Re: CHAT: The [+foreign] attribute

Andreas writes:

>Thomas Wier wrote:
>>  > > What makes the US so powerful is that it is not only very wealthy,
>>>  > it is wealthy with such a large population.
>>>
>>>  IMHO the only reason the US are so powerful. It is after all the
>>>  most populous country of the First World.
>>
>>I'm not sure you understand what those two facts actually mean.
>>Great wealth means nothing more than having access to a large amount
>>of material resources, and great population means having access to
>>a large amount of human resources (ideas, skills, beliefs, etc. in
>>addition to raw muscle power). "Power" for our purposes is defined
>>as the ability to marshall material and human resources toward a
>>particular goal.  So, when you say that the "only" reason is these
>>two facts, you are speaking tautologously.
>
>You've lost me here, I'm afraid. Since when does the possession of large
>resources, human or material, necessarily confer the ability to marshall
>such resources towards a particular goal?
>
>F'rinstance, the EU has a greater population than the US, and, IIRC, a
>similar-sized economy. Yet, I don't think anybody'd claim that the EU is
>more powerful than the US.
Exaculacally. This is running slightly more politically beyond my
comfort zone, but:  China is roughly the size of the US (albeit with
5-6 times the population) and replete with natural resources, yet it
is, as yet, not a 1st world contender.  Japan runs roughly half the
size of the US population-wise, crammed into a space the size of
California (and I'm not quite sure I believe this, but I've heard
with an *inhabitable* land-mass (area) the size of Connecticut) and
marginal natural resoures, and yet is a major economic force to be
reckoned with (that it's not a significant military power is a result
of a US-choreographed drafting of the new Japanese constitution
post-WWII) (*Portugal* was a world (colonial) power back in the day,
and it's the size of a postage stamp). So beyond, population and
natural resources, there are also complex historical, geopolitical,
and social (sociological) considerations, and since I can't speak to
any of these intelligently, I'll shut up now.

Kou

Kou