Bernanke Starting to Look Dumb
Posted November 9th, 2007 by manystrom
by Michael Nystrom | November 9, 2007
Bull! Not bull
Part I
It was a bit nostalgic for me to see footage of Ron Paul addressing Ben Bernanke on live TV yesterday, as it was almost five years ago that I was first introduced to Ron Paul in the same way. Back then (February 27, 2002), I saw Dr. Paul for the very first time, live on CNBC as I was getting ready for work. At the time I didn't know who he was, but I was astounded by what I heard. He was addressing then Fed Chairman Greenspan on the Federal Reserve, and speaking plain and honest truths: "In many ways I feel that the system you have been asked to manage is similar to an Enron system..."
Enron had just recently gone bankrupt, so I couldn't believe my ears. He continued on, stating truths about the fraudulent Federal Reserve System that nearly everyone else in Washington actively seeks to avoid.
I was hooked, and five years later Dr. Paul is still at it. Yesterday he was addressing Ben Bernanke, hauling the Fed's polite euphemisms out into the sunshine, naming them for what they are: "...they don't say inflate the currency, they don't say debase the currency, they don't say devalue the currency, they don't say cheat the people who save...They say, 'lower interest rates.' But ... I don't hear you say too often, 'The only way I can lower interest rates is to create more money.' ...So my question boils down to this: 'How can we expect to solve the problems of inflation...with more inflation?"
Part II
I've had the pleasure and the good fortune to meet Dr. Paul and spend some time with him. He is as kind and as humble as any neighbor. So every time I see the good doctor in such a situation, going head to head with the likes of Greenspan, Bernanke or Rudy Giuliani - men who seem somehow larger than life - I feel a certain warmth and kinship. I root for him the way I root for any underdog, for the little guy, for Rocky Balboa. I cheer when he scores points, as he always does with truth and common sense.
What I want to impress more than anything is that Ron Paul is just like you or me. He is one of us. The difference is that he has somehow found the strength to fight for us - for all of us. He refers to his seat in Congress as "our seat." Without hesitation he steps right up to the plate, looks down the middle and swings the bat, no matter who the pitcher might be.
Even on television, his sincerity is somehow immediately apparent. So each time he makes an appearance on TV, whether it is during a debate or in his official role as legislator facing off against the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, I just have to smile and wonder how many people are seeing him for the first time and dropping their toothbrush, their bowl of cereal, turning up the volume on the TV and wondering - who is this man? How many people are having their faith restored that there are still honest people who are working tirelessly for us in the government?
Part III
After Bernanke's first non answer, Dr. Paul persisted: "How can you pursue this policy that you have without further weakening the dollar?" Then, his voice rising in almost the same manner and pitch as that of Jimmy Stewart, "There's a dollar crisis out there, and people's money is being stolen! People who have saved, they're being robbed!"
Unlike his predecessor Greenspan, who could speak eloquently for hours without saying anything, Dr. Bernanke laid an egg. He stuttered and responded with an answer that any high schooler should be able to see through: "If somebody has their wealth in dollars, and they're going to buy consumer goods in dollars, as a typical American, then the only effect it has on their buying power is that it makes imported goods more expensive."
Has Bernanke forgotten that hardly any consumer goods are made in the US anymore, and that most typical American buy gasoline, which is made from imported oil? And what about atypical Americans like me who travel overseas from time to time? And by now we all know that it was excess credit creation, facilitated by the Fed, that led to the internet bubble and subsequent housing bubble.
It smacked of a desperate answer, and Bernanke looked extremely weary and tired, bags under his eyes as though he hadn't slept in days. Bernanke's poor performance reminded me of something I'd read two years and have been carrying around in my head ever since. It was a report by Robert Prechter, just as Bernanke was taking over his new job as Fed Chairman. The report appeared in the November 17, 2005 issue of the Elliott Wave Theorist and is titled, "The Coming Changes at the Fed." I dug it up from my hard drive, and with permission have reproduced some pertinent excerpts below.
Remember, Prechter wrote this almost exactly two years ago:
The consensus appears to be that the long-term expansion in the credit supply will continue or even intensify under the Fed chairmanship of Ben Bernanke. One reason many people share this belief is their recollection of Bernanke's November 2002 speech, "Deflation: Making sure "It" Doesn't Happen Here," in which he likens the Fed's printing press option to dropping money from helicopters. There are reasons to believe, however, that the outcome will not be as the majority expects...
Prechter continues:
When credit expands beyond an economy's ability to pay the interest and principal, the trend toward expansion reverses, and the amount of outstanding credit contracts as debtors pay off their loans or default. The resulting drop in the credit supply is deflation. While it seems sensible to say that all the Fed need do is to create more money, i.e. FRNs, to "combat deflation," it is sensible only in a world in which a vacuum replaces the actual forces that any such policy would encounter (emphasis mine). If investors worldwide were to become informed, or even suspicious, that the Fed would follow the 'copter course, it would divest itself of dollar-denominated debt assets, causing a collapse in the value of dollar-denominated bonds, notes and bills. This collapse would be deflation...
This illustrates perfectly the bind that Bernanke finds himself in today. As a man who has spent his entire career in academia, he is finding out that the real world is not so clean and neat as his theories and models:
Bernanke's plan, according to articles, is to aim for a 2% annual inflation rate. "Bernanke has called that the Goldilocks idea: not to hot, not too cold. The just-right spot..." He is convinced that such a policy is all the economy needs to keep it steady. Clearly, Bernanke is a firm believer in the idea that the economy is a machine, whose carburetor simply needs fine-tuning to get it to run smoothly. Economists, deep believers in the potency of social directors, are convinced that "monetary policy...moves the entire economy." ... Because of this proposed targeting plan, Bernanke is expected to act "More openly. More methodically. More predictably." Well, Ben might aim to do those things, but society, the economy, the credit supply and the stock market do not behave in such a manner. When you think you have them under your thumb, they have you.
Prechter closes with the following, very blunt statement:
Bernanke will surely reign in a bear market when every decision he makes will be seen as dumb.
This prophecy finally appears to be coming true. Prechter did not say it to be mean, but rather as a reflection on the position that Bernanke has put himself in. Bernanke has studied the Great Depression his entire life, and he's convinced that he can prevent the US from suffering another. "I will do everything in my power to ensure the prosperity and stability of the US economy," he said.
But that is far too large a responsibility for one man to take on, especially considering the mess that he inherited. The coming collapse will not be his fault. But he'll take the blame, which is already beginning, according to this NY Times article:
But in a disappointment to investors, Mr. Bernanke offered no signal that the central bank might soften the blow by lowering interest rates for a third time this year at its next policy meeting on Dec. 11...
And
Mr. Bernanke's message did not sit well. Wall Street analysts quickly criticized him for ignoring the real risk of a serious downturn. And at least one Republican, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, begged him at length to cut interest rates as soon as possible.
What can Dr. Bernanke do? No matter what he does, no one will be happy. His decision to raise, lower or leave interest rates unchanged will be met with severe scrutiny and second guessing as the economy worsens. Whatever happens, Bernanke will take the blame.
Prechter was right. After a brief honeymoon, Bernanke is starting to look dumb.
Bookmark/Search this post with:
- New charts, news and financial links -- both the bull and the not bull -- updated each day on the homepage.
- For more articles like this, please see the Archive
- If you would like to be notified of updates, and new articles, subscribe to my low volume announcement list
Market Updates:
Was
I was a long time supporter of Ron Paul,However After he called on his supporters to donate today and they decided that they would not.But would rather stick to giving on the tea party day,I can now see that many of his supporters are nuts,Or they are right and Paul cant manage a campaign ,therfore can not manage a country.
I have linked more media outlets than i could count to the Daily Paul ,and as many other canidate sites as i could find to see fisrt hand how down right crazy his supporters really are.
Thank you for alerting me to the severity of the situation.Mike.
m144me
spelling nazi
I'm an avid reader of Michael's web sites, and this is directed at no one in particular and everyone in general. I can't stand it anymore! That thing where the federal government spends billions and billions on supposedly protecting us--it's called "defense". Defense with an "s" not a "c". Sorry ... now back to your regular programming...
Spelling--- to thumb one's nose at the religious-right
Defence can be spelled with a C or an S, but considering the idiots in the red states--- the ones who sent Bush and Cheney to Washington, the ones hooked on phonics, basic skills, timed tests, and English-only in the public schools--- the best spelling of defence is with a C. Stick the C in their face.
And spell colour, labour, harbour, flavour, neighbour, etc. with the U. Centre and theatre have the RE. Use the old hypen wherever possible, such as in to-day or to-morrow, or in co-operate, co-ordinate, so-called, etc.
Another ploy is to speak Spanish whenever you meet the English-only, nationalist, or nativist idiots from the red states.
Bernanke 1, Paul 0
DGW hit the nail on the head. Ron Paul ranted and raved mindlessly and never even came close to making an understandable point.
Bernanke calmly and confidently deflected Paul's futile attempts to assail him. Bernanke 1, Paul 0.
Ronald Reagan was coached as an actor how to speak on camera. He, uh, got elected president, twice. Ron Paul makes John Kerry look like Ronald Reagan.
Confusing cause with effect
The dollar is going down on foreign exchanges because foreign investors recognize that the purchasing power of the dollar is going down. Bernanke tries to shift the discussion from the decline in purchasing power to the foreign recognition of that decline. That way he doesn't have to discuss the point that Ron Paul made: "How do you cure inflation with more inflation?"
The ploy is to confuse the perception of the thing with the thing itself. Never mind that I broke into your house and stole from you. Let's just ignore the witnesses who saw me do it, and then it'll be just like it never happened.
"typical Americans"
Don't you just love it when these elites chide "typical Americans." Yeah, most of what typical Americans buy comes from Wal-Mart (China, Indonesia, etc), so the people living at subsistence wages are going to get reemed. Yeah, even what the US does manufacture is mostly assembled from imported parts (bolts, wires, steel, etc), so as it costs more dollars to buy the inputs of American products, and the cost still goes up. But we're just "typical Americans," so who cares, right Ben?
We need a Fed Chairman who has the walnuts to stare down Bush, publicly criticize the White House for bad fiscal policy (you need monetary and fiscal policy working together, otherwise you're clapping with one hand), and tell big banks and investment houses to suck it up and take their own losses when their stupid, essentially get-rich-quick schemes go south on them. What Paul really should have said is that Wall Street spent the last several years at the track and blew a lot of money, now they want the Fed to make "typical Americans" pay for it.
Ron Paul
Ron Paul desperately needs a media coach. DESPERATELY. I don't think I've ever witnessed someone who was so right on the money with his ideas and so grossly inarticulate.
That's the second time I've watched him meet with Bernanke and the second time I was left wondering if Ron Paul has ever watched himself on tape. Ron Paul is totally correct but Bernanke made him look like a moron.
Ron Paul looked dumb?!!!!
You have got to be kidding me! Ron Paul looked dumb?! Are you insane?! Ron Paul did what he always does, he told the truth and humiliated his opponent. He may have dragged it out a little, but the issue is complicated and he was trying to show that the Federal Reserve was the clear culprit behind the problem. A media coach would tell him to shut up and not buck the system. That's clearly not what is needed here. If you're looking for a politician that sounds like a politician, look to Hillary, Giuliani or Romney. I think they might suit you better. As for the rest of us, a REAL person is favorable, not someone who sounds and acts COACHED. I understood what he said, perhaps you should lay off the aspertame and mercury filled vacinations until your head clears up.
Totally agree with you - see
Totally agree with you - see my post below 'Paul should have done much better'.
Ron Paul
The one problem with Ron Paul is that he sits and votes in the Congress with the Republicans, so he votes in favour of endless defence spending, endless war, and endless deficits. If Ron Paul would vote for paying for his Republican Party's military waste and nation-building adventures through massive tax hikes sent to the American people, then I might have some more respect for Rep. Ron Paul's so-called hard money position. At least then his position would be logical.
Perhaps you should respect him after all
Ron Paul voted +against+ the war in Iraq. And as far as I know he never voted for any unbalanced budget. Don't know about defence spending but I'd be most surprised if he would ever have voted for any such spending deployed beyond the borders of the USA.
The Whole Truth And Nothing But The Truth
Jew neocon pro-war pro Bush handpicked Bernake is following jew neocon pro-war pro Bush bootlicker Greenspan who like all rich elite Pharisee jews who are in control of most of the worlds wealth and work in unison to lie cheat steal kill maime burn ravage savage and loot in order to continue their personal agendas that is in this case is to lower the interest rates as low as possible despite a poor economy in order help their puppet chimp in the WH continue the destruction of the middle east and America in the process bankrupting it with 100s of trillions overall indebting it to China etc. all the while bumping oil 500% from 20 to 100 bucks a gallon and climbing so Hebrew controlled Wall St can make up the difference with the lost trillions in the financial sector.
Greenspan played dumb on 60 Minutes saying he didnt know when he dropped rates to 50 yr lows this would bring out the loan sharks and millions of home loans to mainly unqualified minorities who couldnt pay for them and were foreclosed on thus causing the bottom to drop out of the banking system yet jew Bernake continues to lower rates in a recession when lowering rates are only used normally in times of non-jew wars or non-jew puppets in the WH, for inflation only. Any economist must be flabbergasted to see rates so low only under the Bush puppet since 2001 and the going on 7 yrs of wars.
This is what happens when Americas Gentiles allow jews to completely take over and run everything and now 7 yrs later America is as hated as Israel. Jews in America today are like kids in a candy kitchen as is Bush who has maxed out the worlds biggest credit card with his incredible spending binges never before seen or matched spending more than all the past presidents combined but what else can you expect when he maxed out daddys credits cards for tens of millions for 50 yrs thus being a disaster for taxpayers and destroying everything smirking and strutting like peacock knowing knowing he has screwed up eand bankrupted everything but not caring because he knows he still has daddy to protect him.
Silver spooners like this are deadly. Arrest try jail and execute this chimp and his whole royaly Bush Crime Family and cut off the jews top puppet family.
Greenspan
Hey, take it easy on the Jews! They have done a lot for this country. But it is my observation that Greenspan is exactly the stereotypical jew that non-jew humanity fears and despises. He will have all the money, and so will his friends. He is just so smart, selfish and manipulative--he can run rings around the rest of us, and to hell with us.
What about white collar crime? If this was deliberate on his part (and some people feel he must have known exactly what he was doing but did it for the enrichment, eventually, of himself and chosen people) will he ever be prosecuted for it?
I do feel you are right on the money in your diatribe, but please be fair to our fine Jewish community.
Starting to look dumb?...
Starting to look dumb?... Bernanke is the worst central banker in the history of the USA... anyone seen M3 lately?
Understanding how money works
It's a shame that most of America doesn't understand how money works.
It's like this. Imagine a teacher (who shall represent the "Federal" "Reserve") walks into a classroom, and gives each of the students (which represent the economy) $100. This money is not introduced or spent into the economy for free like it was in the US before 1913; instead it is considered a LOAN that is to be paid back with interest. The teacher then closes and locks the door, and comes back the next day.
The teacher opens the door, and says it's time for everybody to pay up $105. After the students (the economy) have worked and dealed overnight, the teacher will find that some of them have enough to pay back the loan, but other students can't. The only way to pay the loan + the interest is for those who are now in debt to take out ANOTHER loan to pay back the first ones.
This is how our economy works, and it's a clever design meant to put everyone who uses money into eventual debt. Only a lucky, clever, or criminal few will be able to avoid the trap, while the great vast majority of the rest work on an endless treadmill trying to catch up and pay back the debts. This is a form of slavery.
The bank loans money into existence, but it does not loan the interest to pay it back. Clever scheme, and it's bringing down America.
For more information, see the following videos, most available on google video or youtube:
"Money as Debt"
"Freedom to Fascism"
"The Money Masters"
"Monopoly Men"
"Zeitgeist"
Understanding how money works:
Excuse me, but the Americans have only themselves to blame for their defence spending, their far-flung empire and its costs, their imperial currency backed by military might, and their absurd debt bubbles created by Reagan's deregulation and Greenspan's 1% interest rates. The fault for this folly is no-one's but the Americans who sent the Republicans to Washington with the snake-oil of "deficits don't count" or "we can grow our way out of anything" or "the world needs America as the engine of consumption".
Understanding how money works:
Excuse me, but the Americans have only themselves to blame for their defence spending, their far-flung empire and its costs, their imperial currency backed by military might, and their absurd debt bubbles created by Reagan's deregulation and Greenspan's 1% interest rates. The fault for this folly is no-one's but the Americans who sent the Republicans to Washington with the snake-oil of "deficits don't count" or "we can grow our way out of anything" or "the world needs America as the engine of consumption".
yes but
Yes this is true.
But we are forgetting the next part.
The US is the largest economy in the world.
We can take it longer than the rest of the world.
Where to go?
The dollar doom folks cry about the destruction of the US due to a devalued dollar and then say that the increasing value of the Euro is bad for Europe.
It is a game.
Wait for the next phase.
Now they hype the devaluation of the dollar.
Next they raise interst rates.
It is an endless cycle.
It works every time.
no. the US is NOT the world's biggest economy
EUROPE is. China isn't far behind. within 5-10 years, China will be bigger than both Europe and the US. India is creeping into the picture, Brazil and Russia are growing by leaps and bounds.
The US WAS the biggest kid on the block. At the end of WWII, the US accounted for 46% of the world's economy, ten years ago, it accounted for 25% of the world's economy. Today, that number is down to 20%, in 5 years, it will be 15%.
Would you invest in a country on the DECLINE (the US), or a country that is growing by leaps and bounds (China, India, Brazil, Russia)?
Declining currency = Declining standard of life.
If a declining currency was a good thing, wouldn't Zimbabwe be an economic powerhouse?
The US is the biggest
The US is the biggest economy.
The current situation is by design.
If it weren't for the freak show here (corruption, war etc.) the US could not be beat.
That is the plan.
The US economy is not growing as fast as China's but ours is still bigger.
Europe is a joke. It is a socialist police state. The only reason it has done well lately is due to the freak show here.
Devaluation is bad for other countries and it is "bad" for folks here that don't know how to control their spending.
The US is different than Zimbabwe.
Go on and cry about the sky falling.
They have done it before.
Just watch.
Next you will be crying about the high interest rates.
the only joke
is you. until you get your facts right. you aren't worth talking to.
the US in not the biggest economy in the world. It's Europe. China is growing 3X as fast as the US. in 5-10 years it WILL be the world's biggest economy, bigger than Europe, and bigger than the US.
the US is sinking down the toilet. rates will not go higher. rates will stay low. the fed, and treasury, know the only way to get out of this mess, is do inflate. keep rates low, print money. that's all there is to it.
rates will rise, when/if there is a currency collapse in the US, and you're forced to. until then, easy monetary policy is the name of the game. it's not rocket science.
Sadly, Ron Paul should have done much better
Michael, I share your enthusiasm for Paul and your amazement that he actually made it as high as he did -and still moving up- and so, like you and many others, I'm a big fan of his. As such, I cheer at his performance and minor triumph over Bernanke.
However.
If I step aside from being a Paul supporter and look at the merits of Paul's attempt to expose the Bernanke/Fed policies, I think he did not by far as good as he could have and should have -not for his own, but for the sake of all of us. What I feel I saw was a senator who was rather angry -and very, very rightly so- but who had unfortunately let his anger take over his better judgement on how to take on mr B. in the most +effective+ way.
In his speech he pushed all the right buttons and made an almost emotional outcry, implicitly saying how shameful and stupid it was what B&Fed were doing. That's all very nice and well, and also gripping on an emotional level. I think that numbers of people who saw this will have got a gut feeling that what Paul said was somehow important and profound, which will make a lot of them feel sympathetic to Paul. But I also think the vast majority of them will have totally no clue as to +why+ it was important and profound, and even less of a clue on what Paul actually meant. I believe they will have sided with him purely on their instincts (which is a pretty good way of deciding what you are for or against in complex matters; in fact, that's what instincts are for in the first place).
Not a bad score, perhaps. Trouble is, it could have been much better. To consistently win over massive numbers of people who don't know you nor your point of view, not only do you need to connect to them on an emotional level but you also need to +show+ them you are right. It isn't good enough to cry out that your opponents are shameful and stupid. What you should do is explain the facts or the situation and then let people decide for themselves if the opposition are crooks. (Yes, we can allways debate on what exactly the facts are, but I'm merely making the case for 'facts over invectives' here.) Mind you, I'm not saying Paul was in anyway straying from good manners (my hunch would be that he's intrinsically incapable of doing so) and insulting Bernanke.
What I am saying is that he made a mess of a speech. Most of his important issues were in there but mostly not in anyway connected by a structure of logical questions and clear arguments. At least, that was my perception. Now, I've read extensively all over the internet on the upcoming economic crisis, inflation, the 'fraudulous fed' etc, and I cherish the illusion that I'm reasonably intelligent, but heck, I could hardly understand what line of thought Paul was trying to convey. And if I can't, how can I expect newbies-to-Paul to understand? Sure, lots of things are wrong in the world, but everybody +including+ Ben is for world peace, against inflation and would prefer not see one's wealth decreased.
The thing is you have to dissect in a logical step-by-step way how the mess came about, what can be done about it and why what Ben is doing is actually worsening the situation. Put Ben under Socratic questioning: one +simple+ point at a time and demand one simple answer (Agree, Disagree, Undecided, Maybe-but) in return. For example, "Tell me, mr Chairman, is it in your opinion true or not true that inflation will occur if the money supply is growing too fast? If yes: "Then why are you not publishing money supply growth anymore?" etc. etc. Unflortunately, Paul didn't even come close to such an approach.
What he did was make a long statement juggling up all his passionate beliefs in relatively little logical order and with few causal relations explained. That's called an Oratio Pro Domo - convincing everybody who already supported you in the first place.
What he should have done was engage Ben in simple concise questioning and then slowly but surely have Ben falling through the floor and dig his own grave in full view of the press. Now +that+ would have been an accomplishment worthy of Paul's cause and sincerity.
I do so very much hope Paul will become much better at presenting his cause. Please, please Ron - rise to the occasion. We so desperately need you to.
Teach, explain, reassure - not rant
I am a long-time, table-pounding supporter of Ron Paul. Moreover, I fear that he may be the last hope for the United States. Never in my life have I wanted and worked so hard to see a candidate get elected president.
Over the past many months, I have seen very little improvement in Ron Paul's "delivery" of his analysis of what ails us and his prescriptions for change. Too often, he still speaks in code, or shorthand. It's a coded shorthand that I understand -- "debasement," "inflation," "sound money" -- but I don't care about me; he's already got my vote. Whom I care about are my parents, siblings, coworkers, and friends who listen to what he says but don't truly understand it. Worse, their reaction sometimes is "he (Ron Paul) rants a lot," "rambles from one idea to the next," "seems crazed." For myself, when I hear him speak, I find myself wishing that he would take a deep breath, slow down, and focus on the two or three key chess moves that could destroy his opponents.
If I could make one recommendation, Ron Paul might want to watch the movie "An Inconvenient Truth." Forget about the topic entirely and, instead, focus on Al Gore's delivery, tone, and educational approach. Calm, clear, thoughtful, and devastatingly masterful.
At the end of the day, Ron Paul needs to convince the American people that he understands our country's problems, that he knows how to fix them, and that if we address those problems together, we're all going to be okay.
Finally, being right doesn't amount to a hill of beans if you don't win. I, for one, will not be satisfied that Ron Paul "influenced" or "effected" the election debate. I want him in the White House. Period.
Well put! I agree that Ron
Well put! I agree that Ron Paul's message could be a more polished.
When I saw the video in question, I thought he was just preaching to
the choir myself.
I suggest you ask Ron Paul
I suggest you ask Ron Paul to exchange seats. You take over his job, because apparently you will do it better than him!
No exchange, of course
You're confusing the messenger with the message.
Bernake inherited it...don't be so hard on him.
Don't underestimate these guys....Bernake inheritied some bubbles. Undoubtedly things won't go that smoothly. We are starting to have problems with inflation due to dollar depreciation that that can theoretically be remedied but not without pain. Central Banks don't want to see a dollar collapse because it will destabilize the world with unpredictable consequences. In a default environment, banks cut back. The country runs on credit so certain companies and sectors will suffer. Real estate will probably suffer for a long time. Prechter has been wrong for years. His is just one possible scenario. His business is selling books to doom and gloomers. A lower dollar does help some industries compete. What we don't want to see is a banking paralysis like Japan had.
There needs to be more balance on this site. It's Bull not Bull....lets see some of the Bull. You're overdoing the doom. Things could be a lot worse....we could all be living in Manila where they do control the supply of money. I'm making money in this market. There's a certain group out there that feeds on the doom and gloom. Prechter has been predicting the end since 2000. He's sold a lot of books. He's making money too.
JeffKassel@comcast.net
Robert Prechter and his deflation bologna sausage
Robert Prechter is a useful idiot because whatever he says, do the opposite and profit.
The whole premise of Robert Prechter is laughable: Deflation? A 14% per year growth in M3 worldwide, and Robert Prechter is still pedalling the deflation line. And the whole notion that the madness of people in all markets, everywhere, has to follow a predictable five-step wave pattern is patently absurd.
Sure every inflation morphs eventually into a deflationary crash, but the inflationary build-up can last for decades, even generations, and gradually destroy currencies and fortunes. The inevitable deflationary crash, when it comes, lasts for a few weeks or a few months, at most... Best to take an extended vacation when the deflation crash comes, and not to worry about it.
Federal cash out of control
"Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, begged him at length to cut interest rates as soon as possible."
Why is this Senator begging? Make your own money Mr. Senator, for the good of all the people rather than the small gang running this nation into the gutter.
Good job Michael. Keep it
Good job Michael.
Keep it up. I see more and more Ron Paul bumper stickers around Seattle and I never fail to mention him whenever I get a chance.
Everyone at my workplace knows who he is now.
Ron Paul is the ONLY sane option America faces, nothing else will work, we are very lucky to have him as an option - I'm shocked the system allows Ron to even exist.
Of course you know me, I totally believe that it ain't who votes that matters, its who counts the vote.
But even though I'm incredibly skeptical about the fraudulent system we live under, I'm still in awe that Ron Paul continues to be the lone voice of sanity on the Hill, and kudos to you Michael for promoting him..
Cheers Rich
I wish we were back in the
I wish we were back in the 19th century - because I sure would like to have a mob lynching of Greenspan and Bernanke.
Need to get rid of the private company - the federal reserve.
The federal reserve is neither federal nor does it have any reserves. Its like federal express, a private company.
I agree we need to get rid of Bernanke but aren't the chairmen only mouthpieces for the privately owned federal reserve owners. To get rid of Bernanke does not solve the root of the problem. The crooked federal reserve owners will only put in another patsy/frontman academic who can obfuscate the real nature of the insidious federal reserve. Only getting rid of the private federal reserve company solves the problem. The private federal reserve is only existing to further the monopoly of the NY major banks/international banks over MONEY. Ron Paul wants to abolish them. This is the key !
The Federal Reserve is PRIVATELY OWNED by Thomas D. Schauf
http://www.freewebs.com/rumorsconspiracybooks/Folder1/The%20Federal%20Re...
This pdf is only 20 pages long. Its well worth the read.
And on page 20 it talks about HOW to practically get rid of the Federal Reserve.
Ron Paul for 2008 !
Bernanke starting to look dumb
Greenspan knew that he had screwed the pooch. He got out of Dodge just as fast as he could find a sucker to take his job and the heat. Bernanke, being from academia rather than the real world, didn't realise that he was to be the designated fall guy.
When they knighted Sir Alan, they should have put the sword somewhere rather than on his shoulder. He's the architech of the current collapse. Ben needs to get up on the podium and explain that the european banks decided that it was time to get rid of their competition here in America.
no question Greenspan is at fault
he's not an idiot though, he knew what he was doing. i would suggest that he would argue that he had no choice both politically, and economically. had he not lowered interest rates to the degree he did, Bush jr would not have been re-elected, and the US economy would have been in shambles still. so, he did the only thing he could, bide his time, till he could get out, and leave these problems for someone else.
.
.