Simulacrum

Simulacrum: a mere image or one that does not represent the reality of the original.

An imitation nation. An imitation of previous imitators of imitations. With it's imitations of an economic recovery designed to imitate previous imitations of an economic recovery. It's imitation banks with their imitation balance sheets that imitate a healthy balance sheet. It's imitation of an imitated equity market and debt markets. It's imitation Fed balance sheet as it imitates not printing money. It's imitation leaders who imitate previous imitators of leaders. It's imitation data and it's imitation of creating jobs. It's imitation of fighting wars to save and spread an imitator's imitation of democracy and freedom as it imitates previous imitations. An imitation society that imitates previous imitators of a society. Can not stand. Nor should it.

And this...

For those reasons, it will be up to future historians to interpret why the American people of the current generation just sat on their asses quietly, passively, while their world caved-in all around them.

/snip/

America, the strong "superpower" is fast becoming a pauper state which cannot be saved by any conceivable military action, no matter what the brainwashed "warrior culture" believes to the contrary.  Americans will remain on their asses, while the TV tells them that some "surge," escalation, or other military ejaculation issues forth to cover the crime scenes with their superior warrior seed, thus miraculously saving the town and the blushing leading lady, and the "hero" rules the day.  The armchair patriots will wipe a tear from their eyes, knowing that all is swell here in "Pleasantville," and the bankers will really haved saved our Nation from the greed that enslaves us all, until their TVs are taken or have no power, and their busted armchairs sit propped-up on bricks in the alley or behind the local mall.
Sit on your asses and mock those stupid Europeans, as they pour into the streets and demand that government save their "Socialist" health care system.  Suppress your instinct to react to my words by smacking me in the face for a few moments, while your minds have time to reflect on what I have said, and your wiser internal voice will tell you that I am right.]
http://therearenosunglasses.wordpress.com/2010/12/22/europeans-march-to-survive-americans-play-army-and-pray-for-unemployment-extensions/

Bunker mentality in the European Union

"...if you rob people of their identity, if you rob them of their democracy, then all they are left with is nationalism and violence. I can only hope and pray that the euro project is destroyed by the markets before that really happens."

'nuff said

http://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com/2010/11/congress-median-household-net-worth-one.html

Quantitative Easing For Dummies Like US

Obama Ain't Got No Seoul

Obama and his posse rolled into Seoul looking to regulate on some currency moves. To create a consensus of nations to push back on China for their currency manipulation and to push back on Germany and others for running trade surpluses. By their own doing, Obama, Geithner and Bernanke have failed. The US has been weakened and credibility, authority have been lost. Obama transformed the G-20 meeting into the G-19 vs. 1 meeting.

Bernanke is a Wolf Woman in Drag

Wolf Woman defined = A woman that you, in a drunken state, pick up in a bar, go back to her place and foolishly don't leave after the deed is done. When you awaken the next morning in a sober state and see how unattractive your bed mate is, you want to distance yourself from her so bad, you make the decision to gnaw off the arm she is sleeping on instead of moving your arm due to the fear you'll awaken her.

"With all due respect, U.S. policy is clueless. What the U.S. accuses China of doing, the U.S.A. is doing by different means,” the German finance minister, Wolfgang Schäuble said of the Fed’s decision.

"The German export success is not due to any currency tricks but rather due to the improved competitiveness of German companies," Schaeuble said. "The American growth model is stuck in a deep crisis."The United States has lived beyond its means for too long, its financial sector is disproportionally inflated and its industrial core neglected. There are many reasons for America's problems ... the German export surplus is not one of them."

"The Federal Reserve's proposed policy of quantitative easing is a dangerous gamble with only a small potential upside benefit and substantial risks of creating asset bubbles that could destabilize the global economy," Harvard University economist Martin Feldstein

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6A50VN20101106?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Business+News%29

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20101105/bs_nm/us_global_economy

http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2010/11/05/feds-hoenig-on-qe2-low-rates-and-future-instability/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wsj%2Feconomics%2Ffeed+%28WSJ.com%3A+Real+Time+Economics+Blog%29

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/biz/2010/11/123_75828.html

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6A00U420101105

http://www.businessinsider.com/bill-fleckenstein-barton-biggs-qe2-2010-11

Ben Dandy to the rescue! Ben Dandy to the rescue!

Go, Ben Dandy! Go, Ben Dandy!

'Twas the Night Before QE 2

Twas the night before QE2, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a Wall St banker louse

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care
In hopes that Ben Shalom soon would be there

Blankfein and Dimon were nestled all snug in their beds
While visions of free money danced in their heads

The Fish...it rots from its head...

I am not naive. I understand that corruption in governments, financial markets are as old as governments and financial markets themselves. But I get a growing sense of awareness that it is different this time. It could very well just be me but, I doubt it. Too many people I've spoken with, polls I've read show me there is an utter disdain with Wall St., bankers, the bailed out TBTF's, both political parties and the government itself.

Bernanke is a coward thief in the night that equates his role as the chief global currency manipulator as to playing with his own putter

Willem Buiter, chief economist at Citigroup, (talk about biting the hand that feeds you), refers to Bernanke as a coward thief due to his stealing from the US middle class, savers and retirees via his money printing, ZIRP, etc. The coward part comes from the denial from the Fed that they are manipulating the currency, devaluing the US dollar as other nations taking part in the same currency manipulation as Bernanke, do it openly. Mr. Buiter also states unequivocally that "savage austerity" is in the US's future:
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/willem-buiter-us-must-prepare-savage-austerity

Speaking to QE2, the amount there of, Bernanke muses:  "Mr. Bernanke uses the analogy of a golfer with a new putter: Unsure how it will work, he finds best strategy is to tap lightly at first and keep tapping until the golfer figures out how best to use the putter."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303891804575576533845166848.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTTopStories

What do Greece, Hungary, Italy, Niger and the US have in common?

All are included in nations where perceptions of corruption had deteriorated the most. The US fell from 19 to a tie for 22nd on the list, their worst ranking in the 15 year history of the study. The US barely edged out Uruguay for 22nd on the list. Iraq and Afghanistan ranked 175 and 176 respectively out of 178 nations.
http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010/results

I think if this ranking of US corruption was done by US citizens, the US would of fared much worse. For example:

Beggar thy Neighbor or good fences make good neighbors. Fatboy reports, you decide.

"The Dollar is our Currency, but Your Problem"
US Treasury secretary John Connally to a delegation of European finance ministers in 1971

"I got some ideas on Mr. Connally. He ain't never done nothin' but get shot in Dallas."
Bob Bulloch Texas Secretary of State 1972

"Now, in my State of the Union address I set a goal of doubling America’s exports over the next five years."
Barack Obama March 11, 2010

Beggar-thy-neighbor:
A devaluation that is designed to cheapen a nation's currency and thereby increase its exports at other countries' expense and reduce imports. Such devaluations often lead to trade wars.

Breaking! Canada vows to be relentless in pressuring China to revalue the yuan

Breaking news! Canada, the great white north has vowed to be relentless in keeping pressure on China. The great white north, speaks "Canadian policy makers said they will be “relentless” in keeping pressure on China and other economies with fixed exchange rates to allow their currencies to appreciate". Here's video of the Canadian PM and Central banker making their forceful comments regarding China: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-ZvAVcBIrQ

Krugman continues to make no sense

"But the truth is that if the economic situation were better — if unemployment had fallen substantially over the past year — we wouldn’t be having this discussion. We would, instead, be talking about modest Democratic losses, no more than is usual in midterm elections."

The truth is they're not. What's up with the what ifs?

"The real story of this election, then, is that of an economic policy that failed to deliver. Why? Because it was greatly inadequate to the task."

Krugman continues to argue for mo' money though the bailed out US banks are stuffed to their gills with cash. Demand is needed, not more cash on bank's balance sheets. And as Obama said "there is no such thing as shovel ready projects." So I don't see where Krugman is going with this.

Top 74 US wage earners earned as much as the bottom 19 million workers

Great to be in a recovery. Especially if you're one of the top 74 wage earners. Less wage earners in the US now then in 2005 with a decline in wages. "The number of Americans making $50 million or more, the top income category in the data, fell from 131 in 2008 to 74 last year." Good news right? The pain of the recession was spread evenly. Wrong. "The average wage in this top category increased from $91.2 million in 2008 to an astonishing $518.8 million in 2009. That’s nearly $10 million in weekly pay!" So the US went from 131 people making $50 million or more in 2008 to 74 in 2009 but those 74 saw their wages increase from $91.2 million to $518 million or ten million dollars a week!

The Bottomless Pit that is US Unemployment

The US needs to create approx. 150,000 new jobs every month just to keep pace with the new entrants into the labor force. Over eight million jobs have been lost during the recession. To get the levels of unemployment back to pre-recession levels, 300,000 new jobs would have to be created every month for the next forty eight months. Or over 200,000 new jobs created every month for the next 120 months to return to pre-recession levels
more:
"If you add in discouraged workers, the underemployed, and those working part time who would rather be working full time, the true number of unemployed is closer to 30 million, or about one in five working age Americans. Never mind the statistics that the government pumps out monthly are meaningless. They have been for decades.
The real problem is that the economy is obliterating jobs far faster than anyone realizes."
http://www.zerohedge.com/article/why-nonfarm-payroll-figures-are-meaningless

Over $26 million paid to doctors in California alone by Big Pharma to promote their drugs

In an earlier post, I provided a link to an article by Dr. Carl Elliot titled "How to brand a disease, and sell a cure." ( http://edition.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/10/11/elliott.branding.disease/) Dr. Elliot laid out the tactics used by Big Pharma to create the conditions for their prescription meds to sell themselves. He compared these tactics to those made popular by Edward Bernays and used by Joesph Goebbels.

Today Pro Publica goes deeper into this subject and lists the amount paid by Big Pharma to states and MD's alike. Not only was $26 million to MD's in the state of California but, according to Pro Publica Dr. Firhaad Ismail of Nevada received $303,558.00 from Big Pharma in 2009 and early 2010 barely beating Dr. Stephen H. Landy from Tennessee who received $302,125.00 for the top spot.

Much more information in the article including a tool to enter your doctor's name to find out if he or she received compensation from Big Pharma to promote, sell their meds.

As Bernays said "In almost every aspect of our lives whether in the sphere of politics or business in our social conduct or our ethical thinking, we are dominated by the relatively small number of persons who understand the mental processes and social patterns of the masses. It is they who pull the wires that control the public mind."

http://projects.propublica.org/docdollars/

Treasury Secretary Geithner wins liar of the month. Congrats Timmy!

"Given all the problems with foreclosures, it might seem hard to pick a winner for the lie of the month contest. However, fraud and lies are not the same thing, but even if they were, Geithner is up to the task."


http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/10/lie-of-month-geithner-says-us-will-not.html

Tim Geithner is a liar

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner vowed on Monday that the United States would not devalue the dollar for export advantage

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/us_usa_dollar_geithner;_ylt=As0Qok3eSsiIQD0d3N7_0Cys0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNxcXJwcGJwBGFzc2V0A25tLzIwMTAxMDE5L3VzX3VzYV9kb2xsYXJfZ2VpdGhuZXIEY2NvZGUDbW9zdHBvcHVsYXIEY3BvcwM3BHBvcwM0BHB0A2hvbWVfY29rZQRzZWMDeW5faGVhZGxpbmVfbGlzdARzbGsDZ2VpdGhuZXJ2b3dz