economic nachtmare approaching

[ChairmanAgnostic]

let me get this straight, inflation rose 1% in January.
Bernacke wants to CUT RATES AGAIN.
The Fed secretly pumped billions of free dollars into the US banking system.
The Fed secretly pumped 30 Billion more to support the mortgage market.
The dollar fell to 1.5 - 1 Euros.
Property values fell, and new home sales have just one room - the toilet.


And with this disaster in the making, the GOP claims the only thing that helps is TAX CUTS? How insane is that?

no. we have to bite the bullet and take several steps. The problem is not that rates are too high, rather they are too low. Interest rates must come up to shore the value of the fading dollar.
Marginal rates, credit cards, equity loans and more, will have to rise, to prevent deficit spending.
Tax rates must rise, and government spending, starting with Iraq and Military expansion, must be cut drastically.

Everyone will feel it, and feel it badly, but only for a short time.

If we cut rates again, think Germany before WWII. Dollars will be cheaper than toilet paper and about as useful.

[no_hypocrisy]

1. It wasn't exactly on the front page of the papers that the Fed stopped publishing

the M3 since almost two years ago. Without this information, no government, no financial institution, no citizen could document how many dollars were in circulation at any given time. And no congressional mandate to publish this information during the hiatus.

http://www.federalreserve.gov/Releases/h6/discm3.htm

http://www.shout.net/~bigred/HouseOfCards.html

http://prudentinvestor.blogspot.com/2005/12/m3-this-is-what-bernanke-and-others.html

[enid602]

2. economy

Lots of conflicting signals, for sure. I get the impression that economists and policymakers are just throwing everything at the wall, to see what sticks.

[Hydra]

4. They're trying to keep us from panicking

and it's working better than I expected it to. If people stop spending and pull their money from the banks and sit on it...

[enid602]

6. money

Isn't most money in 401K's and IRA's? Anyway, I'm glad all my money's in retirement accounts; I can't withdraw it (due to taxes and penalties), so I don't have to worry about whether or not I should put it under the mattress.

[Hydra]

7. This never happens to me

but some people have money set aside for emergencies and rainy days.

As for your retirement money, that's getting devalued as we speak. It may be worth pennies on the dollar by the time this is all done...but as you say, you withdraw it, and you get hit. You wait, and maybe this will blow over.

Maybe.

[enid602]

14. ??

How could it? It's 75% in hard currency funds; it's going up in terms of dollars, but probably staying even in terms of its worldwide purchasing power.

[Hydra]

3. This was all inevitable

Watch "Money as Debt" on google. Our system of compounded debt is unworkable, and as for the 1% inflation...as if! They cut all of the important things from that indicator, otherwise we might get a number more like 5%- and a cumulative of 30-40% over the last few years.

Let's go to a work credit system instead of a debt based one, and see how the top 1% scream when they can't squeeze us like lemons anymore.

[superkia]

9. Money as debt was very informative, when I saw it I had no idea.

We will all eventually be enslaved to the corrupt system and their elite boss'. This is just a plan that has finally got to a point where the middle class is getting hit so more people are up in arms about it. Its only going to get worse over time and eventually those just above the middle class will be squeezed. They have divided most of the country and they are picking us apart class by class. The only way America will ever belong to the people again is if the system does something so bad that everyone loses it and fights back. The problem is that we will have sticks and they will have lasers, tasers, guns, sound weapons, and the rest of the new technology. Oh and don't forget, they have more help now.

"According to an announcement on U.S. Northern Command’s web site, an agreement has been signed between U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) and Canada Command (CANADACOM) that allows the military from either nation to support the armed forces of the other during a civil emergency. This agreement helps to further erode the sovereignty of both nations by allowing a foreign military to support that nation’s military during any type of civil emergency. Essentially, Canadian military forces would be allowed to support U.S. military forces during a declaration of martial law. This is just another step towards the formation of a North American Union martial law apparatus which USNORTHCOM unveiled with the public release of their Vision 2020 document."


Together we stand, DIVIDED WE FALL!


First they came for the Jews
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists
and I did not speak out
because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.

[Hydra]

10. I also didn't know how all of this worked

My family taught me the idea of "cold, hard cash." No wonder they died unhappy.

Thanks for the heads up about Northcom- they may have us outgunned, but they seem nervous- I wonder why? IMO, the chances of a revolt are slim. We've put up with an illegal invasion and occupation, domestic spying, devaluing of the dollar, offshoring, torture, arrests without charge, a terrorist attack on our soil that was not prevented...

Boiled frog soup. Want any?

[Beausoleil]

11. 1% inflation

According to OP, that was just January. That represents 12% inflation annualized!

[Hydra]

12. I know!

and as scary as that is, the inflation index doesn't include things like food or fuel!

As bad as the doctored numbers are, they're nothing compared to the reality. Did you know that the real unemployment rate might be close to 20%?

The sky IS falling, and people like the Fed are saying "Well, this might lead to a recession..."

I like what one DUer told me once:

"A recession is when someone you know loses their job, a depression is when you lose yours."

[Beausoleil]

15. Cooking government numbers

another corporate victory!

I have a hard time finding anyone who has gotten more than a 3% increase in the last several years. I suspect the reason is that the corporations have figured out that if they make the government shovel out numbers they like, they can stiff us on raises, since most of them base raises on core CPI, not any real measure of cost of living increase.

However, most CEO's salaries HAVE kept pace with inflation.

I know the unemployment numbers only count those who are eligible for unemployment benefits, not those who've been out of work for more than 6 months, those who've given up, nor those who are underemployed or employed part time.

The only purpose of government numbers is for propaganda.

[Hydra]

16. HA!

I work for a company that asks us to sacrifice on bad years and bonuses the management on good years.

That's a good model for how our gov't works right now, I think. Handouts and bailouts for the bosses, sacrifices and cutbacks for the peons.

You're right though, The Corps LOVE how the gov't cooks the books. It wouldn't be done otherwise.

Oh, no raise here, so you can add me to your numbers. In fact, I've had to take on a disabled relative that would be homeless otherwise, since SSDI takes their sweet time...and $600 a month isn't enough to live on anyway.

[superkia]

17. Its comforting to see others out there that actually see what the...

system is doing to us in front of our face, it seems too many people rely on the controlled media for all of their information and have no idea.

[Warpy]

5. Thank you. I've been saying for months that Bernanke is going

the wrong way, that he needs to shore up the dollar by raising rates, not cutting rates, increasing inflation, and putting the dollar into the toilet.

The stock market is trying to correct and has been trying to do so for some time. Yes, that means I'm going to lose a lot of paper value along with everybody else, but unless one is using that paper value to leverage debt, it's not going to make that big a difference to us.

Everything the GOP has done economically since Stupid got into office has been geared to shoring up the stock market at the Clinton hyperinflation stage. Eventually inflation will catch up to it, but until that happens, the market needs to correct. Stalling it will just make the correction deeper than it needs to be since the rest of the economy will be dragging it down.

Cutting taxes on the rich and fiddling with the interest rates are the only tricks the GOP ever has. Their dogma hasn't changed since Harding, Coolidge and Hoover put us into the Great Depression. Unless the next president is willing to take drastic and unpopular steps, we'll be facing another depression. It might have gone too far, already.

The bottom line is that their economic dogma has never worked, is not working, will never work. We have to get them out and keep them out.

[AndyA]

8. All they want to do is eek by for the rest of the year.

Then, in January 2009 a new Dem President takes office and - BAM! - ZAP! - ZOWIE! - Holy depression, Batman! The bottom falls out.

And the GOP will place the blame on the Democrats. And the M$M will gladly help spread the word. They're just shoring things up to try to get by for the rest of the year, and then let the bottom drop out once there's a D after the sitting President. It's all a Dem problem, see? :shrug:

[BeHereNow]

13. Approaching? Heck it's here for me...

I sure wish I'd have transfered more assets
OUT of the dollar...
We are truly screwed.

BHN