rsp@odyssey.net


Prediction!


This thread will devolve into someone calling another forum member a nasty demeaning name, then someone might make a threat and then eventually someone's feelings will be hurt.

I havent been wrong about this kind of thread yet.

Wait and watch for it, OR just stop now and leave this stuff to other places on the web.

This isnt the place for it folks.

Randy

You're a booger head!!

trimph1


I'll have to work on that cartoon ....


Matthew...IIRC sometime back in 2009(?) James Quinn had an interesting blog done up on the cost of a military industrial complex....aaacchh I found it...http://seekingalpha.com/article/90742-the-economic-cost-of-the-military-industrial-complex.....and another one...http://seekingalpha.com/instablog/239719-james-quinn/63135-u-s-military-peak-oil-is-here

Yes, I've seen graphs like that before.  It's kind of crazy.  I do believe that we need a strong military, but it's way out of control.  We can't do everything.



@ Janet,

Yes I wish so too.


As for my background, I did business economics with a focus in accounting at UCSB before I got my CPA.   I've taken some classes specficially on economics and government, plus I've read extensivly afterwards.  Both on government economics, and investing.

I think the issues we are facing are too important, and if we could get enough people informed and involved maybe we could change things.

Besides that if you're not informed then it's too easy to lose your shirt as too many people have sadly discovered.  If you don't want your money, then when you turn around it might not be there.

Anyway, off to spend time with the wife :)

We've made two pages and still a friendly thread !!!

eveyone have a good night.

Kroneborge


No, I hadn't heard of him before.  Though they do sound interesting.   Although I should confess I have a degree in economics.   But that doesn't mean I can't ever get anything out of reading new stuff.

I learn stuff here
http://www.frontlinethoughts.com/

All the time (and it's free)

His recommendation actually helped me (and others I passed it on too) avoid the majority of the 2008 stock market crash.

Matt I really enjoy your insight on this and respect your views. I like what I read on this guys page.  In the business I came from, I seen the warning signs coming all across the nation as the excuses started to fly blaming the economy (for everything that came up) as everyone in a leadership role continued to abuse the systems and make sure they got while the gettin was good at the expense of the working class.  I warned CNN for the first time in over 200 years this place was in existance that they were going to implement layoffs and cut in all the wrong places for the very first time. Low and behold-It Happened. Prior to that, keeping up with what was going on in the real world, I moved and locked all my assets down to avoid being like so many that lost lifes work and savings for nothing more than the sake of number and stats jugglers laugh all the way to the bank and move on to start all over again.

Can't stand politics...  The only thing worse than being around a Republican is being around a Democrat.
Can't stand religion...  Oh wait, I'll save that for a different thread!  Sorry.

SteveStrummerUK

Bub


They are saying it's going to be $4.50 per gallon here by summer.

Petrol here is currently £1.34 a litre which is about $9.94 a gallon, and rising
 
 
 

My van's diesel, which is now £1.42 a litre

Before it gets deleted or locked.....

We need to put the US military on the Mexican border and dare them to try to cross it. Pull the forces out of the 3 wars we're in, tell the countries we're involved in they're on their own, cease all foreign aid again telling them they need to find other ways to make money cause we ain't giving them any more, and protect and defend the USA. that reduces the military budget quite a bit.

Someone up above a few posts mentioned the big things in the budget.... of those SS & MC are the two biggest. Until we are willing to cap, cut drastically, and change/end them..... nothing will change. When the inevitable end comes, and it will, the doolar collapses, inflation or hyperinflation takes over, savings are wiped out, and we enter a dark time in this country and perhaps the world, people will turn to government, the very ones that caused this to occur to provide the answer and the solution. Government will be more then willing to "take control" of the situation, and the solution they hand down will be total tyranny.

There are many more things I think we should be doing.... not enough time or space here to write about it. Fairtax is one that I believe should be done.

Can we stop it and prevent it...perhaps. But it takes men and women in government and in the country with courage, foresight, and willingness to do the hard things that need to be done, and unfortunately,  I don't see that in the government or in the country at this moment.

We'll set back and watch American Idol, the latest exploits of Charlie, and we will end up being the Biggest Losers.

Gr8 point Mike but the thing I dont understand is where is all this going so many are paying into. The average workers pay stub shows them paying between $1k-$2k into SS and Medicare and as much just in taxes. Since 1983-84, those that started working are required to pay into these, thats not even a fraction of what their budgets indicate. The sad thing I dont get is populations are constantly growing, people are born or get sick as time goes on and when the time comes that they are required to use these funds that they have worked hard to pay into, why does it seem to be a big issue with all the medical documentation that come in support of these claims. I know I dont understand it but it appears that all this money is being used for things other than intended for.
Someone inliten me please-LOL I do appologize for my ignorance on this

Good morning.

Yes, still a peaceful/respectful thread.

very cool.

I think I've read every post and there seems to be a common theme. 'Something is wrong with the good ol' USA'
I think Mooch said it best; Wall Street runs this country. How can the same men be in charge of straightening out the money crisis who were responsible for the economic crisis in the first place?
The new administration comes into power (promising to end the war) and nothing changes; We still march off to war at every opportunity.

Ok, so we vote these people out of power next election. Great! Vote for who? You have a choice of crook #1 or crook #2. Who votes for a candidate anymore? We vote against the other guy? We vote for the lesser of two evils.

and the concept that our individual vote means something is complete nonsense anyway; PACs and lobbyists rule the day.
Too many of us get lost in the symantics. 'I want less government control'; I want more socialiasm, more free enterprise';

If we have honest, humane people in charge what difference does it really make. and if we have dishonest, corrupt people in charge what difference does it make?

Peace

From what I can see and hear, it seems to me that many Americans are dissatisfied with our government.  We've tried voting existing scammers crooks mobsters extortionists lying scum Dredges of Humanity politicians out of office, only to replace them with more of the same.  As our government and the corporations that own it grow more powerful, we lose the little bit of power we once had.  As we fall deeper into debt and corporate slavery, we find it harder to imagine a world where we could ever be free.

I'm still hoping we can find a new world to which we can escape.  It worked once before, you know.

Wall Street runs this country. How can the same men be in charge of straightening out the money crisis who were responsible for the economic crisis in the first place?

At this point I would like to make what IMO is an important differentiation.   The difference between normal capitalism (and corporations) and crony capitalism.  Regular capitalism is all well and good.   Companies compete etc which brings higher quality goods and lower prices.  Crony capitalism uses the power of the government to ensure a unfair advantage that usually screws over both consumers and taxpayers.   I think a solution for this is twofold.
 
One keep the government regulation simple with clearly defined rules and regulations that keep a level playing field.   IE, when you have thousands of pages of regulations you automatically favor big corporations that have huge compliance (or tax) departments.   Moreover, this is where they hide all the special favors for them (I'm sure everyone has heard how GE paid zero tax on billions in profit).   As long as we keep letting the lobbyists write these huge bills we will have problems.  It's the structure of the regulation that's important, not the quatity.   For example, the GSE's (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac etc) had their own regulatory agencies devoted to them.  And yet the biggest problems were with them.). 
 
Two, make sure that incentives are aligned with long term performance.  If you give people bad incentive they behave badly.  IE, if you give someone a bonus for putting people in a bad loan, why guess what he does he tried to put people in bad loans (remember this wasn't just at the top, but was at all your neighborhood real estate agents, and lending facilities).   But especially at the top the bonuses should be tied to long term performance.  They split over 10 years or so.  Maybe Year 1 20% Year 3 20% Year 5 20%  year 7 20% year 10  20%
 
Third specifically for financial institutions if you are too big to fail you should be broken up.  That's the only way to get rid of this implicit government guarantee.  Also I favor getting rid of most/all off balance sheet financing like securization.   If a bank needs to raise more money to make more loans they should get more deposits, or sell bonds.  But they should keep the loans on their books.  Again this will incentivize them to properly manage their risks. 
 
Fourth., the GSE's should be broken up and sold.  We need to get the government out of the business of subsidizing housing.   It's just another version of crony capitalism.
 
 
There's probably some other things to do as well.  But if we did something like this it would fix SO many problems.  We need to get rid of the "heads I win, tails you lose" situation that we currently have.  And I honestly don't see anyway to do that without most/all of the steps I outlined.  The shameful regulation bill that was recently passed certainly won't do it. 
 
 
Finally
{quote]
and the concept that our individual vote means something is complete nonsense anyway

 
I don't think this is true.  Look at the 2000 election.  A couple of hundred votes determined the presidential election.  Or look at the Tea parties success (I don't agree with their whole platform, but at least they are out there trying to change stuff).  I do agree that it will be very hard to change things.  There are a lot of people with a LOT of money riding on things staying the same.  But if we get enough people informed and involved I think things can change.  Moreover, I think they have to.  Because if they don't we will be in for an even rougher ride later.
 
None of the problems have been fixed yet.  Our banks are even bigger.  We've piled on more and more debt.  Our infrastrucutre is still falling down.  We still have millions of kids going to schools where they don't learn.  But, we've come out of tough situations before.  It can be done now too.  It must.
 
Thanks,

Technically defense is discretionay but it's usually broken out on it's own (like in the above graph) because it's such a big portion.

Here's another graph with a more detailed breakdown
http://www.federalbudget.com/

sorry, I don't know how to post them in the forum.

 I didn't think we were allowed to discuss politics......................now,where were we?

  For what its worth I believe that all of our governments answer to bigger fish so to speak............... In the US the repubs and dems both have a similar goal and they say what their platform requires so they can get elected. Soon after election they do something else. Who ever thought that Obama would be pulling the trigger on Lybia? The Dems always campaign of an anti-war stance.

  There really is a secret agenda and part of that world agenda is to dumb down some nations economically.don't believe me? Read Behold a Pale Horse(its on audible.com)...........it ties in nicely with Revelation but thats another forbidden topic

Is it my imagination, or has our speed increased as we sail in circles around that vortex?  Does that mean anything?

Also for those that aren't in to reading that much.

You can always see the movie
http://www.iousathemovie.com/

This covers a lot of the topics in a easy to understand format (note it's about two years old, so the numbers have just gotten worse)