World Economy Fractures: The 'Danger' Is Already Reality. - Reddit in Shambles

Alright, let's get this straight. Another doomsayer preaching about the "fracturing" of the world economy? Give me a break. Neil Shearing and his "thoughtful new book" can shove it.

US Hegemony? More Like Wishful Thinking

The "US Bloc" Fantasy So, this Shearing guy thinks the world's splitting into US-centric and China-centric blocs, huh? And the US is gonna win because...reasons? Because our allies are richer? Newsflash: rich doesn't equal competent. Or trustworthy, for that matter. The author of *this* article is already pointing out the giant, orange-sized hole in that logic: Trump. That clown show single-handedly nuked any faith anyone had in the US as a reliable partner. Brazil, Canada, India, Ukraine – the list of countries he screwed over is longer than my last tax return. "Fickle" doesn't even begin to cover it. And what's this garbage about the US controlling "fundamental technologies"? Last I checked, my phone's made in China, my TV's made in Korea, and my car's probably got parts from, well, everywhere BUT the US. We're living off fumes of past glories, people. Oh, and speaking of past glories...remember when everyone was forced to read Peig Sayers in school? A depressing story of hardship, that turned people off Irish for life? Some claim Peig is a scapegoat, a one-word explanation for people who might be embarrassed about their lack of fluency in the language. But there's more to the story, as detailed in Peig: The boozing, partying, fighting years.

China's "Collapse"? Yeah, Right.

China's Not Going Down Without a Fight Don't get me wrong, China's got its problems. Xi Jinping's got the subtlety of a sledgehammer, and their human rights record makes me wanna puke. But writing them off as some second-rate power is just plain dumb. This Shearing dude predicts China's growth slowing to 2%? Seriously? That's like saying the sun ain't gonna rise tomorrow. Maybe it'll be cloudy, but it's still gonna be there. An economy with a GDP per head at 30% of the US level ain't gonna just roll over and die. They're hungry, they're ambitious, and they're not afraid to play dirty. And let's talk about this "US security umbrella." Are we really the good guys anymore? Are we the world's police, or just a bunch of trigger-happy cowboys with a superiority complex? I'm starting to think the latter. Shearing says China would lose more from a fractured world economy because they have a structural current account surplus. The only countries where these funds can be safely invested are the US and its allies. The alternative is to lend vastly to developing countries, which may be unable to service their debts. As Martin Wolf writes, the fracturing of the world economy spells danger.

Fractured World: A Disaster Waiting to Happen?

A Dangerous Game Look, I ain't saying the world's gonna turn into some post-apocalyptic wasteland. But this "fracturing" ain't some academic exercise. It's a recipe for disaster. Graham Allison and James Winnefeld write that the past eight decades have been the longest period without a war between great powers since the Roman Empire. Will this last if the world’s dominant powers believe they are playing a zero-sum or even negative-sum game? We're talking about potential trade wars, cyberattacks, proxy conflicts, maybe even a full-blown shooting war. And for what? So some politicians can wave their flags and puff out their chests? So corporations can squeeze a few extra bucks out of the global supply chain? I'm so sick of it. So, Who's Really Screwed? Honestly, who gives a damn which "bloc" comes out on top? We're all gonna lose. The planet's gonna lose. My sanity's already gone, so that's a sunk cost. Maybe it's time to just embrace the chaos and start stockpiling canned goods. Just sayin'.