Note: The best plan of attack is still to have the United States rename itsself the Peacekeepers, after all for the UN to do any good it needs a sovereign power to enforce its laws, what else does the United States really have over the rest of the world?)
Its not just the United States here, every country is feeling the limits of its borders, and the amount they feel it is dependent on how much technology and infrastructure they have to support their ever growing population. Right now the United States supports a large percentage of the world to keep them above the inevitable famine that would strike otherwise. It is doubtful Europe would be able to support itself even. China is in perpetual famine, but they don't care about human rights so they kill off their population before its gets so bad that the rest of the world notices how shabby they really are.
So one could justify it from a Utilitarian standpoint, as in if we don't prosper the rest of the world will not either. Eliminating a tyrant that is guilty of untold human rights violations, even more atrocious than the violation of sovereignty? Yup I think it could be justified. And screw WMD, who gives a rip? WMD are not, and never were, the reason behind it all. Kind of like saying slavery was the reason for the Civil War. Looks good in the history books, but is it true? No!
Wanna try the new whopper with extra cheese?
The United States is being accused of being unfair and anti-competitive with Iraq contracts and numerous other trade policies. And yet right now capitalism and fair competition is being declared "perverse" by our United States supported and subsidized neighbors in this "Americas Summit". I dare anyone to name a country that isn't greedy. I doubt you could find a country that is less corrupt and special interest oriented than the United States. So it’s not perfect, but who is?
Next window please.
How do you control the demand of an inelastic good? You raise the price, you always raise the price. To increase demand you spike the price, dropping to something about the same as it was before after about a week or so. To lower demand you raise the price steeply over time. Why can you do this? Because people are very predictable when it comes to something they "need" or "must have to survive."
Self-fulfilling prophecies (and the bandwagon principle):
If Allen Greenspan says the dollar will go up the dollar will go up. Why? Because people will invest in the dollar because it’s going to go up. Why? Because Greenspan said it would.
There is going to a fuel shortage. There is a run on the pumps. Now there is a fuel shortage. Why? Because you said there was going to be a fuel shortage.
We are an economy where the people have perfect knowledge. But they still act irrationally. Thus that perfect knowledge becomes perfect deceit.
Other example of irrational behaviour:
Gambling, the vision of getting something for nothing. Actually thats not true, somebody pays and somebody gets. The people who make out are those that provide the service. Big winners? The bookies and casinos.
Auctions, getting something cheap. Actually the reason you win something is because you are willing to pay more than market value of that good. The winner's curse as it is called. The winner? The auction house.
Day trading. Stocks go up, stocks go down. Who controls the price, the guy with the most stocks. The average joe? Pays all his "winnings" to the broker.
Would you like fries with that?
(Editor's Note: The best plan of attack is still to have the United States rename itsself the Peacekeepers, after all for the UN to do any good it needs a sovereign power to enforce its laws, what else does the United States really have over the rest of the world?)
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