Archive for the ‘Economics’ Category

World Economy: Are we in for a ride like no other?

May 20, 2010

During the power outages that kept me from the important things in life, like blogging (jk). I started thinking about things on a Macro level. As in the economy. The similarities between the seventies and now are worrisome to say the least.

Our government keeps insisting that things are getting better. Yet everyday there are more and more reports that unemployment is still rising, and lay offs are also again on the rise. Supposedly, inflation is not happening. Yet, all of my bills are growing, and prices are continuing to surge. Even adjusting for the upcoming holiday fuel is rising in price well beyond what it plausibly should be. The power came back on, and here is what I found. The bane of times past…

Why I Expect Serious Stagflation – Robert P. Murphy – Mises Daily

Soros Says Fed in a Bind Beware Stagflation Bursting of Bond

Stagflation in 2010 May Look Like Reruns of the 1970s

Stagflation Versus Hyperinflation – Paul Krugman Blog – NYTimes.com

Transition From Crisis To Stagflation

World Currency Watch: FOREX Market, FOREX Trading BLOG

Bah Humbug: Stagflation is around the corner | Economists’ Forum


Exclusive in-depth investigation, part 3–what is ‘government 2.0’?

May 19, 2010

With the development and advancement of the Internet, malevolent forces that have joined together in a big government/big corporation conglomeration have a powerful and effective tool by which to obtain their objectives–ultimate power and huge sums of money.

In Part One of this investigation we discovered that the Obama Administration is preparing to expand the size and scope of government to unprecedented levels.  In Part Two we uncovered a report, issued by the Rand Corporation and commissioned by the U.S. Army and the Administration in Washington, to put into place a new national police force that will have unprecedented powers to enforce the new initiatives of this oppressive regime–Obama’s 4th Reich.

Today we examine how these malevolent forces are presently using the Internet to violate every known principle of liberty as set forth in the Constitution and place each citizen under constant surveillance reminiscent of George Orwell’s nightmare, 1984.

The Internet is tailor-made for totalitarians.  The manner in which the web has been configured, allowing tracking cookies and other such spy-ware, is a tyrant’s dream.  While it can be used for great good, in the wrong hands it can become a tool for government and corporate snoops, spying on ordinary citizens, and then using the information gathered to coerce, intimidate, and corral the herds of the populace into submission.

Some of this, of course, is already being done.  Google and other search engine corporations are known for privacy violations and their reckless attitude toward the rights of citizens.  Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter, as we shall see, are also major offenders.

But the key to understanding the present push toward totalitarian government can be found in numerous statements issued by the Obama Administration contending that there is no inherent right to privacy on the Internet, not even with regard to email.

The Canadian government echoed this sentiment when it stated that there is no right to privacy with the Internet, because ‘that’s the way it was designed.’

In conjunction with the notion that there is no inherent right to private communication on the Internet is the push by the Obama  Administration to make having Broadband Internet ‘a basic human right.’

The Left has been advancing such a notion for several years now.  During the 2008 Presidential campaign Democratic candidate John Edwards was asked in a TV interview to describe the things he considers to be ‘inherent, basic human rights.’  At the top of the his list was ‘Internet access,’ while failing to mention a single guaranteed right contained in the Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution.

This is no accident.  By making Broadband Internet access a human right, thus expanding the scope of Internet communication to nearly everyone on the planet, the notion cited above that ‘there is no inherent right to privacy on the Internet’ takes on an entirely different tone.

The moguls of big government and big corporations want everyone communicating on the Internet so that they can monitor the thoughts and activities of citizens, leading to preemptive action if necessary, to control the population.

And that brings us to something called ‘Government 2.0.’ And there is even already a concerted effort to wage war on those who would attempt to oppose it.

The basic thrust of the concept of Gov. 2.0 is to bring together the brightest minds on the planet, along with the moguls of government and corporations, to take both the government and the Internet to an entirely new level, based upon the world-wide web.

One of the investigative sources for this series, who shall remain anonymous, stated the following:

So, a burgeoning, massive database appears to already be forming, beyond the “Evil Empire,” Google.
There’s Web 2.0. Now there’s “Gov 2.0.”
Blogs, photos, or seemingly innocent opinions…recorded as isolated incidents, are to be gathered
from numerous social networks and indeed, across the Internet. The massive power of the ongoing
“collective.” Once gathered & indexed they can be sorted in powerful ways to spur further
investigations and enable its use, years later… “evidence” as ammunition or tools for political coercion.

So, who are some of the main players invited by the Obama White House to be part of the start-up of Government 2.0?

We will name the names in the next segment.

For commentary on the issues of the day, visit my blog at The Liberty Sphere.

Understanding the present push toward totalitarian government

May 17, 2010

Exclusive in-depth investigation, part 3–what is ‘government 2.0’?

With the development and advancement of the Internet, malevolent forces that have joined together in a big government/big corporation conglomeration have a powerful and effective tool by which to obtain their objectives–ultimate power and huge sums of money.

(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais).

In Part One of this investigation we discovered that the Obama Administration is preparing to expand the size and scope of government to unprecedented levels.  In Part Two we uncovered a report, issued by the Rand Corporation and commissioned by the U.S. Army and the Administration in Washington, to put into place a new national police force that will have unprecedented powers to enforce the new initiatives of this oppressive regime–Obama’s 4th Reich.

Today we examine how these malevolent forces are presently using the Internet to violate every known principle of liberty as set forth in the Constitution and place each citizen under constant surveillance reminiscent of George Orwell’s nightmare, 1984.

The Internet is tailor-made for totalitarians.  The manner in which the web has been configured, allowing tracking cookies and other such spy-ware, is a tyrant’s dream.  While it can be used for great good, in the wrong hands it can become a tool for government and corporate snoops, spying on ordinary citizens, and then using the information gathered to coerce, intimidate, and corral the herds of the populace into submission.

Some of this, of course, is already being done.  Google and other search engine corporations are known for privacy violations and their reckless attitude toward the rights of citizens.  Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter, as we shall see, are also major offenders.

But the key to understanding the present push toward totalitarian government can be found in numerous statements issued by the Obama Administration contending that there is no inherent right to privacy on the Internet, not even with regard to email.

The Canadian government echoed this sentiment when it stated that there is no right to privacy with the Internet, because ‘that’s the way it was designed.’

In conjunction with the notion that there is no inherent right to private communication on the Internet is the push by the Obama  Administration to make having Broadband Internet ‘a basic human right.’

The Left has been advancing such a notion for several years now.  During the 2008 Presidential campaign Democratic candidate John Edwards was asked in a TV interview to describe the things he considers to be ‘inherent, basic human rights.’  At the top of the his list was ‘Internet access,’ while failing to mention a single guaranteed right contained in the Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution.

This is no accident.  By making Broadband Internet access a human right, thus expanding the scope of Internet communication to nearly everyone on the planet, the notion cited above that ‘there is no inherent right to privacy on the Internet’ takes on an entirely different tone.

The moguls of big government and big corporations want everyone communicating on the Internet so that they can monitor the thoughts and activities of citizens, leading to preemptive action if necessary, to control the population.

And that brings us to something called ‘Government 2.0.’ And there is even already a concerted effort to wage war on those who would attempt to oppose it.

The basic thrust of the concept of Gov. 2.0 is to bring together the brightest minds on the planet, along with the moguls of government and corporations, to take both the government and the Internet to an entirely new level, based upon the world-wide web.

One of the investigative sources for this series, who shall remain anonymous, stated the following:

So, a burgeoning, massive database appears to already be forming, beyond the “Evil Empire,” Google.
There’s Web 2.0. Now there’s “Gov 2.0.”
Blogs, photos, or seemingly innocent opinions…recorded as isolated incidents, are to be gathered
from numerous social networks and indeed, across the Internet. The massive power of the ongoing
“collective.” Once gathered & indexed they can be sorted in powerful ways to spur further
investigations and enable its use, years later… “evidence” as ammunition or tools for political coercion.

So, who are some of the main players invited by the Obama White House to be part of the start-up of Government 2.0?

We will name the names in the next segment.

For commentary on the issues of the day, visit my blog at The Liberty Sphere.

SOURCE

Mothers Against Debt (MAD)

May 17, 2010

A Message from Mothers Against Debt (MAD): From Transparency Czarina Amy Oliver,

This what we have done to our children with our reckless spending and massive national debt. Sadly this video is already out of date. Since this video was made, our national debt has climbed another $1700.

Please share this wonderful, but frightening video with as many people as you know. It’s about time we start talking about the massive amount of crippling debt we are enslaving our children and grandchildren with.

Don’t Be Like California (Or Greece): Writing about the fairly frightening similarities between Greece and California over at Reason Online, Tim Cavanaugh asks, “What do Europe’s most bankrupt nation-state and America’s most bankrupt united state have in common, aside from being bankrupt?”

Good question. Cavanaugh continues:

…it turns out that Greece, that sun-drenched paradise on the Aegean, and California, that sun-warmed El Dorado on the Pacific, are the worst places to do business in their respective economic zones.”

So how did California come to resemble a fiscally-wrecked European social-welfare state that needs a massive bailout? Independence Institute Senior Fellow Barry Poulson gave a heads up last year in the Denver Post

:

The Golden State’s GANN Amendment, a precursor of TABOR, limited the growth of state revenue and spending to the sum of inflation and population growth. In the late 1980s, the California legislature abandoned the GANN Amendment. As a result, state spending in California increased more rapidly than personal income and taxes were increased to one of the highest levels in the country. Business investment and jobs left the state for other states with better tax climates.

The moral of the story is of course, don’t be like California.

RSVP’s Welcome for the 8th Annual ATF Party! Registration for the most politically incorrect event of the year is now open – this year’s Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms party! The event is set for Saturday, July 17th at the swank Kiowa Creek Sporting Club. This year’s guest speaker is the brilliant and always straight shooting editor-in-chief at Reason Magazine, Nick Gillespie. Come on out and drink, smoke, and shoot with us… while it’s still legal! RSVP here online or call us at 303.279.6536.

What Fresh Obama Care Hell Is This? So here’s a nasty little surprise from deep in the bowels of Obama Care:

Section 9006 of the health care bill — just a few lines buried in the 2,409-page document — mandates that beginning in 2012 all companies will have to issue 1099 tax forms not just to contract workers but to any individual or corporation from which they buy more than $600 in goods or services in a tax year. The stealth change radically alters the nature of 1099s and means businesses will have to issue millions of new tax documents each year.

It’s things like this that help explain Nancy Pelosi’s motivation when she said, “But we have to pass the bill so you can find out what is in it, away from the fog of the controversy.” Look for more unbelievably bad tidbits to emerge now that the “fog of controversy” has been lifted from the Obama Care bill.

Free People, Free Markets – the Tuesday Night edition: Many of you asked for a Principles of Liberty course to take place on a weeknight, instead of on Saturdays. You also asked that we hold the class somewhere in the south metro area, instead of here at the Independence Institute offices in Golden. Well, you’re in luck! The Spring Free People, Free Markets classes will be held on 5 consecutive Tuesdays at 6:30pm, starting May 18th, down in the Denver Tech Center. Classes will be at the Colorado Contractors Association building at the intersection of I-25 and Arapahoe Road (map). For more information, click here for the official class flyer.

Again, that’s five consecutive Tuesdays, May 18th to June 15th from 6:30 to 9:30 in the Denver Tech Center. Call us at 303.279.6536 to RSVP!

Must See TV: A higher education marks an important chapter in one’s life, but what happens when this chapter is being distorted by a demonstrable lack of intellectual diversity and debate? Author Robert Maranto joins me to discuss a number of the problems, the scope, and reforms for higher education that are in his new book The Politically Correct University. Jessica Peck-Cory of Independence Institute steps up to discuss some of the issues surrounding the civic direction of CU at Boulder. Don’t miss this important discussion on the issues of higher ed this Friday night at 8:30PM on KBDI Channel 12; repeated the following Tuesday evening at 5PM.

Must hear podcast: Is there anything that reasonably can be done to change the overwhelming Left-leaning bias of faculties at American colleges? Lead editor of the new insightful volume The Politically Correct University, University of Arkansas Department of Education Reform professor Bob Maranto discusses the problem and possible solutions with Education Policy Center analyst Ben DeGrow.

Perspective: In this week’s op-ed, health care policy analyst Brian Schwartz questions your “compassionate” politics. Brian wonders when it became compassionate to take other people’s money away and give it to charity, rather than your own. Forced charity is not really charity.

Until next week…

Straight on

Jon Caldara

www.independenceinstitute.org

Exclusive in-depth investigation–naming the snakes in Obama’s 4th Reich–Part 2

May 17, 2010

The in-depth investigation into secret plans for government to collaborate with large corporations to dominate society has revealed Obama’s Pandora’s box.  When one opens the box they will discover an assortment of snakes–venomous individuals and entities in both the private and public sector who are currently laying the groundwork for a 4th Reich–modeled after Germany’s Third Reich before and during WWII.

It is time to begin naming the snakes, and there are many.

First, consider this.  In order for a fascist regime (big government and big business forming an alliance to totally dominate society from top to bottom) to exist and be successful, it needs a police force to maintain order and to enforce the edicts handed down by the ruling class.

Citizens normally resist when they finally wake up to the fact that their government has become an oppressive, malevolent force.  Thus, an apparatus must be put into place to minimize such civil unrest.

Rumors have been afloat for months alluding to the possibility that Barack Obama has begun to lay the groundwork for such a police force.  Some have seen it in the healthcare bill.  Others have seen it in Cap and Trade legislation.  Still others have insisted that the U.S. military has been training a special domestic force to help police with ‘crowd control’ in the event of massive civil unrest–the program called ‘Consequence Management Response Force.’

And then there was the report that Obama had revised an Executive Order issued initially by Ronald Reagan, the revision of which would allow INTERPOL to operate on U.S. soil with immunity from the restrictions and requirements of the Constitution.

Each time such suggestions have been made, vehement denials have proceeded in response.

Fair enough.

But when one takes a cold, hard look at what the Obama government and the U.S. Army–in conjunction with a large corporation–have been doing with regard to a new police force, it is difficult to explain it all away and even more difficult to engage in denials.

FULL STORY

obama: viertes Reich ?

May 16, 2010

EXCLUSIVE IN-DEPTH INVESTIGATION–Obama’s Secret Plan for the 4th Reich? Part 1

I have major information in my possession that proves beyond doubt that this regime is planning a massive push for complete government control over every aspect of our lives–globally.  The information is disturbing, frightening, and overwhelming…and there is a LOT of it!

The information will be revealed in a series of articles at Conservative Examiner, beginning TODAY.

I urge you, I beg you to read this and pass it along. As you will see as we progress through the series, ALL of the allegations made against Obama and others near him can be proved and documented.  A fascist government is on the way, a collaboration of big government and big corporations.  Be prepared to be shocked at the proof we have uncovered.

The above is from my good friend and blogger Anthony at, The Liberty Sphere.

epic fail obama rides the Greek saddle: Cavalry to the rescue?

May 15, 2010

After crusading for an $800 billion “stimulus” bill in 2009 and ramming through a trillion-dollar health care overhaul in 2010, the Obama administration wants to spend yet more of your money — in Greece. Entitlement-mania in that nation has cost more drachmas than it could raise in the next 50 years, and the U.S. Spender-in-Chief wants to lend a hand — yours. Here’s how: Of the $145 billion Greek bailout passed early this month, $40 billion will come from the International Monetary Fund. And guess where the IMF receives a big chunk of its money? You, again. Economist Stephen Moore writes, “Last year, the Obama administration muscled through a new authorization of $100 billion in funding for the IMF.” So first, the Obama administration pushed to fund the IMF; then, it pushed to bail out Greece using IMF funding. Welcome to Obamanomics.

Fed up with the fiscal insanity, 45 House Republicans have signed a letter urging Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner to prevent American tax dollars from supporting the bailout. Tellingly, no Democrats signed the letter.

The spendthrifts in Washington may not “get it,” but our friends across the Pond apparently do. Explaining Britain’s refusal to help fund the bailout, British Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling stated, “When it comes to supporting the euro, that is for the eurogroup countries.” What a thought.

Then we have…

Like the Sword of Damocles hanging over our collective heads, the national debt stands ready to cleave the central government’s fiscal credit ratings. It’s no longer a question of “if” the government’s credit rating will be reduced to the same junk bond level as Greece’s, but merely a question of “when.” While there is no bright line to notify the government how much debt is too much, what is certain is that investors will soon command higher yields for holding risky U.S. debt instruments. When that happens, the federal government will be forced to pay much, much more to continue borrowing more money than it takes in.

Moody’s Investors Service sovereign ratings analysis is shining much needed sunlight to disinfect our government’s spending problem. Their analysis suggests that the federal government’s credit score will be severely downgraded somewhere between 2013 and 2018. The key indicator for Moody’s is the point at which the interest paid by the government for existing debt hits 18 to 20 percent of federal revenue, the government will lose its AAA rating. Under the rosiest of scenarios predicted by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) for Barack Obama’s budget, interest will top 18 percent of revenue by 2018 and 20 percent by 2020. Under more adverse scenarios than the narrow factors CBO considered, including higher interest rates, Moody’s projects interest may hit 22.4 percent by as soon as 2013.

Rather than waiting for re-evaluation by Moody’s, investors may instead choose to punish the government and trigger an increase in rates in advance of any ratings changes. As long as Democrats remain in charge of the government, we can predict their response will be no different from what precedes: Raise taxes instead of cut spending. That and regulating with newly introduced legislation independent credit rating agencies like Moody’s so that they can’t downgrade the U.S.’s rating.

SOURCE

Defense Secretary Robert Gates: drinking the obama kool aid

May 15, 2010

It has always been the Left’s dream to disarm the United States and redistribute to their various constituency groups the money thus “saved.” That dream is apparently coming true. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who is responsible for ensuring that the U.S. military can protect the nation from all potential enemies, recently told the Navy League that we “don’t necessarily need a billion-dollar guided missile destroyer to chase down and deal with a bunch of teenage pirates wielding AK-47s and RPGs.” Which would be true, if rowdy teenagers were the only naval threat. But sadly, it appears that Gates, at one time a highly respected intelligence and defense official, has drunk the Obama Kool-Aid. Unbelievably, Gates also said, “At the end of the day, we have to ask whether this nation can really afford a Navy that relies on $3 billion to $6 billion destroyers, $7 billion submarines and $11 billion carriers.” Since when has the Obama regime, which tosses around trillions of dollars like Monopoly money, cared how much something costs?

Following on the heels of the canceled F-22 Raptor program, a stripped-down missile defense program, and cancellation of nuclear arsenal modernization, this is another clear signal that Obama intends to gut constitutionally mandated defense spending in order to fund his vision of an unconstitutional and socially “just” utopia. The Chinese dragon must be licking its chops.

SOURCE

The Side Effects of ObamaCare

May 15, 2010

The true scope of ObamaCare’s side effects continued to be divulged this week with the revelation of some little-known provisions in the law. The lab tests are back, and the prognosis isn’t good.

First, Section 9006 will force businesses to issue 1099 tax forms to any individual or corporation from which they buy more than $600 in goods or services in a tax year. Currently Forms 1099 are received by independent contractors and freelancers to document income beyond wages and salaries for work they perform for businesses and clients. Starting on Jan. 1, 2012, these forms will have to be issued not just to individuals, but to corporations as well. If a freelancer purchases any good or service worth more than $600, they must issue a 1099 to the business from which they made the purchase. This provision encompasses just a few lines in the 2,400-page law, but it will add millions of new tax documents to each year’s reporting.

Democrats defended the move based on their belief that it will put an end to some $300 billion per year in unreported income. Just think of all the tax revenue! Demos claim that this revenue will help fund continued tax cuts for small businesses. What they purposefully ignore is that the more complex the tax system grows, the more difficult and expensive it becomes to do business.

Meanwhile, the provision that allows adult “children” to remain on their parents’ health insurance plan until age 26 has a surprise of its own. An estimated 1.2 million young adults are expected to join these plans after Sept. 23, and the Health and Human Services Department noted that premiums for the employers of those parents would rise about one percent in 2011 as a result. That’s on top of the 6 to 7 percent hike that employers are already expecting next year. Furthermore, coverage for young adults must be offered at the same level as for that of other dependents. They can neither be charged more, nor receive a lower level of benefits. Parents who purchase insurance for their adult children in the open market can expect to pay an additional $2,300 in premiums next year.

Finally, the Congressional Budget Office announced that the health care plan will actually cost at least $115 billion more than estimated when it was signed into law. This pushes the law’s total cost well above $1 trillion over 10 years (though “unofficial” estimates are as high as $3.5 trillion) and erases the $100 billion in deficit “savings” that Barack Obama bragged about during the legislative debate. The CBO’s adjustment is necessary because Democrats didn’t include real numbers in various portions of the law that include administrative costs for actually implementing the program. Any figures the bill’s authors didn’t know at the time were simply replaced with the phrase “as needed.” The CBO has since had a chance to score these nebulous elements, and the president’s own budget office has told Congress to offset these new costs with spending cuts or tax increases. Gee, which option will they choose?

Obama audaciously issued a veto threat for any portion of the bill that comes in above the original cost estimate. Since we surely couldn’t believe him when he claimed that his health care takeover would actually save the country money, why would we begin to believe that he would veto any portion of legislation upon which he staked his political future?

Given all this, and given the many as-yet undiagnosed side-effects sure to come, we humbly suggest that the following FDA-type warning be read each time an Obama official mentions its crowning legislative achievement: Taking Hope ‘n’ Change may cause bloated budgets, irritated politics, nausea and heartburn. Unexplained costs could be a sign of a common but serious side effect of unbridled socialism.

SOURCE

The climate change bill: Another stupid bill on the hill, and more

May 15, 2010

The climate change bill, better known as cap-and-tax, was unveiled this week in the Senate. Sens. John Kerry (D-MA) and Joe Lieberman (I-CT) are still determined to push this idiocy even though South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham recently walked away from the compromise they had crafted over the course of several months. The bill would tax large emitters of carbon emissions at $12 per ton, and it includes a mish-mash of regulations and subsidies for industries and transportation systems. Kerry and Lieberman yanked out the provision that called for expanding offshore drilling, hoping to make it more attractive in the wake of the Gulf oil spill. Investor’s Business Daily has a chart of new programs, studies and reports created by Kerry-Lieberman. It’s extensive. Without Graham on board, though, the bill won’t find nearly the support it could have previously received, so chances for passage are much slimmer.

Barack Obama has called for legislation that would raise the cap on damages for which oil companies such as BP would be responsible in the event of a spill or other accident. Currently at $75 million, bills in the House and Senate would raise the cap to $10 billion. Fortunately, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) blocked the Senate bill Thursday. But the president also wants to punish BP and other oil companies with an unconstitutionally retroactive one-cent-per-barrel tax hike to help pay for the cleanup of the Gulf. Of course, we all know who will pay that tax in the end — consumers at the gas pump.

Republicans are vigorously fighting Democrat attempts to restrict free speech by nullifying the Supreme Court’s recent Citizens United decision that struck down certain corporate restrictions on political campaign advertising. The Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE) Act, which has been introduced in the House and Senate, seeks to force corporations and major donors to make on-air endorsements of political ads they fund. The bill would also place new measures on coordination of candidates and outside supporters.

In a frightening assault upon law-abiding citizens exercising their constitutional right to free speech and assembly, the Terrorist Expatriation Act (and here we thought TEA stood for “Taxed Enough Already”) was introduced in the House and Senate, stirring a vigorous debate that blurs the customary partisan lines on the issue. The bill, which has bipartisan sponsorship in both chambers, would allow the government to revoke the citizenship of Americans who ally themselves with “terrorist organizations.”

Supporters indicate that any American who signs up with a “terrorist group” basically rescinds his rights as a citizen in any event. Of course, why then should they be Mirandized? Revoking citizenship would block American “terror suspects” from (legally) re-entering the United States, and it would also make them eligible for military rather than civilian prosecution just when the Obama administration is moving real non-citizen terrorists into civilian courts. Concerns have arisen about the constitutionality of the measure, and skeptics believe that suspects would need to be convicted of a crime before their citizenship could be revoked. Since the Obama administration has already labeled conservative groups as “terrorist organizations,” TEA partiers and the like should check their visas.

SOURCE