Comments on Logan Flatt's articles

How to Save the U.S. Economy: Kill 1971's 'Floating Dollar' Experiment

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 19:42:02 -0500

Jaimster -

It's a novel idea, but it's based on a false premise: there is no such thing as "each American's social security". The U.S. social security program is a transfer payment scheme, not an insurance policy or a financial asset available to serve as collateral for credit lent upon it.

Through Social Security, the young work today to pay for the lifestyles of their retired elders today. Every pay period, money is simply expropriated from the younger generations' paychecks by the government and then the government turns around and redistributes those same funds in checks mailed to the elderly in the same or next pay period. Therefore, there is no asset accruing to the credit of the young upon which such a credit card could be based as collateral. They pay into a system today with no guarantee that the system will be there for them tomorrow.

In short, the young today simply will be dependent on the youth of tomorrow -- that is, if there are enough youth tomorrow to support the severely flawed transfer payment system that is U.S. Social Security. The actuarial models suggest that the entire Social Security system could break down as the "baby boomer" generation reaches its retirement peak and the elderly boomers absorb far more in payments than there are youthful workers having a sizable chunk of their earnings expropriated from them by the central government. More than likely, the central government will simply expropriate a larger and larger chunk from the youth over time. If I were younger I'd be revolting in the streets of Washington, D.C. at the prospect of such a dismal future created by this archaic 'New Deal' transfer payment program of yesteryear. For the young it's going to be more like a 'Raw Deal' program.

Finally, a credit card is not a great idea because a credit card only creates a financial liability for he or she who uses it. What the U.S. needs is more Americans owning financial assets that build wealth, not creating ever more financial liabilities or other obligations for themselves and the estates their families stand to inherit. It's a far, far better thing to be an owner of assets than an "ower" of debts!

You Don't Own Real Estate - It Owns You

Sat, 29 Nov 2008 02:32:50 -0500

Great read. I agree on some things. I believe there is no better investment on earth, than the earth itself.
JoeyMarino.com

How to Save the U.S. Economy: Kill 1971's 'Floating Dollar' Experiment

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 03:52:02 -0500

ANOTHER IDEA HOW TO SAVE THE ECONOMY. (brief format)

1. United States population 300,000,000.
2. Population over 18 years old 220,000,000
3. national Debt US$ 10,000,000,000,000
4. share of debt per person US$ 33,000

THE PROBLEM .
1. No health coverage for Americans
2. unemployment
3. bad economy
4. energy dependence
5. housing crash
6. credit crunch
7. Retirement funds decreasing
8. unable to stop overspending.
9. ETC, ETC , ETC.

CURRENT PROPOSED SOLUTIONS

1. Stimulus package
2. save Wall Street , save the Auto makers , Insurance companies , Mortgages ,extend unemployment benefits . tax cuts for the middle class .

PROJECTED OUTCOME.

Just a patch , the economy will still tumble down increasing national debt and unemployment.

THE SOLUTION.
Only the consumers can save the economy .

THE PLAN.
1. Give each American over 18 years of age , regardless of credit history or financial status rich or poor , a government issued credit card for $1000.00 or less , to start a credit system with the government at 10% interest per year . This credit card is tied to each Americans social security , and is the point of contact between the government and the people . according to payment history and payment ability their credit will grow . This credit card can not be bankrupt or not paid . it will be discounted from social security if necessary . The idea is that everyone will want to have a perfect credit , why?.
1. access to more money even to buy a house when their credit is built in a few years .
2. The interest charged will be used to pay for :
1. universal health care
2. national debt.
3. Creation of wealth for our country .

This is money that has to be spend for America . It will grow enough to pay for insurance for all , our national debt will decrease .
Let each company fix their problems . A credit system like this will help the country for decades to come. The money will always come back to the source tenfold .
That’s 22 billion per year on the initial credit given to people . On time the national credit will be in the trillions of dollars. The interest generated pay for the national debt in a short time .
.
Thank you for reading
jfp

How to Save the U.S. Economy: Kill 1971's 'Floating Dollar' Experiment

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 22:39:45 -0400

fractional reserve banking is the govt use of leverage. it creates much more money than the initial offering depending on the fraction. one problem is that all the money created is debt with required interest. In a vicious growth spiral, the accumulated interest requires the creation of additional money. A major reason why economists are so concerned with growth. They would like you to believe that money expands because of or in support of growth (economic, population, etc.). In fact, money expands because of interest on debt. We better think up something new and different, because in the latest "greenspeak", constant growth is unsustainable.

When Dick Nixon slammed the gold window in 71, he did it to pay for the Viet Nam War, setting the precedent for "debt without tears". The Fed govt has been at it ever since. Other countries have been complicit in this, else the USD wouldn't be the defacto reserve currency. What would an IMF audit reveal? Probably result in a USD devaluation to 10% like some third world country. Other possibilities are SWF demanding repayment and crushing the dollar. Or what the Feds are up to now, monetizing the debt gradually so we don't know we're cooked.

Keynes said gold is an anacronism. He probably erroneously thought laws would suffice to ensure fiscal responsibility. We couldn't even get a balanced budget amendment passed. Gold may be a barbaric relic, but it's simple and it works.

How to Save the U.S. Economy: Kill 1971's 'Floating Dollar' Experiment

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 10:17:45 -0400

Changing to a fixed dollar exchange with gold is a good one except it will never be accepted by US Government because they will be unable to use the printing press to get them out of future troubles.

How to Save the U.S. Economy: Kill 1971's 'Floating Dollar' Experiment

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 11:04:57 -0400

Interesting article. I am almost with you on this. A friend of mine totally agrees.

How to Save the U.S. Economy: Kill 1971's 'Floating Dollar' Experiment

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:12:20 -0400

The problem isn't primarily Fractional Reserve Banking?

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 14:01:44 -0400

Don't blame congress folks, its us. We're to blame.

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 13:28:54 -0400

Please do not be misled - this essay is not about "the gold standard" per se. It is about official government policy to devalue a currency, the government's track recording in following its policy, and what you as a citizen living under the power of that government and using that government's debased currency as a medium of exchange, store of value, and unit of account can do about it (complain to your elected officials or switch currencies).

Please also note that gold was chosen here for two very important reasons: 1) gold was used by the government itself to value (and, in 1934, to devalue) its currency historically, and 2) human beings have chosen gold over all other alternative currencies for over 5,000 years (i.e., way before you, I -- and today's economic intellectuals and pseudo-intellectuals -- were born).

Just because gold is not "en vogue" currently (or, at least, since the early 1970s) does not change the fact that gold has historically been the global currency of choice among human beings far longer than any single government-backed currency has been the global currency of choice among human beings. Sure, yes, today, it's the fiat U.S. Dollar. But, before that, it was the British Pound (the 1800s). And, before that, it was....gold. Today, gold is so out of style that even Switzerland -- the gold-hoarding, ultraconservative Swiss Central Bank that doles out the Swiss Franc -- sold off all its gold reserves in 2005. Now, THAT must be the watershed event of gold's rejection as currency in modern times. However, the U.S. government, mysteriously, still holds the largest store -- over 8,000 tons -- of gold in Fort Knox and in the basement of the Federal Reserve building in New York (Ever wonder why this is so given that gold is so unfashionable today?).

It seems the human acceptance of currency by government decree is all the rage these days. But, just because gold feels old fashioned to you in 2008, doesn't change the past 5,000 years. It all depends on your view of whether or not human acceptance of currency by government decree is an evolution of human behavior or a devolution of human behavior. I suggest that if you are not educated in these matters, you should educate yourself and then come to your own conclusion about human evolution or devolution in monetary policy matters. I for one think it better to err on the side of devolution at this time.

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:37:58 -0400

RickRussellTX said
...
Whatever you may think about the gold standard, I think you missed the point of the article. He's trying to make the point that the gold standard was a way to set the value of a dollar -- we wouldn't need to produce 15 trillion dollars today, since the dollar would be more valuable in real terms if it was calibrated to something.
...

There is truth in what you say. And I agree with the concept of pegging the dollar to something. But I'm saying why pick something completely irrelevant from an economic production perspective as the peg. How does the difficulty in extracting and refining a rare metal relate to economic production? Gold output in the world is falling. Economic output in the world is rising. This means built in deflation. Here is a link to a page with gold statistics. www.goldsheetlinks.com... This will only get worse as economic output continues to increase while gold production declines. So next year, your house is worth say 10% less than it is this year because of this deflation, and so on throughout the economy.

RickRussellTX said
...
The problem (and I'm no economist, just me thinking on these matters) is that any commodity you choose to use as a dollar index is going to introduce strange unintended consequences. If you set the dollar rate at $1.00 = 10 kilowatt hours, what happens when companies can't buy supplies at a cost that will meet that pricing goal? They close up shop and stop producing electricity until Congress sets a new threshold?
...

Good question. No, the dollar is *defined* as 10Kwh. Of course, we do something like pick a coal fired power plant in Missouri with specific technology, and that is the standard. If you're using diesel generators in Alaska, the price of a Kwh will be much higher. But the reference Kwh will remain constant. If someone comes up with a cheap portable fusion reactor that has thermodynamic cost 10% of the reference Kwh, that means economic output in dollar terms goes way up. Maybe it becomes the new reference.

The big benefit to this way of pegging the dollar is that there is a direct correlation between energy and economic output. And it means that a dollar is a constant - 10 Kwh of output from a plant in Missouri. The price that others charge will be constant relative to that plant, depending on their efficiency of generating electricity relative to that plant. And everything else in the economy will move in tandem with that cost. Of course, the entire money creation process has to be revisited (the fed and the banks). All those pigs with their snouts in the trough will fight that tooth and nail.

This is still simplifying considerably. It would take too much space to describe the entire scenario here. I'm just trying to convey the concept.

Thanks for your questions.

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:26:08 -0400

The leaders of OPEC are thinking about tying the price of oil to the EURO instead of the DOLLAR... Our "friends", Saudia Arabia and others said nothing in our defense at the meeting....
This will mean one thing, free falling dollar. Buy Gold, and Silver cheap now since the central banks and shorts have manipulated the price to "relative" historic lows - or buy euros -another fiat currency and let the terrorist countries control that next!

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 11:47:46 -0400

as long as govs. can just print money nothing will work.its far from perfect(there is no perfect)but it worked fairly well till now.from here on in nobody knows now that we have conservative socialism bailing out wall st.where does capitalism end & the govt. start?

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 11:28:51 -0400

"f the US was to have today the rate of exchange for a dollar that you historically suggest, we would need 726 billion ounces of gold per year; 15 trillion dollars at 4.84 oz/100 dollars."

Whatever you may think about the gold standard, I think you missed the point of the article. He's trying to make the point that the gold standard was a way to set the value of a dollar -- we wouldn't need to produce 15 trillion dollars today, since the dollar would be more valuable in real terms if it was calibrated to something.

The problem (and I'm no economist, just me thinking on these matters) is that any commodity you choose to use as a dollar index is going to introduce strange unintended consequences. If you set the dollar rate at $1.00 = 10 kilowatt hours, what happens when companies can't buy supplies at a cost that will meet that pricing goal? They close up shop and stop producing electricity until Congress sets a new threshold?

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 11:22:56 -0400

Great and fresh perspective!!!

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 11:04:11 -0400

If the US was to have today the rate of exchange for a dollar that you historically suggest, we would need 726 billion ounces of gold per year; 15 trillion dollars at 4.84 oz/100 dollars. World production of gold is approximately 80 million ounces/year. There would be huge deflation annually. Completely unworkable.

You almost have it right. The dollar needs to be pegged to something, but it isn't a physical item. It needs to be pegged to energy. Let a dollar equal 10 Kwh, and be redeemable for such. Still not perfect, but at least any inflation or deflation is real and related to energy which is the lifeblood of the economy. It is no accident that developed economies have high per capita energy expenditure, and undeveloped don't. The implementation is more complex than this but this gives the basic idea. The complexity has to do with consumption and losses to entropy. Productivity is measured as true thermodynamic efficiency instead of the mickey mouse number now used.

A Million Bucks Ain't What It Used to Be

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 10:11:10 -0400

this could explain it. nickgogerty.typepad.co...

a good video on the CPI and GDP deflator calculations...

You Don't Own Real Estate - It Owns You

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:25:41 -0400

Attention ScottC33 and the rest of the renters against homeownership: Most of you are really missing many important points of purchasing a home. Whenever you're buying your first home, of course it's expensive, but it's also a LONG-TERM investment. Otherwise, everybody would be doing it and no one would be renting. When you do your calculations of what you would net by subtracting the purchase price from the selling price, you neglected to take into consideration the fact that you are benefitting by living in that home over a period of time as well as getting a substantial tax break on the interest and taxes you'll pay that cannot get by renting. The alternative to paying a mortgage would be to be paying rent, so I'm not quite sure how renting can be such a better deal unless you live under rent control and have lived in that same residence for at least 10 years. Another benefit homeowners enjoy that renters do not is the ability to customize their own living space without fear of losing a deposit (on a rental) or being evicted.

And speaking of evictions, this is another fear that well situated homeowners get to live without. I know too many disgruntled renters who have been pushed out of their homes for one reason or another only to pay a higher rent on the next place they live in. Unfortunately, that is a vicious cycle because they can never seem to get ahead and homeownership becomes impossible dream. Then there's the ability to leverage - a beautiful thing that the anti-homeownership renting population refuses to comprehend. How many other types of investments allow you to borrow 80-90-100% to purchase an asset that provides shelter. Let's face it, homeowners who have held onto their property for decades, not years, are better positioned to become far wealthier than their renting counterparts.

After renting for over 16 years in San Francisco (obviously one the most expensive cities in the country), I purchased my first home in 2005 at the age of 37 and have no intention of selling it anytime soon. Yes, I put 10% down and got into a 10-year interest-only loan with an option to pay down principal. So, while paying the interest over 10 years, I can sock away the money I'd be putting towards principal in other investments. When the time comes where I need to refinance and I can't get a decent rate, then I'll use the money to pay down the principal (hopefully all of it) and/or buy down the rate. With the housing market and banks struggling, under-qualified borrowers losing their homes that they had no business purchasing in the first place and rents rapidly climbing, I see no better time than now to become a first-time home buyer if one is ready and willing.

The list goes on and on, but the bottom line is, if you financially and mentally prepare by saving your money and doing your homework, a home purchase can pay big dividends over time. Like author and speaker David Bach says, "it's not about timing the market, but TIME IN THE MARKET". The key is to buy as early in life as possible and stay put if you can for as long as you can and eventually paying a long-term fixed rate mortgage can become cheaper than paying market rate rent. There are just too many bitter renters out there saying "shouda, coulda, woulda" (bought their own home back in the day), but never did. Will you be one of them? Only time will tell!

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 11:28:59 -0400

I don't understand why smart people spend so much effort trying to make the high price of oil seem complicated. Worldwide demand has expanded as the benefits of the global economy have spread. Supply, while not an immediate problem for the short-term, is not expanding. Punto!

The idea that a weak U.S. dollar somehow controls the worldwide price of oil is parochial, at best. It does make oil more expensive for countries whose currency is tied to the U.S. dollar. It also encourages investment in commodities, like oil, that are relatively more attractive than investments in treasury bonds and elsewhere in the U.S. economy. Push the Fed to raise interest rates if you want to fix this.

Finally, the mindless litany about speculators pushing up the price of oil by futures trading needs needs a moment of ground truth. There is no correlation between the percent of speculation on the NYMEX and the annual price change of oil over the past 10 years. Look at the data rather than repeat the uninformed statements of others. Speculation has increased as it always does in any market that has a lot of mobility. That doesn't mean that speculation is increasing the price. Remember, just because you buy a contract (whether speculative or not) doesn't mean anything unless someone will buy it.

Let's stop bantering about secondary or tertiary factors regarding the high price of oil and look at the fundamentals. Don't forget about price elasticity: it takes time to change momentum (price increase). Whenever future price expectation is different than spot price, spot price must adjust until the two are again in equilibrium. That is happening with oil price. U.S. demand is down 1 MMbopd since January. The price will fall.

Keep it simple.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 02:22:54 -0400

"But don't you remember back to the Clinton administration eliminating the annual Federal deficit -- by (God-forbid!) raising taxes and controlling spending? It was part of a larger deal with Greenspan to make more investment dollars available for productive businesses without wild inflation by... limiting, and in fact eliminating, the federal deficit. Passed in 1993 without a single Republican vote? Anyone? Anyone? It was in all the newspapers? No?"

Yes, and I remember how the Republicans warned that the economy would collapse. Not exactly.

But keep in mind that Clinton's "surpluses" weren't quite kosher either, because they still counted the positive cash flow from Social Security and Medicare as revenue even though they were really debt. So even though we had some "surpluses" there, the national debt went up each of those years.

Still, a lot better than Bush's insane tax cuts, which will nearly double the national debt by the time his two terms are over.

One more note: of the $10 trillion (will be by the end of this year) national debt, $1 trillion is from before 1980, $1 trillion is from Clinton's terms, and $8 trillion is from Reagan and the two Bushes. Bush I was right the first time: "voodoo economics".

And who has to take the ultimate blame? The American voter, who for decades has reelected politicians who tell us we don't have to pay for government, we can just borrow from our children and grandchildren.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:50:35 -0400

sbennett1, It does seem to me like much of Clinton's deficit reduction was due to some smoke and mirrors magic tricks. IIR they they paid off some bond with funds from Social Security reserves and did not count the IOUs they left as debt on their balance sheet. Ta da! The deficit was magically reduced.

I believe they also rolled over long term debt ie. 30 year bonds as short term debt, such as 1 year and 90 T-Bills etc. and dropped the interest expense quite a bit, and hence the deficit. Unfortunately, that also increased our risk as that debt needs to be rolled much more frequently and if interest rates jump, those lower short term interest rates will have to be renewed at much higher ones. Possibly much much higher ones.

I think he was also the beneficiary of the major drop in trade restrictions via NAFTA and of the big gains in productivity via computer upgrades (many due to companies upgrading because of the Y2K scare) and of companies and individuals taking advantage of the internet on a much grander scale.

Certainly the war isn't helping things, but I'm not sure if downsizing the military as he did was the best thing to do either. It was ramped up again after he left and many were complaining that the military had been way underfunded with the shortfall having to be made up later to get parts for equipment etc.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:02:59 -0400

LOGAN FLATT i have been thinking more. history is my pet subject. now we have government of the lawyers by the lawyers for the lawyers, because we forgot. we should not allow career politicians. they should after a term be forced by the voters not term limits to come home and try to live and work in the environment they have designed. we should not stand for any law to be for us and not them. example they wish to force our children into the government schools yet their children attend the finest private schools. example they wish to destroy the second ammendment for us yet they go armed and have armed bodyguards. the second amendment was never about fighting indians, home protection, hunting or target shooting. it was to keep government afraid of the people instead of the people fearing the government. only a slimy lawyer would not see the obvious. for years i traveled this country working. most of the time i kept a loaded revolver handy. i never needed a permit because i understand SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED.i only pulled it four times and never had to pull the trigger. criminals only want to prey on the defenseless. they ran like rabbits. only once was i tempted to shoot anyway when 5 punks thought i should be intimidated. i did not want them to victimize another person but i did not shoot because i really do not wish to harm anyone ever. should we not tar and feather a judge who says do not mention the constitution in my (it is ours) courtroom or who dares to instruct the jury? why do we allow lobbyists to bribe the people we voted for to go against us? lobbying is bribery that lawyers made legal for themselves. a man who represents himself has a fool for an attorney. it was never meant to be that way. an innocent man should be able to walk into a courtroom by himself without fear or expense. that is what was intended. now no matter what we do a lawyer makes money. i fear the constitution is so buried in crap (illegal unconstitutional law) that it is irretrievable. these simple beautiful documents are to good for us. as my father would often say a free state can only exist with a moral civil people. now every plank of the communist manifesto is in place here except they have only partially disarmed us. i challenge anyone (unless you are a puss filled lawyer) to do the research and prove me wrong. if you are a lawyer and insulted good. go to hell. if you support obama or mccain you are an idiot. they are not for you. they are for continueing their political career, period. yes include hillary, bush, gore ad naseum. the grandfathers of gore and bush both got in trouble for doing business with the nazis. only two this century have tried to help this country. kennedy came out of the missle crises a changed man. he took our currency out of the hands of the federal reserve (which is a private organization not federal) and issued united states notes (30 days before the assassination). johnsons first act was to give it back to the fed. ten days before he was killed he gave a speech at colombia university in which he said , i must use the office of the presidency to inform the american people of their betrayel by their own government. yell conspiracy all you want but i ask that you look for yourself. two weeks after the asassination before the warren report post magazine ran an interview with the doctor who tried to save jfk in which the doctor compares the rifle wound in the head to the pistol wound in his throat. the other decent man was regean but he lost his nerve after the attempt on his life. sometimes i get so disgusted i think about expatriating, then i say no my ancestors died, and died and died in the revolutionary war for us, all of us. can i just leave and hope it works out o.k.. a man who seeks power is not fit to weild it. a good leader is servant to those he leads.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:42:48 -0400

LOGAN FLATT your questions, (1) we keep the presses rolling and now at a frantic pace trying to save institutions and debtors who do not deserve saving, but bad government has allowed such foolish lending and borrowing. spending more will never be an answer except very short term. (2) because to them money and foolish policy is the way to buy voters or big money political support. cling to power no matter the cost to the nation. (3) because we have devolved from a representative republic into a democracy and the masses want largesse. the majority are ignorant of the constitution, history, and economic consequenses. give us our beer(soma) every night and we will not think. because they cannot see that the difference in candidates is the lies they tell their constituants. because we have grown fat stupid and lazy. because the mainstream media support the wwf like contest. i do not know if the talking heads are stupid or if it is more sinister. because the very few industrious intelligent citizens left waste their energies defending socialist partyA or socialist partyB. if they would turn around and look at what putrid scum they are defending they would be sick. because only a room full of lawyers could twist and defile a document so simply written(for the common man). i certainly do not need a lawyer to tell me or interpret for me what was written for me. because judges think it is their courtroom instead of our courtroom (and think they are worthy of this power). they regard themselves as masters(politicians too) rather than servants. because government schools are teaching less and less anything that matters and are focused on green-red philosophies and politically correct garbage. therefore ignorance grows. because we no longer deserve what the founding fathers gave us at great cost to themselves. because most are ignorant of the warnings they gave us. example no national bank. (4) when soldiers and tanks are rolling through the streets and because of weakness and sickness from starvation we are to weak to fight we have become slaves in the land of the frightened and home of the cowardly.................we get the leaders we deserve.....because we are divided and think it is o.k. to steal from one to give to another. because we are stupid enough to think government can fix anything. because a fiat currency is doomed to fail. government the largest debtor, spender, employer, land owner(illegal by the constitution) etcetera is so far beyond the legal boundaries......... gold is buying less oil because whether real or fabricated the demand is greater than the supply. gold is behaving as real money should. the people have forgotten that the final most powerful check and balance comes back to them in the form of a jury of 12 being able and duty bound to order any law struck from the books if it is bad law, and the largest problem is they have forgotten that lawyers are not to be allowed to hold public office. the highly restrictive voting laws have been nullified. no one who recieves government stipend(look it up) no debtor and non property owners were allowed to vote. (we have corrected any thought of race or sex being excluded) because they have a conflict of interest, this is a simplified set of answers.............JOHN S GORDON my friend i hope you got a chance to examine gbrc. it is interesting from a potential profit point of view.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:28:48 -0400

sbennet1,
I remember, and agree. (I also remember when the US Constitution was interpreted to embrace and defend the individual over business and lobbyists. I am probably older than you, but I remember when we had three co-equal branches of government, not a unitary government).
Talk about "income re-distribution", we have witnessed the biggest redistribution in history, over the past seven years....

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:26:48 -0400

Sonofabitch! What a TERRIFIC article! THANK YOU!...and the comments???? Jesus help us. When folks like you all can sit there and punch out SIMPLY ACCURATE PORTRAYALS of what is WRONG with our country (economic, political, and MORAL) and those PINHEADS in Washington don't have a clue (because they are CROOKS) is enough to make me cry! Love yas all!

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:39:33 -0400

Right on....I hope this message is heard!

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:24:56 -0400

JohnE writes that "Politicians in administration after administration, democrat and republican have been destroying the nations financial security..." he seems to echo the point of the author -- Washington is doomed, no one has ever tried to fix our deficit, etc.

But don't you remember back to the Clinton administration eliminating the annual Federal deficit -- by (God-forbid!) raising taxes and controlling spending? It was part of a larger deal with Greenspan to make more investment dollars available for productive businesses without wild inflation by... limiting, and in fact eliminating, the federal deficit. Passed in 1993 without a single Republican vote? Anyone? Anyone? It was in all the newspapers? No?

See graph above for effect on value of dollar, see history books for number of jobs created over the next 8 years...I think it was 22 million...

Am I the only one who remembers this?

I know the author cites the 9/11 attack as the turning point -- but maybe we could more accurately say that when Bush's tax cuts, along with no reduction in federal spending became apparent, then the value of the dollar fell off the table.

If this is not what happened, please someone tell me what did?

My figures show the (deficit) or surplus in Billion of $ during the Clinton Years as:
1993 (255.1)
1994 (203.2)
1995 (164.0)
1996 (107.4)
1997 (21.9)
1998 69.3
1999 125.6
2000 236.2
2001 128.2

I think we could do it again...let's start with higher taxes on folks who earn millions from investments that depend on our national infrastructure; couldn't they help pay their fair share for its improvement?

I know the right-wing will yell "income re-distribution" but really who will benefit more from new bridges, new research at Universities, and new military adventures around the world -- the owner of the trucking company or one of its drivers?

Sure it is fun to say democrats or republicans govern the same way in Washingon -- and I'm sure they both extend favors/deals to corrupt friends etc -- but have budget numbers lost their meaning?

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:12:58 -0400

And all the Feds men and all the Feds horses could not put poor Humpty Dumpty back together again. With the white knight walking backwards and the black queen off her head..... is that "Rome" I smell burning or is it because the Fed has no clothes and just farted??
How good will it be when the UK unravels as it has started?
And how much better will it get once the Golf Cooperation Council
(Saudi, Kuwait, Bahrin, Omar, Qatar and the UAE) get their new currency off the ground. Watch out Euro and sad for the $$.... And who else is going to dump the powerful $$ out there? hmmmm
The real CPI (pre Carter admin) yesterday was 11.5% and forget U-3, how about U-6 of 9.7% and include the long term unemployed (> one year) which Clinton's admin dropped and it is 13.7%... How I love the smell of fiat currency burning in the morning....May the lying Fed rot in hell. Smoke and mirrors....Smoke and mirrors....
Remember what the Dolman said..."Feed your head" READ!! And be awakened.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:11:58 -0400

GLD, SLV, now not later. Do yourself a favor. This morning. while you're at it buy some for your kids and grandchildren - whether you have them now or not....

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:47:27 -0400

Good article. Good comments.

Why Are Oil Prices So High? Gold Solves the Riddle

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:23:13 -0400

So many problems in the U.S. could be solved if voters would insist on certain things from their elected representatives, but I don't see it happening. For seventy years the government has been nursing more and more citizens, and many, many people will not do anything that would wean them from the Federal bottle. As long as people look to Washington to take care of them, the hard and correct choices will never be made. I am a hopeful person, but I see this great country on a continual decline. I have seen events in this country since the 1950s, and I don't see us moving in a better direction. We are in an economic, moral, and political decline. The pillars of this country are cracked and crumbling. We can turn it around, but I just don't see it happening anytime soon. The people do not have the resolve to do it.