Imagine walking down the street with your partner, pointing out other people and telling your they are better looking, richer, nicer, and likely a better lover than yourself. And then to prove the comparison correct, you point to all of your own flaws and speak to your partner in a terrible way.
Do you think this is a good strategy to keep your partner?
It is akin to sending your customer to the competition, because they have a superior product than you are selling. And once they have been introduced to an alternative that is better, cheaper, or makes them feel great, the chance of them coming back is slim to none.
Our actions can create attention, and the more attention we have put on us, the more under the microscope we become. And when under the microscope, the chances of seeing the imperfections, the failures, and the red flags increases. And then, so does the likelihood of looking for better alternatives, or not as bad alternatives. And when the actions of what is under the microscope raise and highlight more and more points as to why an alternative is needed, the chances of staying in the relationship reduces.
I was writing the other day how we have relationships with everything we have (and don't have) in our lives, whether it be a person, a dog, money, or the walls of our house. Some of these relationships are more important than others, but all have some affect on us as individuals, and how we see the world. And I see it, the relationship that the rest of the world has with the US is abusive, on the US side. Of course, that is not how it is positioned from the US side, as it is like a wife-beating husband who says he does it out of love.
What I think we have forgotten is that there are alternatives to the current situation now and looking outside of what we have been doing so far, would provide a lot of healthier alternatives to staying in the economic relationship with the US. And, while it would be far better for the rest of the world to break away and start building its own capabilities instead of chasing US debt dollars, it likely would be better for the majority of Americans too, because it will create alternatives to what is a very imbalanced economy that leaves most people lacking, with a small minority with massive excess.
This isn't about being anti-American either. It is about creating a healthier economy that is more rewarding for all participants, rather than a global system built to over-reward those who actually do harm to the majority of participants. It doesn't just happen in the US by any measure, but the stranglehold the US has on the world economy exacerbates the issue and normalises the problems, making them seem acceptable.
But the current conditions are only acceptable when there are no viable alternatives. However, the more that the flaws are highlighted and the more often and serious the relationship abuse becomes, the more attractive alternatives become and the more options are created. This current situation is a chance for power to be more decentralised away from the control of US forces, and those who benefit from them.
Will this happen?
Probably not, because it is much like that beaten housewife who stays with their partner until one day they go too far, and kill them. All up until that point, fear keeps them in the status quo. The fear for the rest of the world isn't the US military, it is being cut off from the US economy. An economy driven by ever-increasing debt and overconsumption to the extreme. It is more convenient to sell to the US then to build alternate economies across the world, but it also means being under the yoke of the US. Pushed enough though, perhaps countries will start not only resisting, but changing their policy to one where they look to replace especially the services that are currently sourced from the US, and incentivise using the alternatives by taxing the US services appropriately where they earn the income. Do this, and suddenly those over-valued tech stocks, lose a huge amount of their earning potential and investors also look elsewhere to alternatives.
As said, it might be unlikely, but if we don't start building and supporting alternatives, we are going to be stuck in this abusive relationship until it chokes us out completely. Since I am not a billionaire, nor a most people on earth, we should be actively looking to fork away from this clusterfuck of an economy and try alternatives that are more likely to provide better outcomes for all of us.
One of my friends was in an abusive relationship for over a decade and when I asked her why she stayed, she answered that she really thought the person loved her. She knew it was wrong, but she felt that it was normal, and that for some reason she deserved the situation, and no better.
But under the microscope, it doesn't hold up.
Taraz
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Makes me think of Hamilton and the bit where the king is singing about loving his loyal subjects. It's just a different kind of monarchy. I still worry about the people who live here that become collateral damage in the short term if something like that were to happen.
I have no idea about Hamilton :D It gets referenced in shows and movies from the US and I know nothing.
Most will likely be better off at some point, but it would be a change for sure. Though, currently the rest of the world is the collateral damage.
It's pretty good. Especially if you like musicals. It's pretty impressive how the creator came up with everything he did. Quite a talented guy. Right, like what if I just created a small business that relies on foreign imports or exports. I'd suddenly be left in the lurch and by the time things get sorted out, either my capital will be gone or I will be complete out of business.
Is there a film version?
Yeah, a lot of businesses have been harmed. And then there are the other policies, like the rollback of environmental stuff. The US is the largest consumer of cars (unsurprisingly perhaps) so when they choose not to buy electric, all that development and production gets wasted. Stellantis is feeling it now.
Yes, they did a taping of the Broadway production that you can watch on Disney Plus I think. The problem with electric is the vast distances that we have in the US. It makes sense if you are just tooling around town or if you are in Europe where you sneeze and the next country over gets all snotty. Here is just doesn't make as much sense yet. I think it will get there though.
Most people in the US don't need to drive that much though. In Europe, there are charging points everywhere, regardless of distance. All the supermarkets, public carparks, all the service stations. If a car can drive 400mi on electric or so, how many people drive more than that regularly?
I will check if it is available on any of the streaming I have.
I think you would be surprised. We do just about 300 miles down to our inlaws about once a month. The issue isn't so much the spacing of charging stations, but how long it takes to use them. I can fill my gas tank in about five minutes if that. If I need to sit around and wait an hour for a full charge, that is a bigger problem. Like I said, I think one day we will get there, but right now, not so much. I remember someone on HIVE talking about how they used to drive from Minnesota to Nevada in like two days. Once they got an Tesla it took them four days because of all the stops they had to make to charge.
Well, it is not quite as one-sided as you have suggested. United States have provided complete military protection for Europe for about 80 years to the point where Europe has grown so soft that it cannot defend itself anymore while benefiting for these eighty years from first enormous American investment as a part of Marshal plan then for eighty years of not having to spend on their military at all. Trump had some points right when he complained about NATO spending...
Also, I think the whole US Debt thing is mostly a political talking point that was used successfully by multiple Republican administrations. Ability to issue debt is actually a great thing for American economy as we benefit from low rates and since dollar is the worlds reserve currency we have a lot more latitude for the debt.
That is not quite true. This was a US initiative from the get-go to take control of the situation. NATO was specifically designed to reduce military in the region. The US complaining about the situation that they encouraged, is pretty silly.
The debt model in the US is used to maintain control, without actually having to pay for it. The rest of the world might be finally waking up to it, which is why the US as reserve currency has been sliding - 72% to about 56% in the last 25 years.
It is true that for 80 years Europe has greatly benefited from not having to spend on their military... There is no free lunch, a gift like that usually comes with some strings attached...
Most of that was due to BRICS, Iran is being dealt with and hopefully Russia will fall apart soon... The USD as a reserve currency sliding is not the only thing that is happening. The share of G7 countries is falling compared to BRICS and that is indirectly impacting the usage of USD...
Europe has been spending on its military, though not as much as the US. But, much of what they spend on has essentially been bought from the US due to agreements for protection. This means that the US military for all these years has been subsidized (about 40-50%) by military sales. and then, most of the conflicts in the last 60 years, have heavily involved the US. And then consider the "cost" of the US military operations, when it is plagued by enormous overbilling by private firms which were encouraged to be used by people like Donald Rumsfeld. The US military has been subsidized by the control it has over the rest of the world economy, but as far as conflict goes, I think it has made the world less secure, more volatile, and ultimately unsafer - justifying its presence. It is racketeering, isn't it?
Yes, basically racketeering or protection money which is the same thing. It is especially pronounced now that we elected an organized crime organization to run our federal government.
Yes, Europe was spending some money on defense, but not nearly enough... look at the sad state of European armies even now after four years of war at their doorstep...
That's what Russia was attempting under the BRICS organization, to dethrone the US dollar from it's centuries-long dominance and encourage international trade in local currencies.
I remember US leaders kicking against that and saying all manner of things. I bet they would do anything to undermine the BRICS' vision and keep the dollar on top.
Maybe the rest of the world should come together to end the unfair and abusive dominance of the US economy. I can only see it happening in that countries in the Eastern world, notably China, Russia, Japan, North and South Korea, etc, create their own organization, strong enough to compete with the US on all fronts.
I guess this is what the creators of the USSR had in mind but that story didn't end too well, though they pushed the US to the corner to a great extent while the USSR existed.
And Libya was organising oil to be traded with gold in Africa - remember what happened to Ghaddafi?
The rest of the world doesn't have to compete with the US, they just need to stop trading with them. Up the prices for them to buy 30%, tax their companies locally, and then start increasing domestic consumption and production of all things.
I really admire the Spanish PM at the moment.
All of Europe should be doing similar, with all the various demands.
Of course they should. Anything less is a failure of both imagination and courage.
I do too and hope he sticks to his way. People of Spain should be proud.
From now on I will only have relationships that I WANT, not NEED. and none that cause me stress. (by that, I mean bad stress, not that I wouldn't think/worry about anything)
If you go into a relationship needing, you become an immediate burden.
There is one thing about humans, and that is that humans are often scared of change. The fear of where we do start from if we breakaways from relationship even if it is toxic. Another thing I also notice is that, once our mind is not at something or we move away from it. It is difficult to hold back.
The world seems to be overreliant on the world power which is the USA. Their popular and advancement give them advantage over other nations of the world. And most of the countries benefited from their trade and technological advancement.
If only nations of the world can find an alternative which won't be easy to come by.
Out of sight, out of mind. Now that governments are acting so openly, their ugly is increasingly in sight.
europeans leaders might have discovered that just now, while it was quite obvious the russia-ukraine war has just been used to push europe away from russia and make it dependant on liquid gas from the US
you see euro leaders how afraid are to go against Trump, they knee on everything
but i guess that's their reward to have win the ww2
Well, they were selling weapons and supplies to the "other side" right up until they entered the war themselves.
I think we should question dependency and seek for better alternatives that everyone would benefit.
At least, we can get out of abusive relationships.
I’m glad you made it clear it’s not about hate, but about wanting something better and fairer for everyone. The part about people staying because they think it’s normal or all they deserve really touched me. It’s simple, but it says a lot.
This is a powerful analogy. The image of someone constantly pointing out their own flaws to their partner really drives the point home no relationship, personal or economic, can stay healthy when one side normalizes imbalance and calls it love.
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Real change doesn’t happen overnight, but it starts when people begin building other options instead of relying on the same system forever.
😆 "clusterfuck of an economy"
You!
My granny used to say "better the devil you know".
After repeatedly choosing abusive partners, and finally fixing the shit that caused me to end up with them, I would strongly disagree with granny!
p.s. We have Hive as a good start!
Happy Days, T
I feel like sunk cost fallacy plays in way too much with some things or mayve everything as well. I knew some friends back at uni who while not in terribly abusive relationships were still sticking out relationships that weren't amazing and were probably better off ending but the participants kind of just kept stubbornly trying to tough it out because "it's been so long" and I think they were just afraid of being alone.