America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign • Hacker News Board

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#261

Post by pinkfoot » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 12:02 PM UTC

hopia wrote: post #258

pinkfoot wrote: post #252

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Their risk analysis therefore probably concludes that the present LIKELIHOOD of an invasion AND a successful occupation is too low to worry about. That's the difference between the paranoid and the rational.

Then, what's the point of having any military equipment at all to worry about? Mind you, failing at this gamble would have devastating effects, as was evidenced by many occupied nations during the last major conflict in Europe.

My guess is its to keep enough professional officers and enlisted staff to be able to mobilise and upgrade their capabilities quickly (with or without allies) in the even the risk evaluation changes.

Note that Costa Rica has no defence force at all.

> failing at this gamble

Yes, all adult decisions are based on uncertainty. Especially when resources are limited.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#262

Post by AsyncAwait » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 12:14 PM UTC

baybal2 wrote: post #92

headcanon wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The United States' main geopolitical imperative is to maintain global hegemony. Part of this is ensuring regional powers are either allied (in the case of NATO countries or Saudi Arabia) or contained (in the case of Russia and Iran). It is a fundamental rule of Geopolitics that every country assert itself to the best of its abilities with the strengths they have. One of Russia's biggest strengths is natural resources…

"United States have no geopolitical strategy, but a lot of self proclaimed geopolitical strategists." I once have heard this position from US ambassador in Kazakhstan on a private reception event. The guy told people he expected a visit to a *stan country to be like a visit to a warzone. He was learning martial arts, hostage negotiation, and been mentored by multiple self proclaimed experts on "warlord politics" of t…

> Ex-USSR fiefdoms, Russia included, are ran by very simple people, without any geopolitical ambitions.

Which is in stark contradiction to the sophisticated goals of the West to control as much of the world's market as possible in order for mega multinationals to be able to exploit cheap labor and maintain their insane margins, so that they're able to pay their executives an ex-politicians millions of dollars per year.

Very unlike the goals of Russian oligarchs indeed and much more sophisticated.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#263

Post by AsyncAwait » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 12:17 PM UTC

akudha wrote: post #112

baybal2 wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"United States have no geopolitical strategy, but a lot of self proclaimed geopolitical strategists." I once have heard this position from US ambassador in Kazakhstan on a private reception event. The guy told people he expected a visit to a *stan country to be like a visit to a warzone. He was learning martial arts, hostage negotiation, and been mentored by multiple self proclaimed experts on "warlord politics" of t…

Every time I watch some "expert" on TV taking about some country, I think one thing - does this person have any real experience with the topic he/she is taking about? Have they visited the country they are dissing on TV, even once? Most of these so called experts are paid too. This is not just faux news either, the experts are on all channels. No wonder the public has low trust of news these days. Sucks to know that…

Brings back memories of U.S. soldiers being handed books about Arabs that were clearly orientalist and did not at all contribute to a real, unbiased understanding of Iraq, their culture etc.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#264

Post by fallingfrog » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 12:44 PM UTC

Sanctions are the modern equivalent of siege warfare- using starvation as a weapon. I’m not sure why it’s looked upon as being a kinder, gentler approach than dropping bombs on civilians. It’s still violence. People still die.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#265

Post by labawi » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 12:54 PM UTC

catalogia wrote: post #105

headcanon wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The United States' main geopolitical imperative is to maintain global hegemony. Part of this is ensuring regional powers are either allied (in the case of NATO countries or Saudi Arabia) or contained (in the case of Russia and Iran). It is a fundamental rule of Geopolitics that every country assert itself to the best of its abilities with the strengths they have. One of Russia's biggest strengths is natural resources…

You make it sound like it would genuinely be in Germany's interest to not have a pipeline with Russia. Americans are no more rational than Germans, so if what you say is true, where is the harm in letting Germans make their own decisions rather than having Americans make those decisions for them?

Not saying Americans are right to impose, but as a neighbor European and an Earth citizen I do believe it would be in our collective interest not to create additional pipelines to Russia, or anywhere else for that matter.

Germany should build some HVDC or regular long-distance transmission lines so they can use their wind electricity without routing through neighbors and build more wind farms.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#266

Post by AsyncAwait » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 12:56 PM UTC

bluecalm wrote: post #148

sschueller wrote: post #2

For the rest of the world this is a good thing. Why would the United States be the one to decide if Germany is allowed to build a pipeline to Russia or not? Image if it was Germany that used sanctions to prevent the US from building a pipeline to Mexico. Would you be ok with that?

I live in Poland and I am ok with US bullying others around because it increases stability even if we all have to pay for it. The problem with that pipeline is that Russia will get a way to cut off Ukraine and Poland without cutting Western Europe (their biggest customers). This increases chances of them invading rest of the Ukraine or maybe even Poland in the future. Without big bully to prevent countries doing deal…

As someone from a country neighboring Poland, I am very familiar with this reactionary mindset and find it disgusting. (Poland seems to be in a very reactionary period right now in general.) - Yes, we were part of the USSR, which was responsible for many crimes, but that doesn't mean we now need to be unsophisticated U.S. bootlickers incapable of looking at each individual situation and evaluating it on its own merits.

For example, it is easy to see how the U.S. would not tolerate the sort of of military exercises done near the borders of Iran off the coast of Mexico. But somehow when U.S. does it, it's fine. Same with the recent airliner disaster, which took Iran 3 days to admit to, longer than it should have, but the smug coverage from U.S. media completely omits any discussion of the U.S. taking 7 years(!) to admit to a similar disaster.

Hard to argue the Iraq War was any good, same for Libya, or the sponsoring of fundamentalists in Syria, in fact the American relationship with gulf monarchies, or even Israel, is hardly based on any moral principles.

The record in Latin America is too long to even get into etc. etc.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#267

Post by labawi » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 1:05 PM UTC

torstenvl wrote: post #164

DeonPenny wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would the US be drawn into that war? Why are we helping EU in the first place especially when they are russia main trading partners.

Because that's what being the leader of the free world means. The U.S. has the economic and military resources to give freedom a fighting chance of survival. If we choose not to counterbalance the influence of autocracies, that freedom won't last long.

You left out the asterisk on free.

EDIT: I don't prefer autocracies, live in EU, and I do appreciate the need for counterbalance. Yes, in many important ways you are (more) free.

Yet, while USA has 2 parties instead of 1, both are beholden to capital interests, including their healthcare, monopolized internet, schools, and even their military has vast ties with capital interests. Citizens are significantly dependent on their "credit scores" while banks easily give loans in their names to other people (so called identity theft). People start saving for their children's education even before they are born and still end up with college debt. 0.7% of the population is in prison, and cops can legally rob you (asset forfeiture).

Let's not forget overthrowing the first democratically elected government when they nationalize their oil sector, instating a dictator, and then invading the country. That's what sharing free¹dom means.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#268

Post by labawi » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 1:12 PM UTC

mattrp wrote: post #65

augstein wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s about Russian natural gas, not oil. About 25% of Germany’s primary energy are produced from gas, of which about 40% come from Russia (down from about 50% in 1995).[1] The US sanctions against the Nord Stream project are seen by a number of Germans as a rather clumsy attempt to push the sale of their expensive liquified natural gas, which to a high degree is produced by hydraulic fracking.[2] 1) https://translate…

Talk about clumsy, I seem to remember Russia turning off the gas back in the 90s and everyone was surprised at just how easily nato’s entire infrastructure could be held ransom by the flick of a switch. The issue basically boils down to the survivability of US/NATO operations. And the Germans ambivalence - what with Gerard Schroeder essentially doing a crony deal for nordstream directly underscores that Germans know…

Wasn't Iraq invaded shortly after switching oil pricing to EUR? That was for Germany's benefit?

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#269

Post by La1n » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 1:16 PM UTC

hopia wrote: post #221

La1n wrote: post #209

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>If the US simply 'did not exist' - Russian Imperialism would reach just about as far as in the Soviet era We can speculate a lot, but that's a this is, speculation. This comment and a lot of others smell of American exceptionalism to me as a non US citizen.

If there was no Cold War, or there was one that Russia would've won against Western Europe, half of Europe would still be occupied as the USSR wouldn't have fallen.

Alternate history is fun to think about, but again, nothing more than speculation and fiction.

Re: America’s aggressive use of sanctions endangers the dollar’s reign

#270

Post by d0mine » Sun, Jan 19, 2020, 1:16 PM UTC

thatcat wrote: post #217

d0mine wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How many people speak Greek in Crimea? How many are native Russian speakers?

So, people speak English many places and the UK doesn't have any right to control those areas.

Look at the context (Crimea, 2020). If we are choosing between ancient greeks and russians then the language/culture/identity of the people should matter.