US to extract minerals from Afghanistan...

Yes the US and UK are the meanest countries on earth to the tune of 41.3 billion in aid to other countries. I see the hate America crowd is out in full force.

 

Invading is the most expensive way possible.
If you can't afford any of the other ways, then you most certainly can't afford that one.

 

Nobody ever invests in this one.

These minerals have been known about for many decades.
Last time the story was that Chinese had bought them and stolen all the booty from our invasion from under our very noses....
Only a gazillion in unexploitable minerals isn't a gazillion at all. It's just a good story.

 

The british empire took a nation, and then occupied it, plundering its resources, using its slave labor, and forced the people there to buy british. What did Gandhi do to piss them off? Got the people to weave for themselves.

We do it differently. We invade, or send in economic hit men to get some unpayable loans made. If we invade we try to get a puppet elected, sooner or later. If we send in economic hit men and that is resisted, then we send in the jackals. The purpose of course is to get at wealth and resources. It is as old as the british empire.

 

The purpose I concur with.
The order of play I do not.

First way is the easy way.
I trade with you for mutual gain.

Optimum solution. Usual solution.




And all of this is way older than the British Empire.

We bribe, money or military aid, whatever we have to offer, medecines perhaps.
Jobs.

We will assassinate and sanction and declare war and all the rest when we think it advantages us to do so.
But by and large, the easiest way of all is just to trade for it.

After 9/11, America said "We are looking for the people who did this. You will help us or we will declare war on you.
So everybody said "I will help you" and then did.
Everybody except some tribesmen in a valley in Afghanistan who probably hadn't really heard of America, and they said America? WTF is America? "Screw you America". And America really wasn't in the mood.
And now they have met America and they understand who and what America is.

You can deal with America and they will.

 

Not sure what county or countries you are writing about. The US is running a deficit with most countries it trades with. We have never invaded China yet our trade deficit in 2016 was $347 Billion. We also have a trade deficit with Mexico of $2.44 billion. We did have involvement in Vietnam. Some would call that an invasion however 40 some years after leaving we have a deficit with them of around $7 billion?

The last two countries we did invade Iraq and Afghanistan cost the USA over a trillion. What did we get?

 

Your bolded part...you should read Confessions of an Economic Hit Man. Written by a fellow whose job it was to be a hit man. Our history in south america, our meddling on behalf of our elites, should suffice. You obviously are unaware of our sordid history.

On our trade, we have been sold out. These deficits were never acceptable unless in the last few decades. For it represents american jobs. It represents buying things from them, that our own people used to make. And of course we do this in order so our bankers and MNCs benefit from slave labor, even as it devastates our own people. Our Founders set up a different system which worked better than this insanity for most of our history. We protect our people from slave labor, and the US has never needed trade, exports, to have a healthy economy and prosperity for our people. This trade, isn't trade in the traditional sense, it is offshoring our manufacturing and service sector, for profits, for our elites. That is clear, and obvious. So it is not trade, it is offshoring to slave labor, impoverishing our own people. It is called neoliberalism. I call it economic treason.

 

Revenge

 

I take it you are not a capitalist.

The largest construction companies ever created in the US were partly due to the result of WWII. I can't say that no politics was involved, there was plenty and a lot of people became wealthy. It was no different in other sectors of our economy.

I work in the industry. I have worked extensively on very large projects in Europe and the Middle East and other parts of the world. The number of projects in some developing countries were so large in scope the contracts needed to be administered by the Army Corp of Engineers. When billions are at stake, some corruption is inevitable.

I would say that the author of the book you reference is mostly full of BS but it's good conspiracy theory. Economic growth IMO does benefit humankind far more than the small amount of corruption it may produce as a bi-product. The fact is, labor is cheaper in most developing countries. The author claims the workers there were exploited? I say they were employed instead of being unemployed.

There is always going to be controversy where public or charitable work is involved. Look no further than the Clinton Foundation's failures to produce after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Where did the money go for all the unbuilt projects there?

 

Absolutely a capitalist, a retired business own, manufacturing.

So John Perkins, an economic hit man, who developed a conscience is a tin foil hatter? Did you read his book where he provides enough hard evidence to convince even a skeptic? I doubt it, for otherwise you could not have made such an inane statement.

No, the book is about how the CIA and NGOs take down a nation which has resources that our big elites want. And we have done this for a long time. Sir their is ethical capitalism, and their is evil capitalism. I know, some want it to be an amoral capitalism, not subject to basic morality, but that is a dodge, and a lie. I was an ethical capitalist. I did not exploit my employees, quite the contrary. I operated the way business operate in my youth, where even a service sector job at a mens store, locally own, or a hardware store, locally own, or a grocery store, locally owned, paid living wages. The business model today of walmart and other chains is, low wages, non living wages and the taxpayers pick up the rest, with welfare, subsidizing the corporations and stockholders.

I was a capitalist with a moral center and ethics. And I did quite well sir, quite well. So did my employees. But I was satisfied with a reasonable profit, and the banks could not dictate how I ran the business, with threats to buy out my stock, if I did not offshore. Which is what happened with some corporations once the offshoring began, hollowing out the america that the founders created with their protection of our business and work force. What the founders set up, that protection from slave labor is what make america the most powerful, richest nation, with her common people prospering. It worked. Maximization of banking and corporate profits by gutting the US out, is destroying our people. It is treason IMO.

 

Can it get more crazy than this? ASSISTANCE! I don't think God wants us blowing up people and nations to save them . In VA Hospital in Decatur back in the 60s I saw things I will never forget. I hated the hippy freaks who spit on our troops coming home almost as much as I hated the ones sending there. So I couldn't even say anything because it would hurt out troops. And today many still commit suicide a few I know did.
I still support them when I can. A great site where we know they get what we send.
www.anysoldier.com

 

I did not read the book. I did read a substantial amount of reviews after you mentioned the book. Part of what I read:

"A partly autobiographical book written by John Perkins published in 2004. It provides Perkins' account of his career with engineering consulting firm Chas. T. Main in Boston. According to Perkins, his role at Main was to convince leaders of underdeveloped countries to accept substantial development loans for large construction and engineering projects that would primarily help the richest families and local elites, rather than the poor, while making sure that these projects were contracted to U.S. companies. Later these loans would give the U.S. political influence and access to natural resources for U.S. companies. He refers to this as an "economic hit man." Although he states that throughout his career he has always worked for private companies, and suggests a system of corporatocracy and greed, rather than a single conspiracy, he claims the involvement of the National Security Agency (NSA), with whom he had interviewed for a job before joining Main. According to the author, this interview effectively constituted an independent screening which led to his subsequent hiring as an economic hit man by Einar Greve, a vice president of the firm (and alleged NSA liaison).

Although the accuracy of the content has been questioned, the book did well in terms of sales, having a placement on both the New York Times' and Amazon.com's best-seller-lists."

As I mentioned, I have worked on some very large projects. Deals were sometimes made. The business is highly competitive. Except for government projects our firm was always awarded commissions based on design merit and reputation rather than low bid. In engineering of public infrastructure projects, roads, bridges, etc. where public money is involved there is a greater likelihood of corruption since those doing the contracting are not using their own money.

I'm interested in reading the book as incredible as it sounds. I won't necessarily disbelieve his experience but will be skeptical. What he writes about is not SOP for most in A/E.

 

No hate here, just stating the plain reality.
Are the 41.3 billion given without strings attached? Usually, there are always conditions to be met.

 

Skepticism is always called for and good. Once I read the book, I went and listened to him on you tube, where he seems to straighten out somewhat what the reviewer said. For remember he was working for someone higher up in the business. Yet it should be no big secret that our CIA has always worked for american business interests in foreign nations, especially south of our border. I am sure you know of the United Fruit Company deal. If an american business, a big one, especially if owned by rich elites, gets into trouble in some other nation, like a change in ruler, who is not acceptable of the US company, we have literally helped with a coup to take the guy out. This should be common knowledge, due to the literature on it.

Perkins also says that if his job failed, then the jackals were sent in. He apparently witnessed this to happen more than once perhaps. I would have to read his book again to see, although I think he covers that in his talks on you tube.

 

Yeah there were probably strings like don't sponsor terrorist and things like that.

 

This is BS

They are barely capable of running an actual country let alone a mining pit.

Afghanistan is basically a group of tribal groups...

Trump is once again putting his foot in his mouth but it has truth to it like usual.

If we went in their and opened up companies involving the Afghans, we would (this thread proves it) be called evil.

Meanwhile when China does it, they are "saving the world"

The Anti US nonsense is getting old

 

China shares a border with Afghanistan and has been successful in building a railroad, power plants and mining operations which has in turn spun off small businesses.. China will still be their neighbor long after we have left Afghanistan.

Afghanistan wasn't backwards or illiterate 30 years ago... or not as backwards. They had a high rate of literacy, movie theaters etc.

IMO any US company that wants a concession in Afghanistan should be able to negotiate an agreement, but I don't like Trump framing it in taking their resources to pay for the war.

 

I never saw anyone spit on or disrespect a soldier.. In fact, everyone that I knew who was against the war in Vietnam were very much in support of our troops.

 

I was not talking about anyone here. I was talking about the so called anti-war hippies who I saw and verbally attacked for spitting on them. Some even in wheel chairs and the hate filled left spit on them too.

 

In Decatur, Alabama?

 

No Decatur Ga. Dekalb County.

 

Well you were not around in the late 60s and 70s then. Most the hippies hated our VN returning troops.

 

I'm in Buckhead.

 

I'm in Buckhead.

 

I'm in Buckhead.