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Originally Posted by Flipper
How are our economic policies contributing to the squalor and lack of funding for proper tsunami notification measures?
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not to be a smartass, but this is exactly the disconnect between conservatism and liberalism. Conservatives see the squalor of 1980 inner city America and go "pull yourself up by your bootstraps." Liberals see the squalor of 1980's inner city America and go "lets spend less money subsidizing oil companies and set up a welfare system."
That's not hyperbole, that is indeed what happened. All you have to do is expand that concept to world politics and the reasons for the squalor in east asia (and the middle east, mind you) becomes painfully clear.
As for Economic policies contributing to the lack of funding, I'll explain. Following World War 2, America became the superpower, both in terms of military and economy, of the entire world. Russia, however, after destroying eastern europe with its absolutely ridiculous "satellite nation" program, turned to the far east. The spread of communism in places like Korea, Vietnam, and the scare of a revolt in both the Phillipines and Indonesia (remember this for later) put the entire far east on the "pawn" list in terms of the battle between capitalism and fiscal communism. Of course China meanwhile was spreading communism to southWEST asia. Places like Tibet, Macronesia, even India.
Now the
issue arises when American foreign policy, as evident by the Vietnam war, decides that to stop the spread of communism it will do anything and everything, including unprovoked war.
Why is all of this relevant? Because we won. Sort of. American businesses thrived in the 50's, 60's, and even the regression of the early and mid 70's. The problem is that while capitalism seems pretty to those who benefit (you and me with our Starbucks, 99 cent packs of socks, and Wal-Mart), no one lifts the curtain. Capitalism is a
sham. It works on the back of undeveloped nations by supporting oppresive regimes behind closed doors as long as they, in turn, support the outsourcing of American jobs, specifically in manufacturing and packaging, to these countries. You think it's a coincidence that the top 3% of America's wealthiest are more wealthy TODAY even though more jobs continue to these developing nations? And yet people still think our government (and treasury department) wants to stop this. It's a joke.
Let's look at Dubai, shall we? Dubai, an obscenely oil rich nation, should be rolling in money. And it is. Then explain why no one outside of the elite 1% of the country lives in those massive mansions? Why the country can starve and yet they build the most elaborate and expensive hotel in world history...why they have built, quite literally, entire man-made islands for the upper class? Because American foreign policy and capitalism encourages this type of behavior for, wait for it, cheap labor.
Indonesia is a hotspot for ridiculously low minimum wages, and yet in theory, with the amount of work and resources coming out of the country, they should be rolling in it. The reason why these countries don't have things like...oh....running water and tsunami warning systems is quite simply because America (and Russia) have used that entire region in a cold war. And continue to do so today.
Unlike stopping the spread of communism, the issue in 1980-present day "Cold War" is the rights to oil pipeline drilling. Coincidentally, the day we invaded Iraq we pulled one over the EU AND Russia (this is why they are pissed) because they were planning on building a pipeline straight through Iraq in the coming years. Now? Guess what? America gets it. And our H3 hummers are safe for another few years.
I love my country. It's why this type of stuff needs to be stopped. Terrorism is a DIRECT RESULT of American foreign policy. We have NO ONE to blame but ourselves. If we weren't raping these people's countries and supporting these regimes (and Israel which, by the way, was formed directly after WW2....odd coincidence? methinks not), none of this would happen.
That's why.