Comments by "Antony Wooster" (@antonywooster6783) on "The Neocons Lost It All | Joseph B. Atkins" video.
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I have posted this elsewhere, but I think it is appropriate to this discussion too, so I'll post it again. I would be interested to hear comments on it. It has elicited remarkably little reaction so far.
At the moment in the US (Where almost all the threat of war comes from.) the driving force for wars and threats of war is the complex system, consisting of the arms industry, the USG, the Congress, the Lobbyist Industry and the Shareholders of the arms-manufacturing firms. This complex system functions as a sort of closed loop, with inputs and outputs. Inputs come from the taxpayers, while the outputs are, of course arms and (More importantly in this context.) money to the shareholders of the arms-manufacturers, As the loop is circular in nature we can start anywhere, Let's start with the congress critters. These representatives are chiefly concerned with keeping their positions and are very often shareholders in the Arms Industry as well. They are approched by the Lobbyist industry representatives with an offer which is difficult to ignore. The offer is: if you vote the way we tell you to, we will contribute generously to your re-election expenses. If you don't, we will fund your opponent(s). The Lobbyists are paid by the Arms manufacturers to do this. As a result when there is a proposal to spend money on arms, it is almost always passed, with the result that the taxpayers have to cough up more money and the shareholders get more dividends and the lobbyists get paid by the arm manufacturers, more money to do their next lot of work. This "Vicious Circle" (as I call it) is a very stable set up. It is also very self protective. Many have lost their seats in congress, trying to expose it and break its power. Some have probably died trying. In normal (!) circumstances, it is very difficult to see how this can be broken up by anyone. However, we do have, at the moment, quite abnormal times coming. (Or so it seems to me.) Neightoe is on the brink of a massive defeat and if/when that happens the Russians will be in a position to dictate a lot of the Terms of Settlement. If one of their terms was that all arms manufacturers had to be nationalized, it would disrupt this cosy arrangement. Or, at least, I think it would, because it would cut the financial knot that hold the whole system together. It would remove the financial basis for the "Vicious Circle." OK?
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@SaundraRaynor Yes, I agree with you. I think that perhaps they have mostly not seen it, previously, as a "circular", self reiforcing structure and they need time to think about it, before commenting? I don't know, maybe, as you suggest, they see it as an insoluble problem? Whatever, I see it as the principal problem, the problem without which being dealt with, the USA will just go on warmongering until it achieves a nuclear war or gets utterly crushed by a conventional war or its economy implodes.. Or something similar.
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