> You're making the classic rentier mistake of confusing short-term
> profitability (the accumulation of finance capital) versus long-term
> profitability (market share). The whole point of my argument is that
> the banking system of the Central European and East Asian metropoles
.....................................................
> Wasn't it Adam Smith who first noted that excessive profits were a sign of
> economic decadence, whereas rising economies showed lower profits but
> grew faster .........................................
Right you are, Dennis, and I'd be even more impressed than I am were it
not for the almost orgasmic delight you appear to take in showing that
the American financial system is utterly fucked in comparison with those
of Germany and Japan. What's the point if in the end there will be
imperialist rivalry, global chaos and war regardless of all this. (8^[
Yes, the German and Japanese systems, truth told, reflect a) surviving
elements of monarchic mercantilism, and b) genuine _nationhood_, in the
anthropological sense of the term. The American system, OTOH, reflects
Wild West freebooting at its most anarchic post-Civil War heights.
Your immense admiration for the German and Japanese systems suggests
to me that their judicious compromise between stalemated capitalist and
SD forces is the best we can hope for, there or here. Is that so?
valis
(no rentier)
