America's Superpower Status Coming to an End

Newsmax.com ^ | 3/1/05 | Paul Craig Roberts

[beyond the sea]

The U.S. economy is headed toward crisis, and the political leadership of the country – if it can be called leadership – is preoccupied with nonexistent weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East.

The U.S. economy is failing. The afflictions are serious. They could be fatal even if diagnosed and treated. America is losing the purchasing power of its currency and its ability to create middle-class jobs. Story Continues Below

The dollar's sharp decline and projections of continuing trade and budgetary red ink are undermining the dollar's role as reserve currency. A number of central banks have announced that they will be diversifying their currency holdings and will not be buying dollars at the same rate as in the past. This will put more pressure on the dollar. At some point, the flight will begin. Instead of buying fewer dollars, central banks will sell dollars, hoping to get out before the dollar hits bottom.

Suddenly, the advantage of being the reserve currency becomes a nightmare, as the world's accumulations of dollars are brought to market. An enormous supply and weak demand mean a very low exchange rate for the once almighty U.S. dollar.

Overnight, those cheap goods in Wal-Mart, which are the no-think economist's facile justification for Wal-Mart's decimation of communities, small businesses and employment, shoot up in price.

[William Terrell]

So, his credentials are of no interest to me, period.

Ok, let that be your last reply.

[chemainus]

good point and thank you....keep it flowing and see "churchill" the 86 posts and FREEP the regents and governor and news media...scroll for the red address list

[iconoclast]

Those WMD were very likely removed long before our military arrived in Iraq.

Which time 1991 or 2003?

[iconoclast]

we would be all on the corner selling apples and pencils by now.

If the time should come (God forbid) it'll have to be just apples this time.

We won't have the manufacturing capacity to make pencils.

[William Terrell]

I agree. But we would have to readopt the gold standard and return to producing products in this country and selling them to each other. That would be a good thing, but antithesis to the globalization efforts, the proponents of which are very strong in American policy nowadays, up to and including the president.

[Always Right]

I doubt it. Pick out a sentence that you have a problem with in the article.

OK, let's start with the main premise!

The U.S. economy is failing.

Let's see, we have high growth, low unemployment, and low inflation. That's a trivector showing a GREAT economy.

[Onyxx]

Ping for later discussion

[SeaBiscuit]

Feb 27, 2005 Bush's Willing Sycophants

http://www.counterpunch.com/roberts02172005.html

"The conservative media will never recover from its role as Chief Sycophant for the Bush administration. Journalists who demanded that Clinton be held accountable for a minor sex scandal (Monica Lewinsky) and a minor financial scandal (Whitewater) now serve as apologists and propagandists for the Bush administration's major war scandals."

The situation, in other words, is out of control. One hundred fifty thousand American troops are tied down by a few thousand lightly armed insurgents. The recent Iraq election was won by Shi'ites allied with Iran. U.S. casualties continue to mount, and our troops can seldom tell friend from foe.

February 21, 2005 "Outfoxed by bin Laden"

http://antiwar.com/roberts/


"President Bush's invasion has turned Iraq into a recruiting and training ground for anti-U.S. terrorists..

Why isn't Bush looking for a way out of the greatest strategic blunder in American history? Why, instead, are Bush and his government doing all they can to spread the conflict into Syria and Iran?"

October 15, 2004 The Brownshirting of America

http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts10152004.html

"Bush's conservative supporters want no debate. They want no facts, no analysis. They want to denounce and to demonize the enemies that the Hannitys, Limbaughs, and Savages of talk radio assure them are everywhere at work destroying their great and noble country."

"These are the traits of brownshirts. Brownshirts know they are right. They know their opponents are wrong and regard them as enemies who must be silenced if not exterminated."


"Today there is no one to correct a lie once it is told. The media, thanks to Republicans, has been concentrated in few hands, and they are not the hands of newsmen. Corporate values rule. If lies sell, sell them. If listeners, viewers, and readers want confirmation of their resentments and beliefs, give it to them. Objectivity turns listeners off and is a money loser."

**** READ some of his articles and there is no doubt PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS is anti-Iraq war and a Bush Basher all the way. And this latest article is nothing more than another (transparent) attempt at trashing the Bush Administration's Iraq war policies.

[conservativecorner]

Blah...blah...blah! Chicken Little BUMP!!!!!!!

[walden]

I think I phrased the second post badly-- in that specific, highly selective case, where I am a complete expert on the subject, let's just say that I am not at risk from any possible lack of integrity in the writer. Of course, rather than read and agree with the guy, despite his lack of integrity, I would be doing a public service to write my own article, adding a voice with integrity to the debate. ;)

As a practical matter, very few of us are experts of that caliber on very much. I'm a professional accountant with 20 years of experience, but I wouldn't listen to anyone of no integrity on most areas of accounting. Only on a couple of extremely narrow, extremely specific issues am I an absolute expert. So, my hypothetical example tends to fall apart in practice.

[Mulder]

The Dollar's loss of domestic purchasing power is known as "inflation," which is trivial.

I've read reports where the "real" rate of inflation is more than double what is being reported. (Isn't it convenient how they don't count things that increase the most in price, such as housing, education, and medical care?)

The Dollar's loss of foreign purchasing power means that Americans will buy more domestic things...hardly the stuff of economic ruin.

The powers that be have been reciting that tripe for several years now, and it hasn't happened.

Quite the contrary, our trade deficit increased by 24% last year to a record $600+ billion dollars. With no end in sight.

[William Terrell]

But, is it possible that a person can virulently hate President Bush and still be right about his economic numbers?

[SeaBiscuit]

Sorry to iconoclast, post #228 was meant for All.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1353214/posts?page=228#228

[iconoclast]

He then became an American-hating freak obsessed with "the Joooooos."

Could there possibly be a connection between your obsession with "the Joooooos" and your rabid support of the Bush administration?

[Petronski]

Is it possible that a person can virulently hate President Bush and still be HONEST about his economic numbers?

[G.Mason]

Thanks for your reply.

You had me going there, for a few moments.

[Petronski]

Are you asking if he's a Jooooo-lover?

[Wallace T.]

Paul Craig Roberts and his cohorts in the doom and gloom sector have predicted 14 of the last two recessions. Unlike Gary North, he did not predict the end of civilization five years ago because of the supposed Y2K computer glitch.

[SeaBiscuit]

"But, is it possible that a person can virulently hate President Bush and still be right about his economic numbers?"

And isn't it just as possible that someone's judgment can be clouded by that same virulent hatred?

[Poohbah]

He then became an American-hating freak obsessed with "the Joooooos."

Could there possibly be a connection between your obsession with "the Joooooos" and your rabid support of the Bush administration?

Thank you. I knew that if I laid that one out, I'd smoke someone out. "Reconnaissance by fire" strikes again.

Sincerely,

Most Learned Bagel-Snarfing Neoconservative Elder of Zion #5