Congress has No Job Plan and Obama’s Job Speech: No Substance- No Peace

When I started High School in the tenth grade in Memphis in 1977, my homeroom teacher Dr. Meyer’s was also my economics instructor. Although a public high school, at least a third of my teachers had PhD’s. In his class, according to him I did so well that he suggested I take another economics class as an elective albeit he knew I was concentrating in math and science classes. Thus via a flip of a coin I took microeconomics over macroeconomics. Herein this essay begins, upon a reading of the President’s job speech.

I have come to accept as abstruse as it may seem for some to grasp, that the plausible allure for present day politicians regardless of race, gender and political affiliation, must either be the ability to lie or the scarious inability to see a truth in order to tell it like it is. All because it is clear they do not want to tell us the truth about the nation’s current economic conundrum – that it has taken decades to create this problem, that there is no easy solution out of this mess, or worse that they intentionally vitiate solutions because they have no answers because they have no answers and lack the scrotum to say honestly it will require decades to get out of this mess, that it will be hard and that Americans will have to tolerate difficult times and live within our means to do so.

Telling the truth, no matter how saddening or worrisome lost on politicians even Obama. Not to mention it is difficult for a class of millionaires like Washington, DC politicians the pains economically us regular folks feel. Factually since 1960, there has never been a time in which four straight months of stagnate job growth as we have just seen has never manifested without a recessionary period to follow. Yet politicians on both sides of the aisles quip they have answers and solutions to solve this problem in the immediate future – a bold face lie. They say the recession is over, that we will not experience a double dip recession and that the nation is not in a depression – a bold face lie.

Now as for the President’s speech, it was passionate, but passion and great subject verb agreement does not amount to substance. I disagree with GOP stalwarts who assert a joint session was not the place for such a speech under the auspices it was not an urgent situation. But as I stated prior, for people who are not wealth like most inside the beltway politicians are hurting and the state of the economy is a serious national security issue.

Still with this said, Obama’s speech was more of the same rah rah type. Not that it was bad, but still the same old same old. Only thing missing was a “cash for clunkers” program. Why because it was not specific and talks around what I see and experience as a person under employed who has grown through $300,000 of savings just to keep from losing his home. I guess he knows that in this weak economy his numbers are bad but that the approval for congress is worse. On the ground, those of us without sufficient employment know that things will most likely get worse before they get better and that none of what he proposed even attempts to thwart the impact of the troubles of Europe through its banking and market crisis on the average American citizen, for consumers remain deep in debt and the depression in the housing market has yet to hit bottom.

We in touch and on the ground see the economy is too weak to add enough jobs monthly to even keep up with US population growth. My understanding of microeconomics and math indicates anything less 140,000 jobs a month will only keep adding to the ranks of the unemployed.

The plan had nothing I would consider big or different. He should have [1] offered to implement some sort of profit tax on large corporations that earn more than 20 million annually in profits of around 4 to 6 percent. He should have [2] offered some type of net job creation tax for large and small businesses for about a five year period to serve as an incentive for job creation that would said companies a tax credit that would cover at least a third of their salaries for that time period. He should [3] look at international growth sectors and instituted a re-employment service as opposed to unemployment that focus on industry specific training programs that would prepare the young and poor for skilled jobs.

Nothing in his proposal is punitive. He should have [5] mentioned that the top 100 companies in the US have uprooted around 3 million jobs here in the states over the past decade yet created around 2.5 million jobs overseas. He should have [6] specifically addressed Sarbanes-Oxley regulations and only implement them for corporations making under $200 million annually (I could only imagine the strain and expense on businesses with respect to their legal cost alone to comply).

Lastly, he should [7] reinstate Glass-Stegall, [8] eliminate Dodd-Frank, [9] increase tax rates on short term capital gains for hedge funds for example who create most of the market volatility and lower long term capital gains taxes and lastly – [10] relegalize the sale of marijuana.

This is just what I think, based on what I learned from Dr. Meyer in high school and my subsequent readings since then. It aided me in being able to amass more than $300,000 in investments without the aid of a broker or financial planner; although I have been using it up to stay afloat after my business closed and lost full time employment before then.

Politicians are scared to tell us the truth, do not understand the problem and too busy with the interest of large corporations to really solve or care about us little folk. They are afraid to tell us and won’t tell us the truth, and Obama’s plan is nothing more than the same thing he did the first two years while in office – hum bug.

Neither the congress nor the President can honestly feel what we feel on the ground. They argue about finding funds to provide for simple people who have lost everything due to floods, fires and tornadoes. They do not see that the games they play are not funn for us and look away from the possibility of what has been seen in France, Greece, Italy, Syria, Israel, England and else where in the form of civil disobedience can manifest over here. Nice speech Mr. President. Way to sit on your hands Congress. Just be reminded though – No Substance, No peace. For republiacns and democrats seem to not understand I am human capital not political capital.

That’s makes 10

Things are not as rosy and the democrats and republicans are painting them. Unfortunately the outlook proffered by them economically is not presented as serious as thing are on the really real. Down here in the dirty, in Georgia in particular, we got wind that another bank/lending institution failed. Yep, Integrity Bank of Alpharetta, Georgia.

This is the 10^th US bank to fail this year. Many of these are in my mind a result of what I wrote about before as well as dumb ass Federal Reserve policies proffered by Alan “the green hornet” Greenspan, Bill Clinton and Both the Bush’s. Oh and Ronald Regan too. And specifically, from this savants purview, of how Glass-Stegall removed the barriers between Wall Street and Banking Institutions. Throw in a floundering real estate market, foreclosures up the azz and the worst decline in housing since the Depression, I figure we are only seeing the start of this avalanche.

This year alone, the following banks closed/failed: Columbian Bank and Trust of Topeka, Kansas, First Priority Bank of Bradenton, Florida, Reno-based First National Bank of Nevada and Newport Beach, California-based First Heritage Bank; Staples, Minnesota-based First Integrity Bank and ANB Financial in Bentonville, Arkansas; Hume Bank in Hume, Missouri; and Douglass National Bank in Kansas City, Missouri. Add to this that I think the first bank to fail when the housing market started to slump was Net bBank, also headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia.

Then since the FDIC don’t do nothing to protect or warn the general public outside of insuring depositors up to a certain dollar point, they just reported that the have classified another 117 banks as being a problem for the second quarter alone (30% more than the previous quarter).

Since 2000, the FDIC had closed 36 banks since October 2000. In 2002 alone there were 11 banks that closed and before, in 1994 12 banks closed. The very fact that these institutions are failing is a major concern for me because such is deflationary in essence. By deflation I am referring to a reduction in general price levels that are due to a reduction in the supply of money. This is often due to reduced spending at the government and individual level as well as a drop in the level of investments. The consequence of such mainly seen in increased levels of unemployment.

Like I said, the current presidential candidates don’t seem to talk about the economy in tangible terms but more in chic rhetoric and sound bites. Correct me if I am wrong, but I have yet to read any economic statements that even talk about the threat of deflation or the state of the banking and lending institutions in our great country, have you? This is number 10, any bets on how many more will be gone by the end of the year? Maybe there will eventually be one big super bank – like in old school China or Russia. vote

THIS IS FUN_NY

We the corporation

Jones, originally I was gone post one of two essays I found on my jump drive today. The first is called Scorn of Lady Macbeth (about women using kids as pawns in relationship) and the second is called Work hard and don’t make excuses (about demise of work ethic in youngins today). Maybe next week, but I had to detour for a few based of an astute comment left on the prior post by my folk Curious. His comment reads as follows:

"I had to look up wt the Glass Steagall Act was and what effects it may or may not have had in the banking industry. As a Liberterian I would have thought that you would have approved of repeal of the Act. Doesn't this mean that there is less government interference and therefore more chance to make money by the industry and less chance of losing money on waste and regulation?"

Yes it is true; I am a Libertarian, a civil libertarian. But it is also true that I do feel as I do about the repealing of the Glass-Stegall Act. How can this be since I am against government intervention and protecting me from myself? It is simple. When I read the constitution of these United States of America, especially the Preamble, which learned as a child looking at Schoolhouse Rock on Saturdays in between cartoons, the first thing that I recall is the phrase WE THE PEOPLE.

This is very important to me for it “ordains and establishes” a foundation for my civil liberties as an individual as well as a self professed civil libertarian. Especially as implied via the 14^th amendment for I consider myself a sovereign citizen. I do not believe nor do I accept that institutions, groups and last but not least – corporations, are ordained as such under the constitution. Consequently I do not equate the rights of corporations as that of or equal to those of individual citizens, I just don’t and folk don’t get down like that with respect to dialectical ruminations of the constitutional sort. For again, in the preamble to the constitution, it reads WE THE PEOPLE and not WE THE CORPORATION. Curious, hope that answers your query. Great comment as usual.

Addendum: The song today is Citizen Sovereign – corner of my eye (1996) by savagebeastmonsta-sameblakmuthafucas - us. My interpretation and application of what the 14^th amendment is to me if yawl aint ever read it. For as I have written before, Ignorance and freedom is incompatible. Enjoy

PS – Buy Fast and Gamin’ Today.

CORPERATION, 14^th amendment, Libertarian, liberty, Glass-Stegall Act, constitution, savagebeastmonsta-sameblakmuthafucas, Preamble, Schoolhouse Rock

$3 ATM

Point of order: Sorry for delay in post, forgot I was still a scientist and had two journal articles to proof and correct for Health Education Journal and Global Public Health

Now since I was finally able to post Recess – is- on and PP (which were written in April), back on the grind, which you know in most cases means loot. I am kind of frustrated with America, I mean we aint got what it takes it seems anymore. I can understand how K street gets politicians in a bind but I can’t understand why regular folk don’t see why things are the way they are economically.

We are big on crying and asking folks to do for us, but we never have a good understanding of first what needs to be done or even what or how serious the problem is. Come this November, after the general election, well really before, I hope we can come to an understanding of the aforementioned.

This country has not been in this bad of shape economically since the 1920s and 1030s. I’m sure some will disagree with me, but this is just my opinion. Right now, at least based on numbers from two years go; our domestic financial debt was more than 14 trillion dollars. Fourteen trillion. Today I suspect it is maybe 4 or 5 trillion more, but there aren’t any real numbers available, just estimates so I made my own.

And although we talk about the housing market as being a major contributor to this problem as well as multiple wars, the truth is that the financial sector is mostly to blame, along with republican and democratic leadership at the legislative and executive level. For as I said before, with regulatory constraints basically removed, this created an environment for this particular sector of our economy to go buck wild. Bill Clinton repealed the Glass –Stegall Act and bam.

Long time ago, there were regulated fees for Credit Cards for example, now they can make up fees and even charge you for paying on time or even if you pay off your monthly balance. Don’t even throw in the outrageous and wide ranging interest rates credit card companies (the financial sector) can charge, that is a whole ‘nother story. But to sum it all up, this is where the problem lies. We didn’t have this type of concern when America made stuff and had a strong manufacturing base. Since the financial sector has replaced manufacturing as our largest industry, our national debt has sky rocketed. This sector alone accounts for more than 30% of all of our national debt. Namely as a result of what is called Securitization or what can be called collateralizing debt obligation

Like I said back in the 20s and 30s when we saw similar problems, the national debt was about 250% of our gross domestic product. Today it is about 350%. What does this mean, well in simple terms, maybe a 10% reduction in the values of our houses for those of us who own one, commodity inflation (as mentioned in a prior post) and a 500 trillion dollar debt, which will eventually come back to bite us in the ass one day. I think that is one of the reasons I don’t have an ATM card. Never had one ever. So they next time you go to an ATM machine, just remember that the $3.00 they charge you to use it, is just adding to our national debt. Three cheers for the financial sector. Hip Hip Hooray.

Addendum: Love the fact folks can come in shop with dogs and kids, lay up and drink wine for free – they always end up buying stuff.

200$ in two

First, I wanted to say Jones here been having PC problems, not to mention I had 6oo pounds of dog food delivered to day for my store. I was trying to post this yesterday - Jesus wept. So Marcus ( i still aint on yo blog roll folk), yep I read post and left a comment, or so I though. Second. I have added a new button to the top left hand side bar that read SBM MUZK. Yep, your folk her make music, proficient in lead vocals, bass, guitar and percussion and some keys. We call it Funktry Muzk (funky country music). All live and impromptu with folk playing what ever instrument is available. One date it and move on to the next song. Been making music like this since 1984 and my goal is to put up all 7000 or so songs amassed or as many as this site allows.

Any who, since a black man broke, I have been ruminating on the state of gasoline. The strange thing is about 10 years ago we did a song called GAS HIGHA DAN A MUTHA FUKA.

But I really believe that in the next two years the price of Crude Oil will be hovering around $200 a barrel. Why do I suspect such? Well several reasons. The first is the weak and inflated and the non-recession proof dollar. The second is based on folks who hate us with a passion like Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Jones be talking like a real trooper, but I can’t blame him, I mean if I hated a country with a passion that basically treated my people like step children, I would use oil as an instrument of war also (African Nation take a hint).

Now I’m certain that we may be able to buffer such a price if we sought other fuel sources or did not attempt to invade another arab countries (IRAQ). Although I think invading Is an impossibility under new leadership with the Exception of John McCain, GWB, may decide to do such if he aint got no blow to toot.

Yep, and the concern is that it may be an option if the current president of these United States of America desires to flex his geopolitical muscle. We have insisted on such by having policies (NAFTA, repealing Glass-Stegall) that have aided in the fall of the dollar - declined by about 15 percent in 12 months. And OPEC nations know this. Why, cause they losing loot. If OPEC takes this approach, then I figure the only thing next is the fall of the US economy. I mean let us be for real, oil was about$40 a barrel in May 2005.

This means no more me and you if you asked me, which you didn’t, the end of the middle class for real. But then again, I’m just a mutha fucaka who thinks, who reads and is cursed with an IQ of 185 as if it means I cant count to 186 - but ton’t worry, I made 690 on my SAT. But it is hard not feeling like Magnentius, who in 365 (or was it 350 , I forget) ACE who was proclaimed of the ruler of the Roman Empire after the assignation of Constans, when he felt like he was the shit. I hope I am not the shit and what I postulate remains mere rumination.

My 2 cents (really $11,071.27)

Kelso, to a recent post in which I wrote regarding male sartorial splendor, made a comment supporting not only the necessity of having a passport, but also an off shore account. Now I do have both and won’t tell you what country mine s located in, but I will say Seychelles (in picture) is a great place to have one being a few hours flight from Durban, South Africa (Yawl need to go there its beautiful).

Now Jones, your folk here aint the richest man in the world, in fact I am one of the poorest. With that said, over the past two months i done lost a lot of loot. I kind of hoard loot and try to stay away from spending it if I do not have to, especially if I aint got it.

The current credit crunch is hitting everybody nowadays and I am not just talking about the financial institutions. I mean the common man, the banks, Wall Street, Japan, and even Europe. I know people are doing all they can to ameliorate these problems, but suffice it to say, it will be hard to fix when the average person doesn’t have, and has a desire to spend, even when the do not have the money on hand. I feel I have the right to complain about the government practicing deficit spending, but those that do such themselves do not.

What I anticipate next is that Banks and Brokerage houses (one in the same since Clinton abrogated Glass-Stegall), which have already been hit hard by the sub prime lending practice and home mortgage losses, are not going to being seeing the good times any time soon. Since August of last year, the U.S. government has given financial institutions nearly a trillion dollars and things have yet to improve. Now the Federal Reserve Bank is getting into the act and is talking bout allowing banks/brokerage houses to exchange mortgage-backed securities (MBSs) for about 200 billion in Treasury bonds. Talking about shooting dice, I mean, the have never accepted MBSs as collateral before – not to my knowledge. This will make the FR a holder of long-term credit risk. I figure the FR doesn’t need t do this for it is the financial and lending institutions that need to make corrections on their practices and get their shit tight.

We already see our trade deficit increasing. Especially as it relates to exports as a function of being offset by higher oil prices. It increased almost $60 billion last month alone, and the increase specifically with China seems to grow more and more each day.

So in summary, it is the value of the dollar that is essential to a strong economy in the US. I do not like losing money, not even in the washing machine, and over the last 60 days I have lost $11,071.27. My problem is if I can see this, not as an economists, why can’t our government? vote

the midas touch

Extra extra, read all about it, these mutha fuckas want to pass a 150$ billion economic emergency rescue bill with the quickness. At least, this is what I have been able to ascertain thus far based on what Mr. President, Mrs. Speaker of the House and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson (yes Virginia, the Treasury Secretary has a name) have stated on the record.

This loot is supposed to serve as an economic stimulus to jump started the already stagnant economy (which I wrote about a few weeks ago) with roughly 66% allocated for tax breaks for individuals ($880 for individuals and $1600 for families) and a significant proportion of the remanding one-third to businesses given it also includes some additional but narrow support for unemployment benefits and food stamps for the poor.

I just wonder why they could not see all this shit approaching? A perspicacious person would have seen the possibility of such. Ronald Reagan started all this mess some 30 years ago. The California cowboy Actor as President Jones put in place policies that reduced the Feds typical role of providing government safe guards for the general public. Namely, protective acts that dealt wit such public concerns like water and food quality/safety and the safety of pharmaceutical drugs.

But it wasn’t all on him. Let us not overlook former (getting some head) President Bill Clinton made what Regan did even worse. It was Clinton who repealed the Glass-Steagall Act (which historically kept banking and Investment houses separate). By this act alone, he made the financial industry like Wal-Mart – one stop shopping. The act was put into lace after the Crash of 1929 (Black Tuesday) and the great depression since both were mostly caused by "improper banking activity or what was considered overzealous commercial bank involvement in stock market investment."

Under his watch, Congress passed the Private Security Litigation Reform Act (H.R. 1058). This is why it is difficult to prosecute, prove and to convict K-Street supporting crooks of security Fraud anymore. It also led to a new dawn in American business by creating an environment ripe for the Tyco’s, Enron’s, and Ken Lay’s to doctor books, profits and stuff their pockets while companies folded, went bankrupt and millions of investors taking all of the losses. I could continue and link this with the present environment of sub prime mortgage lending but such is self-explanatory.

I do not know what they are trying to do. To me what is being proposed and implemented inclusive of the Federal Reserve Bank dropping the over night lending rate to 3.5% don’t do anything. Sure in the short term, it’s like holding pressure on an open ax wound. But like an ax wound, the bleeding may stop, but the person still requires major surgery and may even still get gangrene.

For the general public, the 3.5% cut means that the prime rate will drop to an equal amount to 6.5%. So one may see this if they have credit cards since most folks have variable interest rate credit cards.

So again, this is nothing new. We have set ourselves up for this with Lame leadership including the Bush’s, Bill Clinton and Reagan. I mean am I stupid? Why would going into debt an additional $150 billion help the economy while we are approaching spending 500 billion on Iraq alone? Then we really don’t know the true impact of the sub prime mortgage hustle because there is no way to determine what banks portfolio’s are really worth, or how much lot they have really lost – at least the way I figure. Add to that this past week, interest rates of short-term treasury bonds (6-month) dropped to their lowest rate since 2004 and companies like Delta and United (although the are airlines) reported last quarter losses of 50 and 53 million dollars accordingly. So please tell me if I am wrong, before I transfer 12-15% of my portfolio into gold ingots.