As a consummate Red-Teamer, I appreciate the multi-layered analysis that this discussion provides with respect to the War Game. Having participated in (and guided a few) TTXs and wargames over the years, one thing that I've come to notice is the lack of economic analysis. In other words, if you want to make any sort of predictive statement on the conduct or outcome of war, it is extremely useful to begin with an A-to-Z narrative of the economic storyline, versus the shooting. Put another way, while you and I may find sufficient the framing of this election as a choice between democracy and dictatorship, there is (unfortunately) a large swath of the population that either doesn't care, or doesn't understand why that's a bad thing. In order to drive the message home with conviction, pro-democracy strategists would do well to "connect the dots" for voters and explain what will happen on a macroeconomic level, and how that will wreck their everyday lives as they know it. I am absolutely convinced that the ultimate goal of Project 2025 is a return of America to a modern day version of the gold standard era (via crypto), thereby making us subservient to the likes of Musk and Thiel. I'm sure I'm not alone in this assessment, but I'm not sure how well the broader electorate really appreciates the consequences of underestimating the existential nature of the threat.
You are spot on re the obsession with the gold standard by conspiracy nutters. The ideal of the GS was to provide stability to currency by associating it to something tangible. Crypto is many things but tangible it ain't. You me and Darklord Thiel know this but it's a very good way to play the proles as you suggest.
What I never understood about American oligarchs & kleptocrats is the system must have a baseline of prole activity not just to take the cream off the top but to occupy them so they don't come after you with pitchforks. There's a limit to Rupert telling them to hate the dark ppl.
Tarrifs will destroy the surging economy. My 401 has been killing it. They will wipe all of the gains off the map and trigger a recession. It's like they don't have stocks of their own.
If darkness wins we will be in a never ending spiral.
The scenario you describe is exactly why I would pop the champagne if ever the entire crypto ecosystem would collapse and burn to the ground. There’s no benefit to crypto, but there certainly is a cost. It is truly a Ponzi scheme, and no nation should ever agree to back/peg crypto to its currency. There’s a reason that Bitcoin’s value fluctuates with the perceived odds of a Trump presidency. All the crypto-evangelists know that Trump would immediately and deliberately set the US into an inflationary spiral, with the ultimate goal of the US dollar no longer being the world’s fiat currency. Central banks would then have a choice as to whether they should replace the USD with the Euro or with crypto. Enter Goldbugs Musk and Thiel. One can imagine the backroom deals and the fleecing of national wealth that would soon ensue as the global corporatist class rises, backed by a technologically superior private army.
As a consummate Red-Teamer, I appreciate the multi-layered analysis that this discussion provides with respect to the War Game. Having participated in (and guided a few) TTXs and wargames over the years, one thing that I've come to notice is the lack of economic analysis. In other words, if you want to make any sort of predictive statement on the conduct or outcome of war, it is extremely useful to begin with an A-to-Z narrative of the economic storyline, versus the shooting. Put another way, while you and I may find sufficient the framing of this election as a choice between democracy and dictatorship, there is (unfortunately) a large swath of the population that either doesn't care, or doesn't understand why that's a bad thing. In order to drive the message home with conviction, pro-democracy strategists would do well to "connect the dots" for voters and explain what will happen on a macroeconomic level, and how that will wreck their everyday lives as they know it. I am absolutely convinced that the ultimate goal of Project 2025 is a return of America to a modern day version of the gold standard era (via crypto), thereby making us subservient to the likes of Musk and Thiel. I'm sure I'm not alone in this assessment, but I'm not sure how well the broader electorate really appreciates the consequences of underestimating the existential nature of the threat.
Thanks for commenting. The film has a v narrow scope. Panning back, I could not agree more. If you go over to our sister site scroll down to " America is booming - yet it is losing the war" in https://open.substack.com/pub/milab/p/hybrid-war-techniques-cognitive-warfare?r=17hw4h&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web.
You are spot on re the obsession with the gold standard by conspiracy nutters. The ideal of the GS was to provide stability to currency by associating it to something tangible. Crypto is many things but tangible it ain't. You me and Darklord Thiel know this but it's a very good way to play the proles as you suggest.
What I never understood about American oligarchs & kleptocrats is the system must have a baseline of prole activity not just to take the cream off the top but to occupy them so they don't come after you with pitchforks. There's a limit to Rupert telling them to hate the dark ppl.
Tarrifs will destroy the surging economy. My 401 has been killing it. They will wipe all of the gains off the map and trigger a recession. It's like they don't have stocks of their own.
If darkness wins we will be in a never ending spiral.
The scenario you describe is exactly why I would pop the champagne if ever the entire crypto ecosystem would collapse and burn to the ground. There’s no benefit to crypto, but there certainly is a cost. It is truly a Ponzi scheme, and no nation should ever agree to back/peg crypto to its currency. There’s a reason that Bitcoin’s value fluctuates with the perceived odds of a Trump presidency. All the crypto-evangelists know that Trump would immediately and deliberately set the US into an inflationary spiral, with the ultimate goal of the US dollar no longer being the world’s fiat currency. Central banks would then have a choice as to whether they should replace the USD with the Euro or with crypto. Enter Goldbugs Musk and Thiel. One can imagine the backroom deals and the fleecing of national wealth that would soon ensue as the global corporatist class rises, backed by a technologically superior private army.