Ebb & Flow of Power

2009-11-08T20:41:00.002+09:00

U-6 Total unemployed, plus all marginally

attached workers, plus total employed

part time for economic reasons, as a

percent of the civilian labor force

plus all marginally attached workers

17.5 %

2009-11-08T18:23:00.002+09:00

A Reader Asks "How Did 558,000 People

Lose Their Jobs When Only 190,000

Jobs Were Lost?"

Here is an excerpt from today's Bureau of Labor Statistics Non-farm Payrolls report."The unemployment rate rose from 9.8 to 10.2 percent in October, and nonfarmpayroll employment continued to decline (-190,000), the U.S. Bureau of LaborStatistics reported today. The largest job losses over the month were in con-struction, manufacturing, and retail trade.
Household Survey Data
In October, the number of unemployed persons increased by 558,000 to 15.7million. The unemployment rate rose by 0.4 percentage point to 10.2 percent,the highest rate since April 1983. Since the start of the recession inDecember 2007, the number of unemployed persons has risen by 8.2 million,and the unemployment rate has grown by 5.3 percentage points...
The civilian labor force participation rate was little changed over the monthat 65.1 percent. The employment-population ratio continued to decline inOctober, falling to 58.5 percent."
An astute reader noticed that the BLS press release says that 190,000 jobs were lost from payroll employment, but the number of unemployed persons increased by 558,000. What's up with that?
The BLS report consists of two independent data samples. BLS has two monthly surveys that measure employment levels and trends: the Current Population Survey (CPS), also known as the household survey, and the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey, also known as the payroll or establishment survey.
There is the "Establishment Survey" which is based on responses from a sample of about 400,000 business establishments, about one-third of total nonfarm payroll employment. The headline payroll number, the job loss of 190,000, is based on this data. ( Power more at )

2009-11-08T17:04:00.002+09:00

Gold suppression is public policy and public

record, not 'conspiracy theory'

Submitted by cpowell

on Sat,2009-11-07

18:16. Section:
Essays

Remarks by Chris Powell, Secretary/TreasurerGold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.International Precious Metals and Commodities Show Olympia Park, Munich, GermanySaturday,
November 7, 2009

Thank you for coming to listen to me today. Please forgive my inability to speak German. I'll be discussing many documents, some of them fairly complicated, but don't worry if you miss something about them. They'll be posted at GATA's Internet site with these remarks.
On Friday, September 25, Jim Rickards, director of market intelligence for the Omnis consulting firm in McLean, Virginia., was interviewed on the cable television network CNBC in the United States. Talking about the currency markets, Rickards remarked: "When you own gold you're fighting every central bank in the world." ( Power more at )

2009-11-04T06:36:00.002+09:00

Select Quotes

Democracy has been diluted by the actions we have taken to get out of this crisis.
The government is willing to willy nilly print money to prevent any bank from going into receivership which I think is a galacticly bad idea.
Credit derivatives added to the problems by providing leverage and opacity.
They increased people’s ability to borrow in hidden ways.
There is a lot of debt in the system that is invisible. And banks themselves were often running invisible hedge funds.
The legacy investment banks were running invisible hedge funds, but so were our major banks, and that includes JPMorgan, and Citigroup Bank of America.
Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs) were overrated and overpriced the minute they came to market. If that wasn’t enough, investment banks were creating these things in their financial meth labs , knowingly selling things they knew or should have known were overrated and overpriced.
In 2007 when it was clear that this activity should be shut down, because we had mortgage lenders failing throughout the country, instead of shutting down the financial meth labs, the investment banks sped up, they accelerated the bad deals they were bringing to market.
Many of them were just phony secutritizations with no other purpose than to hide losses.
I was hopeful that when someone like Obama came in, there would be meaningful change.
If anything, the situation has gotten worse. But this is bipartisan. You’ll notice that President Bush when he was in office, he elevated Roland Arnold who was the head of Ameriquest, that had been involved in alleged mortgage fraud, massive, sued by almost every state in the union, and he was elevated to the position of Ambassador to the Netherlands.
The Netherlands did not even like it.
This was not a model issue.
This was a management issue. We had people who knew or should have known they were selling things that were value destroying securitizations, and their sale provided money to lenders were originating fraudulent loans, overrated by complicit rating agencies.

Janet Tavakoli is a straight shooter and an equal party basher. You have to like that.
Mike "Mish" Shedlock

Stacy Blog:

2009-11-03T16:53:00.000+09:00

Barbarians at the gate of a gas guzzling empire

November 2nd, 2009

by stacyherbert

Stacy Summary: From what I can tell looking at history, all peoples of every empire at its peak, just before its imminent collapse, belligerently maintain their lifestyles at all cost to their own wealth and their own chance of survival. For a number of reasons, you cannot talk them into saving themselves.
While thousands upon thousands of hours are spent in America, for example, trying to prove that spewing exhaust and carbon into the air is, in fact, perfectly natural with zero cost and that there is, also, in fact, (according to one Big Oil study) enough fresh water, fertile land and oil to provide for a doubling of the global consumer class for thousands of years into the future, Americans (most who, by the way, believe the Earth is only a few thousand years old) continue to insist with an almost religious fervor on getting from point A to point B in the most inefficient manner.
Again, from my reading of history, it is impossible to fight this sort of end of empire bankruptcy of morals, wealth and, most importantly, ideas. The American empire and her citizens want to blow it on oil, so that’s how they will do it. No amount of science or reasoning can stop them. And as they will use any means necessary to get whatever oil remains, it makes no sense to try to develop your own economy using a resource that the Empire has devoted all their military might toward securing. The British, Dutch, French, Germans and other Europeans did not dare stand in the way of Spain’s maniacal quest for gold in the New World; instead, they took the gold-less lands and with them developed manufacturing and trade routes in sugar, cotton, wheat, fur, etc. (Power more at )

This is NOT good

2009-11-03T16:47:00.001+09:00

Debt Slave Bait and

Audit the Fed Bill Gutted:

What You Can Do

This should come as no surprise but Ron Paul says Federal Reserve Policy Audit Legislation ‘Gutted’Representative Ron Paul, the Texas Republican who has called for an end to the Federal Reserve, said legislation he introduced to audit monetary policy has been “gutted” while moving toward a possible vote in the Democratic-controlled House.
The bill, with 308 co-sponsors, has been stripped of provisions that would remove Fed exemptions from audits of transactions with foreign central banks, monetary policy deliberations, transactions made under the direction of the Federal Open Market Committee and communications between the Board, the reserve banks and staff, Paul said today.
“There’s nothing left, it’s been gutted,” he said in a telephone interview. “This is not a partisan issue. People all over the country want to know what the Fed is up to, and this legislation was supposed to help them do that.” ( Power more at )

2009-11-02T06:37:00.000+09:00

Obama creates 640,329 jobs at a

cost of $323,739.83 per job

Inquiring minds are asking the question "How many jobs were created out of the various stimulus programs so far and at what cost per job?"
That is a good question. Not that we can believe the reported number of jobs created, but let's assume for the sake of argument that the figures provided by the administration are correct.
White House Hails Stimulus Jobs
The Financial Times is reporting White House hails 650,000 stimulus jobs.The US economic stimulus programme has directly created or saved 640,000 jobs so far, the White House said on Friday as it battled to find ways to show that its $787bn package was working, despite persistently high unemployment. ( Power more at )

I TOLD YOU LAST JULY CIT WAS BACKRUPT

2009-11-02T06:33:00.001+09:00

CIT Group files for prepackaged bankruptcy

Sun Nov 1, 2009 4:24pm EST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - CIT Group Inc, a century-old commercial lender, filed for bankruptcy on Sunday, as the global credit crisis left it unable to fund itself and the recession left it with too many bad loans.
CIT's creditors have already approved its reorganization plan. Analysts have said that getting through bankruptcy is crucial for CIT if it wishes to keep its customers, which include Dunkin' Donuts franchisees and film production company Dark Castle Entertainment.
CIT's operating subsidiaries, including CIT Bank, are not included in the bankruptcy filing, and expect to continue operating, the company said in a statement.
CIT, which filed for bankruptcy protection in the Southern District of New York, plans to reduce its total debt by about $10 billion in bankruptcy.
Under the bankruptcy plan approved by bondholders, creditors will end up owning the company. Most bondholders will also end up with new CIT debt worth about 70 percent of the face value of their old debt. Preferred shareholders, including the U.S. government, will get money only after other creditors are paid back. Current common shareholders will receive nothing.
The U.S. government invested $2.33 billion in CIT preferred shares in December 2008 through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
CIT financed itself mainly by borrowing from bond markets, which has proven to be a flawed strategy as the credit crunch that began in 2007 has made it much more expensive for troubled companies to fund themselves.
(Reporting by Dan Wilchins; Editing Bernard Orr)

2009-10-26T07:28:00.002+09:00

Will Stimulus Take Hold?

Timothy R. Homan, writing for Bloomberg says GDP Probably Grew as Stimulus Took Hold
The economy in the U.S. probably grew in the third quarter at the fastest pace in two years as government stimulus helped bring an end to the worst recession since the 1930s, economists said before reports this week.

The world’s largest economy grew at a 3.2 percent pace from July through September after shrinking the previous four quarters, according to the median estimate of 65 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Other reports may show sales of new homes and orders for long-lasting goods increased.

Americans flocked to auto showrooms and real-estate offices last quarter to take advantage of government programs such as “cash-for-clunkers” and tax credits for first-time homebuyers. Growing demand caused stockpiles to keep falling, which will prompt companies to rev up assembly lines and help sustain the recovery into 2010 even as unemployment climbs.

“The recovery is off to a decent but unspectacular start,” said Joe Brusuelas, a director at Moody’s Economy.com in West Chester, Pennsylvania. “While another large drawdown in inventories will be a drag on third-quarter growth, it sets the stage for a longer and stronger upturn in manufacturing.”

Consumer spending last quarter probably jumped at a 3.1 percent annual rate from the previous three months, the biggest gain since the first quarter of 2007, the GDP report is also projected to show. ( power more at )

IS THIS WHAT OUR MOTHERS & FATHERS FOUGHT FOR??

2009-10-24T23:02:00.004+09:00

65 and Up and Looking for Work

By STEVEN GREENHOUSE

It is well known that during the nation’s gale-force recession, many older Americans who dreamed of retirement continued to work, often because their 401(k)’s had plunged in value.
In fact, there are more Americans 65 and older in the job market today than at any time in history, 6.6 million, compared with 4.1 million in 2001.
Less well known, though, is that nearly half a million workers 65 and older want to work but cannot find a job — more than five times the level early this decade and this group’s highest unemployment level since the Great Depression.
The situation is made more dire because of numerous recent trends: many people over 65 have lost their jobs as seniority protections have weakened, and like most other Americans, a higher percentage of them took on debt than in previous generations.
The expectation once was to pay off your 30-year mortgage before you retired, or come close. Instead, the level of indebtedness among older Americans has risen faster than in any other age group, partly because so many obtained second mortgages to take money out of their homes.
This financial squeeze is one reason President Obama has proposed giving a special $250 one-time payment to all Social Security recipients.
Many out-of-work older Americans complain that they face foreclosure or have had to give up their car. (Power more at )

2009-10-24T22:54:00.002+09:00

U.S. Bank Failures Exceed 100

for Year, First Time Since 1992

By Dakin Campbell and Michael McKee

Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. regulators closed more than 100 banks in a single year for the first time since 1992, signaling the financial crisis hasn’t abated for lenders struggling with mounting losses tied to commercial real estate.
Seven banks -- three in Florida and one each in Georgia, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Illinois -- were shut yesterday, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., pushing this year’s total to 106. That’s the most since the savings-and-loan crisis led regulators to shutter 179 institutions in 1992.
“It’s very painful, it costs a lot of money, it ruins careers,” said Gerard Cassidy, an RBC Capital Markets analyst in Portland, Maine. “But shutting down failed banks and writing off the bad loans is a necessary solution that has to be done to get the economy and the banking system back on its feet.” ( Power more at )

2009-10-24T22:44:00.002+09:00

Citigroup's "Hail Mary Pass":

How To Know Citigroup Is In Serious Trouble

Citigroup is in serious trouble. It's easy to tell by what they are doing.
Inquiring minds note that Citi Abruptly Shutting Down Gas-Linked Credit Cards.Citi (C) is abruptly shutting down credit cards linked to gas station partners.
The bank is offering few details:
The bank said in a statement it "decided to close a limited number of oil partner co-branded MasterCard accounts." That includes not only Shell, but Citgo, ExxonMobil and Phillips 66-Conoco cards.
The close date was Wednesday, and letters were sent out Monday to customers informing them of the change, a Citi spokesman said. The bank would not say how many cards were shut down or how much available credit they represented.
In a followup article the Business Insider notes ....
Citi Jacks Credit Card Rates To 29.99% On Unsuspecting Customers.Yesterday, we reported on how scores of people across the country had found their gas station-linked credit cards from Citibank had been canceled.
One reader, Rachel, emailed us and explained her frustration.
I received two letters by mail from Citibank yesterday. One said that because I always paid my account on time and that I was such a great customer they were increasing my credit limit. The next letter I opened stated that Citibank was raising my interest rate from the current 18.99% to 29.99%. (Power more at )

2009-10-23T07:01:00.002+09:00

EPIC Renews Call for Release of

Bush Warrantless Wiretap Memos:

In court papers filed this week in Washington, DC, EPIC and the ACLU asked a federal judge now reviewing an open government case to consider the publication of the Inspectors General Unclassified Report on the President's Surveillance Program. EPIC and the ACLU are seeking the release of the relevant legal memos relating to the program, but the government contends that the entire matter is secret. However, the Inspector General's report, which is widely available, discusses several of the memos at issue in the case. EPIC filed the original request for the legal memos in December 2005 after the New York Times first reported on the warrantless wiretapping program. The case is EPIC v. Dep't of Justice. (Sep. 18, 2009)

2009-10-22T10:37:00.001+09:00

Obama and the Nobel Prize:

When War becomes Peace,

When the Lie becomes the Truth
by Michel Chossudovsky

When war becomes peace,
When concepts and realities are turned upside down,
When fiction becomes truth and truth becomes fiction.
When a global military agenda is heralded as a humanitarian endeavor,
When the killing of civilians is upheld as "collateral damage",
When those who resist the US-NATO led invasion of their homeland are categorized as "insurgents" or "terrorists".
When preemptive nuclear war is upheld as self defense.
When advanced torture and "interrogation" techniques are routinely used to "protect peacekeeping operations",
When tactical nuclear weapons are heralded by the Pentagon as "harmless to the surrounding civilian population"
When three quarters of US personal federal income tax revenues are allocated to financing what is euphemistically referred to as "national defense"
When the Commander in Chief of the largest military force on planet earth is presented as a global peace-maker,
When the Lie becomes the Truth.
Obama's "War Without Borders"
We are the crossroads of the most serious crisis in modern history. The US in partnership with NATO and Israel has launched a global military adventure which, in a very real sense, threatens the future of humanity. ( Power more at )

2009-10-21T07:29:00.002+09:00

Where The Hell Is The Outrage?

The number of articles and opinions on Goldman Sachs earnings, bonuses, and influence pedaling over the past several days is quite stunning.
Many have pointed out the problems; few have expressed outrage over what is happening in general, not just at Goldman Sachs. Let's take a look.
My take is at the end.
Letting The Dice Roll
Rolfe Winkler at Contingent Capital is writing Letting Goldman Roll The Dice.Is Goldman really such an indispensable financial intermediary? One look at the firm’s revenue breakdown shows that it’s more casino than anything else, and some of the markets it makes still put the economy in danger. ( Power more at )

2009-10-21T06:51:00.001+09:00

China and Russia Developing

Yuan-Ruble Trade Settlement

by Washington's Blog

You've heard the rumor that Middle Eastern oil producers, plus China, Japan and France have all agreed to start trading oil using a basket of currencies - instead of the dollar - starting in 9 years (see this explanation for why the governments are denying the rumor).
But - whether or not the rumor is true - the world has actually been moving away from the dollar as the preferred method for settling trades for years.
The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday:
China and Russia are working on ways to eventually settle their trade with the Chinese yuan and Russian ruble, senior government officials from the two countries said Tuesday.
In January, it was reported that China had reached a similar arrangement with Brazil:
The Brazilian Central Bank announced it had reached an initial understanding with China for the gradual elimination of the US dollar in bilateral trade operations which in 2009 are estimated to reach 40 billion US dollars.
Indeed, as I pointed out in March 2007, many countries started moving out of the dollars as the basis for international trade settlements, including: ( power more at )

2009-10-21T06:42:00.002+09:00

Spying on Americans:

The Bipartisan National Security State Telecoms

Lobby US Congress

by Tom Burghardt

The bipartisan consensus that encourages unaccountable secret state agencies to illegally spy on the American people under color of a limitless, and highly profitable, "war on terror" was dealt a (minor) blow October 13.
Federal District Court Judge Jeffrey White denied a motion by the Obama administration that the court issue a 30-day stay to "release records relating to telecom lobbying over last year's debate over immunity for corporate participation in government spying," the Electronic Frontier Foundation reported.
The Justice Department had argued that the Bush, and now, the Obama administration's Office of Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and Congress were exempt from releasing lobbying records under the Freedom of Information Act, since consultations amongst said grifters were protected as "intra-agency" records.
One might add, since the 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, a well-funded surveillance-industrial-complex fueled by giant defense firms and the telecommunications industry have, as investigative journalist Tim Shorrock reported back in 2005 "fielded armies of lobbyists to keep the money flowing."
White's denial of a motion for a stay followed a startling admission by Department of Justice (DoJ) attorneys that America's telecommunication firms are actually "an arm of the government--at least when it comes to secret spying," Wired reported October 8. The government had argued that: ( Power more at )

2009-09-30T07:13:00.000+09:00

Economic Madness Is Repeatedly Endless

Demand for goods and services in Japan are plunging. Please consider Japan’s Deflation Deepens as Prices Fall Record 2.4%.Japan’s consumer prices fell the most in at least 38 years in August, heightening the risk that prolonged deflation may hamper the country’s recovery from its deepest postwar recession.
Prices excluding fresh food slid 2.4 percent from a year earlier, topping July’s 2.2 percent decline, the statistics bureau said today in Tokyo. The drop, the sharpest since the survey began in 1971, matched economists’ estimates.
“We’ll soon start to see that there isn’t enough domestic demand to push up wages,” said Kyohei Morita, chief economist at Barclays Capital in Tokyo. “As households’ spending power falls, there’s concern that this deflation will lead to further deflation -- in other words, that we’ll enter into a deflationary spiral.”
Much of the drop in prices reflects last year’s peak in oil costs. Crude reached an unprecedented $147.27 a barrel last July, and has dropped more than 50 percent since then.
The oil effect “will diminish over the next few months, quite quickly,” said Richard Jerram, chief economist at Macquarie Securities Ltd. in Tokyo. Even so, Jerram expects prices will keep falling for at least another three years as the country enters a period of “persistent deflation.” Economic Madness Over Pork Prices
In what amounts to economic madness, Japan to Buy Domestic Pork to Boost Prices After Demand Drops.Japan, the world’s largest pork importer, will purchase about 70,000 swine carcasses from local herds to boost prices after an economic slump cut consumption and sent stockpiles of the meat to the highest level in 20 years.
The government will spend 292.9 million yen ($3.3 million) on the purchasing program, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said in a statement today.

2009-09-30T07:10:00.000+09:00

Gold Manipulation Smoking Gun

Numerous people have asked me to comment on the Zero Hedge article Exclusive Smoking Gun: The Fed On Gold Manipulation.
The "Smoking Gun" is a now declassified document about gold, sent to president Gerald Ford on June 3, 1975 by Arthur Burns, chairman of the Fed from 1970 to 1978.
The document concerns the "broad question as to whether central banks and governments should be free to buy gold, from one another or from the private market, at market related prices"
Market prices at the time were $160-$175 and the official price was $42.22 per ounce.
Arthur Burns states "It is an open secret among central bankers that, at a later date, the French and some others may well want to stabilize the market price within some range".
Arthur Burns also states "The Federal Reserve has sought to avoid taking a rigid position", while going "some distance to try and conciliate the French view". Yet... "If we do ever acceded to French views on gold, we should at least use our bargaining leverage to some major political advantage".
Finally Burns states "All in all I am convinced that by far the best position for us to take at this time is to resist arrangements that provide wide latitude for central banks to purchase gold at market-related prices."
Shocking Revelation?
Burns sought an agreement whereby central bankers and governments would not buy gold at market prices. Because gold prices never traded at $42.22 again, essentially that was an agreement to not buy gold.
After Nixon closed the gold window, why is it such a revelation that events like this happened? Did any governments cheat?
The most interesting thing in the document was Burns' willingness to bargain for "political advantage". However, the idea that governments are lying manipulators willing to sell their soul for the right political advantage can hardly be a considered a startling revelation. ( learn more at )

2009-09-27T20:49:00.012+09:00

Barney Frank, Mel Watt are you guys in the pocket

of the Fed. Watt and Frank should be exposed for

the bought and paid for politicians they are!

.These are the people entrusted with the job of

fight for the and protecting YOU THE AMERICAN

PEOPLE??

I'm not to sure.

2009-09-27T06:37:00.002+09:00

A great read

Very informative

Very important for today

From the New Middle Ages

to a New Dark Age:

The Decline of the State

and U.S. Strategy

-
Authored by Dr. Phil Williams. June 2008

SUMMARY
Security and stability in the 21st century have little to do with traditional power politics, military conflict between states, and issues of grand strategy. Instead, they revolve around governance, public safety, inequality, urbanization, violent nonstate actors, and the disruptive consequences of globalization. This monograph seeks to explore the implications of these issues for the future U.S. role in the world, as well as for its military posture and strategy.
Underlying the change from traditional geopolitics to security as a governance issue is the long-term decline of the state. Despite state resilience, this trend could prove unstoppable. If so, it will be essential to replace dominant state-centric perceptions and assessments (what the author terms ?stateocentrism?) with alternative judgments acknowledging the reduced role and diminished effectiveness of states. This alternative assessment has been articulated most effectively in the notion of the New Middle Ages in which the state is only one of many actors, and the forces of disorder loom large. The concept of the New Middle Ages is discussed in Section II, which suggests that global politics are now characterized by fragmented political authority, overlapping jurisdictions, no-go zones, identity politics, and contested property rights.
Failure to manage the forces of global disorder, however, could lead to something even more forbidding?a New Dark Age. Accordingly, Section III identifies and elucidates key developments that are not only feeding into the long-term decline of the state but seem likely to create a major crisis of governance that could tip into the chaos of a New Dark Age. Particular attention is given to the inability of states to meet the needs of their citizens, the persistence of alternative loyalties, the rise of transnational actors, urbanization and the emergence of alternatively governed spaces, and porous borders. These factors are likely to interact in ways that could lead to an abrupt, nonlinear shift from the New Middle Ages to the New Dark Age. This will be characterized by the spread of disorder from the zone of weak states and feral cities in the developing world to the countries of the developed world. When one adds the strains coming from global warming and environmental degradation, the diminution of cheaply available natural resources, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the challenges will be formidable and perhaps overwhelming.

(read the full pdf here)

2009-09-26T21:22:00.003+09:00

House Financial Services Cmte.

Hearing on Regulatory Overhaul

Friday

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) chaired a hearing on legislation that would require the Government Accountability Office to audit the Federal Reserve. Scott Alvarez, General Counsel to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and Thomas Woods of the Ludwig von Mises Institute testified before the committee. ( Watch the video here )

Barney Frank, Mel Watt are you guys in the pocket of the Fed. Watt and Frank should be exposed for the bought and paid for politicains they are!

2009-09-26T07:02:00.004+09:00

US government MANIPULATING GOLD YET AGAIN

FREE MARKET MY AS*

Questions to ask yourself

1. Does the normal market forces move the market in such a way?

2. Are these dramatic moves in gold connected in any way the G-20 meeting?

3. Are these dramatic moves in gold connected to the IMF's 403.3 ton sales?

4. What should the real price of gold be?

5. Why is dollar gain in value against gold but weakening against other currencies?

Good questions what are the answers?

Do you have any questions yourself ?

2009-09-26T06:24:00.000+09:00

An Army near the Breaking Point

– studies & reports

We spend more on defense (broadly defined) than the rest of the world combined. Nobody has military technology as advanced and powerful as ours. American military journals assure us that our doctrines range from adequate to awesome. None of this matters if we cannot attract and retain quality people in sufficient quantities.
Designed to wage 2.5 wars, after five years of fighting two “small wars” already our Army shows signs of breaking under the strain. That is unfortunate, as these wars are like those we will likely fight in the future. Worse, experts tell us that such struggles often take a decade or more to win (in the few cases in which foreign forces have been able to claim victory). What will our Army look like after another five years if we cannot substantially reduce our forces in Iraq and Afghanistan?
What does it mean to say that an army is “breaking”? Hilzoy at Obsidian Wings writes:
For one thing, there is no sharp, discontinuous transition between an “unbroken” Army and a “broken” one: the kind that happens when a plate shatters, a fuse blows, or a motor finally gives out. For another, a “broken” Army will still be able to function, more or less … So there is no sharp contrast between an “unbroken” Army, which works, and a “broken” Army, which doesn’t.
What we are doing to the Army is less like breaking something, and more like slowly degrading its ability to perform its tasks to an unacceptable level. It’s a gradual process, one that does not provide us with clear points at which we can look at the Army and say: well, now it is well and truly broken. It’s not like breaking a chair or a statue.
Here are a selection of reports about the stress cracks in the body of the US Army. None of these look good for the prospects of an Army of “strategic corporals” capable of implementing sophisticated COIN doctrines. ( learn more at )

2009-09-26T06:13:00.002+09:00

Top News

Department of Justice Limits Use of State Secrets Privilege: Today, the Department of Justice announced a new policy that limits the government’s use of the state secrets privilege. The state secrets privilege is a rule of evidence intended to prevent genuine matters of national security from being disclosed in open court. However, recently it has been misused by both the Bush and Obama administrations in order to derail litigation completely. For instance, in 2007 EPIC filed a “friend-of-the-court” brief in a warrantless wiretapping case, Hepting v. United States, in which the government argued that the case should be dismissed because it would reveal “state secrets.” Under the new policy, the privilege will be invoked only "to the extent necessary to protect against the risk of significant harm to national security." The Attorney General will also have to approve each determination. The State Secret Protection Act of 2009, legislation with a similar purpose, is now pending in Congress. For more information, see EPIC Open Government. (Sep. 23, 2009)

New Report on Government Secrecy Released: The 2009 Secrecy Report Card, from Openthegovernment.org, chronicles slight decreases in government secrecy during the last year of the Bush-Cheney Administration. The report, released by a coalition of more than 70 open government advocates, also provides an overview of the Obama Administration’s proposed transparency policies. Among the issues discussed are the Open Government Directive, Classified Information, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) memo, signing statements, and the state secrets doctrine. For more on open government and transparency, see EPIC Open Government. (Sep. 11, 2009)

EPIC Renews Call for Release of Bush Warrantless Wiretap Memos: In court papers filed this week in Washington, DC, EPIC and the ACLU asked a federal judge now reviewing an open government case to consider the publication of the Inspectors General Unclassifed Report on the President's Surveillance Program. EPIC and the ACLU are seeking the release of the relevant legal memos relating to the program, but the government contends that the entire matter is secret. However, the Inspector General's report, which is widely available, discusses several of the memos at issue in the case. EPIC filed the original request for the legal memos in December 2005 after the New York Times first reported on the warrantless wiretapping program. The case is EPIC v. Dep't of Justice. (Sep. 18, 2009)

PATRIOT Act Revisions Introduced in Senate: Today, Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) and seven cosponsors introduced the Judicious Use of Surveillance Tools In Counterterrorism Efforts (JUSTICE) Act. The bill would amend the PATRIOT Act, the FISA Amendments Act, and other surveillance and intelligence laws. Among other changes, the JUSTICE Act would reform the National Security Letter process, revise the guidelines for business records orders, eliminate the catch-all provision for "sneak-and-peek" searches, and add new safeguards for FISA roving wiretaps. The JUSTICE Act would also repeal retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies, and is supported by many civil liberties organizations. For more information, see EPIC USA PATRIOT Act, EPIC FISA, EPIC Wiretapping, and EPIC National Security Letters. (Sep. 17, 2009)

Senators Consider PATRIOT Act Reforms: Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) are drafting legislative reforms to revise the USA PATRIOT Act. The USA PATRIOT Act allows authorities to conduct surveillance without judicial review through the use of National Security Letters. The Senators asked the Attorney General and the Chairmen of the Senate Judiciary and Intelligence Committee to consider two previous bills that add protections to PATRIOT ACT. Pursuant to a EPIC lawsuit, a federal judge had ordered the Justice Department to provide for independent judicial inspection of documents relating to warrantless wiretapping. For more information, see EPIC USA PATRIOT Act, EPIC FISA, EPIC Wiretapping, and EPIC National Security Letters. (Aug. 7, 2009)

Inspector Generals Release Report on President's Surveillance Program: The Inspector Generals of the Intelligence Community released a report on the President's Surveillance Program. The report summarizes the unclassified collective results of the reviews. The Program involved the massive, warrantless surveillance of Americans in the United States. The IG Report finds that the absence of effective oversight contributed to the ineffectiveness of the program. In December 2005, EPIC had requested the legal opinions that were prepared to justify the program. The government has refused to produce many key documents, and EPIC sued under the Freedom of Information Act. In March this year, the Attorney General released several related memos, which previously were secret, following President Obama's statement on government transparency. See EPIC FISA, EPIC Surveillance FOIA, EPIC Wiretapping, and EPIC National Security Letters. (Jul. 10, 2009)

2009-09-23T07:02:00.004+09:00

U.S. mortgage delinquencies set record

Mon Sep 21, 2009 8:32pm EDT
By Nick Zieminski

NEW YORK (Reuters) - High U.S. unemployment keeps pushing up the rate of mortgage delinquencies, which could in turn drive personal bankruptcies and home foreclosures, monthly data from the Equifax Inc credit bureau showed on Monday.
Among U.S. homeowners with mortgages, a record 7.58 percent were at least 30 days late on payments in August, up from 7.32 percent in July, according to the data obtained exclusively by Reuters.
August marked the fourth consecutive monthly increase in delinquencies, and the report showed an accelerating pace. By comparison, 4.89 percent of mortgages were 30 days past due in August 2008, while in August 2007, the rate was 3.44 percent, Equifax data showed.
The rate of subprime mortgage delinquencies now tops 41 percent, up from about 39 percent in each of the prior five months.
The results, which correlate with consumer bankruptcy filings, suggest U.S. homeowners remain under financial stress despite signs of improving sentiment and fundamentals in the U.S. housing market.
August bankruptcy filings were up 32 percent from a year earlier, compared with a 35 percent year-over-year increase in July.
Still, while more Americans were late with mortgage payments, they are keeping up with other bills. The proportion of credit card accounts at least 60 days past due was down in August for the third straight month, while subprime card delinquencies also fell. ( learn more at )

Now ask yourself some questions

1. If the economy is doing so good, why then are mortages delinquiencies up?

2. What is an economy? What makes an economy moveup or down?

3. Why do the banks get help from the US Gov. but not the American peoeple, why?

4. If all Americans didn't show up for work and did buy anything what would happen to the US economy?

2009-09-22T23:15:00.007+09:00

Why is the IMF selling 403.3 ton of gold for some

pocket change around 13 billion, is it really to help

poor countries?

The IMF recieved 200 billion from the US and a

hundred billion from Japan in 2008.

Why now why right before October?

Why has gold maintain it's price in the face of

such news?

These are the real questions find the answers and

you know what is happening and where to put

your money.

2009-09-22T23:12:00.002+09:00

Economic Duplicity:

Recession and Record Profits

The Real Estate Bubble is Not Over
by Rev. Richard Skaff

In December 14, 2008, in his interview on the CBS sixty minutes show, Whitney Tilson an investment fund manager predicted that the subprime collapse was only half way of the total real estate bubble, and that the second half will begin take place around 2010 and will continue until about the year 2013. Tilson also discussed the two fancy Wall Street terms for bad mortgages namely Alt-A (Alternative-A paper) and option arms mortgages. These loans lured borrowers with teaser rates that will begin to reset this year.

Tilson has also predicted that seventy percent of these loans will eventually default, based on existing evidence of pre-reset default rates [1].
A mortgage reset is when the homeowner who bought a house with a low "teaser rate" and planned to refinance as soon as the house price went up suddenly gets a new payment that is usually far higher. Often, homeowners can't afford these resets.
The first wave of resets, as we recall was subprime. As this chart from Whitney Tilson shows, that's basically done with: [2].
However, Alt-A is actually a much larger category of mortgages, and the big Alt-A reset boom is just around the corner as Tilson’s second chart reveals.
Karen Weaver of Deutsche Bank observes that Alt-A mortgages are already mostly underwater. The combination of resets plus severely underwater status will likely exacerbate defaults and foreclosures. [2].

Ironically, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Tuesday September 15, 2009 that the worst recession since the 1930s is probably over, although he cautioned that pain especially for the nearly 15 million unemployed Americans will persist. [3].

So while unemployment keeps rising, consumer spending is slumping, inflation is creeping up (food, gasoline, and other commodities), the commercial real estate is plunging into the abyss, the dollar is weakening, and the other half of the housing bubble is exploding, Bernanke remains hopeful!

Could it be that Mr. Bernanke is anticipating the occurrence of a contrived international incident that will trigger an invasion of Iran ? A new war is always good for a military based economy! Or maybe Bernanke’s optimism on the economy is strictly founded on the performance of the global corporations and their profit margins? ( learn more at )

2009-09-18T07:09:00.001+09:00

Looming Global Debt Crisis
by Bob Chapman

What do you do after you have zero interest rates and you have flooded the world with money and credit?
The answer is you attempt to fight off higher interest rates and see if you can dodge the inflation bubble that follows. The commitment for this current fiasco to save the world’s Illuminist banks has already caused an official debt responsibility for the US of more than $23 trillion or about 40% of world GDP. That is staggering and it is official. We wonder what the real figure is? It is also wise to remember that the Federal Reserve, and other reserve banks worldwide, all international, are responsible for the carnage we are witnessing.

The public is now paying for their gambling and corruption as central banks, who started this scam, transfer the debt to the taxpayers by buying up toxic garbage, guaranteeing losses and making sure none of the key Illuminist banks don’t go under. The Fed, privately owned, won’t let us look at their books, so we can tell what they are paying for these almost worthless assets. We are told it is a state secret.

There have been some salutary affects, but they are only transitory. As we can see the pace of job losses has slowed and will slow over the next year in anticipation of elections. About 80% of the stimulus package hits before the next election. There will be a slight increase in production and some inventory building. The real question is what will the Fed, government, Wall Street and banking due for an encore? They will most likely demand another stimulus package of some $2 trillion; keep zero interest rates and perhaps go to negative rates and continue to increase M3, money and credit, by 14%. That will neutralize the undertow of deflation and cause higher inflation. This game could last for a few more years, but one thing is for sure, many more are discovering what the game is and they are flocking to gold and silver in a flight to quality to preserve their wealth. If you have any doubts our Treasury Secretary, Mr. Geithner, has recently told us the same plan of easing is in effect. The manipulation and losses in fixed assets will continue. The underlying deflation will not go away. The remedy more money and credit and low interest rates will prevail. The manipulation of markets will continue; world monetization is going on full bore not only in the US but in the UK, China, Japan and many other countries as well. They are all working together to bring down the world financial system when it pleases them to institute world government.

A good part of money and credit injections have been into world stock markets to give a semblance of normality and to make people think all is well. At the same time we hear of eliminating this orgy of money and credit, but it gets pushed off further and further into the future, as it forms another speculative inflationary bubble. There is no doubt that a groundswell is forming as inflation begins to appear again, an event that really started in May, five-months ago. As you can see jobs are not being created and that this financial largess is again flowing mostly into financial markets. The inflationary bubble is on the way again worldwide. ( learn more at )

2009-09-16T06:38:00.003+09:00

Ghost Fleets and Protectionism

The Mail Online has some stunning images of The ghost fleet of the recession.The biggest and most secretive gathering of ships in maritime history lies at anchor east of Singapore. Never before photographed, it is bigger than the U.S. and British navies combined but has no crew, no cargo and no destination - and is why your Christmas stocking may be on the light side this year.

Above: The 'ghost fleet' near Singapore. The world's ship owners and government economists would prefer you not to see this symbol of the depths of the plague still crippling the world's economies
Just 12 months ago these financiers and brokers were enjoying fat bonuses as they traded cargo space. But nobody wants the space any more, and those that still need to ship goods across the world are demanding vast reductions in price.
Do not tell these men and women about green shoots of recovery. As Briton Tim Huxley, one of Asia's leading ship brokers, says, if the world is really pulling itself out of recession, then all these idle ships should be back on the move.This is the time of year when everyone is doing all the Christmas stuff,' he points out.
'A couple of years ago those ships would have been steaming back and forth, going at full speed. But now you've got something like 12 per cent of the world's container ships doing nothing.'
As the shipping industry teeters on the brink of collapse, the activity at boatyards like Mokpo and Ulsan in South Korea all looks like a sick joke. But the workers in these bustling shipyards, who teem around giant tankers and mega-vessels the length of several football pitches and capable of carrying 10,000 or more containers each, have no choice; they are trapped in a cruel time warp.
There have hardly been any new orders. In 2011 the shipyards will simply run out of ships to build

Above: 750ft-long merchant vessel is standing absurdly high in the water. The low waves don't even bother the lowest mark on its Plimsoll line. It's the same with all the ships parked here, and there are a lot of them. Close to 500. An armada of freighters with no cargo, no crew, and without a destination between them.
If ever you had an irrational desire to charter one, now would be the time. This time last year, an Aframax tanker capable of carrying 80,000 tons of cargo would cost £31,000 a day ($50,000). Now it is about £3,400 ($5,500).
This is why the chilliest financial winds anywhere in the City of London are to be found blowing through its 400-plus shipping brokers.
Between them, they manage about half of the world's chartering business. The bonuses are long gone. The last to feel the tail of the economic whiplash, they - and their insurers and lawyers - await a wave of redundancies and business failures in the next six months. Commerce is contracting, fleets rust away - yet new ship-builds ordered years ago are still coming on stream.There are many more images in the story as well as tales of the local fisherman, such as Ah Wat who says:
"'We don't understand why they are here. There are so many ships but no one seems to be on board. When we sail past them in our fishing boats we never see anyone. They are like real ghost ships and some people are scared of them. They believe they may bring a curse with them and that there may be bad spirits on the ships."
The ghost fleet is not exactly "secret" given the availability of satellite images. Nonetheless, there has not been widespread reporting of this phenomenon by mainstream media.
Baltic Dry Index Shows Collapse In Shipping Demand
Given the buildup of ships sitting empty on the ocean, the collapse in the Baltic Dry Index is readily explainable.

Please see Investment Tools for more charts and information on Baltic Exchange Dry Index (BDI) & Freight Rates.
Protectionism Will Make Matters Worse
Growing protectionism will exacerbate the problems facing the global economy.
In the 1930's Smoot Hawley completely ruined the agricultural sector in one fell swoop. Now, Obama Risks Global Trade War With Misguided Tariffs over steel and tires.
China has retaliated by "investigating" automotive and chicken exports from the US.
Note that rising protectionism is a symptom of global trade problems and issues. Unfortunately, rising protectionism does nothing but make matters worse.
Mike "Mish" Shedlockhttp://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/

2009-09-14T09:04:00.001+09:00

"Greenspanism" the

Root Cause of this Depression

Bernanke, Geithner, and others have stated the biggest mistake in this depression was the failure to rescue Lehman. I have long disagreed, instead declaring the Bankruptcy of Lehman was one of the few things the Fed got right, even if by accident.
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard has similar thoughts in Lehman is a footnote in the great East-West globalisation crisis.As my colleague Jeremy Warner puts it, Lehman no more caused the economic convulsions of the last year than the assassination of an Austrian prince caused the First World War. There was the little matter of a rising Germany then, and a rising China now. Both scrambled the international system, albeit in different ways.
As of last week, the ABX index of sub-prime mortgage debt showed that AAA-rated securities from early 2007 were trading at 28 cents on the dollar – AA was at 4 cents, near all-time lows. No one can say that $2 trillion (£1.2 trillion) of sub-prime and Alt-A debt is still trading at panic levels, exaggerating losses. The dust has settled. What we can see is that creditors will never recoup their money.
Foreclosures reached 358,000 in August alone. More Americans are being evicted each month than during the entire Depression year of 1932.
We know why the bubble occurred. Call its Greenspanism. Central banks rescued assets each time there was a hiccup, but let booms run unchecked. They pulled "real" rates ever lower, creating addiction to monetary stimulus. Larger doses were required with each cycle, until we hit zero, and it is still not enough. Debt burdens rose to records across the OECD.
Couldn't they see that this was cheating: stealing from the future? No, they were seduced by "inflation targeting" – watch goods, ignore assets – just as cheap imports from China rendered the doctrine obsolete. It always takes ideology to consummate massive error.
China is trying to plug the gap, belatedly, by ramping up credit 70pc this year, but it will take a cultural revolution to induce the Chinese to spend. The liquidity is leaking into stocks, metals, and property.
The Great Game can continue only as long as deficit countries – currently, US (-$628bn), Spain (-$109bn), Italy (-$62bn), France (-$58bn), Britain (-$53bn), Greece (-$42bn), and east Europe – are willing to bankrupt themselves buying Asian goods. Obviously, this is absurd.Absurd is correct.
China, in spite of all those misguided souls who believe otherwise, is not close to decoupling. Proof is easy to find in China's need to ramp up credit and force banks to lend.
In the US, Great Britain, etc, the "Great Game" depends not on US consumers who long ago threw in the towel, but on stimulus packages that shift the demand curve forward. As soon as the stimulus runs out so will purchases.
An economic relapse is coming as sure as night follows day.
Mike "Mish" Shedlockhttp://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

2009-09-14T08:12:00.001+09:00

We Need a Special Prosecutor for

Blackwater and Other CIA "Contractors"
by Jeremy Scahill

Some parts of Blackwater’s clandestine work for the CIA have begun to leak out from behind the iron curtain of secrecy. The company’s role in the secret assassination program and its continued involvement in the CIA drone attacks that occur regularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan have become front page material in the Washington Post and New York Times. There is much more to this story than has been reported publicly and details will continue to emerge, particularly about Blackwater’s aviation division(s).
Now we learn (unsurprisingly) that Blackwater offered “foreign” operatives to work on the CIA assassination program. Blackwater told the CIA that it “could put people on the ground to provide the surveillance and support — all of the things you need to conduct an operation,” a former senior CIA official familiar with the secret program told The Associated Press. If that’s true, those foreign individuals would appear to have been privy to information that vice president Cheney and other US officials deemed not appropriate for Congressional ears, not to mention oversight.
In light of all of these developments, it is important to remember how Erik Prince essentially hired George W Bush’s top people from the CIA’s Directorate of Operations to create his own private CIA, Total Intelligence Solutions. He also offered Alvin “Buzzy” Krongard, the former number 3 man at the CIA, a paid position on Blackwater’s board. Buzzy was the guy who got Blackwater its first known CIA contract back in 2002 in Afghanistan. Buzzy is also the one whining about the CIA’s “morale” problem, in light of the recent scandals, in the Washington Post. “Morale at the agency is down to minus 50,” he told the paper.
When you hear reports that a “private” company was hired to do clandestine work, remember that this particular “private” company, Blackwater, is, in part, being run by Agency veterans, including several of the top people running the torture and assassination programs under Bush. At the end of the day, using Blackwater and/or other companies represents taking covert, lethal operations even further away from anything vaguely resembling oversight by the Congress. By using ex-Agency people instead of “current” Agency personnel, yet another barrier is thrown up and the case for “plausible deniability” becomes stronger. When you are dealing with a billionaire like Erik Prince who apparently viewed himself as a crusader tasked with eliminating muslims and Islam globally, as has been alleged by a former Blackwater official, it is not difficult to imagine how all of this could remain—at least in part— off the books. Would it be a great shock if we learn that Prince volunteered some of his men or his company’s time to lethal missions for the CIA free of charge? “I’m not a financially driven guy,” Prince told Congress in October 2007. Take that with a grain of salt, but it is probably not flat out false. He was a believer in the crusade. ( learn more at )

2009-09-13T17:51:00.001+09:00

"Undoing the Imperial Presidency"

Reviewing David Swanson's "Daybreak"
by Stephen Lendman

David Swanson is co-founder of AfterDowningStreet.org and Washington Director of Democrats.com. He's also a board member of Progressive Democrats of America, the Backbone Campaign, and Voters for Peace as well as a member of the legislative working group of United for Peace and Justice.

Subtitled "Undoing the Imperial Presidency and Forming A More Perfect Union, Daybreak" is Swanson's first book, a timely and impressive account of presidential extremism, congressional complicity, the urgency for progressive change, and how to do it.

Swanson exposes what was wrong under George Bush and provides a compelling prescription for real change.

In his book "Cracks in the Constitution," Ferdinand Lundberg explained that the supreme law of the land, the Constitution, never deterred presidents or sitting governments from doing what they wished, then inventing justifications for their actions. During eight years in office, George Bush personified it and said so in his own words. In 2005, he told congressional Republican leaders:
"I'm the president and the commander-in chief. Do (things) my way. Stop throwing the Constitution in my face. It's just a goddamned piece of paper." Both parties acceded. The administration got away with murder. Separation of powers were abandoned. Checks and balances barely exist. Lawlessness became the new standard, and the republic took a giant step backward toward despotism and dystopia under a culture of violence, police state laws, and a Wall Street-run asset-stripping system - parasitically destroying America, wrecking the economy for profit, and forcing the public into permanent debt peonage.
Swanson's book is a call to arms for change, an alert about what's wrong with the nation, the urgency to restore the rule of law, save the republic, and necessity to get engaged enough to matter. After eight years under Bush - Cheney and Obama's early months, the government is more than ever corrupted, imperial, and extremist. Undoing the damage will take years of committed effort, and Swanson explains how: ( learn more at )

2009-09-07T06:51:00.002+09:00

OLD BANKING SYSTEM MUST DIE BEFORE

THE ONE WORLD BANKING SYSTEM

CAN BE BORN

International regulators agree on new bank rules

Sun Sep 6, 2009 3:42pm EDT
BASEL, Sept 6 (Reuters) -

Central banks and regulators of the world's leading economies agreed on a set of new banking rules on Sunday aimed at preventing future financial crisis.
The Group of Central Bank Governors and Heads of Supervision, the oversight body of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, said in a statement the new measures would substantially reduce the probability and severity of economic and financial stress.
The measures include new rules on banks' capital requirements, the introduction of a leverage ratio, a minimum global standard for funding liquidity and a framework for countercyclical capital buffers above the minimum requirement.

FACTBOX-Global regulators

set banking regulation framework

Sun Sep 6, 2009 4:55pm EDT Sept 6 (Reuters) -

Central banks and regulators of theworld's leading economies agreed on a set of new banking ruleson Sunday aimed at preventing future financial crisis.The Group of Central Bank Governors and Heads ofSupervision, the oversight body of the Basel Committee onBanking Supervision, said concrete proposals would be made byyear-end and the calibration should be done by end-2010. Following are the key measures planned: CAPITAL REQUIREMENTS: The regulators aim to raise the quality, consistency andtransparency of the Tier 1 capital base. The predominant formof Tier 1 capital must be common shares and retained earnings.Appropriate principles will be developed for non-joint stockcompanies to ensure they hold comparable levels of high qualityTier 1 capital.

2009-09-07T06:06:00.002+09:00

(The New America)

U.S. Recovery Leaving Workers Jobless

May Spur Company Profits

By Carlos Torres
Sept. 5 (Bloomberg)

Employers kept Americans’ working hours near a record low in August, signaling that economic growth is poised to reward companies with added profits while postponing any recovery in the job market.
The average workweek held at 33.1 hours, six minutes from the 33 hours in June that was the lowest since records began in 1964, the Labor Department said yesterday. The report also showed that while payrolls fell by the least since August 2008, the unemployment rate rose to a 26-year high of 9.7 percent.
The preconditions for gains in payrolls, including giving the army of part-timers longer hours and taking on additional temporary employees, weren’t met last month. At the same time, with economic growth forecast to resume this quarter, the figures set the stage for a surge in worker productivity and drop in labor costs that will stoke corporate profits.
“It’s disappointing and it tells us that we are not quite there yet,” said Michael Feroli, an economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in New York who used to work at the Federal Reserve. “It’s great for business and terrible for households” for coming months, Feroli said.
There were almost 9.1 million Americans working part-time last month who would rather have a full-time job, up 278,000 from July, yesterday’s report showed. It almost matched May’s reading, when it reached the highest level since records began in 1955. ( learn more at )

2009-09-05T07:06:00.001+09:00

Foreclosure activity reaches

record Mecklenburg's filings

rise 80 percent in August as

job losses put more borrowers

at risk of losing their homes.

By Stella M. Hopkins

Posted: Friday, Sep. 04, 2009

N.C. regulators are looking for new ways to help more homeowners as the foreclosure crisis spreads, hitting another unwelcome record last month.
Statewide, foreclosure filings rose 43 percent in August, compared with a year ago, according to Observer analysis of court data compiled by the state. Filings, which mark the start of foreclosures, rose above 6,500 for the first time last month.
Mecklenburg County saw an 80 percent increase, to 1,316, the second highest number on record for the county.
The foreclosure problem that tipped the nation into recession began with subprime loans, often made to home buyers with sketchy credit and with payments they couldn't afford. The recession has pushed N.C. unemployment to double-digit levels, putting more people at risk for falling behind on payments. In addition, home values have fallen, making it harder for people to sell houses they can no longer afford.
As a result, more prime borrowers – people who had good credit – are facing the threat of foreclosure.
“We've got to do more to reach those people,” said Mark Pearce, N.C. deputy commissioner of banks.
Pearce oversees a program that helps connect homeowners facing foreclosure with counselors. In its first 10 months, the program has reached 5,632 people statewide and linked them with foreclosure-prevention counselors. So far, that's helped 1,790, or more than 30 percent, avoid foreclosure, Pearce said. In Mecklenburg, 218 home owners contacted have avoided foreclosure. ( Learn more at )

2009-09-05T05:55:00.000+09:00

Capmark Distress May Signal Bank

Failures Topping 100
By Linda Shen

Sept. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Capmark Financial Group Inc.’s possible collapse may signal a new wave of real estate losses for banks -- this one tied to business property -- that could push the year’s tally of failures past 100.
Capmark, ranked among the largest U.S. commercial real estate lenders by Moody’s Investors Service, posted a $1.6 billion quarterly loss on Sept. 2 and said it might go bankrupt. The Horsham, Pennsylvania-based company struggled as the default rate on commercial mortgages held by U.S. banks more than doubled to the highest since 1994.
“We haven’t really experienced the full extent of the distress,” said Sam Chandan, chief economist at property research firm Real Estate Econometrics LLC in New York. “When you look at community banks and some smaller regional banks, they tend to have a far greater concentration in terms of their exposure to commercial real estate.”
Lenders are still reeling from residential real estate losses that helped push U.S. bank failures to 84 so far this year. The tally included Colonial BancGroup Inc., the sixth- largest failure in the history of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The total may rise later today because the agency customarily announces the week’s shutdowns on Fridays. (learn more at )

2009-09-02T05:57:00.000+09:00

Post-Crash Dynamics
John P. Hussman, Ph.D.

Fund News: As I've often had the occasion to announce since the inception of the Hussman Funds, I'm pleased to report that on August 5th, the expense ratio for the Hussman Strategic Growth Fund (HSGFX) was lowered again, from 1.10% to 1.04%. The expense ratio for the Hussman Strategic Total Return Fund (HSTRX) was lowered from 0.75% to 0.67%. These cuts reflect active reductions in investment advisory and fund administration fees, the addition of new fee breakpoints (approved at the July meeting of the Hussman Funds Board of Trustees), and general growth in Fund assets. Fund expense ratios are affected by a number of factors including fee breakpoints and the level of Fund assets, and may increase or decrease over time.
---
The U.S. economy lost a quarter of a million jobs in July. Meanwhile, over 400,000 workers abandoned the labor force (and are therefore no longer counted among the unemployed), which prompted a slight decline in the unemployment rate despite the job losses. In the context of an economy still strained by high levels of consumer debt and still record delinquency and foreclosure rates, labor market conditions are still troublesome. Still, the pace of job losses and new unemployment claims has clearly softened from the pace we observed early in the year.
If we knew that this was a standard economic downturn, we might conclude that the recent improvements are durable. However, nothing convinces us that this is a standard economic downturn. As for market action, the major indices have generally been strong, as has breadth (as measured by advances versus declines), but the 妬nvestor sponsorship evident from trading volume has been uncharacteristically dismal compared with initial advances of past bull markets. So here too, we have very strong concerns that the recent advance may not be as durable as investors appear to believe.
All of that said, we aren't inclined to fight even what we view as errant analysis, and the Strategic Growth Fund has about 1% of assets allocated to near-the-money index call options about enough to gradually close down about 40% of our hedge in the event that the market advances markedly higher from here, but without putting us at risk of much loss in the event of failure. With investors now anticipating and pricing in a sustained economic recovery, as well as a spectacular earnings rebound (see Bill Hester's piece Earnings Growth Forecasts May Require a Robust Economic Recovery additional link below), a lot of things will have to go right from here in order to sustain higher prices than we currently observe. ( learn more at )

2009-09-02T05:43:00.004+09:00

Blackwater Tapped Foreigners on Secret CIA

Program Blackwater-CIA program to hunt

terrorists used foreign recruits on surveillance

missions

By ADAM GOLDMAN and PAMELA HESS

Associated Press WritersWASHINGTON

August 30, 2009 (AP)

When the CIA revived a plan to kill or capture terrorists in 2004, the agency turned to the well-connected security company then known as Blackwater USA. With Blackwater's lucrative government security work and contacts arrayed in hot spots around the world, company officials offered the services of foreigners supposedly skilled at tracking terrorists in lawless regions and countries where the CIA had no working relationships with the government.
Blackwater told the CIA that it "could put people on the ground to provide the surveillance and support — all of the things you need to conduct an operation," a former senior CIA official familiar with the secret program told The Associated Press.
But the CIA's use of the private contractor as part of its now-abandoned plan to dispatch death squads skirted concerns now re-emerging with recent disclosures about Blackwater's role.
The former senior CIA official said he had doubts during his tenure about whether Blackwater's foreign recruits had mastered the necessary skills to pull off such a high-stakes operation. Blackwater's later hiring of several senior CIA officials who were involved in or aware of the secret program, including one of the men who ran the operation, showed the blurred lines of using a private contractor for such a highly classified and dangerous project.
While Blackwater won the government's confidence by handling security and training operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the 2004 decision by CIA officials to entrust the North Carolina-based company with such a sensitive overseas operation struck some former agency officials as highly unusual.
"The question remains: Why do we need Blackwater?" said Charles Faddis, a former department chief at the CIA's Counterterrorism Center who retired in 2008 and was not involved in the secret program. "I remain mystified. This is quintessential CIA work. You wonder what it means that the CIA has to rely on Blackwater? Why are we still funding the CIA?" ( learn more at )

2009-09-01T06:47:00.002+09:00

The Real Grand Chessboard

and the Profiteers of War
by Prof. Peter Dale Scott

"In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together." Dwight David Eisenhower, "Military-Industrial Complex Speech," 1961, [1]
"My observation is that the impact of national elections on the business climate for SAIC has been minimal. The emphasis on where federal spending occurs usually shifts, but total federal spending never decreases. SAIC has always continued to grow despite changes in the political leadership in Washington." Former SAIC manager, quoted in Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, "Washington's $8 Billion Shadow." Vanity Fair, March 2007[2]
"We make American military doctrine" Ed Soyster, MPRI[3]
The Myth of the Grand Chessboard: Geopolitics and Imperial Folie de Grandeur
In the Road to 9/11 I summarized the dialectic of open societies: how from their energy they expand, leading to a higher level of more secretive corporations and agencies, which eventually weaken the home country through needless and crushing wars.[4] I am not alone in seeing America in the final stages of this process, which since the Renaissance has brought down Spain, the Netherlands, and Great Britain.
Much of what I wrote summarized the thoughts of writers before me like Paul Kennedy and Kevin Phillips. But there is one aspect of the curse of expansion that I underemphasized: how dominance creates megalomanic illusions of insuperable control, and how this illusion in turn is crystallized into a prevailing ideology of dominance. I am surprised that so few, heretofore, have pointed out that from a public point of view these ideologies are delusional, indeed perhaps insane. In this essay I will argue however that what looks demented from a public viewpoint makes sense from the narrower perspective of those profiting from the provision of private entrepreneurial violence and intelligence. ( learn more at )

2009-09-01T06:42:00.002+09:00

The Economy is in Deep, Deep Trouble...

Question for Bernanke:

"Do you have the cojones to raise rates?"
by Mike Whitney

Booyah. It's morning in America. The jobless numbers are stabilizing, the stock market is sizzling, quarterly earnings came in better than expected, traders have turned bullish, housing is showing signs of life, and clunker-swaps have given Detroit a well-needed boost of adrenalin. Even Cassandra economists --like Paul Krugman and Nouriel Roubini--have been uncharacteristically optimistic. Is is true; did we avoid a Second Great Depression? Is the worst really behind us?
Maybe. But there is only one way to find out for sure. Raise rates.
Bernanke should welcome the opportunity to show everyone how he's pulled the world's biggest economy back from the brink of disaster. All he needs to do is stop giving away free money, shut down a few of his so-called lending facilities, and stop manipulating interest rates by purchasing mortgage-backed securities (MBS) from Fannie and Freddie. How hard is that? The S&P 500 has skyrocketed 48 percent since March 9. What's Bernanke waiting for; a 75 percent increase; a 100 percent increase??? How high do stocks have to go to convince Bernanke that the economy can stand on its own two feet without the torrent of cheap liquidity issuing from the Fed?
Bernanke can prove to his critics that the US economy doesn't need the Fed's monetization programs and price fixing; that it doesn't need the liquidity injections and the buying up of junk mortgages. ($80 billion last month alone) After all, as Bernanke opines, "The fundamentals of our economy are strong!"
Right. Now prove it.
All Bernanke has to do is boost rates by a point or two and demonstrate that he's willing to mop up some of the $13 trillion he's pumped into the financial markets. With just one announcement, the Fed chair could show our biggest creditor--China--that he's serious about defending the dollar and the trillion dollars of US Treasuries China purchased believing that the US was a responsible trading partner who would never write checks on an account that was overdrawn by $12 trillion. (The National Debt)
So, go ahead, Ben. Raise rates, shut down the printing presses, roll up the corporate welfare programs. Be a He-man. Make your critics eat their words. This is from Bloomberg News 8-12-09: ( learn more at )

2009-08-21T23:48:00.002+09:00

Oh, so now it's the out of work

average American's fault that

the recovery is not happening

Reluctant Shoppers Hold Back Recovery
BY ANN ZIMMERMAN AND SARA MURRAY

Major retailers reported that American consumers are continuing to hunker down, casting a cloud over the durability of the U.S. recovery and underscoring the importance of overseas demand in restoring the world economy to health.

Retailers across the spectrum provided foreboding reports. Discounter Target Corp. reported that sales at stores open at least a year were down 6.2% from a year earlier in the quarter ended Aug. 1, while luxury purveyor Saks Inc. reported a 15.5% drop in same-store sales over the past quarter as shoppers stuck to buying basics. Building-supply chain Home Depot Inc. saw total sales drop 9.1% ( don't read more it crap bs)

2009-08-16T16:55:00.002+09:00

The International Forecaster

This So Called Recovery Is Going Nowhere
August 12 2009

Summary: trillions more dollars in bailout to keep the bubble alive, Inflation guaranteed for Asia, Stock Market is again highly leveraged, Trillions in more injections wont work, No way to reverse this reversal of fortune for the economy, Developed nations seen as having dug their own graves, Saga of Pat Kiley

The Fed’s Wall Street bubble, as we forecast in January, will need at least $2 trillion more in 2010, if the economy is to just stay on an even keel. The massive debt liquidation particularly in banking, Wall Street and in insurance demands many more trillions of dollars. $23.4 trillion is not going to be enough. Presently the Fed is in the process of monetizing $2 trillion in Treasuries, Agency paper, such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and collateralized debt obligations held by lenders. It is a secret what the Fed is paying for this almost worthless paper. Is it any wonder the public has lost trust and confidence in these players and our government?
In order to escape from this global expansion of debt from government, corporations, banking, Wall Street and even state indebtedness, the bubble has to be maintained. The longer it lasts the worse will be the collapse when it bursts. Does anyone really believe that this can continue indefinitely?
People talk about robust inflationary environments in China, Asia and emerging markets In America the Fed’s game of lowering interest rates and increasing money and credit and monetizing paper will end over the next two years, maybe three. What is already in the system guarantees inflation.
Many believe American re-flation boosts real estate values. Not a chance. The recovery is not going anywhere. Americans are starting to save and pay down debt, and that means eventually consumption, as a percentage of GDP will fall to the long-term mean of 64.5%.
The stock market and major market players are again highly leveraged even after 50% gains. They do not seem to understand that the sustained injection of trillions of dollars in money and credit is not going to work. It is not creating anything. Wild speculation is fine; it’s the leverage that kills. As a broker I never had a margin account. The market is not discounting a rosy future, but the players do not understand that. Prices are simply disconnected from reality. Short covering and the reversal of derivative positions cannot go on indefinitely. Market performance is led by second and third tier companies that are in serious positions, some on the edge of bankruptcy. This is a very frustrating but temporary phenomenon. You are short failing companies, and good companies languish. This is one of the unpredictable parts of the market. All we can say is that current stock market action is a reflection of the current dysfunctional financial chaos that we are trapped in. Mis-pricing is legion. All we can say is it is not going to work. Your only alternative is to back in the safety of gold and silver related assets.
The same elements that were responsible for the collapse of the market in 2000 are at work today. Incidentally we recommended selling in the second week of April, two weeks after the top. Only 2% of analysts accompanied us. Then again, we called the top at 14,100. That element was interest rate carry trades. The players are taking advantage of the ability to borrow cheap dollars, yen and euros to buy other higher yielding currencies, which in turn strengthens their currencies, making their exports uncompetitive. South Africa and Turkey are such examples. Thus, currency appreciation caused by differing interest rates is reigniting third world countries. Free trade and globalization are having some unintended consequences. The dollar is headed down and at the G-20 meeting in London on September 4-5; the US will ask China and others to cut it more slack, because they can ( Learn more at )

2009-08-16T16:52:00.001+09:00

Worst Performance Ever

For Back-To-School Sales

Mish's

There are two things retailers thought they could always count on, a robust Christmas shopping season and strong back-to-school sales. However, the Christmas fairy tale shattered last year and back-to-school sales are in the midst of their first ever collapse this year.

Inquiring minds are reading Retailers See Back-to-School Sales Slowing.

Halfway through the back-to-school shopping season, retail professionals are predicting the worst performance for stores in more than a decade, yet another sign that consumers are clinging to every dollar.

Stock analysts at Citigroup are predicting a decline in back-to-school sales for the first time since they began tracking the figures in 1995. They estimate August and September sales at stores open for at least a year — known as same-store sales — will fall 3 to 4 percent, compared with an increase of nearly 1 percent in the same period last year.

The National Retail Federation, an industry group, expects the average family with school-age children to spend nearly 8 percent less this year than last. And ShopperTrak, a research company, predicted customer traffic would be down 10 percent from a year ago.

“This is going to be the worst back-to-school season in many, many years,” said Craig F. Johnson, president of Customer Growth Partners, a retailing consultant firm.

This year’s frugality may hark back to an earlier age, but consumers are using up-to-the-minute tools in their determination to save money. They are scouring the Internet for coupons. They are planning their shopping trips around e-mail alerts that tip them to bargains.

One mother, Clarissa Nassar, signed up for alerts about sales on a Web site called Shop It To Me. When she saw that her daughter’s favorite brand, Baby Phat, was on sale at Macy’s, she promptly drove to the department store to shop for school clothes.

“I got an alert for the cutest tie-dye pink top,” said Ms. Nassar, a mother of two, Mikayla, 7, and Joseph, 3, in Johnstown, N.Y. “Originally it was $36 and I got it for $9.75.”

Executives at Google said Internet searches for back-to-school bargains had soared this year. Searches for coupons are up 40 percent over last year and searches for buy-one-get-one-free deals are up 30 percent.
The article notes that Staples lowered prices on 250 back-to-school items in an attempt to compete with Walmart. With that, we can safely add Staples to the ever growing list of Peas In The Deflationary Pod.

In a flashback to the past, coupon sales are soaring. Anyone remember their parents clipping coupons? Except perhaps for huge discounts, how many routinely did it 3 years ago, two years ago?

Some thought last season's Christmas sales were bad. This year is going to be a disaster.

2009-08-14T23:29:00.002+09:00

The fact the news media is talking

about inflation means it's on the way

U.S. consumer prices flat,

inflation pressures muted

Fri Aug 14, 2009 10:11am EDT
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -

U.S. consumer prices were flat in July versus June, but fell over the past 12 months by the most since 1950, according to government data that suggested benign inflation pressure even amid signs the recession may be winding down.
The Labor Department said on Friday its Consumer Price Index was unchanged after rising 0.7 percent in June, in line with market forecasts for a flat reading.
Gasoline prices fell 0.8 percent after jumping 17.3 percent the previous month, helping to keep overall prices contained. The food index declined 0.3 percent, the biggest fall since May 2002, after being flat in June, while prices for apparel and new vehicles rose in July.
Compared to the same period last year, consumer prices fell 2.1 percent, the largest decline since January 1950, reflecting the huge drop in oil prices since last year's peak.
U.S. government bond prices extended gains on the data, while the dollar deepened losses against the yen. ( read more here )

2009-08-13T23:06:00.003+09:00

Dollar’s Replacement Is Just

6,700 Miles Away

Commentary by William Pesek

Aug. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Forget all this chatter about finding a new reserve currency. We already have one, and it’s called the yen.

Before dismissing the idea, consider how the yen is strengthening because investors figure it’s a safe bet. It’s popping up more and more in market stories about how the yen is enjoying a haven status -- even if it’s at odds with events in Japan’s economy.

Japan is in a recession, deflation is afoot and debt is approaching 200 percent of gross domestic product. Investors returning from two decades in hibernation and looking at Japan’s fundamentals might run away. And yet, the yen has gained 14 percent against the U.S. dollar over the past year.

We can deduce three things from this surreal turn of affairs. One is the absurdity of our times. Two, this whole concept of a reserve currency needs an overhaul. Three, those figuring the yen can only rise in value may be disappointed.

The first point is the most intriguing. It’s true that the yen has been a pretty consistent winner for investors betting on a weaker dollar. Regardless of its structural problems, Japan has a stability to it that’s unique. Huge shocks play out over decades or years, not months or weeks.

That said, the idea that the yen is an oasis of prosperity in an otherwise crazy world shows the extent to which things have gone mad. Is Japan, the weak link among developed economies for the last 20 years, really a place investors can escape to?

Crazy 18 Months ( learn more at )

2009-08-13T07:17:00.000+09:00

The Crony Capitalist Bailout Nation
Posted: August 8 2009

Were the bailouts even constitutional? looming threats upon USA credibility, bond values, interest rates and hyperinflation,TARP should have bailed out the people, Swap arrangements are smoke and mirrors, markets will devalue the dollar, Moral Hazard has already deeply damaged the nation
The starting point for all analysis of the ongoing bailout orgy that is currently being used in crony capitalist fashion to transfer wealth from our middle class to the Illuminati and their transnational conglomerates is whether these bailouts are authorized by the US Constitution. The answer is a resounding NO!!! Nothing in the Constitution could ever be interpreted in any manner that would in any way allow the conversion of our quasi-capitalist republic into a Marxist-fascistic police state, which is the last thing our Founding Fathers had in mind. How can our government simply hand over fiat money created out of thin air, which in itself totally violates the provisions in our Constitution dealing with the issuance of money, to whoever they deem to be too-big-to-fail? The very idea of such targeted bailouts violates every precept upon which our nation was founded, and our Constitution in no way allows the bailout of any private person or business entity, especially where this creates special privileges to be given to a chosen few "anointed" entities at the expense of our citizens in general. Regulation of interstate commerce does not mean doling out crony capitalist bailouts, which amount to nothing short of the implementation of feudalism under the Puppet Master oligarchs of our Shadow Government. Regulation would mean fining and jailing these criminals and allowing them to fail so better run companies can acquire their assets via liquidation to be supervised by regulators. You reap what you sow in this nation. You do not reap profits for yourself and have everyone else pay for your losses. That is pure poppycock detritus. But where is our redress? We have a President who is a usurper pushed into office by the Puppet Masters in another violation of our Constitution; we have a bogus Congress beholden to the Puppet Masters for the filling of their campaign coffers in a political system where elective offices are bought and sold based on wealth instead of ability and integrity, and we have a Kangaroo Court System where the judges know not to bite the hands that appointed them, lest their skeletons be released from their closets or worse. Our regulators, who are in on almost every scam and public rip-off (i.e. the Madoff debacle), look the other way or issue chump change fines without requiring any accountability. The only redress left now are forceful public demonstrations, and if the President and Congress still turn a deaf ear, then there is always the Second Amendment, which is the option which we predict will eventually be used to create a change in our government from total corruption back to public service. Obama wanted "change," and that is what the American people are going to give him, not what he is going to give us. And let's also make that perfectly clear to the Illuminati, whose boots Obama daily licks like a slobbering dog. ( learn more at )

2009-08-13T06:56:00.003+09:00

9/11 Mind Swell Scientific

evidence refutes the official story
By Joel S. Hirschhorn
Global Research, August 11, 2009

As we approach the eighth anniversary of 9/11 consider this paradox. In the post 9-11 years the scientific evidence for disbelieving the official government story has mounted incredibly. And the number of highly respected and credentialed professionals challenging the official story has similarly expanded. Yet, to the considerable disappointment of the international 9/11 truth movement, the objective fact is that there are no widespread, loud demands for a new government-backed 9/11 investigation. The 9/11 truth movement is the epitome of a marginalized movement, one that never goes away despite not achieving truly meaningful results, which in this case means replacing official lies with official truth. What has gone wrong?

Akin to the definition of insanity, the hallmark of entrenched but marginalized movements is that they continue to pursue exactly the same strategy and tactics that have failed to produce solid results. They indulge themselves with self-delusion, defensive thinking and acting as if the world at large must surely and finally wake up, see the light and embrace the Truth. Years and, potentially, decades go by, but this quixotic status quo remains embedded, as if set in intellectual concrete. There is no brain tumor to blame. Nor any mass hypnosis of true believers to prove. There is just monumental disinterest among the dominant culture, political establishment and the broad public that is far more engaged with other issues, problems and movements.

The 9/11 truth movement, at best, gets meager public attention when it is derided and insulted, used as an example of persistent conspiratorial insanity.

Make no mistake; I concluded a few years back, after using my professional engineering and materials science background to study the evidence, that the official government story is a lie. As a former full professor of engineering, I firmly believe that elements of the US government were involved with contributing to (not just allowing) the 9/11 tragedy, but that does not necessarily eliminate the role of those terrorists publicly blamed for the events. Science, logic, evidence and critical thinking told me this.

Who should we blame for the failure of the 9/11 truth movement to fix the historical record and, better yet, identify those in the government who turned 9/11 into an excuse for going to war, getting them indicted, prosecuted, and punished for their murderous acts? ( learn more at )

2009-08-12T23:22:00.003+09:00

This is No Recession:

It’s a Planned Demolition
Posted By admin On August 11, 2009 @ 11:48 am 11, 2009

Credit is not flowing. In fact, credit is contracting. That means things aren’t getting better; they’re getting worse. When credit contracts in a consumer-driven economy, bad things happen. Business investment drops, unemployment soars, earnings plunge, and GDP shrinks. The Fed has spent more than a trillion dollars trying to get consumers to start borrowing again, but without success. The country’s credit engines are grinding to a halt. Bernanke has increased excess reserves in the banking system by $800 billion, but lending is still slow. The banks are hoarding capital in order to deal with the losses from toxic assets, non performing loans, and a $3.5 trillion commercial real estate bubble that’s following housing into the toilet. That’s why the rate of bank failures is accelerating. 2010 will be even worse; the list is growing. It’s a bloodbath.
The standards for conventional loans have gotten tougher while the pool of qualified credit-worthy borrowers has shrunk. That means less credit flowing into the system. The shadow banking system has been hobbled by the freeze in securitization and only provides a trifling portion of the credit needed to grow the economy. Bernanke’s initiatives haven’t made a bit of difference. Credit continues to shrivel.
The S&P 500 is up 50 percent from its March lows. The financials, retail, materials and industrials are leading the pack. It’s a “Green Shoots” Bear market rally fueled by the Fed’s Quantitative Easing (QE) which is forcing liquidity into the financial system and lifting equities. The same thing happened during the Great Depression. Stocks surged after 1929. Then the prevailing trend took hold and dragged the Dow down 89 percent from its earlier highs. The S&P’s March lows will be tested before the recession is over. Systemwide deleveraging is ongoing. That won’t change.
No one is fooled by the fireworks on Wall Street. Consumer confidence continues to plummet. Everyone knows things are bad. Everyone knows the media is lying. Credit is contracting; the economy’s life’s blood has slowed to a trickle. The economy is headed for a hard landing.
Bernanke has pulled out all the stops. He’s lowered interest rates to zero, backstopped the entire financial system with $13 trillion, propped up insolvent financial institutions and monetized $1 trillion in mortgage-backed securities and US sovereign debt. Nothing has worked. Wages are falling, banks are cutting lines of credit, retirement savings have been slashed in half, and home equity losses continue to mount. Living standards can no longer be bandaged together with VISA or Diners Club cards. Household spending has to fit within one’s salary. That’s why retail, travel, home improvement, luxury items and hotels are all down double-digits. The easy money has dried up.
According to Bloomberg:
“Borrowing by U.S. consumers dropped in June for the fifth straight month as the unemployment rate rose, getting loans remained difficult and households put off major purchases. Consumer credit fell $10.3 billion, or 4.92 percent at an annual rate, to $2.5 trillion, according to a Federal Reserve report released today in Washington. Credit dropped by $5.38 billion in May, more than previously estimated. The series of declines is the longest since 1991. ( learn more at )

2009-08-12T23:04:00.002+09:00

Media Floats Talking Point That Gun Owners

Are Domestic Terrorists
Posted By admin On August 12, 2009 @ 8:28 am

The establishment media and the Southern Poverty Law Center are again floating the talking point that militia groups and worried gun owners are growing in the United States and that this could portend a violent act of domestic terror, despite the fact that every major domestic terror attack in the 1990’s was carried out by the federal government itself, from Ruby Ridge, to Waco, to the Oklahoma City bombing.
“Militia groups with gripes against the government are regrouping across the country and could grow rapidly, according to an organization that tracks such trends,” reports the Associated Press. “The stress of a poor economy and a liberal administration led by a black president are among the causes for the recent rise, the report from the Southern Poverty Law Center says. Conspiracy theories about a secret Mexican plan to reclaim the Southwest are also growing amid the public debate about illegal immigration.”
The article cites people who own guns and implies that they are domestic terrorists or cop killers in the vein of Richard Poplawski, the Pittsburgh man who gunned down three officers during a domestic dispute earlier this year.
The report cites a Homeland Security “threat projection” which states “White supremacists and militias are more violent and thus more likely to conduct mass-casualty attacks on the scale of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.”
Of course, the irony behind all this is the fact that all the major acts of violence in connection with the militia movement during the 1990’s were committed by the government and federal agents.
It was an FBI sniper that killed Randy Weaver’s son and also his wife as she was holding their 10-month-old baby while running for cover during the Ruby Ridge standoff in 1992.
It was the BATF that burned the Branch Davidian ranch to the ground, killing seventy-six people including more than 20 children and two pregnant women, during the Waco massacre in 1993.
And it was high level FBI officials that groomed Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh in the run up to the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah building in 1995.
McVeigh’s accomplice Terry Nichols’ revelation that McVeigh was being steered by a high-level FBI official are supported by a plethora of evidence that proves McVeigh did not act alone and that authorities had prior warnings and were complicit in the bombing.
The Deseret Morning News named the FBI agent at Larry Potts, but that information was later sealed by the court.
The affidavit was filed in a lawsuit brought by attorney Jesse Trentadue, whose brother Kenneth was tortured and beaten to death in an Oklahoma City federal prison in 1995. Authorities claimed Trentadue had committed suicide but he was being held in a suicide proof cell at the time and autopsy photos of his body showed he had been shocked with a stun gun, bruised, burned, sliced and then hung. ( learn more at )

2009-08-12T09:46:00.000+09:00

"Average" Americans being

affected by financial problems
08.01.09
By Timothy Jones

Many people often think that they won't fall victim to bankruptcy, but a recent report finds that the average American facing financial distress is employed, married and between the ages of 35 and 44.

That's according to a study from the Institute for Financial Literacy which found that in addition to the average financially distressed American being more "average" than one might think, a number of other demographic groups also saw an increase in distress during 2008.

The Annual Consumer Bankruptcy Demographics Report looked into the statistics of a number of American groups throughout the course of 2008 - the first full year of the current recession.

According to the findings, being "overextended on credit" was the number one issue causing financial stress for Americans with 72.6 percent citing it as a problem - up from 69.2 percent in 2007.

Jobs appear to also be playing a factor in a person's financial situation, but not necessarily unemployment. The report found that the percentage of those citing "job loss" as a cause of their stress dropped slightly in 2008. But during that same time, the percentage of people citing "reduction of income" increased 0.7 percent. This may indicate that cutbacks at companies are affecting Americans more than job losses.

2009-08-11T22:12:00.002+09:00

Blackwater CEO accused

killing witnesses

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:24:10 GMT

The lawsuit filed by Iraqis against the US contractor Blackwater takes turn with a former employee and a former US marine accusing the firm's owner of murder.
In sworn statements filed on August 3 in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia, the two testified that company owner and CEO Erik Prince may have murdered or arranged the murder of individuals cooperating with US federal authorities investigating the case.
"[Prince] views himself as a Christian crusader tasked with eliminating Muslims and the Islamic faith from the globe," the former employee -- referred to as "John Doe 2" -- alleges in his statement.
"[Prince's] companies encouraged and rewarded the destruction of Iraqi life," he adds.
Both men, whose identities were not disclosed for fear of their safety, allege that Blackwater was smuggling weapons into Iraq, One of them even claims that Prince profited from the "illegal" or "unlawful" transfer of weapons into Iraq on his private planes.
In two separate five-page declarations concerning Blackwater, which now operates under the Xe Services LLC, they also charge that Prince and other Blackwater executives destroyed videos, emails and other documents that were proof of their guilt and intentionally deceived the US State Department and other federal agencies.
These and other allegations, make up a seventy-page motion that consists of a series of sworn affidavits given under penalty of perjury.
The motion was filed by lawyers on behalf of Iraqi civilians suing Blackwater for alleged war crimes and other misconduct.
Blackwater lawyers insist that Prince and the company are innocent of any wrongdoing. The company spokespersons, however, refuse to comment to the media.
According to a source close to the case, John Doe 2 is a former member of Blackwater's management team. Based on his own testimony, he worked with the company for four years.
"It appears that Mr. Prince and his employees murdered, or had murdered, one or more persons who have provided information, or who were planning to provide information, to the federal authorities about the ongoing criminal conduct," says John Doe 2, citing information provided to him by former colleagues.
"I fear violence against me in retaliation for submitting this Declaration… On several occasions after my departure from Mr. Prince's employ, Mr. Prince's management has personally threatened me with death and violence," he adds.
Referred to as "John Doe 1", the former US marine who worked for Blackwater in Iraq also made a similar statement.
"I learned from my Blackwater colleagues and former colleagues that one or more persons who have provided information, or who were planning to provide information about Erik Prince and Blackwater have been killed in suspicious circumstances," he said.
The US Attorney's office in the District of Columbia has refused to comment on the case, citing legal restrictions.
US Federal prosecutors convened a grand jury in the aftermath of the September 16, 2007, Nisour Square shootings in Baghdad, where seventeen Iraqis lost their lives.
Five Blackwater employees are waiting to face trial on several manslaughter charges and a sixth, Jeremy Ridgeway, has already pleaded guilty to manslaughter and attempted manslaughter.
A hearing before Judge Ellis in the civil cases against Blackwater is scheduled for August 7.

2009-08-07T09:49:00.000+09:00

32 Story High rise Has 1 Tenant

In case you did not realize just how bad the condo bust is in Florida, this story will clue you in: Florida high rise has 32 stories, but just 1 tenant.
FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Vangelakos' southwest Florida condominium has marble floors, a large pool overlooking a river and modern furnishings that speak of affluence and luxury. What they don't have in the 32-story building is a single neighbor.

When the Vangelakos' travel from Weehawken, N.J., to spend a week or a few days in their Florida home, they have exclusive use of the pool, game room and gym, but they miss having a few tenants around.

A large, circular fountain in front of the building is dry. The automatic glass doors that lead to the front lobby are locked. On the front desk is a guest sign-in sheet. The last entry: Feb. 13, 2009.

Victor Vangelakos said they don't want to move to the tower next door because they would still be paying the mortgage and maintenance costs on the condo they own. They paid $430,000 for the unit and took out a $336,000 mortgage — essentially spending their life savings.

The family's attorney said he has filed two lawsuits on behalf of would-be tenants because the building wasn't finished as promised. He said they expected a clubhouse, marina, private cinema and restaurants.
Ah yes , it makes perfect sense to have a clubhouse, a marina, and restaurants for 1 part-time tenant. However, the private cinema would indeed be private, just as advertised.

Addendum:

E-Recep in a comment to this post has an interesting anecdote to share ...

"The over-capacity in housing has started to look ridiculous if not tragic. Here in Turkey we have a similar situation. One of my nephews is living alone in a 12-story building which was completed last year. The outskirts of Istanbul are full of newly finished condos, most of which are empty."

Similar stories abound in China.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

2009-08-07T06:06:00.000+09:00

HR 1207 Meets Panicked Resistance

Jurriaan MaessenInfowars

August 4, 2009

As the campaign to audit the Fed is picking up momentum in the halls of Congress, reflective of the majority support by the people, several mainstream media outlets have taken their familiar positions to fulfil the role of compliant corporate lackeys they have become accustomed to. But it is to no avail. The campaign for liberty has clearly grown wings that spread far and wide, outflanking both the left and the right as it ascends to ever greater heights. Whatever happens next, the enemies of liberty will be hard put to it, trying to sprinkle sleeping dust into the eyes of the giant who stretches his arms to meet the dawn. ( learn more at )

2009-08-06T23:07:00.000+09:00

Trade down 20% on prime container route
By Robert Wright, Transport Correspondent
Published: July 21 2009 19:51 Last updated: July 21 2009 19:51

Traffic volumes on the world’s busiest container ship route fell by a fifth in May against a backdrop of plummeting prices as the global recession leaves the industry facing its worst crisis in its 53 year history.
The figures for westbound Asia-Europe services, which compared volumes with the same month last year, were published on Tuesday by the European Liner Affairs Association a day after Singapore’s Neptune Orient Lines revealed it suffered continued volume falls in June and a still sharper fall in earnings from each container.EDITOR’S CHOICEHapag-Lloyd finance talks stall - Jul-19
German container shipping line seeks €1.75bn - Jul-09
MSC set to cut ship numbers - Jul-15
Tufton takes a bet on recovery for shipping - Jul-15
Container lines to raise Asia-US rates - Jul-08
Ship orders set to add to capacity glut - Jun-25

Falling trade volumes and an oversupply of ships have sent container lines’ earnings per container shipped well below day-to-day operating costs. Several lines, including Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd, are seeking fresh financing and there is speculation that one or more big container lines could fall into bankruptcy.
This year looks set to be the first in the 53-year history of container shipping to see a year-on-year fall in volumes. Volumes depend on consumer demand for the finished and semi-finished goods shipped in containers.
The ELAA figures – which the trade association compiles for all trades to and from Europe – showed westbound volumes from Asia to Europe down 20 per cent in May, compared with the same month a year ago. The figure is slightly better than the 22 per cent fall in the first quarter of 2009. But container lines are likely to be concerned by the length of the slump, which started in autumn last year and is eating into many operators’ cash reserves.
NOL’s figures, which covered all its operations rather than the individual routes covered by the ELAA figures, showed a volume fall of 14 per cent for the four weeks to June 26.
The volume fall was lower than the 24 per cent average for the year so far. However, the line’s average earnings per 40-foot container fell 29 per cent in the latest four-week period, sharply down on the 20 per cent average for the year so far.
The ELAA’s earnings figures, which cover only the first three months, showed prices per container between Europe and Asia were running at 49 per cent of the average figure for 2008.
One senior container shipping executive, who asked not to be named, said container shipping companies had “a long way to go” in raising prices before they were able to cover their costs. Hundreds of container ships are laid up worldwide as lines cut services in an effort to fill their remaining sailings.
NOL is seeking S$1.4bn ($970m) in fresh capital to strengthen its balance sheet, while Hapag-Lloyd on July 8 told its shareholders it needed €1.75bn ($2.5bn) in fresh capital. Chile’s CSAV is raising $710m as part of a rescue deal agreed by the owners of its ships.

2009-08-06T08:24:00.001+09:00

CRS on Innovation Inducements, Postal Closures

July 27th, 2009 by Steven Aftergood

A new report from the Congressional Research Service examines the government’s use of “grand challenges” or monetary prizes to provide incentives for technological advancement. In quite a few cases, such incentives have inspired or accelerated new technology breakthroughs — in lightweight power supplies and autonomous unmanned vehicles, for example. In other cases, the proffered prizes have gone unclaimed because the challenge was not met, as in a recent competition to generate breathable oxygen from simulated lunar soil. In any case, it seems likely that the new CRS report is the best thing ever written on the subject. See “Federally Funded Innovation Inducement Prizes” (pdf), June 29, 2009.

Another new CRS report considers the mundane but significant fact that the US Postal Service may soon close thousands of post office branches and stations due to declining demand and volume. This exhaustive report, once again, is almost certainly the best, most informative treatment of its chosen subject. See “Post Office and Retail Postal Facility Closures: Overview and Issues for Congress” (pdf), July 23, 2009.

Despite the efforts of Sen. Joseph Lieberman, Sen. John McCain and a few others, there appears to be little near-term prospect that Congress will permit direct public access to CRS reports like these. Fortunately, routine unauthorized disclosures of the reports continue to meet the need fairly well.

2009-08-05T08:17:00.000+09:00

Military vs. Non-Military Durable Goods

in Pictures Sometimes a chart is nearly

all you need to understand the story.

This is one of those times.

Military vs. Non-Military Durable Goods

click on chart for sharper image

Durable Goods Shipments Down 20%
With that stunning graphic out of the way, please consider some interesting factoids from Why a Recovery May Still Feel Like a Recession.
Durable goods shipments fell by more than 20 percent during this recession, and would have declined further were it not for increased production of weapons.In no previous downturn since 1958, when the figures began being recorded, had the decline been as much as 14 percent.The drop is all the more remarkable because such shipments rose at a relatively restrained rate in the preceding period of economic growth, particularly when military sales were excluded.In June, seasonally adjusted shipments for civilian purposes were 19 percent below the average monthly figure for 2000. Shipments of military items were running 123 percent above the 2000 average.Those figures are in nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation. That fact may exaggerate the trend, since prices of some durable goods, like computers, have fallen over the years.
Given the amount of durable goods that go into homes (washers, dryers, microwaves, stoves, refrigerators, etc), and given the enormous boom in housing from 2003-2007 that chart is a stunning description of the state of our economy.
However, the chart is misleading in once sense. Military spending accounts for only 8% of durable goods orders. Then again, military spending was only 3% in 2000 according to the article.
Perhaps the bottom is in, but please don't expect the "recovery" to take us back to 2007 levels of spending any time soon. Housing, commercial real estate, and autos will remain weak for years to come.

2009-08-05T06:31:00.002+09:00

The Worldwide H1N1 Swine Flu Pandemic.

The WHO plans to vaccinate

more than half the World's population
by Global Research

THE H1N1 SWINE FLU PANDEMIC. SELECTED ARTICLES, NEWS REPORTS, ANALYSIS AND VIDEOS (SCROLL DOWN)
Global Research Editor's Note
We bring to the attention of our readers a collection of in-depth reports and articles on the H1N1 Flu Pandemic, published by Global Research since the outbreak of the crisis in Mexico in April.
"The U.S. expects to have 160 million doses of swine flu vaccine available sometime in October", (Associated Press, 23 July 2009)
"Vaccine makers could produce 4.9 billion pandemic flu shots per year in the best-case scenario", Margaret Chan, Director-General, World Health Organization (WHO), quoted by Reuters, 21 July 2009)
Wealthier countries such as the U.S. and Britain will pay just under $10 per dose [of the H1N1 flu vaccine]. ... Developing countries will pay a lower price." [circa $400 billion for Big Pharma] (Business Week, July 2009)
The Worldwide H1N1 swine flu pandemic serves to mislead public opinion.
The 2009 pandemic, which started in Mexico in April, is timely: it coincides with a deepening economic depression. It takes place at a time of military escalation.
The epidemiological data is fabricated, falsified and manipulated. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an epidemic of worldwide proportions now looms and threatens the livelihood of "2 billion people [who] could become infected over the next two years — nearly one-third of the world population." (World Health Organization as reported by the Western media, July 2009). According to the Obama adminstration, the "swine flu could strike up to 40 percent of Americans ... and as many as several hundred thousand could die if a vaccine campaign and other measures aren't successful." (Official Statement of the US Administration, Associated Press, 24 July 2009).
These statements serve to mislead public opinion. There is ample evidence, documented in numerous reports, that the WHO's level 6 pandemic alert is based on fabricated evidence and a manipulation of the figures on mortality and morbidity resulting from the N1H1 swine flu.
The Pandemic serves the interests of Big Pharma. The WHO is planning for the production of 4.9 billion dose, enough to inoculate a large share of the World's population. Big Pharma including Baxter, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, Sanofi-Aventis and AstraZeneca have signed procurement contracts with some 50 governments. (Reuters, July 16, 2009). For these companies, compulsory vaccination is a highly lucrative undertaking:
The Role of the Military ... ( know more at )

2009-08-05T06:11:00.001+09:00

News From Japan

Aug 04 Japan yet to fall into deflation: economic minister Hayashi (AP)

Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said Tuesday it is too early to say that Japan has fallen into deflation despite recent record falls in the nation's key consumer price index. "It would be premature to say that Japan is in deflation at this stage," Hayashi told reporters after a Cabinet meeting, pointing to a mild decline in consumer prices when excluding food and energy.

Aug 04 Japan's economy to show 4.1% growth in April-June qtr: economists (AP) (RUBBISH)

The Japanese economy is expected to show an annualized real expansion of 4.1 percent in the April-June period, marking the first increase in five quarters on recovery in exports and the government's economic stimulus package, according to economists polled by Kyodo News. The average projection, measured by real gross domestic product, contrasts sharply with the 14.2 percent fall in the January to March quarter, the worst slump since comparable data became available in 1955.

Aug 04 Japanese civil servants set to see largest cut in bonuses (AP)

The National Personnel Authority will soon recommend a reduction in winter bonuses for Japan's national civil servants, which is likely to lead to the largest contraction in their annual bonuses, sources familiar with the matter said Monday. The latest step is expected to result in a cut of 0.35 month worth of salary, the largest yearly reduction since the authority recommended a cut of 0.3 month worth of salary in fiscal 1999.

2009-08-04T13:24:00.000+09:00

Bush, Obama used

military spending to hide

U.S. impending economic

woes & to secretly stave

off economic collapse

as early as 2001

1. It’s 2000 AD, a new century the Dot com bubble has just popped, Non military (NM) and military(m) spending are in parody, everything is ok.

2. We can see that before 9/11 divergence of durables start to occur, starting at a difference of 1 or 2 percent but increases massively to 38 to 40% as the Iraq invasion starts.

3. We move further down the decade, we see that (m) sky rockets by the beginning of 2008.

4. The criminals in the Bush, Cheney administration saw that the economic bubble was about to pop so they allowed the military to spend massive amounts of money in a vain effort to stave off the impending economic collapse. In January 2008 divergence is about 45 %; by September 2008 the divergence percentage is at 82%.

5. From the beginning of 2008 to September 2008 (m) spending increases by, a huge Holy Marry trying to save the economy from collapsing, 37% in just 9 months. You do the math.

6. The bubble pops and spending stops during the beginning of the Obama presidency( I guess they had to pay for Barry Obama’s stage show inaugural ceremony) but then continues around March and April Increasing another 30% ( and I am being nice ). With (NM) down and the massive (m) increases in spending total divergence is now at around 145% and increasing.

Durable Goods numbers as 7/29/2009

. A. The Bush administration use (m) spending as a hidden economic stimulus after the Dot.com bubble popped and kept using the increases in (m) spending to secretly stimulate the economy.

2009-08-04T07:33:00.000+09:00

The Federal Reserve Knew that a

Financial Crash was Coming "Blowing

Bubbles" and "Using Palliatives"

which "Make Things Worse"
By Washington's Blog
Global Research, August 2, 2009

washingtonsblog.com

BIS Slammed Federal Reserve and Other Central Banks for Blowing Bubbles and then "Using Gimmicks and Palliatives" which "Will Only Make Things Worse"If you have any doubt that the Fed and other central banks should have known that a crash was coming, all you have to do is look at this June 2007 article from the Telegraph:
The Bank for International Settlements, the world's most prestigious financial body, has warned that years of loose monetary policy has fuelled a dangerous credit bubble, leaving the global economy more vulnerable to another 1930s-style slump than generally understood...
The BIS, the ultimate bank of central bankers, pointed to a confluence a worrying signs, citing mass issuance of new-fangled credit instruments, soaring levels of household debt, extreme appetite for risk shown by investors, and entrenched imbalances in the world currency system...
The bank said it was far from clear whether the US would be able to shrug off the consequences of its latest imbalances ...
"Sooner or later the credit cycle will turn and default rates will begin to rise," said the bank.
A year later, in June 2008, the Telegraph wrote: ( learn more here )

2009-08-03T22:25:00.003+09:00

2009-08-03T20:51:00.000+09:00

The Obama opiate:

Crisis deepens, crowds cheer
by Larry Chin

Six months since taking the reins, the Barack Obama administration has met its primary objective. It has swiftly ramped up the murderous imperial agenda inherited from Bush-Cheney while the masses, pacified and deceived by the appeal of the Obama image, pay no attention to realities. No attention to the fact that the Obama administration’s global war strategy, which puts Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Latin America, and other regions into new military-intelligence crosshairs, promises the expansion of global instability, resource conquest, and "war on terrorism" ruin.

No attention to the fact the Obama administration is loaded with elites who are as dangerous and corrupt as those of the preceding administration. No attention to the fact that nothing has “changed” except that there is a “rock star” figurehead sitting in the Oval Office who is smart and not stupid; calculating rather than blatant. ( learn more at )

2009-08-03T07:12:00.001+09:00

2009-08-02T22:04:00.001+09:00

NAVY PAYS FOR IT'S TOYS I THOUGHT WE WERE

IN A DEPRESSION WITH FAMILIES LOSSING

THEIR HOMES

FOR RELEASE AT No. 563-095 p.m. ET July 30, 2009
CONTRACTS
NAVY

The Boeing Co., Seattle, Wash., is being awarded a $334,690,630.00 modification to a previously awarded cost-plus-award-fee contract (N00019-04-C-3146) for one P-8A multi-mission maritime aircraft Stage II test aircraft with mission systems and recurring and non-recurring tasks in support of three test aircraft to make them production representative assets. In addition this modification includes spares to support these three aircraft. Work will be performed in Seattle, Wash., (82.4 percent); Norwalk, Conn., (4.6 percent); Oklahoma City, Okla., (4.3 percent); McKinney, Texas, (3.4 percent); Greenlawn, N.Y., (3 percent); and North Amityville, N.Y., (2.3 percent), and is expected to be completed in April 2013. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River Md., is the contracting activity.

Defense Technology, Inc.*, Huntsville, Ala., is being awarded a $43,460,000.00 firm-fixed-price contract for the procurement of four Mi-17 variant helicopters and related tool kits for the Afghan National Army Air Corps. Work will be performed in Kabul, Afghanistan, and is expected to be completed in September 2009. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposals; four offers were received. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity (N00019-09-C-0089).

DG21 LLC, Dallas, Texas, is being awarded $28,725,271.00 modification to previously awarded fixed-price contract (N62742-06-D-4501) to exercise the third option period for base operating support services at the U.S. Navy Support Facility, Diego Garcia. The current total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $468,785,907. Work will be performed at Diego Garcia, British Indian Ocean Territory, and work is expected to be completed July 31, 2010. Contract funds in the amount of $9,192,844 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the contracting activity.

iRobot Corp., Bedford, Mass., is being awarded a $13,481,433.00 firm-fixed-price cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the procurement of man transportable robotic system (MTRS) production systems, depot level repair parts, spare kits, depot repair services, parts supply, training, engineering enhancements, configuration management, and approved accessories for the Army, (58 percent) and Navy, (42 percent). The MTRS is a small robotic vehicle used by explosive ordnance disposal technicians to conduct remote reconnaissance, render safe, and/or dispose of explosive devices. Work will be performed in Bedford, Mass., and is expected to be completed by July 2010. Contract funds in the amount of $150,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division, Indian Head, Md., is the contracting activity (N00174-09-D-0005).

Multifunction Utility/Logistics Equipment Vehicle (MULE) UGV (1 Ton) Robotic Infantry Support System (RISS) (JUST GET A F*CKING REAL MULE YOU JACKASS AND SAVE THE ENVIORNMENT AND SAVE THE AMERICAN PEOPLE BILLIONS DOLLARS)
The Multifunction Utility/Logistics Equipment Vehicle (MULE) is an unmanned platform that provides transport of equipment and/or supplies in support of dismounted maneuver. There are three variants of the MULE. These are MULES designed for 1) transport, 2) Air assault, and 3) Countermine use.
The Multifunction Utility/Logistics and Equipment Vehicle (MULE) is an unmanned platform that provides transport of equipment and/or supplies in support of dismounted maneuver forces. It will also be capable of being armed in the role of support to dismounted infantry in the close assault.
The General Dynamics Eagle Enterprise concept for the Objective Force Warrior [OFW] system of systems includes a Robotic Infantry Support System (RISS, aka robotic mule or mule). The RISS will reduce the soldier's load and could carry supplementary supplies such as water and ammunition. General Dynamics envisions additional uses for the RISS that may include reconnaissance and surveillance or medical and personnel transport. The 15-foot long, six-foot wide vehicle will be capable of carrying a payload of up to 2000 pounds of weapons, supplies or personnel.

2009-08-02T19:45:00.004+09:00

Compare the two

Mass media vs.

a Real Economist

Job Losses Probably Eased in July as U.S. Manufacturing, Housing Steadied Employers cut jobs in July at a slower pace and the factory slump eased, indicating the end of the worst U.S. recession since the Great Depression is getting closer, economists said before reports this week.

By Shobhana Chandra

Aug. 2 (Bloomberg) --

Payrolls Probably Declined at Slower Pace: U.S. Economy. Employers cut jobs in July at a slower pace and the factory slump eased, indicating the end of the worst U.S. recession since the Great Depression is getting closer, economists said before reports this week. Payrolls fell by 325,000 workers after dropping by 467,000 in June, according to the median on 56 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey ahead of an Aug. 7 Labor Department report. The jobless rate probably rose to a 26-year high of 9.6 percent.
The figures will be a reminder that, even as Obama administration stimulus efforts gain traction, hiring will take longer to pick up as companies such as Deere & Co. and US Airways Group Inc. continue to cut costs. Estimates that the jobless rate will exceed 10 percent by early 2010 signal consumer spending will lag behind an economic recovery.

Weekly Unemployment Claims Portend Disaster

MISH'S Global Economic Trend Analysis

The Department of Labor Weekly Unemployment Report is now so skewed by abnormalities, it is difficult to get a clear picture. First, let's take a look at the data.Seasonally Adjusted Data
In the week ending July 25, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 584,000, an increase of 25,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 559,000. The 4-week moving average was 559,000, a decrease of 8,250 from the previous week's revised average of 567,250.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 4.7 percent for the week ending July 18, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate of 4.7 percent.
The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending July 18 was 6,197,000, a decrease of 54,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 6,251,000. The 4-week moving average was 6,416,250, a decrease of 131,750 from the preceding week's revised average of 6,548,000.

2009-08-02T13:34:00.000+09:00

Judge: Swine flu is reason to suspend
constitutional rights Delays caused by
lock down are costing thousands of
dollars, inconveniencing jurors.
By LARRY WELBORN
The Orange County Register

SANTA ANA – A Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday that there is legal justification to keep the Central Men’s Jail under medical quarantine – at least for a couple of days – to control a swine flu outbreak.

Judge Thomas Goethals said the “significant medical public health event” in the men’s jail is good cause to temporarily suspend constitutional guarantees to speedy trials, preliminary hearings and arraignments for some criminal case defendants.

He made his ruling over the objections of the county public defender’s office and the alternate defender’s office after a special 90-minute hearing on the status of the health scare in the main men’s jail, which usually houses 800 to 900 inmates.

But Goethals said the exception to speedy court appearances will only be in effect through Thursday, by which time the quarantine of the jail may be lifted. He said he will preside over another hearing Thursday if medical authorities continue the quarantine.

The judge issued his decision after Dr. Jack Palmer, assistant medical director of the Orange County Health Agency, testified that the swine flu outbreak in the jail began three to four weeks ago with a handful of cases, and that there are 25 inmates isolated because of the virus.

But Palmer also testified that the number of new cases appears to be tapering off and that he is hopeful that the lockdown can be lifted in time to renew transporting inmates to courthouse in Santa Ana, Fullerton, Westminster and Newport Beach by Thursday morning.

The disease is generally spread through nasal drippings, sneezes or coughs, Palmer said. The incubation period is 48 to 72 hours, the doctor added, making it difficult to determine precisely who and how many inmates are infected.

Palmer said he authorized the quarantine of the men’s jail Friday because of the increasing number of sick inmates and the desire to attempt to limit the spread of the disease to other jail facilities through inmate contact on transportation buses, holding cells or courtrooms.

Orange County sheriff’s officials confirmed there is already one case of swine flu in the Theo Lacy branch jail, but that inmate was already isolated in a single-man cell and therefore the quarantine has not been extended to that facility.

But county health officials also confirmed that one minor in the county's juvenile hall in Orange was infected with the swine-flu virus, said Tricia Landkuist, spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Care Agency.

The minor has been placed in an isolated unit, along with two other minors who were displaying flu-like symptoms, she said. Those two minors have also been tested for the virus and their results are expected within the week, she said.

As a precautionary measure, two other minors who were being housed with the minor who has been infected have also been placed in a unit with limited contact, she said. The two minors have not displayed any flu symptoms but have also been tested as a precaution.

It costs thousands of dollars a day to run a courtroom, but on Tuesday several normally busy judges and staffs were waiting for cases to be assigned that did not involve inmates from the central men’s jail.

Superior Court Judge John Conley was in the midst of selecting a jury in a child-molestion case when the quarantine went into effect on Monday. His potential jurors were sent home Monday, and were told Tuesday told to call the courtroom Wednesday to find out when their services will be needed.

Superior Court Judge Daniel Barrett McNerney was about to instruct a jury on the law after evidence was presented in a rape case when the trial was shut down Monday by the lockdown.

The defendant in that case reportedly has agreed to waive his personal presence for the instructions – if necessary – on Wednesday, creating the unusual specter of the defendant being linked to the courtroom from the jail by phone while the judge reads instructions to his jury.

According to the state’s Department of Public Health, 12 people have died in Orange County because of swine flu – the most of any county in California.

2009-08-02T08:49:00.000+09:00

We’ve only just begun

Shawn Connors InfowarsJuly 30, 2009

According to the CIA’s World Factbook, Americas GDP for 2008 was $14.58 trillion dollars. Fox News reported The United States Government and The Federal Reserve have so far pledged & committed $23.7 trillion dollars, an amount that far exceeds the value of everything we produced in this country in 2008. Simply put, the zero oversight bailouts dwarf our U.S. Gross Domestic Product. California Representative Darryl Issa, ranking member of the oversight committee wrote “If you spent a million dollars a DAY going back to the birth of Jesus Christ, that wouldn’t come close to just $1 trillion….$23.7 trillion is a staggering figure”.

As long as Americans obey their television, elitists will pillage.

Banks, Insurance companies, Automakers, and The U.S. Post Office have benefited from your future tax extortion. Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports, “The war is costing $720 million a day or $500,000 a minute”. Combine these debacles with the 7 million lost jobs since the “recession” began, rapidly increasing inflation, stolen pension funds, more taxes, and increased homeless families from foreclosures and this roller coaster ride is just beginning. Watch for begging in the streets.
If time stopped this minute, every man, woman and child in the U.S. including unborn future generations could barely pay this debt. But time doesn’t stop and the need for tax revenue will increase beyond imagination. $24 Trillion dollars will have to be paid. You and your future generations are going to pay this debt from every conceivable corner of life. Sales taxes, Income taxes, property taxes, all taxes and every “nickel and dime” permit fee and license you can imagine will increase drastically. New taxes will be created out of thin air. HR 2454 The Cap and Trade Bill is further evidence of revenue invention. Combine this with Barry Soetoro’s advancing Healthcare Reform and you have a 3rd world country in the midst. In the near future basic needs of humanity such as food, shelter and clothing will strain our budget. It may take multiple generations under one roof to simply exist.

Economic recovery will be prolonged because our government “sold out” American jobs via NAFTA a decade ago. Our trade imbalance is disgusting. No jobs equal no production of goods and services, which equals no money and shrinking national GDP. Lack of sales will further bankrupt brick and mortar companies resulting in more job losses. The vicious cycle is just beginning. Simultaneously, interest on our debt is mounting. Individuals lucky enough to keep employment may find themselves bringing home a significant reduction in pay. Exemptions and “write offs” will disappear. Imagine what minimum wage employees will net. Heavily armed IRS agents are on standby while mobster public officials dole out your future earnings like Halloween candy. The American people are nothing more than cattle; to be corralled, milked and slaughtered.
The Democratic and Republican mob bosses have bartered your future. Both campaign on blatant lies and summarily dismiss you the moment elected. These puppets are controlled by global elitist money masters. The Economic terrorism and enslavement is just beginning. Today, it seems the power elite are purposely bankrupting the dollar in favor of global currency. The crisis is undeniable and the propaganda media is scrambling to divert your attention away from reality. If global currency is introduced the Federal Reserve will officially report to the IMF. The American economy will be under international regulation and U.S. sovereignty will end. A Central Bank will enable total monopoly corruption. Nations will be at the mercy of one financial power group. As long as Americans obey their television, elitists will pillage. We are at the mercy of financial terrorists who list Goldman Sachs on their resume.
Nothing will relieve us from this burden of debt. Depression style unemployment, low salaries, heavy taxation, hyperinflation, demise of our currency and our sovereignty will render us slaves to a world order ruled by corrupt oligarchs. The attack on the middle class is nearly finished. Most of the population is struggling. The “haves” and the “have nots” is glaring. Sections of the United States will resemble third world poverty. Public infrastructure will continue to crumble. Tent cities continue to grow. Food pantry’s have empty shelves. FEMA camps are billed as “homeless camps”. Aggravated crime is up and the prisons are full. The United States is in replay mode of Germany’s Weimar Republic. World class Economists are pessimistic and U.S. Consumer Confidence is at a record low according to The Associated Press. If we don’t stop these crooks, who will? When will Americans act? Lack of involvement is what got us here. Gear up America…we’ve only just begun.

On the Edge with Max Keiser - 31 July 2009 (3/3)

2009-08-01T16:05:00.001+09:00

On the Edge with Max Keiser - 31 July 2009 (2/3)

2009-08-01T14:47:00.001+09:00

On the Edge with Max Keiser - 31 July 2009 (1/3)

2009-08-01T14:46:00.001+09:00

Max, getting right

2009-08-01T08:43:00.000+09:00

Statistical Deceptions
Posted By admin On July 30, 2009 @ 9:44 am

Paul Craig Roberts Infowars

Last week on NPR a professor in the Sloan School of Management at MIT explained that what is really at stake in the health care bill is the US government’s ability to borrow. In other words, the bill is about cutting health care costs, not about providing hard-pressed Americans with health care.
The professor said that if we didn’t get health care costs under control, in 30 years the US government would not be able to sell Treasury bonds. The reported unemployment rate is itself deceptive as it no longer includes discouraged workers who have been unemployed for more than a year.
It is not at all clear that the Treasury will be able to sell its debt instruments in 30 months, and it has nothing to do with health care costs. The Treasury debt marketing problem has to do with two back-to-back US fiscal year budgets, each with a $2 trillion deficit. The size of the US deficit exceeds in these troubled times the supply of world savings available to fund the US government’s wars, bailouts and stimulus plans. If the Federal Reserve has to monetize the Treasury’s new borrowings by creating demand deposits for the Treasury (printing money), America’s foreign creditors might flee the dollar.
The professor didn’t seem to know anything about this and gave Washington 30 more years before the proverbial hits the fan.
One looks in vain to the US financial media for accurate economic information. Currently, Wall Street, the White House, and the media are hyping a new sign of economic recovery–“surging” June home sales. John Williams at shadowstats.com predicted this latest reporting deception.
Here is the way Williams explains how statistics can produce false signs of recovery.
The economy has been contracting for so long that a plateauing of the falloff in home sales compared to the previous time period’s more rapid contraction can appear like a gain.
The Census Bureau itself notes that the reported 11% increase in June home sales might be illusory. The reporting agency says that the gain is not statistically meaningful at a 90% confidence interval and that “the Census Bureau does not have sufficient statistical evidence to conclude that the actual change is different from zero.”[PDF]
Williams explains other data distortions likely to create false hopes and lead to investment losses. Financial stresses from the current state of the economy have changed behavior. This means that normal seasonal adjustments to statistical data can result in misleading information.
For example, the recent decline that was reported in seasonally-adjusted new unemployment claims was a result of the normal adjustments for the retooling of auto lines that did not, in fact, take place to the normal extent due to the bankruptcies and uncertainties. Adding in seasonal adjustments that did not in fact take place artificially reduced the unemployment claims.
Williams warns that after a period of contraction, new monthly or quarterly figures are being compared to prior periods of collapsing activity. “Improvements” are thus artifacts of the prior collapse and not signs of economic rebound.
The “Birth-Death Model” is used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to estimate the net of the non-reported jobs lost by failed businesses (deaths) and new jobs created by start-up companies (births). Williams explains why the model understates job loss during periods of contraction. The modeling on which the birth-death adjustment is based consists primarily of periods of economic growth when there are more non-reported start-up jobs than non-reported job losses from business failures. The BLS model came up with a monthly adjustment of 75,000 new jobs added to the reported number. That means an adjustment factor of 900,000 new jobs added to the reported payroll jobs number each year.
However, during economic contraction, such as the current one, it is wrong to assume that new start-ups are creating 75,000 jobs each month more than are being lost to business failures. Thus the job losses are understated by the 900,000 upside birth-death adjustment and by the absence of a downside adjustment to estimate the jobs lost as a result of failed companies that cease to report.
The reported unemployment rate is itself deceptive as it no longer includes discouraged workers who have been unemployed for more than a year. These long-term discouraged workers are simply erased from the rolls of the unemployed.
The Consumer Price Index no longer measures a constant standard of living and is not comparable to pre-Clinton periods. During the 1990s, the CPI ceased to be based on a weighted fixed assortment. The principle of substitution was introduced. For example, under the old measure, if the price of steak rose, the CPI rose. Under the new measure, if the price of steak rises, the index switches to hamburger on the assumption that consumers substitute hamburger for steak.
Consumer confidence typically is swayed by “good news” hype. The drops in the Conference Board’s and the University of Michigan’s measures of consumer confidence in July suggest that Americans are becoming inured to recovery hype and are realizing that the government and the media lie about the economy just as they lie about everything else.

2009-08-01T00:05:00.002+09:00

Has the U.S. Economy Hit Bottom?
Economics / Recession 2008 - 2010
Jul 25, 2009 - 08:52 AM

By: MISES

Frank Shostak writes: Most experts and commentators are of the view that the worst of the US recession may be over by year's end. My own prediction is for an illusory recovery of government-constructed economic indicators, but nothing more than that.

It is held by most experts that a recession is typically set in motion by various unpredictable shocks. For instance, it is argued that the present recession was triggered by the crisis in the real estate market. Since, as a rule, various shocks tend to weaken consumer demand, it is the role of the central bank and the government to replace this shortfall in demand by boosting monetary pumping and government outlays. Thus, the central bank and the government counter the effects of various negative shocks by means of monetary and fiscal stimulus policies.

The monetary and fiscal stimulus is aimed at boosting overall expenditure in the economy, which (it is believed) is the key for economic growth. On this logic, spending by one individual becomes the income for another.

Following this way of thinking, since September 2007 the US central bank has aggressively lowered its interest rates. The federal funds rate target was lowered from 5.25% in August 2007 to almost zero at present. The yearly rate of growth of the Fed's balance sheet (that is, the pace of monetary pumping) jumped from 4% in September 2007 to 152% by December 2008. ( know more at )

2009-07-31T21:47:00.000+09:00

Martial Law and the Militarization of

Public Health: The Worldwide

H1N1 Flu Vaccination Program
By Michel Chossudovsky
Global Research, July 26, 2009

"The flu season is upon us. Which type will we worry about this year, and what kind of shots will we be told to take? Remember the swine flu scare of 1976? That was the year the U.S. government told us all that swine flu could turn out to be a killer that could spread across the nation, and Washington decided that every man, woman and child in the nation should get a shot to prevent a nation-wide outbreak, a pandemic." (Mike Wallace, CBS, 60 Minutes, November 4, 1979)
"The federal officials and industry representatives had assembled to discuss a disturbing new study that raised alarming questions about the safety of a host of common childhood vaccines administered to infants and young children. According to a CDC epidemiologist named Tom Verstraeten, who had analyzed the agency's massive database containing the medical records of 100,000 children, a mercury-based preservative in the vaccines -- thimerosal -- appeared to be responsible for a dramatic increase in autism and a host of other neurological disorders among children....
"It's hard to calculate the damage to our country -- and to the international efforts to eradicate epidemic diseases -- if Third World nations come to believe that America's most heralded foreign-aid initiative is poisoning their children. It's not difficult to predict how this scenario will be interpreted by America's enemies abroad." (Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Vaccinations: Deadly Immunity, June 2005) ( learn more at )

2009-07-31T21:30:00.002+09:00

2009-07-31T07:11:00.002+09:00

More bad news from Citi group again.

Why is the Gov. the largest stock holder

of Citi group? Because Citi group was

BANKRUPT

U.S. becomes Citigroup's biggest shareholder

Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:31pm EDT
By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) - One hundred ninety-seven years, one month and 14 days after its founding, Citigroup Inc has given a roughly 34 percent stake to U.S. taxpayers.

While a few technical details still remain, the bank has completed a months-long effort to convert preferred shares held by the U.S. government into common stock. Citigroup on Thursday completed two exchange offers to bolster the capital position of the nation's third-biggest bank, widely considered the most troubled large U.S. lender.

Public investors, private investors and the government swapped close to $58 billion of preferred securities into common stock of the New York-based bank.
Citigroup has said the swaps would leave it with more than 21 billion shares, up from 5.51 billion at the end of June.

The $25 billion swapped by the government is part of its $45 billion infusion from the federal bank bailout plan, the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Another $20 billion of that sum will remain in the form of preferred shares, throwing off an 8 percent annual dividend.

The higher government stake could add to pressure on Chief Executive Vikram Pandit to improve performance and shed unwanted or toxic assets.
Citigroup has also overhauled upper management and added seven new directors this year.

Earlier Thursday, Citigroup said it will sell a 64 percent stake in Japan's Nikko Asset Management Co to Sumitomo Trust & Banking Co for 75.6 billion yen ($790 million). Speaking in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Pandit said the bank is moving "extremely fast" on asset sales.

Citigroup agreed to the exchange offers in February as part of a government bailout, following $37.5 billion of losses over the previous five quarters.
The swaps were originally expected to total $52.5 billion. They grew to $58 billion after regulators ordered Citigroup to build a buffer following a "stress test" of its finances.

Citigroup said the swaps will make it one of the world's best-capitalized banks, with about $100 billion of tangible common equity.
Other large Citigroup investors include several sovereign wealth funds, and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.

The bank's roots date to when City Bank of New York opened on June 16, 1812, with $2 million of authorized capital.

Citigroup itself was created on October 8, 1998 through the merger of Travelers Group Inc and Citicorp. Shares of Citigroup fell 4 cents to $3.18 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
($1 = 95.7 Japanese yen)

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Additional reporting by Soo Ai Peng in Kuala Lumpur, and Chikafumi Hodo and David Dolan in Tokyo, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)

2009-07-31T06:55:00.004+09:00

Comparing 2008 Jobless claims to 2009

No jobs, no buying no recovery simple

5/2008

7/2009

2009-07-30T23:01:00.000+09:00

The numbers say it all

No jobs, no buying, no buying no jobs

and so it goes

5/28/09

7/29/2009

2009-07-30T22:26:00.004+09:00

The news from Japan

Japan factory output logs sharpest rise in 56 yrs (AFP)

Japan's factories ramped up their production at the fastest pace in 56 years in the second quarter, data showed Thursday, boosting hopes the world's number two economy has returned to positive growth. Japanese industrial output plunged last year in the midst of a brutal global economic downturn, pushing Asia's biggest economy into its worst recession since World War II, but analysts say the worst appears to be over. ( This is complete bullsh*t I know I live in Japan. Nothing is ramping up. This is just wrong, positive and misleading economic propaganda.

Economic white paper short on specifics
The Yomiuri Shimbun

The theme of the fiscal 2009 Annual Report on the Japanese Economy and Public Finance was "overcoming crisis and the outlook for sustainable recovery."
Although the country's economy has stopped deteriorating, it is still in a deep rut, and there are lingering concerns that it could worsen further still.
The white paper on the economy and public finances was drawn up in the middle of a dire economic situation. As such, it was expected to present a clear remedy for the Japanese economy that would guide it through the crisis and help it regain its growth potential.
The white paper said that although the country's economy slumped at the fastest pace on record, and that the extent of the slowdown also was the deepest ever, it finally began picking up thanks to the government's pump-priming measures and the recovery of foreign economies.
But the report pointed to three continuing risks in the economic outlook--the deteriorating employment situation, the risk of backsliding into deflation and a downturn in foreign economies.

Jul 30 Worker excess worrisome (Japan Times)

The government's fiscal 2009 white paper on the economy has drawn a gloomy picture with regard to the employment situation, although the report does credit the government's four economic stimulus measures for starting to exert a positive effect.

Jul 29 IMF begins borrowing from Japan, Canada, Norway (nasdaq.com)

The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday it has begun drawing on loans offered to it by the governments of Japan, Canada and Norway. The move marks the first time the Fund has borrowed from member countries using bilateral borrowing agreements. Jul 28 Ratio of vacancies to all houses in Japan hits record 13.1% (Mainichi) The ratio of vacant houses to all the dwellings in Japan hit an all-time high of 13.1 percent as of last Oct. 1, surpassing the previous record of 12.2 percent in 2003, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said in a preliminary report released Tuesday. This means nearly one out of every eight houses in Japan is vacant.

Jul 28 Bonuses for Japan national servants to be cut further (Mainichi)

Japan's national civil servants are expected to see their bonuses cut further for the current fiscal year to next March after a reduction in their summer bonuses, sources at the National Personnel Authority said Tuesday. The authority is making the latest move after slashing summer bonuses for civil servants by 0.2 month worth of salary based on a May proposal made as the country's economy has been mired in recession.

Jul 28 No change in minimum wage in regions with no livelihood assistance gap (Mainichi)

The Minimum Wage Council, an advisory body to the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare, said that the minimum wage will be "maintained at its current level" in 35 prefectures where there is no gap between public livelihood assistance and the minimum wage.

2009-07-30T16:45:00.001+09:00

75% Americans in Favor

of Auditing The Fed

Here's some genuinely good news for a change. A new Rasmussen poll shows 75% Favor Auditing The Fed.
So much for the ongoing secrecy of the nation’s independent central banking system. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 75% of Americans favor auditing the Federal Reserve and making the results available to the public.

Just nine percent (9%) of adults think that’s a bad idea and oppose it. Fifteen percent (15%) aren’t sure. Over half the members of the House now support a bill giving the Government Accounting Office, Congress’ investigative agency, the authorization to audit the books of the Federal Reserve Board.

While the president hopes to expand the Fed chairman’s regulatory controls, 46% of Americans say he already has too much power over the economy.

Fifty-one percent (51%) oppose expanding the Fed’s regulatory powers.

Despite Bernanke’s pledge that the Fed will keep interest rates and inflation down, 54% of Americans think interest rates will be higher a year from now, up 20 points from April.

Perhaps helping to drive the support for regularly auditing the Fed is the growing unpopularity of Obama’s economic initiatives to date. While the Fed is an independent agency, just 20% of Americans believe the Fed chairman is truly independent of the Obama administration. Sixty percent (60%) say his decision-making is influence by the president.
Turn up the heat. Call your legislative representative again tomorrow and tell them you favor auditing the Fed, then getting rid of it.

Please see Speak Out - Audit the Fed, Then End It! for Fax numbers. You can also get Phone, Fax, and Email numbers from the Online Directory for the 111th Congress.

2009-07-30T09:12:00.006+09:00

America military on your streets

Military Poised to Help FEMA

Battle Swine Flu Outbreak

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to set vaccination priorities for certain groups Wednesday during a meeting in Atlanta as the Pentagon prepares to help the Federal Emergency Management Agency tackle a potential outbreak of the H1N1 virus this fall.

The Pentagon is preparing to make troops available if necessary to help the Federal Emergency Management Agency tackle a potential outbreak of the H1N1 virus this fall, FOX News has confirmed.
This comes as a government panel recommends certain groups be placed at the front of the line for swine flu vaccinations this fall, including pregnant women, health care workers and children six months and older.
The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices panel also said those first vaccinated should include parents and other caregivers of infants; non-elderly adults who have high-risk medical conditions, and young adults ages 19 to 24. The panel, whose recommendations typically are adopted by federal health officials, voted to set vaccination priorities for those groups Wednesday during a meeting in Atlanta.
Obama administration officials told Congress that H1N1 vaccinations won't be available for several months.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates is preparing to sign an order authorizing the military to set up five regional teams to deal with the potential outbreak of H1N1 influenza if FEMA requests help.
A senior U.S. defense official told FOX News that the plan calls for military task forces to work in conjunction with the FEMA. No final decision has been reached on how the military effort would be manned, but one source said it likely would include personnel from all branches of the military.
It is not known how many troops would be needed and whether they would come from the active duty or the National Guard and Reserve forces.
In the event of a major outbreak, civilian authorities would lead any relief efforts, the official said. The military, as it would for a natural disaster or other significant emergency situation, could provide support and fulfill any tasks that civilian authorities could not, such as air transport or testing of large numbers of viral samples from infected patients.
As a first step, military leaders have asked Gates to authorize planning for the potential assistance.
Orders to deploy actual forces would be reviewed later, depending on how much of a health threat the flu poses this fall, the officials said.
FOX News' Jennifer Griffin, Brian Wilson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Military planning for possible H1N1 outbreak
Military wants to establish regional teams to help civilian authorities respond
Proposal awaiting final approval from Defense Secretary Robert Gates
Military could provide support such as air transport, large-scale testing
From Barbara Starr
CNN Pentagon Correspondent

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. military wants to establish regional teams of military personnel to assist civilian authorities in the event of a significant outbreak of the H1N1 virus this fall, according to Defense Department officials.

The proposal is awaiting final approval from Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

The officials would not be identified because the proposal from U.S. Northern Command's Gen. Victor Renuart has not been approved by the secretary.

The plan calls for military task forces to work in conjunction with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. There is no final decision on how the military effort would be manned, but one source said it would likely include personnel from all branches of the military.

It has yet to be determined how many troops would be needed and whether they would come from the active duty or the National Guard and Reserve forces.

Civilian authorities would lead any relief efforts in the event of a major outbreak, the official said. The military, as they would for a natural disaster or other significant emergency situation, could provide support and fulfill any tasks that civilian authorities could not, such as air transport or testing of large numbers of viral samples from infected patients.

As a first step, Gates is being asked to sign a so-called "execution order" that would authorize the military to begin to conduct the detailed planning to execute the proposed plan.
Orders to deploy actual forces would be reviewed later, depending on how much of a health threat the flu poses this fall, the officials said.

All AboutSwine Flu • Military and Defense Policy • Robert Gates

2009-07-30T08:37:00.000+09:00

Incredible Shrinking Boomer Economy

BusinessWeek has an interesting cover story this week about The Leaner Baby Boomer Economy.

Calling Mercedes the "the quintessential boomer brand", BusinessWeek estimates that Mercedes will sell a third fewer cars in America. The article also notes efforts by companies like Nordstrom (JWN), Starwood Hotels & Resorts (HOT), Outback Steakhouse, BMW and Target (TGT) to offer value shopping or "cheap chic" in an effort to reach out to generations X and Y.

By now most are familiar with this new wave of frugality. Thus the real story is not article itself but the is the easy to miss sidebar statistics as follows:

$400 Billion: Amount that will come out of annual U.S. consumption as thrifty boomers push savings rate from 1% to nearly 5%.

47%: Boomers share of national disposable income in 2005 before the bubble burst. Boomers contributed only 7% to national savings.

2.4%: Forecasted GDP growth over the next three decades as boomers ratchet back. GDP has grown 3.2% a year since 1965.

69%: Portion of boomers aged 54 to 63 who are financially unprepared for retirement.

78%: Boomers' share of GDP growth during the bubble years of 1995 to 2005

Those stats are from a McKinsey study, and there is nothing remotely inflationary about any of them.

In his Town Hall Meetings Bernanke said:

"It takes GDP growth of about 2.5 percent to keep the jobless rate constant. But the Fed expects growth of only about 1 percent in the last six months of the year. So that's not enough to bring down the unemployment rate."

Inquiring minds might be asking: Why does it take 2.5% growth to keep the jobless rate constant? The answer is the first 2.5%+- of GDP is based on hedonics and imputations. In plain English, the first 2.5%+- of GDP (if not much more) is fictional. When the economy is growing at 2% it feels like a recession because it probably is, even though no one will admit it.

Now consider the implications of a 2.4% GDP forecast for three decades.

If Bernanke is correct that it takes 2.5% GDP growth just to keep the unemployment rate constant, and McKinsey is also correct in its 2.4% forecast, we will be stuck with 10% unemployment for decades.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock
http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com

Military & H1N1 News report

2009-07-29T21:54:00.000+09:00

2009-07-29T07:36:00.003+09:00

Is CITIGROUP OK?

On June 1, 2009, it was announced that Citigroup Inc. would be removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average effective June 8, 2009 due to significant government ownership. Citigroup Inc. was replaced by Insurer Travelers Co.

Citi public exchange offer gets 99 percent shares

Mon Jul 27, 2009 6:48am EDT
NEW YORK (Reuters) -

Citigroup Inc said on Sunday some 99 percent of its stock was tendered in an exchange offer for publicly held securities, in a key step toward giving the U.S. government a 34 percent equity stake in the bank.
Citigroup said preliminary results showed about $20.3 billion worth of publicly held convertible and nonconvertible preferred and trust preferred securities were tendered in the exchange offer.
The bank will issue 5.83 billion common shares to the public exchange offer participants, it said. The exchange offer expired at 5 p.m. New York time on Friday.
The New York-based lender has been conducting a series of exchange offers on $58 billion of securities, as part of a federal bailout designed to bolster the bank's capital.
Public and private investors are exchanging up to $33 billion of securities for common stock, while the government is exchanging up to $25 billion of its own securities.

Citigroup is conducting the exchange offers after heavy losses led to a series of federal bailouts, including $45 billion of taxpayer money, for the third-largest U.S. bank.
The bank is the most troubled of the nation's largest lenders, after credit losses and writedowns led to $37.5 billion of net losses in the 15 months ended in December.( know more at )

Federal bailout 2008

On 24 November 2008 the U.S. government announced a massive bailout of Citigroup, designed to rescue the company from bankruptcy while giving the government a major say in its operations. The Treasury will provide another $20 billion in Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds in addition to $25 billion given in October. The Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) will cover 90% of the losses on its $335-billion portfolio after Citigroup absorbs the first $29 billion in losses.[44] In return the bank will give Washington $27 billion of preferred shares and warrants to acquire stock. The government will obtain wide powers over banking operations. Citigroup has agreed to try to modify mortgages, using standards set up by the FDIC after the collapse of IndyMac Bank, with the goal of keeping as many homeowners as possible in their houses. Executive salaries will be capped.[45]
As a condition of the bailout, Citigroup's dividend payment has been reduced to a mere 1 cent a share.
As the subprime mortgage crisis began to unfold, heavy exposure to toxic mortgages in the forms of Collateralized debt obligation (CDOs), compounded by poor risk management led the company into serious trouble. In early 2007 Citigroup began eliminating about 5 percent of its workforce, in a broad restructuring designed to cut costs and bolster its long underperforming stock.[15] By November 2008, the ongoing crisis hit Citigroup hard and despite federal TARP bailout money, the company announced further cuts.[17] Its stock market value dropped to $6 billion, down from $244 billion two years prior.[18] As a result, Citigroup and Federal regulators negotiated a plan to stabilize the company.[4] Its single largest shareholder is Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia, who has a 4.9% stake.[46] Vikram Pandit is Citigroup's current CEO, while Richard Parsons is the current chairman.[35]
[edit]Political donations
Citigroup is the 16th largest political campaign contributor, out of all organizations, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. According to Matthew Vadum, a senior editor at the conservative Capital Research Center, Citigroup is also a heavy contributor to left-of-center political causes.[47] However, members of the firm have donated over $23,033,490 from 1989-2006, 49% of which went to Democrats and 51% of which went to Republicans.[48]

Terra Securities scandal

In November 2007 it became public that the Citigroup is heavily involved in the Terra Securities scandal, which involved investments by eight municipalities of Norway in various hedge funds in the United States bond market.[41] The funds were sold by Terra Securities ASA to the municipalities, while the products were delivered by Citigroup. Terra Securities ASA filed for bankruptcy November 28, 2007, the day after they received a letter[42] from The Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway announcing withdrawal of permissions to operate. The same letter also stated, "The Supervisory Authority contends that Citigroup's presentation, as well as the presentation from Terra Securities ASA, appears insufficient and misleading because central elements like information about potential extra payments and the size of these are omitted."
[edit]Theft from customer accounts
On August 26, 2008 it was announced that Citigroup agreed to pay nearly $18 million in refunds and fines to settle accusations by California Attorney General Jerry Brown that it wrongly took funds from the accounts of credit card customers. Citigroup would pay $14 million of restitution to roughly 53,000 customers nationwide. A three-year investigation found that Citigroup from 1992 to 2003 used an improper computerized "sweep" feature to move positive balances from card accounts into the bank's general fund, without telling cardholders.[43]
Brown said in a statement that Citigroup "knowingly stole from its customers, mostly poor people and the recently deceased, when it designed and implemented the sweeps...When a whistleblower uncovered the scam and brought it to his superiors, they buried the information and continued the illegal practice."[43]

2009-07-28T23:47:00.002+09:00

It Ain’t Over Until

the Jobs Come

Back — Period!

Carl F. Worden Fourwinds10July 26, 2009

So I’m watching these talking heads on CNBC telling America that the signs of a recovery are there. They are lying and not just merely misled. They are flat lying, hoping some suckers out there will start making purchases to jump-start America’s consumer-driven engine, and to a small degree it is working. All I can tell you is this: When your money is spent, it is GONE, okay? If there is not a corresponding and reliable, ongoing source of income to offset your purchases, don’t make the purchases. Is there anyone, outside of Jackson County, Oregon, the stupidest county in all the Universe, that does not understand this concept? (Jackson County, Oregon has about 210,000 residents, and they maintain something like 13-15 library branches to keep a bunch of otherwise needless people employed on the taxpayers’ dime. The residents of Jackson County largely think this is a great idea, yet the population in general is terribly uneducated and has nothing to show for all the libraries. Yes, they really are intensely stupid here!)
Unless and until the U.S. Jobs Report begins to list positive job gains, this recession/depression is not over, and I don’t care what any alleged financial expert has to say otherwise.
Once again, I am going to point out that this whole mess did NOT start with Bush 43 and his undeclared war. That was merely an exacerbation of this economic mess that started with President Bill Clinton signing onto the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the General Agreement on Trade And Tariffs (GATT) — against his Democratic Party lobby. NAFTA and GATT were, hands down and indisputable, the most heinous acts of treason ever committed against the citizens of the United States, and not a shot needed to be fired to accomplish it.
NAFTA and GATT virtually eliminated the trade protections we had to preserve our exceptionally high standard of living. We are a nation of just 310 million people who once enjoyed a standard of living that was the envy of all the world. We have now been thrown into a global economic cauldron that makes our ability to compete for wealth creation “equal” with the rest of the world, even though we had all the natural resources and form of government that made us able to out-perform every other nation on the planet. ( Know more at )

2009-07-28T19:22:00.003+09:00

Yearly increase in home sales

being falsely sold, as Recovery

Every year in June, July and August house sales spike. This is not a recovery this is the year spike in house sales. Look at the table.

The trend line says it all. Down, down, down.

2009-07-28T07:41:00.000+09:00

Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) Speech

Voice Recognition Speech recognition (also referred to as voice recognition) is a process by which the elements of spoken language can be recognized and analyzed, and the linguistic message it contains transposed into a meaningful form so that a machine can respond correctly to spoken commands. Voice recognition is distinct from voice identification, which is the capability to identify a specific individual by comparing unknown recorded voices to known voice exemplars to identify similar and dissimilar characteristics.
The "holy grail" of ASR research is to allow a computer to recognize in real-time with 100% accuracy all words that are intelligibly spoken by any person, independent of vocabulary size, noise, speaker characteristics and accent, or channel conditions. Despite several decades of research in this area, accuracy greater than 90% is only attained in commercial when the task is constrained in some way.
Different levels of performance can be attained by unclassified systems. Recognition of continuous digits over a microphone channel (small vocabulary, no noise) can be greater than 99%. If the system is trained to learn an individual speaker's voice, then much larger vocabularies are possible, although accuracy drops to somewhere between 90% and 95% for commercially-available systems. For large-vocabulary speech recognition of different speakers over different channels, accuracy n commercial systems is less than 90%, and processing can take hundreds of times real-time. Automatic Speech Recognition History
The earliest attempts to devise systems for automatic speech recognition by machine were made in the 1950s. Much of the early research leading to the development of speech activation and recognition technology was funded by NSA, NSF and the Defense Department's DARPA. Much of the initial research, performed with NSA and NSF funding, was conducted in the 1980s.
Kurzweil was founded in 1982 and proposed to use its experience, industry knowledge, and market presence to leverage the production of the interface. In 1985, the company had introduced Kurzweil Voice System, the first 1,000-word discrete-speech recognizer. This interface, adaptable to many applications, allowed the user to control the application by voice without modifying the operating system or software. In 1987, Kurzweil introduced the first 20,000-word discrete-speech recognizer, which was incorporated into Kurzweil Voice Report software and allowed users to create structured reports by voice. ( know more at )

2009-07-28T06:04:00.001+09:00

Pandemic Headlines

Swine Flu Cases In Kazakhstan RFE/RL 27 Jul 2009

Russian swine flu cases rise to 18 RIA Novosti 27 Jul 2009

WHO Says Swine-Flu Virus Could Infect 2 Billion VOA 25 Jul 2009

WHO: Death toll from influenza outbreak nears 800 UN News 24 Jul 2009

WHO: Swine Flu Spreads Around the World VOA 24 Jul 2009

Australia's Aborigines Bracing for Swine Flu Onslaught VOA 24 Jul 2009

Arab Health Ministers: Age Limits on Hajj to Limit Flu VOA 23 Jul 2009

WHO Says Global Swine Flu Deaths Exceed 700 VOA 21 Jul 2009

Britain Mulls Closing Schools to Curb Swine Flu VOA 21 Jul 2009

MIDDLE EAST: First swine flu death in Egypt IRIN 20 Jul 2009

Russia may have 3 more swine flu cases RIA Novosti 18 Jul 2009

Russia registers 10th confirmed swine flu case RIA Novosti 18 Jul 2009

US Designates $1.8 Billion for Swine Flu Prevention VOA 16 Jul 2009

Thailand Puts Flu Cooperation on ASEAN Agenda VOA 16 Jul 2009

Innovation key to ensuring adequate vaccines for all UN News Centre 14 Jul 2009

WEST AFRICA: Region still unprepared for pandemic flu IRIN 14 Jul 2009

WHO recommendations on pandemic (H1N1) 2009 vaccines UN WHO 13 Jul 2009

SOUTH AFRICA: Swine flu cases more than known IRIN 13 Jul 2009

Middle East: Swine flu measures ahead of Hajj season IRIN 12 Jul 2009

US Braced for H1N1 Swine Flu Return VOA 11 Jul 2009

Air Force Academy officials responding to flu cases AFNS 10 Jul 2009

Southern Africa : Swine flu begins to spread IRIN 10 Jul 2009

Viruses resistant to oseltamivir (Tamiflu) identified UN WHO 08 Jul 2009

UN SecGen: $1 Billion Needed to Fight Swine Flu VOA 06 Jul 2009

2009-07-27T20:22:00.000+09:00

Breaking News

Europe fast-tracking swine flu vaccine

By MARIA CHENG, AP Medical

LONDON – 18 minutes ago

In a drive to inoculate people against swine flu before winter, many European governments say they will fast-track the testing of a new flu vaccine, arousing concern among some experts about safety issues and proper vaccine doses.
The European Medicines Agency, the EU's top drug regulatory body, is accelerating the approval process for swine flu vaccine, and countries such as Britain, Greece, France and Sweden say they'll start using the vaccine after it's greenlighted — possibly within weeks.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Dr. Keiji Fukuda, the World Health Organization's flu chief, warned about the potential dangers of untested vaccines, although he stopped short of criticizing Europe's approach outright.
"One of the things which cannot be compromised is the safety of vaccines," he said Friday. "There are certain areas where you can make economies, perhaps, but certain areas where you simply do not try to make any economies."
Flu vaccines have been used for 40 years, and many experts say extensive testing is unnecessary, since the swine flu vaccine will simply contain a new ingredient: the swine flu virus.
But European officials won't know if the new vaccine causes any rare side effects until millions of people get the shots. Still, they say the benefit of saving lives is worth the gamble.
"Everybody is doing the best they can in a situation which is far from ideal," said Martin Harvey-Allchurch, a spokesman for the European Medicines Agency. "With the winter flu season approaching, we need to make sure the vaccine is available." ( know more at )

2009-07-27T07:56:00.000+09:00

Court Rebukes Government Over “Secret Law”

Monday, July 20th, 2009

“Government must operate through public laws and regulations” and not through “secret law,” a federal appellate court declared in a decision last month. When our government attempts to do otherwise, the court said, it is emulating “totalitarian regimes.”
The new ruling (pdf) overturned the conviction of a defendant who had been found guilty of exporting rifle scopes in violation of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). The court said that the government had failed to properly identify which items are subject to export control regulations, or to justify the criteria for controlling them. It said the defendant could not be held responsible for violating such vague regulations.
Accepting the State Department’s claim of “authority to classify any item as a ‘defense article’ [thereby making it subject to export controls], without revealing the basis of the decision and without allowing any inquiry by the jury, would create serious constitutional problems,” wrote Chief Judge Frank H. Easterbrook of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. “It would allow the sort of secret law that [the Supreme Court in] Panama Refining Co. v. Ryan, 293 U.S. 388 (1935), condemned.”
Normally, “A regulation is published for all to see,” explained Judge Easterbrook, a Reagan appointee who is considered a judicial conservative. “People can adjust their conduct to avoid liability. [In contrast,] a designation by an unnamed official, using unspecified criteria, that is put in a desk drawer, taken out only for use at a criminal trial, and immune from any evaluation by the judiciary, is the sort of tactic usually associated with totalitarian regimes,” he said. See the Court’s ruling in United States of America v. Doli Syarief Pulungan, June 15, 2009.
The new ruling “could be a very big deal in terms of export controls, and indeed in terms of ’secret law’ in general,” said Gerald Epstein, a science and security policy scholar who served on a recent National Academy of Sciences panel on export control policy. “This case goes to the heart of the ambiguity of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, which give the State Department great latitude in determining what is and what is not covered, and which are administered in a notoriously opaque way,” Dr. Epstein told Secrecy News.
Export control policy was addressed from various perspectives in an April 24, 2008 Senate hearing entitled “Beyond Control: Reforming Export Licensing Agencies for National Security and Economic Interests” that was published last month.
Last year, Sen. Russ Feingold convened a hearing on the subject of “Secret Law and the Threat to Democratic and Accountable Government.” My prepared statement from that hearing on the diverse categories of secret law is available here ( Know more at ).

2009-07-27T07:36:00.000+09:00

NSA Call Data Channel (CDC) Monitoring

On 11 May 2006 USA Today reported that the National Security Agency had secretly collected the phone call records of millions of Americans, using data from three of the nation's biggest phone service providers. The National Security Agency used information provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth, which were reported to be working under contract with the NSA. The three companies provide local and wireless phone service to more than 200 million customers in the US.
The newspaper said it learned from sources familiar with the program that the NSA does not listen or record actual phone conversations, but uses the data to analyze the calling patterns of ordinary Americans in order to detect possible terrorist activities. Under Section 222 of the U.S. Communications Act passed in 1934 and amended in 1996, telephone companies are prohibited from giving out information regarding their customers' calling habits.
The law around wiretaps has grown up around a legal distinction between Content and Identifying Information with a legal history based in the postal system. The outside of a letter identifies the recipient, the sender, the place where the letter was posted and the time. Obtaining this “Identification” information requires a lower legal standard than the “Content” of the mail – the letter inside the envelope.
In March 2004 the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) and the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) jointly published the TIA Standard/ATIS Committee T1 Trial Use Standard, "Lawfully Authorized Electronic Surveillance" J-STD-025-B. This standard defines the interfaces between a telecommunications service provider (TSP) and a law enforcement agency (LEA) to assist the LEA in conducting lawfully authorized electronic surveillance. The purpose of this standard is to facilitate a TSP's compliance with the assistance capability requirements defined in Section 103 of the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).
J-STD-025-B defines services and features to support Lawfully Authorized Electronic Surveillance (LAES) and the interfaces to deliver intercepted communications and communication-identifying information to an LEA when authorized. The document also defines a protocol for delivering specific information elements to LEAs. Compliance with this standard satisfies the "safe harbor" provisions of Section 107 of CALEA and helps ensure efficient and industry-wide implementation of the assistance capability requirements. ( know more at )

2009-07-27T07:33:00.000+09:00

NSA Activities

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
The Fourth Amendment enshrines warrant requirement that the American colonists demanded from the Framers, following their experience with British occupation. That starting point may seem like a quaint vestige from a far-away past, but when that vestige is translated into abuses of enforcement officers, then the right of all Americans to be protected from arbitrary and unfounded invasions becomes much more than a historical remembrance. The framers of the Fourth Amendment placed a check on the unfettered authority of the state, without probable cause, to conduct a search that had not been tied to the likely commission of a crime. Without the requirement that a search have a nexus to both criminal conduct and to an external authority (judge or magistrate), a soldier, a federal agent, or a policeman, could take unto himself the right to execute what was called in the colonies a "general warrant", which permitted a search of a home for "whatever" evidence that might be found.
The National Security Agency used computers to help monitor all international phone calls and e-mails of Americans in carrying out President Bush's orders to detect Al Qaeda sleeper cells. Computers would automatically search for key words and phrases, as well as other signatures possibly associated with sleeper cells. As part of the statistical analysis, computers would create records that compiled profiles of US persons. All of this activity was under way long before September 11th, with the exception of the creation of records on US persons.
NSA's domestic spying program depends on the cooperation of the nation's telecom companies. A court warrant is almost always required to monitor communications. But under the secret surveillance program authorized by the President, the National Security Agency bypassed the courts to tap telephone calls and intercept e-mails to and from the United States. ( know more at )

2009-07-26T07:04:00.002+09:00

(Bush)Old ass*ole same as

the (Obama) new ass*ole

Spying on the American people

( people wake up )

President Bush said that the eavesdropping was legal and said it would continue. "I have the authority, both from the Constitution and the Congress, to undertake this vital program," he said. "The American people expect me to protect their lives and their civil liberties, and that's exactly what we're doing with this program. I'll continue to reauthorize this program for so long as our country faces a continuing threat from al-Qaida and related groups."

2009-07-26T06:34:00.003+09:00

Towards a Global Currency?

Towards the integration of

the Dollar and the Euro?
By Michel Chossudovsky
Global Research, July 20, 2009

With a view to restoring financial stability, World leaders have called upon the Group of 20 countries (G-20) to instigate a new global currency based on the IMF's Special Drawing Rights (SDRs).
The media has presented the global currency initiative as a consensus building process, in which BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) would participate in the revamping of the international monetary system.
Russia and China have put forth "proposals" which have been highlighted as possible alternatives to the dollar. China has proposed the formation of a new global currency based on a reform of SDR system:
"It is a feasible plan to reform the present SDR and make it into a real settlement currency, a universally accepted 'currency basket' that would replace the dollar at the heart of the monetary system," (Li Ruogu, chairman of the Export-Import Bank of China, Reuters, 6 July 2009)
China's proposal does not imply a major shift in global banking arrangements, nor does it open up a window of debate regarding monetary reform.
On the other hand, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has explicitly questioned the composition of the SDR basket and has called upon the IMF "to expand the currency basket of SDRs to include the Chinese yuan, commodity currencies and gold in order that it matures into a reserve currency."
Geopolitics
Global Geopolitics bears a relationship to the international monetary system. Control over money creation is an instrument of economic conquest.
The invasion and occupation of Iraq was to exclude rival Russian and Chinese interests from the Middle-East and Central Asian oil fields.
The reform of the international monetary system is a project of the dominant financial elites, which is discussed behind closed doors. It is unlikely that Russia and China, which in large part remain subordinate to Western banking interests, will perform a significant role in central banking functions at a global level.
Moreover, this initiative occurs at a time of East West confrontation, amidst veiled US-NATO threats directed against Russia as well China. The establishment of a new global currency and central banking system is an instrument of global economic domination which is intimately related to the broader US-NATO military agenda. ( know more at )

2009-07-25T21:04:00.005+09:00

Is the next down turn

right around the corner?

Will the commercial R. E. market

be the biggest nail in our coffin?

Commercial mortgage failure at 20-year high in U.S.: report

Mon Jul 20, 2009 9:33am EDT

(Reuters) - Commercial mortgages at U.S. banks have been failing at the fastest rate in nearly 20 years, the Wall Street Journal said, citing its own analysis.
Losses on loans used to finance commercial spaces would possibly reach about $30 billion by the end of 2009 at the current rate, the article said.
The estimated $30 billion is based on financial reports filed by more than 8,000 banks for the first quarter, the paper said.
The commercial real-estate market, valued at about $6.7 trillion, represents 13 percent of the U.S.'s gross domestic product, according to the paper.
(Reporting by Nivedita Bhattacharjee in Bangalore; Editing by David Cowell)

Citi takes big step to giving US 34 pct stake

Thu Jul 23, 2009 2:49pm EDT

* Bank completes $25 bln preferred stock exchange
* Shares rise
NEW YORK, July 23 (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) on Thursday said it has completed a $25 billion securities exchange, a key step toward eventually giving the U.S. government a 34 percent equity stake in the bank.
The New York-based lender is conducting a series of exchange offers on $58 billion of securities, as part of a federal bailout designed to bolster the bank's capital.
Public and private investors are exchanging up to $33 billion of securities for common stock, while the government is exchanging up to $25 billion of its own securities.
Citigroup is conducting the exchange offers after heavy losses led to a series of federal bailouts, including $45 billion of taxpayer money, for the third-largest U.S. bank.
The bank is the most troubled of the nation's largest lenders, after credit losses and writedowns led to $37.5 billion of net losses in the 15 months ended in December.
Citigroup said private holders of $12.5 billion of convertible preferred securities agreed to swap them for securities expected to convert to common stock.
The government matched this by swapping $12.5 billion of its own non-convertible preferred shares for the securities.
An exchange offer for publicly held preferred securities, also with a government match, is set to expire on Friday.
Both offers are expected to close late this month.
In afternoon trading, Citigroup shares rose 3 cents to $2.83 on the New York Stock Exchange (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; editing by John Wallace)

Japan to order Citi suspend some business

Thu Jun 25, 2009 1:03pm EDT

* Japan to punish Citi re money laundering oversight
* Business suspension order for some of retail business
* FSA to announce punishment on Friday - sources (Adds details from paragraph 5)
By Taro Fuse and David Dolan
TOKYO, June 26 (Reuters) - Japan's financial regulator will order Citigroup (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) to suspend some of its retail business in Japan for lax oversight of money laundering controls, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
The Financial Services Agency will announce the punishment on Friday, said the sources, who declined to be identified because the information is not yet public.
It was not immediately clear how long the suspension would last, or what operations would be affected.
A spokesman for Citigroup in Japan declined to comment, while the regulator was not immediately available for comment.
It will not be the first time that the U.S. bank has run foul of Japanese regulators. In 2004 Citigroup was forced to shut down its private banking business for violations that also included loose money-laundering controls. That incident prompted then-chief executive Charles Prince to make a public bow of apology in Japan, the traditional sign of remorse for Japanese executives and politicians.
The U.S. bank has been forced to sell off assets globally to raise cash after suffering more than $85 billion in losses on toxic assets.
The bank said last month it would sell its Japanese brokerage and key investment units to Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Japan's third largest bank, for $5.9 billion.
It is also looking to sell its Japanese asset management arm, Nikko Asset Management. [ID:nBNG457249] (Reporting by Taro Fuse and David Dolan; Editing by Rodney Joyce)

Bank of America credit losses soar, profit falls

Fri Jul 17, 2009 9:57pm EDT
By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp, the largest U.S. bank, posted a quarterly profit that topped Wall Street forecasts but warned of a fresh surge in soured loans to credit card, mortgage and business customers.
Soaring credit losses may add to pressure on Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis as the U.S. Congress and regulators ramp up scrutiny of the bank's ability to manage risk and its controversial purchase of Merrill Lynch & Co, and that tough economic conditions could hurt results into 2010.
"Growth in charge-offs and nonperforming assets still scares the daylights out of me," said Paul Miller, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets in Arlington, Virginia.
Second-quarter net income applicable to common shareholders fell 25 percent to $2.42 billion, or 33 cents per share, from $3.22 billion, or 72 cents, a year earlier.
Before preferred stock dividends in both periods, profit fell 5 percent to $3.22 billion. Net revenue on a taxable equivalent basis rose 60 percent to $33.09 billion.
Analysts on average expected profit of 29 cents per share on revenue of $33.26 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.
Lewis on a conference call predicted that "profitability in the second half of the year will be much tougher than the first half" because of an expected absence of one-time gains. Such gains helped boosted first-half net income to $7.47 billion.
Second-quarter results included an unspecified tax benefit and $9.1 billion of pretax gains from selling a stake in China Construction Bank Corp and putting a processing unit into a joint venture with First Data Corp. The bank took a $760 million charge to bolster a U.S. deposit insurance fund.
CEO SEES INCREASE IN LOSSES MODERATING
Bank of America set aside $13.38 billion for bad loans for a second straight quarter, and net charge-offs totaled $8.7 billion, up 25 percent from the prior three-month period.
Total reserves increased $4.63 billion to $35.78 billion, and nonperforming assets surged 21 percent to $30.98 billion.
"It was expected to be difficult in the quarter, and it is," said Richard Bove, an analyst at Rochdale Securities in Lutz, Florida.

2009-07-25T07:14:00.005+09:00

In addition to their power
over government based
on government financing
and personal influence,
bankers could steer governments
in ways they wished them to
go by other pressures.
Carroll Quigley

2009-07-25T06:35:00.000+09:00

Can The Economy Recover?
By Paul Craig Roberts
Global Research, July 21, 2009
Information Clearing House - 2009-07-15

There is no economy left to recover. The US manufacturing economy was lost to offshoring and free trade ideology. It was replaced by a mythical “New Economy.”
The “New Economy” was based on services. Its artificial life was fed by the Federal Reserve’s artificially low interest rates, which produced a real estate bubble, and by “free market” financial deregulation, which unleashed financial gangsters to new heights of debt leverage and fraudulent financial products.

The real economy was traded away for a make-believe economy. When the make-believe economy collapsed, Americans’ wealth in their real estate, pensions, and savings collapsed dramatically while their jobs disappeared.

The debt economy caused Americans to leverage their assets. They refinanced their homes and spent the equity. They maxed out numerous credit cards. They worked as many jobs as they could find. Debt expansion and multiple family incomes kept the economy going.

And now suddenly Americans can’t borrow in order to spend. They are over their heads in debt. Jobs are disappearing. America’s consumer economy, approximately 70% of GDP, is dead. Those Americans who still have jobs are saving against the prospect of job loss. Millions are homeless. Some have moved in with family and friends; others are living in tent cities. ( know more at )

2009-07-25T05:56:00.000+09:00

Global Power and Global Government:

Evolution and Revolution of the

Central Banking System Part 1
By Andrew Gavin Marshall
Global Research, July 21, 2009
Introduction

Humanity is on the verge of entering into the most tumultuous period in our history. The prospects of a global depression, the likes of which have never been seen before; a truly global war, on a scale never before imagined; and societal collapse, for which nations of the world are building totalitarian police states to control populations; are increasing by the day. The major global trend forecasters are sounding the alarms on economic depression, war, a return to fascism and a total reorganization of society. Through crisis, we are seeing the reorganization of the global political economy, and the transformation of capitalism into a totalitarian capitalist world government. Capitalism has never stayed the same through its history; it has always changed and will continue to do so. Its changes are explained and analyzed through political-economic theory, both mainstream theory and critical. The changes are undertaken over years, decades and centuries. The next phase of capitalism is one in which the world moves to a state-controlled economic system, much like China, of totalitarian capitalism.
The global political economy itself is being reorganized into a world government body, consisting of one center of global power where the socio-political-economic power of the world is centralized in one institution. This is not a conspiracy theory; it is a reality. Nor is this a subject confined to the realm of “internet conspiracy theorists,” but in fact, the concept of world government originates and evolves throughout the history of capitalism and the global political economy. Mainstream and critical political-economic theory has addressed the concept of world government for centuries. ( know more at )

2009-07-24T20:53:00.000+09:00

Stephen Foley:

Why CIT should not be bailed out

Saturday, 18 July 2009Share PrintEmailText Size NormalLargeExtra Large
US Outlook: You've got to feel a twinge of sympathy for the bosses of CIT Group, the New York-based small business lender which was fighting for its survival yesterday.
The day that Citigroup and Bank of America, which received tens of billions of dollars in bailout money and hundreds of billions more in government guarantees, were reporting better-than-expected results, CIT was appealing to the mercy of its own lenders, struggling to reverse a run on the bank and repair its finances.
Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, has said no to simply guaranteeing CIT's debts, something that might have allowed it to refinance, but which she believes would have exposed the taxpayer to too much risk. This despite pleas from CIT's 950,000 customers, which rely on the bank for short-term funding of their businesses.
The government is right to be standing back. This is no Lehman Brothers, no General Motors.
CIT's customers, retailers and their suppliers do face real inconvenience if the bank goes under. Instead of waiting for customers to pay their invoices, these businesses usually get the money upfront from CIT, who collects from the customer later. There will be some short-term pain from cutting CIT out of the equation, and some imprudent managers might find they have a funding gap that is too large to bridge.
But many businesses have been calling customers to arrange payment directly, and most customers have little interest in seeing their suppliers go under just as they are stocking up for Christmas. They will find creative ways to cope and, when they can't, CIT's rivals may step into many breaches. For the financial system and for commerce, this is a headache rather than a heart attack.

2009-07-24T12:00:00.000+09:00

Prescription for Disaster
By Peter Schiff

The health care bill unveiled this week by the House of Representatives (with the full support of the Obama administration) is one of the worst pieces of legislation ever drafted. If passed, it will reduce the quality and increase the cost of health care in America. But more importantly, it will severely undermine our already weak economy. To burden a country currently in the throes of a violent recession with such a bureaucratic albatross clearly illustrates the scarcity of economic intelligence in Washington.

In the first place, specifically taxing the rich to pay for health care for the uninsured is the wrong way to think about tax policy and is an unconstitutional redistribution of wealth. While the government has the constitutional power to tax to “promote the general welfare,” it does not have the right to tax one group for the sole and specific benefit of another. If the government wishes to finance national health insurance, the burden of paying for it should fall on every American. If that were the case, perhaps Congress would think twice before passing such a monstrosity.

In the second place, the bill is just plain bad economics. For an administration that claims to want to create jobs, this bill is one of the biggest job-killers yet devised. By increasing the marginal income tax rate on high earners (an extra 5.4% on incomes above 1 million), it reduces the incentives for small business owners to expand their companies. When you combine this tax hike with the higher taxes that will kick in once the Bush tax-cuts expire, and add in the higher income taxes being imposed by several states, many business owners might simply choose not to put in the extra effort necessary to expand their businesses. Or, given the diminishing returns on their labor, they may choose to enjoy more leisure. More leisure for employers means fewer jobs for employees. ( Known is power )