The security council and the logic of capitalism

All of the top six weapon dealers, i.e.: countries exporting weapons, are currently sitting in the Security Council. With Germany serving as a non-permanent member for 2011/12 the exclusive club of weapon manufacturers is complete. But wait: Isn't the Security Council responsible for keeping peace? If one takes the name literally it is responsible for contemplating the world's security. And obviously their answer is more weapons. While you could argue that it is a way to address the question on how to solve problems, it is easy to see that their solution is biased. It is like letting the top managers decide about their salaries (yeah, sometimes they actually do). You may also think about it as McDonald's deciding how much fast food our children should eat. In any case we need to be suspicious about the decisions. The Security Council has conflicting interests, their moral integrity needs to be questioned. What can we do? Not much, but if you live in a weapon exporting, you can try to make it an issue. But the probability of success is small. 'There is no money in peace'!

Equally eligible...

"Expect things to get worse before they get better. The primary goal of the elite is not to advance an abstract ideal of the national interest or restore some imagined idyll, but to retain its hold on money and power. Current economic conditions threaten this goal, and the ruling cliques, to the extent that they are capable of concerted action in a crisis situation, will likely respond by tightening the screws at home, stoking anti- [insert as you wish here] sentiment, and provoking conflicts they feel they can exploit" (Freedom House 2009, Undermining Democracy; three words deleted).

The AXIS of EVIL

"The regime [in Iran] also employs a form of mass bribery to control the population. The authorities spend an estimated $70 billion to $100 billion annually on all manner of subsidies, from bread and sugar to gasoline and electricity" (Freedom House 2006, Undermining Democracy Page 31). Let's face it, they are pure evil! How can they dare to do that! What would Freedom House say about the EU??? ;-)

Telling the truth - find a mistake II

"The initial results of the global economic crisis, which has dealt a particularly severe blow to U.S.’s unbalanced and mismanaged economy, do not presage any positive shift in the fortunes of the country’s beleaguered liberal opposition" (Freedom House 2009; one word changed by me),

Find the mistake I.

"The core characteristics of American authoritarianism in its post-superpower maturity are selectively capitalist kleptocracy, the dominance of informal influence groups, decorative democracy, and illiberal ideology. Together, these elements form an effective mechanism for maintaining elite control over a disempowered populace" (Freedom House 2009, Undermining Democracy; two word changes by me)

More love(ly) Quotes

„Democracy […] is the rule of the average men; and the average men, it is held, is plainly an irrational and incompetent man. He is, indeed almost by definition, a mediocrity, and such cannot be expected to judge wisely of the numerous and complex affairs of state.“

Lovely Quotes

"Die Vermehrung von Kapital galt in kulturnahen Kreisen noch nie als ein Topos, über das es sich mehr zu erfahren lohnte." (http://www.spiegel.de/spiegelwissen/0,1518,714780-3,00.html)