Tuesday, February 07, 2006
- 9:33 pm
"...the world seemed to be preparing to plunge back into the dark ages when all of a sudden a light shone forth- no, not Jesus, but the USA..."
- essay excerpt
the past few days have dragged on by; eventful and finally culminating in a lot of bad stuff. back and ankle injuries from soccer have yet to cease their throbbing which throws my availability for this weekends games into doubt; coupled with the flu im one cheerful charlie. and yeah, my handphone LCD screen had to go break so now it dont work proper like no more. i have however straightened my hair and been grounded with my money cut for coming back at 3 a.m. the best part is me ma gave me permission to go out and then claimed to never have heard such a thing. mucking foron.
today bhavanson got yet another death threat from stally baby. mad fellow craps all over the place (literally) and wants to be mr popularity. steady stally steady.
dramafeste is starting soon. gavin is fat and reminds me of a whale. rehearsals are long but can get a bit boring. as much as i like my character i cant but help feel irritated and depressed whilst hadris warm up sessions are very irritating, stupid and pointless. stupid raak. naw y'know im kiddin hadri haha :) but still the warm up sessions are draining and pointless. DRAINING AND POINTLESS I SAY. its just an excuse to play mariah. shes useless by the way. to everybody else, check out the latest rammstein album, rosenrot.
i will be auditioning for the annual production and then syf on thursday. i dont know which ill end up doing but i guess since this do be my last year of skool drama it better be interesting.
im quite pleased with what happened on sunday. despite happily spraining my achilles tendon right before the game i went on and played with the flu. a completely half arsed stupid thing to do but since im confessing doesnt it mean that doesnt count? or must i buy my forgiveness from the pope? 5 of us ended up playing against all the unlces and darryl. they went up 2-1 after i equalised and then we played until half time; and then it began. familiar with the term demolition derby? try to keep up. boon slips the ball to leon who sends the ball rolling past the keeper as next boon sends the ball in on the left. i make another run down the right going past a defender and smash the ball past uncle chandran to send the game to 4-2 before nakata first sends in a brilliant half volley as i then go on to score my hat trick, nakata gives another volley and i end it off with a final run a shot smacked straight past a motionless keeper to leave us the winners at 8-2. now tell me, whos your daddy again?
i know this post has been about as exciting as daniel $3 rolex but im tired. so there. to add to all the general excitement heres my international history essay.
Akesh Abhilash
2A01D/2006
Edmund Kwok
History 9067/3: International History, 1945-1991
6th February 2006
How far, in the period 1945-1991, was the success of the international economy dependent on the success of the US economy?
The end of the Second World War saw much of the world in a mess. The previously all powerful European economic powers were now shadows of their former selves, with the old axis allies of Japan and Germany left as shattered wrecks. The world seemed to be preparing to plunge back into the dark ages when all of a sudden a light shone forth- no, not Jesus, but the USA. Like the soup kitchen serving roast lamb every night, the USA helped drag the various fallen European economies back to their feet and set them on their way; leading me to state the case that the success of the international economy was indeed dependent on the success of the US economy only although it must be noted that the certain measures adopted or put forth through the US economy had more of a smothering effect on third world nations, whilst second world nations were practically ignored. Another important factor was the role of Cold War dynamics in the shaping of some of the USA’s policies. Before proper commencement of the arguments however it would only be polite to explain a few things, for example the term ‘success of the international economy’ being defined as a large amount of growth and prosperity within the economies of the post war developed world, mainly the capitalist west. The term dependent would refer to a necessity for a certain matter, in this case, the general prosperity of the US economy. The timeline stated in the question immediately hints at the fact that the Cold War had a part to play in the big picture, as it ended in 1991.
Firstly, the international economy was in dire need of financial assistance. The US provision of Marshall Aid to the various European nations and Japan helped in aiding their recovery and hence gave them a platform on which success could be built. To further aid this recovery, limited trade protectionism was granted to these nations, whilst the US defended them militarily ensuring that they would not have to grapple with the costs of a high military spending outlay. Furthermore, free trade was promoted through the GATT, whilst the International Monetary Foundation (IMF) provided a fixed exchange rate. All these measures to ensure the recovery of the European nations and Japan and hence allow for any success on their part occurred only as a result on the success of the US economy and their general lack of economic damage after the world war.
The importance of the Cold War in all these dealings however can never be understated; in fact some of them would most probably not have occurred without it and any person under the false assumption that the US government was philanthropy central would be sadly mistaken. The main reason for US philanthropy was prevention of the spread of USSR communism, and its very presence mandated a united front of the western nations; it was in fact as Hobsbawm puts it, ‘the major engine of the great global boom’. However I believe that the Cold War was less of an engine than it was a backdrop factor providing favourable conditions on which the European and Japanese nations would have the ability to capitalize upon. We do not deny the probability of US involvement in the international economy being compromised without the Cold War backdrop, but Cold War or no, the international economy was only able to receive aid for recovery at all thanks to the success of the US economy.
In the sustenance of this new found Golden Age of Capitalism however, the recovered nations began to veer away from dependence on the US. In fact, they all recorded much higher growth rates than the US, although this was partly because the US was much more advanced than they, an obvious example being the much earlier advent of the automobile era in the US than in Europe.
US success also ensured that organizations contributing towards the harmony of the international economy and catalyzing success such as the IMF, World Bank and GATT received adequate sponsorship. These organizations helped the international economy to succeed through the maintenance of free trade in manufactured products, long term development loans as well as short term loans for settling issues such as trade problems to ensure that the various economies would be able to overcome various obstacles in their way with ease. US sponsorship of these institutions was essential; they probably would not have continued effectively without US aid. An interesting comparison can be drawn with another similar organization, almost an antediluvian memory of harder times in these good old days of the sixties, the League of Nations. The US helped in the setting up of the organization but did not play any role in maintaining it, with various European powers in charge of running the show. They proved their inability to operate without US involvement in the collapse of the organization, and the effective running of the new IMF and World Bank with regards to the new international economy with US involvement proved as much. The US would not have participated in these institutions without some degree of economic stability and success and as such the success of the international economy with the help of these institutions was indirectly due to US success.
However another factor is to account for the success of the international economy in the 1960s and early 1970s and that would be the low oil prices of the time. Industrializing European nations and Japan were boosted tremendously by this as they were extremely oil dependent. However once again the US are directly responsible for this means to success; because of US economic success, funds were available to them for research and as such they were able to come up with various high technological products capable of putting this oil to efficient and effective use. These were used by Europe and Japan and so helped in their advancement. The rich economic condition of the time in the US was evident on the social front with the ability of the common man to indulge in more leisurely activities. This branched to music and the presence of several innovative and enduring cult status musicians such as Creedence Clearwater Revival and Tom Jones proves as much. This innovative spirit reached businessmen which led to the rise of the Multi and Transnational Corporation (MNCs and TNCs). The rise of these international organizations boosted trade tremendously and once again, US success was seen to have pushed the international economy forward.
Further evidence that international economic success was heavily dependent on US success was highly evident in the cause for the crisis years after 1973. As a result of their Cold War legacy, the US was beginning to feel the financial frostbite that was the accompaniment. A lack of taxation coupled with an overzealous provision of economic aid and military spending led to budget deficits; and then trade competition from their old dependencies Japan and Europe led to trade deficits as they lost their competitive edge with cheaper, more innovative Japanese goods on the market. They competed with the US for the same markets, with more efficient output, leading to the US practice of protectionism. This forced the Nixon devaluation in a bid to protect US national interests leading to a collapse of the current financial system and the creation of a new unpredictable financial system. Now that it suited them, US withdrew their support for free trade and began practicing protectionism in a bid to ensure their goods were sold. Furthermore, they supported trade blocs which severely hampered the progress of GATT with these new barriers to trade.
The international economy however was also dependant on Middle Eastern Oil, and their success also depended in part on it. As such, when there was a reduction in production of oil and an increase in its price, the international economy was severely hit as the rapidly industrializing nations were extremely dependant on it. The US, facing financial problems had to introduce monetarism in a bid to reduce inflation but this caused interest rates to increase; further damaging the US. With their economy suffering, the US was unable to lead the world on the capitalist stage any longer and as such the capitalism could no longer be controlled by a single able leader.
As such, I feel that the success of the US economy was highly essential to the success of the international economy as it emerged as a leader to first help the war torn and ravaged European nations and Japan to recovery before providing the means for rapid economic growth. Although it is true that the Cold War backdrop and cheap oil prices did play an important role in the initial success of these nations, they would all have been rendered useless without the aid of the US. The point is proved with the beginning of the crisis period the moment the US recognizes trade and budget deficits, and its withdrawal from the leadership position of the capitalist nations suggesting its lack of success led to a severe crisis for the international economy.
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fin
hit the stars
