OBT Forum

Quote from: TigerShark on January 17, 2014, 04:19:08 PM

How do China, Russia, Japan and Germany survive in this geopolitical climate without manning a number of military bases into the triple digits?

Germany and Japan are not playing in the same league.
China is expanding its network of military bases and Russia had some left and I am sure it is trying to have more of them.

China has managed to avoid being invaded. Why do you feel the US is justified in spending $680 BN on military spending when Russia is fighting the same "war on terror," is closer in proximity to the Middle Easte (Chechnya is within their physical border), and still manages to spend less than 1/3 our budget?

Are Russian soldiers that much cheaper? I'm more inclined to think that we play host to a nest of parasites, living off the industrial-military complex. Defense contractors, weapons manufacturers, Israel... All sucking money, equipment and lives away from our country and sending a bill in the process.

Considering that US GDP is 8 times that of Russia, I would expect the Russians to be a little bit more annoyed than an American if the American spend is only three times theirs.

Military spending isn't proportionate to a GDP. The two have little correlation, as you can see in countries like N. Korea, former Soviet Union, Ba'athist Iraq, etc.

But let's assume your logic is sound and we'll make a comparison. China's GDP (2013) is $8 TN, but they still only assign just over 1.5% of that to military expenditures. America's GDP in 2013 was $15.6 TN, but we allocated approx. 4%; around 2.25 times the amount of China. Even if we're using "proportionate spending" logic, wouldn't China's expenditure be closer to $320 BN? Yet they spend only 2/3 that amount.

I don't think any military analyst in the world would say China is not "safe from terrorism" or is under any risk of invasion from a foreign power. They don't have any issues with Islamic terrorism and haven't been sucked into the Middle East conflict. They're obviously doing something right with domestic and foreign policy, and doing it with a lot less money, too.

Quote from: Blacknova on January 20, 2014, 03:05:35 AM

Considering that US GDP is 8 times that of Russia, I would expect the Russians to be a little bit more annoyed than an American if the American spend is only three times theirs.

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I don't think any military analyst in the world would say China is not "safe from terrorism" or is under any risk of invasion from a foreign power. They don't have any issues with Islamic terrorism and haven't been sucked into the Middle East conflict. They're obviously doing something right with domestic and foreign policy, and doing it with a lot less money, too.

Wrong. They have a growing Islamic movement in the Xinyang province, Uighur separatists are growing in numbers. They likely have more unstable areas (Tibet), but we westerners don't get to hear about them too much

Personal income tax and corporate taxes are two different animals. Applying the same rational to one would be a mistake. A flat personal income tax would be fine, but corporations should receive certain breaks for doing things like employing citizens as opposed to outsourcing. Corporate tax breaks theoretically should be used to encourage domestic growth, etc., however, we've seen them used as party favors and political debt payments without rhyme or reason, and with reckless abandon.

As for China, I'm not surprised more people haven't heard about Xinyang. China does a really good job (by modern standards) of policing their domestic news. Do not take a quiet China as a sign that the country isn't facing any domestic turmoil.

Personal income tax and corporate taxes are two different animals. Applying the same rational to one would be a mistake. A flat personal income tax would be fine, but corporations should receive certain breaks for doing things like employing citizens as opposed to outsourcing. Corporate tax breaks theoretically should be used to encourage domestic growth, etc., however, we've seen them used as party favors and political debt payments without rhyme or reason, and with reckless abandon.

As for China, I'm not surprised more people haven't heard about Xinyang. China does a really good job (by modern standards) of policing their domestic news. Do not take a quiet China as a sign that the country isn't facing any domestic turmoil.

Indeed. The mass-stabbing in that train station speaks volumes. But their brand of "terrorism" is easily squashed by a state which does not particularly recognize the freedom of religion. If this continues, I expect to see a very heavy-handed response by the People's Army in that region (Turkistan).