Last week, on 1 December, Donald Trump (in true, neo-fascist, Trump tradition) tweeted an ultimatum to BRICS: “The idea that the BRICS Countries are trying to move away from the Dollar while we stand by and watch is OVER. We require a commitment from these Countries that they will neither create a new BRICS Currency, nor back any other Currency to replace the mighty U.S. Dollar or, they will face 100% Tariffs. There is no chance that the BRICS will replace the U.S. Dollar in International Trade, and any Country that tries should wave goodbye to America.”
Spoken like a true leader…of an imploding empire. Right now, the US is like a cornered, wounded, dying wild animal. (And you know what they say about a beast in that situation.) What you’re hearing in Trump’s tweet is the death rattle…of American unipolar dominance. If anything is going bye-bye, Big Don, it’s US/NATO hegemony…and your precious petrodollar.
THULI’S TRUMP TAKEDOWN
One of the first respondents to Trump’s bluster was our lovely Prof. Thuli, who asked, wryly; “Wow! Are we owned?”
She followed that up with; “No country has a right to assert supremacy over others, to order them to submit to its domination.” She also alerted African leaders to “…consider Trump’s threat as a cue to diversify your economies, especially trade arrangements.”
In her final salvo, she said; “I reject responses that say whoever has greater economic means must call the shots. Establishing a fairer world requires the challenging of bullies and related supremacists.”
RESPONSE FROM ANALYSTS AND WORLD LEADERS
Economist and geopolitical analyst, Arnaud Bertrand, trolled Trump with; “The mighty U.S. dollar is apparently so “mighty” that you need to threaten countries so they don’t abandon it…”
Military Analyst, Scott Ritter advised; “If you’re going to win the world back to the dollar, make the dollar attractive to the world. Or no one will want to use the dollar. And all your posturing won’t change their minds.”
China’s response was to double down, their Foreign Ministry stated; “Beijing will continue to expand and deepen cooperation with fellow members of the BRICS economic bloc despite the threat of tariffs by US President-elect Donald Trump.”
Putin snubbed Trump’s threat, reminding him – and the world – that “We never refused to use the dollar, we were denied use of it. We had no choice. You banned us from Swift – and the dollar.” He then added, “They are too confident of themselves.”
THEFT, AND THE BOOMERANG EFFECT
Lest we forget, The US also “froze” billions of dollars worth of Russian deposits and assets, which they redirected to Ukraine. There’s another word for it; blatant, brazen theft – and money laundering – to fund an illegal war. That move drastically undermined trust in the US (dollar) in the eyes of the financial world, and – along with the “sanctions” – helped to boost BRICS.
Yes…about those boomerang sanctions against Russia. The US (and their Anglo/Euro puppets) were cocksure that their sanctions were going to “destroy Russia’s economy” and “reduce the ruble to rubble”, as Biden put it. And…what happened? How’s that working for you? Russia’s economy today is thriving, and the ruble is soaring – top performing currency in 2022, despite the “war”. What a spectacular own goal, huh! You really showed those pesky commie Russkies, didn’tcha…’Murica?
Meanwhile, Germany and other parts of Europe – who obeyed the US in sanctioning Russia – are going to either freeze or pay through the ass for gas this winter, because their main source of cheap LNG, Russia’s Nordstream pipeline, is lying in pieces at the bottom of the Baltic Sea – courtesy of America. (And for that, Germany awarded Biden their highest honour, the Order of Merit. Let that sink in.) Like Kissinger once said, to be America’s enemy is dangerous, but to be America’s friend is fatal.
The US and their lapdog allies may still doubt the clout of BRICS, and dismiss the bloc as no major threat to the West’s unipolar dominance…but others see it differently.
THE WEST UNDERESTIMATES BRICS (AT THEIR PERIL)
In an interview on 24 Oct, political scientist, John Mearsheimer said; “BRICS is a powerful institution, it’s a growing institution. The fact is, you have lots of countries plugging into an alternative order…institutions that the United States doesn’t control. BRICS is not going away, if anything it’s likely to become more powerful with the passage of time.”
US economist, Richard Wolff said – in a video he dropped on 23 October; “Up until three or four years ago, much of the world’s trade was conducted in dollars. The dollar was safe, the dollar was secure, the dollar was backed by the US. All of that is gone. And what you’re seeing is BRICS leading the way. The reality is, since 2020, BRICS are a larger player in the world economy than the US. That’s a momentous transformation.”
Wolff pointed out a significant and revealing statistic; according to the IMF, the combined GDP growth in 2024 for the US, Japan and Germany (three of the top G7 countries) will be little more than 2.8%. Whereas the GDP growth rate of the original BRICS members alone this year is collectively more than 17%. “Folks!”, he said. “There is no contest anymore, it’s over! There is a new major player, changing everything. BRICS is the most important economic bloc in the world.”
HOLD THE LINE, SA, STAND WITH BRICS (STRENGTH IN NUMBERS)
Now I’m hearing some local politicians and parties want South Africa to pull out of BRICS..? Are they retarded…or insane? That would be like placing a fat bet at the Rothmans July…and then tearing up your betting slip before the horse is out the gate.
Look, if you’re having trouble getting your head around the scale of the seismic impact BRICS is going to have on the US dollar, hegemonic dominance – and the global economy, let me put it this way; I assume you’re familiar with the legend of Sir Robert Loxley? Aka…Robin Hood? Well, then…think of the Anglo-American empire (and the rest of the Western political establishment) as the Sheriff of Nottingham. Putin is Robin Hood. Xi is Little John. And BRICS…are the Merry Men (without the tights).
Get it..?
And we all know how that story ends…
What say you, SA? Is BRICS a threat to America’s “dollar dominance” and the West’s unipolar hegemony…or not?
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