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Ardent Listener
Administrator
USA
4841 Posts |
 Posted - 02/07/2009 : 19:04:09
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A rant written by a friend "Ancona" on another site. (Used with permission)
Expect the Unexpected!
America the beautiful, with our amber waves of grain and crumbling infrastructure is sliding into a depression. It is not the fringe doomers now talking of depression; it has come to the mainstream. I’ve heard Marc Faber, Bill Gross and several other *respected* individuals talking not just about the possibility of depression, but of hyperinflation as well. Most Americans have a sort of trust in the government that has lulled them into a trance like state, permitting them to go about their days as though everything will be fine. Well, it is not fine. In fact, this country is on the brink of losing her status in the world and our global hegemony, by tasking her leaders to create money at a pace never before seen in the history of mankind. The average working man does not acknowledge that we are no longer the sole superpower; immune to threats from abroad and omnipotent in world politics. Once an economic powerhouse, we are now on the path towards banana republic status, having embarrassed ourselves with unprovoked wars in both Iraq, and Afghanistan, a country by the way that has never been conquered.
The elite and powerful of this once proud nation took it upon themselves to remove the protections put in place after the Great Depression to “modernize” our banking system. They said removing these onerous restrictions was a necessary part of the growing process, and that banking had matured beyond the need for such scrutiny and restrictions. Nothing in Washington is ever contemplated unless there is a profit in it for the legislator or the lobby……nothing. Those in power seized upon their new ability to control banking, investments, stocks and insurance under the same roof; one big happy family. Credit cards became as ubiquitous as cash. My thirteen year old daughter receives pre-approved offers weekly. Cards were given to children during their first weeks at college, some of whom were away from home for the very first time. The companies knew that when junior got a little out of control, that mommy would save him. Consumers were given ten, fifteen and twenty cards. Keep paying the minimum, and eventually they will raise your limits, so that you could spend even more money you do not have. What a concept!
To celebrate this new banking paradigm, the financial community began writing mortgages. Their requirements were loosened to include anyone with a heartbeat. The resulting obligations were cleverly packaged, given a name and sold to the highest bidder. Life was good, and money was being made hand over fist. The parties were sumptuous, and the bonuses were the best in the world. Anyone with a social security number could now “flip” houses and make a fortune in real estate. Millions of people took advantage of this new prosperity and “cashed out” with a home equity line of credit [HELOC]. This new and sudden wealth permitted them to buy that Hummer they always wanted, and a new in-ground pool for the kids. Once the new pool was installed, the house was suddenly worth another forty grand, so they re-financed into a pick-a-pay mortgage, one that let them pay the interest only if they wanted, freeing up even more cash for that flat screen television and high speed internet service.
Then, something went wrong. Mortgages written to people with less than stellar credit began to default, as the teaser rates expired. No matter said the banksters, we have this under control. Fingers were pointed at the Government; “They made us do it”, the banksters cried. The Community Reinvestment Act required us to give loans to poor people so they could buy that $450,000 dollar house they always wanted, so it’s all your fault! We watched intently as more and more loans went sour, and the financial houses continued to deny culpability. Real estate prices began to fall precipitously. The people were beginning to worry. They told me that real estate always goes up, how can this be? Soon, defaults rose into the hundreds of thousands and on into the millions. Prime loans were defaulting and people with clean credit histories were simply walking away from their homes, which were now worth only half of what they agreed to pay for them.
Enter the government, “We’re here to help” they told us, “We’ll stimulate the economy with a nice little tax rebate”, “That should do the trick” they said. And so they sent out a check for a few hundred dollars to the folks with the $785 a month hummer payment and $3,500 a month mortgage and waited for the recovery. With the economy continuing to plunge into the abyss, and our banking system nearing the point of implosion, our Congress was blackmailed under threat of martial law and mass social unrest into handing over 700 billion dollars to a former banker, to repair the damage. They were promised complete transparency and full disclosure; “We’ll account for every cent” said Hank the Shank. With the first 350 billion safely in the hands of those who orchestrated the mess in the first place, Congress had the temerity to ask for an accounting; “Where did the money go, and what assets did we buy”? Sorry Madam Speaker, that’s a trade secret, so we won’t be telling you where the money went, but trust me, we did the right thing. By the way, I need that other 350 billion dollars right away please.
So here we are, staring at yet another [almost] trillion dollars in “stimulus”, the purpose of which is to somehow create enough jobs to forestall the inevitable correction in our economy. The bill has not yet passed through both houses of Congress, and they are already planning another, larger stimulus bill. If China and Japan shy away from buying our treasuries [read: debt], then Big Ben Bernanke has promised that we will purchase our own debt. Direct monetization of the debt. These trillions of dollars by the way, do not exist in the existential sense of being. Sure, they will go through the motions of printing up some treasuries, which will then be “bought” with “money” printed by the government, but the “money” will have no real intrinsic value, at least not in the classical sense of money. The dilutive effect of this will be historic, and irreversible. Our esteemed legislators have set us upon a path that can only end in protracted depression.
It is my intent to insulate myself from all of this “help” and try to ensure the future for my family. I have already taken steps to do so by trading massive quantities of FRN’s for real money; silver. We have built and stocked a pantry, within which sits more than a year supply of food. Our garden will be expanded from the back yard into the front this year. The annuals that used to line the fence line are to be replaced with pole beans, broccoli, cauliflower and chrysanthemums (natural insect repellant). In preparation of the possibility of civil unrest, I have also purchased several firearms of various types and calibers. I hope to never use them, but I will if I am challenged.
We have entered a new chapter in the history of our Nation, one that will change the very fabric of life as we know it. Those who are still under the influence of the governments Pollyanna opium will want to shake it off and begin preparations, because this is just the beginning folks. Our Congress is expanding the government at the fastest pace on record, and contemplating the socialization of our financial system. With the de facto socialization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac last year, most of our infrastructure, our banking and now our houses will be under the direct control of the government. The ramifications are frightening to say the least. Our military has been training for “urban pacification” for a while now. These are American soldiers, training for civil unrest on our own soil. Thanks to the many orders signed by the Bush administration, many of our freedoms have been curbed or removed entirely. Posse Comitatus has been neutered, and made irrelevant by H.R. 5122 which made changes regarding authorization for use of the military domestically and the subsequent changes incorporated in H.R. 4986, so the government can now declare a state of emergency, and deploy soldiers to “control” crowds, and restore order in the event of civil unrest. The detention camps have been built, and they are ready for occupants.
It is time to wake up America, and look at what is happening around you, before it’s too late.
sorry about the rant
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Expect the Unexpected
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