DrALJONES13h ago

Analysis: "Suez was the death knell for the British empire. Hormuz may do the same for the US."

It "risks repeating the 1956 Suez crisis, which hastened the end of sterling as a global reserve currency & forced imperial retreat".

"Empires decline when their military reach outpaces their political strategy..their economic foundations weaken..

.."& when the people they seek to dominate endure long enough to outlast their overwhelming force."

https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/suez-sounded-death-knell-british-empire-hormuz-may-do-same-us

#USPol #EUPol #Iran #Suez .

Suez was the death knell for the British empire. Hormuz may do the same for the US

As confrontation with Iran escalates, Washington risks repeating the 1956 Suez crisis, which hastened the end of sterling as a global reserve currency and forced imperial retreat

Middle East Eye
Show threadMiro Collas13h ago
@DrALJONES One can hope!
Show threadDrALJONES12h ago

@Miro_Collas

Yes.

One problem with the analogy is it assumes US so-called "debt" is a burden. As the US cannot run out of USD, the debt is just a bookkeeping figure (ie, not repayable). 1950's Britain's debt was real.

Still, it could be the end of the petrodollar. 🤞

Show threadMiro Collas

@DrALJONES You're right about the debt, I was thinking the same thing. Heck, banks fabricate money out of nothing all the time. How else could they sell debt at pennies on the dollar?

But yes, one can hope. The big concern is what happens within the US in the meantime.

4:53amWeb
Show threadDrALJONES12h ago

@Miro_Collas

Yes, and on what the US-Israeli fascistic psychopaths might do with their nuclear arsenal.

😱

PS you might already know this, but just in case:

The US federal govt alone, can issue USD (via the Fed, the central bank - & only on govt instruction)

Non-central banks can never issue currency (loans to customers are repayable debts, not new money)

Show threadMiro Collas11h ago
@DrALJONES On paper yes, for sure. But loans (debts to banks) are sold off at pennies on the dollar. A book on the 2008 financial crisis covers this while explaining that whole mess:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Short
The film is also good:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Short_(film)
The Big Short - Wikipedia

Show threadDrALJONES11h ago

@Miro_Collas

Thanks, yes, have read & seen. Fabulous, fabulous film!

My point was just on how sovereign currency-issuing systems work per se, not all the associated mechanisms, legit or otherwise...

The central advantage is that US can never run out of, & never has to borrow, USD.

Talking about big scary "debt" is just a tactic US fed govt uses to keep workers quiet.

Show threadMiro Collas11h ago
@DrALJONES Yes I understood. I guess I went off on a tangent, and didn't make that clear; sorry about that.
Show threadDrALJONES11h ago

@Miro_Collas

No need to apologise! I just wasn't sure if we were on the same banknote 😁

Not sure what you meant before by "on paper" for sure ( or similar)

Show threadMiro Collas10h ago
@DrALJONES Well, banks cannot sell off debts at a loss if that money were real. So I was referring to what that all implies. And frankly, delving into the intricacies of finances is more than my brain can cope with. ;-)
Show threadDrALJONES10h ago

@Miro_Collas

Yes, understand the brain ache ☚ī¸

Just in case it helps, there's only one key idea we laypeople need to know, namely, where money comes from (the rest is detail that doesn't matter to most of us).

The US, UK, Canada, Japan, Australia, etc. create their own currency (in the act of buying stuff).

Only the central government (via its government bank) can lawfully do that. No other banks can.

PS nowadays, 99.999% is done by electronic transfer, not by physically printing notes

Show threadMiro Collas9h ago

@DrALJONES That much I understand, :-)

Now bed calls. Thanks for the chat!

Show threadDrALJONES9h ago

@Miro_Collas

Thanks as well.

Anything else, just ask. 🙂