Moody, what would happen to US credit ratings if suddenly it was not any longer the world’s mightiest military power?

Sir, Rochelle Toplensky and Eric Platt write that according to Moody, the four primary factors it considers when assessing a country’s creditworthiness are “very high degree of economic, institutional and government financial strength and its very low susceptibility to event risk”, “Moody’s warns next US president over debt” September 8.

In the case of the US they perhaps miss a very important factor. As I once argued in a letter that the Washington Post published, “Much more important than a triple-A for the United States is the fact that this country is, by far, the foremost military power in the world. Lose that supremacy and all hell breaks loose. Keep it and a BBB rating could do.”

And so perhaps you should ask Moody: How would it impact your credit rating of the US if the US was no longer, by far, the mightiest military power? And would the credit rating of any closing up mighty then automatically improve?

@PerKurowski ©

We do not believe that the Venezuelan military can contemplate sending their compatriots to the starvation ovens.

My deceased father arrived on the first train to Auschwitz in 1940 as a Polish prisoner, and had number 245 tattooed on his arm. Freed in 1945 by the Americans, in 1947 he moved to Venezuela where he lived for over 30 years, worshipping that country all his life. And now I find Andres Schipani’s “Venezuela army tightens grip as food riots grow”, July 30, coincidentally published next to an AP brief “Silent pilgrim” and that reports on a visit of Pope Francis to Auschwitz.

And so I just must say the following Sir: My father would never ever have believed, as neither do I believe, that the Venezuelan military are capable of sending their compatriots to the starvation ovens. And, in this respect, we would both firmly believe that something has to happens to put a stop to the runaway craziness of the current Venezuelan realities, more sooner than later.

@PerKurowski ©

Will drones and robot soldiers send the drill sergeants home?

Here is the short version of a letter to FT as it was published in FT Magazine on August 1, 2015

Like drones, robots also present challenges to the national psyche of their users (“Robot soldiers”, July 18/19) – the possibility of a diminishing human fighting spirit hiding behind drones and robots.

I think it is hard to visualize 
the same type of national “good feeling”, with homecoming parades and memorials, when scientists and mechanical engineers have done the real fighting. And what will be more important for the advancement of a military career in the future: knowledge about robots or knowledge about your men?

Will the traditional drill sergeant just become a figure featured in History channel documentaries?

What keeps me coming back
 to these issues is that 70 years 
ago my father was freed from a concentration camp in Germany by courageous American boots on the ground... not by drones or robots.

Per Kurowski
 Rockville, Maryland, US

Here is the original longer version of that letter:

Sir, I refer to Geoff Dyer’s interesting “Robot Soldiers”, FT Magazine July 18.

It is a comprehensive article, except for, like with drones, robots also present challenges to the national psychic of its users. I refer concretely to the possibility of a diminishing fighting spirit of the humans hiding behind drones and robots. And what about in comparison to the fighting spirit of others who cannot do so? What if these others, by for instance a cyber attack, manage to neutralize the drones and robots and it then comes down to a real man to man struggle? 

And I am not joking when I say that it is hard to visualize the same type of national good feelings with homecoming parades and memorials, when scientists and mechanical engineers have done the real fighting.

Also, when Dyer quotes Mary Cummings with “I don’t think we have enough competent people within the government to be able to set up acquisition programmes for autonomous weapons or anything robotic,” it makes one think about what will be more important for the advancement of a military career in the future, knowledge about drones and robots, or knowledge about your men… and the implications of that. Will the traditional drill sergeant just become a figure featured in History Channel documentaries?

I must confess though that what keeps me coming back to these issues is that this year 70 years ago, my father was freed from a concentration camp in Germany by courageous American boots on the ground… not by drones or robots. And the question that keeps popping up it my mind is; will American or other soldiers still have what it takes to free other future imprisoned fathers, if need be?

@PerKurowski

Venezuela must be an Emperor Severus’ dream come true… that is until…

Sir I refer to Daniel Lansberg-Rodriguez’ “A civilian sacrifice is more likely than a coup in Caracas” February 16.

It is a great article though perhaps his reference to the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus’ strategy to: “Enrich the soldiers, and scorn all others”, could have been made even more potent.

In Venezuela an Emperor Severus would not really have to be concerned with how all others were doing, so to be able to enrich the soldiers. In Venezuela an Emperus Severus would be receiving, directly into his coffers, 97 per cent of all the nations abundant exports, and that must be an Emperor Severus’ dream come true… that is until fast dropping oil prices turns it into a nightmare.

http://theoilcurse.blogspot.com

Chávez is in fact out of control.

Sir, in your editorial “Chávez in control“ you seem to believe that the president who loves to be called “Commander” has with this recent proposals of some changes in the Venezuelan constitution and that among other would allow him to reign forever, has suddenly reached a point of inflexion where now his plans “would be to weaken democracy”. You also mention “a landslide victory” for Chávez in the elections in December last year.

Sir, you have been mightily misinformed. Last December the opposition managed to get 4.3 million votes, 37% of the electorate and this was counted by the electoral authorities who had all been appointed by Chávez and who did not include among them anyone who represented the opposition. And that 37% of the electorate, ever since December 2005, because of their more than reasonable distrust in the electoral system, have had to live with a Congress with 167 members in favour and very obedient to Hugo Chávez and none, zero, zilch of who differ with him.

Please, whatever, do not tell us it is only now this authoritarian is getting in control since truth is, if anything, what is happening is that he is now really getting out of control.