Happy New Year! (+Reading list)

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Lets set aside, for a moment, the fact that the United States economy, markets and government are going to be collapsing sometime time soon. The fact that we face possible food shortages and energy/commodity shortages. The fact that our government, over the last year, has, quite openly, become a fascist, tyrannical regime bent on the destruction of the country. The fact that our financial system has ALREADY gone bankrupt, along with our insurance industry and automotive industry and mortgage industry. The fact that we may soon be run over by rampant inflation OR spiraling deflation. The fact that the United States very well may default on it's debt. The fact that our political leaders are so blinded by greed and corruption that 'they' have not a clue what is happening 'on the street' in the United States of America. The fact that when/if things DO get worse we are likely looking at a police state and civil unrest closely resembling that of/in Iran. The fact that we could 'possibly' have a civil war in the United States. The fact that our currency is worthless and will continue to become more so as time goes by and government spending escalates, seemingly, forever. The fact that the federal reserve seems to have completely lost it's mind. The fact that 2012 grows ever closer to being a reality.

The fact that God / Allah will soon return and that He is really pissed off...

Who can blame Him?!

Lets set that (and 'the rest' (there is MUCH more... unfortunately, which I haven't mentioned...) aside long enough for me to say

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And wish the very best to all the wonderful people and news sources on twitter! And thank so many wonderful people for enriching all of our lives!

All of the information/knowledge in the world is RIGHT THERE at your fingertips... Learn to use it to your advantage. Learn to LEARN!

Year in review... Reading list...

The Prophesied End-Time Revealed
The year 2008 marked the last of God’s warnings to mankind and the beginning in a countdown of the final three and one-half years of man’s self-rule that will end by May 27, 2012.

While You Were Sleeping… The Economy Collapsed

America: Freedom to Fascism - Director's Authorized Version

From the Wilderness' Peak Oil Blog

DAWN.COM | World | Obama refuses to rule out drone attacks in Quetta

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis

Jubilee Year -- Cancel Our Debt: Jubilee as Protection against Fractional Reserve Banking

Recession Will Be ‘Full-Blown Depression’: Strategist | The Total Collapse

YouTube - wepollock's Channel

Porter Stansberry - The bankruptcy of the United States is now certain

kzuur58 | Scribd

Red Alert: The Second Wave Of The Financial Tsunami By Matthias Chang

It's beginning to look a lot like a 'W' Irwin Kellner - MarketWatch

Below The Beltway » Blog Archive » Government Displays Stupidity Beyond Words

U.S. Federal Government ~ A TOTAL FRAUD? | Freedom From The Press - Media Corruption & Government Fraud - Exposed

Wakeup Project

The creeping power grab by the executive branch and Federal Reserve | Gulag Blog

2009 November « The Naked Soul

MonkeyBusinessBlog

Dprogram.net

Janet Tavakoli On Why Meltdown Risk Now Is Greater Than It Was In 2007 | zero hedge

"The Federal Reserve Must Die" by James Quinn. FSO Editorial 08/25/2009

What the Fed Doesn’t Want You To Know About U.S. Debt :: The Market Oracle :: Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting Free Website

Shadow Government Statistics - Home Page

Ruinous Debt to Create Futureless Suburbia

Big Government

Twitter Follow Friday: Economists on Twitter | Econ International Blog

There will be no recovery! (At least none that you will like.) | The Economic Populist

oftwominds: The Final Demise of A Speculative Housing Bubble

Farewell Letter to the Public from Andrew Lahde of Lahde Capital Management

The Austrians vs. the Keynesians: The end of the Federal Reserve | Daily Loaf

News From The Old Republic: The Destructive Keynesian Continuum

Rick Wolff, "The Reality Behind Economic 'Recovery'"

Will It All Come Tumbling Down? - The Market Ticker

List - TweetCongress

Federal Reserve SECRETLY Buying Treasuries At Auctions « In Pursuit of Happiness

About the Mises Institute

BamaTrades: A strange thing happened in the market; major stock indexes declined in higher volume

Missouri Political News Service

General Discussion and Questions - Agorism as an option? | Forums at Chris Martenson

define:Dissidents - Google Search

Crony Capitalism « John Stossel

MSM: Obama Administration Preparing Iranian Sanctions Outside of UN Security Council, Just In Case

Military-industrial complex - Wikipedia

Pakistan in crisis as 'creeping coup' unfolds

Bill creates detention camps in U.S. for 'emergencies'
Sweeping, undefined purpose raises worries about military police state

Iran Sanctions are Precursor to War

Shocked and Unnerved

79.9 Percent Interest Credit Card From First Premier Bank Skirts New Regulations

Obama Shields Fort Hood Jihadi, Major Muslim Hasan

Obama's Big Sellout : Rolling Stone

Fraud Nation - HUMAN EVENTS

Greg

MORE BAILOUTS?!

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So now Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have a blank check with which to bailout homeowners?!

But... with lofty 'goals'...

To help keep 'home owners' from becoming 'homeless'...

Now please don't get me wrong... *I* don't want people to become homeless. The mere thought of it breaks my heart. It is American 'families' who suddenly find themselves with no shelter, with no roof over their heads. A 'percentage' of these American 'families' have no where else to go... They truly are desperate and homeless. It truly is, or at least should be, heart rending. *I* would wish it on NO ONE! But *my* 'wants' and 'wishes' seem to have little, if any, effect on life's harsh realities...

But what got us here? Where we are now. Taxpayers stuck holding 50% of America's mortgages, likely the worst, most 'hopeless' 50% at that. Now tax payers are to pay this debt for our entire lifetimes and then pass the baton on to our children and their children's children...

200 BILLION DOLLARS apiece, it seems, was just not enough for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. 400 BILLION DOLLARS was just not enough... But at least now it is more clearly out in the open, what many of us have known all along, that no amount of fiat currency in the world can ever be enough to save them...

And exactly what companies is it that we are bailing out, propping up? Essentially it is incompetent lenders. Their toxic debt all somehow 'magically' materializing on the books of government sanctioned Fannie Mea and Freddie Mac...

Sure... the 'borrowers' were irresponsible. They were 'encouraged' by government and banks to be so... But these irresponsible borrowers are paying a price for their irresponsible actions. Many are paying dearly... many have had their lives destroyed...

So how much is the financial industry 'suffering' from their own foolish, inept, incompetent behavior?

Lets see... I think, last I heard, was that American tax payers are on the hook for potentially as much as 24 TRILLION DOLLARS! With a smorgasbord of government bailouts, backstops, liquidity injections, guarantees... Most all this handled by a federal reserve whom maybe we should rename the 'Money Fairy'...

All of the 'too big to fail' companies are now MUCH MUCH BIGGER! The actions of our government are the opposite of sensible! Making their action(s) nothing more than total non-sense...

And now California says 'give us 8,000,000,000.00 (8 BILLION) of taxpayer money or we'll kill the welfare state'. Plus California also says screw 'health care for all' and the expansion of Medicaid, we ain't got the MONEY! (DUH!) What states DO have the money for federal spending mandates?! States are in incredible pain all across the country.

You see... states are not allowed to 'print money' with which to pay their bills... That's ONLY the 'Money Fairy', the federal reserve...

So now it looks like the government will start bailing out the states too... Who's next in line behind California? As if we aren't ALREADY bailing out ALL the states! Only God knows how many police, firemen and teachers salaries tax payers are covering right now?! We, the American taxpayer, are responcible for making sure that ALL (government) union employees are paid regardless of what else might be going on in the economy.

We, tax payers, make mortgage/rent/grocery payments directly for the unemployed and the poor now through federally expanded unemployment 'insurance' payments and the expansion of food stamps...

We're currently in the process of bailing out the entire insurance industry, for crying out loud... The absolute ONLY thing health care 'reform' is about is finding a way, ANY WAY, to pump TRILLIONS of American tax payer dollars into the pockets, onto the books, of insurance companies! What?! We're bailing out big pharma too you know? It's in the health care bill(s)...

I say 'don't buy it'! Raise your 'risk' levels a little and stop buying ALL insurance products of ANY type!

I won't even bother with GM (especially GMAC) and Chrysler and all the rest of the recipients of the largess of bailout nation...

The market desperately 'wants' debt liquidation... and in the end the market ALWAYS gets what it wants... The market is always right.

That's why I have *my* money on the market. The administration, the treasury, the federal reserve and central banks are all 'worthy' opponents. But even 'they' cannot beat the market. Not indefinitely...

'They' only continue to make things worse with their foolish ponzi schemes...

There is tyranny in the land, in my opinion. I guess we, the people, patriots included, are just supposed to 'watch' quietly from the sidelines...

While our great nation is destroyed...

Greg

Outback tragedy

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Damnit...

Yesterday, Dec 28th, was my birthday. That's cool, I'm ok with that... I mean it either is or it isn't...

We managed, during the holiday season, to come across 35.00 worth of Outback Steak House gift certificates. Which is cool too, they have really well prepared food of good quality. So we, the 3 of us including my son, planned to go to Outback Steak House to 'celebrate'... whatever...

I decided to check out their menu before we went, so I did...

You know... I often tweet and post about cash, thrift and frugality being things we should all strive for. That we should look for 'value'. That we should try to get back to where America was 50 or 60 years ago... About the 1950's. That we, the people, need to stop supporting this illusion of an economy we have. And that we, the people, need to keep our money in our pocket to help bring down our kleptocratic government by starving them of money.

After looking at that menu and giving it a bit of thought, I decided that, in good conscience, I could not bring myself to go...

You see Outback Steak House wants 26.00 a pound for sirloin steak... They have a 'cheap' menu too... "Explore lighter fare that's light on your wallet." From it you can pay 30.00 a pound for chicken, if you like (5 oz chicken breast with a little bacon and cheese = 9.95)...

Or... maybe Outback chopped steak? Just over 22.00 a pound (7 oz = 9.95) for some, prime I'm sure, or I mean prime I hope, "ground aged steak". I wonder how much 'better' it is than the ground chuck I have... Maybe if I left my ground chuck lying around on the counter for a few days it would be ground 'aged' steak too...

Or baby backs... I love those little things... But talk about 'little'... 1/3 of a slab?! I think that might be the first time I have ever seen less than 1/2 a slab offered anywhere... (9.95 x 3 = 30.00 a slab for baby backs...)

I believe 'we', Americans, suffer under the strain of too much capacity, of, actually, being too pampered, with too many choices, too many niches, too many specialties... Also too much 'bling', too much emphasis (and added cost) for things like 'atmosphere' and branding... And... too much inflation. Since about 1913...

I also, personally, feel like American consumers are 'taken advantage of' by many/most corporations at every conceivable opportunity...

So you see, here's the thing... There could be one of two things going on here/there/at Outback, in *my* opinion anyway...

Maybe Outback Steak House is merely, intentionally, overcharging consumers... That would be there perogative in the American capitalist system. There is no 'law' against it... And, I suppose, if they can get enough people to pay 22.00 a pound for hamburger and 30.00 a pound for chicken they should do well... (I like $YUM better myself...)

Or, I suppose, their costs could be out of control...

I mean if you MUST, from a business standpoint, charge 22.00 a pound for hamburger and 30.00 a pound for chicken to cover your business expenses and still be able to turn a 'profit' then maybe your business/operating costs are too high??? Maybe you need to downsize and reduce costs...

I mean I understand that a business has to pay for utilities and labor and inventory and all... but come on... At *my* house chicken runs what? Maybe 1.50 a pound... I am perfectly capable of throwing a little bacon and cheese on top of a chicken breast myself... We're pretty good 'cooks' at my house... I guess maybe that helps a lot...

As far as 'atmosphere' goes... Have an extra glass of wine or two... Come on...

I just couldn't bring myself to go based solely on principle... Of course the part that sucks is that Outback Steak House already HAS the 35.00... lol

But we still ate! lol But, I decided I'd rather spend 32.00 out of my own pocket than give Outback Steak House the satisfaction of serving me...

We ate somewhere else, with 'poor' people, 'old' people and 'round' people... Such is life...

The food was STILL really well prepared... I had some nice chicken breast, and pork, wrapped with applewood smoked bacon. It was good stuff...

I guess I will just give away the gift certificates...

Maybe it's just me... But 'sometimes', to me, some 'things' just seem strangely 'tragic'...tragic (traj′ik)

adjective

1. of, or having the nature of, tragedy
2. like or characteristic of tragedy; bringing great harm, suffering, etc.; calamitous, disastrous, fatal, etc.

Greg

Don't be a fool

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Nearly every single thing this government, this administration, is doing is a 'bailout', a redistribution of wealth. The 'taking' from those fortunate enough to still have a job for the purpose of dumping ever more government money, tax payer money, into the 'economy'. 'They' know that Americans have had it with the 'bailouts'... So 'they' seek to find innovative new ways to endlessly pump newly printed money into the economy without having to 'ask' for the permission of the American public...

'They' achieve this through extended unemployment as never before in our history. 'They' do it through the expanded food stamp program. 'They' unabashedly use tax payer dollars to pay the wages of union employees (ie; police, firemen, teachers). Any and every union organization that can tap into this stream of tax payer ca$h, provided by our government... Provided by a Federal Reserve who has the magical ability to 'print' mountains of brand new ca$h with a few keystrokes on a magical keyboard...

'They' do it through the 'ca$h for clunkers', 'ca$h for caulkers', 'ca$h for first time home buyers' programs. Is it not so obvious to everyone? That our entire economy is currently being 'propped up' through the ability of our kleptocratic government to 'take' from those who still have and 'give' it to those who do not? Propped up by our kleptocratic governments unique ability to print as much money as it requires?

But what of looming foreclosures? Millions more of them... What of an unemployment rate expected to rise through 2010 and possibly into 2011? An unemployment rate that in reality is already north of 17%? How many more toxic assets can the FED afford to buy? Adding to it's books worthless assets as collateral.

In reality *I* think 'they' are attempting to deal with what is already a new great depression, 'secretly'... 'They' don't want the public to know how bad things really are. So 'they' seek to conceal or ignore the facts to avoid a full scale public 'panic', with it's ensuing 'bank runs'... And that is all it would take... all it would take to bring this government and this econmy to their knees... a little old bank run... A little slip in consumer confidence (which may now be an oxymoron)...

And all this to avoid the TRUE bogeyman... 'deflation'.

The mere mention of the word sends chills of fright ripping through all elected officials and major corporations...

Why?

Because we have way too much 'supply' we have way too much 'capacity'. And all this excess supply and capacity, until now, has been supported by ever increasing debt levels, shouldered by the American 'consumer', by the American 'shopper class'.

Those days are now gone, in my opinion. We are already in a 'new economy'. One where ca$h, thrift, frugality rule... Millions of Americans have suddenly tired of the 'game' of unsustainable debt levels at rediculous interest rates.

There has already been a sea change in our economy. Within the 'consumer', within the 'shopper class'.

Nearly everything we buy, from food to aircraft, costs at least 6 times what we can 'make' it for ourselves. Inflation has already destroyed our purchasing power to the point that many Americans had no food or heat for their homes on Christmas day.

What would happen if we were to experience the 'deflation' our economy so desperately needs to heal?

Nothing good for corporations or government, neither small business or workers. It would be an ugly thing to be sure... But a 'thing' that is necessary none-the-less...

It would likely be similar to the depression of the 1930's. And, also as in the 1930's, it would be a thing of great pain but also a 'thing' of great cleansing and renewal...

Deflation is our savior actually... Those who fear its effects are the elites of our society... not us... Deflation would/will flush the excess from our system. Our massive oversupply of banks, insurance companies, hospitals, drug dealers (the 'legal' ones...), auto dealers (new and used), restaurants, retailers in general.. all would be drastically 'trimmed'... bankruptcies for everyone. And, along with them, our government would suffer additional huge losses of tax revenue. It would all collapse. As it should...

This is what our economy needs to survive... The cleansing effects of deflation. Deflation would cause our currency to rise in value. Your money would have more purchasing power, not less. Deflation is the mechanism through which our economy can 'adjust' to new economic realities...

However, it is the 'pain' of deflation that our government, the FED, the Central Banks, the entire financial industry, indeed nearly ALL of our economy, insurance companies, hospitals, drug companies, auto makers, seek desperately to 'avoid'...

For those entities see deflation differently than *I*... 'They' see it as TEOTWAWKI... which it would be... but in a good way... to me... Being rid of our corrupt kleptocratic government and our masters/monsters of greed, corporations...

I'm not quite sure what 'they' think 'they' can accomplish by replacing consumer spending and consumer credit with tax payer dollars directly from the FED and treasury... Especially when the 'money' must be 'printed' from thin air... When the 'money' is not even real... I'm not quite sure who, when and why decided the 'best' answer to a HUGE debt problem was to create MASSIVE additional debt...

These are the things that bother me... For the simple fact that SOMEONE, SOMEWHERE, along the chain of command, is NOT stupid... Maybe very nearly all of our elected 'representatives' are stupid, I can buy that... Our fearless, oh so elegant, president is obviously nothing more than a 'puppet' to be enjoyed by the most liberal of the left. But SOMEWHERE, SOMEONE, knows better... Yet 'they' lie and conceal the truth... Out of fear... Like a child caught in the act...

Who is really running this country right now? And do 'they' have our best interests at heart? Or only the interest of saving themselves?

Could all this really have something to do with Goldman Sachs and the financial elites?

If you have not already done so please read 'Obama's big sellout - Rolling Stone' and you will see... It is a somewhat lengthy article but, IMO, worth every precious second of your time...

It is my observation that the 'coup' has already occurred... The huge battle between government and the financial elites representing corporate America has already taken place. Behind the scenes, behind closed doors, behind the backs of the American people. In secrecy lest the American public become 'upset'... lest there be 'civil unrest' upon the land... The 'deals' have already been made... The American people are the losers...

The financial elites have won the battle. We, the people, must win the war...

'They' know 'we' know...

It is a stalemate now... Each side eying the other with great distrust... and disdain...

*I* wonder... who will blink first?

Have no doubt... America is 'different' now...

I have a very real 'fear' of the things that 'they' might plan to do to contain the collapse of the United States of America. Be ready for a rough and rocky ride in 2010...

Greg

Ancient_Warrior Shopping

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We did it!

We SPENT MONEY! In the name of Christmas no less!

So here is Ancient_Warrior dipping his toes into 'consumerism'... Mingling in with the 'shopper class'... I don't think they even realized it was me ;)

Here is our Day After Christmas shopping extravaganza...

I bought 'myself' (I'm so selfish...) a couple of books at our B. Dalton book sellers at the mall... They are 'going out of business' in Joplin and as a result ALL of their books were 40% off... I took advantage of that fact to pick up a copy of 'End the FED' -Ron Paul's best seller... Retail was 21.99 and I picked it up for 13.19 after a discount of 8.80.

I also picked up a copy of 'Game Over: How you can prosper in a shattered economy' -Stephen Leeb, PhD to see if I can glean any ideas on how better to position myself for the coming crash/disaster... Retail on it was 25.99 so with my 40% 'discount' (whatever...) I saved 10.40 and grabbed it for 15.59...

Only other thing I picked up for myself was a CD by Deftones -Adrenaline Not sure how good it is as I haven't yet listened to it... But I am a Deftones fan so... I 'bought' it at Sam Goody's, ALSO going out of business here... It was 'marked' 13.99. I got a 40% discount and then they gave me an unexpected additional 10% off at the register, which was kinda cool... So I got the 13.99 CD for 7.55 Not bad...

But... as usual... Mrs. Warrior kicked my a$$ in the savings department...

So did her 'shopping' at Macy's department store for new clothes for work...

She grabbed a 79.00 skirt for 75% off plus an additional 15% store coupon making her total on it 8.39! She got the same deal on 4 additional name branded items sweater 34.00 for 7.22, sweater 40.00 for 8.50, sweater 34.00 for 7.22 and sweater 44.00 for 9.35...

So... Mrs. Warrior got 234.00 worth of 'merchandise' for a grand total of 43.86, including taxes... Damn... that girl is GOOD!

lol

Happy Holidays to everyone! Enjoy your holiday and 'shopping'.

We all have to buy SOMETHING... Make it count!

Greg

Oh boy... Mrs. Warrior just got back home and I have a late 'update'...

Breaking news!

I love Queen Anne (Artificially flavored) Cordial Cherries... She just grabbed some of those for 25 CENTS a box! (Retail 1.25...) And a 40 lb bag of bird seed, normally 14.95 for 9.97... For our feathered friends ;)

I like silver

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*I* like silver better than gold... I have for quite awhile... It's just a much more 'useful' metal, IMO...



Greg

TRUST NO ONE!

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Did you see this 'stuff'?

-Michael J. Panzner

Everywhere and anywhere, those seen as rejecting even a small measure of an America-centric perspective will be labeled undesirables, subversives, and even “enemy combatants,” whether or not evidence supports the assertion.

--Chapter 11, "Social," Financial Armageddon

Although I predicted as much in my 2007 book, even I am shocked and unnerved at how quickly the U.S. is abandoning principles that once defined our nation as "the land of the free and the home of the brave." In "Supreme Court Guts Due Process Protection," Naked Capitalism highlights a recent development that should frighten the wits out of any American who is still capable of thinking:

Reader Walter passed along this distressing sighting from Chris Floyd’s blog. American civil liberties were gutted last week, and the media failed to take note of it.

The development? If the president or one of his subordinates declares someone to be an “enemy combatant” (the 21st century version of “enemy of the state”) he is denied any protection of the law. So any trouble-maker (which means anyone) can be whisked away, incarcerated, tortured, “disappeared,” you name it. Floyd’s commentary:

After hearing passionate arguments from the Obama Administration, the Supreme Court acquiesced to the president’s fervent request and, in a one-line ruling, let stand a lower court decision that declared torture an ordinary, expected consequence of military detention, while introducing a shocking new precedent for all future courts to follow: anyone who is arbitrarily declared a “suspected enemy combatant” by the president or his designated minions is no longer a “person.” They will simply cease to exist as a legal entity. They will have no inherent rights, no human rights, no legal standing whatsoever — save whatever modicum of process the government arbitrarily deigns to grant them from time to time, with its ever-shifting tribunals and show trials.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

You may read the full article here Shocked and Unnerved if you dare...

It is unbelievable, to me, that our 'Supreme' Court has decided that the government may, at it's discretion, arrest and hold indefinitely any American citizen 'they' choose simply by calling them a by a name different than 'they' call others... “suspected enemy combatant”? The 'Supreme' Court has just ruled that the administration has the unfettered ability to call any 'Patriot' 'they' choose, for any reason 'they' choose to do so, a “suspected enemy combatant”. Again, quoting from the article [with] "no inherent rights, no human rights, no legal standing whatsoever"

*My* question now would be... What makes our 'Supreme' Court so much different than the 'Mullahs' in Iran??? And their 'Supreme' Leader...

In *my* opinion, it is PAST time to be very afraid of what is going on in Washington these days...

Does anyone out there really think 'they' are going to lay out and explain their 'plans' for ANYTHING to the American people?! 'They' are laying the groundwork for something HUGE right now... USNORTHCOM, new detention centers around the country, see text of H.R. 645, our military is powerful enough to contain anything and everything... Apparently including even us...

And now this...

I do not 'mean' to be an 'alarmist'... but when you see all the pieces of the puzzle falling into place what is one to think?

I fear police state, civil war...

I CANNOT imagine an American soldier putting a bullet into the head of an American citizen...

But so much of 'war' today is a video game... drones/robots controlled remotely... And what if... just what if... that 'American citizen' has been 'called' a “suspected enemy combatant”? By someone... by nearly anyone now...

Greg

For Christmas

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Then said a rich man, Speak to us of Giving.

And he answered:

You give but little when you give of your possessions.

It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.

For what are your possessions but things you keep and guard for fear you may need them tomorrow?

And tomorrow, what shall tomorrow bring to the overprudent dog burying bones in the trackless sand as he follows the pilgrims to the holy city?

And what is fear of need but need itself?

Is not dread of thirst when your well is full, the thirst that is unquenchable?

There are those who give little of the much which they have---and they give it for recognition and their hidden desire makes their gifts unwholesome.

And there are those who have little and give it all.

These are the believers in life and the bounty of life, and their coffer is never empty.

There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward.

And there are those who give with pain, and that pain is their baptism.

And there are those who give and know not pain in their giving, nor do they seek joy, nor give with mindfulness of virtue;

They give as in yonder valley the myrtle breathes it's fragrance into space.

Through the hands of such as these God speaks, and from behind their eyes He smiles upon the earth.

It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give unasked, through understanding;

And to the open-handed the search for one who shall recieve is joy greater than giving.

And is there aught you would withhold?

All you have shall someday be given;

Therefore give now, that the season of giving may be yours and not your inheritors'.

You often say "I would give, but only to the deserving."

The trees in your orchard say not so, nor the flocks in your pasture.

They give that they may live, for to withhold is to perish.

Surely he who is worthy to recieve his days and his nights, is worthy of all else from you.

And he who has deserved to drink from the ocean of life deserves to fill his cup from your little stream.

And what desert greater shall there be, than that which lies in the courage and the confidence, nay the charity, of receiving?

And who are you that men should rend their bosom and unveil their pride, that you may see their worth naked and their pride unabashed?

See first that you yourself deserve to be a giver, and an instrument of giving.

For in truth it is life that gives unto life---while you, who deem yourself a giver, are but a witness.

And you receivers---and you are all receivers---assume no weight of gratitude, lest you lay a yoke upon yourself and upon him who gives.

Rather rise together with the giver on his gifts as on wings;

For to be overmindful of your debt, is to doubt his generosity who has the free-hearted earth for mother, and God for father.

By Kahlil Gibran "The Prophet" published 1923

Used without permission... Sorry...

Best wishes to ALL this holiday season!

Greg

Occupy Washington

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I have been calling for (as if THAT makes any difference!) usury laws for quite awhile now... To me one of the very FIRST things the, so called, congress, full of our, so called, representatives, should have done to help the American people who are not 'educated' enough to help themselves...

We have heard much recently about 'financial reform'. Is it real? No! Our 'representatives are currently passing new 'laws' to steal ever more money from American tax payers! Our 'government' is full to the brim with greed and corruption! Please read this article from the Rolling Stone Obama's Big Sellout to see how corrupted our kleptocratic elites really are! Openly! Our government is now under the COMPLETE control of the financial system! There has ALREADY been a coup!

And now... to add insult to injury please see this article, from the Huffington Post no less, to get an idea of how financial 'reform' is working out so far!

79.9 Percent Interest Credit Card From First Premier Banks Skirts New Regulations

Every single thing in Washington these days, and for DECADES before, is about THEM! Not us... 'They' have ALREADY destroyed life in America and are hard at work to produce enough Chinese 'consumers', a large enough Chinese 'shopper class' to stand in for the now decimated American 'shopper class'... 'They' will never stop... Unless we, the people, stop them.

'They', our elected 'representatives', are way BEYOND out of control...

I want to take this country back... I want to take it back 'peacefully' by STOPPING the flow of money. By allowing markets to correct naturally and normally to a level that can be sustained. I want the charlatans and money changers to go bankrupt as they should have more than a year ago.

This economy was built on nothing but DEBT! It CANNOT last. It is currently propped up only by tax payer dollars! The government is forcibly taking money away from every single working American, from every single American who is fortunate enough to still HAVE a job, and handing that money out to Americans who have none... It is wealth redistribution on a massive scale! YOUR tax dollars are being used to pay teachers, firemen, policemen all over the country. That may SOUND like a good thing to some... But in reality it is merely the government taking money away from those who have and using it to support collapsing unions! Cash for clunkers, first time home buyer credit, now cash for caulkers! It is ALL only wealth redistribution! That is NOT how the America *I* grew up in works! Laws mean NOTHING now! Look what 'they' did to bond holders at GM! Look how 'they' paid Goldman Sachs 100% on assets through AIG that were worth no more than 30 to 40 CENTS on the dollar! 'They' are STEALING from us! CONSTANTLY! It MUST stop!

It is not right! It is not fair! It is not just! It is not American!

I have been tweeting today that it is TIME to 'occupy' Washington. The tea party rallies have been in large part 'ignored' by the main stream media and politicians alike. Now is the time to be impossible to ignore! The next time we go to Washington to express our 'displeasure' with our kleptocratic 'leaders' lets plan on STAYING until we get something done, something 'fixed', the nation righted... Marching up there for a day only to be ignored is not enough!

Lets plan to STAY next time!

Happy Holidays...

Greg

Schiff on dollar, inflation, interest rates and obama

HEALTH CARE

Is it not obvious that the Democrats (and Republicans also...) have always 'planned' to drop the public option, and now the expansion of Medicare, as a way to win votes for the passage of health care reform?

It is simply another case of misdirection by the congress! Yet another theatrical production for our consumption staged by Democrats and Republicans alike...

'They' have done a good job of focusing public attention on the, so called, public option. On the coverage of illegal aliens. On the abortion issue. 'They' are merely using the same divisive issues 'they' ALWAYS use. Why? To confuse the American public as to what is really going on...

What IS really going on?

The obviously unconstitutional mandate to force Americans to buy a privately marketed product from privately operated companies! The fact that those companies happen to be INSURANCE companies only makes matters worse!

The entire medical complex in the United States is in dire financial circumstances! Health spending is where struggling Americans look FIRST to cut their own costs and cutting is exactly what they have been doing and continue to do. Hence our kleptocratic government has enbarked on this historic effort to forcefully TAKE money from struggling Americans.

What would this do to an American economy that has already been devastated? The government seeks to pile huge additional expenses (health care insurance) on the backs of an American public that already finds itself way over it's head with suffocating debt in the face of a real unemployment number north of 17%

This is the most brazen grab for American tax payer cash that I have ever seen! Though it does not get much press coverage at all... This can only be horrible for a struggling economy...

The entire health care industry in America is obviously, yet another, HUGE BUBBLE! The idiots have effectively priced the consumer completely out of the equation. Replacing them with insurance companies and government largess... It is bursting now and 'they' seek to 'prop it up' by once again STEALING the money from the American public!

However... if we try to look at it from the side of government we see exactly what the problem is. As millions of Americans continue to struggle with debt the entire medical industry will continue to bleed money as never before. Until it all collapses... This is what the government truly seeks to prevent with the theft of TRILLIONS more in tax payer dollars...

And... to top it all off... there will be NO change for Americans as far as getting health care coverage until YEARS after the bill passes! 'They' want to sit on their ass and 'collect' tax payer money for YEARS before using a dime of it to actually help Americans! UNBELIEVABLE!

What IS at risk is the constitution of the United States. If we ever agree to allow the United States government to mandate the purchase of a private product from a private company then we are no longer America...

This is so absurd that I can't believe it is happening in America...

Greg

Hopeless

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hope·less (hpls)

adj.

1. Having no hope; despairing. See Synonyms at despondent.

2. Offering no hope; bleak.

3. Incurable.

4. Having no possibility of solution; impossible.

---

hopeless·ness n.

hopeless·ly adv.

Am I just wasting my time?

I'm sure it's not just me who sees and thinks the things I see and think... Heard Jim Rodgers talking on CNBC yesterday 'There is no paper money we can trust...' Please take the time to see what Jim has to say about the US Dollar, politics, silver, palladium, agriculture, gold and us stocks



It's not like I 'want' to be a loser... It's not like I want America to collapse... exactly... I DO want America to change dramatically...

The thing is that TRUST has been destroyed in this country. The people no longer trust the government. The people no longer trust the corporations. So how can anyone figure that this is all going to just magically work out?! That on top of the fact that NOTHING HAS CHANGED! The government still wants to act like a bunch of greedy corrupt elitists with their hands in the pockets of the banksters and insurance companies. They don't want the money to end. The freaking banks and insurance companies haven't changed a bit. They still expect to kick back and collect on those 20%/30% loans! It's all STUPID! Nothing has changed yet! Until we see 'real change that we can believe in', to coin a phrase, this economy is doomed to collapse under it's own weight. They can't just continue to lie and shovel in tax dollars forever. It will collapse. The banks are insolvent but they don't worry a whit about kicking single mother's out of their homes and onto the street to get some more bad assets off their books. We're screwed. Period...

It seems that the current 'plan' is to just completely IGNORE the 16 MILLION plus Americans who cannot find work... To just PRETEND that everything is fine again... Just like it was in 2005...

The current administration never talks much about the unfortunate Americans caught up in this calamity of financial ineptitude... 'They' seek only to sweep these MILLIONS of Americans 'under the rug', out of sight out of mind... Hide them, and their suffering, from the rest of America...

I TRY very hard NOT to be political myself... mainly because I think the great MAJORITY of political America is corrupt to their very core, BOTH parties... But is anyone old enough to remember what the media did to Ronald Reagan on homelessness? It's no secret that the main stream media is biased in America... Can there be any doubt that had John McCain won the 2008 presidential election that the media would now be full of heart wrenching stories of Americans becoming unemployed and homeless? I don't see these stories about the administration of Barak Obama... Do you?

What has HAPPENED in this country is a major crime! Everyone who could possibly BE convinced WAS convinced to use 110% of two incomes for 'living expenses'... This worked so WONDERFULLY well for the banks, the government, the corporations of America that many common folks were encouraged to adopt this lifestyle...

Here is the 'problem' with that... When such a large percentage of Americans are/were living above and beyond their own two income means through the use of, not only easy, but strenuously marketed credit they ALL set themselves up for a disaster! A downturn in the economy that has cost MILLIONS of jobs has destroyed a large segment of 'middle class' America...

Many of the people, Americans, facing foreclosure and bankruptcy over the next few years are, or at least were, hard working American families. These hard working American families bought into the 'relatively new' idea that they deserved to be 'paid in advance' for their efforts. That they could use easy credit to have what they wanted now... That the value of their homes would forever increase... They put themselves in a position of weakness. Where the loss of one of the two jobs in the household, likely 40% to 60% of income, put them immediately into very dire circumstances... Those families who were unfortunate enough to lose BOTH incomes in this economic collapse are no doubt finding themselves in a hopeless and helpless situation...

Do the banks care that American families are being destroyed? The banks 'care' as far as the toxic assets on their books for sure... That is ALL most currently struggling American families ARE to the banks... Toxic assets...

Does the government care? The government, apparently, cares much more about the banks than they do about the havoc being dumped on American families... The banks and the markets seem to be the ONLY thing the government of the United States of America 'cares' about...

And, more importantly to me, the governments 'answer' to dealing with the problem seems to be, at least to me, to PRETEND the 'problem', the effected 'American families', do not exist... All that seems to be important to this government is propping up the devastated American economy at all costs (at TRILLIONS of dollars in costs...).

How do 'they' do this?

The FED is and has been printing money like a Zimbabwe wanna be... The FED simply creates money out of thin air on a computer keyboard and then conveniently moves that newly created cash onto the balance sheet of whatever INSOLVENT bank it chooses... It is FRAUD, it is COUNTERFEITING, it is NOT real money. The money the FED prints has the sole purpose of sloshing around in the insolvent financial system so that the insolvent financial system does not have to admit that it is the insolvent financial system! That newly created money is NOT entering the American economy at all! Banks are not lending it out... banks are 'trading' it! Banks are using newly printing money to trade/manipulate markets to generate HUGE profits for themselves... The government, the FED, the Central Banks and the entire financial system are fighting like hell to... survive...

And, as I have been saying for awhile now, IF the financial system were to collapse, (which in reality it ALREADY HAS), the our government would soon follow.

None of this is OUR problem... At least it doesn't have to be... 'They' are the 'money changers'... The government of the United States and the FED/Banking system. We, the people, can survive on one income...

In the case of job loss household expenses must be dramatically slashed. But wages are still such in this country that it is possible for an American family to live on a single income... Bankruptcies continue to rise along with foreclosures. This is a good thing. Our kleptocratic leaders passed new legislation in 2005 to make filing for bankruptcy more difficult for people... 'They' saw this 'trouble' coming far in advance... So what do 'they' do? Make it more diffult for Americans to get out from under a mountain of debt... 'They' continually mess around with bankruptcy laws and they ALWAYS favor the banks and corporations of America...

Our 'government' is now so completely OBSESSED with money that money is ALL that matters... And for good reason... If the money goes away then our government goes away as well...

There can NEVER again be trust in government or corporate America. Watching them flail around desperately to prop this economy up with TRILLIONS in tax payer dollars that didn't even EXIST previously is having a detrimental effect on my well being.

The SOLUTION to all of our problems seems so incredibly SIMPLE to me that I want to scream it from the rooftops... DISMANTLE the Federal Reserve! 'They' are a PRIVATE BANKING CABAL! DISMANTLE this THING we currently call our government! 'They' are ONLY there for themselves, to satisfy their own personal needs for fame and fortune, corruption and greed abounds throughout ALL of Washington! Does ANYONE think for a moment that our elected officials are there to help the American people prosper?! With very few exceptions our elected officials are corrupt to the core... Just LOOK AT THEM!

How can we, the (little) people, effect 'real' change in America?

STOP PLAYING! Stop buying! Take away the MONEY! Without MONEY none of them exist at all! Stop acting like programmed robots in a huge rush to spend 1.10 of every dollar you make! Stop being 'distracted' by politicians... Stop worrying about how much a top trader earns at a bank... Stop worrying about how much a top quarterback makes in the NFL... Stop being distracted by abortion issues, gay rights issues, illegal immigration issues, POLITICAL ISSUES! Worry about what is really IMPORTANT!

The DISMANTLING of this ponzi scheme of an economy we find ourselves STUCK WITH! The DISMANTLING of this corrupt, kleptocratic, now bordering on TYRANNICAL government we find ourselves STUCK WITH!

We MUST return to the America envisioned by our founding fathers... We MUST return to the founding principles of our constitution...

Have I been fooling myself... Is there NO hope for America? Is it already too late? Too late to turn back? Can *I* really make some sort of difference in the world? Will people ever really stand up to tyranny? Will America ever really be able to reverse course and restore itself as a great nation?

I must admit that lately I have felt as if I am wasting my time... That at best I am preaching to a TINY portion of the choir... That I am NOT the leader of some mighty resistance after all... That I have merely deluded myself... That maybe it is 'time' to just give it up... To surrender to the elites... That it is a war that cannot be won by the American people... That no matter what the cost we are all doomed and that there is little or nothing that we can do about it... That maybe it is best to just silently accept the facts that we are a different country now... that America is in a different place in history and that there is NOTHING that can be done about it...

Nothing short of listening to Thomas Jefferson...

"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."

"The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not."

"When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty."

"When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe."

"The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government."

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them."

Greg

Watch those retailers

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Closely...

We have been looking for a good 'Christmas deal' (who isn't this year?). We were in need of a good crock pot as a gift...

Saw an 'ad' this week. A 50.00 crock pot on 'sale' for 29.99... Not bad at 40% off. But the 'kicker' that caused the wife to rush out the door this morning was 'take an EXTRA 30% off today only between 7:00 AM and noon'. So that was her 'mission'...

Had a bit of a hard time finding it but they did manage to come up with one which she then took to the register.

It rang up at the 29.99 'sale price' but did NOT ring the additional 30% off (kaching!). Of course my wife, being the 'pit bull' shopper she is (lol), called them on it. The wife had, mistakenly, forgotten her ad copy and apparently the store (Sears...) had a difficult time finding a copy of their own ad (which I think is just plain strange...). However they did, finally, manage to come up with a copy of the ad as well... Which, of course, clearly stated take an additional 30% off between 7:00 AM and noon today...

So once the 'checkers' had verified the ad for themselves they then had to track down a member of 'management' who had the 'ability' to overrride the register system and the deal was done! She received the additional 30% off (about 9.00) and ended up with a 50.00 crock pot for about 21.00 (pretty much 58% off!).

There ARE some 'deals' out there... Go find them...

But watch those 'retailers' like a hawk...

I cannot 'say' that this 'insignificant' little 'mix up' on pricing was intentional... That I just cannot know...

But I CAN say that every customer who bought and paid for that particular 'product', between 7:00 AM and noon today, got screwed out of an additional 30% in savings, one of the 'checkers' even said as much, UNLESS they were 'on their game' and called the store on it and were willing to spend a little extra time to make sure the store 'got it right'.

It sure 'seems' to me that advertising a special/additional 30% off 'deal' to draw additional 'bargain hunting' consumers into the store is a good 'plan'. After all it was a purchase that had 'good value'.

But I also HAVE to wonder if, somehow, not getting that 'deal' programmed into the register system was a 'happy little accident' or... something far more 'sinister'...

Happy holiday shopping to all! Hold those retailers feet to the fire! Have fun, 'take some names' and 'kick some ass'

;)

Greg

Sinister...

• baleful: threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments; "a baleful look"; "forbidding thunderclouds"; "his tone became menacing ...
• black: stemming from evil characteristics or forces; wicked or dishonorable; "black deeds"; "a black lie"; "his black heart has concocted yet another black deed"; "Darth Vader of the dark side"; "a dark purpose"; "dark undercurrents of ethnic hostility"; "the scheme of some sinister intelligence ...

Bunning on Bernanke

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We should ALL be outraged by the FED's actions. Since 1913...

This sounds like TRUTH to me... Audit the FED, end the FED...



Greg

Core 'issues'

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Wow... this gal seems like such a wonderful person... We need many more people like her out there fighting for what is 'morally right' over what is 'profitable' for the company they find themselves 'chained' to...

When she speaks of having empathy with/for others you can tell it is from her heart. You can tell there is a battle raging within her to actually do what she can to try to 'really' help others vs the, as she calls them, 'inherently evil' policies of the company for which she toils...

She presents a very clear picture of the way America is now... It truly seems that it has become 'us vs them'. While Federal Reserve interest rates remain at or near never before seen lows, apparently for eternity, she speaks of Americans struggling with 29.99% credit card interest rates, 15.00 'fees' just to make a payment!, 39.00 late fees, 39.00 over limit fees....

It HAS to be so obvious to everyone just how little the life/security/situation of Americans mean to corporate elites. All 'they' see are dollars... nothing else matters. It is the same with our government...

But we, the people, have managed to hold onto the 'values' that have always made America the great nation she is.

This sets up a rather extreme 'clash of cultures', IMO...

A dramatic clash is coming... a clash between historical American 'values' vs the greed and corruption of corporate America and our government.

The 'system' that exists in America now is SO unfair that NO ONE should participate in it at all!

It is *my* opinion that both corporate America and our government have already lost the battle... 'they' have already failed. 'They', currently, are making a massive effort to 'convince America' that 'nothing' has changed... That everything is as it always has been.

'They' contimue to PRETEND there is nothing 'morally wrong' with entrapping under-educated Americans, young and old alike, with extremely 'punitive' legal contracts that they do not understand... This is now considered 'standard practice' in American business. It is just a normal part of the worship of 'fiat currency' that permeates American business and government. 'They' want us to believe that corporations and government itself have done nothing wrong at all... That 'things' are as they should be.

It is my own personal belief that things in America will not improve significantly until/unless nearly 40% of business' go bankrupt

You see... IF corporations and government were to actually DO what is 'right', 'fair', 'just', for the American people then our economy would totally collapse immediately! 'They' simply CANNOT 'afford' to do anything that is right and fair for the American people. 'They' have fallen into their own trap. Their 'evil?' plans have worked far too well! Far too many Americans find themselves 'ensnared' in the multiple 'debt traps' set by, nearly, every corporation in America.

Just a few things that 'bother' me...

Mail-in rebates (Normally these use a great deal of 'complexity' to make most a pure FRAUD)

Fine print (It will bite you in the ass almost every single time! 'They' always have ALL the advantage! Read some of these damned things! 'They' can do virtually ANYTHING THEY WANT! And YOU have virtually NO recourse! Don't sign it!)

'Painfully' high interest rates (While the FED remains at or near ZERO for the banks...)

NO yield at all for savings! As 'they' attempt to FORCE everyone into the maket...

Utility companies (Time for a rate increase... time for a rate increase... time for a rate increase... time for a rate increase... (customer 'service' charges...) time for a rate increase...))

Taxes (taxes and MORE taxes... on EVERYTHING! Breathing will be taxed soon! As part of health insurance 'reform' no doubt...)

Data manipulation (by the government/FED The lie of 'growth' vs the reality of demographics, lies about spending and borrowing being 'good' for the economy when 'they' SHOULD be pushing financial literacy and saving!) (The 'hiding' of the TRUE unemployment number... the TRUE GDP numbers, the TRUE money supply numbers, the TRUE CPI numbers, the TRUE reason for the dollar's recent weakness, the TRUTH about what the 'private' Federal Reserve has done and is doing with OUR tax dollars! check Shadow Government Statistics for details...)

Credit cards (The greatest weapon of mass destruction ever created in the USA) - (Extreme debt trap #1) (I like to think that to a credit card company getting a customer buried completely in debt feels about like one of us having the good fortune of hooking into a 6 pound bass... Sweet...)

Rent to own (For the MOST uneducated of the uneducated...)

Payday loans (For the MOST uneducated of the uneducated...('I got ME some CASH!' (some 'fiat currency anyway...))) Who CARES what the interest rate is???) (For a $15 charge on a $100 2-week payday loan, the APR is 26 × 15% = 390% but the EAR (effective annual rate) is (1.15²⁶ − 1) × 100% = 3,685%)

Cable/Satellite (See cell phones...)

Cell phone (Rip off legally binding contracts with the best of them... These bastards (sorry...) charge you for even 'thinking' about doing something with your phone...)

Insurance (Insurance for EVERYTHING! (Pet health insurance anyone???) 29 MILLION hits on Google... And Americans are about to be FORCED to purchase a 'product' (Health Care 'insurance') from a 'private' (for profit) company for the first time in American history!)

Car dealerships (They HAVE to recruit these sales people/finance 'officers' right out of some school (or prison) for scammers... IF a person 'allows' them to do it they will load up your 'car loan' with THOUSANDS of dollars worth of extra 'crap'! Mainly and namely, once again, INSURANCE!)

Real estate (Hire 3 attorney's to look over that contract just to be safe...)

Retail in general (Everything costs 6x too much, 6x more than you can do it yourself, think about it... Anything you can make yourself at home will cost you at least 6 times as much to have a business 'sell' it to you...)

Laws/ordinances/codes/regulations (There are SO many and there is SO much 'complexity' that you are 'doomed' before you even start...)

Employment (You'll get a better idea of what people are forced to 'endure' in many workplaces when you watch the video below.) (It is my opinion that business could no longer care less about what might be 'fair' treatment of their customers. The best they do is to try to have 'good' call centers to give customers the run around. So many 'common' business practices today simply 'violate' employees own personally held moral beliefs and values.)

Retirement (Forget about it... Markets are so nuts now with all the governmental/FED/Central Bank/Sovereign wealth fund manipulation to take money away from YOU so it can be handed to members of the 'collapsed financial system' that 'Sound financial planning' no longer even exists! It's an impossibility! NO ONE knows what is going to take place in ANY asset class!)

Education school loans (Just one more trick to increase the 'debt load' on Americans... Only the government itself gets a huge 'cut' of this one...)

Health cares completely unsustainable costs (There is NO 'plan' to reduce costs and there never WILL be! The ONLY 'plans' being considered now are how to dramatically INCREASE YOUR COSTS through federally 'mandated' health care COSTS for ALL, under the threat of fines/imprisonment, and taxation throughout the health care industry that YOU will end up paying...)

Drug companies (They seek to have every single American in the country on as many drugs as they possibly can! Whatever it is that 'ails' you there is a drug available for it. Watch out for the government 'mandating' the taking of some sort of DRUGS for all Americans soon!)

Blatant illegal scams (that NO ONE seems to be able to control at all!)

The ONLY way for Americans to remain 'safe' in the current economy is to NEVER sign their name to ANYTHING without first having it closely examined by a qualified attorney!

There can be NO trust in American business OR government. 'They' continually PROVE themselves to be totally untrustworthy... Don't be a fool... TRUST NO ONE!

Which why *my* advice to all Americans is and has been to STOP PLAYING this ridiculous 'game'! STOP signing your name on ANY dotted line without SERIOUS due diligence! Buy what you NEED, not what you WANT. Purchase 'used' merchandise whenever possible to accomplish two important 'goals'. 1> It saves you a ton of money 2> It keeps money out of the hands of those corporate elites who knowingly seek to destroy America only to move, happily, on to running the SAME SCAM in China and Indian!

I hope this video will convince many many more Americans that their own personal values are far more important than any 'job' will ever be... Lets all agree to stand up FOR each other and AGAINST tyranny...

Celente on Bernanke & the dollar

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Gerald Celente on Bernanke, the Fedral Reserve, the dollar and the economy...

Enjoy...

Glenn Beck and Peter Schiff Economic Tyranny

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"Maybe if we stop spending the politicians are toast but we're toast if we keep spending." - Peter Schiff

Love them or hate them in *my* opinion these two guys have the economy right.

We're trying to add to the TOP of a bubble... Our kleptocratic government and banking system is 'blowing' like never before. This is merely a continuation of the failed 'techniques/policies/manipulation' used after 9/11 that got us into this situation in the first place!

Our ENTIRE ECONOMY is a FRAUD! It's ALL built on DEBT!

'They' KNOW this! 'They' think the 'answer' is to HIDE THE FACTS from the American people!

The majority of the money now in our 'economy' is nothing more than zeros and ones in a CPU at the FED (or on the balance sheets of bankrupt banks).

It's NOT REAL MONEY!

'They' simply 'create' money out of thin air to hand it over to the banks! How much of the 24 TRILLION DOLLARS that have been 'passed out' ended up in YOUR pocket?! 'WE', the people, are expected to cover ALL of our debt, even though we HAVE NO JOBS, while the government and banks are expected to cover NONE of theirs! 'They' just PRINT MONEY to pay the bills! This is blatant FRAUD! When/if WE do it it is called counterfeiting!

Why? Why are 'they', our government and financial elites, working so hard to prop up a system that has ALREADY FAILED?

Because if the 'system' fails 'they' fail... (Paulson himself has said as much) it's truly THAT simple...

It's ALL about THEM. NONE of this is about us... The whole game to date has been about nothing more than pumping newly printed/FABRICATED money into the FAILED/BANKRUPT banking system so the FAILED/BANKRUPT banking system can use it to MANIPULATE the market to stuff themselves full of 'fiat currency' for he purpose of 'extending the lie' that the economy is improving. And this ONLY to save the asses of greedy corrupt politicians and financial elites!

I FEAR what their 'true plan', their 'hidden agenda', really is... It's coming... We are getting very close to experiencing 'change' that we never imagined possible before now... (Think collapse of the Soviet Union).

Think collapse of the United States of America...

It HAS to STOP! It HAS to BE stopped... And 'we', the people, are the only ones who CAN stop it.

The alarm is going off... now... please wake up America...

The First Four Trumpets

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Excerpt from 2008 - God's Final Witness -Ronald Weinland (p117) -FREE book download
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The First Four Trumpets
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The first four trumpet blasts will announce four powerfully
destructive events that will bring about the total collapse of
the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia,
New Zealand, and some countries of Western Europe. The
direct effect of all four events is first and foremost upon the
United States.

The events, declared by these first four trumpets, are a
prophetic fulfillment of the symbolism contained in the events of
9-11, when the World Trade Towers and the Pentagon were
struck by terrorism. It is during the time of the first four trumpets
when the symbolism of 9-11 is accomplished; the economy,
government and military might of the greatest nation on earth is
struck a fatal blow.

The chain reaction, which will follow, is the very thing that
will lead immediately into World War III. It will be the last war
that mankind will ever fight! Before this final three and one-half
years comes to a complete end, all military forces around the
world will have been destroyed, every economy will be
decimated, several billion people will have died, and vast
destruction will cover every part of the earth.
---
Excerpt from 2008 - God's Final Witness -Ronald Weinland (p117) -FREE book download
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Greg

Consumerism - part 2

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Meet Edward Bernays...

Bernays was one of the first to attempt to manipulate public opinion using the subconscious.

He felt this manipulation was necessary in society, which he regarded as irrational and dangerous as a result of the 'herd instinct' that Trotter had described.^{[citation needed]} Adam Curtis's award-winning 2002 documentary for the BBC, The Century of the Self, pinpoints Bernays as the originator of modern public relations, and Bernays was named one of the 100 most influential Americans of the 20th century by Life magazine.^[2]

"If we understand the mechanism and motives of the group mind, is it not possible to control and regiment the masses according to our will without their knowing about it? The recent practice of propaganda has proved that it is possible, at least up to a certain point and within certain limits."

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After experiencing a wonderfully insightful video provided to me by @profitsee I am compelled to once again tackle the evils of consumerism armed with new knowledge... new insight...

If we are ever to 'fight back' then we damned well better know who the enemy is and how the enemy operates. No?

We MUST be able to shake off the 'psychological chains' which have been used to bind us, if we are to survive. We are the people of the world... The world belongs to US, not the elites who seek to control us mind, body and soul, through whatever means necessary...

The video, to which I will supply a link at the bottom of this post, is two hours in length and worth every single second of anyone's time, IMO. It is a history of the 'planned manipulation' of humankind dated to the early 1920's. It discusses Freud's insights into the inner working of the human mind and the rise of Edward Bernays as the father of 'Public Relations' and the creator of 'The Engineering of Consent'. It is a video that clearly explains how people, the world over, have been intentionally manipulated and molded into, in many cases, who we are today. At the behest of elites, aided by psychologists and marketing genius', who seek power and wealth through control of the human psyche.

Obviously this leads one to ask... Are 'we' really so foolish? So naive as to be easily manipulated by elites in both government and industry? No... not really... We are 'people' who experience the same needs, wants and desires the world over. The elites are the ones who differentiate themselves from us, not we from them.

It seems that Freud and Bernays considered the masses to be 'stupid', to be filled with uncontrolled passions and desires that presented a danger to society. The study of the human mind presented many amazing, enlightening insights as to what a human being is, how human beings 'react' to various stimuli. I fault not the study of the human mind. What I find great fault with is the hoarding and abuse of this knowledge, by elites, for the sole purpose of manipulating human beings in such a way as to coerce them into behaving in specific ways that are not, necessarily, beneficial to themselves but solely for the benefit of governmental and corporate elites.

The elites consider 'us', the people of the world, to be not much more than 'cattle'. To be 'ruled', to be 'controlled', to be 'manipulated', at will... For their own benefit. This is ESPECIALLY true in the United States of America.

Do others, besides myself, see the way in which the opinions, concerns, voices of the American people, right here, right now, are completely ignored by the ruling elites?

We, the people of the world, need to revert to 'need' over 'want'. We, the people of the world, need to shake ourselves FREE from the 'chains' of forced consumerism. Our Chinese and Indian friends are in 'grave danger' of falling prey to the same scheme that has destroyed America...

How do we, indeed how can we hope to shake free from decades of psychological manipulation at the hands of our kleptocratic governmental and corporate elites? Through the acquisition of knowledge. Through a thorough understanding of who the enemy is and what their 'tactics' are. And through communication, as never before.

We, Americans, have allowed ourselves to be 'conditioned' as 'passive consumers'. We have become not much more than lap dogs subject to the whims and desires of governmental and corporate elites. We are all 'taught' at an early age, through a government controlled 'public' education system, to be 'good citizens'. To conform our own behavior to the 'social norms' as they are defined by the very same elites who provide our 'free' education. Conflict of interest?!

Is it not quite obvious to all that the media itself is controlled, to a large degree, by the same elites who wish to enslave us? That the media's main role and purpose is to convince us of the virtuous motivations and actions of our own individual governments? Is it not the media's 'assignment' to convince the 'people' when war is good or when war is bad? Is it not the duty of the media to convince us who the 'bad' guys are and that we, regardless of origin, are the 'good' guys? This applies to just about every industrialized nation, every (independent?) government in the world.

What we have today, in *my* opinion, is a world wide form of oppressive social control. We, the people of the world, are not how we should be... This is not 'who' we are... This is, in large part, who we have been designed to be. We are all but 'servants' to the elites...

This is nothing less than a war for our very souls my friends... If 'we' fail to take it seriously I promise you, with all my heart, that the elites will NEVER fail to take it seriously... It has served them well for many decades now. It is TIME for the enlightenment of human beings!

The elites use tremendous resources, scientific enlightenment, psychological manipulation, whatever means necessary, to achieve their own lofty goals of wealth and power, of self gratification, at our expense...

Check out what planned obsolescence means...

Planned obsolescence or built-in obsolescence^[1] is the process of a product becoming obsolete and/or non-functional after a certain period or amount of use in a way that is planned or designed by the manufacturer.^[1] Planned obsolescence has potential benefits for a producer because the product fails and the consumer is under pressure to purchase again, whether from the same manufacturer (a replacement part or a newer model), or from a competitor which might also rely on planned obsolescence. ^[1] The purpose of planned obsolescence is to hide the real cost per use from the consumer, and charge a higher price than they would otherwise be willing to pay (or would be unwilling to spend all at once).

From that point on, "planned obsolescence" became Stevens' catchphrase. By his definition, planned obsolescence was...

"Instilling in the buyer the desire to own something a little newer, a little better, a little sooner than is necessary."

Is this not war at a most basic level? Is it not being perpetrated on us by elites? It seems that maybe to elites ALL is war... No? 'They' seek to use every single thing at their disposal to control our behavior. 'They' have more resources than do we... It IS psychological 'warfare' and China and India are he next 'targets' on the world stage. China and India are already firmly targeted as the world's next economic engine, as the world's next generation of 'shopper classes'.

So all is lost? Yes and no... in my opinion... We have ONE thing now that 'we', the people of the world, have never had at our disposal before... Communication on a grand scale. The evil plots and plans of the elites, world wide, must fail... 'We', the people of the world, have the ability to make that happen. There are only 2 things, as I see it, that the elites cannot live without... Were we to begin to systematically remove these things from their grasp we could truly 'change the world' for the betterment of human beings.

Money and power.

And, quite conveniently in my opinion, if we just remove the money alone then the power of the elites will also vanish. This is NOT rocket science! Even 'we', the people of the world, even the dumbed-down 'shopper classes' can DO this!

Simply STOP buying... Purchase what you 'need' and only what you 'need'. Not what you 'want'. That is the way Americans used to be... before...

STOP purchasing what you 'want'... What you 'want' can wait... That is what defines it as a 'want'... Americans 'want' way too much... Americans 'need' way to little... Do not ALLOW the elites to cast Americans aside as 'depleted shoppers/consumers' only to move on to corrupt the lives, the very existance, of our Chinese and Indian friends...

The reign of the elites must end... 'They' have already, practically, destroyed themselves... Lets all communicate, lets all cooperate, to 'finish them'...

As 'we', the people of the world...

"We must shift America from a needs- to a desires-culture. People must be trained to desire, to want new things, even before the old have been entirely consumed. [...] Man's desires must overshadow his needs." -Paul Mazer (a Wall Street banker working for Lehman Brothers in the 1930s)

Here is the promised link to 'The Engineering of Consent' video (2 hours total)

Greg