Four Things You Need to Know About Neoliberalism

1.  It's not new and it's not liberal.

2.  It's sweeping over the entire world.

3.  It's a political and economic philosophy favoring the Rich & Powerful at the expense of the rest of us.      [Essentially, at its core, it's Crony Capitalism, AKA, Fascism.  Both FDR and Mussolini defined Fascism as the power of BIG Business married to the power of the State...an almost perfect description of Neoliberalism.]

4.  Here in the USA, it is subscribed to by almost all high-level Republicans AND Democrats.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

"An Economy for the 1%: How Privilege and Power...

in the Economy Drive Extreme Inequality and How This Can Be Stopped".  That's the title of a new Oxfam America report.  From the Report and as reported on Democracy Now, the 62 richest billionaires in the world (a majority of them in the USA) now are as wealthy as the poorest 3.6 billion people worldwide combined.  The inequality is due primarily to:  deregulation (i.e., Crony Capitalism), privatization (more Crony Capitalism), and offshore tax havens (even more Crony Capitalism).  [Those are key components of Neoliberalism...which is subscribed to by most Democrats and Republicans (at the highest levels) here in the USA.]

In one such tax haven, the British Virgin Islands (population 24,000), there are 800,000 shell corporations associated with real corporations from around the world.  Anxious to get in on the action, there also are a total of fifty banks there.  Here in the USA for the last 20 years, politicians have talked about closing the loopholes in the Tax Code that allow tax havens.  In that timespan, there have been periods when both the Repubs and the Dems each have controlled Congress separately.  Nothing has been done.  Lobbyists.  More Crony Capitalism.  Democrats and Republicans both are to blame.

Some here would argue that the corporations need every break they can get, and that allows them to expand and create more jobs.  It's the old "Trickle Down Theory of Economics".  Unfortunately, nothing much is trickling down anymore.  The tax avoidance wealth is either being held offshore, or being used to close, dismantle, & ship factories out of the country, or buy/lease existing factories in another country, or raid companies here & the downsize them, or invest in bizarre financial derivatives, or in foreign currencies, or in foreign bonds, or in a number of other ventures that also create zero jobs in the USA.  So much for the Trickle Down argument.  Mega Corporations seem to rarely invest in their communities anymore (or even in the USA); instead, they move their operations to wherever the labor is the cheapest.  Apple Computer is a prime example:  they don't make even one of their products in this country...not one.  Remember that the next time you buy something from Apple.

Meanwhile, the Middle Class here shrinks, wages essentially are stagnant (& have been for 30 yrs), our manufacturing base rapidly is disappearing, jobs are becoming more & more inferior, employee benefits are shrinking, and the income of the Upper Crust has increased 700% in the last thirty years.  Plus because of the crashing economy, in 2016 alone many 401ks already have lost from $2,000 to $6,000.

While eight million jobs here evaporated after the 2008 Crisis, the Mega Banks grew by 37%, significantly increasing their profits.  At the same time, their Executives avoided prosecution for what was blatant FRAUD during the time leading up to the Crisis.  More Crony Capitalism.  Politicians know on which side their bread is buttered.  SSDD.

NeoFeudalism is well on its way to being here.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

The Most Dishonest Profession in the USA

I was going to title this piece, "The Sleaziest Profession..."; however, that might be a bit too harsh...but not by much.  Also, be aware that this is a generalization on my part.  There are usually exceptions to a general rule, but they rarely ever prove a generalization to be false.  What do you think...is it that of a drug dealer?  Nope...a good contender for the title, but that's not it.  How about that of a Mega Bank CEO?  Another good contender, but that's not it either.

The most dishonest profession in the USA is that of a high-level, national politician and/or bureaucrat.  Those at the highest levels.  [I include high-level appointees in the term "bureaucrat".]  I came to my conclusion after keenly observing U.S. politics for well over half a century, and most recently, watching the documentaries Money for Nothing, Silenced, Secrets Politics and Torture, Losing Iraq, United States of Secrets, To Catch a Trader, The Untouchables, and many more.  [The 1st two currently are on Netflix (& probably elsewhere online); the remainder are available at the PBS Frontline website.]

Before I offer evidence for my assertion in the paragraph above (the 1st sentence), let's be clear:  the following people are/were not always dishonest, or even sleazy.  Had they been, it would have been too obvious.  Liars work much in the same way as does Propaganda:  there's always a small element of truth to be found.  That's what makes the person or the idea seem credible.  Finally, I could have made the list below several pages long, but there's really not much use in doing that.  Plus, I don't have the time to spare.

Evidence for the contention or assertion---
0.  J. Edgar Hoover
1.  Richard Nixon, Spiro Agnew, and Henry Kissinger
2.  Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke
3.  Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, and Madeleine Albright
4.  Robert Rubin and Larry Summers
5.  Dubya Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Karl Rove, Douglas Feith, John Bolton, John Yoo, Hank Paulson, Michael Hayden, Scooter Libby, Richard Armitage, & others too numerous to mention
6.  Barack Obama, Tim Geithner, Eric Holder, Susan Rice, Robert Gates, John Kerry, James Clapper, John Brennan, & others too numerous to mention
7.  Rahm Emanuel
8.  Donald Trump
9.  Ted Cruz
10.  Chuck Schumer
11.  Harry Reid
12.  Nancy Pelosi
13.  Jim Inhofe
14.  Tom Delay
15.  Jim Traficant
16.  James G. Watt (Secretary of the Interior under Reagan)

All the above is my opinion...and presently, all the high-ranking politicians that promulgate the anachronistic Repubs v. Dems paradigm in American politics should be included.  They essentially are all on the same Team...that of Neoliberalism.  We the People have been snookered by Edward Bernays style Propaganda into ignoring the real political paradigm in this country:  the Rich & Powerful versus the rest of us.

Be Well

The Biggest Bubble of Them All

Please read this piece completely before doing this--- open up a new window on your machine and find:
usdebtclock.org  ...I know, it sounds boring; trust me, it's not.  This is not the old Debt Clock.  This one has many, many categories of both public and private debt...and other important factors.

Take note of the following---

1.  Scroll down to the second to the last line of numbers.  Notice what "Corporation Assets" are doing as compared to "Household Assets".  You have to look carefully and take your time.  Don't focus only on the last digits in the trillions of dollars number; also watch the middle three digits until they change.  Supposedly, this is all in real time.

2.  Go up one line and find "US Debt Held by Foreign Countries"...decreasing relatively rapidly.  They are dumping US dollars.  According to Ron Kirby of Kirby Analytics, the total number of dollars dumped in the last 8-9 months is just a bit shy of one trillion.  Who is "buying" the debt?...probably the Fed Reserve.  That's more monetizing of our debt, which is unsustainable.

3.  Go up two more lines of numbers to "Money Creation" and all the way to the right find "Currency and Credit Derivatives 2016".  Last I looked, the total was well over $478 TRILLION.  That's many, many times more than the entire world's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  Derivatives are a type of gambling bet.  Given the numbers, all losses could not possibly be covered...which is what happened in 2008.  That's why things like the Bespoke Tranche Opportunity not only are ridiculous, but harmful/dangerous as well.  Furthermore, they drain money from what could have been investments in means of production...the expansion of factories, or new businesses.

For info on the Debt Clock, scroll all the way down and click on "About" over toward the right side.
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On a different note, there's a MUST-SEE documentary on Netflix (and probably elsewhere online):  "Money for Nothing".  It's a partial history of the Fed Reserve, showing how that institution---along with the Administrations of LBJ, Nixon, Carter, Reagan, Clinton, both the Bush men, and Obama---have contributed mightily to the economic ruination of the USA.  Yes, they all did some bit of good for extremely brief times, but overall their policies and actions have brought us economic disaster... unless you're Super-Rich.  If you don't agree, watch the film.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

The Economic Crash Already Has Started

Carefully consider the following:

1.  Wall Street just had its worst opening week in history.

2.  China's Bubble is rapidly deflating.  China is the world's second largest economy.

3.  The U.S. (and most of Europe) currently is experiencing deflation, which will be followed (most likely) by inflation.  The real estate market, the housing rental market, and grocery prices still are inflated...but as the Collapse intensifies, they too will deflate.  Stocks and bonds are on the cusp of bursting completely.

4.  The Corporate Media, which usually have no more than half a sentence if the news about the Stock Market is negative, couldn't ignore number 1. above.  They attempted to smooth it over by stating, in essence, "Nothing to worry about...it's only volatility in the Market.".  Several analysts don't think so.

5.  Let's not forget the Stock plunge on August 24, 2015.  Only half of the historic 1,000-point drop was recovered by day's end.

6.  Our Stock Market is rigged to favor the high-frequency traders who use computer algorithms that make trades in milliseconds.

7.  Financialization has converted our economy largely into one of nonproduction.

8.  The Corporate Media are touting the December jobs report as evidence our economy is strengthening...December, the month of temporary Christmas employment. 

9.  Wages basically still are stagnated.

10.  Crude oil prices continue to deflate.

11.  European Stocks had their worst week since August, 2011.

12.  Our Fed Gov't has been waging a Currency War against China for awhile now; China is retaliating (most likely) with Cyber attack reconnaissance.  It's the belief of some analysts that they are gearing up for a major Cyber attack on our financial system, perhaps even our utilities (such as power & water systems).  I think the probability of that is very high.  Nothing is secure regarding computers, the internet, etc.  Even the Pentagon has been hacked.

13.  The Fed Reserve finally realizes that it can't artificially control any of this.  Its recent rate hike and any future ones are nothing more than an attempt at face-saving.  They are out of ammo.  This whole thing is a worldwide event.  To believe that the Fed Reserve somehow can manage this is to be deluded.  All they are doing now is bursting the U.S. Asset Bubble.  A few people will make a ton of money.

All the above does not mean things will go bust tomorrow, or the day after, or next week.  The Crash will continue to build until, at some point, the economy will be pushed over the precipice by an event or a relatively quick series of events.  I'm afraid that the analysts who predict 2016 as the year of the Collapse are correct...at least, the probability of that is extremely high...extremely high.

Don't despair--- the Powers-That-Be will prop up the System once again.  IF the Collapse ultimately is not as large as the Great Depression, the time to get things up & running again may be relatively short--- a week, or two weeks, or a month, or two months, or???  Nobody knows for certain.  Nobody. 

Be prepared.  Stock up on household commodities now.  There still will be goods around in warehouses when the Crash reaches its peak, but 
distribution essentially will cease because credit will dry up.  At the wholesale level, businesses run on credit, not cash.  Banks will restrict access to cash anyway for both business people and consumers...in order to prevent bank runs.  Some banks already have changed their Bank-Customer Agreement to reflect the BAIL-IN, which means in a Crisis they are allowed to confiscate your deposits.  Obama and the rest of the G-20 leaders signed that into existence.  Get out of Mega Banks NOW.  The FDIC Fund is a pittance compared to the amount of $$$ on deposit...you'll be lucky to get a penny on $100.

Once again, the Rigged System is designed to protect banks and the Oligarchy, not consumers and the economy.  And so it goes.

p.s.  The ten-year Great Depression (of the 1930's) was not recognized and/or named as such until halfway through it.

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Not only my opinion.  Be Well

"Bespoke Tranche Opportunity"

Crazy title, eh?  That's because devious, "legal" criminals came up with it...meaning, Wall Street Bankers.  As the beloved Yogi Berra once said, "It's deja vu all over again.".  Bespoke Tranche Opportunity is another bizarre financial derivative.  Financial derivatives... you know, those invented instruments that played a huge role in the 2008 Crisis.  If you've seen the popular, dynamite movie, The Big Short (based on the true story of Wall Street's role in that Crisis), then you may recall the Bespoke name at the very end of the film.  Derivatives produce nothing...except money for Wall Street insiders; they contribute to our economy not one bit.

So, after all the braying rhetoric from politicians (both Democrats & Republicans) about how they would rein in the Mega Banks & Mega Hedge Funds, the same thing is happening again.  The same Crisis Path began shortly after 2008.  This is why many economists and monetary theorists (all across the political spectrum) are predicting another Crash anytime within a year or two.  Only this time, they say, it will be much worse.

The Captains of Financialization are waging a war on workers, industry, and the Middle Class.  The Money Men & Women are winning that war.  The objective is to siphon wealth from industry, jobs, & workers straight into the nonproductive pool of mega, out-of-control Finance.  The overall goal is to convert Free Market Capitalism into Crony Capitalism.  Voila---they've succeeded!  Essentially, there is no Free Market Capitalism in the USA anymore...and that has been true for quite awhile.  The same is true for the rest of the world.  The result eventually will be NeoFeudalism across the globe.

Years & years ago when the Super-Rich made millions and millions of dollars, they would pump a significant portion of it back into American industry...thus creating jobs, good-paying jobs.  Now that money is sunk into derivative deals, foreign currency deals, foreign bond deals, and other ventures that do nothing for the American economy.  Surely even the most uninformed citizen is aware of that.  Surely that citizen is aware that millions of jobs have been shipped offshore or South.  [The TPP, supported by both Obama & McConnell, will make that worse...much worse.]  Surely that citizen is aware that most all politicians have promoted & supported this Oligarchical System.  Surely that citizen is aware that those politicians, the Fed Reserve, and the Captains of Financialization are in collusion.  For the most part, it's all in plain sight.  One has to do very, very little digging to see it.  People such as David Stockman, Paul Craig Roberts, Michael Hudson, Thom Hartmann, William K. Black, James Rickards, Ellen Brown, etc. have pointed it out (with supporting documentation) over & over & over.

Meanwhile, USA voters & campaigning politicians debate about social Hot Button issues.  Common sense and Logic tell me that the Financialization of our economy DWARFS all those Hot Button issues combined in terms of importance to our well-being.  We the People are being distracted & misdirected by Propaganda from the Neoliberal politicians (Democrats & Republicans) so that we will ignore (or be unaware of) the greatest HEIST in all of History... all over again.

Not only my opinion.  Be Well

A Few More Lies and/or Propaganda From Public and Private Institutions

1.  NBC News recently stated that the Fed interest rate hike (.25%) "...is a sign that the economy is improving.".  Nothing could be further from the truth.  That action is a sign that:  the Fed Reserve is recognizing it is increasingly losing credibility... and it is desperate.  For decades, Fed central planners have been facilitating a massive transfer of wealth from the common people to the Upper Crust.  As a result, the economic situation has been improving overwhelmingly only for the Rich and Powerful.  At the same time, Fed interference in the Money Market has caused the rest of us to struggle mightily simply to keep our heads above water.  The outright falsehoods put out by the Fed Gov't (at the highest levels) and regurgitated by the Corporate Media---regarding the unemployment rate, the price inflation rate, the jobs numbers, etc.---cannot belie the fact that we still are in a deep Recession, and heading for a Depression.  [I've detailed why that's true in several previous posts.]

2.  President Obama claims his ISIS Strategy is working, and that we will eventually "defeat ISIS".  About 9,000 U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria (never mind the airstrikes by other members of the "coalition") seem to have had little effect on ISIS, but plenty of negative effects on others--- the killing of innocent civilians, the creation of both refugees and more terrorists, and the destruction of civilian buildings.  Chaos prevails.  As to attacking ISIS sources of funding, good luck with that.  ISIS is funded primarily by Arab billionaires... billionaires.  If ISIS ever faces imminent "defeat", all they have to do is fade back into the woodwork... and live to fight another day.  Military actions are not the solution to the problem, but they are a great distraction from our imploding economy at home.  That has been done by governments for centuries.  Manipulating a population in this way is nothing new.

3.  A high Gov't official (can't recall who) recently stated that ISIS "has declared war on us".  That may be true, but we should keep this fact in mind:  "we" (i.e., our Gov't) attacked ISIS first, well before they did anything to anyone in the West...and that includes the brutal beheadings of Westerners.  I'm not defending ISIS in any way...but facts are facts.  Our Gov't once again stuck its nose into what basically is a civil war; "we" attacked ISIS in Iraq because they were getting close to some U.S. oil company operations there in the northern part of that country.

4.  Our Gov't is not providing an SS COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) for next year because "according to the Consumer Price Index [CPI], there was no price inflation this year"...so say SSA Officials.  I guess those same officials did no grocery shopping or renting of housing this year...never mind the increase in the cost of OTC meds and various other commodities.  It's true we're in a deflationary period now (e.g., crude oil, most metals, & some other commodities have gone down in price), but that doesn't apply across the board.
A side note regarding Social Security---
Since retirement from wage slavery in 2004, my primary source of income has been SS Retirement.  Unlike some Americans (hopefully not a majority), I don't consider SS to be any type of "welfare".  That money was taken out of every one of my paychecks for over 40 years for the express purpose of helping to provide for my retirement; I want it all back...every penny, and I don't want it stolen from me via inflation of the money supply (which results in commodity price inflation).
Some politicians claim there is no SS Trust Fund.  Not true, there is one...since LBJ first did it, every Administration since then has raided that Fund & used the money for other purposes.  Consequently, the SS Trust Fund is full of U.S. Gov't IOUs.  That's why SS supposedly is in financial difficulty... no other reason.
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Not only my opinion.  Be Well