NEWS If War Comes, Will the U.S. Navy Be Prepared?

[Randy Daytona]

Indeed. I find him to be well-reasoned and typically correct. George Friedman is another. Thomas Sowell for economics. A bit dated but I've gotten into Neil Postman lately and some of the parallels I've been able to draw between his thoughts on television and the current social media environment are shocking.

This podcast of Zeihan discussing Francis Fukuyama’s “End of History” was recently published- some good observations. Thought you, Griz and some of the others might find it interesting as well as counter-intuitive.

Tocqueville 21 Podcast: American Foreign Policy with Peter Zeihan - Tocqueville21

Tocqueville 21 · American Foreign Policy with Peter Zeihan We're proud to announce that the second episode of the Tocqueville 21 podcast is available today! This week, we begin a short series examining Francis Fukuyama's notion of the End of History. Over the next few episodes, we will examine...

tocqueville21.com

 

[Griz882]

This podcast of Zeihan discussing Francis Fukuyama’s “End of History” was recently published- some good observations. Thought you, Griz and some of the others might find it interesting as well as counter-intuitive.

Tocqueville 21 Podcast: American Foreign Policy with Peter Zeihan - Tocqueville21

Tocqueville 21 · American Foreign Policy with Peter Zeihan We're proud to announce that the second episode of the Tocqueville 21 podcast is available today! This week, we begin a short series examining Francis Fukuyama's notion of the End of History. Over the next few episodes, we will examine...

tocqueville21.com

Great podcast @Randy Daytona! I concur with almost everything discussed except the idea that Afghanistan will always remain “lawless” because of geography. If that were true Korea, well South Korea, would be third world state. Communism drove us to stay there but Islamic radicalism isn’t the same threat. The deeper analysis on Iraq is spot on and very few people realize that nor do we yet know if the new Afghanistan will allow for a revival of the old terror organizations. I really enjoyed the ending and the discussion of yet another great party shift here in the US and the potential impacts.

 

[nodropinufaka]

hard to compare south korea to Afghanistan. SK has a robust import and export industry for electronics and textiles.

Afghanistan got poppy’s which tends to attract criminal orgs and nothing really else to export or keep their economy strong.

USAID tried to assist in growing potatoes in a few of the provinces.

 

[AllAmerican75]

hard to compare south korea to Afghanistan. SK has a robust import and export industry for electronics and textiles.

Afghanistan got poppy’s which tends to attract criminal orgs and nothing really else to export or keep their economy strong.

USAID tried to assist in growing potatoes in a few of the provinces.

They've got some pretty sizeable rare earth mineral deposits that China is absolutely salivating to exploit.

 

[Griz882]

hard to compare south korea to Afghanistan. SK has a robust import and export industry for electronics and textiles.

Afghanistan got poppy’s which tends to attract criminal orgs and nothing really else to export or keep their economy strong.

USAID tried to assist in growing potatoes in a few of the provinces.

It didn’t in 1950. It had poverty and kimchi.

 

[Randy Daytona]

Great podcast @Randy Daytona! I concur with almost everything discussed except the idea that Afghanistan will always remain “lawless” because of geography. If that were true Korea, well South Korea, would be third world state. Communism drove us to stay there but Islamic radicalism isn’t the same threat. The deeper analysis on Iraq is spot on and very few people realize that nor do we yet know if the new Afghanistan will allow for a revival of the old terror organizations. I really enjoyed the ending and the discussion of yet another great party shift here in the US and the potential impacts.

Another person I really pay attention to is historian Niall Ferguson. He has an interesting article in The Economist comparing the current US to Great Britain between world wars.

Niall Ferguson on why the end of America’s empire won’t be peaceful
As it leaves Afghanistan in chaos, America’s decline mirrors Britain’s a century ago. It may also invite wider conflict, warns a historian

Niall Ferguson on why the end of America’s empire won’t be peaceful

As it leaves Afghanistan in chaos, America’s decline mirrors Britain’s a century ago. It may also invite wider conflict, warns a historian

www.economist.com

 

[Flash]

Another person I really pay attention to is historian Niall Ferguson. He has an interesting article in The Economist comparing the current US to Great Britain between world wars.

Niall Ferguson on why the end of America’s empire won’t be peaceful
As it leaves Afghanistan in chaos, America’s decline mirrors Britain’s a century ago. It may also invite wider conflict, warns a historian

Niall Ferguson on why the end of America’s empire won’t be peaceful

As it leaves Afghanistan in chaos, America’s decline mirrors Britain’s a century ago. It may also invite wider conflict, warns a historian

www.economist.com

If I had a quid for every British historian that proclaimed the end of the 'American Empire' I would be able to buy Buckingham Palace, if I had one every time Ferguson had I might be able to buy a decent flat nearby. British historians, along with many politicians and their press, have a bit of a love-hate relationship with their cousins across the pond and seem to revel in pointing out every flaw, mistake or mishap of ours.

 

[nittany03]

If I had a quid for every British historian that proclaimed the end of the 'American Empire' I would be able to buy Buckingham Palace, if I had one every time Ferguson had I might be able to buy a decent flat nearby. British historians, along with many politicians and their press, have a bit of a love-hate relationship with their cousins across the pond and seem to revel in pointing out every flaw, mistake or mishap of ours.

“The US has a whole bunch of influence, a big military, but hardly any colonial real estate. But if we still call it an ‘empire,’ we can rile up the left-wing coffeehouse set and get them to buy our stuff.”

Magazine editors, probably . . .

 

[Randy Daytona]

Indeed. I find him to be well-reasoned and typically correct. George Friedman is another. Thomas Sowell for economics. A bit dated but I've gotten into Neil Postman lately and some of the parallels I've been able to draw between his thoughts on television and the current social media environment are shocking.

Just saw on Amazon that Peter Zeihan’s newest book, The End of the World Is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization, is available for pre-order on Amazon and due out May 3rd. Looking forward to it.

Late edit to put in Amazon’s description:

For two generations, the Americans have held up the world's collective ceiling.

Globe-spanning supply chains made possible under the protection of the US Navy. Internationalized energy and financial markets underpinned by the American dollar. A global constellation of trade linkages, supply chains and operational norms too sprawling and interconnected to be maintained by the regional powers of Europe or Asia. A global food supply system made possible by massive inputs, technology, investment, and safe transport - all American-subsidized.

We know this all as the era of free trade. The era of globalization. But the architecture of our world was always artificial. Temporary.

In The End of the World is Just the Beginning, author and geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan does more than "simply" explain how we got to where we are or describe the end days of the world we know. He maps out the next world: a world deglobalized. Region by region. Country by country. Industry by industry.

• The future of transportation in a world made insecure.
• The future of finance in a world without sufficient capital.
• The future of energy in a world disconnected.
• The future of industrial materials in a world deindustrializing.
• The future of manufacturing in a world of shattered supply chains.
• The future of agriculture in a world bereft of what's necessary to feed eight billion people.
• A world ending. A world beginning. Zeihan brings readers along for an illuminating (and a bit terrifying) ride packed with foresight, wit, and his trademark irreverence.

 

[Griz882]

Just saw on Amazon that Peter Zeihan’s newest book, The End of the World Is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization, is available for pre-order on Amazon and due out May 3rd. Looking forward to it.

It looks like it had potential. I have long felt that the pressures of nationalism would eventually overwhelm globalism. We simply aren’t built to see the world in a singular nature so we embrace our tribe and do our best to secure it. In short, everything is local.

 

[HSMPBR]

Looking forward to it.

The end of the world, or the book?

 

[Griz882]

The end of the world, or the book?

Keep in mind…the end is just the beginning!

 

[trakanon]

This reminds me of George Friedman The Coming war with Japan 1991 it goes to show these geopolitical forecasters are often wrong.

There is one book I've been meaning to read: Neil Howe the Fourth Turning 1997 maybe when I'm done reading the Bible ?