Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Paul Repas on May 6, 2012 at 3:30pm

To be honest I am not sure what to think.
I don't think that a government should impose austerity on its people for the primary purposes of bailing out a banking industry that is run for the benefit of the elite. This Socialist vote seems to be a rejection of that agenda for austerity, and instead redirecting funds for the public.
On the flip side i would not want to be citizen of a country where 75% of my wages were taxed, but i guess one must know where those taxes were going. If they are going to pay interest on loans to the ECB and IMF then it may make no difference - the citizens get screwed either way.
I take the French vote and the Greek vote as anti-austerity, anti-bailout, anti-banker expressions of the public.

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Permalink Reply by Terminator Girl on May 6, 2012 at 6:13pm

I can tell you that when the transit authority in France goes on strike, the country stops.
When the sanitation workers in France go on strike, there are garbage, rodents and roaches everywhere.
If you want 12 weeks a year of paid vacation, no overtime, and taxes out the wazooo... move to France or Austria.
If you don't realize that tomorrow our stock market will have a "very bad day," to put it mildly, that world economy is being put on alert, that the dollar will become even more worthless, then I can't explain it to you. Anything driven strictly by socialists, commies, nazis, fundamentalists, and labor unions, extremists by any name, can't be good. Look at the people in this video. Soon, they will be starring front and center in a protest near you.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Repas on May 6, 2012 at 9:02pm

You are missing my point, and in fact I would like to specifically understand what point you think you are making.

This is a vote against austerity as were the election results in Greece. A vote against austerity is a vote against paying the banksters for debt put on a nation not chosen by the citizens, but imposed on them by their bureaucrats. The nominations of Lucas Papedemos and Mario Monti were appointed technocrats, chosen by the European Union on behalf of their bankster Lords. Citizens of these countries lost the ability to democratically select their leaders.

The same thing has happened in our country under the Bush and Obama Presidencies. Debt growth unchecked and an over-sized government that accounts for something like 40% of GDP. The US is in depression with 100m citizens out of work. The stock markets are a ficticious window of false-confidence managed by the HFT algo trading firms of Wall Street. What happens when things keep deteriorating in the US to the point where we are doing as poorly as the European's are. What happens when interest rates rise to 6%, and the interest rate obligation on our $15T of debt becomes $900m, or 60% of the annual tax revenues?

I will tell you - austerity will be imposed on us also. When austerity is imposed there are no longer routes for growth. The bankers get paid first, and the citizens get squat!! When capitalism fails (or should i say crooked crony capitalism) and the citizens are no longer able to get jobs, pay their mortgages, or feed their children, they RELUCTANTLY take the final step for survival. They ask for the government to care for them because they no longer can. SOCIALISM is the end of the line for independence but when austerity fails, it may be the only option left.

50% of the citizenry voted for a socialist candidate and i don't think it's because they WANTED him, they voted for him because they didn't want a continuation of a failing Sarkozy and a failing France (for those not lucky enough to be the 1%) and that is why they are likely taxing the richest at 75%. This is not a place you want to go, but it is where you have to go when you are out of options.

We are unfortunately headed down this road as well. Obama's desire to tax the rich is not the answer, but if successful this is the blue print for our future as well. We need much, much smaller government and lower taxes to restore growth -- not Keynesian based deficit spending that will lead us to a form of socialized support just for the 99% to survive.

At least France still has free elections. We are just given the choice of two candidates cut from the same cloth, and when a real option emerges (Ron Paul) he is ignored or boxed out of the game. WE may get to cast our votes, but unfortunately THEY still get to count them.

And yes, hopefully the markets will have a terrible day tomorrow. The sooner the financial markets reflect that the world is bankrupt the sooner we can reset. This vote for Hollande is a vote against the EU, and one step close to the explosion of the multi-QuadTrillion derivative complex that is the ponzi fiat currency scheme. A vote for the anti-austerity Greek govt is a vote to break the austerity promises and move closer to a "true" Greek default and a EU breakup. These are both EF U's to Germany and a breakup of the Euro and a collapse of the financial system. Well done Europe.

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on May 6, 2012 at 10:52pm

Very interesting viewpoint there. It had me going until I got to the part about 100m Americans being out of work. Then all accuracy seemed to go poof. You see, At the start of 2012, there was about 318 Million Americans including little babies, big babies, and the old been there done that crowd and of course the wage earners. Surely you don't believe that nearly a third of them all are unemployed and sitting around in Mom and Pops basement doing tiddly wink? Now if my folks had let me do that, LOL it would have gotten pretty danged austere in a hurry. LOL

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Permalink Reply by Paul Repas on May 7, 2012 at 4:55am

Let's put it this way Chancy. The govt reports unemployment at about 12%. But this excludes many, many people. It excludes those no longer receiving unemployment benefits, it excludes those who have been unable to find work after XX weeks (that govt concludes that they don't want to look anymore), and it excludes people who the govt thinks don't want to work.

So instead the govt uses a labor participation pool as its demoninator, and the number it deems unemployed (12m) as the numerator. Well these people not considered in the labor force has risen from 78m to 88m since the financial collapse of 2008. Yes some have reached retirement but not the bulk in this number.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/people-not-labor-force-soar-522000-la...

Our true unemployment rate is closer to 20+%. It increases when you consider underemployment -- people who have had to take jobs worse than they have had (or part time employment) because that is all there was. The quality deteriorates still further when it comes to the fact that most of the jobs added are jobs of poor quality that have primarily been added in our economy.

For college graduates of the past 5 years the unemployment rate is near 50%. These are European-like rates.

The BLS reports numbers that manipulate the true reflection of unemployment and underemployment in our country for the purposes of those currently in office. We could be doing things like utilizing $2 natural gas but the govt has gotten in the way. Companies like Westport in partnership with Cummins Engine have natural gas engines for the market -- why does not Obama's energy policy revolve around an abundand natural resource that could help employment and cut energy prices -- instead they chase an impractical thing like solar where the govt has been caught in fraud like Solyndra. Why can't faster approval be made a priority for export to send $2 natural gas abroad where they are paying $8-$10 in Europe and $10-$12 in the Far East? These would be good paying jobs in the middle of the country where we have been gutted by shipping manufacturing jobs offshore for over a decade. We are being pushed even more towards socialism also -- larger government, forcing the population to a dependance on the state. No one ever wants that, it's a last resort

Hopefully anti-austerity causes the banking cabal to break first by sending payments to population first and banksters last.

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on May 7, 2012 at 5:28am

Let's put it this way Paul. The 2010 census showed the U.S.A. with a labor force of 154,900,000. Sooo,, if 20% were unemployed, that would be about 31 million. Shall we guess how much population growth has risen or the numbers of volunteers and military services or leave it at 40 million tops instead of 100 million?

LF is generaly defined as all men and women aged 15 to 64.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Repas on May 7, 2012 at 6:09am

I would agree with that. 40 / 155 = 26%.

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on May 7, 2012 at 5:45am

There is a pretty neat technology that can convert Natural Gas to liquids gas. It's known as GTL But you can't convert gas to liquid and ship it to europe or china, sell it for $10-$12 and make enough to pay the bills. It's getting close but no cigars. Some might say "just put it in a pipe and it'll get there by itself" But they'd be wrong. Gas won't flow that way without a huge compressor bank just as fluids won't without pumps.

There is a beter technology known as Heavy to Light (HTL) that will convert the worlds remaining heavier oils to a lighter similar to the old west texas intermediate. That will see us through until GTL, solar, and hydrogen fuel cells. can help more. for about $3 at the pump for Americans. If they get after it on the pipeline deals.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Repas on May 7, 2012 at 6:58am

Chancy -- Do you not believe that the ECB (and all Central Banks) and the IMF, along with the co-operation of major international banks (with a complicit govt in most instances) of the world TRAP countries and their citizens in debt?

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on May 7, 2012 at 1:58pm

No I don't. I believe some banks are operated by some good and some bad people. I believe that the fed or U.S. central bank serves America and Americans pretty darned well. It is the people who fear that their own tab is coming due that fails in my opinion.

For grinsandgiggles lets say the America's central bank goes poof. Then what? No more bankers? no more money? no more records or transfering of wealth? What? What would you replace America's Central banking system with? Please be realistic. There's not enough gold in the world to base an American class currency on it. It is always going to be a commodity. But it's bubble will burst.

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Permalink Reply by Chancy Yardbird on May 7, 2012 at 3:05pm

NEW YORK (Reuters) Reuters – 1 hour 33 minutes ago- Investors brushed off Europe's election results, as the S&P 500 rebounded from early losses to end nearly unchanged on Monday, despite the uncertainty surrounding the euro zone's ability to tackle its debt crisis.

U.S. financial stocks, normally highly sensitive to events that could unsettle the euro zone's fiscal stability, were not only the biggest gainers, but had the heaviest volume.

The S&P 500 financial sector index (REU:^GSPFI) rose 0.7 percent. Bank of America (BAC.N) shares shot up 2.8 percent to $7.96 and Goldman Sachs (GS.N) gained 1 percent to $110.04.

"One positive thing we are seeing out of the elections and we are hearing from the ECB chairman is a focus on growth and that austerity measures alone are not going to get them out of this crisis," said Sean Lynch, global investment strategist for Wells Fargo Private Bank in Omaha, Nebraska.

"So if there are more growth-oriented measures, that could help the banking system and could be a positive for the economy as well."

Analysts pointed to a potential government bailout for troubled Spanish bank Bankia (BKIA.MC) as a boost for the sector.

The Dow Jones industrial average (DJI:^DJI) slipped 29.74 points, or 0.23 percent, to 13,008.53 at the close. But the Standard & Poor's 500 Index (MXP:^SPX) inched up just 0.48 of a point, or 0.04 percent, to 1,369.58. The Nasdaq Composite Index (NAS:^COMP) added 1.42 points, or 0.05 percent, to 2,957.76.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/stock-futures-sag-greek-french-092624...

To all the Anti American Anticapitalist and anti successful who wanted so badly for America's economy to stumble... NEENER NEENER NEENER!!! LOL :)

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Permalink Reply by Paul Repas on May 7, 2012 at 4:19pm

My point was not, nor ever was anti-Capitalist and its certainly not anti-American. If you think that we have a true and pure capitalistic system rather than the crony capitalistic system that i think exists, i guess there is little room for agreement.

I see a system infiltrated by corporate money that has bought Capital Hill and tilted the table in their interests and against the citizens.

You want realism regarding the Central Banking System? Why does interest need to be charged against money created from nothing? You really think the US Central Bank serves us well (even though it is not a Federal entity)? You support the trillions sent by The Fed to foreign banks to support in their struggles for liquidity and solvency? You like that Dexia (Belguim) was the largest borrower at the Fed window, in the 2008 crisis, borrowing $31b likely in exchange for toxic mortgage assets where the losses were then in turn stuck on the American public? The Fed is the mechanism that allows the dreaded "deficit spending" to exist, because if the funds are needed there are no tangible assets needed to create additional funds. The system doesn't have to be gold backed, but it ought to be asset backed, or backed by sovereign wealth accumulated through trade surpluses which we don't have. Fiat backed is driving an ever increasing amount of US tax dollars to pay interest on the debt -- debt service is not where i want my tax dollars going for an entity to enjoy the exclusive privilege of having the sole right to create money/currency from nothing.

I find it hard to believe that someone as seemingly intelligent and well versed in many issues is oblivious to the flaw that is central banking and market rigging. Markets are corrupt and participants are losing faith in markets. The MF Global theft has harmed the futures market for good, but at least the world should be aware of the ethical crime of rehypothication. The CDS market is trashed for private investors as the dirty secret that the ruling body on defaults, the ISDA, has as its decision making body the banks itself. When there was not enough demand for US Treasuries the policy we have is unleash QE2 and buy them ourself. When that expired its QE3, Operation Twist, sell the long dated Treasuries at the Fed and use the proceeds to purchase the short end of the curve where demand is weak. Next the ECB utilizes the same policies and creates the LTRO so Spain and Italy can buy their own bonds with money lent to them from the ECB because otherwise their auctions will fail. It's all a bad joke and seeds of ponzi finance are coming home to roost. Glad your happy the market was up today, that should solve the financial crimes and misdemeanors of the past 10 years.

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