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Politics : Clinton's Scandals: Is this corruption the worst ever? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neocon who wrote (12607)	5/20/1999 6:36:00 PM
From: Catfish	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13994

Book alert. It is currently #6 at Amazon. Betrayal : How the Clinton Administration Undermined American Security by Bill Gertz amazon.com Reviews Amazon.com Bill Gertz, who covers national security for the Washington Times, lays out a chilling argument against Bill Clinton's foreign policy in Betrayal. In his view, Clinton's "naive" strategies of "appeasement" with China and Russia have resulted in a betrayal of American interests, leaving "the United States weaker militarily as its enemies grow stronger and the world becomes more dangerous." According to Gertz, Clinton's policies have compromised national security: Clinton opposed development of a missile defense system that would derail arms control agreements with the Russians--even though they are believed to be developing such a system themselves. Gertz also maintains that the Russians are using U.S. aid targeted for decommissioning nuclear weapons to develop new weapons of mass destruction and to continue to develop new nuclear weapons. Gertz also makes the case that the Clinton administration's sale of sophisticated computer and satellite technology to China was influenced by campaign contributions to the Democrats from Chinese and American executives. "The small but growing force of Chinese strategic nuclear missiles has become more reliable--thanks to American high technology," writes Gertz. He further charges that the Clinton administration has attempted to downplay the Chinese threat to U.S. security even though "China has undertaken a steady military buildup that is directly aimed at fighting a future war with the United States." Betrayal asserts that the "most important legacy" of Bill Clinton's presidency may be "his dead serious disarmament of the United States and his self-serving appeasement of powerful and determined foreign enemies.... The administration's policies have endangered not only the United States," Gertz concludes, "but the peace and security of the entire world." --Linda Killian

To: Neocon who wrote (12607)	5/21/1999 3:29:00 PM
From: PiMac	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 13994

Neocon, yes, I remember reading that thread. I assume you let go2net keep these archives for you. What technique do you use to recall them? As I vaguely recall it all, we had much agreement, until I was over my head. Per your post's example: We can rewrite the 1st transaction as 2 corn = 1 ham. But lets rewrite it as, 2 corn + x corn = 1 ham + y ham. In your 1st example, x=0=y. In your second example, x= -1, y=0. Beef might get a z coefficient. For a standard to exist, there would be an enormous equation where all the coefficients were fixed. Unfortunately, even were that to happen, market conditions would shift, so that a new equation would be the standard. Any assumptions about a real, or timeless, standard are on unstable ground. Currency, of whatever form, substitutes for fractional coefficients [including 3/2], like coin change, and, as you say, is also time-shift barter. Time-shifting creates opportunities, or problems, to barter on a new 'standard' equation, in that x moves to x'. Thus time becomes a commodity, 'stored' in the chit. [ A definition of real wealth, or wealth, will be useful soon, I expect. I would use any subset of things having a coefficient. Adding human ability to make wealth would seem to fit here somewhere, though with a broader definition. I get ahead of myself; correct me if you think better.] What is unique about coefficient variables, uniquely within the economic equation is not that cross-type transactions are allowed, that is the economic system, or that fractional variables allow a more precise, efficient, numerous barter, or that the symbols of the variables can themselves be a commodity, representing time, or that a standard equation is theoretically possible, **but that the ability to abstract real, economic transactions becomes possible. Life activity becomes manipulatable.