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Home Our Perspective Guest Post: In A Nutshell Our Economy Is Really An Insane Asylum Run By Lunatics
Guest Post: In A Nutshell Our Economy Is Really An Insane Asylum Run By Lunatics PDF Print E-mail
Written by Steve Meyers   
Wednesday, 25 August 2010 17:06

Submitted by Sherman Okst of Financial Sense

In a Nutshell: Our economy is really an insane asylum run by lunatics.

Common Sense: No problem can be fixed before a solution is formed. No solution can be formed until the underlying problems are clearly identified.

The officials in charge of fixing the economy have not articulated the underlying problems. Worse, many of these officials - directly or indirectly - created or contributed the underlying problems.

It is shear lunacy to expect that the people who screwed up the economy have any chance at fixing what they destroyed.

Identification of the  Underlying Problems

Income: Average Real Weekly Earnings, (read: incomes adjusted for inflation), are below what what what they were in 1973. Income wise the average American family is worse off now than they were 37 years (4 decades) ago.

The Dollar’s Value: And it isn’t like we have a stronger dollar now. If we did perhaps we could get buy with less money. No, Uncle Buck is worth 95% less than he was 84 years ago when the “Creature From Jeckyll Island” (read: the “Fed”) came into existence.

Money is supposed to be a store of value. When you boil economics down to it’s core you are left with one law: Supply and demand. Increase the supply of anything and it’s value goes down. Our monetary system is flawed because if it isn’t expanded it collapses and when it is expanded the store of value is obliterated. The Fractional Reserve System is another example of a moronic idea created by greedy lunatics, It was doomed to failure upon inception. Debasing a currency only creates an addiction to debt.

Employment: In 2008 there were about 150 million workers. Today (U3-U6) unemployment is at 22%. The largest problem plaguing unemployment is the fact that most of the jobs lost were jobs that were created because of consumers binging on credit. For instance, in 2008 Americans tapped their home equity for stupid purchases. The best example of this is from Jim Quinn's 2008 article: Consumers borrowed $9,000,000,000.00 (9 billion) dollars (from home equity loans) JUST to blow it on 4 dollar coffees at Starbucks, which has since closed 900 stores. Debt to expand a business or debt to purchase a home is sound debt for an economy. Debt to buy expensive coffees at “Fourbucks” won’t be economically sustainable (as proved by 900 closed stores). READ MORE

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Ron Rebner |2010-08-25 18:53:03
Tech has been a area of stength for the USA. Now look at what we are facing.


Intel CEO: U.S. faces looming tech decline

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20014563-38.html?tag=mncol;1n
contrarian |2010-08-26 00:28:57
Steve,

I thank you for all your help. With all the bad news everywhere and the realization of impending dollar decline do you think the market might just move sideways until the helicopter drops then shoots up after devaluation. Or might this expected event drag out much longer than anticipated. Its main stream news now so I think it could be a head fake and the drop never comes. Do you think that is possible?
Mars  - THUR Puzzle Pieces |2010-08-26 00:29:12
So, what do we know for THUR?
1) it may be quiet ahead of Bernanke's FRI speech
2) THUR another Fed POMO day which may help keep things propped up.
3) into WED's close, the daily candlestick morphed into more of a "long lower shadow" than the clear hammer it had been.
4) NYSE Adv/Decl could complete an extended sequence with a THUR decline (approx. -2000)
5) still haven't worked off much of the oversold condition for SP500. Bias "up" remains.
6) Natural gas (UNG) got "burned" WED, and tempers may "flare" if it can't bounce up on THUR.
onpermvaca |2010-08-26 03:02:43
I have a feeling as more and more bad news come out, the market will actually edge up in anticipation of QE2.

The corollary is that if BB doesn't announce QE2 at the Sept meeting, the market will throw a tantrum.
CG |2010-08-26 06:00:54
How might the price of sliver affect the possibility of QE2? If banks are already in trouble because of their shorts on silver wouldn't QE2 make the situation worse by causing the price of silver to climb even higher?
NV  - Thanks to new people contributing |2010-08-26 06:34:50
Good to see some new contributors! And many thanks to you Steve as well for being our calm in the storm - our watchman!
NV  - TEXAS Fights Global Warming GRAB |2010-08-26 06:36:11
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/aug/25/texas-fights-global-warming-power-grab/print/
Anonymous  - Editorial Cooking the Book on Job Claims |2010-08-26 06:39:27
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/aug/25/cooking-the-books-on-job-claims/
Ron Rebner |2010-08-26 07:02:04
I believe SteveM considers this to be the second best trade of a lifetime.


Treasuries Bubble Trouble?

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232/?video=1573206739&play=1
Ron Rebner |2010-08-26 07:06:32
Cancer & Desperation of QE2

http://www.financialsense.com/contributors/jim-willie/cancer-and-desperation-qe2
Ron Rebner |2010-08-26 07:11:07
Unfortunately, just the early stages.



10 Leading Retailers Close Stores; Exodus of Small Retailers Amidst Signs of "Free Rent"; 700,000 Drop Cable TV Subscriptions


http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/
pid  - Jobless claims fell |2010-08-26 00:48:13
NEW YORK (Marke****ch) -- U.S. stock futures stepped decisively higher Thursday after the government reported jobless claims last week fell 31,000 to 473,000. Futures for the major indexes, which had wavered between gains and losses ahead of the unemployment data, climbed in their wake.
pid  - re: Jobless claims fell |2010-08-26 07:46:01
Quote:
(Marke****ch)


LOL. Pardon my french, guys....
NV  - CHINA Inflaton |2010-08-26 07:45:44
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-08-25/china-s-official-inflation-data-mask-surge-in-food-prices-m edical-costs.html
NV  - re: Closing retail |2010-08-26 07:58:28
[quote=Ron Rebner]Unfortunately, just the early stages.



10 Leading Retailers Close Stores; Exodus of Small Retailers Amidst Signs of "Free Rent"; 700,000 Drop Cable TV Subscriptions

My career was retail and closing stores that should have never been opened or have lived out their time in a location( IE dead down towns) is a no brainer . For a chain 80% of biz is done in 20%- 30% of the physical stores today plus now the on line volume is a huge #. Long overdue as far as I am concerned. People losing their jobs is the tough emotional part for sure especially now. It costs a lot to heat/ cool staff every day and with the crunch on margin , expenses gets cut.
Ron Rebner |2010-08-26 09:15:34
Early volume is running very slow. So far, not much behind this move.
SteveP |2010-08-26 09:34:40
I believe today is a POMO day and it begins at 10:30 a.m. Interested to see if the market melts up now.
Ron Rebner |2010-08-26 09:42:15
SteveP What is a POMO day?
SteveP |2010-08-26 09:47:18
The FED's Permanent Open Market Operations. ZH has been watching these days and comparing it to market liquidity and ramps. Not sure if true or not, but we have become a banana republic so who knows.
Ron Rebner |2010-08-26 09:55:58
SteveP Thanks. This is real (see link below). The one that is real but, not publicly talked about, is the PPT, the plunge protection team.

http://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/openmarket_concepts.html
Short and Poor!  - re: |2010-08-26 09:48:53
Ron Rebner wrote:
SteveP What is a POMO day?


Permanent Open Market Operations. New York fed stuff

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