Alim

I agree with you in that the government is tying a noose around our neck by excessive borrowing. It hurts in two ways: 1. Reduces capacity to obtain favourable foreign loans due to inability to improve credit ratings 2. Dries up bank funds available for the private sector. Businesses start going under which has a dom inno effect on the economy

Revenue growth is directly tied to economic growth. If there is less economic activity, people pay less taxes. Less tax > less revenue > potentially less allocation to defence procurement.

BERNIE SANDERS 'BEST' ON HEALTH CARE, THE ECONOMY, ENVIRONMENT AND IMMIGRATION IN NEW 2020 POLL By Andrew Whalen On 11/05/19 at 5:18 PM EST A new poll finds that, among 1,115 adult respondents living in the United States, 2020 Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders is "the best" on several particular issues, including healthcare, the environment, immigration, the economy and jobs. Conducted by Ipsos on behalf of Reuters between November 1-4, the poll asked respondents to "select the candidate from the list below you think is best on that particular issue," with Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, Beto O'Rourke and Cory Booker available as selections. Among independents and self-identified Democrats (these questions were not asked of Republican respondents), Bernie Sanders was the preferred candidate in every policy category, which included "immigration," "health care," "the environment" and "the economy and jobs." Sixteen percent of respondents agreed Bernie Sanders was the "best on" immigration issues, followed by Joe Biden with 13 percent and Elizabeth Warren with 10 percent. The same ranking of the top three candidates was similar when it came to the economy and jobs, but wider divisions between candidate preference were evident in other policy areas. Sanders was the clear preference when it came to health care, at 24 percent—a reflection of the central role a single-payer "Medicare for All" plan has played in his campaign—with Warren at 15 and Biden at 14. Sanders was also substantially ahead when it came to environmental issues, such as the New Green Deal, polling at 20 percentage points to Biden's 12 and Warren's 11. The poll found similar plurality support for Sanders' policy positions when narrowed to only self-identified Democrats, with Sanders demonstrating a substantial lead in healthcare and the environment, but tied with Joe Biden for the top spot when it comes to the economy and immigration. Although Sanders was a clear preference among possible Democratic primary voters on a number of policies, the democratic socialist candidate ranked second overall, with 15 percent saying they would vote for Sanders were the primary held today, compared to 22 percent for Biden and 11 percent for Warren. A possible explanation can be found in several of other polling questions, which focused around more subjective metrics, like the concept of "electability" against President Donald Trump. Though they may prefer Sanders on the issues, 29 percent of respondents in the new poll said Biden is "most likely to beat Trump in the general election," with Sanders coming in a distant second at 16 percentage points. Biden eked out a more narrow advantage when respondents were asked which candidate would best "unify the Democratic primary," with 19 percent, compared to Sanders' 16. Primary voters named a variety of reasons for supporting their preferred candidate, including whether they would "make a good president" and "have the right ideas or policies." But this latest poll suggests even widespread agreement on the candidate with the best policies doesn't necessarily equate to an overall polling lead. The 2020 Democratic primary will begin determining a candidate, advancing beyond the polling face-off, when the Iowa Democratic caucuses take place on Monday, February 3, 2020. https://www.newsweek.com/2020-democratic-primary-bernie-sanders-polls-policies-democratic-socialism-1469949

Because of Small Donations, Sanders 'Out-Raised Literally Everyone Else in the Field' in 2019 by Eoin Higgins, staff writer on Monday, December 30, 2019 Sen. Bernie Sanders got some good news Monday as his campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination approached 5 million donations and, at an average of $18, looked set to end 2019 head and shoulders above his competitors for total money raised over the year. "Bernie Sanders demolished all of the other candidates," tweeted activist and Sanders surrogate Shaun King. "It's not even close." The numbers came from New York Times reporting on the Democratic field's fundraising for the end of the year. The Sanders campaign reported raising $26 million in the fourth quarter, putting the Vermont senator firmly in the top tier of candidates in the 2020 primary. As the Times explained: Mr. Sanders is expected to remain a financial pacesetter in the 2020 contest. He has about 1.6 million individual donations this quarter alone and is nearing a goal of five million total contributions. With an average donation of $18 for the year, and slightly less than that now, the numbers suggest he has already raised about $26 million in the fourth quarter—more than any Democratic candidate has raised in any quarter this year. According to Times reporter Shane Goldmacher, extrapolating on the data in a Twitter thread, Sanders is on track to raise roughly $87.5 million by the end of 2019. "His campaign said today he's at 4.865 million donations for the year, with a previous disclosed average donation of $18," tweeted Goldmacher. "That means he's raised ~$87.5 million for the year." The campaign is hoping to hit 5 million donations by the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, telling supporters in an email that they can donate as little as $2.70 to help the senator reach the mark. "Our movement has all the momentum right now," the campaign said in an email. "And reaching our goal of 5 million donations will ensure we continue to hold onto our momentum as we approach the Iowa caucus." That Sanders was able to raise at least $87.5 million without Super PACs, bundlers, and other forms of big money donations favored by rivals like former Vice President Joe Biden and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, said HuffPost senior reporter Zach Carter, is an indication the senator is defying expectations and conventional wisdom. "He out-raised literally everyone else in the field," said Carter. The Sanders campaign on Monday released health information for the 78-year-old senator, showing him to be in excellent shape for his age. "At this point, I see no reason he cannot continue campaigning without limitation and, should he be elected, I am confident he has the mental and physical stamina to fully undertake the rigors of the presidency," Dr. Martin M. LeWinter, Sanders' personal cardiologist, said in a statement. Monday's fundraising news came as Sanders supporters made #PresidentSanders the top trending hashtag in the U.S., tweeting their hopes for the accomplishments of the senator's future presidency. "It can happen," tweeted filmmaker and Sanders supporter Adam McKay. "An actual President not owned by banks, oil or billionaires. A President not motivated by lining his own pockets. Free healthcare, a living wage, taxes on billionaires and corps, clean air and water... #PresidentSanders." https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/12/30/because-small-donations-sanders-out-raised-literally-everyone-else-field-2019

Trump sees Sanders as Democratic front-runner BY BRETT SAMUELS President Trump on Wednesday said he thinks Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has emerged as the front-runner in the Democratic presidential nominating contest. "People like his message. He’s got energy, his people have energy," Trump said. "But they like his message, but a lot of people don’t like that particular message. "Whoever it is, we’ll take them on," he added. "But it would certainly seem that Bernie Sanders has the advantage right now." Trump made the remark a day after the Vermont senator won the New Hampshire primary. Some Democrats fear Sanders, an independent who identifies as a democratic socialist, could be a weak general election candidate, and some believe Trump as a result may prefer him to win the Democratic nomination. Trump, who has mocked Sanders with the nickname of "Crazy Bernie," said Tuesday afternoon that he would rather face former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg in a general election than the senator, "because Sanders has real followers." Pundits have drawn comparisons between Trump's 2016 campaign and Sanders's campaign in terms of the energy of their supporters and appeal to working-class voters. Trump filled the Southern New Hampshire University Arena on Monday night, while Sanders attracted thousands to his own event an hour away. https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/482817-trump-sees-sanders-as-democratic-frontrunner

You are correct in that they set high KPIs and ever year sees some shortfalls but this year stands out as the deficit is significant.

They are directly related as revenue growth is directly tied to economic activity. IMF and WB regularly question BBS's calculation but they do not have the resources to collect data and calculate from scratch for each of their members. They try to scale the economic growth using their own limited corrective modelling. You cannot fudge revenue stats though as money collected has to be paid out fot specific expenditures including defence purchases.

On top of that, Singapore never claims to be the saviour of the Muslim world and played no part in dragging Afghanistan back to stone age. ........................ I am a bit worried about funding of new hardware as the government's revenue collection has taken a hit due a very recent slow down of private sector (don't be fooled by BBS's "8% growth" chest thumping). I hope procurement plans are not jeopardised. https://www.newagebd.net/article/99293/nbrs-collection-shortfall-soars-to-tk-39542cr-in-july-jan

We can counter them within 5 years but this will take a complete overhaul of BAF's mindset and attitude. It is not impossible. The way forward is to equip BAF with technology that Burma cannot access. I am suggesting a fleet fully integrated into the Western ecosysyem. A fully electronically integrated fleet of Eurofighters/Super Hornets/Gripens armed with MBDA products and Western backing can eviscerate Burma and alter the course of South East Asian politics forever. What BAF need to do is buddy up with BA and BN to present a coordinated case for achieving decisive and qualitative superiority over Burma to the government.

Look up polling. This is a good video to get a feel of what is going on.

The question of "taking offense" does not even arise. I do not understand the need to get so defensive. You could be an expert in PoliSci/IR and yet not be familiar with certain politicians, policies or countries because guess what, you are only human. I am sure there are other topics you can educate me on. Anyway, you do not know what I do or where I get my info from so let us stick to presenting facts and logic. The American public is overwhelmingly against foreign interventionism yet the US keeps on getting militarily involved in new countries and the military budget keeps balloning while Flint, Michigan does not have clean drinking water, causing mental defects among children, and US infrastructure gets a grade of D+ from America's oldest and highly prestigious engineering body. Vast majority of American support background checks for gunownership yet there is hardly any effort pass any meaningful gun reforms. Now why is this? This is because US public opinion has single-digit impact on policymaking. 99/100 Senators and the majority of US Reps are bought off by corporations thanks to Buckley vs Valeo. You are therefore dead wrong when you suggest that US bases serve "US interests"; they don't. They serve MNCs of the O&G and defence sectors. Cheney gets a $40 million exit bonus from Halliburton in 1997 and voila! The US lands in Iraq 5 years later for no good reason. The entire Congress is bought off by MNCs which is reflected in legislations. The same MNCs run MSNBC, CNN, Fox and CNBC which cover up for them and suppress independent/honest voices. All of this makes Sanders extremely special.Sanders has a 40 year old track record of standing against all odds and opposing US interventionism and corporate takeover of US government. He is the only US Senator and leading Presidential candidate who does does not take corporate and billionare donations. He has created history by running a small donor driven campaign racking in 4 million small contributions at under $20 apiece. Trust me, if elected he will start the process of rolling back troops and divert money towards actual "US interests", i.e., nation building (education, healthcare, infrastructure, etc.) He does not need Congressional approval to shut most bases especially the ones that were set up unconstitutionally by over leveraging the AUMF which was passed strictly for fighting Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. Now the question is how does he fight Congress to take his agenda forward. All he needs to is visit home districts/states of Congrssional leadership and endorse honest primary challengers. Look up Our Revolution and Justice Democrats. The dude shamed Amazon and Disney into paying $15/hr despite not having Congressional support. He will bulldose the American plutocracy. There is no comparison between him and the smooth-talking neo-liberal, new deal sellout Obama who let Citibank pick his cabinet. He is a prodigee of Joe Liberman which tells you who he has been all along. The last time a truely progressive POTUS took office he served four terms. A revolution is already on to replace corporate sell-outs with real politicians. AOC, Tlaib, Omar, Presley, Jayapal and Khanna only form the first wave of an impending Tsunami. Anyway, feel free to start a new topic if you want to discuss/debate this further. Going by polling and momentum, President Sanders is almost a reality which will be a boon for Bangladesh armed forces vis FMS and EDA. @mods: Sorry for drawing a long, non-military tangent but this is relevant in the broader scheme of US-BD relationship.

We have passed the threshold of "too fast" 20 years ago. Signing purchase orders for dozens of fighters this very day would still be very late due to the damage that has already been done to the organisation. Lack of air power has played a significant part in our recent foreign relations blunders. BAF at present is too weak, with zero BVR capability and only 8 high performance jets, to take the standard route of two OCUs per squadron approach. A dozen OCUs will be quick damage control and it just might enable us to hold the fort in a conflict 5 years down the line.

I am afraid you are not very familiar with Sanders' track record. Besides, those bases do not serve "American interests" but corporate interests. If elected, and the odds are high as per polling data, he will be the first POTUS in modern history to not be beholden to corporate interests as he takes no money from them. I suggest reading up on him.

The shoddy state of our airports is precisely why Biman is not allowed fo fly direct to many popular destinations despite having a modern fleet. With money being thrown around for new projects, I do not understand why the government does not revamp the existing terminals. It is quite painful to look at the faces of foreigners as they experience the filthy facilities at HSIA.

Fantastic purchases no doubt but they have "underperformed" ( and I take no pleasure in saying this) where it matters - procuring fighter jets. The govt regimes in charge since 2007 have been highly supportive of military procurement and BA and BN have made full use of the support as their transformation in fighting capabilities has been phenomenal. BAF on the other hand has lost edge due to retirement of many experienced pilots and lack of exposure to modern fighters for decades while the world has advanced fast. We need to introduce fighter jets in large numbers ASAP to control the damage and the US can help us with that. One way forward for BAF to upskill pilots is to intially procure a disproportionately large number of dual seat OCUs to train up pilots on the go. No amount of AJT hours can replicate OCU hours.

Biden is running on default support from low information, older voters which is eroding fast as people are starting to pay attention. Bernie is leading the opening cacuses in Iowa and New Hampshire and also in California which has the highest number of delgates. He is the only candidate with honest proposals and a proven track record. His support will snowball from the early cacuses. Anyway, on topic: Sanders will roll back troops from around the world and shut most of the 900 US bases. That's a lot of hardware up for grabs. BAF has a great opportunity to undo the damage it has inflicted upon itself in the last couple of decades.

Hello All, Alim here, a keen defence/geo-political enthusiast. Glad to join a Bangladeshi defence forum. Thanks to the mods for the groundwork towards building the platform. My perspectives tend to be different from conventional groupthink so bare with me for some thought-provoking yet rational exchanges of ideas. Let's get this thing rolling! All the best folks.

With Bernie Sanders very likely to be the next POTUS, tonnes of quality hardware will become up for grabs. The Army, Navy should takeover BAF's procurement process through AFD so that they do not bungle the opportunity.