Ironically, the Republicans may have just ensured Obama's re-election and made two terms a virtual certainty for him.
Arrogance knows no bounds, and the arrogance of politicians who win elections may be the worst kind.
Republicans: By extending the Bush tax cuts for everyone, you have spit in the face of average Americans. If we were not in a huge fiscal hole I would not say this. However, we are in a huge fiscal hole. The American people voted out incumbents because they didn't like the direction the country was moving in. They want Washington to show some fiscal responsibility. They want their children and grandchildren to grow up in a decent world. If the U.S. defaults on its obligations this will not be the case. To get out of the fiscal hole we are in we need compromise. Spending must be cut. The Bush tax cuts must be allowed to expire on those earning $250,000+.
Both things must happen. When Republicans start saying $250,000+ is hardship territory and even people with income of this magnitude are "struggling" in the midst of the worst Recession this country has seen since the Great Depression and at a time when our Government could be facing bankruptcy, they are asking for nothing short of a revolution.
You think the Tea party was angry? Keep it up, Republicans, and you will see how angry people can be. Tax breaks for the rich is not what the election was about.
So you see, Obama's move was brilliant. By giving the Republicans what they wanted, he can blame whatever happens now on them. In addition, when it is time for needed budget cuts, he can remind his constituents of how the Republicans were for extending tax cuts to the rich. And believe me, for 95% of Americans, $250,000+ per year is rich. If they are struggling it is because they over extended themselves, not because they didn't have enough income.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Let It Be
Eckert Tolle, one of my favorite writers and spiritual teachers, points out that the nature of the Universe consists of both expansion and contraction.
We are born, we grow up. We age, we die. The tide goes out and comes in. At the most basic level, we breath in (expansion), we breath out (contraction).
Can you imagine breathing in and then holding your breath forever? What would the result be? Physical death.
Humans by nature resist the contraction phase of just about everything. For some reason we think we should always be expanding. We believe we should do more, be more, have more, create more.
Can you imagine how the contraction phase of any natural process creates room for the new? The tide cleans the beach. The forest fire creates a clearing that allows a new plant species to emerge. Even catastrophic events (from our perspective contractions) can make way for tremendous progress. The suffering endured during these times in whatever form makes way for something new and different to emerge.
Let me frame this in terms of the economy, because by now I am sure you know where I am going with this story.
Our society (government, citizens, etc.) is operating under the collective belief that only economic growth is desirable. In its view, contraction, or recession, is always bad. There is very little deeper questioning about what kind of growth is desirable, and little or no distinction made between healthy and dysfunctional growth.
A child outgrowing their clothes and moving on to the next size is a healthy expansion. My weight going from 130 to 150 is definitely not. Cancer is expansion of cells that is so rapid it sometimes can't be stopped, until the supporting organism perishes.
In my view, the debt and consumption driven growth supported by greed and an insatiable desire for more that we have seen over the past 20 years or so is a bit like a cancer of the economy. The clearing out that was supposed to happen (if the government had not bailed out failed banks and corporations) was a natural clearing mechanism that would have cured the system of its cancer, making room for new, healthy growth. This growth would have been (and still can be) an opportunity for real capitalists to take advantage of the opportunities that arise when the game is no longer rigged.
The powers that be (namely the congress, FED, Treasury, and giant financial institutions) made sure the needed contraction didn't happen. They fail to understand that Main Street would survive without Wall Street in its current form. Main Street would survive without an intrusive, parental government. The very cause of Main Streets' problems swooped in as the "savior", obscuring the fact that the "savior" was the cause of all this distress in the first place.
Bad things shouldn't happen. People shouldn't be unemployed...ever. Economies should always grow, regardless of the source or nature of that growth. The sun should always shine. The tide should never come in. You shouldn't ever have to breath out.
Really? Because the fact is that bad things do happen. People are unemployed. Economies do contract. We have cloudy days, and dark nights. The tide comes in and you have to breath out.
Does this mean our government shouldn't help those that can't help themselves in times of need? Of course not. But it certainly will not be able to perform that function if it bankrupts itself trying to make sure our economy permanently expands.
We are born, we grow up. We age, we die. The tide goes out and comes in. At the most basic level, we breath in (expansion), we breath out (contraction).
Can you imagine breathing in and then holding your breath forever? What would the result be? Physical death.
Humans by nature resist the contraction phase of just about everything. For some reason we think we should always be expanding. We believe we should do more, be more, have more, create more.
Can you imagine how the contraction phase of any natural process creates room for the new? The tide cleans the beach. The forest fire creates a clearing that allows a new plant species to emerge. Even catastrophic events (from our perspective contractions) can make way for tremendous progress. The suffering endured during these times in whatever form makes way for something new and different to emerge.
Let me frame this in terms of the economy, because by now I am sure you know where I am going with this story.
Our society (government, citizens, etc.) is operating under the collective belief that only economic growth is desirable. In its view, contraction, or recession, is always bad. There is very little deeper questioning about what kind of growth is desirable, and little or no distinction made between healthy and dysfunctional growth.
A child outgrowing their clothes and moving on to the next size is a healthy expansion. My weight going from 130 to 150 is definitely not. Cancer is expansion of cells that is so rapid it sometimes can't be stopped, until the supporting organism perishes.
In my view, the debt and consumption driven growth supported by greed and an insatiable desire for more that we have seen over the past 20 years or so is a bit like a cancer of the economy. The clearing out that was supposed to happen (if the government had not bailed out failed banks and corporations) was a natural clearing mechanism that would have cured the system of its cancer, making room for new, healthy growth. This growth would have been (and still can be) an opportunity for real capitalists to take advantage of the opportunities that arise when the game is no longer rigged.
The powers that be (namely the congress, FED, Treasury, and giant financial institutions) made sure the needed contraction didn't happen. They fail to understand that Main Street would survive without Wall Street in its current form. Main Street would survive without an intrusive, parental government. The very cause of Main Streets' problems swooped in as the "savior", obscuring the fact that the "savior" was the cause of all this distress in the first place.
Bad things shouldn't happen. People shouldn't be unemployed...ever. Economies should always grow, regardless of the source or nature of that growth. The sun should always shine. The tide should never come in. You shouldn't ever have to breath out.
Really? Because the fact is that bad things do happen. People are unemployed. Economies do contract. We have cloudy days, and dark nights. The tide comes in and you have to breath out.
Does this mean our government shouldn't help those that can't help themselves in times of need? Of course not. But it certainly will not be able to perform that function if it bankrupts itself trying to make sure our economy permanently expands.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Wall Street Doesn't Care
And they are not embarrassed to tell you they don't.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/40491033
http://www.cnbc.com/id/40491033
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Bulls Are Running
I have repeatedly said "has nothing fundamental has changed" since the Lehman brothers collapse and the subsequent recession and bailouts.
That was not entirely true. Obviously, Government involvement with the large investment and commercial banks is at an all time high. Our government is lending their wealthy players your tax money at nearly 0%, and encouraging them to gamble with it in the stock market. This is a change; not for the better.
Where is all that liquidity, that money, the Fed has pumped into the system? I'll tell you where: in the stock market and the bond market. Both of these markets are bubbles. Stocks are valued as if we are not only going to have a HUGE recovery, but as if growth going forward will be 4-8%. This is ridiculous. Corporate profits are reflecting massive cost cuts during the recession combined with price stability or inflation. This is not sustainable.
Have you seen the rise of the thrift store? Have you notices how average Americans are sick of paying too much for their food and clothing? I know I am. I run in middle to upper middle class circles and nearly everyone I know is either under a great deal of financial stress, or they are extremely cash strapped trying to pay off debt accumulated during the boom.
And don't give me the story that the Chinese consumer is going to save the world. This is just another illusion fat cats on Wall Street float so they can get richer trading overvalued stocks with your tax money. What a load! Really?
What is the primary driver of Chinese growth? Western consumption! They are growing because we have an insatiable appetite for loads of plastic crap and cheap clothing that looks expensive. Chinese per capita GDP in 2009 was $3,700 according to CIA World Factbook.
$3,700. The U.S. per capita GDP was $46,300 (same source). China ranked lower than Iran and Algeria. I know...they have soooo many people.
So let's see...the West is going to pull out of this mess by growing industry and exporting to the rest of the world. By that logic, we would have to be able to manufacture stuff that Chinese people could afford. Too be competitive, we would have to make our products cheaper than theirs! Can you imagine all the high paying jobs this will create?
So, the China story is fiction. Pure fiction, designed to line the pockets of Wall Street bankers with your money. They will once again destroy the value of your 401 (k) with their arrogant government subsidized irresponsible speculation.
So sad. This is what happens when you have a corrupt central banking system. We need nothing short of a financial revolution to save this country.
But the market is up today! NFLX is trading at 75.5X earnings. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (still under investigation for irregular accounting practices) is trading at 58X earnings and a Goldman Sachs party boy got kicked out of his $30,000/mo Manhattan apartment complex for partying too hard. It's a MAD MAD world we live in.
PBS had a great special about the recession the other day:
Did you see that guys flat screen? Did you see the booze stash behind him while he was sitting on this leather couch? No seriously, I feel bad for the guy. I would rather see unemployment benefits extended and mortgage debt forgiven for the middle class than slick Wall Street traders profiting from government favors. But you know, our government has to have its priorities.
All I can say is: if the Fed keeps up this kind of behavior and the public ever catches on, there will be a revolution in this country.
That was not entirely true. Obviously, Government involvement with the large investment and commercial banks is at an all time high. Our government is lending their wealthy players your tax money at nearly 0%, and encouraging them to gamble with it in the stock market. This is a change; not for the better.
Where is all that liquidity, that money, the Fed has pumped into the system? I'll tell you where: in the stock market and the bond market. Both of these markets are bubbles. Stocks are valued as if we are not only going to have a HUGE recovery, but as if growth going forward will be 4-8%. This is ridiculous. Corporate profits are reflecting massive cost cuts during the recession combined with price stability or inflation. This is not sustainable.
Have you seen the rise of the thrift store? Have you notices how average Americans are sick of paying too much for their food and clothing? I know I am. I run in middle to upper middle class circles and nearly everyone I know is either under a great deal of financial stress, or they are extremely cash strapped trying to pay off debt accumulated during the boom.
And don't give me the story that the Chinese consumer is going to save the world. This is just another illusion fat cats on Wall Street float so they can get richer trading overvalued stocks with your tax money. What a load! Really?
What is the primary driver of Chinese growth? Western consumption! They are growing because we have an insatiable appetite for loads of plastic crap and cheap clothing that looks expensive. Chinese per capita GDP in 2009 was $3,700 according to CIA World Factbook.
$3,700. The U.S. per capita GDP was $46,300 (same source). China ranked lower than Iran and Algeria. I know...they have soooo many people.
So let's see...the West is going to pull out of this mess by growing industry and exporting to the rest of the world. By that logic, we would have to be able to manufacture stuff that Chinese people could afford. Too be competitive, we would have to make our products cheaper than theirs! Can you imagine all the high paying jobs this will create?
So, the China story is fiction. Pure fiction, designed to line the pockets of Wall Street bankers with your money. They will once again destroy the value of your 401 (k) with their arrogant government subsidized irresponsible speculation.
So sad. This is what happens when you have a corrupt central banking system. We need nothing short of a financial revolution to save this country.
But the market is up today! NFLX is trading at 75.5X earnings. Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (still under investigation for irregular accounting practices) is trading at 58X earnings and a Goldman Sachs party boy got kicked out of his $30,000/mo Manhattan apartment complex for partying too hard. It's a MAD MAD world we live in.
PBS had a great special about the recession the other day:
Did you see that guys flat screen? Did you see the booze stash behind him while he was sitting on this leather couch? No seriously, I feel bad for the guy. I would rather see unemployment benefits extended and mortgage debt forgiven for the middle class than slick Wall Street traders profiting from government favors. But you know, our government has to have its priorities.
All I can say is: if the Fed keeps up this kind of behavior and the public ever catches on, there will be a revolution in this country.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Connecting
There are times when I am able to connect to some source that is not of me. Perhaps this is Spirit, perhaps it is...well, it is whatever you wish to call it.
It is in these times when I am able to post insightful, inspired posts.
Right now, for me, is not one of those times.
I am just not feelin' it.
There are other blogs out there that will share information with you endlessly. Their opinions abound.
I want my posts to be from the heart, the Soul, the Source. Many of them are. However, tonight I find I just do not have inspiration.
Come back please...because I know Inspiration will.
It is in these times when I am able to post insightful, inspired posts.
Right now, for me, is not one of those times.
I am just not feelin' it.
There are other blogs out there that will share information with you endlessly. Their opinions abound.
I want my posts to be from the heart, the Soul, the Source. Many of them are. However, tonight I find I just do not have inspiration.
Come back please...because I know Inspiration will.
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