MarketWatch: 'Axis of upheaval' poses unseen threat

[marmar]

'Axis of upheaval' poses unseen threat
Obsessed with financial crisis, U.S. ignores security risks at its own peril

By Paul B. Farrell, MarketWatch


ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (MarketWatch) -- You're in denial. You know massive new taxes are coming. With trillions in stimulus and deficits, once again we're like addicts with stolen credit cards, on a rampage.

But soon reality will hit. External threats, unstable nations, terrorists and global warfare will demand action, reenergize our outrageous war economy and force a substantial increase in defense spending. See previous column.

Get it? The future of our economy, markets and banking system is no longer in our control. Our destiny is now inextricably tied to unknown, unpredictable external events and people, to the forces driving global politics and to fanatical enemies. In the near future, our domestic decisions may have a 10% influence on our destiny, but 90% will be in the hands of enemies fueled by hatred and the global economic meltdown. And it will get worse.

"Forget Iran, Iraq, and North Korea, Bush's Axis of Evil," says Niall Ferguson, a professor at Harvard and author of "The Ascent of Money: The Financial History of the World." Writing in the journal "Foreign Policy," Ferguson adds: "The bad news for Bush's successor, Barack Obama, is that he now faces a much larger and potentially more troubling axis -- an axis of upheaval." This axis has at least nine members, including China, Russia, Mexico, Afghanistan and Pakistan, he says.

Fighting the old Axis of Evil has already cost the U.S. $10 trillion, according to Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize winning economist. Today that figure is just the opening ante for future wars as the axis explodes threefold, putting the American economy under enormous new stresses. But unfortunately, we are still in denial, obsessed with domestic problems, downplaying external threats, hoping they'll go away if we focus on reviving our failing economy.

The new 'axis of upheaval'

Imagine our new 'axis of upheaval' with nine unstable nations. "This club is anything but exclusive," Ferguson writes. "Candidate members include Indonesia, Thailand, and Turkey," he said. "And let us not forget the plague of piracy in Somalia, the renewed civil war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the continuing violence in Sudan's Darfur region, and the heart of darkness that is Zimbabwe under President Robert Mugabe." And, he warns, it's "a fairly safe bet that the roster will grow even longer this year." ........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Obsessed-financial-crisis-US-ignores/story.aspx?guid=%7B5F8ABA5A%2DFF55%2D40DF%2D9E5B%2D28A89CAD3C8E%7D

[virgogal]

1. Frightening,but true. Economic woes come and go but the

possibility of another world war scares the hell out of me. I have 7 grandchildren and I fear for them.