Elaine Meinel Supkis
Gold coin sales have been suspended at the Mint due to lack of raw gold. This is a signal that gold will begin to climb again, not bounce lower. And this is the anniversary of the New Borrowing Window at the Fed. Worth reading how it all began. And stocks rose today on the hopes that Asians will buy up all our banks. But the biggest bank on earth is now a Chinese bank, by the way. The Chinese succeeded in their desire to 'be bank.' And Kristof of the NYT talks stupid about China while palming himself off as a China expert who understands the economy.
8/22/2008: Big Banks Get Big Bucks From Bernanke
In the future, the guys who are making this mess can rehabilitate themselves by doing useful work as we see below. Meanwhile, the top banks and the Federal Reserve play a game they played back in 1929 when they needed to 'stop the panic'. It will be just as useless. Nearly 40,000 mortgage company employees are without work in just ONE WEEK. And more companies are folding faster than umbrellas at Yankee Stadium after a summer shower.
*snip*
Our government is going bankrupt. It can't pay for everyone all at once. And the sums used to help regular people are far smaller than the epic funds (infinity?) used to protect wild business wheeler-dealers.
Here is a Market Watch headline that boasts about the stupid rescue operation that has now made things infinitely worse:'V' for 'Very Fucked Up.' Normally, stocks do NOT do a violent down and then an equally violent upwards move without any real news happening. Namely, no Presidents were assassinated, no terrorist attacks on Wall Street. Nothing except a very dangerous banking crisis caused by wild spending, wild lending and ridiculously low interest rates below the rate of inflation. All the main banks in the world except for China, used every possible trick to reinflate this stupid bubble. This should never have happened. The US went off a cliff long ago and is now falling through space. The entire economy became focused on building and selling houses.
From Associated Press:Hey, give me $500 million. I like these stupid rich people: they trot off to a private bank run as if it were a government agency and they hold out their slimy paws and get $500 million magic dollars, no questions asked. Not only that, they all said they didn't need the money at all! Well, hell's bells, give it to me! This charity from the same clowns who hate Social Security and whine about giving health care to children, are suddenly Santa Claus and Trick or Treating their good buddies and golf partners! And the statement that this is to demonstrate that the Fed is primarily a credit facility...good grief! You mean to tell me our bankers didn't already know this? Are they this stupid?Four major banks said Wednesday they each borrowed $500 million from the Federal Reserve's discount window, lending weight to the central bank's efforts to restore liquidity to tight markets.
In going public with the moves, Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp. and Wachovia Corp. each stressed they have "substantial liquidity" and the ability to borrow money elsewhere. The borrowings, at least in part, seemed meant to reassure investors' jitters about the credit crunch rattling Wall Street.In a joint statement, the latter three banks said they decided to borrow the money to demonstrate "the potential value of the Fed's primary credit facility" and encourage its use by other banks.
One year ago, Bernanke used dynamite to blow a small hole in the side of the US Federal Reserve's vaults. His buddies in Goldman Sachs [I keep writing 'Gollum Sachs'] and JP Morgan and others then reached inside and put down SIVs and CDOs that were nearly worthless and took cash out. 'It's only $500 million,' said Bernake as these pirates, gnomes and no goodniks all rushed to the new 'window' to 'borrow' money.
Note how these criminal minds all tried to laugh it all off back then! It was an 'experiment'! They were just testing to see if this new system just might work. Eh. Right. Well, nothing bad happened so they blasted a huge, gaping hole in the side of the Treasury and are now openly looting it to the tune of many billions a month. The amount rises astronomically. This summer, it was closer to $500 billion than $500 million.
I correctly analyzed this whole scam from day one. A matter of personal pride. This is easy because I love picture images. The crooks who pulled off this scam had to use the word 'window' to describe this gaping hole. Since I emphatically believe that all money-based wealth comes from the Cave of Death, the image of Bernake and his buddies blasting a hole in it and calling it a window didn't fool me. The word 'window', by the way, is Old Norse for 'Eye of the Wind'. It is a hole that lets the wind blow, a hole at eye-level.
The howling hurricane of wealth destruction is shrieking as it tears through this hole. And Bernanke has widened this whole hole repeatedly until basically, there is no barrier between 'money' and its movement to the outer world where 'money' becomes 'real'. And what is this feeding?
The dire goddess of Inflation. She who can fly faster than thought. One of the daughters of Lady Luck, also known as Miz Risky or the Whore of Babylon. This is the lady the banking gnomes worship and desire with all their souls.
Paulson Risks Goldman Standard as Fannie, Freddie Shares Erode
(Bloomberg) -- As soon as he became secretary of the U.S. Treasury in July 2006, Hank Paulson started preparing for a crisis.In August 2006, at a meeting with President George W. Bush and his economic team at Camp David, Maryland, the former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. chief executive officer gave a talk about the capital markets.
Paulson held up over-the-counter derivatives as an example of financial innovation that could, under certain circumstances, blow up in Wall Street's face and affect the whole economy. ``My point was that we had gone eight years since the last serious problem in capital markets and that there'd been all of this innovation,'' Paulson said in an interview in late July.
Paulson also revived the President's Working Group on Financial Markets, a council of regulators consisting of the Federal Reserve, the Treasury, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission.
Founded after the stock market crash of 1987, the group had fallen into disuse. Paulson began to build relationships among the agencies, figuring that the financial markets panel would be key to addressing the next crisis, no matter what that would be.
Hell's bells around the necks of all gnomes! This story is HILARIOUS. HAHAHA. OK: Snow resigned because he told Bush of the train wreck right around the corner. Paulson had to drop his normal gnome activities of making himself rich via destroying our economy. He rushed into the Treasury with his hammers, tongs and pitchforks. He immediately prepared for the Crash he knew was looming. He knew this because he is smart and he is the cause of the looming crash. He figured, if he spend three years protecting himself and his buddies, it would be worth it. He figured this would be a piece of cake. All he had to do was get Bernanke to blast a hole into the side of the Treasury and loot it.
Which was done. Only it didn't work. This is why understanding the nature of the Cave of Death is so important. Remember Pandora? She opened the Cave of Death only in her case, it was a casket which is pretty much a coffin, and out came all the world's ills: depression, inflation, stagnation, war and death. But one thing was left: hope.
Lord! All we can now do is hope! Thanks a lot, guys.
U.S. Stock Futures Rise on Speculation Lehman May Be Purchased
(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures advanced, indicating the Standard & Poor's 500 Index may trim its weekly decline, on speculation Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. may be acquired and as oil's decline buoyed the earnings outlook for airlines and automakers.Lehman, the brokerage that's lost almost 80 percent of its value this year, surged 14 percent after Reuters reported Korea Development Bank said it's open to purchasing the firm. UAL Corp., the parent company of United Airlines, rose 6.8 percent in New York trading and General Motors Corp., the biggest U.S. automaker, gained 1.9 percent as crude slipped $1.36 a barrel.
S&P 500 futures expiring in September added 9.50, or 0.7 percent, to 1,285 at 8:21 a.m. in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 81 to 11,489. Nasdaq-100 Index futures rose 11 to 1,918.25.
``There's a ton of petro and trade dollars sloshing around the world now looking for a parking spot,'' said Michael Mullaney, a Boston-based portfolio manager at Fiduciary Trust Co., which manages $10 billion. A sale of Lehman to a strategic investor provides ``an orderly way to work their way out of positions, as compared to a fire sale.''
This news is yet another mainstream attempt at explaining the random ups and down of the stock markets. This story makes NO SENSE. Why? Well, look at yesterday's story:
Lehman Is Candidate for Hostile Takeover, Ladenburg's Bove Says
(Bloomberg) -- Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., the fourth-biggest U.S. securities firm, is a candidate for a hostile takeover, Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. analyst Richard Bove said. He raised his rating on the shares to ``buy.''``Management is unwilling to sell out at a deeply distressed value,'' Bove wrote in a note to clients. ``The stage is set for a hostile bid to take over the whole company.''
The Financial Times reported today Lehman failed to sell a 50 percent stake to Korea Development Bank and China's Citic Securities Co. The buyers walked away after deciding Lehman demanded too high a price, the FT said, citing people familiar with the Asian lenders.
As my series of charts on Wednesday, all of our mega-financial banks are going under. Not one of them is sailing along, merrily on the pirate seas of the Caribbean. Now that they are all sinking in this mega-hurricane, the pirates hope to sell every one of these to....ASIA! America is #1, all right: #1 For Sale. Only the Asians don't want our bankrupt banks. Duh. Problem here, no? If Lehman is 'ripe for a takeover' then everyone including the clever Asians will wait to see if Paulson and Bernanke will sweeten the deal like they did with Bear Stearns.
The 'hostile take-over' here is for the FED to take over the crappy parts of Lehman which are considerable and attached to the fearsome Derivatives Beast. The problem of taking over without the Fed grabbing hold of the gigantic Beast is due to the reality, the Beast will come to life and devour any bank that touches Lehman Brothers! Once the Lehman fools are passed through the magic window the size of a moving van, into the Treasury, the remains of that corporation can then drive out the front door, minus all the parts attached to the Derivatives Beast. Got that? Good. If not, hang around, I hope to make a cartoon making this all clear.
The world's biggest bank is Chinese
Duncan Mavin in Hong Kong, Financial Post
As of today, there should be no remaining doubts as to the tectonic shift in the global economy -- the world's largest and most profitable bank is Chinese.While banks in North America and Europe are still counting massive credit crunch losses, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has surged ahead of its international competitors thanks to a booming domestic economy that has dramatically boosted profits.
In a statement from Beijing last night, ICBC said its half yearly earnings jumped an astonishing 57% to US$9.4-billion, up from US$5.9-billion last year.
The results catapult ICBC ahead of international global powerhouse HSBC PLC -- the most profitable bank in the world last year -- where earnings fell 29% in the first six months of 2008 to US$7.7-billion. Even before Thursday's earnings announcement, ICBC was already the world's biggest bank with a market capitalization of about US$235-billion.
Why should the Asians buy our banks that are deep in the claws of the Derivatives Beast when they can create their own damn banks, themselves? Eh? Thought of that, Bernanke? Paulson? Of course, the Chinese figured this one out long, long ago! Too bad, our own bankers couldn't do this. A major theme here is that NO banking system can exist without SAVINGS. Japan, the US and England are experimenting with the 'no savings, no problemo' system. But it is obviously not working. The ZIP [Zero Interest Payments] regime launched by Japan is a resounding failure. But don't tell the Japanese. They don't want to hear this.
China’s Rise Goes Beyond Gold Medals By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF
This transition to Chinese dominance will be a difficult process for the entire international community, made more so by China’s prickly nationalism. China still sees the world through the prism of guochi, or national humiliation, and among some young Chinese success sometimes seems to have produced not so much national self-confidence as cockiness.China’s intelligence agencies are becoming more aggressive in targeting America, including corporate secrets, and the Chinese military is busily funding new efforts to poke holes in American military pre-eminence. These include space weapons, cyberwarfare and technologies to threaten American aircraft carrier groups.
President Bush was roundly criticized for attending the Beijing Olympics, but, in retrospect, I think he was right to attend. The most important bilateral relationship in the world in the coming years will be the one between China and the United States, and Mr. Bush won enormous good will from the Chinese people by showing up.
Having won that political capital, though, Mr. Bush didn’t spend it. Mr. Bush should have spoken out more forcefully on behalf of human rights, including urging Beijing to stop shipping the weapons used for genocide in Darfur.
It’s a difficult balance to get right, but China’s determination to top the gold medal charts — and its overwhelming efforts to find and train the best athletes — bespeaks a larger desire for international respect and legitimacy. We can use that desire also to shame and coax better behavior out of China’s leaders.
*snip*
When the Chinese government sentences two frail women in their late 70s to labor camp because they applied to hold a legal protest during the Olympics, as it just has, then that is an outrage to be addressed not by “silent diplomacy” but by pointing it out.
Gah. Stupid NYT wretch. Yes, even dumb NYT pundits finally had to admit, China roundly thrashed us at the Olympics. Bush didn't gain face by going. If he went graciously, yes. But he and his Hausfrau had to creep crab-like towards Beijing while insulting and cursing the Chinese for doing what we do all the time with a straight face! China is evil, arming other countries so they can oppress the Palestinians....oops. They aren't humans, they are cattle. It is OK to kill cattle. No, the US had to criticize China for attacking breakaway provinces like Ossetia! That's right! Evil! Pure evil!
The Chinese fumed and were furious about this insulting behavior from the US dictator. But then, they had the last laugh as usual. The air which had all the ninnies in hysterics before the Olympics, was just fine. And China won the most golds. So there. Then there is the prohibition for demonstrating. Um....America allows it, barely. Only if no one sees or hears about it. One can stand on a remote street corner until the cows come home. But try protesting near any of our rulers who are either Republican or Democratic, and boom.
As Kerry said, 'Interesting question,' as a young student was repeatedly tasered by heavily armed guards.
Halfway through her discussion at The American University of Judaism, where more than 300 people paid $30 each to hear Pelosi speak about her upbringing and her family's impact on her political career as detailed in her book Know Your Power: A Message to America’s Daughters, the topic shifted to Congress's historically low approval rating and how it reflected on Pelosi’s tenure as Speaker.American University of Judaism's Rabbi Robert Wexler, who moderated the 75 minute discussion, which did not include a question and answer session with the audience, asked Pelosi to analyze a recent Rasmussen poll that found nine percent of voters dpolled believed Congress was doing a good job, far lower than President Bush's overall approval rating.
*snip*
Her response led Peter Thottam, founder of the LA Impeachment Center, to demand Pelosi "do her job" and pursue impeachment hearings against President Bush for launching a war on false pretenses."Who gave you the right to take the constitution and shove it down the toilet? Who gave you the right to take impeachment off the table? Nobody told them to do this,” Thottam shouted at Pelosi moments before Secret Service agents removed him from the packed auditorium and turned him over to officers with the Los Angeles Police Department. “One million Iraqis are dead. Five thousand Americans are dead. You have destroyed the First, Second, Fourth, Fifth and Eighth Amendments."
Pelosi seemed stunned by the outburst, but the way she addressed Thottam’s charges further fanned the flames and led to additional verbal protests over her decision not to hold the administration accountable for what many individuals in the audience believe are High Crimes and Misdemeanors by President Bush.
When a member of the activist group Code Pink stood up and insisted Pelosi brush up on her reading regarding evidence of the Bush administration's long list of alleged constitutional violations, Pelosi reacted angrily.
*snip*
At the conclusion of Monday evening’s presentation, Pelosi signed books but refused to answer questions about her policy decisions. The Public Record asked Pelosi whether she would authorize the full House to vote on contempt charges against former White House political adviser Karl Rove, who has refused to comply with a congressional subpoena to testify about his role in the alleged political prosecution of former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, a Democrat.Immediately following his query to Pelosi, The Public Record's Alan Breslauer was grabbed by Secret Service and dragged away from the table where Pelosi was signing copies of her book. The Speaker did respond to Breslauer's question, however, saying a vote on contempt charges against Rove is "up to [House Judiciary Committee Chairman John] Conyers."
Reporters asking unpleasant questions: 'Interesting question,' snaps the angry Pelosi who just finished a speech at a Zionist University. She was there to be with friends who want her to attack Palestinians, Lebanese and Iranian Muslims. China is EVIL but using the SS to harry and harass anyone breaking the bubble surrounding our corrupt Congress or corrupt and stupid Presidents is pure...Chinese, eh? Well, Kristof? When are you going to write about THAT?
Never, of course.
Commodities Rally, Heading for Biggest Weekly Jump Since 1975
(Bloomberg) -- Commodities headed for their biggest weekly gain in 33 years as oil rose for a third day and a weakening dollar revived demand for raw materials as alternative assets.The Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index of 19 commodities soared 3.7 percent to 405.92 in New York. A settlement tomorrow at that level would mark a 6.2 percent gain for the week, the most since July 1975. The dollar dropped the most against the euro since June today and oil jumped more than $5 a barrel.
Gold and oil fell as our dictator and his gangster buddies like Pelosi all worked like the very fiends of hell to reverse reality. They tried to bottle up the goddess of Inflation. Wall Her off in the Cave of Death. Only that damn, pesky little window the size of the Titanic is still gaping open! Instead of staying in the Cave for two years like in previous attempts at blocking her back in 1974, 1977 and 1987, She was pushed into the Cave of Death, She saw the huge hole and climbed right back out, a mere three months later! DUH. These gnomes get dumber each decade, don't they?
This is why looking at this business from a mythological/anime-type universe is so much better than mere statistics or heaven help us, books by economists! This is why I can be right far more often than ordinary pundits. The commodities markets will again, start off with precious metals and oil taking off. Then food will follow. So long as the US is making funny money faster and faster, this will happen. The flood of liquidity won't flow into properties. Or even stocks. Want to buy Lehman stock? HAHAHA. Nope. Stocks went up today due to OIL stocks going up.
By the way, as usual, online there are many very good pundits, virtually none of whom get on the mainstream media:
Yesterday I left off with a promise to talk about the Boogey Man. Well, the Boogey Man is the dark side of the pension funds. Let’s start off with our dear friend Hank Paulson and his latest plan to allow Wall Street to acquire and manage pension funds. I swear to you, I didn’t make that up. Paulson actually sent a plan to Congress to allow Wall Street firms to buy and manage pension funds. These are the same guys that brought us Auction Rate Securities (ARS), Credit Default Swaps (CDS), Collateralized Mortgage Obligations (CMO) and Structured Investment Vehicles (SIV) and all the derivatives and funny-money plans to extort fees from you and me.Busted Pension Funds – Most pension funds are underfunded and will never be able to meet the obligations they have promised their members. That’s a fact that we can’t avoid. Wall Street and the managers of pension funds can spin it anyway they way, but the bottom line is . . . pension funds are underfunded. READ: The Ponzi Scheme that Tops The Housing Bubble.
Very good, easy to understand analysis. Highly recommend it. Speaking of Ponzi schemes:
Florida university used in massive Ponzi scheme
CNN) -- A Florida man used facilities at the University of Miami to run a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme and recruited school employees for the operation, angry investors and investigators tell CNN.Andres Pimstein, a UM business school graduate, has confessed to operating the scheme in which some investors were promised returns of 18 percent, Miami-Dade County police said.
People across the country lost an estimated $30 million in the scheme, which collapsed this year, said Wayne Black, a Miami private investigator hired by one investor.
"Pimstein was able to convince a couple people there to use their computers to control the bank accounts that he laundered the money through," Black said.
Ponzi schemes are illegal. So why does the Federal Reserve get to play Ponzi schemes with the Treasury? Tell us, please. Thanks in advance.
GATA: Congressman extracts statement from Mint on gold coin shortage
The U.S. Mint today supplied to U.S. Rep. John B. Larson, D-Connecticut, the statement appended here about its suspension of sales of one-ounce gold coins. GATA requested Larson's help on Monday after two days of calls to the Mint failed to elicit the responses that were promised each time GATA called. As of this hour the Mint still seems to have provided no statement on the subject to the public, nor to have posted any statement on its Internet site:
*snip*
FACT SHEET ON ONE-OUNCE GOLD BULLION COIN DEMAND
MENTIONED IN THE WALL STREET JOURNAL TODAYThe United States Mint does not sell bullion coin products directly to the public but to "authorized purchasers" who then sell these products to the public and price the bullion based on market factors. Authorized purchasers are required to meet high standards and must guarantee to maintain a two-way market for their customers to ensure the liquidity of these investment-grade coins.
By law, the United States Mint must mint and issue gold bullion coins in quantities sufficient to meet public demand. Therefore, the sale of bullion products takes precedence over other "numismatic" products made by the United States Mint. Accordingly, obtaining bullion blanks from our vendors and producing bullion products to meet demand takes priority over other uses and product lines that may use the same metals.
Because our vendors are not able to supply enough one-ounce gold bullion blanks to meet the unprecedented demand we are experiencing, the United States Mint notified our authorized purchasers on August 14, 2008, that we must temporarily suspend sales of the 2008 American Eagle One-Ounce Coin.
For the last several years, the gnomes running the systems have told us, 'Gold doesn't matter. Shut up, bitches.' Well, gold was dropping drastically in price even as there is a severe shortage of available gold....IN AMERICA....not Russia, by the way. And so the price should go up. Instead, the Treasury simply shuts the GOLD window while opening the Cave of Death funny money window even wider. Ever since we dropped the gold peg, everything is now a mere commodity and moves rapidly in all sorts of directions which is extremely unstable and bad in the long run. It tempts gnomes into ignoring all this and simply manufacturing NUMBERS. Which is what our system is: numbers, not things. And numbers is exactly where the Goddess of Inflation lives and breaths. She and the fearsome Derivatives Beast love infinity. Both are Death Denizens!
Chart from the Privateer, a gold site that has been around since 1984:
Gold's sudden plunge was totally bizarre back last week. But now, its rebound is going to astonish. This is because it is the anniversary of the blasting of the hole into the wall of the Cave of Death! Anniversaries matter, this is why I am focused on them this last two months. We think we have moved forwards in time but we have not at all. We are exactly where we were in 2008 this day, only deeper in the hole.
DZZ: How To Short Gold by Going Long
The DB Gold Double Short ETN (DZZ) is a relatively new way to take advantage of gold price action. This gold fund provides double the movement that the GLD ETF or the price of gold does, providing bigger opportunities in the gold sector. I have just recently started to use DZZ ETN for trading and have found it to be very useful, which you will see in the charts below.A Couple of Benefits of DZZ
The fact that it’s a leveraged fund provides more of an opportunity to the small investor, as they can have twice the amount of gold exposure without having to use margin, pay interest, and open a margin account. While trading with leverage is a two sided knife, if done properly, potentially higher annual profits can be obtained.
Another reason gold ETNs are becoming popular is because they allow gold traders and investors to trade both sides of the gold sector within their 401k, IRA or Canadian RRSP accounts. Being able to take advantage of the short side during bear market conditions can double your annual return on investment.
This article explains gold futures hedging games. Please read the whole thing if you are investing in gold. These guys don't need real gold, just paper talking about gold. This greatly speeds up their ability to play games with the value of gold. And they are using what?
FUNNY MONEY! From the central banks! The liquidity from the hole in the Cave of Death! They don't buy gold with it and hold, no, they play the futures markets with leverage. This will also drive up the value of gold since the value of other things aren't rising. The guys who promised fellow gnomes, Bernanke and Paulson, that they would not do this, have changed their minds. Typical gnome behavior. They need more money and will slit their grannies' throats to get more gold. Sex is the main drive here. They need it for more sex. Try stopping them.
Paulson could use his bazooka. Right?
Imagine Paulson using his bazooka to buy gold futures and options? LOL!!! We are so doomed.
Posted by: Ralph | August 22, 2008 at 10:59 AM
Elaine said:
"Gold coin sales have been suspended at the Mint due to lack of raw gold. This is a signal that gold will begin to climb again, not bounce lower."
Makes me feel much better as you had been more bearish than many of us regulars. I have been waiting, which is good since I was ready to buy at $960; now, hopefully $833. I opened an account with GoldMoney a few months back but have not made an actual purchase...today that will change.
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The old adage "history repeats itself" is an understatement in the extreme. During the last great depression thousands of banks and businesses went under - then, the wealthy elite picked up what they wanted dirt cheap.
This will happen again but the wealthy will have to compete with foreign opportunists lured to the fire sale.
Mish's has an interesting article today entitled "Ten Financial Entities On The Brink." The bottom line "The key here is there is virtually no chance the Fed can save them all, or even most of them. The list is simply Too Big To Bail."
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com
/2008/08/ten-financial-entities-on-brink.html
_________________________________________
Meanwhile, Bush remains in his own demented world as he said a couple days ago: "Georgia stood for freedom around the world, now the world must stand for freedom in Georgia."
He and his neoconn friends are actually suggesting that we send tons of money to rebuild Georgia and to send troops. What the hell planet is he from?? We're broke and our military is way over-extended.
Posted by: DrKrbyLuv | August 22, 2008 at 11:02 AM
Hey Elaine, this blogger is soliciting input. He/she is missing the US/Japan interest rate angle. I've condensed the article.
If Only Central Bankers Would Hit Bottom
Posted by: RobG | August 22, 2008 at 11:06 AM
Elaine check out this article. Pretty good. http://news.silverseek.com/TedButler/1219417468.php
Posted by: Ralph | August 22, 2008 at 11:15 AM
Elaine:
The thing that really burns me up is this:
Ordinary people like myself (and you, and probably anyone else reading this) are ON OUR OWN. If one loses one's job, or suffers a business failure, then that is just tough, it is one's own problem to somehow cope and move on. Most manage to do so, somehow, barely, with great difficulty and suffering. Some don't, and we read about the stories of a select few of these now and then; these stories are just the tip of the iceburg. Just enough stories to make most people glad that it isn't them - not enough stories to scare people enough to make them believe that it really is going to be them next.
This is all supposedly for the best, you see. We are supposed to celebrate the "competitiveness of a dynamic economy", this is the "creative distruction" that supposedly reallocates resources from less productive to more productive enterprises. Right.
When it comes to big shot, big moneybags CEOs and bankers and financiers, though, what do we see? Do we see THEM suffer the consequences when they make a wrong bet on the direction of the economy, or when they make bad decisions and their companies head toward insolvency? NO!!! Because THEY are SPECIAL, THEY get treated differently than the rest of us ordinary people. THEY get special bail-outs. "Too big to fail", they say. Too much well-connected big shots to fail, I say is closer to the truth.
I very strongly suspect that I'm not the only one that feels this way. I rather suspect that more and more people are getting mad as hell about this. There is no mention in the main stream media about it though, not a word. They don't dare mention it.
Posted by: Stefan Stackhouse | August 22, 2008 at 01:29 PM
Comrades !
I exhort you to adhere to Party doctrine.
Most glorious (roll that "r") Party has
glorious 10 year plan to restore liquidity.
All hail to our Dear Beard and his loan "window".
Ignore these hooligans that try to deceive
you with their revisionist bourgeois theories.
Now, get back to your Tractor Factory. The
Party quota must be made.
Posted by: G. | August 22, 2008 at 01:44 PM
The crybabies I work with are talking up all the silver and bronze medals the US got. I find this hilarious because a few years ago everyone was running around saying, "Second place is first loser!!!" Hahaha.
I'm also amused by the underlying racist coverage of the Olympics. When athletes from other countries celebrate a victory they are classless showboaters. When US athletes celebrate they are just reveling in the spirit of the games. At various times NBC has implied that the Chinese are robots, savages, simpletons, insects, infantile, childlike, or subhuman.
In banking news, the AHOLES down at HSBC have managed to make my paycheck disappear. Thanks a lot international banking cartel!
Posted by: AF | August 22, 2008 at 02:31 PM
G: If only I had a tractor factory to go to:
"McCormick's factory in Doncaster assembled its last tractor today (14th Dec 2007) after 60 years of farm machinery production.
The closure of the Wheatley Hall Road plant is the latest of a number of closures in Britain over the years. Massey Ferguson used to make combines at Kilmarnock and tractors in Coventry. The David Brown factory near Huddersfield and International Harvester's Bradford plant have long since closed their doors and the same fate befell Leyland's Bathgate facility near Edinburgh and Marshall's Gainsborough factory in the 1980s.
Now, only CNH Global's New Holland tractor plant in Basildon and JCB's factories at Rocester (telehandlers) and Cheadle (tractors) remain."
Massey Ferguson was the definitive UK tractor brand. I even had a toy MF tractor in my childhood. They were taken over by Agco,who closed the plant with a loss of 900 direct jobs. Agco is a US corporation, of course. I'm not whining, just pointing out the facts. This is how it goes, isn't it? And I won't be getting any pleasure if I hear that John Deere is moving all manufacturing to China. It used to be said that what happens in the USA, happens in the UK ten years later (refrigerators, colour TV's, etc). Looks as if it's the other way round now (collapsing motor industry, etc.), but with a twenty year lag.
In the UK, we're buggered now we can't do up our houses and sell 'em on any more. Hope you all do better over there.
AF:
I read that the Olympic medals are only plated, not solid. Says it all, if true.
Posted by: Bear of Little Brain | August 22, 2008 at 02:40 PM
Stefan: The so-called "free market" advocates are total frauds. They don't want free markets; free markets cause competition, which hurts profits. If the 'free marketers' were honest(HaHaHa), they would say they are MONOPOLISTS. That's what they really are. Always follow where the money goes; this tells you the REAL story.
Posted by: Paul S | August 22, 2008 at 02:43 PM
The Exchange Stabilization Fund belatedly reports that it sold 10 billion Euros and bought dollars.
Also, the ECB manipulated gold.
The price of stuff with no inherent value goes up, while the price of tangible stuff drops.
This buys our country a little more time to borrow itself to death.
Posted by: Phil | August 22, 2008 at 02:43 PM
Sorry Mr Bear.
I was trying to imitate the olde USSR commie rhetoric a little too much
Instead of "tractor factory" I should've
said, "telemarketing cubicle" for white
collar people, or "get back on your forklift in the warehouse" for blue collar people.
All Heil to most glorious party and to Dear
Komrade Chairman, our Dear Beard Bernanke.
Posted by: G. | August 22, 2008 at 03:05 PM
I think a list should be compiled of who the elites are, and where they live, and they should all be given concrete boots, and tossed in the ocean or worse, if they don't pull the American people out of this in good shape.
Death is the only just sentence for them.
Posted by: JZ | August 22, 2008 at 03:57 PM
Hey Elaine, have you seen this:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aIECoNZ8Zbgo&refer=home
"Aug. 22 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., Chrysler LLC and U.S. auto-parts makers are seeking $50 billion in government-backed loans"
This is insane. Mother of all bailouts is approaching... fast. Better get some shelter.
Posted by: Hakan with the reindeer | August 22, 2008 at 04:03 PM
Why would anybody buy Lehman? Just let it go bankrupt and buy the pieces.
Their liability is way too big, not worth whatever asset they have left. With real estate crashing and economy slowing, their office buildings couldn't possibly worth that much.
On top of that, if Lehman goes bankrupt, the other 3 big banks are in much weaker position too. It cascades. Then buy one of them.
Posted by: Anthony | August 22, 2008 at 04:06 PM
The Koreans will take the Derivative Beast which dwells at Lehman and unleash it upon Japan. HAHAHA. Never forget, Japan, not North Korea, is the entity the Koreans want to mash.
About tractors: HEY! I own and use tractors. I used to have a 1948 Fergason T0-20. Gave it to a friend of my son when it got seized up.
Now we own a Ford 1983 1710. It is a great workhorse. Which is good. Since my poor old workhorse, Sparky, died. All our Ford parts come from....hang onto your bales of hay, everyone....CHINA. Well, well, well.
Posted by: Elaine Meinel Supkis | August 22, 2008 at 04:30 PM
G:
Sorry to rain on your parade. I'm becoming a real party-pooper. ;-)
Hakan: Tata just bought the old imperialists' once-prized possessions - Jaguar and Range Rover. Just as well Vietnam doesn't have a motor industry or they'd be after the Big Three! Wouldn't rule out China, though.
Just spotted Elaine's comment before posting. Great minds…?? Okay, just coincidence.
Posted by: Bear of Little Brain | August 22, 2008 at 04:41 PM
Bear,
Mention of Huddersfield rang a bell.
Some of my ancestors lived just down the road in Honley, until 1699.
Beautiful place, the Holme Valley. Great place to wait out Depressions.
Posted by: Phil | August 22, 2008 at 06:22 PM
Hey, Phil, did your family, like mine, irritate King James too much? Him and his Bible, that is. That is why my family ended up here.
Posted by: Elaine Meinel Supkis | August 22, 2008 at 07:07 PM
Afghan ministry says 76 civilians killedFrom correspondents in Kabul
August 23, 2008 07:26am
Article from: Agence France-PresseFont size: + -
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A US-LED coalition military operation in western Afghanistan has killed 76 civilians, including 50 children and 19 women, the Afghan interior ministry said.
The coalition confirmed it carried out an operation that included air strikes in the western province of Herat but said 30 Taliban rebels were killed only and said it knew of no civilian deaths.
The Afghan defence ministry meanwhile gave yet another toll - five civilians and 25 rebels dead.
It was impossible to independently verify what happened in volatile Shindand district, but the conflicting reports highlight the difficulty in establishing facts in the mounting clashes between troops and rebels.
"Seventy-six people, all civilians and most of them women and children, were martyred during the operation by coalition forces in Shindand district of Herat province," the ministry said.
The dead were "19 women, seven men and the rest children all under 15 years of age," it said.
"The interior ministry, while expressing its profound regret because of this incident which happened by accident, has sent a delegation of 10 people to the area and more details will be announced once the investigation is completed".
If the death toll is confirmed it would be one of the highest for civilians in the battle to fight the extremist Taliban, who were ousted during a US-led invasion in 2001.
The ministry said an unknown number of civilians were also wounded, with some of them in a critical condition.
The police chief for western Afghanistan, Akramuddin Yawer, had also said 76 people were killed in the incident and 15 houses were destroyed in strikes. "Taliban are included but their number is unknown," he said.
But the coalition said 30 insurgents were killed in clashes and air strikes that followed an ambush on Afghan National Army (ANA) and coalition troops as they were going to arrest a Taliban commander.
"The ANA and coalition forces killed 30 insurgents," it said, adding a "known" Taliban commander was among the dead.
Two civilians were wounded. "No other civilian or friendly casualties were reported," the coalition said.
In Washington, a Pentagon spokesman could not account for the Afghan interior ministry claims, saying "the coalition remains confident in our reports that were released earlier today".
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Posted by: Greg | August 22, 2008 at 08:47 PM
Look a this then:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aslo2E01QVFI
"A failure of U.S. mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could be a catastrophe for the global financial system, said Yu Yongding, a former adviser to China's central bank.
``If the U.S. government allows Fannie and Freddie to fail and international investors are not compensated adequately, the consequences will be catastrophic,'' Yu said in e-mailed answers to questions yesterday. ``If it is not the end of the world, it is the end of the current international financial system.''
``The seriousness of such failures could be beyond the stretch of people's imagination,'' said Yu, a professor at the Institute of World Economics & Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing."
Harsh words..
Posted by: Hakan with the reindeer | August 22, 2008 at 09:34 PM
tic toc ...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080822/bs_nm/fannie_freddie_dc_2
Moody's ratings cut latest blow to Fannie, Freddie
Early in the day, influential stock market investor Warren Buffett told CNBC there is a "reasonable chance" that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stock will get wiped out in a government rescue, reflecting market sentiment that has slammed the companies' shares toward 20-year lows this week. The shares closed mixed on Friday.
In the ratings cut, Moody's Investors Service cited concern that market turmoil has hurt the mortgage finance giants' ability to get fresh capital. Moody's made a ratings adjustment that suggests a greater likelihood the government sponsored enterprises, called GSEs, will need "extraordinary financial assistance" from the government or shareholders.
Posted by: anthony | August 22, 2008 at 10:19 PM
Geeze, that is why the dollar is stronger and the stock market went up, eh?
Of course, China is throwing VERY BROAD hints that if we cheat them, they will make our lives very, very miserable.
Posted by: Elaine Meinel Supkis | August 23, 2008 at 12:08 AM
Elaine:
My Holme Valley ancestors were Quakers, which irritated the local Anglican Bishop no end.
They were hounded out of the Valley and settled outside of Philadelphia, USA on a Penn Grant. They were early to fight the King in the American Revolution.
Posted by: PLovering | August 23, 2008 at 12:30 AM
I wonder what happen if we quit paying the Chinese and Russian their money.
I mean, it would be amazing watching $2.6T liquidity being dumped into the market all at once. It probably makes a very nice thriller novel.
Posted by: Anthony | August 23, 2008 at 12:31 AM
Ahaha, it was only about a year ago that the US insisted China invest billions in Fannie and Freddie...
Posted by: Christian W | August 23, 2008 at 01:58 AM
Apres Deluge! That is what! The Hoover Dam of debts collapses!
Plovering, heh. The Crown wanted to get rid of dissidents. My family couldn't even live in a British colony, we were in the Dutch colonies. Note that Pennsylvania is also, like the Hudson Valley, very Dutch. The Dutch were the true Liberals of the 1600s, not England, not France.
Posted by: Elaine Meinel Supkis | August 23, 2008 at 09:02 AM
Ah, foreign affairs now advocates "digital gold" currency:
http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20070501faessay86308-p40/benn-steil/the-end-of-national-currency.html
Posted by: whine and cheese | August 23, 2008 at 09:46 AM
the only anniversary i want to see is the one entitled "death of the fed" -- i think it has already passed. Now it is time for the pain - you know. Big deal - we can take it - we the People can take the pain and we can sure enough dish it out. Wait and see if you don't believe me....im just saying ---- just expressing my view --- we are still "allowed" to do that in this country aren't we, or are the few going after this too --- ooh, big mistake by the few.
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:13 PM
You might like to read this...Just copy and paste into address bar...
http://tinyurl.com/5exu5o
Posted by: Tell | August 23, 2008 at 02:14 PM
then after death of the fed commences in my imagination the death penalty for so many unalive corporations --- all of this flow logically -it just unfolds - or unravel if you will.
Peace. Really.
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:15 PM
Hey tell who u been talking 2? Not me.
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:15 PM
http://www.silverbearcafe.com/private/8.08/amateur.html
I don't care for this "tinyurl" thing. I'd rather have a clue - is there a way to see where the tinyurl is going to take you beforehand?
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:20 PM
I had to go through the trouble of checking it out and i'm not so sure its worth the time...i didn't read it --- im sure so many have not read mine!
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:21 PM
2:22 or maybe not --- whose got the time - not what - i know that.
But I think what has who - by the balls if you know what i mean!
Do ya fool?
ha.ha
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:22 PM
and 2:23 - that ain't for me - that is only for "magic number" fooly boy bush fools...such a fool...an easy tool.
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:23 PM
he's probably bleeding right now...inbred dumb tejas fuuuu. hay im fu 2, but i no scale
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:24 PM
hey that was supposed to be 2:25 - whose got the time.....i wanta know...
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 02:25 PM
all this time and there was nothing.....
i know i should get out of my head........
Hey - We the People. We know.
plus, me, Ken Hausle, I declare I am indignant.
Check out the PeopleProclamation if you want to know what I mean.
Well - that makes 9 (maybe...
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 05:36 PM
make that peoplesproclamation.com
click on my name if you want to get there easily....
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 05:37 PM
K and 11.
OK. Enough of my rambling.
By the way, I finished the laminate job and I think (or at least as best I can tell) everyone was satisfied. A job well done.
You can count on 2morehands. 2morehands can grow as natural as it wants. 2morehands is just an idea.
11 and K go together.
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 05:38 PM
I am going to do the 12th post in a row (at least I think) for two reasons:
1. I can be an asshole when I need to be (i am from new york after all...); and
2. That inflation cartoon chick, or no, inflation "funny money" honey sure looks good, but let me tell she is not faster than thought. Uh ah. Thought is faster than inflation.
Hey - 12th in a row unless someone blocks.
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 05:47 PM
Things can happen very rapidly. That makes 13 and my wife just got home. I better get down there to where she is.
Peace,
Ken
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 05:48 PM
OK - daggonit. My wife told me the Mississipi boys would take out the New York troops. I disagree, but that is neither here nor there.
This is the 14th post, and in my humble typing opinion (and this did not type simply...) i could go on forever...
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 06:46 PM
Earlier Elaine talked about Wars that were still going on, but I disagree. That is very subjective. Some could say the Civil War (the "War of America"_) is still going on, but I disagree. I think now we are only seeing the effects....and so is the case with the other wars...they only live on in imagination and it is time big time to start imagining better...don't you think...i DO. I love.....i love nothing and everything....
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 23, 2008 at 06:49 PM
Just watched the mega-huge movie made in Russia, the epic War and Peace by Tolstoy. Amazing and haunting movie.
Posted by: Elaine Meinel Supkis | August 23, 2008 at 10:56 PM
ok
i1 will1
cnt1 post1 more
my1 keybord1
jhs1 fgone1 fgluky1
peice,1 k
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 24, 2008 at 06:12 AM
I got a backup keyboard and except for the spacebar this one seems to be working well. I had spilled too much stuff on the other one and it was only a matter of time before its circuity was compromised. Oh well, except for maybe time, nothing lasts forever - not even nothing.
OK Elaine is the movie you meant?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_and_Peace_(1968_film)
I wonder if I can get this through Netflix.
If I can't get the movie, then I suppose it is time to read the book. I think I have that book lying around here somewhere.
OK, I don't do this very often, but I promise that I won't have another 15-in-row posting "ho-down" - I really wanted to get 16, but I suppose that would be over the top. Plus, I'm going "offline" for awhile, but I'll still be lurking. You can count on me to be around and show up every now and then. This is one of the best sites I have ever found - I don't even go to "commondreams.org" anymore because they kicked my ass off - and to think, the name of the site was "common dreams" - not an apt name if you are interested in my opinion.
This site on the other hand is most aptly named. Lastly, I plan on checking out in more detail some of your "non money-matters" blog postings. I've read some of them, but I think I want to read more.
Money stuff can just get so frantic in the moment that sometimes it is important to take a step back and survery the situation before proceeding forward.
Peace again. Peace to all those here many of whom I consider "online" friends.
Ken
Posted by: Buffalo Ken | August 24, 2008 at 07:02 AM