the latest BRICS summit recently completed

  • nebulaone@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    Yes, that’s right, you have figured out what all international elite spies couldn’t. You, some random guy, have undeniable proof that every country you don’t like manipulates their GDP.

    • folaht@lemmy.ml
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      1 day ago

      I’m going with @Sandouq_Dyatha here and say that you are not all international elite spies.
      And it’s not that “countries I don’t like manipulate their GDP”.
      It’s more that GDP measurements, including the PPP kind, are fundementally flawed and that’s by design.
      China is around 2.5 times the economy of the US at this moment by looking how much they are manufacturing
      and how much electricity they use, surpassing the EU per person.

      • nebulaone@lemmy.world
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        1 day ago

        Notice how everyone has given up on any discussion with you guys? I am the one dumbass who still occasionally shows up to get shat on. So be happy you still got me, otherwise you’d just be jerking each other off. Here I’ll even help you guys out and downvote myself.

        • Cowbee [he/they]@lemmy.ml
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          1 day ago

          GDP is a terrible measure of genuine economic output, especially considering that it doesn’t center production, but transaction and currency. A system highly financialized like the US, in reality, produces far less than China does, yet the US GDP is larger due to the dollar.

          Plus, people still show up to argue all the time.

          • nebulaone@lemmy.world
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            1 day ago

            Neither system is perfect. Physical goods (except resources, food and medicine) can become obsolete, demand may drop significantly (especially for luxury products), can be boycotted if you piss off citizens of a rival country enough and they are subject to tariffs, which is obviously relevant with the arrogant dickhead in the white house.

            Edit: I think it’s still fair to say that GDP is certainly good rough indication of how well a country is doing economically. Otherwise what would be the point if everyone thinks it is useless?

            • Cowbee [he/they]@lemmy.ml
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              1 day ago

              Political Economy is complex. What GDP aims to measure is overall production, it’s an explanation of wealth, however it paints a very uneven picture as it overvalues financial transactions and undervalues raw productive capacity. As a consequence, imperialist countries are overvalued (like the US), while production-focused countries are under-represented.

              GDP is often pushed by liberal, western countries as it makes them look good. A more honest look, however, is multi-faceted and takes into account other metrics like social services, which often run into negative “profitability” or break even, as they aren’t producing for profit. There’s also the fact that the US doesn’t outproduce in non-physical goods either. The US certainly has popular media and software, but it doesn’t have overwhelming productive capacity in these areas.

              The point of focusing on BRICS is because if you remove the financialized, almost ficticious look at capital as displayed by GDP, BRICS is more economically strong and significant, and this better reflects the real world, not just US-based self-perception.

              • nebulaone@lemmy.world
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                1 day ago

                I think that is also a very one-sided view on this issue. The truth most likely lies somewhere in the middle. Germany for example has a lot of social services (universal healthcare, unemployment securities, etc.) and is still doing exceptionally well.

                • BrainInABox@lemmy.ml
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                  1 day ago

                  I think that is also a very one-sided view on this issue. The truth most likely lies somewhere in the middle.

                  Centrism is a religion

                  • nebulaone@lemmy.world
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                    1 day ago

                    Centrism is rejection of political extremes. It is nuance and critically questioning everything. It means criticizing your own side. Contrary to popular belief It is the opposite of being a coward, because everyone will hate you.

                • Cowbee [he/they]@lemmy.ml
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                  1 day ago

                  Germany is also imperialist. The countries that rely on imperialism have higher metrics by plundering the global south. It’s kinda like looking at life expectancy of the rich vs the poor in any one country, the better metrics of the top come at the expense of the bottom.

            • culprit@lemmy.mlOP
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              1 day ago

              Otherwise what would be the point if everyone thinks it is useless?

              Capitalism trying to convince people it is still relevant and viable.

              https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/gdp-is-the-wrong-tool-for-measuring-what-matters/

              These examples illustrate the disjuncture between GDP and societal well-being and the many ways that GDP fails to be a good measure of economic performance. The growth in GDP before 2008 was not sustainable, and it was not sustained. The increase in bank profits that seemed to fuel GDP in the years before the crisis was not only at the expense of the well-being of the many people whom the financial sector exploited but also at the expense of GDP in later years. The increase in inequality was by any measure hurting our society, but GDP was celebrating the banks’ successes. If there ever was an event that drove home the need for new ways of measuring economic performance and societal progress, the 2008 crisis was it.