USS Clueless              Voyages of a restless mind

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Stardate 20010720.1223 (On Screen): The so-called "G8" is meeting in Genoa. They are supposedly the largest industrialized nations on earth: The US, Canada, Japan, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Russia. (singing) One of these things is not like the others, one of these things just doesn't belong. (cease singing)

The first seven listed nations really are the seven top nations in the world. But Russia is not #8. Russia is an economic basket case and its GDP isn't even in the top 10. According to the CIA World Fact Book, in the year 1999, Russia had a estimated GDP of $620.3 billion. This compares unfavorably to Spain, at $677.5 billion, or Brazil at $1.057 trillion, or India at $1.805 trillion, or China at $4.8 trillion. (If you wanted to add #8 based on GDP, China should have been it based since its GDP is exceeded only by the US.)

Of course, China's GDP is huge because of the "Chinese hordes", and India and Brazil are similar. A better way of measuring the wealth of a nation is GDP per capita. The G7 clusters nicely at about $22,000 except for the US at $33,900, and by this measure they are seven of the top ten nations on earth. When you calculate Russia that way it really looks pitiful at an estimated $4,200. This is greatly exceeded again by Spain ($17,300), Portugal ($15,300), Switzerland ($27,100) and in fact by nearly every Western European nation, as well as Singapore ($27,800), Taiwan ($16,100), South Korea ($13,300) and the surprisingly prosperous Chile ($12,400) and Argentina ($10,000).

In fact, at $4,200 the Russian per capita GDP is consistent with what we think of as industrialized Third World nations such as Brazil ($6,150), South Africa ($6,900), and Morocco ($3,600), and it's lower than Peru ($4,400). As an oil-producing nation, Russia is exceeded by Columbia ($6,200), Venezuala ($8,000) and Mexico ($8,500). In fact, by any possible economic measurement, Russia doesn't belong in the G8. So why is it there?

It's a sop to the Russian ego. It's a memory of past glory. But it's mostly an attempt to try to lend prestige to the elected government of Russia to try to add stability to the political system there. That's why no-one important (which excludes me) stands up to embarrass the government of Russia with the truth. They're afraid it might lead to a Russian revolution. It's happened before, but last time they didn't have nuclear weapons. No-one wants to find out what happens during a revolution in a nuclear-armed state. (discuss)

Update: Well, at least this story is honest about it. It describes the G8 meeting as one which "brings together the world's wealthiest industrialized nations and Russia."