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Please go to the Wall Street Journal and read this entire article. The author has clearly laid out the real problem in the economy today; there is no truth. Markets are manipulated by government, banks and businesses in collusion with each other. The free market has ceased to exist.
How can we know that the car we would like to buy or the house we want are fairly and truthfully priced? How can we know that there is a reasonable expectation of gain or loss when the prices are artificially established and the rules that govern the banks and economy as a whole are fluid and dependent on political whim, not economic truth? Why would you sign a contract if that contract can be changed by a bureaucrat working at the behest of his masters after the fact?
Every "fact" we read in see in the media is suspect, especially those economic numbers generated in Washington. Nothing is as it seems anymore. We must begin to detach ourselves from this system as much as possible. We must live and act in the truth or we will perish.
We've stepped away from truth and in so doing we have stepped away from God. We're living in the Devil's world now.
"An Economy of Liars
By GERALD P. O'DRISCOLL JR.
Free markets depend on truth telling. Prices must reflect the valuations of consumers; interest rates must be reliable guides to entrepreneurs allocating capital across time; and a firm's accounts must reflect the true value of the business. Rather than truth telling, we are becoming an economy of liars. The cause is straightforward: crony capitalism.
Thomas Carlyle, the 19th century Victorian essayist, unflatteringly described classical liberalism as "anarchy plus a constable." As a romanticist, Carlyle hated the system—but described it accurately.
Classical liberals, whose modern counterparts are libertarians and small-government conservatives, believed that the state's duties should be limited (1) to provide for the national defense; (2) to protect persons and property against force and fraud; and (3) to provide public goods that markets cannot. That conception of government and its duties was articulated by the Declaration of Independence and embodied in the U.S. Constitution.
...The idea that multiplying rules and statutes can protect consumers and investors is surely one of the great intellectual failures of the 20th century. Any static rule will be circumvented or manipulated to evade its application. Better than multiplying rules, financial accounting should be governed by the traditional principle that one has an affirmative duty to present the true condition fairly and accurately—not withstanding what any rule might otherwise allow. And financial institutions should have a duty of care to their customers. Lawyers tell me that would get us closer to the common law approach to fraud and bad dealing.
...In the U.S today, we are moving away from reliance on honest pricing. The federal government controls 90% of housing finance. Policies to encourage home ownership remain on the books, and more have been added. Fed policies of low interest rates result in capital being misallocated across time. Low interest rates particularly impact housing because a home is a pre-eminent long-lived asset whose value is enhanced by low interest rates.
Distorted prices and interest rates no longer serve as accurate indicators of the relative importance of goods. Crony capitalism ensures the special access of protected firms and industries to capital. Businesses that stumble in the process of doing what is politically favored are bailed out. That leads to moral hazard and more bailouts in the future. And those losing money may be enabled to hide it by accounting chicanery.
...Piling on more rules and statutes will not produce something different than it has in the past. Reliance on affirmative principles of truth-telling in accounting statements and a duty of care would be preferable. Deregulation is not some kind of libertarian mantra but an absolute necessity if we are to exit crony capitalism."
Wall Street journal
Next thing you know they'll be telling us how much water we can use to flush the toilet...
"The Food and Drug Administration is planning an unprecedented effort to gradually reduce the salt consumed each day by Americans, saying that less sodium in everything from soup to nuts would prevent thousands of deaths from hypertension and heart disease. The initiative, to be launched this year, would eventually lead to the first legal limits on the amount of salt allowed in food products."
Washington Post
So, do you want to see our "recovery" come to a screeching halt?
"U.S. crude futures hit an 18-month high on Monday, climbing toward $86 per barrel on expectations of faster-than-expected economic recovery and increasing demand for fuel.
Data on Friday showed U.S. employers created jobs in March at the fastest rate in three years. Non-farm payrolls rose 162,000, only the third increase since the U.S. economy fell into recession in late 2007 and the largest since March 2007.
U.S. manufacturing is also expanding at its fastest pace for more than five years, while Chinese manufacturing is picking up and Japanese business sentiment is also improving."
Reuters
"Rising factory output and a decline in the pace of layoffs are giving economists confidence that the recovery has staying power.
The government is expected to report Friday that the economy added jobs in March for only the second time since December 2007.
Still, job creation is likely to remain weak for years to come, in part because U.S. factories have become more efficient, producing more goods with fewer workers. On top of that, the sector's contribution to the overall economy has been shrinking for decades due to competition from China and other countries where factory workers are paid much less.
Another reason the job-growth engine is stuck in a low gear is that the building sector remains extremely weak in the aftermath of the housing bust.
Construction spending fell sharply in February to its lowest level in eight years, the Commerce Department said Thursday. Spending fell particularly hard in commercial ventures, such as hotels and office buildings."
Yahoo
So here's my question: if construction is in the toilet and we aren't building that many cars, what are all of these manufacturers making? I don't trust the numbers that the government is supplying because common sense tells me that the underlying economic activity that is needed to drive all of the stated activity just doesn't exist. And now, using numbers that I believe are falsified for political reasons, speculators are causing the price of crude to jump, thus insuring that those of us that can't find a decent job, and believe me that number is north of 20%, will be forced to pay higher costs for everything, further eroding our purchasing power and negatively impacting America's GDP which is based nearly completely on consumer activity.
How can demand for manufactured goods be rising in Asia when their primary market, the U.S., just isn't buying much? I know that their economies have grown and that some internal demand exists but, really, without the American consumer how large can the overall need for finished goods produced in Asia be?
I'm just a carpenter and as such I claim no expertise in matters economic. That being said, I follow the economy as a point if interest and read a lot of economic reports. Too many numbers say too many different things. It seems as though if the truth were being told by all parties involved there would be some sense of order; but there isn't, or at least I can't see it.
Manufacturing is supposed to be up while the two industries that support it most, houses and cars, are way down. More people are supposedly employed, yet the true unemployment number keeps creeping up. I read the want ads every week and the only area that I see consistently hiring is nursing. There are a few adds for truck driving schools and that's about it. I've been applying for jobs and finding that the few that are available pay minimum wage for part time work and the employer has more applications than they know what to do with.
What I think is happening is that we are seeing a minor surge in manufacturing to replenish inventory. This is temporary. If no one is buying the products once the inventory levels are back to where they need to be the surge in manufacturing will be over. That's why we don't see any hiring. The manufacturers are producing with as few people as they can get by with. They aren't going to hire people and spend the money to train them when they probably will have to be laid off in the near future. Layoffs are slowing down, but not stopping. We are seeing a small respite just to get us through this rebuilding of inventory.
Oil is being traded at an artificially high level which will drive up the cost of everything. As more and more people realize that the only job they can get, if they're lucky, will pay a fraction of the wage they have become accustomed too their spending levels will decrease, permanently. This is creating a situation where America is facing falling wages and much higher prices for consumer goods. How is that going to work? The value of our houses will continue to fall and many people, even those that have traditional loans and played by the rules will find themselves underwater. They won't be able to sell their homes for what they owe on them, if they can sell them at all, and because wages have fallen they won't be able to make the payments. How is that going to cause a recovery?
Taxes are going to rise sharply because politicians won't cut programs. As cities, counties and states have more costs imposed on them by the federal government they will go bankrupt. They can raise taxes all they want but if the people don't have the money they won't be able to collect. And then what? Does some guy from the government show up at your door, if you still have one, and demand payment, or else? What if you say no?
We have entered a dual feed back loop. One the one side we have the stock market, constantly moving upward on hopes and the taxpayers money. On the other side we have the real economy, contracting on the basis of the housing collapse, the jobs market and the rising cost of goods such as food and energy. Both loops are moving apart, causing destructive tension which will, I believe, cause an economic collapse unlike any we've seen before.
On one side we have the federal government and the bankers, printing money and investing, creating rights and Ponzi schemes, entitlements and investment scams like the credit card has absolutely no limit. On the other side we have the states and the citizens, caught in a never ending whirlpool of demands and obligations to the federal government and the bankers with our savings exhausted and our credit cards way past the limit and shut off.
Something has to give. It's sort of like that thing we talk about when we're kids; the immovable object being struck by the unstoppable force. As adults, we realize that there can only be one infinite thing and so this question establishes a false dichotomy. One of these two forces will overpower the other.
I think that a confrontation is inevitable and has already begun with the various lawsuits and legislation relating to the Tenth Amendment. I believe, hope and pray that the people and the states can overcome the federal government and it's printing presses. We'll see. I think that the federal government intends to use the power to tax to destroy the sovereign states and to force them to bow before Caesar. Will we stand up to it? Will we refuse to bend our knee but instead take up our arms?
I don't know the answer to any of this, I just see the confrontation on the horizon.
Prepare.
"Medical marijuana users in the District may not have to go to a clinic or a doctor’s office to get their dose; they may be able to go into their backyard.
D.C. Council is thinking of adding a provision to the new medical marijuana bill that would allow some users to grow plants for their own use. They’d likely be limited to two plants per home."
NBC Washington
As all of us children of the '70's know, the one effect of smoking dope that dwarfs all others is the sense of contentment (followed closely by incredible paranoia, but that's another story). I find it interesting that as our economy and civilization continue on their downward trajectory that it seems our government is doing everything it can to keep us high. Everybody is legalizing pot.
So let's see; drugs, porn and gambling. All of these were considered immoral at one time and now they are promoted by government and society in general, along with violent sports and mindless entertainment on TV.
Bread and circuses, my friend, bread and circuses.
As government begins to control more of our lives we will start to see two sets of laws; one for us and one for the influential. They know we won't mind because most people, in the name of security, will allow an unlawful search of their bodies with scanners without complaint. Like cattle led to the killing floor we will line up to do as we are told.
We deserve the brave new world we are entering because we are cowards. We won't rock the boat as our true rights, the ones given us by God, are handed over to our enemy. We are casting the seeds of our own slavery and we will reap what we sow, under the benevolent eyes of our masters in the government. We will cry to God about the injustice while in reality we exercised our free will and chose safety over freedom. God allows us what we ask for.
We are children acting as gods, and like all false gods, we will be cast down. Our time is short.
"Canadian police said Friday that it was wrong for one of their officers to whisk Halle Berry, her model boyfriend and baby through airport security at Montreal's Trudeau airport.
A constable at the airport decided to let the couple pass a long line after a spur-of-the-moment request on Monday by Gabriel Aubry, a Quebec model who is Berry's boyfriend and father of her 22-month-old daughter, Nahla."
AP
"Consider the facts. In Spain, unemployment has already reached a gut-wrenching 19.3%. But unemployment for those between 16-24 is a catastrophic 42%. In Greece, youth unemployment is 25%, in Ireland 28.4% and Italy 26.9%. Marginal eurozone countries such as Greece, Spain and Ireland are not just in recession. They are in depression – and so long as they remain inside the euro there is no exit.
Before their decision to abandon economic sovereignty and sign up to the euro, policymakers had a tried and tested response to the kind of global setback of the last two years – depreciate the currency and loosen fiscal and monetary policy. This has been the answer produced by Britain, mercifully outside the euro thanks mainly to John Major's brave, far-sighted and universally denounced decision to opt out of monetary union when he signed the Maastricht Treaty in 1992. But inside the euro, individual countries are stripped of the ability to manage their own economies. That is why the global recession has been far, far more devastating for some eurozone members than would otherwise have been the case – in just the same way that membership of the ERM inflicted wholly unnecessary damage on the British economy in the early 1990s."
The Guardian
Not being a political scientist, economist or anything else of note, thus not competent to render any sort of meaningful opinion on these sorts of issues, I'm going to do it anyway.
This article got me thinking about Europe and the Euro; and by extension, the U.S.A. Europe is a group of very different societies bound together through geography and some common interests. Their differences are pronounced enough that the history of Europe has been a history of war and strife. This seems to be the natural course of things. I'm not judging whether this is good or bad, I'm just looking at what is true.
The European Union has attempted to create a unified economic zone right in the middle of this mess. It has tried to create unity where none has ever existed. Why? For the sake of the banking interests. In the name of a more orderly flow of capital to their pockets they have forced an unnatural and in the end destructive form of control on the people of Europe. They have also, applying the Second Law of Thermodynamics, created such an efficient means of wealth transfer that they have sped up the cycle of collapse. By trying to remove the natural inefficiency of the system of sovereign states they have only insured the European proclivity towards war. The bankers have denied the people a voice in the system and have created massive economic dislocation. This heavy handed, big government elitist imposition of laws designed to control the uneducated and unenlightened masses will result in escalation of riots and societal discord. If the people are denied legitimate political recourse to solve their problems at the local level they will strike out at the powers that be.
America is following the same course. While this country is more cohesive than Europe it isn't all that different. We were designed to be a union of sovereign states that would work together to support our common interests. Over the last 150 years or so state sovereignty has been abolished and strong central control has taken its place. The natural inefficiency of the system designed by the Founding Fathers prevented the Federal Government from exercising the power to destroy the country as a whole. Each state was responsible for itself and functioned as its own country, competing against the others for business and political advantage.
The Lincoln administration forced a one size fits all government on the American people where one was never meant to exist. Like the E.U. all of our eggs were thrown into one basket. Instead of a group of independent economies supporting a few narrowly defined common interests we have become a one size fits all oligarchy.
Today we find ourselves on the verge of collapse. Just like in Europe, the people are frustrated and feel that their "government" is unresponsive to them while bowing and scraping at the feet of the bankers. The legitimate means of political redress seem to be ineffective. The majority of Americans are opposed to the health care bill and have made their opinions known. Forcefully and loudly. Yet the elitists in Washington will pass it anyway, because they are "wiser" than the people.
America is no different than Europe today. The people sense that they have lost control of their destiny to the banking and political interests. We are told that the economy is expanding and that life is good while we can see with our own eyes that the economy is only expanding for those on Wall Street, not out here where the people live. And just like in Europe, the frustrations are beginning to boil over. We are caught in an unnatural system of controls and in the end we will not stand for it.
America and Europe are on the verge of revolution. 2010 may be an ugly year.
I’ve been thinking about this billboard since I posted an article about it the other day. I went on a search to see what sort of reactions it was generating. Most of what I saw was on liberal/progressive websites. The reactions were predictable. The people that erected the sign were: haters, cowards, scumbags, liars, trying to stir up trouble and on and on. This got me to thinking about the gulf that separates the conservative/libertarian worldview from that of the liberal/progressive.
I got to the end of my thought process by starting with a movie; “Shenandoah” starring Jimmy Stewart. If you’ll remember, Stewart’s character was a farmer in the Shenandoah Valley during the Civil War. He has sons of fighting age that wanted to sign up to fight. He wouldn’t let them because he didn’t believe the war concerned him.
You see, the questions of slavery and states right weren’t of any concern to him. In his view, his job on this earth was to raise his family and his crops. He asked nothing of the government so he felt that they had no claim on him. His intent was to stay out of the way and do his job and fulfill his duty to his God and family.
His sons didn’t understand this. They were of an age where hormones easily outrun intelligence. I’m sure many of his neighbors resented this as they had sons that were dying in the war. The military tried to take his sons though impressment but he turned them away. I’m sure that he was called all the names that are being tossed around today by those on the left.
But the war couldn’t be avoided. Eventually Stewart is forced to engage, to pick up a gun to defend his family. When the time comes, and the war becomes his business, he carries out his duty with iron willed resolve.
This attitude of self reliance and the desire to be left alone runs strongly in much of America: especially in rural areas and among people that work with their hands. I realize that I may be making broad generalizations, but I’m going to do it anyway. Most of the people that I have met in my life that have strong progressive beliefs tend to be from urban areas.
Progressives have a mindset that is ingrained in them through experience, just as we all do. Living in an urban environment they learn that there is a system of support in place for almost any problem you may have. You just need to fill out the proper paperwork and submit it to the right people. The police are nearby to help you, somebody takes your trash and the diner’s always open if you need something to eat. The price of this convenience is a loss of liberty and a certain level of dependency for your existence.
The other thing that I’ve noticed about city people is that they learn to complain about every damn little thing. My guess is that this is because the system that they depend on for their day to day life doesn’t work as well as advertised. They are always forced to deal with some disinterested government employee just to get something done, waiting on the phone or in line for something that if they could do it themselves, would be just a minor inconvenience. So people in the city learn to yell. They learn that the squeaky wheel does get the grease and that grease is absolutely essential to their lives.
City people become used to government. Worse, they become absolutely dependent on it. It becomes just so much background noise, part of the normal activity of their lives. They view government as a necessary evil, can’t live with it, can’t live without it. The fact is, they have forgotten how to be self sufficient because government has enslaved them. They’ve been conditioned to believe that it is perfectly normal to pay taxes to a government to supply services to you that you could supply yourself at a cheaper price. They think nothing of intrusive government regulation of their lives because look at all the government does for them. The live a life that a large percentage of America can never understand.
Like I said, I’m speaking in broad generalizations. I realize that there are plenty of conservatives in the city. I’d go as far as to say that there are more conservatives in the city than there are liberals in the country. A lot more.
By and large, rural people are a lot more like Jimmy Stewart’s character. We are fairly self sufficient and don’t look to others for help. When we do, it’ll be our neighbors, not some government. As a matter of fact, governments in rural areas don’t generally have the capability to help anybody. Even our fire dept. is made up of volunteers.
The most contact rural people have with government is getting plates on the truck and paying our taxes. Farmers get a bit more because the Federal Government gets involved in their lives but even that is sporadic. We know that if we have a problem we are going to have to fix it. Sewer problem? I own the septic system, I’m responsible for it. Water problem? Same thing; I own the well. If the electric goes out, well I’ll call the electric company but I better have a generator because I’ve been without power for a week. If I don’t have a generator, I’ll sit in the dark. Nobody is going to put up a shelter for me.
All this writing just to get back to that billboard; I’d damned near forgotten about it.
That billboard and where it was erected got me to thinking about the rural mindset, self sufficiency and guns. I wrote a couple days ago that the sign and in particular, its location, were a clear indication of just how close this country is to a cataclysmic event.
One thing about growing up in a rural area is that you grow up with guns. Now, this is true in the city also; I realize that. But it’s different in the country. Kids carry guns out here to hunt and plink. I grew up in a part of St. Louis County that when I was a kid was still mostly farms. We didn’t leave the house without a BB gun and as we got older, .22’s. Even when the police would see us nobody cared. It was just part of life. It’s the same where I live now.
OK, I’m getting back to the billboard. I got to thinking about the attitudes and understandings of those on the left and those on the right. People called the person that erected the billboard all kinds of names. This is understandable from the viewpoint of a progressive. They’ve been conditioned to yell, scream and complain to get things done. It is an acceptable and normal mode of behavior.
Out in the country, we’re a bit more laid back. We would rather ask politely and see if we can’t get a problem resolved. Treat each other with respect; because it’s the right thing to do. That and who wants to get into a fight. You call someone out here all kinds of names and you’re likely to get rocked back on your heels. You see, we believe that there are consequences to your actions. We may tolerate poor behavior for a long time because most of us would rather just live and let live. But make no mistake, when you finally cross the line there will be no hesitation.
This brings me back to the billboard; and guns. One of the rules that you learn growing up with guns is that you never, ever point a gun at something you are not willing to shoot. Taken a step further, never point a gun at someone unless you are willing to kill them. Being around guns teaches you deliberation in your acts, just like the threat of getting punched for shooting off your mouth.
I think that the left is badly misreading what that billboard signifies. They view it as a sign of cowardice. They think that because we aren’t screaming, that because the TEA Parties are without incident and because we don’t vandalize buildings we have no resolve. We are cowards that in the end will not stand up to their big government power grab.
They are mistaking deliberation for a lack of resolve and calling it cowardice. They don’t understand that if you keep yelling and screaming, calling us names and insulting our sense of patriotism, somebody will get punched.
But what they are really missing and what I am afraid the sign is signifying is an undercurrent of real unrest and dissatisfaction with the government. I am afraid that we are about to jump right over the punching part of the dance. We have tried everything that we can for redress of our grievances. We have petitioned and we have marched. We’ve made phone calls and we’ve written letters. Yet, I believe the Health Bill will pass. The Congress will act against the will of the American people and the President will sign the bill.
Maybe it won’t be Health Care. Maybe it’s Cap and Trade or EPA regulation or some other decree from on high. But some invisible line is about to be crossed; and when it is all Hell will break lose.
The left is so sure of the cowardice of the American people that they don’t see it coming. But come it will. Americans will take up their arms. It will be a deliberate and resolved act of revolution. The guns will not be taken up lightly but with full recognition of what the action means. There will be no turning back. All or nothing; “Give me liberty or give me death.”
The progressives are trying to box us in because they don’t believe we’ll stand up. This is a serious miscalculation that in the end stands a high probability of being the cause of the end of America. The talk I hear from people that I run into is that we have few options left. Most are armed and have given thought to the very real possibility of rising up. Militias are being formed. Everyone I talk to is of the opinion that if we are going to lose our freedom anyway we might as well go down with a fight.
That is what the billboard is saying. Because the media is mostly urban they won’t be able to read it. Because the progressives are arrogant and convinced of their own righteousness they won’t be bothered to look. But there it is. A clear, stark signal of what lies right around the corner.
Pray for guidance and protection. Look to your family’s safety. READ THE DAMNED SIGN!
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