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Thread: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

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    Default America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    (snip)"Bob Moriarty
    July 14, 2008

    Naw, it's not a recession. It's a depression for sure. Those who have been reading me for the last year or listening to my radio interviews have been forewarned. The rest of the market is just now waking up.

    Last Friday, July 11, 2008 after a 99% decline in the price of IndyMac from $36 a year ago to $.28, the FDIC announced seizure of the bank. It's the second largest bank failure in US history. But it won't be for long.

    Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have their heads on the chopping block and they are next. Along with Lehman Brothers, Bank of America, UBS and loads of others. They are all underwater and have been for a year.

    I'm 61 and the single most important day economically in my entire life was August 15, 1971. That's the day Nixon broke the last tie between the US Dollar and gold. It was the kiss of death for the dollar because it allowed both governments and consumers to go on a wild spending spree: all believing they could write checks that would never be cashed. Well, it's time to balance the books and the books have been cooked.

    Soon, maybe this week, the US government is going to announce nationalization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They are leveraged 65-1. That will be the most important financial day in your lifetime. It will be the end of the US dollar and our Republic.

    Here's what it means. The US Government is going to take over $5.3 trillion dollars worth of mortgages, most of which are underwater and will never be paid. The theory is that the US will make Fannie and Freddie paper good by making it as good as US Treasuries. Actually the opposite will happen.

    Imagine that you have a giant 100-gallon punch bowl filled to the brim with delicious tasting Rum Punch. And someone drops in a tiny turd. What does the next glass of Rum Punch taste like? Right.

    The US government is on the verge of turning their nearly worthless paper into used toilet paper. Nationalization is a vote for hyperinflation."(snip)

    from

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    What does nationalization involve, on top of this?
    Once again, the conservative, sandwich-heavy portfolio pays off for the hungry investor
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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    But look at the rest of the story...........


    But a total collapse of the financial system is not the biggest problem we face. In 1995 Israel decided they weren't able to steal enough land from the Palestinians via the peace process so they made a "Clean Break from the Peace Process." In effect, they would destroy anyone within a thousand miles who might ever be a threat to them.
    The Mossad (Motto: By Way of Deception) began circulating rumors of an impending Iranian nuclear weapons program as early as 1987. So when our US Sock Puppet George Bush starts talking about the Iranians coming up with a nuclear weapon any day now, he is doing nothing more than acting as an unpaid agent for the Mossad.




    Say anything to prop up gold. I wonder how many people know that the Trading with the Enemies Act from WW! that allowed FDR to steal peoples gold holdings is still in effect and can be executed at any time by Executive Order.

    FDR's lead up to the robbery devalued the dollar, and after the theft, inflated the dollar. So, when he robbed the people, gold was deflated to about 20USD, and after the heist, it was inflated to 35USD.

    And the Federal Reserve will love it, since they are a private organization owned by banks/ bankers.

    Where will gold be then?



    EDIT:: A more credible source http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/09/news...ion=2008071013

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    agreed that my choice of source is biased towards gold. However, the article seemed to sum up the overall point very well i.e. the turd floating in the punch bowl whereas other sources did not.

    There is also a distinction, albeit not an obvious one, between the FED providing unlimited credit to bail out Freddie and Fannie, and the FED / gov't taking over operations of Freddie and Fannie. While both involve putting the US taxpayer on the hook for losses, an actual takeover means that the FED / gov't can set new rules of operation if they so choose. This could potentially mean that eligibility for future gov't backed mortgage loans could carry new conditions, opening the door for the possibility that 'middle class' people who the gov't feels could afford higher interest rates via regular bank mortgages may no longer be eligible for future gov't backed loans through Freddie / Fannie ... the ultimate extension of HUD's low income home ownership subsidy policy !

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    Shit, I actually have some money tied up in America... *takes it back*


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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    Quote Originally Posted by Melonie View Post
    an actual takeover means that the FED / gov't can set new rules of operation if they so choose.

    Both are still subject to regulation by http://www.ofheo.gov/, so a takeover is not necessary for new rules of operations.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    I've been thinking & saying it's a depression for a while now.


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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    Both are still subject to regulation by , so a takeover is not necessary for new rules of operations
    technically true - however there would still be the corporate officers / board and the stockholders to deal with. In a full gov't takeover scenario, the gov't becomes the majority stockholder and those problems disappear (just like Chinese industries where the Chinese gov't holds 51% stock ownership !!!).

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    well, surprise surprise ... it would appear that there are a handful of Congressmen who realized what's at stake by handing the FED a blank check to bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ...



    (snip)"July 15 (Bloomberg) -- Lawmakers balked at giving Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson unprecedented power to use government funds to rescue Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the U.S. mortgage- finance companies grappling with a collapse of confidence.

    ``I'm uneasy about giving this blanket authority without having any kind of checks,'' Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd said in a Bloomberg Television interview after a hearing his panel held today. Senator Richard Shelby, the committee's top Republican, told reporters ``I've never known Congress'' to give ``an open-ended blank check for somebody to fill in.''

    The skepticism forced Paulson to stress he would protect taxpayer funds and assert his authority over Fannie and Freddie, the biggest sources of U.S. home financing, in case of a government intervention. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said Paulson would have the right to overhaul the companies' management under the Bush administration's proposals.

    Today's hearing indicates Congress may not approve a plan to provide a backstop for the companies this week, as Paulson had counted on when he announced his rescue package July 13. Shares of the companies dropped and bondholders demanded higher premiums on their debt.

    Drop in Stocks

    Fannie Mae slid 27 percent, its biggest drop since at least 1980, to $7.07 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, bringing its slump in the past week to 60 percent. Freddie Mac fell 26 percent to $5.26, and is down 61 percent from a week ago.

    Paulson repeatedly said he had no intention of using the authority to buy unlimited equity in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the proposal was aimed instead at bolstering confidence in the firms so such emergency action wouldn't be needed.

    ``When you're dealing with the taxpayer's money I don't think ambiguity has a place,'' Shelby, of Alabama, told reporters after the hearing, which featured Paulson, Bernanke and Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox. ``We are potentially layering taxpayer resources on top of massive systemic risk,'' Shelby said at the hearing.

    Dodd's reaction was a sharp contrast with that of his counterpart in the House, who yesterday said he was comfortable with giving Paulson power to use unlimited funds.

    Not a `Teenager'

    ``I trust him,'' Democratic Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television yesterday. ``This is not some irresponsible teenager.''

    Republicans in the House today said they want to postpone consideration of the proposals because they haven't had enough time to vet them.

    House Minority Leader John Boehner, along with No. 2 Republican Roy Blunt, said in a joint statement today that Democrats ought to hold hearings on the plan so lawmakers can get a better understanding of how it would work and how much it would cost.

    ``There is little question that action is necessary, but there are also important questions that must be answered,'' they said. ``It would be irresponsible for Congress to provide the proposed new authority without due diligence on the mechanics of the Treasury proposal and its potential implications for taxpayers.''
    (snip)

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    I can hardly wait for the credit card bubble to come to fruition.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    You strippers are way too jaded. It's not going to going to be the end of the world, or even our long run of relative prosperity.

    No one makes the headlines of the Financial Times predicting a slight correction over the next year or two, followed by steady growth. It should be clear given both our history of dealing with bubbles and our current economic condition that things may be tight over the next 9 - 18 months, this won't be a longterm recession. Most of the people predicting doom and gloom have dubious origins and poorly reasoned claims.

    The current economic downturn may effect those in the adult entertainment industry disproportionately; I would imagine that strip clubs are one of the first things cut from a customer's budget when times are tough. I feel for you. But, depending on where you are in your life, this may be an opportunity. Example: It may not make sense for many people to pass up big bucks to go to school full-time. However, if the opportunities to make good money aren't out there anymore, going to school may make more sense. (P.S. You can never have too much debt or be too poor for school . Some of my friends graduated with over $200k in debt and they're doing fine.) If you're still making good money, this is the time to invest, either in housing or the stock market. Don't let your black tinted stripper glasses focus on only the negatives: there are two sides to every coin.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    ^^^ credit cards are comparatively small-time versus THIS problem ... which may only be days away !



    (snip)"The US Treasury may have just days to act before foreign patience snaps, writes Ambrose Evans-Pritchard

    Merrill Lynch has warned that the United States could face a foreign "financing crisis" within months as the full consequences of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage debacle spread through the world.

    The country depends on Asian, Russian and Middle Eastern investors to fund much of its $700bn (£350bn) current account deficit, leaving it far more vulnerable to a collapse of confidence than Japan in the early 1990s after the Nikkei bubble burst. Britain and other Anglo-Saxon deficit states could face a similar retreat by foreign investors.

    "Japan was able to cut its interest rates to zero," said Alex Patelis, Merrill's head of international economics.

    "It would be very difficult for the US to do this. Foreigners will not be willing to supply the capital. Nobody knows where the limit lies."

    Brian Bethune, chief financial economist at Global Insight, said the US Treasury had two or three days to put real money behind its rescue plan for Fannie and Freddie or face a dangerous crisis that could spiral out of control.

    "This is not the time for policy-makers to underestimate, once again, the systemic risks to the financial system and the huge damage this would impose on the economy. Bold, aggressive action is needed, and needed now," he said.

    Mr Bethune said the Treasury would have to inject up $20bn in fresh capital. This in turn might draw in a further $20bn in private money. Funds on this scale would be enough to see the two agencies through any scenario short of a meltdown in the US prime property market"(snip)

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    Quote Originally Posted by Melonie View Post
    ^^^ credit cards are comparatively small-time versus THIS problem ... which may only be days away !

    The problem is (as I said on a thread before) banks/ companies want free market until it affects their bottom line, then corporate socialism.

    The FMae and FMac loans are insured and will usually have a reinsurer. Also, you have a tangible asset, albeit at a reduced price, it's not like CC where it turns into zero bucks.

    This is basically them wanting a govt bail out so nobody has to lose any divedends the next few quarters.

    If we bail them out, what about GM?

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    I wonder how many pounds I'll get for my dollar on this trip....fuk!

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    This is basically them wanting a govt bail out so nobody has to lose any divedends the next few quarters.
    well, this circles right back around to my previous post. In point of fact, those who will be hurt the worst by FNM / FRE freezing dividends or losing bond value are actually the Chinese, Japanese, Middle Eastern oil sheiks etc.



    so while grandma, state pension funds and uber-rich individual investors may make a lot of noise over taking FNM / FRE losses, the Chinese, Japanese and Middle East sovereign wealth funds will do much more than moan. In all probability they will start selling off their remaining FNM / FRE stocks and bonds which will seriously tank the US dollar in terms of international purchasing power. Additionally they will very probably stop recycling their US trade surplus dollars back into US dollar denominated investments, which as the article describes could precipitate a major liquidity problem for the American economy across the board. In the absence of the $3 billion per day in trade surplus dollars that the Chinese, Russians and Middle Eastern Oil Sheiks 'loan' back to America, either the FED will have to print up $3 billion new dollars per day ( = ungodly inflation ), or every bank in the country will be quickly drained of cash ( = deflation) resulting in zero credit / new loans for American consumers !

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    And it will hurt their economies as well. Even Saud knew this when they increased production by 500k/ day. A slow down in our economy will hurt them. It's a catch-22. And I'm willing to guess that China will be hurt worse than us.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    But if they are bailed out by the US taxpayer, we'll still have higher inflation and the whole fact of a bail out (which is NOT typical in a free market, capitalist system) will further undermine the US credibility as the "world's economic engine".
    I would assume the dollar is headed lower in any scenario, bail out or not?

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    I would assume the dollar is headed lower in any scenario, bail out or not?
    actually, if they are allowed to fail, and if the Chinese / Japanese / Saudis in turn sell off some of their US treasuries and GSE holdings, there would be a spike down in the US dollar - because what other foreign investor in their right mind would try to catch these 'falling knives'. But after that, with foreign investors no longer willing to serve as America's source of trade deficit / loan capital without being compensated for the risk they would be taking, US dollar interest rates would have to increase in order to reattract foreign investors. Once US interest rates rise, and risk-taking foreign investors start returning to US dollar denominated investments in significant numbers, the US dollar would then strengthen a lot. But the 'price' of this turnaround would be a long string of US personal and business bankruptcies, because despite higher interest rates there would still be very little capital available to fund new consumer / business loans.

    What I'm describing is pretty unlikely though, since the politically acceptable course of action seems to be to try and minimize US personal and business bankruptcies at whatever cost. However, bailing out US individuals and businesses is inexorably linked to bailing out the Chinese / Japanese / Saudi investors in US gov't / GSE securities.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    The govt allowed banks to follow the elusive housing bubble just to accumulate more martgages, in spite of the very unrealistic housing costs which could not be sustained. Our iillustrious government has allowed the banking industry to do almost whatever it pleased since Reagan, as if the smart guys in the banking could weather any storm, even ones our government cooked up.

    We need to get a smart and responsive government in there again to regulate the exploitative capitalists.
    I loved going to strip clubs; I actually made some friends there. Now things are different for the clubs and for me. As a result I am not as happy.

    Customers are not entitled to grope, disrespect, or rob strippers. This is their job, not their hobby, and they all need income. Clubs are not just some erotic show for guys to view while drinking.

    NOTE: anything I post here, outside of a direct quote, is my opinion only, which I am entitled to. Take it for what you estimate it is worth.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    Quote Originally Posted by threlayer View Post
    The govt allowed banks to follow the elusive housing bubble just to accumulate more martgages, in spite of the very unrealistic housing costs which could not be sustained. Our iillustrious government has allowed the banking industry to do almost whatever it pleased since Reagan, as if the smart guys in the banking could weather any storm, even ones our government cooked up.

    We need to get a smart and responsive government in there again to regulate the exploitative capitalists.

    lol it goes to 1910ish. There is a book titled something like the Monster of Jekyll Island. And it spawned the Fed Reserve, a private nongovernment agency owned by the banks.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    ^^^ actually, the big change which allowed the mortgage bubble and bank speculations to get of the ground didn't happen until the passage of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley act in 1999

    (snip)"In order to restore the banking public's confidence that banks would follow reasonable banking practices, Congress created the Glass-Steagall Act [ in 1933, after the bank failures of the Great Depression - sic]. The act forced a separation of commercial and investment banks by preventing commercial banks from underwriting securities, with the exception of U.S. Treasury and federal agency securities, and municipal and state general-obligation securities. More specifically, the act authorizes Federal Reserve banks to use government obligations and Commercial Paper as collateral for their note issues, in order to encourage expansion of the currency. Banks also may offer advisory services regarding investments for their customers, as well as buy and sell securities for their customers. However, information gained from providing such services may not be used by a bank when it acts as a lender. Likewise, investment banks may not engage in the business of receiving deposits."(snip)


    (snip)"Congress responded to these criticisms in passing the Gramm-Leach-Bilely Act of 1999, which made significant changes to Glass-Steagall. The 1999 law did not make sweeping changes in the types of business that may be conducted by an individual bank, broker-dealer or insurance company. Instead, the act repealed the Glass-Steagall Act's restrictions on bank and securities-firm affiliations. It also amended the Bank Holding Company Act to permit affiliations among financial services companies, including banks, securities firms and insurance companies. The new law sought financial modernization by removing the very barriers that Glass-Steagall had erected."(snip)

    from

    so if you are going to try and lay this off on a president, you'll have to lay it on Bill Clinton.


    lol it goes to 1910ish. There is a book titled something like the Monster of Jekyll Island. And it spawned the Fed Reserve, a private nongovernment agency owned by the banks.
    again the founding fathers had the 'right' idea ... as proven by two previous attempts at establishing a de-facto Federal Reserve bank in the 1800's. Fortunately for those living between 1832 and 1913, president Andrew Jackson had the common sense and 'balls' to go public with his reasons for vetoing / abolishing the previous de-facto Federal Reserve Bank. Here are his words from 1832 ...


    "A bank of the United States is in many respects convenient for the Government and useful to the people. Entertaining this opinion, and deeply impressed with the belief that some of the powers and privileges possessed by the existing bank are unauthorized by the Constitution, subversive of the rights of the States, and dangerous to the liberties of the people, I felt it my duty at an early period of my Administration to call the attention of Congress to the practicability of organizing an institution combining all its advantages and obviating these objections. I sincerely regret that in the act before me I can perceive none of those modifications of the bank charter which are necessary, in my opinion, to make it compatible with justice, with sound policy, or with the Constitution of our country. "

    "Every monopoly and all exclusive privileges are granted at the expense of the public, which ought to receive a fair equivalent. The many millions which this act proposes to bestow on the stockholders of the existing bank must come directly or indirectly out of the earnings of the American people. It is due to them, therefore, if their Government sell monopolies and exclusive privileges, that they should at least exact for them as much as they are worth in open market. The value of the monopoly in this case may be correctly ascertained. The twenty-eight millions of stock would probably be at an advance of 50 per cent, and command in market at least $42,000,000, subject to the payment of the present bonus. The present value of the monopoly, therefore, is $17,000,000, and this the act proposes to sell for three millions, payable in fifteen annual installments of $200,000 each.

    It is not conceivable how the present stockholders can have any claim to the special favor of the Government. The present corporation has enjoyed its monopoly during the period stipulated in the original contract. If we must have such a corporation, why should not the Government sell out the whole stock and thus secure to the people the full market value of the privileges granted? Why should not Congress create and sell twenty-eight millions of stock, incorporating the purchasers with all the powers and privileges secured in this act and putting the premium upon the sales into the Treasury?

    But this act does not permit competition in the purchase of this monopoly. It seems to be predicated on the erroneous idea that the present stockholders have a prescriptive right not only to the favor but to the bounty of Government. It appears that more than a fourth part of the stock is held by foreigners and the residue is held by a few hundred of our own citizens, chiefly of the richest class. For their benefit does this act exclude the whole American people from competition in the purchase of this monopoly and dispose of it for many millions less than it is worth. This seems the less excusable because some of our citizens not now stockholders petitioned that the door of competition might be opened, and offered to take a charter on terms much more favorable to the Government and country. "

    "On two subjects only does the Constitution recognize in Congress the power to grant exclusive privileges or monopolies. It declares that "Congress shall have power to promote the progress of science and useful arts by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries." Out of this express delegation of power have grown our laws of patents and copyrights. As the Constitution expressly delegates to Congress the power to grant exclusive privileges in these cases as the means of executing the substantive power " to promote the progress of science and useful arts," it is consistent with the fair rules of construction to conclude that such a power was not intended to be granted as a means of accomplishing any other end. On every other subject which comes within the scope of Congressional power there is an ever-living discretion in the use of proper means, which can not be restricted or abolished without an amendment of the Constitution. Every act of Congress, therefore, which attempts by grants of monopolies or sale of exclusive privileges for a limited time, or a time without limit, to restrict or extinguish its own discretion in the choice of means to execute its delegated powers is equivalent to a legislative amendment of the Constitution, and palpably unconstitutional. "

    "It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their selfish purposes. Distinctions in society will always exist under every just government. Equality of talents, of education, or of wealth can not be produced by human institutions. In the full enjoyment of the gifts of Heaven and the fruits of superior industry, economy, and virtue, every man is equally entitled to protection by law; but when the laws undertake to add to these natural and just advantages artificial distinctions, to grant titles, gratuities, and exclusive privileges, to make the rich richer and the potent more powerful, the humble members of society-the farmers, mechanics, and laborers-who have neither the time nor the means of securing like favors to themselves, have a right to complain of the injustice of their Government. There are no necessary evils in government. Its evils exist only in its abuses. If it would confine itself to equal protection, and, as Heaven does its rains, shower its favors alike on the high and the low, the rich and the poor, it would be an unqualified blessing. In the act before me there seems to be a wide and unnecessary departure from these just principles.

    Nor is our Government to be maintained or our Union preserved by invasions of the rights and powers of the several States. In thus attempting to make our General Government strong we make it weak. Its true strength consists in leaving individuals and States as much as possible to themselves-in making itself felt, not in its power, but in its beneficence; not in its control, but in its protection; not in binding the States more closely to the center, but leaving each to move unobstructed in its proper orbit.

    Experience should teach us wisdom. Most of the difficulties our Government now encounters and most of the dangers which impend over our Union have sprung from an abandonment of the legitimate objects of Government by our national legislation, and the adoption of such principles as are embodied in this act. Many of our rich men have not been content with equal protection and equal benefits, but have besought us to make them richer by act of Congress. By attempting to gratify their desires we have in the results of our legislation arrayed section against section, interest against interest, and man against man, in a fearful commotion which threatens to shake the foundations of our Union. It is time to pause in our career to review our principles, and if possible revive that devoted patriotism and spirit of compromise which distinguished the sages of the Revolution and the fathers of our Union. If we can not at once, in justice to interests vested under improvident legislation, make our Government what it ought to be, we can at least take a stand against all new grants of monopolies and exclusive privileges, against any prostitution of our Government to the advancement of the few at the expense of the many, and in favor of compromise and gradual reform in our code of laws and system of political economy. "


    ahhh, if only Dr. Ron Paul had been a war hero like Andrew Jackson !


    as to the actual ownership of the FED, and the possibility that the objectives of the FED's actual owners may diverge from the objectives of the US gov't / citizens, this information is about as recent as I could find ...



    ~
    Last edited by Melonie; 07-17-2008 at 12:29 PM.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    Quote Originally Posted by Melonie View Post
    ^^^ actually, the big change which allowed the mortgage bubble and bank speculations to get of the ground didn't happen until the passage of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley act in 1999
    There have always been bubbles, remember the 80's. The S&L's lost big on real estate, which was due in part to laws in '80/81. A 'correction' in the market place sparked a crisis. It was in 2003 when a high level treasury official first saw the beginning of a trend that is now history, and tried to get regulations to avoid it.

    Basically in this crisis, people who should have never gotten loans, got them (and ARM's to boot), and when the rates rose they no longer could make the payment. In the S&L scenario, it only took 3 years for the crisis to develop. While I think the G-L-B was a bad idea, a coincidence? contributing factor? or just bad loans?

    I don't know anyone who lost their home in the '80's due to the S&L's, the note was just sold to someone else. Today is a different story, people can't make the note.

    Quote Originally Posted by Melonie View Post
    (snip)Many of our rich men have not been content with equal protection and equal benefits, but have besought us to make them richer by act of Congress.
    As I have said, capitalism until they take losses, then corporate socialism.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    I was laying a bunch of banking problrems on Reagan, but the mortgage thing is lots more recent. It's just hard to believe that the banking industry would have been that stupid if they had been governed by the older regulations. But the got greedy, just as the S&Ls did back in the 80s. BTW it is hardly ever the President alone who lets huge stupid things happen.
    I loved going to strip clubs; I actually made some friends there. Now things are different for the clubs and for me. As a result I am not as happy.

    Customers are not entitled to grope, disrespect, or rob strippers. This is their job, not their hobby, and they all need income. Clubs are not just some erotic show for guys to view while drinking.

    NOTE: anything I post here, outside of a direct quote, is my opinion only, which I am entitled to. Take it for what you estimate it is worth.

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    So the very same people who create booms and busts in the first place consolidate more and more power with each boom-bust cycle. They come to the "resque" well prepared since they know when the time is ripe. When will the people get this?

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    Default Re: America's future revolves around a single decision expected to come this week !

    ^^^ to answer your question, in today's media controlled world ... probably never. And that power is the reason that the rich and powerful buy FNM and FRE BONDS at $50k-$100k each, while average people buy FNM and FRE STOCKS at $50-$100 a share ! Also note that the 'rescue' is primarily aimed at preserving the value of FNM and FRE BONDS, while the stock value is allowed to fall to $10 !

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