Created by Bernard HP Gilroy and students
(c) 2005 Gilroy. Free for non-profit use.
More information (including a consolidated list) is available.
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Nuclear War Expansion Cards Created by Bernard HP Gilroy and students (c) 2005 Gilroy. Free for non-profit use. More information (including a consolidated list) is available. |
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Top Secret | |
| Guns or Butter | ||
Card |
The loss of your Cold War patron throws your economy into turmoil, forcing you to choose priorities. You must discard either (a) 1 Million people or (b) a weapon system or warhead. |
Additional Notes and Information: |
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"Guns or Butter" is economists' shorthand for the conflict between military expenditure and peaceful economic expansion. It illustrates the idea of opportunity cost: To make more guns, the society must make less butter. The particular phrase is often invoked in discussions of the presidency of Lyndon Baines Johnson, who strove to balance involvement in Viet Nam with the need to fund his Great Society initiatives. The card itself, however, draws more heavily on the experience of former Soviet bloc nations (especially Cuba and North Korea), as they attempt to adjust to life without the support of the USSR. -=-BhpG |
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