tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post7903043793809038621..comments2024-03-19T07:48:54.021-06:00Comments on Gus Van Horn: Quick Roundup 170Gus Van Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-54644851130787765892007-04-03T23:17:00.000-06:002007-04-03T23:17:00.000-06:00Economic sanctions can work only if you are (a) in...Economic sanctions can work only if you are (a) in a position to do actual damage to the opponent's economy and (b) are ruthless about them, which means basically being willing to blockade your enemy. <BR/><BR/>Oops! But that's really a military option, too!Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-84883883183859280192007-04-03T22:56:00.000-06:002007-04-03T22:56:00.000-06:00The days of Diplomacy is the art of saying “...The days of Diplomacy is the art of saying “nice doggy” until you can find a rock (from the classic Unix fortune command) are long gone.<BR/><BR/>I remember the approach to using economic sanctions as a means to diplomacy is attributed to Jefferson, who is also the President who ordered the Marines to do one of the things that they sing about in their anthem (“…to the shores of Tripoli”). <BR/><BR/>The economic sanctions in his case were directed against the English, for interfering with American trading ships. The economic sanctions went unnoticed by the English, annoyed the Americans who relied upon English goods, and it ended up with the War of 1812.<BR/><BR/>In the contemporary case, again, history is repeating itself with respect to the benign effect of ecnomic sanctions against militant regimes.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-80800356409882134392007-04-03T15:42:00.000-06:002007-04-03T15:42:00.000-06:00Thank you for the morbidly interesting tale, Jim.I...Thank you for the morbidly interesting tale, Jim.<BR/><BR/>I was always less-than-convinced that NAFTA was all it was supposed to be WRT free trade, but am a have been a little surprised over time at how widespread such fiangling apparently is.<BR/><BR/>On top of all this, due to vestiges of Prohibition and the influence of Baptists in the Southeast, alcohol is very heavily regulated in the US, as I once <A HREF="http://gusvanhorn.blogspot.com/2005/04/how-nanny-states-perpetuate.html" REL="nofollow">blogged</A> way back. (I have to admit having no idea whether California is as bad as Texas in so far as regulation of alcohol is.) See that post. You would be surprised at how many merchants, at least in Red Texas, think state regulation serves their interests.Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-5572656588313399902007-04-03T14:44:00.000-06:002007-04-03T14:44:00.000-06:00Regarding the shrimping protection racket, I expec...Regarding the shrimping protection racket, I expect that this sort of thing goes on all the time over all industries.<BR/><BR/>I am a wine aficionado, and also happened to grow up in the Niagara Region in Canada, where ice wine is made. For a long time, I heard that Niagara wineries were trying to expand their market into the United States, but except for the occasional direct importation of small quantities by individual U.S. wine shops, my main supply chain was myself; every time I flew home to see family, I'd grab what I could afford.<BR/><BR/>Lately, over the last few years, icewine has suddenly started to show up in volume (in California), in chain stores like Beverages & More, and even Costco. I thought that perhaps Vincor, the largest Canadian wine concern, had finally made some breakthroughs.<BR/><BR/>It turns out that Vincor was recently purchased by an American concern. <BR/><BR/>When I heard that, I had an epiphany: I now understood the grain of truth underlying why it is that successful Canadian businesses that seek to expand outside of Canada frequently sell out to do so -- a phenomenon long lamented by Canadian nationalists. I can easily imagine that the purchase offer to Vincor came along with the veiled threat that if they didn't play along -- if they tried to "stay Canadian" -- they would find themselves inexplicably but permanently unable to access the U.S. market in any volume.<BR/><BR/>Counter-threats of the same sort don't work when you ponder the numbers. Canada is ten <B>percent</B> of an American corp's home market, but America is <B>ten times</B> the size of a Canadian corp's market.<BR/><BR/>It says something about the value of hundred-page "free" trade agreements.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com