Professional Documents
Culture Documents
US USSR Scary Parallels
US USSR Scary Parallels
No free press or media, elites believe their Plutocrat-controlled press and media, elites
own lies believe their own lies
Tiny party elite had nearly all the wealth Tiny Wall Street elite has nearly all the
and power, didn't want things to change wealth and political power, doesn't want
things to change
Cold War foreign policy buys a few friends Imperial foreign policy buys a few friends
but creates many enemies, alienates most but creates many enemies, alienates most
democracies democracies, and triggers catastrophic
wars
After two decades of economic rot, a new, After three decades of economic rot, a new,
dynamic, charismatic leader emerges dynamic, charismatic leader emerges
(Gorbachev), who invokes Lenin and who (Obama), who invokes Lincoln and who is
is a model Soviet success story. Gorbachev a model American success story. Obama
attempts political reforms while changing attempts political reforms while changing
nothing about economy nothing about neoliberalism
Demographic crisis due to broken health Health care system broken due to
care system, wildcat privatization of domination of private insurance industry,
medical services, lax environmental 40 million not covered, millions driven
regulation, life-span drops dramatically to into bankruptcy by medical bills, life-span
Third World levels in late 1990s of average US citizen is 1.5 years less than
average European, 2 years less than
average Canadian, 4 years less than
average Japanese, US infant mortality is
now at upper Second World levels
Table 2. Russia's hidden strengths, and America's hidden weaknesses...
Foreign debt peaked at 45% GDP in 1998, Foreign debts (measured by net
reduced to zero by 2005 international investment position, NIIP)
reached 42% GDP in 2008 and are still
rising 4% each year
No forex reserves, no banking system, but Dollar is still world reserve currency, but
ran big current account surplus (didn't need the entire banking system is bust, US is
to borrow from abroad) running vast current account deficit (must
borrow from abroad)
Former Soviet system guaranteed basic Millions losing their homes, Scrooge-like
housing, energy supplies, mass transit, welfare state means food stamps aren't
food for all, and functional cities, while enough to feed families, lack of mass
Russians grew their own food on dachas -- transit means car dependence, decades of
safety nets which make transition infinitely surburban sprawl devastates cities and
easier locks US into hopeless, doomed
hydrocarbon dependence
Top cadre of Soviet developmental state Iron grip of Wall Street-Treasury-rentier
still functional, economic crisis gives Putin nexus over US political system unbroken
and siloviki chance to fight back against (throwing trillions at bankers while letting
domestic oligarchs and Wall Street auto firms die), iron grip of military-
neoliberalism. Russia scraps military- industrial complex over US foreign policy
industrial complex, closes foreign bases, and Federal expenditures unbroken (trillion
starts over as a developmental state dollar military budgets continue, expansion
of neocolonial war on Afghan Pashtuns),
iron grip of medical-industrial complex
over healthcare unbroken (e.g. bogus
healthcare reform, instead of the single-
payer systems which all other industrial
countries have)
The best universities in world Partly true. Its universities are still world-
class, but Americans aren't going to school
– students come from abroad. Privatization
forced universities to rely on endowments,
which have been hammered by the crash
and burn of neoliberalism.
Incomparable science and technology False. The EU and East Asia spend about
infrastructure as much or more on civilian science and
development as a percent of their
economies than the US, while Russia,
China and India are building powerhouse
science infrastructures.
Remarkably diverse culture, civil rights True. Diversity isn't just the right thing to
revolution, massive change in women's do, it's the smart thing to do. US still has
roles the deepest, most diverse talent pool in the
world.
Rest of world admires us and will always False. We were a model once, but today
defer to our leadership the world is majority urbanized,
democratic, literate, media-savvy and has
forged powerful developmental states
Obama really is as smart and energetic as Partly true. Unlike Bill Clinton, Obama
he sounds. knows how to get legislation through
Congress. But if left to his own devices,
Obama will replicate Gorbachev's path to
catastrophe -- the US will turn into a
decrepit banana republic, ruled by a
corrupt, revanchist oligarchy. The US has
one last chance to turn the ship around –
but we're going to have to fight the forces
of Wall Street and Big Money. No struggle,
no recovery.