Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site psuvax1.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!rochester!cmu-cs-pt!cadre!psuvax1!berman From: berman@psuvax1.UUCP (Piotr Berman) Newsgroups: net.politics.theory Subject: Re: Military Preparedness Message-ID: <1804@psuvax1.UUCP> Date: Thu, 19-Sep-85 13:10:33 EDT Article-I.D.: psuvax1.1804 Posted: Thu Sep 19 13:10:33 1985 Date-Received: Sun, 22-Sep-85 14:01:58 EDT References: <3690@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU> Organization: Pennsylvania State Univ. Lines: 50 > >... Isn't it much more likely that market forces would make one > >particular Defense Inc. strategy become dominant at a given time? > > If so, you would just have a conventional military, so what's the problem? > However, I don't think it would happen like that. > > >And if > >you have five competing defense systems, what about cooperation? When four > >of them collapse, what's the fifth to do? > > Everybody who took up this argument, (not just Charley) omitted the > reference to Luttwak. Let me reccomend him again: He makes a good > case for the aphorism, "Great military victories happen when a force that's > 3% efficient beats one which is 2% efficient." My major point is that > the vaunted efficiency, coordination, and so forth of a centralized > government military system generally just don't exist, and that forces > organized along market lines would likely be just as efficient. > > "Hello, Amalgamated Artillery." > > "This is Sgt. Foobar of Infantry, Inc. I'd like to order a barrage on > the west slope of Humongous Hill at 3:45 this afternoon." > > "Thank you for your order, sir, will that be all?" > > "For the moment--and bill me!" What about "Sorry, due to uncertain outcome of the war, we decided to accept only cash, 50% in our currency, 50% in enemy's currency". > --JoSH The basic flaw of JoSH is the following: how a market may operate for goods which are not used, like military services in the peace time? There are not clear criteria to select. This is already a problem with military, but I do not see any reason that market would do it better. Also, who would pay to develop weapons and train soldiers in the peace time? JoSH wrote that the patriotic citizens may purchase the necessary wapons themselves. Of course, not everybody may now afford a nuclear-powered submarine or a fighter plane, but in Libertaria we would have enough of the wealthy individuals fiercely devoted to the system which allows them to prosper so well. Hm. Where is the argument that private companies would not wage wars of aggresion, since they are noneconomical? All of the American aggresive wars were much cheaper than the necessary expences to keep Ruskies at bay. Piotr Berman