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Military Keynesianism Gone Haywire: Paul Krugman Pines For World War ... Based On Ginned-Up Reasons

George Washington's picture




 

By Washington’s Blog 

As I have repeatedly documented, influential Americans are lobbying for war in order to save the American economy - what is often called "military Keynesianism".

For the first couple of years that I wrote on this topic, commenters more or less said, "That's crazy, no one is calling for war to stimulate the economy".

When allegations surfaced that Rand Corporation was lobbying the Pentagon to start a war to save the economy, Washington Post hack David Broder started promoting war as an economic panacea, and former Goldman Sachs analyst Charles Nenner and economist Marc Faber started predicting a major war, people started paying more attention.

And well-known economist and writer Paul Krugman has argued for years that World War II is what got us out of the Great Depression.

For example, Krugman writes today in the New York Times:

World War II is the great natural experiment in the effects of large increases in government spending, and as such has always served as an important positive example for those of us who favor an activist approach to a depressed economy.

But Sunday, Krugman went over-the-top by more or less calling for a major war ... and manufacturing a false justification for starting one, if need be:

If we discovered that space aliens were planning to attack and we needed a massive buildup to counter the space alien threat and really inflation and budget deficits took secondary place to that, this slump would be over in 18 months. And then if we discovered, oops, we made a mistake, there aren’t any aliens, we’d be better.

 

There was a Twilight Zone episode like this in which scientists fake an alien threat in order to achieve world peace. Well, this time…we need it in order to get some fiscal stimulus.

 

 

 


This statement is disturbing for two reasons.

First, many economists have demonstrated that - contrary to commonly-accepted myth - war is actually bad for the economy.

And the following statement by Mr. Krugman implies - whether intentional or not - the use of hanky panky to justify military spending:

And then if we discovered, oops, we made a mistake, there aren’t any aliens, we’d be better.

Doesn't Mr. Krugman know that governments from around the world have admitted that they carried out "false flag" attacks in order to justify their aims? See this and this.

How can he be so irresponsible to publicly pine for all-out war based upon ginned-up reasons?

Postscript: There have been Internet rumors floating around for years that the government was planning to use a "faked alien invasion" to justify a power grab by the government. I have no idea whether or not that rumor has any truth, and it is irrelevant for the purposes of this post.

 

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Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:57 | 1563867 StormShadow
StormShadow's picture

War is only good for the economy if yours is not the destroyed country. US benefitted after both WW only because our country was still intact. It took two generations for the invaded countries to recover

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 23:10 | 1563915 Element
Element's picture

War is only good for the economy if yours is not the destroyed country.

Well Japan and Germany did ok out of it eventually I'd say.

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 01:05 | 1564264 sun tzu
sun tzu's picture

Except for the 8 million dead Germans and 5 million dead Japanese, they did ok.

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 11:40 | 1565483 JW n FL
JW n FL's picture

and becuase of all of those consumers of natural resources being killed.. how much longer did the abiotic oil last?

drill baby drill!

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:42 | 1563814 Element
Element's picture

It would cut down on the commute!

And you could go home (the under-pass) for the weekends.

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:24 | 1563782 tahoebumsmith
tahoebumsmith's picture

Maybe we should remind Mr. Krugman that we are currently involved in 5 wars? 5 wars and 10 long years that have got us nowhere but big debts. If he thinks we can stir it up and survive a big one with everything else going on he is truly nuts. Our aaa rating won't be the only thing America will lose...

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 23:21 | 1563964 Imminent Crucible
Imminent Crucible's picture

"Conscience of a Liberal"---First of all, the Kroog has no conscience. Second, no true liberal would advocate bettering our economic structure by bombing someone else's into rubble. These things that get called "liberals" are nothing but plutocrat fascists, house niggaz to the Redshields and War-birds.

Kroog turns my stomach. Why hasn't someone given him the Buford Pusser Therapy?

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:24 | 1563780 JW n FL
JW n FL's picture

http://www.cote-sun.com/

everyone ready to grab some cheap houses?

I am!!

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:22 | 1563774 JW n FL
JW n FL's picture

Iran should be spared the rod in favor of giving it to Israel..

but! that will never happen!

so!

off to Iran we go!

Palestine should have been free of the Nazi Jews a LONGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG time ago! but now? just an excuse for war!

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 01:06 | 1564268 sun tzu
sun tzu's picture

Get over it you retarded fuck

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 11:39 | 1565477 JW n FL
JW n FL's picture

one line of drivel?

do you get paid by the line?

you republicans are sooooooo, boring.

 

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:21 | 1563745 nmewn
nmewn's picture

Saw that earlier GW.

Looks like the death throes of the "con-science of a liberal" to me...lol.

Of course we all know he (Krugman) was never a liberal...a true liberal. Glad everyone is waking up. It was a long nap ;-)

Edit: From a new guy, Dasa Slooofoot, fucking cracked me up...on Krugman's new & improved space alien invasion monetary policy, the IRCS;

Intergalactic Reserve Currency Status

Whats not to love?...ROTFLMAO!!!

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 00:37 | 1564211 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

Maybe Krugman could test his theories against the true lives of the actors behind Different Strokes. That way his ideas would either get locked up or die of an overdose

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 00:48 | 1564192 DaveyJones
DaveyJones's picture

Now now nmewn you know that all economists use television fiction plots to test their scientific theories

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:26 | 1563785 anynonmous
anynonmous's picture

what do you expect from a small furry woodland creature fighting for survival

 

 

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 01:26 | 1564304 three chord sloth
three chord sloth's picture

Heh. We should all mail him little bags of acorns. He'll have no idea why... and that'll leave him boggled, and a little bit paranoid to boot.

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 21:11 | 1563647 Dr Hackenbush
Dr Hackenbush's picture

"war cut short the depression" - the not so secret antham sung by every US administration since.  Not D's or R's -the only political party in the US have been the K's.   

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 20:54 | 1563629 Drag Racer
Drag Racer's picture

any truth to the rumor that O'totus and Turkey gave Syria 15 days to shape up or be invaded with Russia's blessing?

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 20:51 | 1563624 DavosSherman
DavosSherman's picture

Super read Geroge Washington!

God, there are some absolute fucking morons in this world.

May the newspapers go broke soon to silence the mindless fucking idiots with columns who are -thankfully- too stupid to blog.

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 03:04 | 1564438 ZackLo
ZackLo's picture

Broken window fallacy brought to extreme measure...I'm sure by space aliens he really ment....brown people in mudhuts with turbens on their head right? Or maybe people with slanted eye's..that we just so happen to owe alot of money to....

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 20:21 | 1563550 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

This statement is disturbing for two reasons.

No need to preach to us George.  When the time comes, every spacemonkey here is going to have make this decision:

  • Fight the space aliens
  • Make love to the space aliens

Pick a side dude!

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:57 | 1563864 zen0
zen0's picture

There will not be a choice for you. They will be making your choices for you. They will fight you and then fuck you. Kinda like the Fed.

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 01:53 | 1564341 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Well if this is the case, am I wise or weak to just sit back and enjoy the fucking, however it comes? :-)

If rape is inevitable, why not just sit back and enjoy it?...the existentialism of Bobby Knight.

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Bob_Knight

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 07:10 | 1564593 Dental Floss Tycoon
Dental Floss Tycoon's picture

That works until you are invited to dinner . . . . and then find you are on the menu.

Cattle are passive, and as a species it has worked well for them.  As individuals not so much.

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 20:25 | 1563565 George Washington
George Washington's picture

Can't I make love to the female space aliens and fight the males??

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 22:52 | 1563846 Turgid_Member
Turgid_Member's picture

There's an old Chinese proverb

"If you can't fuck'em, you fight'em"

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 09:22 | 1564926 falak pema
falak pema's picture

But from the female alien's viewpoint I am reminded of another proverb. Rape impossible...etc. And...if you can't avoid it lie back and enjoy it! 

GW is an eternal optimist!

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 21:21 | 1563658 Vic Vinegar
Vic Vinegar's picture

Wise choice, sir. :-)

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 23:19 | 1563953 hidingfromhelis
hidingfromhelis's picture

Krugman's choice:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DGFuHC75aY

He chose...poorly.

Mon, 08/15/2011 - 23:00 | 1563872 Manthong
Manthong's picture

A green slave girl from Orion might be nice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwOKjWpTnwY&feature=related

 

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 04:50 | 1564513 Freewheelin Franklin
Freewheelin Franklin's picture

"If the skin is green, there has got to be something wrong with the pussy." - Eddie Murphy

Tue, 08/16/2011 - 13:59 | 1566174 knukles
knukles's picture

Not always true.  She'd only been dead a few days.

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