---
Hey.. it's not incest or anything.. He just married my wife's sister is all ;)
When he and I were kids we used to listen to this album (yes album lol) of the 1967 Cardinals.
So anyway.. he has this good (life long) friend who works for this company who owns blocks of St. Louis Cardinal baseball game tickets..
So this friend invited OJ (my cousin) to go to World Series game 6 in St. Louis with him!
The lucky bastard ;)
The friend had to go back to work on Thursday so the plan was for my cousin to drive all the way back so he could sleep and be ready to go to work Thursday morning.
So they head out Wednesday, for St. Louis. A little more than a 5 hour drive.
And they get within a half hour or so of the city and find out the game has been canceled due to weather!
So they turn around and drive back to Harrison Arkansas (they never intended to stay over anyway).
So 10 hours round trip and then Thursday they got to do it all over again!
At least they got to see a fantastic game in the end
I'm sure he's happy.
Greg
Friday, October 28, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
What is the Occupy Movement? | Hey #Sheeple! Read this & get on board!
---
I was just asked a question, "What is the point of the Occupy Movement?"
Very valid question. And the answer is quite simple: We, the people of the world, realize that the way in which we are living is no longer sustainable. We seek to make changes but those who control nearly everything are too few and only make changes that suit themselves. In fact the powerful few are often ruthless, greedy and wildly irresponsible with our resources and with the power we have given them. We seek to to take our power back - nonviolently. Under that umbrella are a whole host of concerns, ranging from the influence of money in politics, unjust wars, rigged banking systems, ecological concerns, just to name a few. This is a rapidly growing group movement but it is also a personal movement. That is why the question was asked, "What is your demand?" What we are engaged in is a shift in the power structure and we are prepared for the responsibility both collectively and personally that will come with that. We seek a better world.
Link back on Daily Kos
---
Better world.. yep it's that simple ;)
Greg
I was just asked a question, "What is the point of the Occupy Movement?"
Very valid question. And the answer is quite simple: We, the people of the world, realize that the way in which we are living is no longer sustainable. We seek to make changes but those who control nearly everything are too few and only make changes that suit themselves. In fact the powerful few are often ruthless, greedy and wildly irresponsible with our resources and with the power we have given them. We seek to to take our power back - nonviolently. Under that umbrella are a whole host of concerns, ranging from the influence of money in politics, unjust wars, rigged banking systems, ecological concerns, just to name a few. This is a rapidly growing group movement but it is also a personal movement. That is why the question was asked, "What is your demand?" What we are engaged in is a shift in the power structure and we are prepared for the responsibility both collectively and personally that will come with that. We seek a better world.
Link back on Daily Kos
---
Better world.. yep it's that simple ;)
Greg
Nursing Homes Squeezed by Medicare Cuts - ALL of the pain is inflicted on American citizens BY DESIGN
---
The nation's nursing homes are facing a $4 billion drop in annual payments from Medicare. The cuts affect reimbursement fees for what's known as "post-acute care" for seniors at skilled nursing facilities. Such services are needed by seniors who have been hospitalized and require rehabilitative services before returning to their own homes. Medicare does not cover long-term nursing home stays.
The extensive wrangling and possible impact of these relatively small cuts provides a preview of the brutal fights that would take place in any efforts to reduce the nation's huge federal deficits. They are projected at more than $1.3 trillion this year and $1.1 trillion for the year beginning this October—several hundred times the size of the nursing home reimbursement cuts.
---
When if we cut government programs / spending the lost revenue that results for corporations is retrieved from who? As usual, the workers!
"Staffing accounts for more than two-thirds of a typical nursing facility's expenses, so employment cutbacks would be a likely place for expense reductions. Such cutbacks could adversely affect the quality that seniors receive at such homes, Minnix said."
This is the way capitalism is DESIGNED to work! When if any corporation is faced with declining profits they cut back on labor costs. It has ALWAYS worked that way as it is DESIGNED to work that way! And it will most certainly continue to work that way.
While all of the Too Big to Fail's continue to be "propped up" (ie; Banks, insurance companies, auto companies, big pharma, big oil, etc..) ALL of the pain is inflicted on American citizens BY DESIGN.
It is the DESIGN that must change! However that will NEVER happen as the elite of society around the world have ALL of their wealth and power invested in the survival of the status quo.
My daughter is a nurse and works in a nursing home.. As a result of these cuts, expected to cost her company 3 million over the next year in only 2 states, Missouri and Kansas, the response of the company, so far, has been.
* Eliminate all employee bonus'
* No raises will be given for at least the next year.
So when our government touches entitlements, even a little bit, it immediately affects workers. Employees will lose ground financially while inflation increases further with no wage increases at all.
That is if you are fortunate enough just to hold onto your job..
Here's the full story Nursing Homes Squeezed by Medicare Cuts
---
The nation's nursing homes are facing a $4 billion drop in annual payments from Medicare. The cuts affect reimbursement fees for what's known as "post-acute care" for seniors at skilled nursing facilities. Such services are needed by seniors who have been hospitalized and require rehabilitative services before returning to their own homes. Medicare does not cover long-term nursing home stays.
The extensive wrangling and possible impact of these relatively small cuts provides a preview of the brutal fights that would take place in any efforts to reduce the nation's huge federal deficits. They are projected at more than $1.3 trillion this year and $1.1 trillion for the year beginning this October—several hundred times the size of the nursing home reimbursement cuts.
---
When if we cut government programs / spending the lost revenue that results for corporations is retrieved from who? As usual, the workers!
"Staffing accounts for more than two-thirds of a typical nursing facility's expenses, so employment cutbacks would be a likely place for expense reductions. Such cutbacks could adversely affect the quality that seniors receive at such homes, Minnix said."
This is the way capitalism is DESIGNED to work! When if any corporation is faced with declining profits they cut back on labor costs. It has ALWAYS worked that way as it is DESIGNED to work that way! And it will most certainly continue to work that way.
While all of the Too Big to Fail's continue to be "propped up" (ie; Banks, insurance companies, auto companies, big pharma, big oil, etc..) ALL of the pain is inflicted on American citizens BY DESIGN.
It is the DESIGN that must change! However that will NEVER happen as the elite of society around the world have ALL of their wealth and power invested in the survival of the status quo.
My daughter is a nurse and works in a nursing home.. As a result of these cuts, expected to cost her company 3 million over the next year in only 2 states, Missouri and Kansas, the response of the company, so far, has been.
* Eliminate all employee bonus'
* No raises will be given for at least the next year.
So when our government touches entitlements, even a little bit, it immediately affects workers. Employees will lose ground financially while inflation increases further with no wage increases at all.
That is if you are fortunate enough just to hold onto your job..
Here's the full story Nursing Homes Squeezed by Medicare Cuts
---
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
#government is to "help" people? BS BAPCPA
---
The politicians in Washington, the congress of the United states, always "claim" to have the answers to "help" American citizens deal with their "problems".
We all know, or should know by now, that the truth of the matter is that all the politicians and congress seem to care about in reality is the well being of their masters in the financial sector.
Check the two articles below for the flavor of how this goes down..
Congress / politicians apparently KNEW Student Loans were a problem (bubble) in the 1970's and moved, in 1998, to exempt student loans from bankruptcy courts.
Apparently they KNEW the economy was in even bigger trouble in 2005 when they made major changes in bankruptcy law to protect creditors.
What we have now is nothing new.. This is the way it has ALWAYS worked in Washington.
What matters to Washington, politicians, bankers and corporations is MONEY, not you..
These so-called laws are nothing short of crony capitalism tyranny.
Enjoy the free education below..
Greg
---
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act
Full title An Act to amend title 11 of the United States Code, and for other purposes.
Acronym BAPCPA
Colloquial name(s) Bankruptcy Reform
Enacted by the 109th United States Congress
Citations
Public Law Pub.L. 109-8
Stat. 119 Stat. 23—217
Codification
Legislative history
Introduced in the Senate as S. 256 by Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on February 1, 2005
Committee consideration by: Senate Judiciary, House Judiciary
Passed the Senate on March 10, 2005 (74–25)
Passed the House on April 14, 2005 (302–126)
Signed into law by President George W. Bush on April 20, 2005
Major amendments
Relevant Supreme Court cases
The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) (Pub.L. 109-8, 119 Stat. 23, enacted April 20, 2005), is a legislative act that made several significant changes to the United States Bankruptcy Code. Referred to colloquially as the "New Bankruptcy Law", the Act of Congress attempts to, among other things, make it more difficult for some consumers to file bankruptcy under Chapter 7; some of these consumers may instead utilize Chapter 13. Voting record of S. 256 [1].
It was passed by the 109th United States Congress on April 14, 2005 and signed into law by President George W. Bush on April 20, 2005. Most provisions of the act apply to cases filed on or after October 17, 2005.
It was widely claimed by advocates of BAPCPA that its passage would reduce losses to creditors such as credit card companies, and that those creditors would then pass on the savings to other borrowers in the form of lower interest rates. These claims turned out to be false. After BAPCPA passed, although credit card company losses decreased, prices charged to customers increased, and credit card company profits soared.[1]
Read more on WikiPedia
The Fall of Consumer Protections for Student Loans
In the 1970's, Congress began to remove standard consumer protections from student loans at the urgings of industry. Entities including Sallie Mae, USA Funds,(which was to be purchased by Sallie Mae in 1999), The Consumer Banker's Association, and others engaged in a deliberate long term strategy to make student loans inescapable, hugely profitable through not only loan payments, but also late fees, and default penalties. This campaign culminated in watershed legislation in 1998 that made student loans not only risk free, but also far more profitable when students defaulted on their loans.
However, the campaign did not end there. By 2006, student loans had become the most absent of consumer protections of any type of loan instrument in the nation's history.
Read more on StudentLoanJustice.org
The politicians in Washington, the congress of the United states, always "claim" to have the answers to "help" American citizens deal with their "problems".
We all know, or should know by now, that the truth of the matter is that all the politicians and congress seem to care about in reality is the well being of their masters in the financial sector.
Check the two articles below for the flavor of how this goes down..
Congress / politicians apparently KNEW Student Loans were a problem (bubble) in the 1970's and moved, in 1998, to exempt student loans from bankruptcy courts.
Apparently they KNEW the economy was in even bigger trouble in 2005 when they made major changes in bankruptcy law to protect creditors.
What we have now is nothing new.. This is the way it has ALWAYS worked in Washington.
What matters to Washington, politicians, bankers and corporations is MONEY, not you..
These so-called laws are nothing short of crony capitalism tyranny.
Enjoy the free education below..
Greg
---
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act
Full title An Act to amend title 11 of the United States Code, and for other purposes.
Acronym BAPCPA
Colloquial name(s) Bankruptcy Reform
Enacted by the 109th United States Congress
Citations
Public Law Pub.L. 109-8
Stat. 119 Stat. 23—217
Codification
Legislative history
Introduced in the Senate as S. 256 by Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on February 1, 2005
Committee consideration by: Senate Judiciary, House Judiciary
Passed the Senate on March 10, 2005 (74–25)
Passed the House on April 14, 2005 (302–126)
Signed into law by President George W. Bush on April 20, 2005
Major amendments
Relevant Supreme Court cases
The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA) (Pub.L. 109-8, 119 Stat. 23, enacted April 20, 2005), is a legislative act that made several significant changes to the United States Bankruptcy Code. Referred to colloquially as the "New Bankruptcy Law", the Act of Congress attempts to, among other things, make it more difficult for some consumers to file bankruptcy under Chapter 7; some of these consumers may instead utilize Chapter 13. Voting record of S. 256 [1].
It was passed by the 109th United States Congress on April 14, 2005 and signed into law by President George W. Bush on April 20, 2005. Most provisions of the act apply to cases filed on or after October 17, 2005.
It was widely claimed by advocates of BAPCPA that its passage would reduce losses to creditors such as credit card companies, and that those creditors would then pass on the savings to other borrowers in the form of lower interest rates. These claims turned out to be false. After BAPCPA passed, although credit card company losses decreased, prices charged to customers increased, and credit card company profits soared.[1]
Read more on WikiPedia
The Fall of Consumer Protections for Student Loans
In the 1970's, Congress began to remove standard consumer protections from student loans at the urgings of industry. Entities including Sallie Mae, USA Funds,(which was to be purchased by Sallie Mae in 1999), The Consumer Banker's Association, and others engaged in a deliberate long term strategy to make student loans inescapable, hugely profitable through not only loan payments, but also late fees, and default penalties. This campaign culminated in watershed legislation in 1998 that made student loans not only risk free, but also far more profitable when students defaulted on their loans.
However, the campaign did not end there. By 2006, student loans had become the most absent of consumer protections of any type of loan instrument in the nation's history.
Read more on StudentLoanJustice.org
The truth?! You can't HANDLE the #TRUTH!
---
From zerohedge.com written by Charles Hugh Smith (http://oftwominds.com)
The Big Lie here is implicit: "your house will someday come back in value, so hang in there, debt-serf." No, it won't. The bubble has popped, and the mania has left town. Housing will retrace to pre-bubble valuations circa 1996-98.
As usual, the Plan is all about managing perceptions and political theater: we're here to help the little guy, the struggling homeowner; we are in charge, we have a plan, we're competent, this will fix the housing market.
Too bad they're all lies. Perception management is not the same as actually solving the underlying problem, yet perception management is the Status Quo's response to every problem.
The perfection of debt-serfdom is now complete. First, make student loans "necessary" for the "good life" and then make that debt permanent and unbreakable. In other words, institutionalize debt-serfdom and lifelong servitude to the financial sector.
The re-fi "plan" herds potentially rebellious mortgage debt-serfs into new corrals, with the incentive of slightly lower interest rates. The lifetime of servitude to financial Overlords remains firmly in place. That's the "plan."
Read the full story on zerohedge.com Guest Post: Obama's Re-Fi Plan: The Perfection Of Debt-Serfdom
From zerohedge.com written by Charles Hugh Smith (http://oftwominds.com)
The Big Lie here is implicit: "your house will someday come back in value, so hang in there, debt-serf." No, it won't. The bubble has popped, and the mania has left town. Housing will retrace to pre-bubble valuations circa 1996-98.
As usual, the Plan is all about managing perceptions and political theater: we're here to help the little guy, the struggling homeowner; we are in charge, we have a plan, we're competent, this will fix the housing market.
Too bad they're all lies. Perception management is not the same as actually solving the underlying problem, yet perception management is the Status Quo's response to every problem.
The perfection of debt-serfdom is now complete. First, make student loans "necessary" for the "good life" and then make that debt permanent and unbreakable. In other words, institutionalize debt-serfdom and lifelong servitude to the financial sector.
The re-fi "plan" herds potentially rebellious mortgage debt-serfs into new corrals, with the incentive of slightly lower interest rates. The lifetime of servitude to financial Overlords remains firmly in place. That's the "plan."
Read the full story on zerohedge.com Guest Post: Obama's Re-Fi Plan: The Perfection Of Debt-Serfdom
#FX #trader wannabies.. this is serious shiite
---
First, if you don't already have something, you MUST have something else in your life that you LOVE doing that also requires concentration and execution.
That might be golf. It could be playing guitar. I suppose it could even be f'ing beautiful women.
Anyway.. the point being that you have something else in your life that you greatly enjoy, easy to do but difficult to master.
My own personal choice is 9-ball and I'm lucky in that I have a wife who enjoys playing too.
It soon became evident to me that there are times I seem to shoot very well and times that I don't shoot well at all.
When I'm not shooting well at all I tell my son I'm playing "knock the ball around" because that's what I do.. Nothing seems to want to work right, nothing will go down.
I shoot crappy when when I'm distracted. If I'm disinterested and just passing time, just knocking the ball around.
What I eventually realized is that when I'm shooting carelessly and not executing, even easy, shots I guarantee you my trading is suffering the same fate.
And when I am sharp in the market, running off nice long strings of winners, I'm very likely shooting a great 9-ball game.
So all I'm trying to relay here is that you need to at least listen to yourself. If you're in a foul mood, if your golf game sucks and you don't know, or particularly care, why, take extra precautions when trading or don't trade at all.
It just might improve your bottom line.
In the end it's the concentration and dedication to execution that matter.
Oh, and having a f'ing plan doesn't hurt either LMAO
So get with the program and join me in taking ALL the fiat away from those f'ing Primary Dealers and banks!
Taxpayers are counting on us to get all their fiat back from those bastards..
Lets not let them down.
Greg
First, if you don't already have something, you MUST have something else in your life that you LOVE doing that also requires concentration and execution.
That might be golf. It could be playing guitar. I suppose it could even be f'ing beautiful women.
Anyway.. the point being that you have something else in your life that you greatly enjoy, easy to do but difficult to master.
My own personal choice is 9-ball and I'm lucky in that I have a wife who enjoys playing too.
It soon became evident to me that there are times I seem to shoot very well and times that I don't shoot well at all.
When I'm not shooting well at all I tell my son I'm playing "knock the ball around" because that's what I do.. Nothing seems to want to work right, nothing will go down.
I shoot crappy when when I'm distracted. If I'm disinterested and just passing time, just knocking the ball around.
What I eventually realized is that when I'm shooting carelessly and not executing, even easy, shots I guarantee you my trading is suffering the same fate.
And when I am sharp in the market, running off nice long strings of winners, I'm very likely shooting a great 9-ball game.
So all I'm trying to relay here is that you need to at least listen to yourself. If you're in a foul mood, if your golf game sucks and you don't know, or particularly care, why, take extra precautions when trading or don't trade at all.
It just might improve your bottom line.
In the end it's the concentration and dedication to execution that matter.
Oh, and having a f'ing plan doesn't hurt either LMAO
So get with the program and join me in taking ALL the fiat away from those f'ing Primary Dealers and banks!
Taxpayers are counting on us to get all their fiat back from those bastards..
Lets not let them down.
Greg
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Ask Thomas Jefferson #OccupyWallStreet #ows #99Percent
---
A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government.
Thomas Jefferson
All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
Thomas Jefferson
Do not bite at the bait of pleasure, till you know there is no hook beneath it.
Thomas Jefferson
Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.
Thomas Jefferson
Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.
Thomas Jefferson
Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day.
Thomas Jefferson
Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves are its only safe depositories.
Thomas Jefferson
Experience demands that man is the only animal which devours his own kind, for I can apply no milder term to the general prey of the rich on the poor.
Thomas Jefferson
Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.
Thomas Jefferson
Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear.
Thomas Jefferson
For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security.
Thomas Jefferson
He who knows nothing is closer to the truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods and errors.
Thomas Jefferson
History, in general, only informs us of what bad government is.
Thomas Jefferson
I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.
Thomas Jefferson
I have no fear that the result of our experiment will be that men may be trusted to govern themselves without a master.
Thomas Jefferson
I have seen enough of one war never to wish to see another.
Thomas Jefferson
I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.
Thomas Jefferson
I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country.
Thomas Jefferson
I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them but to inform their discretion.
Thomas Jefferson
I own that I am not a friend to a very energetic government. It is always oppressive.
Thomas Jefferson
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.
Thomas Jefferson
I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever.
Thomas Jefferson
I was bold in the pursuit of knowledge, never fearing to follow truth and reason to whatever results they led, and bearding every authority which stood in their way.
Thomas Jefferson
I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it.
Thomas Jefferson
It is always better to have no ideas than false ones; to believe nothing, than to believe what is wrong.
Thomas Jefferson
It is error alone which needs the support of government. Truth can stand by itself.
Thomas Jefferson
It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world.
Thomas Jefferson
Leave no authority existing not responsible to the people.
Thomas Jefferson
Mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.
Thomas Jefferson
My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government.
Thomas Jefferson
Never spend your money before you have earned it.
Thomas Jefferson
Our country is now taking so steady a course as to show by what road it will pass to destruction, to wit: by consolidation of power first, and then corruption, its necessary consequence.
Thomas Jefferson
Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law' because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual.
Thomas Jefferson
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive.
Thomas Jefferson
The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Thomas Jefferson
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Thomas Jefferson
When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty.
Thomas Jefferson
When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe.
Thomas Jefferson
More on Brainy Quote - Thomas Jefferson
A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government.
Thomas Jefferson
All tyranny needs to gain a foothold is for people of good conscience to remain silent.
Thomas Jefferson
Do not bite at the bait of pleasure, till you know there is no hook beneath it.
Thomas Jefferson
Do you want to know who you are? Don't ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.
Thomas Jefferson
Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.
Thomas Jefferson
Enlighten the people generally, and tyranny and oppressions of body and mind will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of day.
Thomas Jefferson
Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves are its only safe depositories.
Thomas Jefferson
Experience demands that man is the only animal which devours his own kind, for I can apply no milder term to the general prey of the rich on the poor.
Thomas Jefferson
Experience hath shewn, that even under the best forms of government those entrusted with power have, in time, and by slow operations, perverted it into tyranny.
Thomas Jefferson
Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear.
Thomas Jefferson
For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security.
Thomas Jefferson
He who knows nothing is closer to the truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods and errors.
Thomas Jefferson
History, in general, only informs us of what bad government is.
Thomas Jefferson
I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies.
Thomas Jefferson
I have no fear that the result of our experiment will be that men may be trusted to govern themselves without a master.
Thomas Jefferson
I have seen enough of one war never to wish to see another.
Thomas Jefferson
I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.
Thomas Jefferson
I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country.
Thomas Jefferson
I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of the society but the people themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them but to inform their discretion.
Thomas Jefferson
I own that I am not a friend to a very energetic government. It is always oppressive.
Thomas Jefferson
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.
Thomas Jefferson
I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever.
Thomas Jefferson
I was bold in the pursuit of knowledge, never fearing to follow truth and reason to whatever results they led, and bearding every authority which stood in their way.
Thomas Jefferson
I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it.
Thomas Jefferson
It is always better to have no ideas than false ones; to believe nothing, than to believe what is wrong.
Thomas Jefferson
It is error alone which needs the support of government. Truth can stand by itself.
Thomas Jefferson
It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world.
Thomas Jefferson
Leave no authority existing not responsible to the people.
Thomas Jefferson
Mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.
Thomas Jefferson
My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government.
Thomas Jefferson
Never spend your money before you have earned it.
Thomas Jefferson
Our country is now taking so steady a course as to show by what road it will pass to destruction, to wit: by consolidation of power first, and then corruption, its necessary consequence.
Thomas Jefferson
Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law' because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual.
Thomas Jefferson
The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive.
Thomas Jefferson
The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Thomas Jefferson
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Thomas Jefferson
When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty.
Thomas Jefferson
When we get piled upon one another in large cities, as in Europe, we shall become as corrupt as Europe.
Thomas Jefferson
More on Brainy Quote - Thomas Jefferson
A 25 Billion Dollar Secret: The NY Fed, Goldman & The AIG Cover-Up
---
How The FRBNY's President Tim Geithner And Chairman Stephen Friedman Demanded Par For Goldman Sachs And The Rest Of Wall Street And Then Tried To Cover It All Up...
---
Why did the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY), whose Chairman was Stephen Friedman (a Goldman Sachs board member who resigned from the New York Fed earlier this year when it was revealed that he had made $5 million by purchasing shares in GS with the knowledge that AIG would be paying counterparties at par and that Goldman would be getting a $13 billion windfall -- when no one else had this information) and whose President was none other than current Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, why did this New York Fed choose to pay AIG's counterparties 100 cents on the dollar when AIG itself had been negotiating for steep haircuts with claimants, AND why did they then pressure AIG executives to keep quiet about the decision even discouraging AIG from disclosing the 'par-payments' to its shareholders in required SEC filings?
We'll leave the decision itself (which was fraudulent, borderline criminal, and the reasoning given - a complete joke), for another post and focus on the cover-up. Certainly it riled up Congressman Darrell Issa who fired off an angry letter last Friday to AIG management and the New York Fed, demanding the following from both:
Emails, phone logs and meeting notes of the following people: Timothy Geithner, Stephen Friedman, Tom Baxter, and Sarah Dahlgren;
Term sheets, including drafts, relating to AIG’s payments to its CDS counterparties;
Emails, phone logs and meeting notes referring or relating to public disclosure of AIG’s payments to its CDS counterparties including disclosure to the SEC.
Issa continues in his letter:
It is also disturbing that, at the time this secret deal was made, FRBNY Chairman Stephen Friedman, a member of the board of Goldman Sachs, purchased more than 50,000 shares of Goldman Sachs before knowledge of the FRBNY’s bailout of Goldman Sachs and other AIG counterparties became public knowledge. According to news reports, this transaction has earned Mr. Friedman over $5 million in profit.
Finally, according to one AIG executive quoted in news reports, the FRBNY may have attempted to manage public disclosure of its decision to pay AIG’s counterparties at par by pressuring the company not to file pertinent documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”):
They’d tell us that they don’t think that this or that should be disclosed. They’d say, “Don’t you think your counterparties will be concerned?” It was much more about protecting the Fed.
These allegations raise serious questions about the transparency, accountability and wisdom of the FRBNY’s actions. The American people have a right to know the full details behind the FRBNY’s decision to stop negotiations with AIG’s counterparties and pay them billions of dollars of taxpayer money.
**********
DB here. It's not difficult to understand what happened, and it most certainly was not a coincidental result of independent decisions made during the heat of the crisis. We've actually known it was the Fed for awhile. Ever since House testimony from AIG CEO Ed Liddy confirming that "The Fed made us do it." The problem at the time was that we didn't know which Fed.
Continue reading on The Daily Bell
How The FRBNY's President Tim Geithner And Chairman Stephen Friedman Demanded Par For Goldman Sachs And The Rest Of Wall Street And Then Tried To Cover It All Up...
---
Why did the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY), whose Chairman was Stephen Friedman (a Goldman Sachs board member who resigned from the New York Fed earlier this year when it was revealed that he had made $5 million by purchasing shares in GS with the knowledge that AIG would be paying counterparties at par and that Goldman would be getting a $13 billion windfall -- when no one else had this information) and whose President was none other than current Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, why did this New York Fed choose to pay AIG's counterparties 100 cents on the dollar when AIG itself had been negotiating for steep haircuts with claimants, AND why did they then pressure AIG executives to keep quiet about the decision even discouraging AIG from disclosing the 'par-payments' to its shareholders in required SEC filings?
We'll leave the decision itself (which was fraudulent, borderline criminal, and the reasoning given - a complete joke), for another post and focus on the cover-up. Certainly it riled up Congressman Darrell Issa who fired off an angry letter last Friday to AIG management and the New York Fed, demanding the following from both:
Emails, phone logs and meeting notes of the following people: Timothy Geithner, Stephen Friedman, Tom Baxter, and Sarah Dahlgren;
Term sheets, including drafts, relating to AIG’s payments to its CDS counterparties;
Emails, phone logs and meeting notes referring or relating to public disclosure of AIG’s payments to its CDS counterparties including disclosure to the SEC.
Issa continues in his letter:
It is also disturbing that, at the time this secret deal was made, FRBNY Chairman Stephen Friedman, a member of the board of Goldman Sachs, purchased more than 50,000 shares of Goldman Sachs before knowledge of the FRBNY’s bailout of Goldman Sachs and other AIG counterparties became public knowledge. According to news reports, this transaction has earned Mr. Friedman over $5 million in profit.
Finally, according to one AIG executive quoted in news reports, the FRBNY may have attempted to manage public disclosure of its decision to pay AIG’s counterparties at par by pressuring the company not to file pertinent documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”):
They’d tell us that they don’t think that this or that should be disclosed. They’d say, “Don’t you think your counterparties will be concerned?” It was much more about protecting the Fed.
These allegations raise serious questions about the transparency, accountability and wisdom of the FRBNY’s actions. The American people have a right to know the full details behind the FRBNY’s decision to stop negotiations with AIG’s counterparties and pay them billions of dollars of taxpayer money.
**********
DB here. It's not difficult to understand what happened, and it most certainly was not a coincidental result of independent decisions made during the heat of the crisis. We've actually known it was the Fed for awhile. Ever since House testimony from AIG CEO Ed Liddy confirming that "The Fed made us do it." The problem at the time was that we didn't know which Fed.
Continue reading on The Daily Bell
Monday, October 24, 2011
Some seeing red over debit-card user fee
---
We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore (To steal a phrase ;)
Banks need more revenue? Stick it to the sheeple.. Again..
Post source
Greg
---
By Andra Bryan Stefanoni
news@joplinglobe.com
PITTSBURG, Kan. — The recent announcement that Bank of America will begin charging debit-card holders $5 a month for using their cards has left some seeing red and others rethinking whether they should stay with their bank.
Kansas state Rep. Bill Otto, R-Iola, had plenty to say about the matter as he loaded groceries into his car last week in Pittsburg, Kan.
“It makes me really mad. We bailed them out, and now this. Most of our small banks got no bailouts — nothing. Just the big boys. If my bank does that, I won’t pay it. I won’t,” he said.
He’s not alone. A recent poll conducted by GfK Roper Custom Research North America found two out of three debit-card users said they will ditch their cards if their bank starts charging a monthly user fee. Four out of five debit-card holders said they would switch banks to avoid monthly fees.
“I’ve heard about it, and I’m confused by it,” said Niki Rahe, of Weir, Kan., who was on a shopping trip in Pittsburg last week and used her debit card for just about every purchase.
“I don’t understand it. I would switch banks if that happened to me,” she said.
Rahe banks with Labette Bank. She said she would continue to do so as long as no fees are attached.
“I shouldn’t have to pay to use my money,’’ she said.
Bank of America’s move comes as debit cards are increasingly being used to replace cash. Banks are apparently looking for ways to offset the loss of revenue from a new rule by the Federal Reserve Board that limits how much they can collect from merchants whenever customers use their debit cards.
Betty Riess, spokeswoman for Bank of America, said the regulations have changed the economics of offering a debit card. Called interchange fees, the revenue source once generated billions of dollars for banks and credit-card networks. The merchants paid banks 1 percent to 2 percent of the amount of each purchase — about 44 cents on the average debit-card purchase.
According to the Nilson Report, which tracks the payments industry, those fees generated $19 billion in revenue for banks in 2009. Swipe fees will be capped at 21 cents to 24 cents per transaction.
So, beginning in 2012, Bank of America will introduce through a phased rollout a $5 monthly usage fee for customers who use their debit cards for purchases. Chase and Wells Fargo also are testing $3 monthly debit-card fees in select markets.
Bank of America’s announcement carries added weight because it is the largest U.S. bank by deposits.
The fee will apply to basic accounts, which are marketed toward those with modest balances. It will be in addition to any existing monthly service fees. For example, one such account charges a $12 monthly fee unless customers meet certain conditions, such as maintaining a minimum average balance of $1,500.
Those who only use their cards at ATMs won’t have to pay.
Riess said Bank of America offers customers choice and flexibility in how they bank.
“Customers who value debit’s features and convenience can choose to use their debit cards by paying the fee. Customers who don’t want to pay this fee can continue to access their checking accounts to get cash from ATMs, through online bill pay, and increasingly through their mobile phones and with person-to-person transfers,” she said.
This summer, an Associated Press-GfK poll found that two-thirds of consumers use debit cards more frequently than credit cards. But when asked how they would react if they were charged a $3 monthly debit-card fee, 61 percent said they’d find another way to pay. With a $5 fee, 66 percent said they would change their payment method.
Riess said the new fee allows Bank of America to continue to offer the service and convenience customers have come to expect — including fraud protection, overdraft prevention, record keeping, fraud monitoring and savings programs.
Jessica Bushnell, of Pittsburg, is a frequent debit-card user and Bank of America account holder. She was resigned to paying fees of some sort, she said, as that “goes with the territory. They are trying to get more money, as usual,” she said, as she prepared to pay for groceries.
“They had instituted something before if a balance was below a certain amount, so I went to e-banking so I wouldn’t have the fees. I don’t know if they’ll charge me with this particular account. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see.”
As she shopped, Theresa Swink, of Pittsburg, said she was preparing to take action. “We’re totally against it and we’re taking some money out of Bank of America to move it elsewhere,” she said.
Joe Conrad said he has already taken action by moving his account to a local bank.
“I moved our accounts to a locally owned bank, Citizens Bank, and we’re really, really happy because there are no fees,” he said. “It’s the first bank in a long time that hasn’t had fees of some sort attached.”
A study by Bankrate.com recently found that 45 percent of checking accounts are now free with no strings attached, down from 65 percent last year and 76 percent in 2009. Customers still can get free checking in most cases, but only if they meet certain conditions, such as setting up direct deposit.
Bank of America customers who “bring more of their business to the bank” will be rewarded, Riess said, by having no fees attached to their debit card accounts.
“The debit card will be one of the many complimentary services available to customers in certain premium accounts. In addition, Wealth Management/Merrill Lynch with qualifying balances and U.S. Trust clients will not be charged the fee,” she said.
Customers who will be affected will be notified in writing at least 30 days before Bank of America begins assessing the monthly fee, Riess said.
“Again, our objective is to be clear, predictable and transparent about our fees, and we have structured our products so that customers understand what they are getting and how much it costs.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore (To steal a phrase ;)
Banks need more revenue? Stick it to the sheeple.. Again..
Post source
Greg
---
By Andra Bryan Stefanoni
news@joplinglobe.com
PITTSBURG, Kan. — The recent announcement that Bank of America will begin charging debit-card holders $5 a month for using their cards has left some seeing red and others rethinking whether they should stay with their bank.
Kansas state Rep. Bill Otto, R-Iola, had plenty to say about the matter as he loaded groceries into his car last week in Pittsburg, Kan.
“It makes me really mad. We bailed them out, and now this. Most of our small banks got no bailouts — nothing. Just the big boys. If my bank does that, I won’t pay it. I won’t,” he said.
He’s not alone. A recent poll conducted by GfK Roper Custom Research North America found two out of three debit-card users said they will ditch their cards if their bank starts charging a monthly user fee. Four out of five debit-card holders said they would switch banks to avoid monthly fees.
“I’ve heard about it, and I’m confused by it,” said Niki Rahe, of Weir, Kan., who was on a shopping trip in Pittsburg last week and used her debit card for just about every purchase.
“I don’t understand it. I would switch banks if that happened to me,” she said.
Rahe banks with Labette Bank. She said she would continue to do so as long as no fees are attached.
“I shouldn’t have to pay to use my money,’’ she said.
Bank of America’s move comes as debit cards are increasingly being used to replace cash. Banks are apparently looking for ways to offset the loss of revenue from a new rule by the Federal Reserve Board that limits how much they can collect from merchants whenever customers use their debit cards.
Betty Riess, spokeswoman for Bank of America, said the regulations have changed the economics of offering a debit card. Called interchange fees, the revenue source once generated billions of dollars for banks and credit-card networks. The merchants paid banks 1 percent to 2 percent of the amount of each purchase — about 44 cents on the average debit-card purchase.
According to the Nilson Report, which tracks the payments industry, those fees generated $19 billion in revenue for banks in 2009. Swipe fees will be capped at 21 cents to 24 cents per transaction.
So, beginning in 2012, Bank of America will introduce through a phased rollout a $5 monthly usage fee for customers who use their debit cards for purchases. Chase and Wells Fargo also are testing $3 monthly debit-card fees in select markets.
Bank of America’s announcement carries added weight because it is the largest U.S. bank by deposits.
The fee will apply to basic accounts, which are marketed toward those with modest balances. It will be in addition to any existing monthly service fees. For example, one such account charges a $12 monthly fee unless customers meet certain conditions, such as maintaining a minimum average balance of $1,500.
Those who only use their cards at ATMs won’t have to pay.
Riess said Bank of America offers customers choice and flexibility in how they bank.
“Customers who value debit’s features and convenience can choose to use their debit cards by paying the fee. Customers who don’t want to pay this fee can continue to access their checking accounts to get cash from ATMs, through online bill pay, and increasingly through their mobile phones and with person-to-person transfers,” she said.
This summer, an Associated Press-GfK poll found that two-thirds of consumers use debit cards more frequently than credit cards. But when asked how they would react if they were charged a $3 monthly debit-card fee, 61 percent said they’d find another way to pay. With a $5 fee, 66 percent said they would change their payment method.
Riess said the new fee allows Bank of America to continue to offer the service and convenience customers have come to expect — including fraud protection, overdraft prevention, record keeping, fraud monitoring and savings programs.
Jessica Bushnell, of Pittsburg, is a frequent debit-card user and Bank of America account holder. She was resigned to paying fees of some sort, she said, as that “goes with the territory. They are trying to get more money, as usual,” she said, as she prepared to pay for groceries.
“They had instituted something before if a balance was below a certain amount, so I went to e-banking so I wouldn’t have the fees. I don’t know if they’ll charge me with this particular account. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see.”
As she shopped, Theresa Swink, of Pittsburg, said she was preparing to take action. “We’re totally against it and we’re taking some money out of Bank of America to move it elsewhere,” she said.
Joe Conrad said he has already taken action by moving his account to a local bank.
“I moved our accounts to a locally owned bank, Citizens Bank, and we’re really, really happy because there are no fees,” he said. “It’s the first bank in a long time that hasn’t had fees of some sort attached.”
A study by Bankrate.com recently found that 45 percent of checking accounts are now free with no strings attached, down from 65 percent last year and 76 percent in 2009. Customers still can get free checking in most cases, but only if they meet certain conditions, such as setting up direct deposit.
Bank of America customers who “bring more of their business to the bank” will be rewarded, Riess said, by having no fees attached to their debit card accounts.
“The debit card will be one of the many complimentary services available to customers in certain premium accounts. In addition, Wealth Management/Merrill Lynch with qualifying balances and U.S. Trust clients will not be charged the fee,” she said.
Customers who will be affected will be notified in writing at least 30 days before Bank of America begins assessing the monthly fee, Riess said.
“Again, our objective is to be clear, predictable and transparent about our fees, and we have structured our products so that customers understand what they are getting and how much it costs.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Outstanding Student Loans To Hit $1,000,000,000,000 This Year
---
Student loans, now controlled completely by government, are a bubble. Should this economy continue to worsen it will be a bursting bubble one day..
Greg
---
DOUG MATACONIS · WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2011
Call it a sign of the times:
Giving validation to Occupy Wall Street protests over the increasing burdens of student debt, a new report indicates that the amount of total amount of outstanding student loans will exceed $1 trillion for the first time ever this year.
In addition, the amount of student loans taken out last year was greater than $100 billion, another new record, according to USA Today, citing the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The $1 trillion of outstanding loans means that Americans now owe more on student loans than on their credit cards. While students have been racking up educational loans, American consumers have been paying down credit cards and home loans.
The average full-time undergraduate student borrowed $4,963 in 2010, up 63 percent from a decade earlier, even after adjusting for inflation, the report says.
Meanwhile, with a greater loan burden, the percentage of borrowers that defaulted on their student debts also rose – from 6.7 percent in 2007 to 8.8 percent in 2009.
Given the economic conditions, that default rate isn’t all that bad, and a reflection of the fact that the unemployment rate for college graduates is substantially lower than for workers as a whole. Nonetheless, it’s a pretty astounding numbers.
---
"The average full-time undergraduate student borrowed $4,963 in 2010, up 63 percent from a decade earlier, even after adjusting for inflation"
Watch your imaginary paper fiat debt kids..
Lord help us all
Greg
Source link on Uutside The Beltway
Student loans, now controlled completely by government, are a bubble. Should this economy continue to worsen it will be a bursting bubble one day..
Greg
---
DOUG MATACONIS · WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2011
Call it a sign of the times:
Giving validation to Occupy Wall Street protests over the increasing burdens of student debt, a new report indicates that the amount of total amount of outstanding student loans will exceed $1 trillion for the first time ever this year.
In addition, the amount of student loans taken out last year was greater than $100 billion, another new record, according to USA Today, citing the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The $1 trillion of outstanding loans means that Americans now owe more on student loans than on their credit cards. While students have been racking up educational loans, American consumers have been paying down credit cards and home loans.
The average full-time undergraduate student borrowed $4,963 in 2010, up 63 percent from a decade earlier, even after adjusting for inflation, the report says.
Meanwhile, with a greater loan burden, the percentage of borrowers that defaulted on their student debts also rose – from 6.7 percent in 2007 to 8.8 percent in 2009.
Given the economic conditions, that default rate isn’t all that bad, and a reflection of the fact that the unemployment rate for college graduates is substantially lower than for workers as a whole. Nonetheless, it’s a pretty astounding numbers.
---
"The average full-time undergraduate student borrowed $4,963 in 2010, up 63 percent from a decade earlier, even after adjusting for inflation"
Watch your imaginary paper fiat debt kids..
Lord help us all
Greg
Source link on Uutside The Beltway
Sign of the times #OccupyWallStreet + #TeaParty #ows #99Percent
---
Found this sign on the net.. IMHO it sums it ALL up rather nicely and concisely..
This is a great example of WHY it is so hard to fix the things that are wrong with this economy / country.
As conspiratorial as it may sound, every one of these "groups" are in on the greed and corruption gravy train. It's pretty much the entire system itself that needs to go. It is our fault, we the people, because we never should have allowed things to get this far out of hand in the first place.
Never accept tyranny..
Greg
---
Found this sign on the net.. IMHO it sums it ALL up rather nicely and concisely..
This is a great example of WHY it is so hard to fix the things that are wrong with this economy / country.
As conspiratorial as it may sound, every one of these "groups" are in on the greed and corruption gravy train. It's pretty much the entire system itself that needs to go. It is our fault, we the people, because we never should have allowed things to get this far out of hand in the first place.
Never accept tyranny..
Greg
---
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
One of the best, most comprehensive, most informative things I have ever seen
---
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
REX 84 vs. Globalist Shutdown <-- source
Ethan Jacobs, J.D.
Activist Post
For many years the globalists, through the federal agencies they control, have treasonously planned to use devastating orchestrated events to suspend constitutional rights and implement martial law. The best-known plan for martial law/continuity of government is called REX 84.
Despite their planning efforts, technology, and billions of dollars spent on martial law training, a handful of activists can utilize simple yet powerful tools to ensure martial law is never implemented.
This plan is known as Globalist Shutdown.
REX 84 and Other Martial Law Legislation/Orders
Continue reading (Many great informative links within)
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
REX 84 vs. Globalist Shutdown <-- source
Ethan Jacobs, J.D.
Activist Post
For many years the globalists, through the federal agencies they control, have treasonously planned to use devastating orchestrated events to suspend constitutional rights and implement martial law. The best-known plan for martial law/continuity of government is called REX 84.
Despite their planning efforts, technology, and billions of dollars spent on martial law training, a handful of activists can utilize simple yet powerful tools to ensure martial law is never implemented.
This plan is known as Globalist Shutdown.
REX 84 and Other Martial Law Legislation/Orders
Continue reading (Many great informative links within)
Ron Paul's Plan to Restore America & Save $1 Trillion
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Love Ron Paul, he loves you and his country.
---
Love Ron Paul, he loves you and his country.
---
Monday, October 17, 2011
Ron Paul Dropping a Reality Bomb on the GOP Field
---
IMHO it's about time SOMEONE tried talking a little sense into republicans.. Even better that it's one of their own in Ron Paul (who has my undying support I might add).
Absolutely agree with..
"reform looks politically easier than maintaining the status quo"
"tinkering around the edges is not going to get it done"
Post source link on National Review
---
By Kevin D. Williamson
Politico reports that Ron Paul is about to show the Republican presidential field what a serious fiscal-reform plan looks like, proposing $1 trillion in real spending cuts. I look forward to seeing the detailed version of the plan, but the summary sounds promising:
He’ll propose immediately freezing spending by numerous government agencies at 2006 levels, the last time Republicans had complete control of the federal budget, and drastically reducing spending elsewhere. The EPA would see a 30 percent cut, the Food and Drug Administration would see one of 40 percent and foreign aid would be zeroed out immediately. He’d also take an ax to Pentagon funding for wars.
Medicaid, the children’s health insurance program, food stamps, family support programs and the children’s nutrition program would all be block-granted to the states and removed from the mandatory spending column of the federal budget. Some functions of eliminated departments, such as Pell Grants, would be continued elsewhere in the federal bureaucracy.
And in a noticeable nod to seniors during an election year when Social Security’s become an issue within the Republican primary, the campaign says that plan “honors our promise to our seniors and veterans, while allowing young workers to opt out.”
The federal workforce would be reduced by 10 percent, and the president’s pay would be cut to $39,336 — a level that the Paul document notes is “approximately equal to the median personal income of the American worker.”
Never mind the silly symbolic stuff — presidential pay, etc. — $1 trillion in cuts, block-granting some big entitlements, creating a Social Security opt-out: these are things that need to happen. They won’t happen in the next two years, probably — any more than the Ryan Roadmap will be enacted — but it is important that Republicans lay down a few serious long-term budget markers.
Real fiscal change probably won’t happen until things get bad enough economically that reform looks politically easier than maintaining the status quo. But moments like that have a way of sneaking up on you — ask the Greeks — and we’ll want to have a robust plan ready to go. For all my reservations about Ron Paul, he does a real public service by reminding conservatives that, while we are rightly hesitant about radical proposals, tinkering around the edges is not going to get it done in the long term. The age of unpleasant choices is upon us.
IMHO it's about time SOMEONE tried talking a little sense into republicans.. Even better that it's one of their own in Ron Paul (who has my undying support I might add).
Absolutely agree with..
"reform looks politically easier than maintaining the status quo"
"tinkering around the edges is not going to get it done"
Post source link on National Review
---
By Kevin D. Williamson
Politico reports that Ron Paul is about to show the Republican presidential field what a serious fiscal-reform plan looks like, proposing $1 trillion in real spending cuts. I look forward to seeing the detailed version of the plan, but the summary sounds promising:
He’ll propose immediately freezing spending by numerous government agencies at 2006 levels, the last time Republicans had complete control of the federal budget, and drastically reducing spending elsewhere. The EPA would see a 30 percent cut, the Food and Drug Administration would see one of 40 percent and foreign aid would be zeroed out immediately. He’d also take an ax to Pentagon funding for wars.
Medicaid, the children’s health insurance program, food stamps, family support programs and the children’s nutrition program would all be block-granted to the states and removed from the mandatory spending column of the federal budget. Some functions of eliminated departments, such as Pell Grants, would be continued elsewhere in the federal bureaucracy.
And in a noticeable nod to seniors during an election year when Social Security’s become an issue within the Republican primary, the campaign says that plan “honors our promise to our seniors and veterans, while allowing young workers to opt out.”
The federal workforce would be reduced by 10 percent, and the president’s pay would be cut to $39,336 — a level that the Paul document notes is “approximately equal to the median personal income of the American worker.”
Never mind the silly symbolic stuff — presidential pay, etc. — $1 trillion in cuts, block-granting some big entitlements, creating a Social Security opt-out: these are things that need to happen. They won’t happen in the next two years, probably — any more than the Ryan Roadmap will be enacted — but it is important that Republicans lay down a few serious long-term budget markers.
Real fiscal change probably won’t happen until things get bad enough economically that reform looks politically easier than maintaining the status quo. But moments like that have a way of sneaking up on you — ask the Greeks — and we’ll want to have a robust plan ready to go. For all my reservations about Ron Paul, he does a real public service by reminding conservatives that, while we are rightly hesitant about radical proposals, tinkering around the edges is not going to get it done in the long term. The age of unpleasant choices is upon us.
Bank run! It's FUN! Try it today! #Anonymous #99Percent #OccupyWallStreet
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Participate to help end the matrix of lies economy!
--
Greg
Participate to help end the matrix of lies economy!
--
Greg
I HATE plastic and here's why..
---
It has always struck me as odd that the electronics market operates in the reverse of supply and demand. (ie; the higher demand the lower the price..)
Commodities, and most everything else of "value" at least seem to try to obey the rules of supply and demand.
Electronics, however, seem to operate on demand and supply.
"They" create artificial demand by hyping cool new technology while the "supply" is virtually endless..
Because said "supply" is "cheap enough to give away for free in stores as bags, or by fast food joints as toys". That supply is plastic..
It's overflowing our landfills and all industry does is create ever more of the deceptive material.
In my opinion plastic needs to go. It's main use seems to be to seperate your imaginary fiat paper wealth from your pocket.
Cellphones, DVD players, radios, stereos, TVs, video game systems, microwave ovens, 8 track players, cassette players, CD players, DVRs, water bottles, tools and toys.
Think about it.. Our economy is based, in large part, on creating artificial demand for dirt cheap plastic.
Plastic = evil profiteering
Try to imagine this, if you will..
iPods, iPads and iPhones, laptops, PCs and monitors, stero systems, cellphones and TVs, built to last decades rather than months..
Imagine if all of the above and everything else were made of wood or gold or bronze. All made of stone or carbon or glass. All made of silver or leather or exotic fabrics.
All true works of fine art.
Imagine if you always bought one of these "products" with the expectation that it would last decades rather than months.
I think all of this could be done right now but isn't..
To do so would require drastic change at the very core of our economic system.
Don't laugh.. the economy would work entirely differently. A 24 karat gold iPhone would cost more than one made of walnut or granite.
However, the economy, if free to do so, would work itself out based on the "value" of the product being offered. Rather than corporations expecting ever increasing sales of plastic containing cheap electronics that are engineered to fail within 24 to 36 months. And end up in a landfill near you.
A CD is plastic wrapped in plastic wrapped in plastic and bagged in plastic..
Please think about it.. It's all part of the matrix of lies sold to all of us as capitalism.
Greg
Strange days indeed..
It has always struck me as odd that the electronics market operates in the reverse of supply and demand. (ie; the higher demand the lower the price..)
Commodities, and most everything else of "value" at least seem to try to obey the rules of supply and demand.
Electronics, however, seem to operate on demand and supply.
"They" create artificial demand by hyping cool new technology while the "supply" is virtually endless..
Because said "supply" is "cheap enough to give away for free in stores as bags, or by fast food joints as toys". That supply is plastic..
It's overflowing our landfills and all industry does is create ever more of the deceptive material.
In my opinion plastic needs to go. It's main use seems to be to seperate your imaginary fiat paper wealth from your pocket.
Cellphones, DVD players, radios, stereos, TVs, video game systems, microwave ovens, 8 track players, cassette players, CD players, DVRs, water bottles, tools and toys.
Think about it.. Our economy is based, in large part, on creating artificial demand for dirt cheap plastic.
Plastic = evil profiteering
Try to imagine this, if you will..
iPods, iPads and iPhones, laptops, PCs and monitors, stero systems, cellphones and TVs, built to last decades rather than months..
Imagine if all of the above and everything else were made of wood or gold or bronze. All made of stone or carbon or glass. All made of silver or leather or exotic fabrics.
All true works of fine art.
Imagine if you always bought one of these "products" with the expectation that it would last decades rather than months.
I think all of this could be done right now but isn't..
To do so would require drastic change at the very core of our economic system.
Don't laugh.. the economy would work entirely differently. A 24 karat gold iPhone would cost more than one made of walnut or granite.
However, the economy, if free to do so, would work itself out based on the "value" of the product being offered. Rather than corporations expecting ever increasing sales of plastic containing cheap electronics that are engineered to fail within 24 to 36 months. And end up in a landfill near you.
A CD is plastic wrapped in plastic wrapped in plastic and bagged in plastic..
Please think about it.. It's all part of the matrix of lies sold to all of us as capitalism.
Greg
Strange days indeed..
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Interesting #OccupyWallStreet demand list #ows
---
Found this with a google search..
I could really get behind many of these suggestions.
Check out the list and see what you might be willing to support
Also check out this poster.. Perfect.. ;)
---
Occupy Wall Street - Official Demands
Written by Anonymous
The Sovereign People's Movement, represented nationally through the people occupying the various Liberty Square locations across this great country, have laid out and democratically submitted and are currently voting on the list of following Demands to then be distilled into one Unified Common demand of the people.
Continue reading
Found this with a google search..
I could really get behind many of these suggestions.
Check out the list and see what you might be willing to support
Also check out this poster.. Perfect.. ;)
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Occupy Wall Street - Official Demands
Written by Anonymous
The Sovereign People's Movement, represented nationally through the people occupying the various Liberty Square locations across this great country, have laid out and democratically submitted and are currently voting on the list of following Demands to then be distilled into one Unified Common demand of the people.
Continue reading
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Alleged Iranian Assassination Plot Appears an FBI Sting
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Excuse to go to war with Iran? WTF? We have all been expecting more war for a long time now.. What a weak pitiful excuse..
Post source on Dprogram.net
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Excuse to go to war with Iran? WTF? We have all been expecting more war for a long time now.. What a weak pitiful excuse..
Post source on Dprogram.net
---
Friday, October 14, 2011
There will be violence - count on it #OccupyWallStreet #ows
---
Poll finds Americans angry about pretty much everything
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2011/06/05/poll-finds-americans-angry-about-pretty-much-everything/#ixzz1amMSS8Ky
No wonder David Bowie was afraid of Americans.
A new Newsweek/Daily Beast poll finds that Americans are angry about…pretty much everything. From President Obama to congressional Republicans to even God (who has a 33 percent approval rating), everyone needs to watch out for an angry mob coming their way.
Unemployment is at 9.1 percent, gas and grocery prices are skyrocketing, the housing market is in the dumps, and people aren’t happy. Three quarters of Americans think the country is on the wrong track, and 81 percent say the job market is not where it needs to be. Half of respondents don’t think Obama has a plan to balance the budget, and 58 percent think Republicans aren’t doing their part to balance the budget either.
The poll finds that Americans are being affected by their anger in other parts of life as well. Fifty-six percent are so angry that they can’t even sleep and 13 percent say the anxiety has affected their sex life. Twenty-six percent of married respondents claim the country’s economic problems have affected their marriage, with more than half of those people saying it has made their marriage worse.
---
And this from investmentwatchblog
America is getting very angry: Poll shows 90 percent of Americans believe that the economy is performing poorly and approximately 80 percent of Americans believe that it is “difficult” to find a job right now.
October 11th, 2011
(Click this link for the source post with many good embedded links on investmentwatchblog)
The Occupy Wall Street protests and the rise of the Tea Party movement have both changed America, but you haven’t seen anything yet. You better buckle up, because America is getting very angry and as the economy continues to decline the economic protests are going to become much more frightening in the years ahead. Americans have become very accustomed to prosperity. Now that our prosperity is vanishing, people are starting to become very angry. The scary thing is that the vast majority of our population now lives in tightly congested urban areas. That makes the potential for mass rioting and civil unrest much greater. Back in 1910, 72 percent of Americans lived in rural areas. Today, only 16 percent of Americans live in rural areas. So what happens when you have millions of incredibly angry people crammed into tightly congested metropolitan areas? Well, we are about to find out.
Over the past 4 years, we have seen some unprecedented things happen in America. First we witnessed the rise of the Tea Party movement. Initially it pretty much was a true grassroots movement but now it has been mostly taken over by establishment Republicans. Now we are witnessing the rise of Occupy Wall Street. While there are some grassroots elements to it, the reality is that Occupy Wall Street seems to be pretty much controlled by the Democrats. In fact, one individual was recently told that “Ron Paul signs are not welcome here” at a recent protest.
So we have the left and the right fighting with each other like cats and dogs. The Tea Party movement and Occupy Wall Street both pretty much hate each other.
Meanwhile, those that control both political parties are enjoying the view.
But the people that are expressing their anger through protest movements such as Occupy Wall Street are not going to be content with the status quo for long.
The truth is that there is a lot of anger in the United States today, and that anger is rapidly growing. Millions upon millions of Americans are deeply upset about the economy and about our financial system.
Right now, protests by both the Tea Party movement and Occupy Wall Street have been mostly peaceful.
But that will not last indefinitely.
In fact, there are already signs that Occupy Wall Street protesters are not content with simply sitting in the park and banging on drums.
For example, protesters stormed the Senate Hart Office Building in Washington D.C. today. A handful of protesters were arrested.
Also, more than 50 protesters from the Occupy Boston movement were arrested today when they would not do what police were ordering them to do.
But most notable of all was the march to the homes of certain millionaires up in New York. Earlier today, Occupy Wall Street protesters marched to the homes of Jamie Dimon, David Koch, John Paulson, Howard Milstein, and Rupert Murdoch.
Needless to say, that is going to seriously upset some people.
The home protests were not spontaneous. The truth is that they were highly organized. Organizers such as SEIU board member Stephen Lerner have been talking about them for quite some time. In fact, you can hear him discussing plans for the upcoming protests at the homes of these millionaires back on October 3rd right here.
There is a lot about Occupy Wall Street that can be criticized (just check out this article), but one thing that Occupy Wall Street is actually doing right is that it is focusing on the role of money in politics.
The big financial powers spend hundreds of millions of dollars on political campaigns. Just check out this infographic. All of that money buys a lot of influence over the political process. If it didn’t, the big financial powers would not be spending that kind of money.
But the big financial powers are not just spending money on political campaigns. It has now come out that the big Wall Street banks can order New York City police officers just like they would order pizzas. In fact, over a million dollars is going to be spent this way just this year alone.
A recent article that was posted on counterpunch.org detailed how this works….
One of the ingenious methods that has remained below the public’s radar was started by the Rudy Giuliani administration in New York City in 1998. It’s called the Paid Detail Unit and it allows the New York Stock Exchange and Wall Street corporations, including those repeatedly charged with crimes, to order up a flank of New York’s finest with the ease of dialing the deli for a pastrami on rye.
The corporations pay an average of $37 an hour (no medical, no pension benefit, no overtime pay) for a member of the NYPD, with gun, handcuffs and the ability to arrest. The officer is indemnified by the taxpayer, not the corporation.
New York City gets a 10 percent administrative fee on top of the $37 per hour paid to the police. The City’s 2011 budget called for $1,184,000 in Paid Detail fees, meaning private corporations were paying wages of $11.8 million to police participating in the Paid Detail Unit. The program has more than doubled in revenue to the city since 2002.
So expect the big Wall Street banks to be sending in orders for huge numbers of New York City cops to protect them from the half-crazed Occupy Wall Street protesters.
Sadly, if recent poll numbers are any indication, the anger of the American people is not going to abate any time soon….
*According to Gallup, the percentage of Americans that lack confidence in U.S. banks is now at an all-time high of 36%.
*According to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 90 percent of Americans believe that the economy is performing poorly and approximately 80 percent of Americans believe that it is “difficult” to find a job right now.
*According to a recent Rasmussen survey, 48 percent of all Americans believe that reductions in government spending are “at least somewhat likely” to result in civil unrest inside the United States.
*Another recent survey found that 73 percent of all Americans believe that the nation is “on the wrong track”.
*According to a recent CBS News/New York Times poll, Congress has a disapproval rating of 82%.
*A recent Rasmussen survey found that 85 percent of Americans believe that members of Congress “are more interested in helping their own careers than in helping other people”, and that same survey found that 46 percent of the American people believe that most members of Congress are corrupt.
*According to a different Rasmussen survey, only 17 percent of all Americans now believe that the U.S. government has the consent of the governed.
*A recent Washington Post poll found that 78 percent of Americans are dissatisfied “with the way this country’s political system is working” and that only 26 percent of Americans now believe that the federal government can solve the economic problems that we are facing.
So what does all of that add up to?
It adds up to a U.S. population that is very frustrated and that is looking for outlets for that frustration.
As the U.S. economy continues to fall apart, that frustration is going to continue to rise.
What we are seeing all across America is only the beginning. We are going to see protest movements and explosions of anger that we can’t even imagine right now.
Dark days are coming for America.
You better buckle up.
- TAD
---
This is a fear I have had for some 2 years now..
That violence WILL come, it has to, it's only a matter of time until someone, somewhere, blows up a bank or two. Count on it.
Why would I say such a thing?
Well not because I WANT it to happen..
But here's the thing..
It involves numbers and percentages..
As reported above, in the first story on this post "Fifty-six percent[of Americans] are so angry that they can’t even sleep."
One piece of data that I am having a difficult time finding is what percentage of the American population may be violence-prone?
I have found that the average number of murders in the United States per year is somewhere around 16,000.
Here are is a portion of the United States Crime Rates for 2010
2010
Population 308,745,538
-
Violent 1,246,248
-
Murder 14,748
All I'm saying here is that there ARE violent people out there, in society. They do obviously exist as we can clearly see based on these numbers.
Now I'm going to make the assumption that the great majority of people who commit a violent act, including murder, are likely angry at the time.
Now when we see "Fifty-six percent [of Americans] are so angry that they can’t even sleep." And that anger for the most part is currently directed at Washington, politicians, politics, banks, corporations and our currently dire economic situation.
Well hell this math is EASY!
56 percent of 308 million people = 172,480,000 (more than 172 MILLION people are so angry that they can't sleep!?)
And then we have the Occupy Wall street movement..
It has grown from hundreds of people participating to thousands of people to tens of thousands and it very well may continue to grow to hundreds of thousands of people.
All of whom very well may be the most angry of the angry..
My nagging, as yet unanswered, question for some time now has been..
Given a population of very angry people what percentage of that population might be prone to participate in violent activity?
I can't seem to find this number without it being a sub-category of the total.. ie; domestic violence, school violence, work place violence..
Here are the common PERSONALITY DISORDERS but it doesn't say how many people are affected by them.. Though I did see somewhere that a full 1% of the population is affected by schizophrenia (more than 3 million people there alone).
My bottom line point here is that violence is most certainly unavoidable in this situation merely because of the numbers involved..
So I'm going to use a completely manufactured number pulled out of my own {...}
Lets say, for the sake of argument, that 0.005% of angry people are violence-prone.. Is that fair? one half of 1%
If we work with our 172 million people who have polled as "too angry to sleep" and calculate 0.005% of that number (as potentially violent) we get 860,000 people!
So I simply say to myself at that point THAT CAN'T BE RIGHT! So slash that 1 half of 1% by another 90% and we still get 86,000 people!
Cut it by another 90% and we STILL get 8,600 people!
Keep in mind there are an average of 15 or 16 THOUSAND murders in this country every year..
My conclusion is that, based on numbers alone, violence CANNOT and will not be avoided. In reality I am rather shocked that we have not already seen a lot more violence than we have..
Question is.. Then what?!
Martial law and FEMA camps?
i have always felt and said that in the case of a truly rebellious uprising the actions taken by our own government will be indistinguishable from the actions of regimes under siege in the middle east.
Mark my words
Good luck everyone
Greg
Poll finds Americans angry about pretty much everything
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2011/06/05/poll-finds-americans-angry-about-pretty-much-everything/#ixzz1amMSS8Ky
No wonder David Bowie was afraid of Americans.
A new Newsweek/Daily Beast poll finds that Americans are angry about…pretty much everything. From President Obama to congressional Republicans to even God (who has a 33 percent approval rating), everyone needs to watch out for an angry mob coming their way.
Unemployment is at 9.1 percent, gas and grocery prices are skyrocketing, the housing market is in the dumps, and people aren’t happy. Three quarters of Americans think the country is on the wrong track, and 81 percent say the job market is not where it needs to be. Half of respondents don’t think Obama has a plan to balance the budget, and 58 percent think Republicans aren’t doing their part to balance the budget either.
The poll finds that Americans are being affected by their anger in other parts of life as well. Fifty-six percent are so angry that they can’t even sleep and 13 percent say the anxiety has affected their sex life. Twenty-six percent of married respondents claim the country’s economic problems have affected their marriage, with more than half of those people saying it has made their marriage worse.
---
And this from investmentwatchblog
America is getting very angry: Poll shows 90 percent of Americans believe that the economy is performing poorly and approximately 80 percent of Americans believe that it is “difficult” to find a job right now.
October 11th, 2011
(Click this link for the source post with many good embedded links on investmentwatchblog)
The Occupy Wall Street protests and the rise of the Tea Party movement have both changed America, but you haven’t seen anything yet. You better buckle up, because America is getting very angry and as the economy continues to decline the economic protests are going to become much more frightening in the years ahead. Americans have become very accustomed to prosperity. Now that our prosperity is vanishing, people are starting to become very angry. The scary thing is that the vast majority of our population now lives in tightly congested urban areas. That makes the potential for mass rioting and civil unrest much greater. Back in 1910, 72 percent of Americans lived in rural areas. Today, only 16 percent of Americans live in rural areas. So what happens when you have millions of incredibly angry people crammed into tightly congested metropolitan areas? Well, we are about to find out.
Over the past 4 years, we have seen some unprecedented things happen in America. First we witnessed the rise of the Tea Party movement. Initially it pretty much was a true grassroots movement but now it has been mostly taken over by establishment Republicans. Now we are witnessing the rise of Occupy Wall Street. While there are some grassroots elements to it, the reality is that Occupy Wall Street seems to be pretty much controlled by the Democrats. In fact, one individual was recently told that “Ron Paul signs are not welcome here” at a recent protest.
So we have the left and the right fighting with each other like cats and dogs. The Tea Party movement and Occupy Wall Street both pretty much hate each other.
Meanwhile, those that control both political parties are enjoying the view.
But the people that are expressing their anger through protest movements such as Occupy Wall Street are not going to be content with the status quo for long.
The truth is that there is a lot of anger in the United States today, and that anger is rapidly growing. Millions upon millions of Americans are deeply upset about the economy and about our financial system.
Right now, protests by both the Tea Party movement and Occupy Wall Street have been mostly peaceful.
But that will not last indefinitely.
In fact, there are already signs that Occupy Wall Street protesters are not content with simply sitting in the park and banging on drums.
For example, protesters stormed the Senate Hart Office Building in Washington D.C. today. A handful of protesters were arrested.
Also, more than 50 protesters from the Occupy Boston movement were arrested today when they would not do what police were ordering them to do.
But most notable of all was the march to the homes of certain millionaires up in New York. Earlier today, Occupy Wall Street protesters marched to the homes of Jamie Dimon, David Koch, John Paulson, Howard Milstein, and Rupert Murdoch.
Needless to say, that is going to seriously upset some people.
The home protests were not spontaneous. The truth is that they were highly organized. Organizers such as SEIU board member Stephen Lerner have been talking about them for quite some time. In fact, you can hear him discussing plans for the upcoming protests at the homes of these millionaires back on October 3rd right here.
There is a lot about Occupy Wall Street that can be criticized (just check out this article), but one thing that Occupy Wall Street is actually doing right is that it is focusing on the role of money in politics.
The big financial powers spend hundreds of millions of dollars on political campaigns. Just check out this infographic. All of that money buys a lot of influence over the political process. If it didn’t, the big financial powers would not be spending that kind of money.
But the big financial powers are not just spending money on political campaigns. It has now come out that the big Wall Street banks can order New York City police officers just like they would order pizzas. In fact, over a million dollars is going to be spent this way just this year alone.
A recent article that was posted on counterpunch.org detailed how this works….
One of the ingenious methods that has remained below the public’s radar was started by the Rudy Giuliani administration in New York City in 1998. It’s called the Paid Detail Unit and it allows the New York Stock Exchange and Wall Street corporations, including those repeatedly charged with crimes, to order up a flank of New York’s finest with the ease of dialing the deli for a pastrami on rye.
The corporations pay an average of $37 an hour (no medical, no pension benefit, no overtime pay) for a member of the NYPD, with gun, handcuffs and the ability to arrest. The officer is indemnified by the taxpayer, not the corporation.
New York City gets a 10 percent administrative fee on top of the $37 per hour paid to the police. The City’s 2011 budget called for $1,184,000 in Paid Detail fees, meaning private corporations were paying wages of $11.8 million to police participating in the Paid Detail Unit. The program has more than doubled in revenue to the city since 2002.
So expect the big Wall Street banks to be sending in orders for huge numbers of New York City cops to protect them from the half-crazed Occupy Wall Street protesters.
Sadly, if recent poll numbers are any indication, the anger of the American people is not going to abate any time soon….
*According to Gallup, the percentage of Americans that lack confidence in U.S. banks is now at an all-time high of 36%.
*According to a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 90 percent of Americans believe that the economy is performing poorly and approximately 80 percent of Americans believe that it is “difficult” to find a job right now.
*According to a recent Rasmussen survey, 48 percent of all Americans believe that reductions in government spending are “at least somewhat likely” to result in civil unrest inside the United States.
*Another recent survey found that 73 percent of all Americans believe that the nation is “on the wrong track”.
*According to a recent CBS News/New York Times poll, Congress has a disapproval rating of 82%.
*A recent Rasmussen survey found that 85 percent of Americans believe that members of Congress “are more interested in helping their own careers than in helping other people”, and that same survey found that 46 percent of the American people believe that most members of Congress are corrupt.
*According to a different Rasmussen survey, only 17 percent of all Americans now believe that the U.S. government has the consent of the governed.
*A recent Washington Post poll found that 78 percent of Americans are dissatisfied “with the way this country’s political system is working” and that only 26 percent of Americans now believe that the federal government can solve the economic problems that we are facing.
So what does all of that add up to?
It adds up to a U.S. population that is very frustrated and that is looking for outlets for that frustration.
As the U.S. economy continues to fall apart, that frustration is going to continue to rise.
What we are seeing all across America is only the beginning. We are going to see protest movements and explosions of anger that we can’t even imagine right now.
Dark days are coming for America.
You better buckle up.
- TAD
---
This is a fear I have had for some 2 years now..
That violence WILL come, it has to, it's only a matter of time until someone, somewhere, blows up a bank or two. Count on it.
Why would I say such a thing?
Well not because I WANT it to happen..
But here's the thing..
It involves numbers and percentages..
As reported above, in the first story on this post "Fifty-six percent[of Americans] are so angry that they can’t even sleep."
One piece of data that I am having a difficult time finding is what percentage of the American population may be violence-prone?
I have found that the average number of murders in the United States per year is somewhere around 16,000.
Here are is a portion of the United States Crime Rates for 2010
2010
Population 308,745,538
-
Violent 1,246,248
-
Murder 14,748
All I'm saying here is that there ARE violent people out there, in society. They do obviously exist as we can clearly see based on these numbers.
Now I'm going to make the assumption that the great majority of people who commit a violent act, including murder, are likely angry at the time.
Now when we see "Fifty-six percent [of Americans] are so angry that they can’t even sleep." And that anger for the most part is currently directed at Washington, politicians, politics, banks, corporations and our currently dire economic situation.
Well hell this math is EASY!
56 percent of 308 million people = 172,480,000 (more than 172 MILLION people are so angry that they can't sleep!?)
And then we have the Occupy Wall street movement..
It has grown from hundreds of people participating to thousands of people to tens of thousands and it very well may continue to grow to hundreds of thousands of people.
All of whom very well may be the most angry of the angry..
My nagging, as yet unanswered, question for some time now has been..
Given a population of very angry people what percentage of that population might be prone to participate in violent activity?
I can't seem to find this number without it being a sub-category of the total.. ie; domestic violence, school violence, work place violence..
Here are the common PERSONALITY DISORDERS but it doesn't say how many people are affected by them.. Though I did see somewhere that a full 1% of the population is affected by schizophrenia (more than 3 million people there alone).
My bottom line point here is that violence is most certainly unavoidable in this situation merely because of the numbers involved..
So I'm going to use a completely manufactured number pulled out of my own {...}
Lets say, for the sake of argument, that 0.005% of angry people are violence-prone.. Is that fair? one half of 1%
If we work with our 172 million people who have polled as "too angry to sleep" and calculate 0.005% of that number (as potentially violent) we get 860,000 people!
So I simply say to myself at that point THAT CAN'T BE RIGHT! So slash that 1 half of 1% by another 90% and we still get 86,000 people!
Cut it by another 90% and we STILL get 8,600 people!
Keep in mind there are an average of 15 or 16 THOUSAND murders in this country every year..
My conclusion is that, based on numbers alone, violence CANNOT and will not be avoided. In reality I am rather shocked that we have not already seen a lot more violence than we have..
Question is.. Then what?!
Martial law and FEMA camps?
i have always felt and said that in the case of a truly rebellious uprising the actions taken by our own government will be indistinguishable from the actions of regimes under siege in the middle east.
Mark my words
Good luck everyone
Greg
Why are you all such FOOLS over MONEY?! #OccupyWallStreet #ows #99Percent
---
All the economic lies & manipulation only further damage what little confidence N the system that's left. We're big boys & girls, we can handle a deflationary depression.
It is YOU who cannot!
How can you possibly expect to continue doing the same things that have caused all the anger & anxiety in the first place?
I know what's going on.. You think we don't know but we do, more of us everyday. What are you going to do about that?
Our economy & political system are on the verge of collapse. With that we are faced with cascading bankruptcies of companies large & small.
I suggest as much as 40% of the business world is based purely on credit & in danger of collapse, bankruptcy.
Those people would lose their jobs.. millions more of them. And who would they be mad at?! Maybe government, with it's corporate owned politicians? Maybe the Federal Reserve Bank whose monetary policies threaten to destroy the very fabric of not only our society but societies around the world..
Why are you all such FOOLS over MONEY?!
Proverbs 17:16 Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no desire to get wisdom?
The only thing you have accomplished with your "propping up" of everything within the U.S. economy is to create a great deal of anger.
Our middle class is being decimated while the "too big to fail" banks have grown larger than ever with bonus' to prove it. While America's corporations continue to report record profits quarter after quarter. While the stock market is manipulated on a daily basis because it too is "too big to fail". While our "too big to fail" government is the laughing stock of the entire world.
You are making things worse..
It is NOT an economic problem that you face.
Humanity, the world over, is rising up with a new sense of cosmic conscientiousness.
How will you deal with that?
Nostradamus was right. The bible is right. The Hopi Indians were right. The Mayans were right. Cayce was right.
You have put yourselves above God.
Ezekiel 28:2 "Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "'In the pride of your heart you say, "I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas." But you are a man and not a god, though you think you are as wise as a god.
2 Thessalonians 2:4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
Jeremiah 49:16 The terror you inspire and the pride of your heart have deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks, who occupy the heights of the hill. Though you build your nest as high as the eagle's, from there I will bring you down," declares the LORD.
Daniel 5:20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.
Daniel 5:23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.
Daniel 11:36 "The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place.
Revelation 21:6 And he also said, "It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega--the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life.
You too are finished & you must face that fact at some point.
What will you do then? How much tyranny are you capable of inflicting on the people of the world?
Greg
All the economic lies & manipulation only further damage what little confidence N the system that's left. We're big boys & girls, we can handle a deflationary depression.
It is YOU who cannot!
How can you possibly expect to continue doing the same things that have caused all the anger & anxiety in the first place?
I know what's going on.. You think we don't know but we do, more of us everyday. What are you going to do about that?
Our economy & political system are on the verge of collapse. With that we are faced with cascading bankruptcies of companies large & small.
I suggest as much as 40% of the business world is based purely on credit & in danger of collapse, bankruptcy.
Those people would lose their jobs.. millions more of them. And who would they be mad at?! Maybe government, with it's corporate owned politicians? Maybe the Federal Reserve Bank whose monetary policies threaten to destroy the very fabric of not only our society but societies around the world..
Why are you all such FOOLS over MONEY?!
Proverbs 17:16 Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no desire to get wisdom?
The only thing you have accomplished with your "propping up" of everything within the U.S. economy is to create a great deal of anger.
Our middle class is being decimated while the "too big to fail" banks have grown larger than ever with bonus' to prove it. While America's corporations continue to report record profits quarter after quarter. While the stock market is manipulated on a daily basis because it too is "too big to fail". While our "too big to fail" government is the laughing stock of the entire world.
You are making things worse..
It is NOT an economic problem that you face.
Humanity, the world over, is rising up with a new sense of cosmic conscientiousness.
How will you deal with that?
Nostradamus was right. The bible is right. The Hopi Indians were right. The Mayans were right. Cayce was right.
You have put yourselves above God.
Ezekiel 28:2 "Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "'In the pride of your heart you say, "I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas." But you are a man and not a god, though you think you are as wise as a god.
2 Thessalonians 2:4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God's temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
Jeremiah 49:16 The terror you inspire and the pride of your heart have deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks, who occupy the heights of the hill. Though you build your nest as high as the eagle's, from there I will bring you down," declares the LORD.
Daniel 5:20 But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.
Daniel 5:23 Instead, you have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven. You had the goblets from his temple brought to you, and you and your nobles, your wives and your concubines drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you did not honor the God who holds in his hand your life and all your ways.
Daniel 11:36 "The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed, for what has been determined must take place.
Revelation 21:6 And he also said, "It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega--the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life.
You too are finished & you must face that fact at some point.
What will you do then? How much tyranny are you capable of inflicting on the people of the world?
Greg
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
A message for #OccupyWallStreet & the 99%
---
It's all fine and good.. Occupy Wall Street has gained a little media coverage though most mainstream media continues to attempt to marginalize and politicize the movement. They continue to , intentionally IMHO, obfuscate the message.
Arab Spring = American Fall = Arab Spring
We need to communicate better with that, rather large, percentage of the 99% who are not yet on-board with the movement.
I have, for lack of a better word, preached on this blog for years now that it is WE, the people, who in reality hold the reins of power in the United States of America. As you may see here, here. here and here.
This is quite simply true because we, the people, account for 70% of economic activity in the country. (Though there is some evidence that suggests the actual share of GDP represented by consumer spending is in reality closer to 60%).
Even still.. 60% of the economy continues to be a lot of klout..
What the collective "we" must do is convince the entire 99% to STOP going to ball games, stop buying xPhones and cars, if we would ALL simply STOP spending money the ponzi economy, banks and mega corporations and indeed the government itself WILL collapse.. And with them so will the great majority of greed and corruption..
It really IS that simple.. "They" exist ONLY for money, worthless fiat paper. Take that away from them and they have NOTHING.
This is the message we have for the 99% we need their cooperation on a larger scale to really "take control" of the situation.
We can do it..
Below is an excerpt from a previous post. Also the links above demonstrate that I have been talking about these very problems along with possible solutions for a very long time. My blog contains many many more posts on these very subjects. Please help, share information, educate wherever and whenever you get the opportunity. We CAN make this happen..
---
America is NOT the middle east! Those poor people spend in excess of 50% of their income on food alone.. They cannot DO much to help control costs because they HAVE to eat.
We, however, in the industrialized west, DO have both CHOICES and POWER beyond imagination!
Please use that wealth and power wisely to benefit all of humanity.. NOT corrupt governments, central bankers and the banking cabal, greedy and corrupt corporations. The choice is yours and yours alone..
We control our own purse strings and we are the "wealthy" nations of the world.
They want a "green" America.. Give it to them! Don't GO on vacation! Don't STAY in hotels! Don't EAT in restaurants! Don't BUY cars and houses! Don't GO to concerts! Don't BUY iPads, iPods, iPhones! DROP your cable TV! DROP your yard service!
Make a game of SAVING money, not wasting it on self gratification.. Stop SPENDING money altogether and prices WILL DECLINE for they must..
Sure the FED will introduce QE3.. So what?! Let them continue to PLAY WITH THEMSELVES!
Above all else.. DO NOT BORROW their manipulated, worthless, paper, fiat currency!
Please.. help put a STOP to this insanity once and for all.. I promise, you'll be glad that you did..
---
Greg
It's all fine and good.. Occupy Wall Street has gained a little media coverage though most mainstream media continues to attempt to marginalize and politicize the movement. They continue to , intentionally IMHO, obfuscate the message.
Arab Spring = American Fall = Arab Spring
We need to communicate better with that, rather large, percentage of the 99% who are not yet on-board with the movement.
I have, for lack of a better word, preached on this blog for years now that it is WE, the people, who in reality hold the reins of power in the United States of America. As you may see here, here. here and here.
This is quite simply true because we, the people, account for 70% of economic activity in the country. (Though there is some evidence that suggests the actual share of GDP represented by consumer spending is in reality closer to 60%).
Even still.. 60% of the economy continues to be a lot of klout..
What the collective "we" must do is convince the entire 99% to STOP going to ball games, stop buying xPhones and cars, if we would ALL simply STOP spending money the ponzi economy, banks and mega corporations and indeed the government itself WILL collapse.. And with them so will the great majority of greed and corruption..
It really IS that simple.. "They" exist ONLY for money, worthless fiat paper. Take that away from them and they have NOTHING.
This is the message we have for the 99% we need their cooperation on a larger scale to really "take control" of the situation.
We can do it..
Below is an excerpt from a previous post. Also the links above demonstrate that I have been talking about these very problems along with possible solutions for a very long time. My blog contains many many more posts on these very subjects. Please help, share information, educate wherever and whenever you get the opportunity. We CAN make this happen..
---
America is NOT the middle east! Those poor people spend in excess of 50% of their income on food alone.. They cannot DO much to help control costs because they HAVE to eat.
We, however, in the industrialized west, DO have both CHOICES and POWER beyond imagination!
Please use that wealth and power wisely to benefit all of humanity.. NOT corrupt governments, central bankers and the banking cabal, greedy and corrupt corporations. The choice is yours and yours alone..
We control our own purse strings and we are the "wealthy" nations of the world.
They want a "green" America.. Give it to them! Don't GO on vacation! Don't STAY in hotels! Don't EAT in restaurants! Don't BUY cars and houses! Don't GO to concerts! Don't BUY iPads, iPods, iPhones! DROP your cable TV! DROP your yard service!
Make a game of SAVING money, not wasting it on self gratification.. Stop SPENDING money altogether and prices WILL DECLINE for they must..
Sure the FED will introduce QE3.. So what?! Let them continue to PLAY WITH THEMSELVES!
Above all else.. DO NOT BORROW their manipulated, worthless, paper, fiat currency!
Please.. help put a STOP to this insanity once and for all.. I promise, you'll be glad that you did..
---
Greg
Failure to execute due to fear must end.. $AUDUSD daily
---
Failure to execute due to fear must end..
A touch of the bullish 23.6 and the bullish 13 EMA after a bearish 161.8 completion move MUST be traded long..
Yet I did not trade it..
Greg
---
Failure to execute due to fear must end..
A touch of the bullish 23.6 and the bullish 13 EMA after a bearish 161.8 completion move MUST be traded long..
Yet I did not trade it..
Greg
---
Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1% #ows
---
Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%
Americans have been watching protests against oppressive regimes that concentrate massive wealth in the hands of an elite few. Yet in our own democracy, 1 percent of the people take nearly a quarter of the nation’s income—an inequality even the wealthy will come to regret.
By Joseph E. Stiglitz Illustration by Stephen Doyle
THE FAT AND THE FURIOUS The top 1 percent may have the best houses, educations, and lifestyles, says the author, but “their fate is bound up with how the other 99 percent live.”
It’s no use pretending that what has obviously happened has not in fact happened. The upper 1 percent of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation’s income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1 percent control 40 percent. Their lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12 percent and 33 percent. One response might be to celebrate the ingenuity and drive that brought good fortune to these people, and to contend that a rising tide lifts all boats. That response would be misguided. While the top 1 percent have seen their incomes rise 18 percent over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall. For men with only high-school degrees, the decline has been precipitous—12 percent in the last quarter-century alone. All the growth in recent decades—and more—has gone to those at the top. In terms of income equality, America lags behind any country in the old, ossified Europe that President George W. Bush used to deride. Among our closest counterparts are Russia with its oligarchs and Iran. While many of the old centers of inequality in Latin America, such as Brazil, have been striving in recent years, rather successfully, to improve the plight of the poor and reduce gaps in income, America has allowed inequality to grow.
Economists long ago tried to justify the vast inequalities that seemed so troubling in the mid-19th century—inequalities that are but a pale shadow of what we are seeing in America today. The justification they came up with was called “marginal-productivity theory.” In a nutshell, this theory associated higher incomes with higher productivity and a greater contribution to society. It is a theory that has always been cherished by the rich. Evidence for its validity, however, remains thin. The corporate executives who helped bring on the recession of the past three years—whose contribution to our society, and to their own companies, has been massively negative—went on to receive large bonuses. In some cases, companies were so embarrassed about calling such rewards “performance bonuses” that they felt compelled to change the name to “retention bonuses” (even if the only thing being retained was bad performance). Those who have contributed great positive innovations to our society, from the pioneers of genetic understanding to the pioneers of the Information Age, have received a pittance compared with those responsible for the financial innovations that brought our global economy to the brink of ruin.
Continue reading on Vanity Fair
Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%
Americans have been watching protests against oppressive regimes that concentrate massive wealth in the hands of an elite few. Yet in our own democracy, 1 percent of the people take nearly a quarter of the nation’s income—an inequality even the wealthy will come to regret.
By Joseph E. Stiglitz Illustration by Stephen Doyle
THE FAT AND THE FURIOUS The top 1 percent may have the best houses, educations, and lifestyles, says the author, but “their fate is bound up with how the other 99 percent live.”
It’s no use pretending that what has obviously happened has not in fact happened. The upper 1 percent of Americans are now taking in nearly a quarter of the nation’s income every year. In terms of wealth rather than income, the top 1 percent control 40 percent. Their lot in life has improved considerably. Twenty-five years ago, the corresponding figures were 12 percent and 33 percent. One response might be to celebrate the ingenuity and drive that brought good fortune to these people, and to contend that a rising tide lifts all boats. That response would be misguided. While the top 1 percent have seen their incomes rise 18 percent over the past decade, those in the middle have actually seen their incomes fall. For men with only high-school degrees, the decline has been precipitous—12 percent in the last quarter-century alone. All the growth in recent decades—and more—has gone to those at the top. In terms of income equality, America lags behind any country in the old, ossified Europe that President George W. Bush used to deride. Among our closest counterparts are Russia with its oligarchs and Iran. While many of the old centers of inequality in Latin America, such as Brazil, have been striving in recent years, rather successfully, to improve the plight of the poor and reduce gaps in income, America has allowed inequality to grow.
Economists long ago tried to justify the vast inequalities that seemed so troubling in the mid-19th century—inequalities that are but a pale shadow of what we are seeing in America today. The justification they came up with was called “marginal-productivity theory.” In a nutshell, this theory associated higher incomes with higher productivity and a greater contribution to society. It is a theory that has always been cherished by the rich. Evidence for its validity, however, remains thin. The corporate executives who helped bring on the recession of the past three years—whose contribution to our society, and to their own companies, has been massively negative—went on to receive large bonuses. In some cases, companies were so embarrassed about calling such rewards “performance bonuses” that they felt compelled to change the name to “retention bonuses” (even if the only thing being retained was bad performance). Those who have contributed great positive innovations to our society, from the pioneers of genetic understanding to the pioneers of the Information Age, have received a pittance compared with those responsible for the financial innovations that brought our global economy to the brink of ruin.
Continue reading on Vanity Fair
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Found on the net - In solidarity #OccupyWallStreet / #Anonymous
Do You Feel it Trickle Down? #OccupyWallStreet
by Eric Allen Bell
1 day ago
#OccupyWallStreet goes deeper than just the politicians being bought. Study the Federal Reserve - fractional reserve banking - who are the secret members of the board and why can't we know their names? Why is our monetary system based on debt and who do we owe it all to? Who literally owns all of our money? What are their global interests and why must their identities remain secret? Are you fed up with the Fed. Can you feel it trickle down yet?
JOIN ME: Facebook.com/EricAllenBell
Music by Leonard Cohen. Video by Eric Allen Bell
All video and audio material used legally under "Fair Use Copyright" for commentary, criticism, news reporting, research, teaching and otherwise free artistic expression without commercial exploitation in any way whatsoever.
FEEL FREE TO POST OR EMBED ANYWHERE AND EVERYWHERE - PEACE :)
by Eric Allen Bell
1 day ago
Do You Feel it Trickle Down? #OccupyWallStreet from Eric Allen Bell on Vimeo.
#OccupyWallStreet goes deeper than just the politicians being bought. Study the Federal Reserve - fractional reserve banking - who are the secret members of the board and why can't we know their names? Why is our monetary system based on debt and who do we owe it all to? Who literally owns all of our money? What are their global interests and why must their identities remain secret? Are you fed up with the Fed. Can you feel it trickle down yet?
JOIN ME: Facebook.com/EricAllenBell
Music by Leonard Cohen. Video by Eric Allen Bell
All video and audio material used legally under "Fair Use Copyright" for commentary, criticism, news reporting, research, teaching and otherwise free artistic expression without commercial exploitation in any way whatsoever.
FEEL FREE TO POST OR EMBED ANYWHERE AND EVERYWHERE - PEACE :)
#OccupyWallStreet hitting them where it hurts - in the #fiat - NYPD costs rise as Wall St protests continue
---
Post source NYPD costs rise as Wall St protests continue
Keep it up.. all that matters to any of them is money.. Cost them money and they will panic and make mistakes..
Greg
---
By MEGHAN BARR
Associated Press
October 11, 2011
NEW YORK -- The protesters demonstrating against Wall Street were out in force, several hundred of them marching around the Financial District. Keeping an eye on them as they marched and also at their home base in Zuccotti Park were a number of police officers.
The police presence is a constant one at the protest, and one that comes with a price tag. The New York Police Department already has spent $1.9 million, mostly in overtime pay, to patrol the area near Zuccotti Park, where hundreds of protesters have camped out for several weeks. Though cold weather is on the way, protesters don't plan on leaving anytime soon. They're prepared to stay put for the long haul. That means the cops will continue to be out there, too.
That comes at a time when Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered citywide budget cuts.
"The bottom line is that people want to express themselves, and as long as they obey the laws, we allow them to," Bloomberg told reporters Monday when asked about the protesters' staying power. "If they break the laws, then we're going to do what we're supposed to do - enforce the laws."
Last week, Bloomberg ordered all agencies to prepare to cut expenses by a total of $2 billion during the next 18 months. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the budget cuts may cause the cancellation of a new class of police officers entering the academy in January.
Police officials would not comment Monday on whether the Occupy Wall Street protest would have any bearing on how the budget cuts would play out. A spokesman for Bloomberg declined to comment on any financial issues.
"We always prefer to not spend overtime, but again, this is a big, complex city, lots of things going on," Kelly said last week, describing the protesters' effect on the NYPD. "And we have to spend overtime for unplanned operations."
There are many events in New York City that require a police presence, like parades, said James Parrott, deputy director and chief economist for the Fiscal Policy Institute.
By comparison, it cost about $50 million for one week to secure the Republican National Convention in 2004, which included massive protests and other events around the city. The money was later reimbursed by the federal government, but so far there is no reason for the protest security to be paid for by anyone other than New York taxpayers.
"To some extent this sort of thing happens a lot in New York City," Parrott said. "$2 million in the context of a $66 billion annual budget is not a deal breaker."
The protesters say they're fighting for the "99 percent," or the vast majority of Americans who do not fall into the wealthiest 1 percent of the population; their causes range from bringing down Wall Street to fighting global warming. The movement gained traction through social media, and protests have taken place in several other cities nationwide.
On Monday, the Rev. Al Sharpton, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and rapper Kanye West made appearances at the park. A group of mothers also took small children downtown to teach them about the movement, calling themselves the "99 Percent School."
Several hundred protesters briefly marched through the Wall Street neighborhood Monday evening, honking horns and chanting.
"The banks got bailed out, we got sold out!" went one chant.
"All day, all week, occupy Wall Street," went another.
Police walked alongside the marchers as they traveled down Broadway, through Wall Street, down Beaver Street and up Broad Street.
In Boston, hundreds of college students marched through downtown Monday and gathered on Boston Common, holding signs that read "Fund education, not corporations." The protesters said they're angry with an education system they say mimics what they call the "irresponsible, unaccountable, and unethical financial practices" of Wall Street.
Early Tuesday morning, more than 50 members of Occupy Boston were arrested for trespassing after they refused to move from a site across the street from their encampment.
In New York, officers from the city's First Precinct are patrolling the area near Wall Street, and other squads help out as necessary, depending on the size and movement of the demonstrators. If the crowd seems to be growing on a particular day, the NYPD dispatches more officers to the area, Kelly said.
"We are down 6,000 police officers from where we were 10 years ago, so it's difficult to do any type of protracted operation with people who are working in their regular tour of duty," Kelly said.
---
Associated Press writers Deepti Hajela and Colleen Long contributed to this report.
Post source NYPD costs rise as Wall St protests continue
Keep it up.. all that matters to any of them is money.. Cost them money and they will panic and make mistakes..
Greg
---
By MEGHAN BARR
Associated Press
October 11, 2011
NEW YORK -- The protesters demonstrating against Wall Street were out in force, several hundred of them marching around the Financial District. Keeping an eye on them as they marched and also at their home base in Zuccotti Park were a number of police officers.
The police presence is a constant one at the protest, and one that comes with a price tag. The New York Police Department already has spent $1.9 million, mostly in overtime pay, to patrol the area near Zuccotti Park, where hundreds of protesters have camped out for several weeks. Though cold weather is on the way, protesters don't plan on leaving anytime soon. They're prepared to stay put for the long haul. That means the cops will continue to be out there, too.
That comes at a time when Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered citywide budget cuts.
"The bottom line is that people want to express themselves, and as long as they obey the laws, we allow them to," Bloomberg told reporters Monday when asked about the protesters' staying power. "If they break the laws, then we're going to do what we're supposed to do - enforce the laws."
Last week, Bloomberg ordered all agencies to prepare to cut expenses by a total of $2 billion during the next 18 months. Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the budget cuts may cause the cancellation of a new class of police officers entering the academy in January.
Police officials would not comment Monday on whether the Occupy Wall Street protest would have any bearing on how the budget cuts would play out. A spokesman for Bloomberg declined to comment on any financial issues.
"We always prefer to not spend overtime, but again, this is a big, complex city, lots of things going on," Kelly said last week, describing the protesters' effect on the NYPD. "And we have to spend overtime for unplanned operations."
There are many events in New York City that require a police presence, like parades, said James Parrott, deputy director and chief economist for the Fiscal Policy Institute.
By comparison, it cost about $50 million for one week to secure the Republican National Convention in 2004, which included massive protests and other events around the city. The money was later reimbursed by the federal government, but so far there is no reason for the protest security to be paid for by anyone other than New York taxpayers.
"To some extent this sort of thing happens a lot in New York City," Parrott said. "$2 million in the context of a $66 billion annual budget is not a deal breaker."
The protesters say they're fighting for the "99 percent," or the vast majority of Americans who do not fall into the wealthiest 1 percent of the population; their causes range from bringing down Wall Street to fighting global warming. The movement gained traction through social media, and protests have taken place in several other cities nationwide.
On Monday, the Rev. Al Sharpton, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons and rapper Kanye West made appearances at the park. A group of mothers also took small children downtown to teach them about the movement, calling themselves the "99 Percent School."
Several hundred protesters briefly marched through the Wall Street neighborhood Monday evening, honking horns and chanting.
"The banks got bailed out, we got sold out!" went one chant.
"All day, all week, occupy Wall Street," went another.
Police walked alongside the marchers as they traveled down Broadway, through Wall Street, down Beaver Street and up Broad Street.
In Boston, hundreds of college students marched through downtown Monday and gathered on Boston Common, holding signs that read "Fund education, not corporations." The protesters said they're angry with an education system they say mimics what they call the "irresponsible, unaccountable, and unethical financial practices" of Wall Street.
Early Tuesday morning, more than 50 members of Occupy Boston were arrested for trespassing after they refused to move from a site across the street from their encampment.
In New York, officers from the city's First Precinct are patrolling the area near Wall Street, and other squads help out as necessary, depending on the size and movement of the demonstrators. If the crowd seems to be growing on a particular day, the NYPD dispatches more officers to the area, Kelly said.
"We are down 6,000 police officers from where we were 10 years ago, so it's difficult to do any type of protracted operation with people who are working in their regular tour of duty," Kelly said.
---
Associated Press writers Deepti Hajela and Colleen Long contributed to this report.
#Government mandating hiring! WTF?! #OccupyWallStreet #ows
---
Yesterday I was needling my Federal Reserve Bank folks on twitter @philadelphiafed @minneapolisfed @DallasFed @ChicagoFed @ClevelandFed @AtlantaFed @stlouisfed @BostonFed
I said to them "why don't you just mandate hiring"?!
Little did I KNOW that such mandating of hiring is practically a reality in obama's jobs bill!
See Here it is highlight below..
---
WASHINGTON -- After two years on the unemployment rolls, Selena Forte thought she'd found a temporary job at FedEx that matched her qualifications.
But Forte, a 55-year-old from Cleveland, says a job recruiter for a temporary agency told her the company wouldn't consider her because she had been out of work too long. She had lost her job driving a bus.
"They didn't even want to hear about my experience," said Forte. "It didn't make sense. You're always told just go out there and get a job."
Forte, scraping by now as a part time substitute school bus driver, is part of a growing number of unemployed or underemployed Americans who complain they are being screened out of job openings for the very reason they're looking for work in the first place. Some companies and job agencies prefer applicants who already have jobs, or haven't been jobless too long.
--- Here it is!
She could get help from a provision in President Barack Obama's jobs bill, which would ban companies with 15 or more employees from refusing to consider -- or offer a job to -- someone who is unemployed. The measure also applies to employment agencies and would prohibit want ads that disqualify applicants just because they are unemployed.
---
Is that not the stupidest thing you have ever heard?! The government mandating that companies "offer a job" or face a lawsuit?! It's insane.. And it's not at all how capitalism works.
In a capitalist system when corporate profits are threatened the corporation fires people to keep profits propped up so as not to be punished in the market place.
Like it or not that's what we have..
---
But Obama's bill faces a troubled path in Congress, as Republicans strongly oppose its plans for tax increases on the wealthy and other spending provisions. Should the bill fail, Democrats are sure to remind jobless voters that the GOP blocked an attempt to redress discrimination against them at a time when work is so hard to find.
The effort to protect the unemployed has drawn praise from workers' rights advocates, but business groups say it will just stir up needless litigation by frustrated job applicants. The provision would give those claiming discrimination a right to sue, and violators would face fines of up to $1,000 per day, plus attorney fees and costs.
"Threatening business owners with new lawsuits is not going to help create jobs and will probably have a chilling effect on hiring," said Cynthia Magnuson, spokeswoman for the National Federation of Independent Business. "Business owners may be concerned about posting a new job if they could face a possible lawsuit."
Sally Davenport, a spokeswoman for FedEx in Memphis, said the company has no policy barring the unemployed from seeking a job.
"We interview and hire the candidates best qualified for the job," she said. "There was obviously confusion on the part of the temp agency."
A survey earlier this year by the National Employment Law Project found more than 150 job postings on employment Web sites such as CareerBuilder.com and Monster.com requiring that applicants "must be currently employed" or using other exclusionary language based on current employment status.
"It's really alarming to us that employers continue to ignore the strong public condemnation of this practice," said Maurice Emsellem, the legal group's policy co-director.
The issue has gained more prominence as the unemployment level remains stuck over 9 percent and a record 4.5 million people -- nearly one-third of the unemployed -- have been out of work for a year or more. And older workers, like Forte, often struggle to find new jobs.
"There's a flood of workers looking for jobs right now and unfortunately, this is a convenient way to streamline the process" by employers, Emsellem said. Some companies might assume people who have been out of work for several months may not be stellar performers, he said.
The practice has also drawn concern from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where members at a hearing earlier this year said barring unemployed people from employment may have a greater effect on blacks and Hispanics with higher jobless rates.
Ron Cooper, a former commission general counsel during the Bush administration now in private practice, said he thinks the problem is being overblown.
"People, I'm sure, are looking for shortcuts to trim the applicant pool that they're looking at," Cooper said. "But I've never heard of this as a top-shelf criteria for people making those decisions."
Last month, the job search Web site Indeed.com announced it would not accept any job ad that seeks to exclude the unemployed.
"Our policy is to exclude job listings that do not comply with federal or local laws related to discriminatory hiring practices as well as job listings that discriminate against the unemployed," said Indeed.com spokeswoman Sophie Beaurpere.
Forte says that in her case, the job recruiter told her the company was not considering applicants who have been out of work longer than six months.
"Here I am, a seasoned worker. I didn't have six months, but I had eight years of experience," she said.
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat who has sponsored a separate bill protecting the unemployed, said he understands that employers need the right to hire according to their needs and to factor in work experience.
"But they shouldn't have the right to discriminate from the start and preemptively deny qualified workers a fair chance at a job they need," Brown said.
(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Post source Unemployed seek protection against job bias
Yesterday I was needling my Federal Reserve Bank folks on twitter @philadelphiafed @minneapolisfed @DallasFed @ChicagoFed @ClevelandFed @AtlantaFed @stlouisfed @BostonFed
I said to them "why don't you just mandate hiring"?!
Little did I KNOW that such mandating of hiring is practically a reality in obama's jobs bill!
See Here it is highlight below..
---
WASHINGTON -- After two years on the unemployment rolls, Selena Forte thought she'd found a temporary job at FedEx that matched her qualifications.
But Forte, a 55-year-old from Cleveland, says a job recruiter for a temporary agency told her the company wouldn't consider her because she had been out of work too long. She had lost her job driving a bus.
"They didn't even want to hear about my experience," said Forte. "It didn't make sense. You're always told just go out there and get a job."
Forte, scraping by now as a part time substitute school bus driver, is part of a growing number of unemployed or underemployed Americans who complain they are being screened out of job openings for the very reason they're looking for work in the first place. Some companies and job agencies prefer applicants who already have jobs, or haven't been jobless too long.
--- Here it is!
She could get help from a provision in President Barack Obama's jobs bill, which would ban companies with 15 or more employees from refusing to consider -- or offer a job to -- someone who is unemployed. The measure also applies to employment agencies and would prohibit want ads that disqualify applicants just because they are unemployed.
---
Is that not the stupidest thing you have ever heard?! The government mandating that companies "offer a job" or face a lawsuit?! It's insane.. And it's not at all how capitalism works.
In a capitalist system when corporate profits are threatened the corporation fires people to keep profits propped up so as not to be punished in the market place.
Like it or not that's what we have..
---
But Obama's bill faces a troubled path in Congress, as Republicans strongly oppose its plans for tax increases on the wealthy and other spending provisions. Should the bill fail, Democrats are sure to remind jobless voters that the GOP blocked an attempt to redress discrimination against them at a time when work is so hard to find.
The effort to protect the unemployed has drawn praise from workers' rights advocates, but business groups say it will just stir up needless litigation by frustrated job applicants. The provision would give those claiming discrimination a right to sue, and violators would face fines of up to $1,000 per day, plus attorney fees and costs.
"Threatening business owners with new lawsuits is not going to help create jobs and will probably have a chilling effect on hiring," said Cynthia Magnuson, spokeswoman for the National Federation of Independent Business. "Business owners may be concerned about posting a new job if they could face a possible lawsuit."
Sally Davenport, a spokeswoman for FedEx in Memphis, said the company has no policy barring the unemployed from seeking a job.
"We interview and hire the candidates best qualified for the job," she said. "There was obviously confusion on the part of the temp agency."
A survey earlier this year by the National Employment Law Project found more than 150 job postings on employment Web sites such as CareerBuilder.com and Monster.com requiring that applicants "must be currently employed" or using other exclusionary language based on current employment status.
"It's really alarming to us that employers continue to ignore the strong public condemnation of this practice," said Maurice Emsellem, the legal group's policy co-director.
The issue has gained more prominence as the unemployment level remains stuck over 9 percent and a record 4.5 million people -- nearly one-third of the unemployed -- have been out of work for a year or more. And older workers, like Forte, often struggle to find new jobs.
"There's a flood of workers looking for jobs right now and unfortunately, this is a convenient way to streamline the process" by employers, Emsellem said. Some companies might assume people who have been out of work for several months may not be stellar performers, he said.
The practice has also drawn concern from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where members at a hearing earlier this year said barring unemployed people from employment may have a greater effect on blacks and Hispanics with higher jobless rates.
Ron Cooper, a former commission general counsel during the Bush administration now in private practice, said he thinks the problem is being overblown.
"People, I'm sure, are looking for shortcuts to trim the applicant pool that they're looking at," Cooper said. "But I've never heard of this as a top-shelf criteria for people making those decisions."
Last month, the job search Web site Indeed.com announced it would not accept any job ad that seeks to exclude the unemployed.
"Our policy is to exclude job listings that do not comply with federal or local laws related to discriminatory hiring practices as well as job listings that discriminate against the unemployed," said Indeed.com spokeswoman Sophie Beaurpere.
Forte says that in her case, the job recruiter told her the company was not considering applicants who have been out of work longer than six months.
"Here I am, a seasoned worker. I didn't have six months, but I had eight years of experience," she said.
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat who has sponsored a separate bill protecting the unemployed, said he understands that employers need the right to hire according to their needs and to factor in work experience.
"But they shouldn't have the right to discriminate from the start and preemptively deny qualified workers a fair chance at a job they need," Brown said.
(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Post source Unemployed seek protection against job bias
Monday, October 10, 2011
hanging on a bearish 23.6.. $EURGBP
---
But it still seems like gambling.. euro pretty damned bullish at the moment.. no matter what one might think..
Some TRIX divergence but not stoch..
---
Greg
But it still seems like gambling.. euro pretty damned bullish at the moment.. no matter what one might think..
Some TRIX divergence but not stoch..
---
Greg
Top Recipients of Federal Tax Breaks Donate to State Campaigns - How #politics operates hint: think #fiat
---
Top Recipients of Federal Tax Breaks Donate to State Campaigns
by Linda Casey, Aug. 31, 2011
The top five recipients of $3.7 billion in federal corporate tax breaks paid $0 in 2009 federal taxes and enjoyed a combined profit of $77.16 billion in 2010. This report reveals that these corporations also gave $78.7 million to state political campaigns and $45.3 million to federal campaigns in the last decade. Follow the money in this analysis to see who's giving to what in state-level campaigns.
This publication was made possible by grants from:
Ford Foundation
Open Society Foundations
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Sunlight Foundation
Top Recipients of Federal Tax Breaks Donate to State Campaigns
Overview
The top five recipients of federal corporate tax breaks—Chevron Corp, Bank of America, ExxonMobil, General Electric, and Boeing1—gave $78.7 million to state political campaigns and another $45.3 million to federal campaigns2 from 1999 through 2010.
Bill De Blasio, of the New York City Public Advocates office, pointed out that these same five corporations benefited from $3.7 billion in corporate tax breaks in 2009, paid $0 in 2009 federal taxes,3 and in 2010 enjoyed a combined profit of $77.16 billion.4
The following table details the state and federal campaign giving of the five corporations over the past decade. Chevron Corp. contributed ten times more at the state level, the only one of the five whose state giving exceeded their contributions to federal campaigns.
Continue reading
Top Recipients of Federal Tax Breaks Donate to State Campaigns
by Linda Casey, Aug. 31, 2011
The top five recipients of $3.7 billion in federal corporate tax breaks paid $0 in 2009 federal taxes and enjoyed a combined profit of $77.16 billion in 2010. This report reveals that these corporations also gave $78.7 million to state political campaigns and $45.3 million to federal campaigns in the last decade. Follow the money in this analysis to see who's giving to what in state-level campaigns.
This publication was made possible by grants from:
Ford Foundation
Open Society Foundations
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Sunlight Foundation
Top Recipients of Federal Tax Breaks Donate to State Campaigns
Overview
The top five recipients of federal corporate tax breaks—Chevron Corp, Bank of America, ExxonMobil, General Electric, and Boeing1—gave $78.7 million to state political campaigns and another $45.3 million to federal campaigns2 from 1999 through 2010.
Bill De Blasio, of the New York City Public Advocates office, pointed out that these same five corporations benefited from $3.7 billion in corporate tax breaks in 2009, paid $0 in 2009 federal taxes,3 and in 2010 enjoyed a combined profit of $77.16 billion.4
The following table details the state and federal campaign giving of the five corporations over the past decade. Chevron Corp. contributed ten times more at the state level, the only one of the five whose state giving exceeded their contributions to federal campaigns.
Continue reading
Occupy Wall Street Backs a Nationwide Boycott Against Banks #OccupyWallStreet
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Post Source on CNBC
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Published: Friday, 7 Oct 2011 | 1:21 PM ET Text Size
By: Cadie Thompson
Producer, CNBC.com
In an effort to send a message to big banks, some organizers, who are supported by the protestors of the Occupy Wall Street movement, have organized an event to remove all funds from banks and into credit unions.
Organizers are calling the event "Bank Transfer Day" and are encouraging people nationwide to participate November 5.
The Facebook page for the event states the following:
"Together we can ensure that these banking institutions will ALWAYS remember the 5th of November!! If the 99% removes our funds from the major banking institutions on or by this date, we will send a clear message and give the 1% a taste of the fear that we experience every day when we aren't able to pay for our rent, food, medication, utilities, student loans, etc."
So far over 6,500 people have RSVP'ed for the event.
The participants of "Bank Transfer Day" take issue with the response of big banks' to the Durbin Amendment, which is an addition to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that caps the debit interchange fees banks can charge merchants.
The organizers claim the banks will begin to charge their customers $3-$5 fees to off-set the money they will lose because of the interchange fee cap.
The event's Facebook page states:
WHY ARE WE BOYCOTTING?
The Durbin Amendment is an add-on to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Public Law No. 111-203), signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010. The Act allows the Federal Reserve to regulate debit card interchange fees of banks with over $10 billion in assets. Over the summer, the Fed released the final rule on the matter by limiting debit card interchange fees to a maximum of 21¢ per transaction. In response, these "major banks" have decided that beginning early 2012 any consumer with less than $20,000 in combined accounts will be charged a monthly $3-5 fee if they use their debit card at any point during the month. This is a blatant attack on the 99% that cannot & will not be tolerated. In a stand of solidarity, on November 5th we will transfer our money & close our accounts with these major banking institutions to take our business to credit unions (or local banks if a credit union isn't available). Since #OccupyWallStreet began, these banks are donating our money (and money they've made with our money) to law enforcement agencies to heap abuse on our brothers & sisters. NO LONGER.
Bank of America [BAC 6.19 0.29 (+4.92%) ] has already announced it will start to charge customers $5 a month for using their debit card starting next year.
Post Source on CNBC
---
Published: Friday, 7 Oct 2011 | 1:21 PM ET Text Size
By: Cadie Thompson
Producer, CNBC.com
In an effort to send a message to big banks, some organizers, who are supported by the protestors of the Occupy Wall Street movement, have organized an event to remove all funds from banks and into credit unions.
Organizers are calling the event "Bank Transfer Day" and are encouraging people nationwide to participate November 5.
The Facebook page for the event states the following:
"Together we can ensure that these banking institutions will ALWAYS remember the 5th of November!! If the 99% removes our funds from the major banking institutions on or by this date, we will send a clear message and give the 1% a taste of the fear that we experience every day when we aren't able to pay for our rent, food, medication, utilities, student loans, etc."
So far over 6,500 people have RSVP'ed for the event.
The participants of "Bank Transfer Day" take issue with the response of big banks' to the Durbin Amendment, which is an addition to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that caps the debit interchange fees banks can charge merchants.
The organizers claim the banks will begin to charge their customers $3-$5 fees to off-set the money they will lose because of the interchange fee cap.
The event's Facebook page states:
WHY ARE WE BOYCOTTING?
The Durbin Amendment is an add-on to the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Public Law No. 111-203), signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010. The Act allows the Federal Reserve to regulate debit card interchange fees of banks with over $10 billion in assets. Over the summer, the Fed released the final rule on the matter by limiting debit card interchange fees to a maximum of 21¢ per transaction. In response, these "major banks" have decided that beginning early 2012 any consumer with less than $20,000 in combined accounts will be charged a monthly $3-5 fee if they use their debit card at any point during the month. This is a blatant attack on the 99% that cannot & will not be tolerated. In a stand of solidarity, on November 5th we will transfer our money & close our accounts with these major banking institutions to take our business to credit unions (or local banks if a credit union isn't available). Since #OccupyWallStreet began, these banks are donating our money (and money they've made with our money) to law enforcement agencies to heap abuse on our brothers & sisters. NO LONGER.
Bank of America [BAC 6.19 0.29 (+4.92%) ] has already announced it will start to charge customers $5 a month for using their debit card starting next year.
Ron Paul: US could target journalists for killing
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Sometimes people (Bill O'reily for instance) call Ron Paul a kook for statements like this.
IMHO, Paul asks serious questions that should be asked..
"What if the media becomes a threat?"
"All the Nazi criminals were tried. They were taken to court and then executed," Paul said. "The reason we do this is because we want to protect the rule of law."
Source post on the Guardian
---
PHILIP ELLIOTT
Associated Press= WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican presidential contender Ron Paul on Wednesday suggested that the United States could assassinate journalists the same way it targeted Americans with ties to al-Qaida.
The Texas congressman again criticized President Barack Obama for approving last week's drone strikes in Yemen against a U.S. citizen who was tracked and executed based on secret intelligence that linked him to two failed terrorist attacks against the U.S. An American-born propagandist also died in the bombing. Escalating his criticism, Paul told a National Press Club luncheon that if citizens do not protest the deaths, the country will start adding reporters to its list of threats that must be taken out.
"Can you imagine being put on a list because you're a threat? What's going to happen when they come to the media? What if the media becomes a threat? ... This is the way this works. It's incrementalism," Paul said.
"It's slipping and sliding, let me tell you."
Anwar al-Awlaki, the target of the U.S. drone attack, was one of the best-known al-Qaida figures after Osama bin Laden. American intelligence officials had linked him to two thwarted attacks on U.S.-bound planes, an airliner on Christmas 2009 and cargo planes last year. The second American killed in the drone attack, Samir Kahn, was the editor of Inspire, a slick online magazine aimed at al-Qaida sympathizers in the West.
Paul likened the pair to German officials who carried out the Holocaust but were still given trials.
"All the Nazi criminals were tried. They were taken to court and then executed," Paul said. "The reason we do this is because we want to protect the rule of law."
Paul, making his second run for the Republican presidential nomination, has built a die-hard following among the GOP's libertarian wing and has worked to court anti-war conservatives.
Sometimes people (Bill O'reily for instance) call Ron Paul a kook for statements like this.
IMHO, Paul asks serious questions that should be asked..
"What if the media becomes a threat?"
"All the Nazi criminals were tried. They were taken to court and then executed," Paul said. "The reason we do this is because we want to protect the rule of law."
Source post on the Guardian
---
PHILIP ELLIOTT
Associated Press= WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican presidential contender Ron Paul on Wednesday suggested that the United States could assassinate journalists the same way it targeted Americans with ties to al-Qaida.
The Texas congressman again criticized President Barack Obama for approving last week's drone strikes in Yemen against a U.S. citizen who was tracked and executed based on secret intelligence that linked him to two failed terrorist attacks against the U.S. An American-born propagandist also died in the bombing. Escalating his criticism, Paul told a National Press Club luncheon that if citizens do not protest the deaths, the country will start adding reporters to its list of threats that must be taken out.
"Can you imagine being put on a list because you're a threat? What's going to happen when they come to the media? What if the media becomes a threat? ... This is the way this works. It's incrementalism," Paul said.
"It's slipping and sliding, let me tell you."
Anwar al-Awlaki, the target of the U.S. drone attack, was one of the best-known al-Qaida figures after Osama bin Laden. American intelligence officials had linked him to two thwarted attacks on U.S.-bound planes, an airliner on Christmas 2009 and cargo planes last year. The second American killed in the drone attack, Samir Kahn, was the editor of Inspire, a slick online magazine aimed at al-Qaida sympathizers in the West.
Paul likened the pair to German officials who carried out the Holocaust but were still given trials.
"All the Nazi criminals were tried. They were taken to court and then executed," Paul said. "The reason we do this is because we want to protect the rule of law."
Paul, making his second run for the Republican presidential nomination, has built a die-hard following among the GOP's libertarian wing and has worked to court anti-war conservatives.
Friday, October 7, 2011
First Occupy Wall Street — Now Occupy the Fed
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First Occupy Wall Street — Now Occupy the Fed <-- source post on The New American
---
WRITTEN BY RAVEN CLABOUGH
FRIDAY, 07 OCTOBER 2011 17:09
0
Perhaps surprising to some, many conservatives sympathize with the Occupy Wall Street protesters because they understand the motivating factors behind the protests: increased costs on everyday items, unemployment, inflation, etc. However, those conservatives recognize that much of the anger of the protesters is directed at the wrong target. The real enemy, they contend, is the Federal Reserve, and it is for that reason that those conservatives have chosen to use the momentum of the Occupy Wall Street protests to stage Occupy the Fed protests instead.
One organizer, known only as “Anonymous A99,” announced the first operation targeting the Fed, called “Operation Empire State Rebellion,” on March 12. The announcement explained that the movement was intended to be a “decentralized non-violent resistance movement.” Anonymous A99 said of the intent of the organizers:
Above all, we aim to break up the global banking cartel centered at the Federal Reserve, International Monetary Fund, Bank of International Settlement and World Bank.
We demand that the primary dealers within the Federal Reserve banking system be broken up and held accountable for rigging markets and destroying the global economy, effective immediately.
As a first sign of good faith, we demand Ben Bernanke step down as Federal Reserve chairman.
Until our demands are met and a rule of law is restored, we will engage in a relentless campaign of non-violent, peaceful, civil disobedience.”
Those protests commenced on June 14, and took place in over 20 cities, but were scarcely reported on by the mainstream media. In some areas, they have been going on ever since.
More recently, protests against the Federal Reserve have been launched by a number of groups, including some which were part of the Occupy Wall Street protests.
One leader of the demonstrations against the Federal Reserve is blogger and radio personality Alex Jones. His website, infowars.com, issued a press release advertising the protests, which read:
Public sentiment has shifted — against the trends of Washington and Wall Street — and now, against the private Federal Reserve bank which controls or influences so much of the world’s finances. Whereas only a few years ago many Americans were unaware of the true nature of the shadowy organization, recent polls confirm that the public overwhelmingly wants to audit and even abolish the Federal Reserve bank.
Explaining the growing animosity towards the Federal Reserve, Jones continues:
By striking at the root of the true problems, we can attempt to reign in the predatory banking powers that plague our nation and begin to restore the Republic.
The Federal Reserve banking system is at the root of that problem and a perpetual impediment towards ending the global economic crisis that continues to grow.
The Federal Reserve has been harshly criticized by a number of individuals and groups, particularly those who are proponents of Austrian economics. GOP presidential contender Ron Paul has been a leading advocate of eliminating the Federal Reserve and restoring the free market economy. He has spent virtually his entire political career vocalizing his disdain for the unconstitutional system.
In 2002, Paul said of the Federal Reserve:
Since the creation of the Federal Reserve, middle- and working-class Americans have been victimized by a boom-and-bust monetary policy. In addition, most Americans have suffered a steadily eroding purchasing power because of the Federal Reserve's inflationary policies. This represents a real, if hidden, tax imposed on the American people.
Paul has often addressed how the Federal Reserve continues to serve the needs of a few, while imposing negative consequences on the average American:
Though the Federal Reserve policy harms the average American, it benefits those in a position to take advantage of the cycles in monetary policy. The main beneficiaries are those who receive access to artificially inflated money and/or credit before the inflationary effects of the policy impact the entire economy. Federal Reserve policies also benefit big spending politicians who use the inflated currency created by the Fed to hide the true costs of the welfare-warfare state. It is time for Congress to put the interests of the American people ahead of the special interests and their own appetite for big government.
Above all, Paul notes that the Federal Reserve is an unconstitutional establishment that has ultimately stripped Congress of powers that were assigned to it by the Constitution:
Abolishing the Federal Reserve will allow Congress to reassert its constitutional authority over monetary policy. The United States Constitution grants to Congress the authority to coin money and regulate the value of the currency. The Constitution does not give Congress the authority to delegate control over monetary policy to a central bank. Furthermore, the Constitution certainly does not empower the federal government to erode the American standard of living via an inflationary monetary policy.
According to Paul, it is the policies of the Federal Reserve that have driven people to protest: “It is no wonder they are up on Wall Street raising Cain because they know the system is biased against the average person.”
Protesters outside of the Federal Reserve were seen bearing signs targeting the Fed’s destructive economic policies, as well as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. One protester held a sign of Bernanke wearing Muslim garb that read, “Osama Bin Bernanke.”
In Chicago, anti-Fed protesters have been stationed outside of the Federal Reserve bank since September 24. On Monday, nearly one dozen people sat outside of the Federal Reserve Bank with protest signs and hampers filled with food and blankets. The demonstrators claim that so much has been donated to them that they have actually begun to give the excess food and blankets to homeless people.
In Dallas, hundreds of protesters marched from Pike Park to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, demanding change.
Clearly, at least in some instances, Ron Paul’s assertions that the Fed has driven people to the streets to protest are true, but the protests have become so widespread that it is becoming increasingly difficult to determine who is behind them and what their political philosophies are.
Some media outlets are reporting that the Wall Street protesters are “libertarian,” which could be true of those who have focused their attention on the Federal Reserve.
However, the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in New York include a number of unions and socialist groups which hold very different political stances from libertarians. Their list of demands have included more big government and more regulation, items that would not be supported by libertarian-minded or conservative demonstrators.
Likewise, The New American's Alex Newman has revealed that leftist billionaire George Soros' money has been tied to the Occupy Wall Street protests.
In other words, the protests have encompassed a wide spectrum of political philosophies.
According to The Daily Campus, a publication of the Southern Methodist University, those present at the Dallas protest hailed from a variety of backgrounds: “Followers of the Tea Party movement, Ron Paul supporters, and the Dallas Young Democrats all had strong showings.”
Whether the protests against the Federal Reserve will help to bring about major change remains to be seen, but some analysts contend it is encouraging just to see people turn their attention to the Federal Reserve and finally take notice of the type of destruction it has imposed on the American people.
We contacted John Birch Society President John McManus who said, "Targeting the Federal Reserve is correct inasmuch as there is no constitutional justification for its existence and it possesses enormously harmful powers. But it was created by Congress and, therefore, can be abolished by Congress. Demonstrating against the Fed by camping out in the streets, especially if funding for such activity comes from the likes of George Soros, should be labeled a counterproductive exercise. These demonstrations seem designed to deflect attention and anger away from the Fed's creator, the Congress of the United States."
First Occupy Wall Street — Now Occupy the Fed <-- source post on The New American
---
WRITTEN BY RAVEN CLABOUGH
FRIDAY, 07 OCTOBER 2011 17:09
0
Perhaps surprising to some, many conservatives sympathize with the Occupy Wall Street protesters because they understand the motivating factors behind the protests: increased costs on everyday items, unemployment, inflation, etc. However, those conservatives recognize that much of the anger of the protesters is directed at the wrong target. The real enemy, they contend, is the Federal Reserve, and it is for that reason that those conservatives have chosen to use the momentum of the Occupy Wall Street protests to stage Occupy the Fed protests instead.
One organizer, known only as “Anonymous A99,” announced the first operation targeting the Fed, called “Operation Empire State Rebellion,” on March 12. The announcement explained that the movement was intended to be a “decentralized non-violent resistance movement.” Anonymous A99 said of the intent of the organizers:
Above all, we aim to break up the global banking cartel centered at the Federal Reserve, International Monetary Fund, Bank of International Settlement and World Bank.
We demand that the primary dealers within the Federal Reserve banking system be broken up and held accountable for rigging markets and destroying the global economy, effective immediately.
As a first sign of good faith, we demand Ben Bernanke step down as Federal Reserve chairman.
Until our demands are met and a rule of law is restored, we will engage in a relentless campaign of non-violent, peaceful, civil disobedience.”
Those protests commenced on June 14, and took place in over 20 cities, but were scarcely reported on by the mainstream media. In some areas, they have been going on ever since.
More recently, protests against the Federal Reserve have been launched by a number of groups, including some which were part of the Occupy Wall Street protests.
One leader of the demonstrations against the Federal Reserve is blogger and radio personality Alex Jones. His website, infowars.com, issued a press release advertising the protests, which read:
Public sentiment has shifted — against the trends of Washington and Wall Street — and now, against the private Federal Reserve bank which controls or influences so much of the world’s finances. Whereas only a few years ago many Americans were unaware of the true nature of the shadowy organization, recent polls confirm that the public overwhelmingly wants to audit and even abolish the Federal Reserve bank.
Explaining the growing animosity towards the Federal Reserve, Jones continues:
By striking at the root of the true problems, we can attempt to reign in the predatory banking powers that plague our nation and begin to restore the Republic.
The Federal Reserve banking system is at the root of that problem and a perpetual impediment towards ending the global economic crisis that continues to grow.
The Federal Reserve has been harshly criticized by a number of individuals and groups, particularly those who are proponents of Austrian economics. GOP presidential contender Ron Paul has been a leading advocate of eliminating the Federal Reserve and restoring the free market economy. He has spent virtually his entire political career vocalizing his disdain for the unconstitutional system.
In 2002, Paul said of the Federal Reserve:
Since the creation of the Federal Reserve, middle- and working-class Americans have been victimized by a boom-and-bust monetary policy. In addition, most Americans have suffered a steadily eroding purchasing power because of the Federal Reserve's inflationary policies. This represents a real, if hidden, tax imposed on the American people.
Paul has often addressed how the Federal Reserve continues to serve the needs of a few, while imposing negative consequences on the average American:
Though the Federal Reserve policy harms the average American, it benefits those in a position to take advantage of the cycles in monetary policy. The main beneficiaries are those who receive access to artificially inflated money and/or credit before the inflationary effects of the policy impact the entire economy. Federal Reserve policies also benefit big spending politicians who use the inflated currency created by the Fed to hide the true costs of the welfare-warfare state. It is time for Congress to put the interests of the American people ahead of the special interests and their own appetite for big government.
Above all, Paul notes that the Federal Reserve is an unconstitutional establishment that has ultimately stripped Congress of powers that were assigned to it by the Constitution:
Abolishing the Federal Reserve will allow Congress to reassert its constitutional authority over monetary policy. The United States Constitution grants to Congress the authority to coin money and regulate the value of the currency. The Constitution does not give Congress the authority to delegate control over monetary policy to a central bank. Furthermore, the Constitution certainly does not empower the federal government to erode the American standard of living via an inflationary monetary policy.
According to Paul, it is the policies of the Federal Reserve that have driven people to protest: “It is no wonder they are up on Wall Street raising Cain because they know the system is biased against the average person.”
Protesters outside of the Federal Reserve were seen bearing signs targeting the Fed’s destructive economic policies, as well as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. One protester held a sign of Bernanke wearing Muslim garb that read, “Osama Bin Bernanke.”
In Chicago, anti-Fed protesters have been stationed outside of the Federal Reserve bank since September 24. On Monday, nearly one dozen people sat outside of the Federal Reserve Bank with protest signs and hampers filled with food and blankets. The demonstrators claim that so much has been donated to them that they have actually begun to give the excess food and blankets to homeless people.
In Dallas, hundreds of protesters marched from Pike Park to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, demanding change.
Clearly, at least in some instances, Ron Paul’s assertions that the Fed has driven people to the streets to protest are true, but the protests have become so widespread that it is becoming increasingly difficult to determine who is behind them and what their political philosophies are.
Some media outlets are reporting that the Wall Street protesters are “libertarian,” which could be true of those who have focused their attention on the Federal Reserve.
However, the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in New York include a number of unions and socialist groups which hold very different political stances from libertarians. Their list of demands have included more big government and more regulation, items that would not be supported by libertarian-minded or conservative demonstrators.
Likewise, The New American's Alex Newman has revealed that leftist billionaire George Soros' money has been tied to the Occupy Wall Street protests.
In other words, the protests have encompassed a wide spectrum of political philosophies.
According to The Daily Campus, a publication of the Southern Methodist University, those present at the Dallas protest hailed from a variety of backgrounds: “Followers of the Tea Party movement, Ron Paul supporters, and the Dallas Young Democrats all had strong showings.”
Whether the protests against the Federal Reserve will help to bring about major change remains to be seen, but some analysts contend it is encouraging just to see people turn their attention to the Federal Reserve and finally take notice of the type of destruction it has imposed on the American people.
We contacted John Birch Society President John McManus who said, "Targeting the Federal Reserve is correct inasmuch as there is no constitutional justification for its existence and it possesses enormously harmful powers. But it was created by Congress and, therefore, can be abolished by Congress. Demonstrating against the Fed by camping out in the streets, especially if funding for such activity comes from the likes of George Soros, should be labeled a counterproductive exercise. These demonstrations seem designed to deflect attention and anger away from the Fed's creator, the Congress of the United States."
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