Category: Politics

Then just look at this article about Hawaiian Senator Daniel Inouye and calls his office made to influence the distribution of TARP funds to a bank where most of his personal wealth is invested.  The bank did not qualify, at all, for TARP funds prior to his mysterious phone call.  If this continued rip-off by Congress and the banks is not annoying and obvious by now then I have no alternative than to think that most  American’s are dumb ass-hats who genuinely don’t care.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31675539/ns/politics-washington_post/

This week we will find out who rules America: the US Government put in power by the people for the people, or the banking industry lobby and the Republican legislators they hold in their pocket.

Obama is meeting with bank industry leaders to once again ask them to conform to more appropriate consumer protections.  The evil, vile bank lobby will attempt to argue they are too poor right now to ease up on fees and credit gouging.   Why are they poor?  Because of their own greedy lending practices but never mind that little inconvenience.

Even though many Democrats are on board with new consumer credit regulation they are not completely convinced they will get any bills passed.  The banking industry has a way too powerful special interest lobby working to convince lawmakers they must protect the interest of the banks.  It will be close regardless of which direction this takes and what’s at stake is more important than interest rates on credit cards.  It’s a decision of who controls the future of the American economy, lawmakers for the consumers or bankers for well, the banks and wealthy bank investors.

Update: From the NY Times this morning:

“Having won some early skirmishes by teaming with Republican allies, the banks now appear to have the upper hand and may wind up killing — or at least substantially diluting — both pro-consumer measures.”

This is all I want for my birthday.  Anyone who knows me can attest I haven’t asked for anything for my birthday in years.

Paul Krugman is a Nobel prize winning economist and Professor of Economics and International affairs at Princeton when he’s not writing for the NY Times.  He received a BS from Yale and a Ph.D. from MIT by the time he was 24.  I’ve been a fan since January of 2007 when he published an this article, The Dark Age of Macroeconomics.  He was also one of the first people to call out the sinister Phil Gramm as one of the architects of the recession long before it was known he authored the legislation allowing the retention bonuses at AIG.

We need a Wall Street outsider at the helm of this disaster.  Not another former Wall St. Chairman and bankers best friend.  Keeping bankers happy will only do so much to alleviate the crisis we’re in.  Bring in an outsider.  Since before Obama appointed Geithner (which was the moment I first questioned Obama’s commitment to “change”), Krugman was a known contender for the job.  Draft him if necessary but do what should have been done in the first place.  Time and money are burning.

As long as we continue to hemorrhage jobs there will be no economic recovery.  For all the talk about economic stimulus and job creation there is little or no talk about creating financial incentives that will allow companies to keep workers.  Businesses can cut employees in a heartbeat to maintain revenues or stave off losses.  And they will.  Those positions rarely, if ever, return.

Without political intervention to create financial incentives fro comapnies to keep workers the cuts will continue until we are a nation of unemployed.  We don’t need to just look at ways to create “new jobs” that people are unqualified to fill.  We need to find an immediate way to let people keep their current positions.  No one seems to be interested in including this in the agenda if it creates even the slightest hardship on companies to find a way to keep their workers.  It’s an easy out and they’ll take it every time, especially if there’s no embarrassment because all other companies are doing it.

In a time when bank executives would rather eat their own children than give one penny of shareholder profit to help consumers and the economy at large, one bank has stepped forward to support legislation that is way overdue. Citibank has agreed to support changes in bankruptcy laws so that primary residences can be protected in bankruptcy court by judges who can write the mortgages into debt repayment plans.

It’s absurd that someone can file for bankruptcy and protect their motorcycle, vacation home or boat but can’t save their primary residence. This has long been a hold out of the mortgage lenders for no other reason than sheer greed. Why should they take a risk? Loans are suppose to be all profit and no risk for them right? And when the gamble doesn’t pay off we’ve seen what happens. They cry to the Fed like whimpering little children who aren’t getting their way. And big daddy Fed is more than happy to quiet them with $700 billion dollars. Thinking about it makes my stomach worse than it already was fighting this Crohns flare up. I will continue to close all my entries about financial institutions with the same ‘ol quote from Dr. Willis Martin of Rocky Mount who said to me “Son, the bank is not your friend”.

“In 1910 Rockefeller and Morgan banking representatives, along with government officials, boarded a luxurious railcar owned by Nelson Aldrich, Senator from Rhode Island, who became quite wealthy representing the interests of the moneyed class. They were journeying from New Jersey to Jekyll Island, Georgia for a secret conference at which “the Federal Reserve was conceived; the birth of a banking cartel to protect its members from competition; the strategy of how to convince Congress and the public that this cartel was an agency of the United States government.”– The Creature from Jekyll Island by G. Edward Griffin

Then they went on to fund the establishment of central banks in Japan and Germany following World War II.  John F. Kennedy was wise to their game and worked diligently to end the Federal Reserve up until the convenient timing of his controversial assassination.   I’m no conspiracy theorist but you’ve got to admit that for all the vague ballistics evidence that pointed to Oswald a motive for his actions have never been made clear.

Everyone fears the Federal Reserve.  Legislators, the judicial system and local and international governments alike bow to their whims without scrutiny into the depths of their intent.  Why do we still have the Fed?  Because they said so.  Why does it take an act of Congress (and almost and act of God) to regulate the actions private banks take with lending terms, creative finances and disclosure of their activities with investor deposits?  Because they said so.

America is a society producing little or nothing trying to trade paper to substantiate our liquidity.  As real estate prices drops the few liquid assets we still have become of less and less value.  The Fed and the markets are trying to reinvent liquidity through investment.  Problem is there’s nothing at home to invest in.  So banks need revenue.  Where are they going to get it?  By gouging their customers, meaning the consumer credit base, as much as possible in the coming years.

You are a slave to maintaining you bank account and credit card balances.  Who among us thinks that consumer credit does not hold sway over daily life?  FICO score anyone?  The banks have come to require your allegiance for everything from renting an apartment to getting a job.  Of course, your FICO score won’t be worth the paper it’s printed on once everyone is down and out, unable to pay.  The so called deadbeats are increasing exponentially.

How do we combat it?  Simple.  Pay off credit cards and cut them up.  This is the same way, the only way, there is to beat drug dealers.  Destroy the demand for the product.  This is the only way out of our recession which will be a established period of deflation by the beginning of 2010.