Aug

25

Obama Reappoints Bernanke

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Obama reappointed Bernanke as Fed Chairman earlier today, effectively sealing their fates as men that will take us from a recession into the Greater Depression.

For those “economists” who’ve lately been singing his praises on CNBC, all I have to say is this…

It takes a special kind of system (government) to screw up this badly and still be resoundingly supported by its leader.

In his reappointment speech Obama also pledged support for the continued secrecy independence of the Federal Reserve.

How foolish of citizens to inquire where trillions of dollars are being spent… clearly we should trust the former bankers running the Federal Reserve that regulate the banking system. After all, they obviously know what they’re doing.

Instead of perpetuating the broken system financed by politically embedded financial organizations, Obama could have attempted any of the following:

Would that severely correct the housing and stock markets? Yes, probably. Can we continue on our current path? No. Will we eventually face unbearable consequences for our decisions? Yes.

Ironically, neither Bernanke nor Obama nor either political party seem to care about the following message:

It is not the responsibility of the Federal Reserve–nor would it be appropriate–to protect lenders and investors from the consequences of their financial decisions. – Ben Bernanke

So, Obama reappointing the guy who didn’t see any of this coming, who bailed out the irresponsible, who continues to provide cover for banks in the hopes that things will return to normal still makes Obama the “man of the people”? Why aren’t those who voted for Obama clamoring that this Bush appointee is more of the same? Why do horrible decisions not matter when *their* party is in charge?

The reappointment of Bernanke does have a silver lining. All the people that bought into the hope proffered in eloquent speeches that government can provide jobs, clean energy, healthcare, education and other goodies will eventually learn a valuable lesson. The love affair Americans have with celebrity, good looks and good speeches and a lack of discourse/intellectual honesty will finally meet its match against a tidal wave of financial reality.

We are witnessing firsthand government selling Hope while funding Grift.

A generation will learn that our government system, like all systems which redistribute power and wealth, is one that is relentlessly gamed and manipulated for the benefit of those in charge.

Takeaway: Strip away the external validation that media/family/friends give to people and institutions and think for yourself.

Aug

8

The Goldman Sachs White House

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Just because someone is Socialist, Green, Communist, Anarchist doesn’t mean their views should be dismissed.  Often, it is “radical” individuals who feel more comfortable voicing the truth than those that are popular and have more at stake.  People like Dennis Kucinich, Bernie Sanders and Ron Paul bring a lot more truth to light than those that are far more  popular.

Andrew Cockburn, a socialist, writes an important piece for Counterpunch detailing the extent to which a few financial firms have the full ear of the White House.  As the US consolidates more power at a national level and with the Executive Branch of government, we see that these conflicts of interest will be more pronounced and dangerous.

Takeaway:  Popular arguments are rarely thought-provoking.  That which assuages us, nurtures our pre-existing worldviews and cannot possibly help us learn and grow.  Read what you disagree with.

Jul

24

What Doesn’t the FED Want You To Know?

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Heroic.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

The most successful heists are the ones that occur every day that we are not even aware of.  The Federal Reserve, the quasi-governmental agency run by ex-bankers, that controls the money supply, interest rates and manages the economy is an agency very few are familiar with.

Given the trillions of taxpayer dollars on the hook and the delicate state our economy is in, H.R. 1207 aims to audit the ongoing Federal Reserve activities.

For years, the author of this bill, Ron Paul, has spoken up and drawn attention to the importance of sound money (money with tangible value, like gold and silver) and an economy which is not micromanaged by ex-bankers or manipulated in a secretive fashion. Paul has always been a political outsider and it is good to finally see his attempts to uncover the truth finally gain some momentum.

Since politicians, like all of us, are self-interested, we need to exert our influence and let them know we expect this bill to pass.

Since this bill would expose a great deal of financial/governmental/corporate connections, it would not surprise me if there is another financial panic/disaster and this bill is pushed aside to give even more power to the Fed and Executive Branch.

The above video speaks volumes about the shape of our economy and the level of dishonesty that is fraught in our financial and economic system.

Takeaway:  As a man, it is imperative to be ever-inquisitive, curious and non-complacent.  Reading and questioning your beliefs can help you generate an Accurate Model of Reality and prepare better for your future.  Think for yourself and stand up for what you believe in, even if you stand alone.

hat tip:  Zero Hedge

Jun

18

Citigroup Bailout – Taxpayer Losses

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A special guest post from my friend, Matt M.

*************************************************

My morning bus rides invariably begin with a visit to the Bloomberg app on my iPhone. I find their journalism to be second to none in the financial space, thanks to Bloomberg’s worldwide focus and very informed opinion writers. However, I was taken aback when I came across the following headline and attached article last Thursday:  Citigroup Rescue Earns Three Times as Much as S&P 500

It is important to note the new title was modified from the original title “Citi pays taxpayers 3 times as much as S&P“.

Regardless of the title, this article contains blatant propaganda that is designed to mislead and deceive the Average Joe.  The general tone of the article suggests that the entire Citigroup “situation” is now a complete piece of historical fact to be analyzed as such.

Logic leads the reader to conclude that we (the taxpayers) have locked in some sort of gain, thus proving the Citi bailout was a good idea since we’ve collected a couple billion in dividends.

Nothing could be further from the truth, and there are many examples of how this logic is an inappropriate way to analyze any investment.

First, the author of this article is only talking about one government department, the Treasury.  Let’s review what happened here:  The Fed has purchased some $2-5 trillion in assets (depending on who you ask, and don’t you dare ask the Fed what they’ve purchased) from U.S. banks. This is the most important aspect of the multi-faceted bank bailout, for without these purchases, most major U.S. banks would be out of business.

What’s relevant here is that the Fed and the Treasury are completely separate government entities. The Fed is directly responsible for bidding up toxic assets and exposing taxpayers to massive, unknown, impossible to define amounts of credit risk. This socialization of losses is what saved Citi, but it didn’t cost the Treasury a dime.  To suggest that the taxpayers somehow made out like bandits is untrue, amateur reporting.

By stepping in and literally becoming THE market in many segments of the credit market, the Fed has so far done a fantastic job of propping up the assets on their balance sheet. That’s not to say they’re showing a gain, that’s not to say the Fed is showing a loss. Once again: no one knows.

What we do know is that the eventual value of most of these assets is going to be dependent on cash flows from mortgage payments, rather than current marks. Right now, these cash flows are a monumental risk, a subject which is completely ignored by this Bloomberg article.

Perhaps most important, the Fed is desperate to see these investments work out. Ultimately, this will corrupt what’s left to be corrupted in the political process. No wonder the Fed recently hired Linda Robertson, former lobbyist for Enron. They need to convince Congress to bailout everyone who can’t pay their mortgage.

Finally, this article represents a shift in attitudes towards government intervention since the March lows in the markets.  I have been complaining about this for months and it really bothers me.

When governments around the world intervened and markets still fell off a cliff, I felt like everyday people were finally thinking critically about the futility and backward logic of government.  When S&P went from 1575 to 900, people were really freaking out. When we went from 900 to 666, people got to talking about genuine reform. They expressed anger about how the government incentivizes bad behavior and excessive use of leverage.  Now that markets have bounced from 666 back to 900, people have turned back into mindless cheerleaders.

Talk of genuine reform has stalled as our problems have been bandaged by trillions of borrowed dollars.

The government has declared victory and the media keeps churning out propaganda, as evidenced by the article discussed above.

Aren’t we better than this?

May

5

Growth is not Free

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As a child, I always used to take note of coupons and mailings which had the word “FREE” on them.  I would mistakenly believe that these items represent value, rather than an attempt to move stale merchandise or lure in customers who would eventually spend more.  While kids fall for this trick, adults know there is no such thing as a “free lunch”.

As we mature, we realize nothing worthwhile comes easy.  Just as an alcoholic has to struggle through the shame and humiliation of addiction and the superstar athlete has to struggle through off-season practice, individuals can only grow and strengthen through facing pain.

Nature also teaches us that nothing is free.   The Law of Conservation of Energy and The Law of Conservation of Mass state that all energy and mass are conserved.  They may be redistributed, however, they are neither created nor diminished.

On a national level, we cannot escape our economic problems pain-free either.

Here are a handful of financial problems we are facing:

The answers from our leaders have been to buy more time, borrow more money and avoid reality as long as possible.  The sleight of hand of verbal obfuscation (Congressional grandstanding, Fedspeak) and cheerful optimism will not fix these underlying issues.  Debts need to be repaid or defaulted on, they cannot be rolled over forever at favorable interest rates.

The flood of new money and credit is not prosperity, it is a sugar high that is not sustainable.  Like a marathon runner who vomits with exhaustion and dehydration, we cannot expect a packet of sugary government goo to provide us with meaningful sustenance.

When will this painful “growth” of financial sanity occur?  When will this reality be faced?  When will the veneer of prosperity via interventionism be ripped off?

Takeaway:  We only grow when we challenge our worldviews, struggle, and exit our comfort zone.  Comfort and complacency is the enemy.