SOCY 122 Lecture Notes - Lecture 31: Austrian School, Geneva Conventions, Economic Liberalism
15 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
WEEK 24
April 3, 2017
My Lai
- Routinization
o Michael Herr’s dispatches – context
▪ Points out that the soldiers of Charlie company were given orders and had
to prepare themselves for combat that day
o Transforming the action into routine, mechanical, highly programmed operations
o Removes conscious decision making from the recruit
o Emotional “distance” to “protect” or insulate
▪ It is hard to move back and forth between a soldier and an emotional
person
- Calley defended himself saying that he was given the orders necessary.
o He said his orders were clear – go in and destroy the enemy
o Men, women and children are all what he viewed as the enemy
o There were also some civilians working with the north Vietnamese army – so they
were the enemy. However there is no way to distinguish who is the enemy or not.
- Orders:
o Geneva convention never suspended by the Americans
o Witnessed atrocities – exacted revenge
o Lack of precision in some orders
o *
o *
OPEC and stagflation
- US troops withdrawn from Vietnam in 1973
- Organization of petroleum exporting countries cartel established in 1973
- Increased oil prices led to economic stagflation while prices continued to inflate –
stagflation
o Because we are fuel dependent and plastic dependent – we are petroleum
dependent
o Goods became more expensive
o People stopped buying
o Made less product
o People are laid off
- With a stagnant economy and rising welfare costs, government debts grew dramatically
- Keynesianism under attack
- “Austrian school” advocates of the unimpeded market came to the fore
- A new economic liberalism – neoliberalism – gained advocates
- Margaret thatcher and Ronald Reagan were the two advocates for moving more towards a
laissez faire economy
- Federal reserve controls monetary policy of the united states
o Supposed to act independently of the president
o Supposed to act in the best terms for the economy
Monetarism:
- Most important aspect in economy is money supply
- Economic indicators – not government to control money supply
- Only significant macroeconomic indicators that indicate how much money a country
needs in circulation
- Balance supply and the demand of money
- Consumer spending is relatively predictable
- Control interest rates—wouldn’t have a big growth as seen under the period of stagflation
Volcker’s monetarism:
- Money supply curbed
- Inflation fell 9% in 1980 to 3.2 in 1983
- Sharp decline in GDP
- Investment fell
- Unemployment rose
- Purchases fell
- Is interest rate declined people were worried it would lead to a depression
- Mid 1980s – economy recovered
- Reduced public sector
From Vietnam to project for a new American century:
- 1978 Shah of Iran overthrown – Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini establishes Islamist State
- November 4 1979 – 52 American diplomats held hostage (444 days)
o Freed through the work of Canadian diplomats
- “Muslim extremists” “Islamic Jihad”
- 1978—the soviet backed, Marxist People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan take power
in Kabul
- Afghan Mujahideen resistance fighters supported by Saudi Arabia, China, Iran, and
Pakistan – Osama bin Laden (al-Qaeda)
- Brezhnev puts Soviet troops in Afghanistan (soviet Vietnam)
- Soviet troops withdrawn in 1989
- Pakistani-backd Taliban (students of islam) are connected to bin Laden take control of
the government
- The new Islamist state is established
- Destabilizes Persian gulf region
- Geopolitical alliances can prevent and create war
- Iran supports Shia Muslims
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SOCY 122 Full Course Notes
Verified Note
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Document Summary
It is hard to move back and forth between a soldier and an emotional person. However there is no way to distinguish who is the enemy or not. Orders: geneva convention never suspended by the americans, witnessed atrocities exacted revenge, lack of precision in some orders. Us troops withdrawn from vietnam in 1973. Organization of petroleum exporting countries cartel established in 1973. With a stagnant economy and rising welfare costs, government debts grew dramatically. A new economic liberalism neoliberalism gained advocates. Austrian school advocates of the unimpeded market came to the fore. Margaret thatcher and ronald reagan were the two advocates for moving more towards a laissez faire economy. Federal reserve controls monetary policy of the united states: supposed to act independently of the president, supposed to act in the best terms for the economy. Most important aspect in economy is money supply. Economic indicators not government to control money supply.
