3 ms·

well, i was born in ussr and i've seen it collapsing. i have to say that the author is full of it. the main sources of troubles in collapsing ussr were, in no p

by jsn 18y ago

well, i was born in ussr and i've seen it collapsing. i have to say that the author is full of it. the main sources of troubles in collapsing ussr were, in no particular order: * dying agriculture sector and massive dependence on imported food (doesn't appear to be a problem in u.s.), * non-existent property structure: nobody owns anything, so nobody has the incentive to maintain things or use things to turn profit, etc (doesn't appear to be a huge problem in u.s.) * no preexisting contracts, markets, distribution channels, etc; almost no preexisting social network of business relationships, since all operations were run by the state (not a problem in u.s.) * the main issue: it was 3rd or 4th generation of people raised in the world where "business", "profit", "property", etc were all synonyms for "crime". "doing something people want/need" was unthinkable. the only people who dared to think about it were criminals [and that's how we got the country we have now] (and no, i can't imagine that being a problem in u.s.) so there. if [quite an "if", huh] your empire goes down, i think you'll be okay :) [and some redneck farmers might not even notice much].

deleted 18y ago
[deleted]
time_management 18y ago
dying agriculture sector and massive dependence on imported food (doesn't appear to be a problem in u.s.) Only 1% of our population knows anything about how to farm, and if you substitute "oil" in for "food", you have the American problem. Our food production and transportation are highly dependent upon oil, and we don't have enough domestic oil to sustain the system in place. non-existent property structure: nobody owns anything, so nobody has the incentive to maintain things or use things to turn profit, etc (doesn't appear to be a huge problem in u.s.) I agree that we don't have this problem in the US. Our housing infrastructure is decaying because of poor, unsustainable design (sprawl) and because people lack the time and money to maintain it, not because they lack incentive. no preexisting contracts, markets, distribution channels, etc; almost no preexisting social network of business relationships, since all operations were run by the state (not a problem in u.s.) The "preexisting social network" of people who actually run American society is small, exclusive, and unambiguously an enemy. These people won't be relevant in an economic collapse, but I can't see them doing anything to help out average people. They'll fly off in their private jets. As for the suburbanized hoipolloi, they're already culturally and emotionally alienated, and they'll be physically dispersed once gas is expensive/unreliable. the main issue: it was 3rd or 4th generation of people raised in the world where "business", "profit", "property", etc were all synonyms for "crime". "doing something people want/need" was unthinkable. the only people who dared to think about it were criminals [and that's how we got the country we have now] (and no, i can't imagine that being a problem in u.s.) This is one crucial difference, and the US will be served well by the difference in attitude. Although the corporate elite are rightly viewed as a parasitic, criminal class, people harbor positive views of small business, and are largely comfortable with markets, capitalism, and profit. This might enable us to recover well.

by jsn 18y ago

deleted 18y ago

[deleted]

time_management 18y ago

dying agriculture sector and massive dependence on imported food (doesn't appear to be a problem in u.s.) Only 1% of our population knows anything about how to farm, and if you substitute "oil" in for "food", you have the American problem. Our food production and transportation are highly dependent upon oil, and we don't have enough domestic oil to sustain the system in place. non-existent property structure: nobody owns anything, so nobody has the incentive to maintain things or use things to turn profit, etc (doesn't appear to be a huge problem in u.s.) I agree that we don't have this problem in the US. Our housing infrastructure is decaying because of poor, unsustainable design (sprawl) and because people lack the time and money to maintain it, not because they lack incentive. no preexisting contracts, markets, distribution channels, etc; almost no preexisting social network of business relationships, since all operations were run by the state (not a problem in u.s.) The "preexisting social network" of people who actually run American society is small, exclusive, and unambiguously an enemy. These people won't be relevant in an economic collapse, but I can't see them doing anything to help out average people. They'll fly off in their private jets. As for the suburbanized hoipolloi, they're already culturally and emotionally alienated, and they'll be physically dispersed once gas is expensive/unreliable. the main issue: it was 3rd or 4th generation of people raised in the world where "business", "profit", "property", etc were all synonyms for "crime". "doing something people want/need" was unthinkable. the only people who dared to think about it were criminals [and that's how we got the country we have now] (and no, i can't imagine that being a problem in u.s.) This is one crucial difference, and the US will be served well by the difference in attitude. Although the corporate elite are rightly viewed as a parasitic, criminal class, people harbor positive views of small business, and are largely comfortable with markets, capitalism, and profit. This might enable us to recover well.