- June 23, 2008 • 1:23 pm PDT
- + responses
Poor People Unite!
'What the world needs is an economic superpower that represents the interests of the world's poor . . .'
That can't be achieved by uniting the existing governments of poor countries. If those governments did a halfway decent job of representing their people's interests, the countries wouldn't be poor.
'Pooristan would establish a Pax Pooristana, enforced by a civilian-led multinational volunteer army.'
Paid for by whom?
I would expect such a force to be plagued by corruption and incompetence, plus national and ethnic divisions causing internal conflicts and insubordination.
Even on the most optimistic assumptions about the honesty, competence, and effectiveness of such a force, it wouldn't achieve anything close to 'Pax Pooristana'. I would expect some local successes, but most of the force would just be stuck in various quagmires.
'Pooristan would constitute a vast zone of free trade and migration that would eventually give rise to a polyglot culture.'
A beautiful dream. Why not for the whole world?
'And yet rich countries are growing ever less inclined to reduce immigration restrictions, often for good reasons.'
Oh. Poor countries don't have any good reasons for restricting immigration? That point could at least use some discussion, and Salam gives it none.
'Yes, there would be ethnic conflict, particularly early on. But competition between groups would take the form of friendly economic competition, not bloodshed.'
Why is that? Because the multinational force will, right off the bat, do such a great job suppressing all the existing armed conflicts that it will have no trouble heading off a bunch of new ones?
