Weekend Economists Shootout at the OK Chorale October 21-23, 2011

[Demeter]

This week in history reports the following events:

Oct 21, 1959 --Guggenheim Museum opens in New York City



View of Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum exterior

Completed in 1959, the Guggenheim's Frank Lloyd Wright–designed museum is among the 20th century's most important architectural landmarks. The museum's great rotunda has been the site of many celebrated special exhibitions, while its smaller galleries are devoted to the Guggenheim's renowned collection, which ranges from Impressionism through contemporary art.
http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/visit

The Guggenheim was prominently featured in the recent Jim Carey film "Mr. Popper's Penguins". I'm not sure if they actually filmed on site the scene with the 6 penguins coasting down the interior ramp on a flow of ice water...

Oct 22, 1962 --Cuban Missile Crisis



http://www.historyplace.com/speeches/jfk-cuban.htm

At 7 p.m. on Monday, October 22nd, 1962, President Kennedy appeared on television to inform the American people of the recently discovered installation of Russian nuclear missiles in Cuba...

The President had first learned of the missiles on October 16th, when he was shown aerial photos taken by an American U-2 spy plane over Cuba, located some ninety miles off the coast of Florida.

Two days later, the President conferred with Soviet Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andrei Gromyko, who claimed the weapons were for defensive purposes only. The President then met with top military aides and his brother Robert to discuss possible military options...On Sunday, October 21st, the President spent the entire day conferring with his top advisers considering two principal military options – a surgical air strike against the bases in Cuba, or a Naval blockade of Cuba. The President chose the blockade option, which he labeled in this speech as a "strict quarantine." Additionally, in this speech, the President warned the Russians that any missile attack from Cuba would be considered an attack from Soviet Russia and bring "a full retaliatory response" from the United States against Russia itself.

HEAR THE SPEECH AT LINK

Oct 24, 1901 --First barrel ride down Niagara Falls--ENOUGH SAID. DETAILS AND VIDEO AT LINKS

http://www.niagarafallslive.com/daredevils_of_niagara_falls.htm

http://www.history.com/videos/niagara-falls-in-a-barrel#niagara-falls-in-a-barrel


Oct 26, 1881 --Shootout at the OK Corral

The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a roughly 30-second gunfight that took place at about 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday October 26, 1881 in Tombstone, Arizona Territory, Cochise County, of the United States. Frank and Tom McLaury and Billy Clanton were killed; Morgan Earp, Virgil Earp, and Doc Holliday were wounded and survived. Wyatt Earp was the only individual who came through the fight unharmed. It is generally regarded as the most famous gunfight in the history of the Old West and has come to represent a time in American history when the frontier was open range for outlaws who were confronted by law enforcement that was often sparse, or nonexistent.

The gunfight was relatively unknown to the American public until 1931 when author Stuart Lake published what has since been determined to be a largely fictionalized biography, Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal, two years after Wyatt's death.<1> Lake retold his story in a 1946 book that director John Ford developed into the movie My Darling Clementine.<1> After the movie Gunfight at the O.K. Corral was released in 1957, the shootout came to be known by that name. Since then, the conflict has been portrayed with varying degrees of accuracy in numerous Western films and books.

PERHAPS THE MOST OUTRAGEOUS ONE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEm-6lYMgCI

Despite its name, the gunfight actually occurred in a narrow lot six doors west of the rear entrance to the O.K. Corral on Fremont Street. The two opposing parties were initially only about 6 feet (1.8 m) apart. About thirty shots were fired in thirty seconds. Ike Clanton and Billy Claiborne ran from the fight, unharmed. The Earps and Doc Holliday were charged by Billy Clanton's brother, Ike Clanton, with murder but were eventually exonerated by a local judge after a 30-day preliminary hearing and then again by a local grand jury.

On December 28, 1881, Virgil Earp was maimed in an assassination attempt by outlaw Cowboys, and on March 19, 1882, they assassinated Morgan Earp. This led to a series of further killings and retributions, with federal and county lawmen supporting different sides of the conflict, which became known as the Earp Vendetta Ride.

Oct 27, 1904 --New York City subway opens

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Subway



My brief forays into Manhattan never included a subway ride...I don't know whether to be grateful, or not.

That should be enough variety for any Weekender!

Music from Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, as promised (Hugin never got back with his suggestion).

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. I think I'll start up a vocal ensemble called the OK Chorale.

We could do concerts at Ralph's Pretty Good Grocery.

[Demeter]

2. PDQ Bach Beat You To It

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX7NmU3NTCA

And welcome to the Weekend!

[Hugin]

43. Good topic, Demeter.

Sorry I didn't get back soon with a topic... But, I've been extraordinarily busy of late.

Lots of things happening... Busy, busy, busy. :)

[Demeter]

45. That's okay, I was a bit worried that you had fallen off the edge of the earth

Next weekend is available...got any ideas?

[Demeter]

3. William Black on "Occupy Wall Street" Podcast

http://www.democracynow.org/2011/10/19/former_financial_regulator_william_black_occupy

[Demeter]

28. Census Bureau Reports Public Pension Assets Decline Over $726 Billion/ State & Local Public Employep

http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/governments/cb11-173.html

[Demeter]

4. Weather Forecast: Chance of Meteor Showers (It never rains but it pours)

Space Weather News for Oct. 21, 2011
http://spaceweather.com

WEEKEND METEOR SHOWER: Today Earth is entering a stream of debris from Halley's comet, source of the annual Orionid meteor shower. Forecasters expect the shower to peak on Saturday morning, Oct. 22nd, with more than 15 meteors per hour. Check http://spaceweather.com for links to a live meteor radar, sky maps and observing tips.

(and that doesn't even count the satellite that is due to fall any moment now)

[Fuddnik]

20. Don't bother with the umbrella.

Everybody knows that between now and midnight at the international date line, the world is toast!

[Demeter]

23. Are you saying there's a reprieve in store for us?

I'm sorry I paid the bill for my storage unit...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GD3VsesSBsw&feature=related

[hamerfan]

47. Musical Interlude

Jimmy Buffett. Gravity Storm:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LngK0dQbNjw

[Demeter]

5. Dilbert gets goosebumps

[Demeter]

60. WHILE DOGBERT GIVES GOOSEBUMPS

[Demeter]

6. EU shake-up for rating agencies

Brussels is also seeking to force issuers of financial products in Europe to regularly change the agency they are using

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/ZE9K33/GDJ329/4VXHZ/4CCB3J/XH0AEG/W1/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=21

ISN'T THIS RATHER LIKE REARRANGING DECK CHAIRS ON TITANIC?

[Demeter]

8. Germany has leading role in eurozone drama

Paris, with pressure on its AAA credit rating, can no longer pretend to be Berlin’s equal and any result is likely to be on Merkel’s terms

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/5F39HH/HYR31B/EKRAI/8ZZB6K/VL6VYI/E4/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=21

[Demeter]

24. Fortune Plango Vulnera

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfBndz0mCGA&feature=related

[Demeter]

7. €1.5bn Dexia loans used to buy shares in ... Dexia

Dexia, the stricken Franco-Belgian lender that has been at the centre of recent market turmoil, loaned €1.5bn of fresh capital to its two largest institutional shareholders which then used the cash to buy Dexia shares before 2008, the Financial Times has learnt. The unorthodox move, now banned in the EU, roused the concerns of Belgium regulators at the time..

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/ZE9K33/GDJ329/4VXHZ/4CCB3J/IIRPCS/W1/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=21

[Demeter]

9. Citi pays $285m to settle SEC case

Citigroup will pay $285m to settle a regulator probe alleging the bank misled investors in a 2007 mortgage-related security

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/XYEWFF/08AZM6/CWSVD/YBBRNF/MSPULH/YT/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=20

[Demeter]

34. Citigroup Deal to Go to Judge Critical of S.E.C. Practices

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/citigroup-deal-to-go-to-judge-critical-of-s-e-c-practices/?ref=business

...There it was again in the S.E.C.’s announcement on Wednesday that Citigroup had agreed to pay $285 million to settle a civil complaint that it had defrauded investors in a mortgage securities deal. The bank did so “without admitting or denying” the government’s accusations.

But the S.E.C.’s longstanding policy of using this phrase in its settlements is likely to come under scrutiny by the federal judge who must approve the Citigroup settlement — and it could, legal experts say, cause the deal to come undone...That is because the judge presiding over the S.E.C.’s action against Citigroup is Judge Jed S. Rakoff of Federal District Court in Manhattan, a jurist whom many consider the agency’s bête noire.

“Given his recent jurisprudence, if anyone’s going to rattle the S.E.C.’s cage on this issue, it’s Judge Rakoff,” said Michael Koehler, a professor of business law at Butler University who has written about the S.E.C.’s settlement practices. Judge Rakoff is known for a scathing ruling in September 2009, when he rejected a proposed $33 million settlement between the agency and Bank of America over its acquisition of Merrill Lynch. The judge called it a sweetheart deal for the bank that had been done “at the expense, not only of the shareholders, but also of the truth.” (He later grudgingly approved a $150 million settlement.)

More broadly, Judge Rakoff has sharply criticized the agency’s practice of resolving cases without forcing the defendant to admit any wrongdoing. In a little-noticed ruling in March, he raised the specter of scuttling the next S.E.C. settlement in his courtroom that included such language...

[Demeter]

51. Citigroup to Pay Millions to Close Fraud Complaint

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/business/citigroup-to-pay-285-million-to-settle-sec-charges.html


...In the four years since the housing market began its steady descent, securities regulators have settled only two cases related to the financial crisis for a larger sum of money. This is also the third case brought by the S.E.C. accusing a major Wall Street institution of misleading customers about who was putting together a security and about their motive. Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase & Company both settled similar cases last year. The settlement will refund investors with interest and include a $95 million fine — a relative pittance for a giant like Citigroup. On Monday, the company reported that in the third quarter alone it earned profits of $3.8 billion on revenue of $20.8 billion. The settlement may also have trouble getting approval from Jed S. Rakoff, the federal district judge in New York who must ultimately sign off on the fine and who has taken a hard line on S.E.C. settlements.

Neither the S.E.C. nor the Justice Department would say whether the case raised questions about whether Citigroup had been involved in any criminal wrongdoing. But the case highlights a growing frustration felt by foreclosed homeowners, investors and Wall Street protesters alike that few, if any, senior banking executives have faced criminal charges for losses growing out of the financial crisis.

Citigroup has settled one case stemming from the crisis. Last year, it agreed to pay $75 million to settle federal claims that it hid from investors vast holdings of subprime mortgage investments that were losing value during the crisis and that ultimately prompted the federal government to rescue the bank. “The securities laws demand that investors receive more care and candor than Citigroup provided” to investors in the security, said Robert Khuzami, director of the S.E.C.’s enforcement division, referring to Wednesday’s action. “Investors were not informed that Citigroup had decided to bet against them and had helped to choose the assets that would determine who won or lost.”...In a statement, Citigroup noted that the S.E.C. did not charge it with “intentional or reckless misconduct.” Rather, it settled charges that its actions were negligent and misleading to investors.

Despite its profits on the current deal, over all Citigroup lost tens of billions of dollars on its holdings of mortgage-related investments...The complex amalgamation of investments known as Class V Funding III produced $126 million in profits for Citigroup’s brokerage subsidiary, and another $34 million in fees for putting it together. All of that, including interest and the $95 million fine, will now be going back to the investors; the government will not receive anything....“We are pleased to put this matter behind us and are focused on contributing to the economic recovery, serving our clients and growing responsibly,” the company said in a statement. “Since the crisis, we have bolstered our financial strength, overhauled the risk management function, significantly reduced risk on the balance sheet and returned to the basics of banking.”

***************************************************

The S.E.C. on Wednesday also brought a case against Credit Suisse, which played a smaller role in the transaction, and against one individual at each company. But those individuals were midlevel employees in each company’s investment and trading departments; no senior executives at either company were charged. Credit Suisse, which managed the portfolio of mortgage bonds that served as collateral for the deal, agreed to pay $2.5 million, half of it in penalties, to settle the case. The company declined to comment. Samir H. Bhatt, 37, a former portfolio manager at Credit Suisse, also agreed to settle, paying no fine but agreeing to a six-month suspension from association with any investment adviser.

Only Brian H. Stoker, 40, a former Citigroup employee who was primarily responsible for putting together the deal, has decided to fight the S.E.C.’s case. He left Citigroup in 2008. “There is no basis for the S.E.C. to blame Brian Stoker for these alleged disclosure violations,” said Fraser L. Hunter Jr., a lawyer at WilmerHale who is representing Mr. Stoker. “He was not responsible for any alleged wrongdoing — he did not control or trade the position, did not prepare the disclosures and did not select the assets. We will vigorously defend this lawsuit.” Mr. Stoker joined Citigroup at the height of the housing boom in 2005, and worked as a director on the structured product desk. His job tasks were largely behind the scenes, crunching numbers and assembling deals like Class V Funding III...

Criminal prosecutions related to the financial crisis have been few. Two former Credit Suisse brokers were sentenced to jail in their roles for misleading clients about purchases and thus inflating their sales commissions. Six executives at a mortgage company, Taylor, Bean & Whitaker, have pleaded guilty in a scheme to issue false mortgages to obtain federal mortgage money and bank bailout funds. Lee B. Farkas, a former chairman of Taylor Bean, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his role in the case, which resulted in the demise of Colonial Bank of Montgomery, Ala. Those crimes started long before the financial crisis. A prosecution of two former executives of Bear Stearns, the failed investment bank, ended in acquittals.

[Demeter]

10. Morgan Stanley produces profit of $2.2bn

US bank beats analysts’ estimates and puts paid to concerns that its eurozone exposure would wreak damage

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/XYEWFF/08AZM6/CWSVD/YBBRNF/L93P1F/YT/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=20

[Demeter]

11. Goldman reports $428m loss

Only the second time since it went public in 1999 that investment bank has not announced a profit

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/H60H77/AMYWHA/JQU4J/IIIVCC/U18LM7/JY/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

[Demeter]

72. U.S. Bank Credit Risk Climbs After Goldman Sachs Loss Exceeds Estimates

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-18/u-s-company-credit-risk-gauge-climbs-to-one-week-high-on-europe-crisis.html

Credit-default swaps on U.S. banks climbed on concern that the slowing economy was weighing on financial institutions’ balance sheets after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) reported its second quarterly loss in 12 years.

Contracts protecting the debt of the New York-based company increased 6 basis points to a mid-price of 375 basis points at 9:45 a.m. in New York, according to broker Phoenix Partners Group. Contracts on Bank of America Corp. (BAC) climbed 23.5 basis points to 413.5 as of 8 a.m., according to data provider CMA.

“Market concern over the continued impact of a slow economic recovery is intensifying pressure on BofA and Goldman,” Diana Allmendinger, research director at Fitch Solutions in New York, said in a statement. In the past three months, swaps on Bank of America have widened more than 100 percent and those on Goldman Sachs 126 percent, according to Fitch.

Investors pushed bank credit swaps higher after Goldman Sachs reported a third-quarter loss of $393 million, or 84 cents per share, compared with a profit of $1.9 billion, or $2.98, a year earlier, and Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America had net income of $6.23 billion, or 56 cents a diluted share, skewed by one-time pretax gains including $4.5 billion in fair-value adjustments of structured liabilities and $1.7 billion tied to changes in value of the company’s debt. MORE...

[Demeter]

12. CFTC approves new caps on speculators

Regulation likely to be ratified 3-2 puts US at forefront of commodities trading regulation

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/H60H77/AMYWHA/JQU4J/IIIVCC/B5Y43J/JY/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

[Demeter]

13. Pressures grow on US regional lenders

Regional banks will face greater pressure to cut staff or merge as slower economic growth, lower revenues and high regulatory costs increase their expenses, a new study says.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/H60H77/AMYWHA/JQU4J/IIIVCC/KQN98U/JY/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

[Demeter]

14. French warning to euro summit

Raising the sense of urgency, French president says: ‘Allowing the destruction of the euro is to take the risk of the destruction of Europe’

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/9ULF66/PFTPV4/06MUC/WTTEIK/4CMVQ0/4O/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

[Demeter]

15. China SMEs rely on shadow financing for growth

Businesses see grey lending as a more flexible system and analysts believe this form of financing poses little risk to the economy

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/9ULF66/PFTPV4/06MUC/WTTEIK/VL6T5L/4O/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

[Demeter]

16. Small donors aid Obama in 2012 campaign

The US president is swinging away from Wall Street, saying his opponents are captive of the financial interests they say have hollowed out the middle class

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/9ULF66/PFTPV4/06MUC/WTTEIK/7AWZJM/4O/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

DESPERATION...

[Demeter]

17. Soaring prices push Queen close to 'fuel poverty'

The Queen is coming perilously close to joining millions of her subjects in “fuel poverty” as energy bills for four palaces and a draughty castle absorb a rising share of her income

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/J0VG55/DWQN79/87I64/R33YQY/TUGA74/T3/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=21

DESPERATION ABROAD...

[Demeter]

26. Carmina Burana - III. Veris leta facies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoq3UbFlB90

[Demeter]

18. Greek bondholders could face 60% haircut

Greece’s economy has deteriorated so severely in the last three months that international lenders would have to find €252bn in bail-out loans through the end of the decade unless Greek bondholders are forced to accept severe cuts in their debt repayments

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/KC2844/GDJUH5/7ZY85/088NUF/C4IN36/XL/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=21

DO I HEAR 70?...

[Demeter]

19. Troika warns time running out for Greece

Greece should get its next €8bn in international aid, but its economic outlook is deteriorating so rapidly that the second bail-out plan, agreed just three months ago, is no longer adequate to keep Athens afloat, international lenders have determined.

The findings are part of a highly-anticipated report by the so-called “troika” of Greek lenders – the European Commission, International Monetary Fund, and European Central Bank – and sent to eurozone countries this morning.

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/DHGUVV/C4E981/FDFZE/5VVLBV/NJUHRM/LE/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=20

[Demeter]

21. Gavyn Davies: The eurozone rescue fund is still not big enough

As this weekend’s eurozone summit looms into view, the key question for markets is whether the new financing arrangements will be sufficient to handle three separate problems: the necessary writedown of Greek debt; the recapitalisation of eurozone banks; and the restoration of private funding for Italian and Spanish budget deficits

Read more >>
http://link.ft.com/r/P75VYY/MSUP9T/Z87P0/U11XQB/L933MI/E4/t?a1=2011&a2=10&a3=19

[Demeter]

22. Why “Constructive Inaction” is No Longer in the Feds’ Lexicon By Eric Fry

Question: How many finance chiefs does it take to perpetuate a monetary crisis?

Answer: Twenty…and all of them convened in Paris last weekend.

The finance chiefs from the “Group of 20” nations convened to propose and discuss various bailout schemes for the euro zone.

Many of the chiefs urged their European peers to amass even larger bailout firepower than the $605 billion European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF). Other chiefs suggested that the IMF play a much larger role than it has to date.

But no matter the precise proposals, all 20 chiefs agreed that the key to halting the crisis in Europe was more government action…and certainly not less.

“I think the Europeans have come to recognize that, if you underdo it, it’s going to be more expensive,” said US Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, expressing the consensus viewpoint that government intervention is the solution to this — and every other — financial hardship.

But “under-doing” is probably not the greatest risk of the moment. Overdoing might be.

Read more: Why "Constructive Inaction" is No Longer in the Feds' Lexicon http://dailyreckoning.com/why-constructive-inaction-is-no-longer-in-the-feds-lexicon/#ixzz1bSjrPO7H

IF ERIC SAID:"DOING THE WRONG THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN, DESPITE ITS FAILURE...", THEN WE MIGHT HAVE A REASONABLE DISCUSSION....

[Demeter]

30. Fed Is Poised for More Easing

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203752604576643510352250474.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection

Federal Reserve officials are starting to build a case for a new program of buying mortgage-backed securities to boost the ailing economy, though they appear unlikely to move swiftly.

The idea would be to target any new efforts by the central bank at the parts of the economy that are most severely impeding a recovery—the housing and mortgage markets—by working to push down mortgage rates.

Lower mortgage rates, in turn, could encourage more home buying and mortgage-refinancing, and help the economy by freeing up cash for consumers to spend on other goods and services. Mortgage rates are already very low, ...

[Demeter]

39. Doubts Grow on Euro Fund

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204618704576640931430745712.html?mod=WSJ_hp_LEFTWhatsNewsCollection

Doubts grew about the effectiveness of a key proposal for stemming Europe's deepening debt crisis as it emerged that officials have ruled out a plan for the euro-zone's bailout fund to directly guarantee bond issues.

Pressure is rising ahead of a weekend summit of European leaders billed as critical to stemming the region's deepening debt crisis. French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday—after visiting his wife, Carla Bruni, in a Paris clinic shortly before the birth of their first child—made an unexpected trip to Frankfurt to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other top European officials gathered at a farewell ...

[Tansy_Gold]

25. From an October person,

:hi:

[Demeter]

27. If you told me you were coming

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLkqVjVDO4o

Many happy returns of the day, belated as they may be!

[bread_and_roses]

29. K&R and my favorite Western "OK" gun fight

I did manage to get in an R on SMW this AM, but that was all - never even got back to read it. I heard on the radio though that we had quite the exuberance today. I guess the 1% ain't too rattled yet - by OWS or anything else.

Meanwhile, around the site I've been sniping with some who think a personal fortune of $100M or more is OK if you're an artist. I do not think it's OK - anarcho-syndicalist fellow-traveler that I am.

I never watch westerns but having had as close to a "star" crush as I've ever had on the young Val Kilmer, I had to watch the Western in which he plays Doc Holliday. As Westerns go (not that I'd really know, assumption there) it's pretty good - at least when Kilmer is on-screen and utterly stealing the entire scene, as he pretty much does the entire movie. Though there's an older (I think well-known) character actor actor playing the oldest Earp bro who's pretty damn good. So that's my favorite "OK Corral" since it's the only one I ever saw, LOL.

on edit: looked up the movie - it's "Tombstone" - older actor is Sam Elliott

[Demeter]

36. Val Is Easy on the Eyes

[Demeter]

31. Semi-Random Notes on the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) Movement

http://www.oftwominds.com/blogoct11/notes-on-OWS10-11.html

I am honored to have long been in email correspondence with David DeGraw of Amped Status, one of the key initial organizers of the Occupy Wall Street movement. As a result of our mutual support society/correspondence, I am also honored to be included in an email group of people I consider the leading lights in the movement to restore democracy and fiscal sanity to this nation, people like Matt Taibbi, Barry Ritholtz, William Black, Max Keiser, Dylan Ratigan, Karl Denninger, Yves Smith, Michael Hudson, Nomi Prins, David Cay Johnston, Paul Craig Roberts, "George Washington" and Tyler Durden, to name some whose work you have probably read.

I want to start by saying that David DeGraw has acted under extreme pressure with integrity and grace at every step of this amazing journey. He is an American hero in my book, along with all the other initial organizers of the OWS movement: someone who cannot be bought, someone with the uncommon courage to act (virtually alone at times) against the united forces of oppression, exploitation and thuggery that is the Wall Street/Washington, D.C. Power Elite.

The OWS story appears to begin in late September, but it actually started in March, when David, Anonymous and other activists began organizing a June 14 "occupation" of Liberty Park: Acts of Resistance: What Are You Going To Do To Rebel Against Economic Tyranny? (June 1, 2011), Prepare For Revolution: The Empire State Rebellion Begins on June 14th (March 31, 2011), The A99 social network group, etc.

David has summarized his 19-month experience on the front lines of the movement: Report from the Frontlines: The Long Road to #OccupyWallStreet and the Origins of the 99% Movement. SEE LINK What few people know or recall is that the June 14 occupation attracted a total of four citizens: David and three other brave souls: event organizer Gary Roland, Oren Clark and Kevin Dann. (Other sources say 16 people showed up but only these four were prepared to occupy the park.) Here is David's statement after the disappointing turnout: Back home from Liberty Park (June 15, 2011).SEE LINK

MUCH, MUCH MORE AT LINK

[bread_and_roses]

41. that is really good - I highly recommend it to others - some real gems there

a few of my favorites

This lack of identifiable leaders and shadow financial backers is driving the Power Elites and their Mainstream Media lackeys crazy. Since they are all pimps or prostitutes for one special interest or another, the storm troopers of the Elite cannot believe there isn't some interest group behind the whole thing. A decentralized, self-organizing mass protest movement against their rule simply doesn't compute.

...

A nation ruled by a deeply, pervasively corrupt political/financial class is not a democracy or a haven of free market capitalism: it is a neo-feudal kleptocracy organized along a neo-colonial "plantation economy" model with debt-serfs kept in line by the toadies, lackeys and apparatchiks of government, media and finance--a class of enforcers, propagandists and regulators that constitute a Technocratic Caste...

(emphasis in original)

Not that I espouse "free-market capitalism" - but the writer is correct that what we currently endure is NOT that.

[snot]

42. It's not that a decentralized, self-organizing mass doesn't compute; it's that

they can't hijack it. For the same reason they've pushed to centralize control of the internet; for the same reason they prefer to deal with dictators.

As Assange might put it, it's hard for an elite to conspire with a decentralized, self-organizing mass.

[bread_and_roses]

59. Good point (n/t)

[Demeter]

55. OccupyWallStreet: The Real Tea Party By Dean Baker

http://www.nationofchange.org/occupywallstreet-real-tea-party-1319124008

Many people have forgotten that the Tea Party movement had its origins in the anti-TARP protests in the fall of 2008. Millions of people across the country were outraged that the government was going to loan hundreds of billions of dollars to the banks that had brought themselves and the country to the brink of ruin through their own greed and incompetence. Just as these people feared, the bailouts saved the banks, leaving their high-flying executives largely unharmed, but did little to get the economy back on its feet.

This led to enormous anger that was harnessed by right-wing politicians to go after the government, but the sentiment was always misdirected. While the right wingers want the Tea Partyers to support their efforts to roll back government social programs, large majorities of Tea Partyers actually support key programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and even unemployment benefits. If these programs are protected, and the military budget is not cut (the right wingers oppose military cuts), there is not much left in terms of "government waste" for the Tea Partyers to attack. This leaves an incoherent movement.

The Occupy Wall Street crew picks up on the Tea Party anger directed at the use of the government to make the rich even richer. While it does not have a coherent program or list of demands at this point, the vast majority of the Occupiers understand that there is something seriously wrong in this country. The government is pursuing policies that are making those at the top very rich, while offering little for the vast majority of the population. Political figures will attempt to impose an agenda on the Occupiers just as they did the Tea Partyers, but at least there is in principle an agenda that fits their demands. The Tea Partyers were supposed to be outraged over government spending, but the vast majority of the spending goes to programs that the Tea Partyers strongly support. There is no possible program there.

But, it is easy to design programs that reverse the upward redistribution of income, for example a financial speculation tax on Wall Street or breaking up the big banks. Everyone can understand these proposals. They are good policy and also likely to be great politics, once we get around the stranglehold of Wall Street financial contributions.

[Demeter]

68. When Being Rich Makes Us Poor, People Should Occupy Wall Street By Dean Baker

http://www.nationofchange.org/when-being-rich-makes-us-poor-people-should-occupy-wall-street-1318372525

The Very Serious People in Washington are busy trying to find creative ways to cut Social Security and Medicare and take other benefits from middle-class and moderate-income families. The refrain here is that we just can’t afford this level of generosity any more...There are two parts of this story that should drive the rest of us crazy. And it is difficult to determine which one is the more infuriating. The first is that we know that many people in this country are fabulously rich. And as Elizabeth Warren beautifully reminded us, none of them did it on their own. But Professor Warren is actually far too generous in her account...While some number of the wealthy may have succeeded by working hard and being smart or creative, many of the very wealthy got their money directly or indirectly through the big hand of the government tilting the playing field in their direction. Their hard work involved rigging the rules to ensure that they ended up on top.

MULTIPLE CASE EXAMPLES--SEE LINK

The list of ways in which the wealthy have structured the rules to ensure that they stay rich and get richer is lengthy. But the fact that the Very Serious People are looking to cut Social Security for the elderly and Medicaid for the unemployed at a time when Countrywide’s Angelo Mozilo and Citigroup’s Robert Rubin are still immensely rich is only the first reason that the public should be furious at those in power.

The second is the cause of the current downturn. The reason that we have 26 million people unemployed, underemployed or out of the work force altogether is not that we are poor, but rather that we are rich. The immediate problem facing our economy is not one of too few goods and resources; it is a problem of too little demand. And this is what should make the Wall Street Occupiers and everyone else absolutely furious at our leaders. If people had more money in their pockets, then they would buy more goods and services. Companies would then hire more people to produce these goods and services and we would then have more jobs. The unemployment and poverty that the country is experiencing today is overwhelming the result of a failure of political will...If the federal government increased spending on infrastructure, gave teens jobs cleaning up their neighborhoods, gave state and local governments the funds to keep teachers and firefighters employed and encouraged employers to shorten work hours rather than lay off workers, we could quickly get the economy back to full employment. Economists have known this story for more than 70 years, but somehow creating jobs doesn’t rank as high on the priority list in Washington as cutting Social Security and Medicare.

In short we have an economic system that, even when it is working, has been rigged to redistribute income to rich. And we have a political system that at a time of immense economic distress is more focused on undercutting the means of support for working families than fixing the economy. It is hard to understand why everyone is not occupying Wall Street.

[Demeter]

69. Wall Street protests force Cantor to cancel economic speech

POOR BABY!!

http://thehill.com/homenews/house/189091-occupy-wall-street-protesters-force-gop-leader-cantor-to-cancel-economic-speech


...Cantor was to deliver a speech titled, “A Fair Shot at the American Dream and Economic Growth” at the university’s elite Wharton School of Business, but the school announced the event was off about three-and-a-half hours before Cantor’s scheduled 4:30 p.m. start time. The majority leader planned to address the issue of income equality at a time when activists in New York, Washington, Philadelphia and other cities have been rallying against the rising gap between the rich and the poor.

“The office of the majority leader was informed last night by Capitol Police that the University of Pennsylvania was unable to ensure that the attendance policy previously agreed to could be met,” Cantor spokeswoman Laena Fallon told The Hill. “Wharton is an educational leader in innovation and entrepreneurship, and the majority leader appreciated the invitation to speak with the students, faculty, alumni and other members of the UPENN community.”

Cantor’s office said it scheduled the speech several months ago with the understanding that the audience would be composed of about 250 “members of the Wharton community,” including students, faculty and invited guests. But on Friday morning, the university’s student newspaper, The Daily Pennsylvanian, reported that between 500 and 1,000 protesters affiliated with Occupy Philadelphia planned to rally outside the hall where Cantor was to speak.

The majority leader’s office also said it learned Thursday night that university security planned to open the speech to the public and allow the first 300 people in line to attend the speech, regardless of affiliation, raising the possibility that Cantor would be addressing a room full of protesters...

AND WE SIMPLY CAN'T HAVE THAT!

[Demeter]

70. Top banks accused of colluding on ATM fees

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/19/us-banks-atmfees-idUSTRE79I88F20111019

A New Jersey man sued Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo on Wednesday on behalf of ATM users, accusing the banks of colluding to fix the fees they charge customers to withdraw money. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., is the third such suit seeking class action status on the issue of automated teller machine fees in the past week. The latest suit alleges the banks worked with Visa and MasterCard to set artificially high rates on ATM fees. The earlier lawsuits were filed against Visa and MasterCard, Wednesday's lawsuit is directed at both the card network firms and the banks.

Customers who use ATMs not operated by their bank are often charged both by the operating bank and by their own bank, as a "foreign ATM transaction" fee...

[Demeter]

32. Canadian oil firm sues to seize US land for Keystone XL oil headed to China

https://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2011/10/20/1-vs-99-keystone-xl-seizes-private-us-land-for-oil-to-china/

The NYTimes reports that TransCanada, a Canadian oil company, promises to confiscate private land from South Dakota to the Gulf of Mexico, and has already filed nearly 60 lawsuits against private US citizens who refuse to allow the Keystone XL pipeline on their property, even though the controversial project has yet to receive federal approval....

?w=260&h=468

MUCH MORE AT LINK

[Demeter]

33. Gaddafi's Murder and International Law (HE WOULDN'T GO INTO DEBT)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5u4GmPbM3o&feature=player_embedded#!

[Demeter]

73. international consultant and author Adrian Salbuchi

http://rt.com/news/europe-usa-libya-gaddafi-425/


“I think one of the reasons why Gaddafi’s country has been invaded and he has been killed is because he had plans to introduce the gold dinar as a golden currency that could very easily have become a major currency at least in North Africa and in the oil market,” he said. “Don’t forget Libya has the ninth-largest oil reserve in the world and the main oil reserve in all of Africa, so I think this definitely smells of oil and greed on the part of Western companies. They are just using this to justify they have supported the worst terrorists probably because in the White House and Palais de l'Élysée in France, and at 10 Downing Street, we also have very high-class terrorists and mafias running those countries and the better part of the world,” he pointed out.

...“This is just the beginning and part of global regime change. This means orange alert for Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador and definitely red alert for Syria and Iran. This is the kind of democracy US, France and Britain want for the whole world,” he concluded.

...Mazin Qumsiyeh, a professor from Bethlehem University.

“Their aim is to control Libya and effect the change in Libya to make it easier to reinstitute an American base in Libya which existed until 1969, as well as to control the oil industry in Libya and the privatization of the country,” professor stated.

[Demeter]

75. Now that the CIA’s proxy army has murdered Gadhafi, what next for Libya?

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article29468.htm


...If Washington’s plans succeed, Libya will become another American puppet state. Most of the cities, towns, and infrastructure have been destroyed by air strikes by the air forces of the US and Washington’s NATO puppets. US and European firms will now get juicy contracts, financed by US taxpayers, to rebuild Libya. The new real estate will be carefully allocated to lubricate a new ruling class picked by Washington. This will put Libya firmly under Washington’s thumb. With Libya conquered, AFRICOM will start on the other African countries where China has energy and mineral investments. Obama has already sent US troops to Central Africa under the guise of defeating the Lord’s Resistance Army, a small insurgency against the ruling dictator-for-life. The Republican Speaker of the House, John Boehner, welcomed the prospect of yet another war by declaring that sending US troops into Central Africa “furthers US national security interests and foreign policy.” Republican Senator James Inhofe added a gallon of moral verbiage about saving “Ugandan children,” a concern the senator did not have for Libya’s children or Palestine’s, Iraq’s, Afghanistan’s and Pakistan’s.

Washington has revived the Great Power Game and is vying with China. Whereas China brings Africa investment and gifts of infrastructure, Washington sends troops, bombs and military bases. Sooner or later Washington’s aggressiveness toward China and Russia is going to explode in our faces. Where is the money going to come from to finance Washington’s African Empire? Not from Libya’s oil. Big chunks of that have been promised to the French and British for providing cover for Washington’s latest war of naked aggression. Not from tax revenues from a collapsing US economy where unemployment, if measured correctly, is 23 percent. With Washington’s annual budget deficit as huge as it is, the money can only come from the printing press. Washington has already run the printing press enough to raise the consumer price index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) to 3.9% for the year (as of the end of September), the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) to 4.4% for the year, and the producer price index (PPI) to 6.9% for the year.

As statistician John Williams (shadowstats.com) has shown, the official inflation measures are rigged in order to hold down cost of living adjustments to Social Security recipients, thus saving money for Washington’s wars. When measured correctly, the current rate of inflation in the US is 11.5%. What interest rate can savers get without taking massive risks on Greek bonds? US banks pay less than one-half of one percent on FDIC insured savings deposits. Short-term US government bond funds pay essentially zero. Thus, according to official US government statistics American savers are losing between 3.9% and 4.4% of their capital yearly. According to John Williams’ estimate of the real rate of inflation, US savers are losing 11.5% of their accumulated savings. As retired Americans receive no interest on their savings, they are having to spend down their capital. The ability of even the most prudent retirees to survive the negative rate of interest they are receiving and the erosion by inflation of any pensions that they receive will come to an end once their accumulated assets are exhausted. Except for Washington’s favored mega-rich, the one percent that has captured all of the income gains of recent years, the rest of America has been assigned to the trash can. Nothing whatsoever has been done for them since the financial crisis hit in December 2007. Bush and Obama, Republican and Democrat, have focused on saving the 1 percent while giving the finger to the 99 percent...Will the US collapse in economic chaos before it rules the world?

***********************************************************************

Dr. Paul Craig Roberts was appointed by President Reagan Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Treasury and confirmed by the US Senate. He was Associate Editor and columnist with the Wall Street Journal, and he served on the personal staffs of Representative Jack Kemp and Senator Orrin Hatch. He was staff associate of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, staff associate of the Joint Economic Committee of Congress, and Chief Economist, Republican Staff, House Budget Committee. He wrote the Kemp-Roth tax rate reduction bill, and was a leader in the supply-side revolution. He was professor of economics in six universities, and is the author of numerous books and scholarly contributions. He has testified before committees of Congress on 30 occasions.

[Demeter]

76. As Libya takes stock, Moammar Kadafi's hidden riches astound

http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fg-kadafi-money-20111022,0,1426609.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fnews+%28L.A.+Times+-+Top+News%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

Reporting from Washington—
Moammar Kadafi secretly salted away more than $200 billion in bank accounts, real estate and corporate investments around the world before he was killed, about $30,000 for every Libyan citizen and double the amount that Western governments previously had suspected, according to senior Libyan officials.

The new estimates of the deposed dictator's hidden cash, gold reserves and investments are "staggering," one person who has studied detailed records of the asset search said Friday. "No one truly appreciated the scope of it."

If the values prove accurate, Kadafi will go down in history as one of the most rapacious as well as one of the most bizarre world leaders, on a scale with the late Mobutu Sese Seko in Zaire or the late Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines...

WELL, THEN, DOES THAT MAKE FOR OPEN SEASON ON THE KOCH BROS. AND OTHER MULTI-BILLIONAIRES IN THE US?

[Demeter]

35. Wal-Mart Cuts Some Health Care Benefits

WALMART HAS HEALTH BENEFITS? WHO KNEW?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/business/wal-mart-cuts-some-health-care-benefits.html?_r=1&ref=business

[bread_and_roses]

37. Won't matter to their workers - they couldn't afford them anyway is what I read

read about WalMart's health insurance "benefit" somewhere - way too expensive for most of their employees from what I read.

[Demeter]

38. Fat Replaces Oil for F-16s as Biofuels Head to War

I ONCE EXPRESSED A HOPE THAT PEAK OIL WOULD MEAN AN END TO CONSTANT WARFARE, AS THE AIR FORCE AND THE ARMY TANKS AND ALL THE SHIPS AT SEA WOULD BE WITHOUT FUEL....

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-18/animal-fat-replaces-crude-oil-in-f16s-as-biofuels-head-to-war-commodities.html

Biofuels face their biggest test yet -- whether they can power fighter jets and tanks in battle at prices the world’s best-funded military can afford.

The U.S. Air Force is set to certify all of its 40-plus aircraft models to burn fuels derived from waste oils and plants by 2013, three years ahead of target, Air Force Deputy Assistant Secretary Kevin Geiss said. The Army wants 25 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2025. The Navy and Marines aim to shift half their energy use from oil, gas and coal by 2020.

“Reliance on fossil fuels is simply too much of a vulnerability for a military organization to have,” U.S. Navy Secretary Raymond Mabus said in an interview. “We’ve been certifying aircraft on biofuels. We’re doing solar and wind, geothermal, hydrothermal, wave, things like that on our bases.”

Yet the U.S., stung by an oil embargo during the 1973 Arab- Israeli war, won’t deploy biofuels beyond testing until prices tumble. The Air Force wants them “cost-competitive” with traditional fuel, for which it pays $8 billion a year. Producers see it the other way around, saying they need big buyers before building refineries to help slash costs, according to Honeywell International Inc. (HON), which developed a process to make biofuels...

[Demeter]

40. You All Go On Ahead--I'm going for 40 Winks

see you in the morning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0bMxsNc7I4&feature=related

[bread_and_roses]

44. Heard Richard Wolff on Capitalism on Alternative Radio this week

- I missed the first part, but what I heard was good and being on AR is a recomendation in my book - or radio.

I'd never heard of him before - I am daily astonished by my ignorance - but here's a link to some remarks by him.

http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2011/wolff111011.html

Capitalism and Poverty
by Richard D. Wolff

... One solution: production would have to be organized differently, in a non-capitalist way. Instead of enterprise decisions being made by directors and major shareholders, the workers themselves could collectively and democratically make them. Let's call this Democracy at Work (DAW), since it entails the majority making the key enterprise decisions about what, how, and where to produce and what to do with the profits.

If the workers made those decisions, here are some likely results. Primary goals would no longer be to reduce their own numbers or their wages. If technological changes or reduced demand for their outputs required fewer workers, they would likely maintain the wages of workers and retrain them for other jobs meeting growing demands. Workers would not be fired and thereby pushed into poverty.

Second, workers making democratic decisions would not likely allow today's huge differences between average wages and top managers' salaries, bonuses, etc. By eliminating concentrated income and accumulated wealth at the top, resources would be freed finally to end poverty at the bottom...

[Demeter]

46. Exactly

[DemReadingDU]

62. Another major corporate goal is to control politics.

from the same excellent article...

Another major corporate goal is to control politics. Wherever all citizens can vote, workers' interests might prevail over those of directors and shareholders in elections. To prevent that, corporations devote portions of their revenues to finance politicians, parties, mass media, and "think tanks." Their goal is to "shape public opinion" and control what government does. They do not want Washington's crisis-driven budget deficits and national debts to be overcome by big tax increases on corporations and the rich. Instead public discussion and politicians' actions are kept focused chiefly on cutting social programs for the majority.

Corporate goals include providing high and rising salaries, stock options, and bonuses to top executives and rising dividends and share prices to shareholders. The less paid to the workers who actually produce what corporations sell, the more corporate revenue goes to satisfy directors, top managers, and major shareholders.

Corporations also raise profits regularly by increasing prices and/or cutting production costs (often by compromising output quality). Higher priced and poorer-quality goods are sold mostly to working people. This too pushes them toward poverty just like lower wages and benefits and government service cuts.

more...
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2011/wolff111011.html

[Demeter]

48. Mirabile Dictu! Eurozone to Impose Penalties on Banks That Get Bailouts

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/10/mirabile-dictu-eurozone-to-impose-penalties-on-banks-that-get-bailouts.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NakedCapitalism+%28naked+capitalism%29

EUROPE DOES IT BETTER....

[Demeter]

49. China’s whacky GDP

http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2011/10/chinas-whacky-gdp/

The growth figure produced by the National Bureau of Statistics (i.e. that 9.1% number) is growth in real terms, not nominal terms, one point that some people get confused every now and then. The nominal yoy change for Q3 GDP was actually 21.3%. That would mean that the implied GDP deflator yoy change is about 11.2%. Yet CPI inflation is only 6.1%.

That’s right, things don’t add up for Chinese Statistics. The charts below show Real vs. Nominal growth of the Chinese economy, as well as the GDP deflator vs. CPI inflation. As you can see, CPI inflation has been consistently below the inflation rate as implied by the implicit GDP deflator (as implied by the gap between nominal growth rate and real growth rate) for the past 10 years or so. On top of that, the gap between the GDP deflator implied rate of inflation and rate of CPI inflation has been widening of late.






There are a few possible explnantions. Either the basket of things for the GDP deflator is so different from that of the consumer, such that prices in the GDP basket, possibly more geared towards fixed asset investments, are rising much more rapidly than consumer prices, which is not impossible. Or else, it signals that consumer price inflation is actually much worse than the official CPI data suggested, which is also not impossible. Or indeed, both are happening.

Another curious thing is that even though growth in real term has been slowing, growth in nominal term is actually accelerating, and that would be largely due to rising inflation.



[Demeter]

50. A Jubilee for Student Debt? By Ellen Brown

http://www.nationofchange.org/jubilee-student-debt-1319207344

Among the demands of the Wall Street protesters is student debt forgiveness—a debt “jubilee.” Occupy Philly has a “Student Loan Jubilee Working Group,” and other groups are studying the issue.

Commentators say debt forgiveness is impossible. Who would foot the bill? But there is one deep pocket that could pull it off—the Federal Reserve. In its first quantitative easing program (QE1), the Fed removed $1.3 trillion in toxic assets from the books of Wall Street banks. For QE4, it could remove $1 trillion in toxic debt from the backs of millions of students.

The economy would be the better for it, as was shown by the G.I. Bill, which provided virtually free higher education for returning veterans, along with low-interest loans for housing and business. The G.I. Bill had a sevenfold return, making it one of the best investments Congress ever made.

There are arguments against a complete student debt write-off, including that it would reward private universities that are already charging too much, and it would unfairly exclude other forms of debt from relief. But the point here is that it could be done, and it would represent a significant stimulus to the economy.

I THINK EVEN TANSY CAN SEE THE ADVANTAGES OF SUCH A PRACTICAL PROPOSAL

[xchrom]

52. i love weekends.

:donut:

[Demeter]

53. Republican Field Shies Away From History on Insurance Mandate By Wendell Potter

http://www.nationofchange.org/republican-field-shies-away-history-insurance-mandate-1319125167

In the Republican presidential debate Tuesday night, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich acknowledged, apparently in an unguarded moment, that a core element of “ObamaCare,” the requirement that all Americans be enrolled in either a private or public health insurance plan, was a proposal originated by the Heritage Foundation, a powerful conservative think tank.

Gingrich made the admission as he was denying former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s accusation that the former Republican leader was once a supporter of the mandate.

I’m sure the other presidential hopefuls on the stage in Las Vegas were holding their breath, praying they would not be asked why they all are now so staunchly opposed to the very notion of such a mandate, which several GOP attorneys general are even alleging in various lawsuits violates the U.S. Constitution. As a result of those lawsuits, the Supreme Court is likely to rule next year on the constitutionality of the mandate and the entire reform law.

The candidates’ prayers were answered. Not one of them was asked why an idea conceived more than two decades ago by several conservative economists and favored by Republican lawmakers is a horrible idea now. If they had been asked and had been honest in their responses, they undoubtedly would have said it is because Barack Obama is not a Republican and also because the mandate, according to almost every poll, is the least popular part of the Affordable Care Act...The idea of the mandate dates back to 1989 when Stuart Butler and Edmund Haislmaier of the Heritage Foundation proposed it in an article entitled, A National Health System in America . The moniker Responsible National Health Insurance debuted two years later when economists Mark Pauly, Patricia Danzon, Paul Feldstein and attorney John Hoff expounded on the idea in an article published first by the Heritage Foundation and, in an expanded version, by AEI in 1992. The GOP was so fond of the idea that Sen. John H. Chaffee of Rhode Island and several other Republicans introduced legislation during the 1993-94 debate on the Clinton health care plan to require individual households to obtain coverage for acute and emergency care. Out-of-pocket expenses could not exceed what each household could afford. The provisions of the Affordable Care Act pertaining to the mandate surely were modeled after Chaffee’s bill. The proponents of the mandate said at the time that they felt it was necessary to deal with the growing problem of “free riding,” or uninsured people accessing health care but having no insurance or other means to pay for medical treatment once they had received it. They also proposed it as a “free-market” counter proposal to a single-payer system like Canada’s, which many Democrats supported (and still do).AEI even dealt with the argument against the mandate we are hearing today: that it infringes on our freedom to remain uninsured if that’s what we want to do. AEI responded that society already interferes with individual freedoms by requiring Americans to contribute to the Social Security system...

[xchrom]

54. Bridgewater’s Dalio: ‘I Think I Did Everything Right’

http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/bridgewaters-dalio-i-think-i-did-everything-right/

Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, didn’t used to do many media appearances. But a series of big magazine profiles that focused on the intense culture of his Connecticut-based hedge fund seem to have eased the billionaire out of his shell.

On Thursday, Mr. Dalio appeared on Charlie Rose’s program on PBS to talk about the economy, and to address the accusations that Bridgewater — which is governed by a set of rules laid out in Mr. Dalio’s business manifesto, “Principles” — is a cult of personality.

“It’s a global macro firm,” said Mr. Dalio, who eschewed his usual wardrobe of khakis and untucked shirts for a dark suit and red tie.

For more than half an hour, Mr. Rose and Mr. Dalio talked about the state of the world economy. Mr. Dalio explained his oft-repeated “deleveraging” theory, in which debts rise relative to incomes in a nation until the country, under threat of default, takes stimulative actions to bring the debt-to-income ratio back to more stable levels. Mr. Dalio told the host he believed the United States is in a deleveraging process, but said that economic catastrophe could be averted if careful action is taken.



***dear sir: there is no 'nature' to the turning of economic events or life.
the place where we are at now was CREATED more willfully than not.
and it was CRIMINAL. i believe -- no, i know -- you don't believe your own shit.
neither do we:eyes:

[Demeter]

56. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Dump Their Foreclosure Barons—for Good —By Andy Kroll

http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/10/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-david-stern-foreclosure

It's been a while since Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the twin housing corporations wrongly blamed for triggering the subprime mortgage meltdown and now essentially owned by American taxpayers, made headlines. But don't be fooled: Change is underway at Fannie and Freddie in the wake of the financial crisis.

Most notably, Fannie and Freddie's regulator announced (PDF) on Tuesday that the twins would soon shut down their network of high-powered foreclosure law firms around the country. These firms, paid to process foreclosures as fast and cheaply as possible, ran into trouble in recent years when some of these outfits were found to have backdated key legal documents and falsified signatures on affidavits. One of the largest "foreclosure mills" working for Fannie and Freddie was the now-defunct Law Offices of David J. Stern based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, whose questionable practices Mother Jones exposed last August.

As it happens, that MoJo expose is cited multiple times (as are other key stories) in the inspector general's report released in late September that likely spurred Fannie and Freddie to ditch their foreclosure firms. Written by the inspector general for the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees Fannie and Freddie, the report's authors found that Fannie knew of foreclosure abuse allegations against its attorneys as early as 2003—complaints that only mounted over the next seven years. But Fannie and the FHFA repeatedly failed to deal with the alleged abuses cropping up until criticism of the foreclosure mills reached a fever pitch in the fall of 2010. And even then, when the FHFA investigated the allegations and later sent a list of identified problems to Fannie, the regulator never followed up to see if any changes occurred, the IG report says.

The loss of Fannie and Freddie's business will hit foreclosure firms hard. In the case of David J. Stern's firm, the twins were a cash cow, especially when the number of foreclosures spiked after the housing bubble burst. In depositions, former employees said Stern referred to Fannie and Freddie as "his babies." But Stern's falling out with Fannie and Freddie arrived well before this latest news. Last fall, both companies stopped doing business with him in light of fraud allegations, news stories revealing a slew of improprieties at the firm, and an investigation by the Florida attorney general's office. At the time, a Freddie spokesman said the cases handled by Stern would be moved to other firms "so they can be completed in compliance with state law." MORE AT LINK

[Demeter]

57. The Public Option in Banking: Another Look at The German Model By Ellen Brown

http://www.nationofchange.org/public-option-banking-another-look-german-model-1318951318

Publicly-owned banks were instrumental in funding Germany’s “economic miracle” after the devastation of World War II. Although the German public banks have been targeted in the last decade for takedown by their private competitors, the model remains a viable alternative to the private profiteering being protested on Wall Street today. One of the demands voiced by protesters in the Occupy Wall Street movement is for a “public option” in banking. What that means was explained by Dr. Michael Hudson, Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri in Kansas City, in an interview by Paul Jay of the Real News Network on October 6:

...The demand isn’t simply to make a public bank but is to treat the banks generally as a public utility, just as you treat electric companies as a public utility. . . . Just as there was pressure for a public option in health care, there should be a public option in banking. There should be a government bank that offers credit card rates without punitive 30% interest rates, without penalties, without raising the rate if you don’t pay your electric bill. This is how America got strong in the 19th and early 20th century, by essentially having public infrastructure, just like you’d have roads and bridges. . . . The idea of public infrastructure was to lower the cost of living and to lower the cost of doing business.

We don’t hear much about a public banking option in the United States, but a number of countries already have a resilient public banking sector. A May 2010 article in The Economist noted that the strong and stable publicly-owned banks of India, China and Brazil helped those countries weather the banking crisis afflicting most of the world in the last few years...In the U.S., North Dakota is the only state to own its own bank. It is also the only state that has sported a budget surplus every year since the 2008 credit crisis. It has the lowest unemployment rate in the country and the lowest default rate on loans. It also has oil, but so do other states that are not doing so well. Still, the media tend to attribute North Dakota’s success to its oil fields.

However, there are other Western public banking models that are successful without oil booms. Europe has a strong public banking sector; and leading it is Germany, with eleven regional public banks and thousands of municipally-owned savings banks. Germany emerged from World War II with a collapsed economy that had degenerated into barter. Today it is the largest and most robust economy in the Eurozone. Manufacturing in Germany contributes 25% of GDP, more than twice that in the UK. Despite the recession, Germany’s unemployment rate, at 6.8%, is the lowest in 20 years. Underlying the economy’s strength is its Mittelstand—small to medium sized enterprises—supported by a strong regional banking system that is willing to lend to fund research and development. In 1999, public banks dominated German domestic lending, with private banks accounting for less than 20%of the market, compared to more than 40% in France, Spain, the Nordic countries, and Benelux. Since then, Germany’s public banks have come under fire; but local observers say it is due to rivalry from private competitors rather than a sign of real weakness in the sector. As precedent for a public option in banking, then, the German model deserves a closer look.

[Demeter]

58. Democracy Versus Bankers at The Fed By Dean Baker

http://www.nationofchange.org/democracy-versus-bankers-fed-1318945484

The Federal Reserve Board has provided the basis for thousands of conspiracy theories in its near-100-year existence. These conspiracies have some basis in reality as can be seen by the Fed’s recent moves on monetary policy. In the last two meetings of the Fed’s Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed’s key decision-making body, the members appointed through the political process unanimously supported stronger measures to spur growth and create jobs. By contrast, three of the five voting members appointed by the banking industry opposed further action. This extraordinary split has not received the attention it deserves. It suggests that the financial industry is using its power at the Fed to try to block the course preferred by the appointees of democratically elected officials of both parties. The Fed is an enormously important if poorly understood institution. Its control of monetary policy (primarily short-term interest rates) gives it the ability to speed up or slow growth. It also has enormous regulatory power. Alan Greenspan could have used this authority to put a check on the junk loans that fueled the housing bubble in the years 2002-2006.

If the Fed wants to ensure that the economy does not grow too rapidly it can slow growth by pushing up interest rates. This was the cause of all the post-war recessions prior to the last two as the Fed raised interest rates in order to reduce growth and employment and thereby slow inflation. The Fed can also boost growth by lowering interest rates. To counteract the current recession, the Fed lowered its short-term rate to zero. Since this is as low as interest rates can go – the Fed can’t have negative interest rates – the Fed has tried to reduce long-term interest rates by measures such as the quantitative easing policies adopted in 2009 and 2010 and more recently the purchase of long-term bonds through "Operation Twist."

This is where the issues of control come in. The FOMC has 19 members. Seven of these members are governors of the Federal Reserve Board. These governors are appointed by the president and approved by Congress. They serve a 14-year term. The extraordinary length is intended to ensure their independence. They can use their best judgment without worrying that the current president or Congress will take away their job. However, the other 12 members of the FOMC are not appointed by democratically elected officials. They are the 12 regional bank presidents. While the process of selecting the regional bank presidents is somewhat complicated, it is largely controlled by the banks within a region. This means that 12 of the 19 members of the FOMC are selected by the banks. At any point in time, only 5 of the 12 bank presidents have a vote. This gives the governors a 7-5 majority among the voting members, even though they are outnumbered 12-7 on the FOMC as a whole...Most of the time decisions by the FOMC are unanimous. The FOMC typically discusses the current economic situation for 2-3 hours and considers possible actions. By the time a vote is called everyone has expressed their opinion so the outcome is already known. In the interest in showing support for the Fed, most members agree to support the majority decision to make it unanimous. Occasionally, one member will make a point of dissenting to show that he or she felt strongly about the issue being considered.

The last two meetings of the FOMC were extraordinary in that they featured not one, but three dissents. Furthermore, it was striking that all three dissents came from the bank presidents who were appointed by the banking industry...An overhaul of the Fed is long overdue. It should be turned into a body that directly answers to Congress just like every other regulatory agency. And the bankers must go. This would be a great way to mark the Fed’s 100th anniversary in 2013. We can make it an institution that is consistent with democracy.

[DemReadingDU]

61. North Dakota’s Economic Miracle by Ellen Brown

This article is about North Dakota's Bank, some snippets


8/31/11 North Dakota’s Economic “Miracle”—It’s Not Oil by Elen Brown
North Dakota has had the nation’s lowest unemployment ever since the economy tanked. What’s its secret?

North Dakota is the only state to be in continuous budget surplus since the banking crisis of 2008. Its balance sheet is so strong that it recently reduced individual income taxes and property taxes by a combined $400 million, and is debating further cuts. It also has the lowest foreclosure rate and lowest credit card default rate in the country, and it has had NO bank failures in at least the last decade.

If its secret isn’t oil, what is so unique about the state? North Dakota has one thing that no other state has: its own state-owned bank.

Access to credit is the enabling factor that has fostered both a boom in oil and record profits from agriculture in North Dakota. The Bank of North Dakota (BND) does not compete with local banks but partners with them, helping with capital and liquidity requirements. It participates in loans, provides guarantees, and acts as a sort of mini-Fed for the state.

The BND also has a loan program called Flex PACE, which allows a local community to provide assistance to borrowers in areas of jobs retention, technology creation, retail, small business, and essential community services.

The BND’s revenues have also been a major boost to the state budget. It has contributed over $300 million in revenues over the last decade to state coffers, a substantial sum for a state with a population less than one-tenth the size of Los Angeles County. According to a study by the Center for State Innovation, from 2007 to 2009 the BND added nearly as much money to the state’s general fund as oil and gas tax revenues did (oil and gas revenues added $71 million while the Bank of North Dakota returned $60 million). Over a 15-year period, according to other data, the BND has contributed more to the state budget than oil taxes have.
The state-owned bank allows North Dakota to capitalize on its resources to full advantage.

North Dakota’s money and banking reserves are being kept within the state and invested there. The BND’s loan portfolio shows a steady uninterrupted increase in North Dakota lending programs since 2006.

more...
http://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/the-north-dakota-miracle-not-all-about-oil

This article was recently discussed at The Automatic Earth
North Dakota's Monetary Magic
http://theautomaticearth.blogspot.com/2011/10/october-17-2011-diamonds-in-rough.html

[Hotler]

63. k&r n/t

[Demeter]

64. California reportedly subpoenas BofA over toxic securities

http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fi-bank-america-harris-20111020,0,3103155.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fnews+%28L.A.+Times+-+Top+News%29&utm_content=My+Yahoo

Investigators with the state attorney general's office have subpoenaed Bank of America Corp. in connection with the sale and marketing of troubled mortgage-backed securities to California investors, according to a person familiar with the probe.

The state is trying to determine whether the bank and its Countrywide Financial subsidiary sold investments backed by risky mortgages to institutional and private investors in California under false pretenses, according to the person, who was not authorized to speak publicly and requested confidentiality.

The subpoenas, which were served Tuesday, come as talks continue for a broad foreclosure settlement by a coalition of state attorneys general and federal agencies. California walked away from those discussions with major banks more than two weeks ago, saying what the banks were offering was not enough and the state would pursue its own investigations.

California has left the door open to signing on to a bigger settlement, and the BofA subpoenas were seen as a move to exert further pressure on the bank. The person familiar with the matter would not say how much the securities in question cost investors....

[Demeter]

74. Is Bank of America Headed for the Glue Factory? By Mike Whitney

http://www.counterpunch.org/2011/10/21/is-bank-of-america-headed-for-the-glue-factory/

Why is Bank of America moving derivatives from Merrill Lynch to an insured subsidiary? Is it because the derivatives could blow up at any time leaving Merrill with gigantic, unsustainable losses? If that’s the case, then it would make perfect sense to shift them into a depository institution that’s covered by the FDIC. That way, the taxpayers would wind up paying for the damage and no one would be the wiser. It’s like a stealth bailout, right? The only problem is that Bloomberg let the cat out of the bag, so now everyone knows what’s going on. And that’s going to be a very big problem for B Of A. Here’s a clip from the Bloomberg article:

“Bank of America Corp. (BAC), hit by a credit downgrade last month, has moved derivatives from its Merrill Lynch unit to a subsidiary flush with insured deposits, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation.

“The Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. disagree over the transfers, which are being requested by counterparties, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly. The Fed has signaled that it favors moving the derivatives to give relief to the bank holding company, while the FDIC, which would have to pay off depositors in the event of a bank failure, is objecting, said the people. The bank doesn’t believe regulatory approval is needed, said people with knowledge of its position.

“Three years after taxpayers rescued some of the biggest U.S. lenders, regulators are grappling with how to protect FDIC-insured bank accounts from risks generated by investment-banking operations. Bank of America, which got a $45 billion bailout during the financial crisis, had $1.04 trillion in deposits as of midyear, ranking it second among U.S. firms.” (“BofA Said to Split Regulators Over Moving Merrill Derivatives to Bank Unit”, Bloomberg)

There are two things worth noting in this article. First, according to Bloomberg, “the transfers (of derivatives) are being requested by counterparties.” Well, how do you like that? In other words, the investors on the other side of these contracts want Merrill to put them under an insurance umbrella provided by the FDIC. Now, why would that be? The only reason I can come up with, is that they know that a lot of these complex instruments are undercapitalized and ready to implode, so they want to make sure they get their money back any way possible. That means they need to latch on to Uncle Sam without anyone knowing about it. But, like we said, the cat is out of the bag...The other thing worth noting is that the Fed and the FDIC are at loggerheads over the matter. (“The Fed has signaled that it favors moving the derivatives to give relief to the bank holding company, while the FDIC, which would have to pay off depositors in the event of a bank failure, is objecting.”) Now, that’s not good at all, in fact, it’s a big red flag that suggests the Fed trying to pull a fast one on the American people. One does not have to look too far for other examples of Fed misbehavior; the endless bailouts (TARP, QE1 and 2, Operation Twist, ZIRP, etc) In fact, the Fed’s history is a tedious chronicle of one shifty deal after another. This is just more of the same; another gift to big finance at the public’s expense...It’s ironic that the B Of A flap is taking place at the same time the non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) just released its report on conflicts of interest in the Fed. It helps to put the Fed’s dubious behavior into context. This is a summary of the report from Washington’s Blog:

“The GAO detailed instance after instance of top executives of corporations and financial institutions using their influence as Federal Reserve directors to financially benefit their firms, and, in at least one instance, themselves….

“The corporate affiliations of Fed directors from such banking and industry giants as General Electric, JP Morgan Chase, and Lehman Brothers pose ‘reputational risks’ to the Federal Reserve System, the report said. Giving the banking industry the power to both elect and serve as Fed directors creates ‘an appearance of a conflict of interest,’ the report added….

Joseph Stiglitz – former head economist at the World Bank and a Nobel-prize winner – said yesterday that the very structure of the Federal Reserve system is so fraught with conflicts that it is ‘corrupt’ and undermines democracy.

Stiglitz said, ‘If we had seen a governance structure that corresponds to our Federal Reserve system, we would have been yelling and screaming and saying that country does not deserve any assistance, this is a corrupt governing structure.’” (“Non-Partisan Government Report: Federal Reserve Is Riddled with Corruption and Conflicts of Interest,” Washington’s Blog)

So, no one should be surprised that the Fed is involved in another sketchy deal. Even so, this particular maneuver really seems to have hit a nerve with some prominent and usually even-tempered, financial bloggers, like Yves Smith over at Naked Capitalism. Here’s Smith’s take on the Fed’s subterfuge:

“This move reflects either criminal incompetence or abject corruption by the Fed. Even though I’ve expressed my doubts as to whether Dodd Frank resolutions will work, dumping derivatives into depositories pretty much guarantees a Dodd Frank resolution will fail. Remember the effect of the 2005 bankruptcy law revisions: derivatives counterparties are first in line, they get to grab assets first and leave everyone else to scramble for crumbs. So this move amounts to a direct transfer from derivatives counterparties of Merrill to the taxpayer, via the FDIC, which would have to make depositors whole after derivatives counterparties grabbed collateral. It’s well nigh impossible to have an orderly wind down in this scenario…..This move paves the way for another TARP-style shakedown of taxpayers, this time to save depositors. No Congressman would dare vote against that. This move is Machiavellian, and just plain evil.” (Naked Capitalism)

“Just plain evil.” Maybe that should be the Fed’s byline?

Anyway, Smith is not alone in her contempt for the Fed, but there are those who feel she may be off-base in her assessment of what is going on vis a vis the derivatives dump. Bank analyst Christopher Whalen at Reuters thinks that the transfer could be a sign that B of A is getting ready to throw in the towel. Here’s an excerpt from the article:

“…. the move to put the derivatives exposures of Merrill Lynch under the lead bank could be preparatory to a Chapter 11 filing by the parent company. The move by Fannie Mae to take a large junk of loans out of BAC, the efforts to integrate parts of Merrill Lynch into the bank units earlier this year, and now the wholesale shift of derivatives exposure all suggest a larger agenda.

“I don’t have any access to inside skinny, but what I see suggests to this investment banker that a restructuring may impend at Bank of America.” (“Is Bank of America planning for a Chapter 11″, Reuters)

“Restructuring”? So is B of A headed for the glue factory? No one knows for sure, but the banking behemoth has been laying off workers by the thousands, slashing expenses, and raising fees while its stock has dropped 49 per cent in a year. These are hardly signs of a thriving business. So, consider this: If you were in Fed chairman Ben Bernanke’s shoes, what would you do? Let’s say the second biggest bank in the country is starting to teeter because it’s loaded with all manner of dodgy (toxic?) derivatives that could blow up at any minute and take down the entire global financial system. Would you (a) Wait until the bombshell exploded knowing that the only choice you would then have would be to further expand the Fed’s balance sheet by another couple trillion dollars or (b) Try to sleaze the whole thing off on Uncle Sam and let the taxpayers pick up the tab? I’m not sure, but I think Bernanke may have chosen (b).

[Demeter]

65. Mass. High Court Throws Sales Of Some Foreclosed Homes Into Limbo

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/10/19/141528144/mass-high-court-throws-sales-of-some-foreclosed-homes-into-limbo?ft=1&f=1001

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has thrown into doubt the ownership of some foreclosed homes, when it decided that buyers of a house that was improperly foreclosed are not the legal owners of the property.

The Boston Globe reports:

The decision leaves in limbo hundreds, if not thousands, of people who bought homes seized by lenders under questionable circumstances. They are left with no easy recourse; among their options are to sue the lender behind the botched foreclosure or "reforeclose" on the prior owner.

"It leaves us nowhere," said Edward M. Bloom, president of the Real Estate Bar Association for Massachusetts. "The residential housing market is never going to stabilize and grow until all of these properties that are in foreclosure are organized and cleaned out."

This all stems from the robo-signing scandal that has plagued mortgage companies across the country. In short, what has happened is that in the rush of the housing crisis, there was rampant abuse by banks in foreclosure proceedings. As the Globe reports, last winter, this same court "challenged how banks had traditionally seized properties without having all the necessary paperwork."

The Wall Street Journal adds:

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley had argued that the lower court's ruling should be upheld. "This case is just one example of a much larger problem," Ms. Coakley said in a statement.

She said that banks had been reckless in originating mortgages and hasty in foreclosing on them, creating "a domino effect that has harmed Massachusetts homeowners as well as third-party purchasers who purchased properties after foreclosure."

The decision also comes as federal officials, state attorneys general and the largest U.S. banks try to agree on the terms of a $20 billion settlement to resolve banks' foreclosure and loan-processing abuses.

[Demeter]

66. Wall St. Protest Isn’t Like Ours, Tea Party Says

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/22/us/politics/wall-st-protest-isnt-like-ours-tea-party-says.html

TO WHICH, I CAN ONLY SAY: AMEN AND THANK THE GODS AND GODDESSES AND THE PEOPLE.


...In fact, the two movements do share key traits. They emerged out of nowhere but quickly became potent political forces, driven by anxiety about the economy, a belief that big institutions favor the reckless over the hard-working, grievances that are inchoate and even contradictory, and an insistence that they are “leaderless.” “End the Fed” signs — and even some of those yellow Gadsden flags — have found a place at Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street protests alike.

Where they differ is in where they place the blame. While Occupy forces find fault in the banks and super-rich, the Tea Party movement blames the government for the economic calamity brought on by the mortgage crisis, and sees the wealthy as job creators who will lift the country out of its economic malaise. To them, the solution is less regulation of banks, not more...

THE REST IS BLATHERSKITE AND LIBEL

[Demeter]

67. ANOTHER HISTORICAL MARKER: The Ugliness Started With Bork By JOE NOCERA

NOT SO--IT TOOK SOME REAL UGLINESS TO NOMINATE BORK....

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/22/opinion/nocera-the-ugliness-all-started-with-bork.html

On Oct. 23, 1987 — 24 years ago on Sunday — Robert Bork’s nomination to the Supreme Court was voted down by the Senate. All but two Democrats voted “nay.”
The rejection of a Supreme Court nominee is unusual but not unheard of (see Clement Haynsworth Jr.)...

YOU KNOW, I'M NOT GOING TO QUOTE ANY MORE OF THIS PIECE OF FICTION. I LIVED THROUGH THIS NOMINATION AND BORK WASN'T ANYTHING LIKE A GOOD PERSON FOR THE SUPREME COURT, EVER. HE WAS THE NOSE OF THE CAMEL, AND SINCE THEN, MOST OF THE CAMEL IS IN THE TENT, DOING EXACTLY WHAT WAS FEARED: DESTROYING CIVIL LIBERTIES AND DEMOCRACY IN THE MAD DASH FOR EMPIRE.

[Demeter]

71. 50% of All Workers Made Less than $26,000 in 2010

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/print/2011/10/50-of-all-workers-made-less-than-26-000-in-2010/247059/

Today we get our first look at American wages in 2010 based on payroll taxes reported to the Social Security Administration. David Cay Johnston picks out the most important takeaways, including:

1) Half of all workers made less than $26,364, the median wage in 2010. That means the typical wage is at its lowest level since 1999, after adjusting for inflation.



2) The number of millionaires increased by about 20 percent.

3) The size of the missing workforce is 10 million. The number of working people fell by 5.2 million since 2007. But that's not the entire job deficit, because, based on population growth estimates, 4.5 million more would have joined the workforce between 2007 and 2011. Add it up, and you get a 10-million-worker gap.

What you see in the graph above is that median pay took a nosedive after 2007, effectively wiping out all gains made in the previous eight years. The macro explanation is that the economy shrunk, and middle class jobs disappeared and were replaced with (or outlasted by) lower-paying positions that companies kept on. But the economy isn't one giant corporation. It's thousands of giant, medium-sized, and small companies in industries that lived through very different recessions. Here's a look at pay on an industry-by-industry level from our friends at PayScale. SEE LINK

[Demeter]

77. Gotta get some stuff done now--Carry On, Weekenders!

Honestly, it might be worth it, getting shot in cold blood like Gaddaffi, just to have a weekend off.

[Demeter]

78. This is the 200th Anniversary of the Birth of Franz Liszt, Too !

Franz Liszt (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher. The Hungarian form of his name is Liszt Ferenc; the Hungarians, like the Chinese, put the family name first.

Liszt became renowned throughout Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuoso skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age and perhaps the greatest pianist of all time.<5> He was also a well-known composer, piano teacher, and conductor who contributed significantly to the modern development of the art. He was a benefactor to other composers, including Richard Wagner, Hector Berlioz, Camille Saint-Saëns, Edvard Grieg and Alexander Borodin.

As a composer, Liszt was one of the most prominent representatives of the "Neudeutsche Schule" ("New German School"). He left behind an extensive and diverse body of work in which he influenced his forward-looking contemporaries and anticipated some 20th-century ideas and trends. Some of his most notable contributions were the invention of the symphonic poem, developing the concept of thematic transformation as part of his experiments in musical form and making radical departures in harmony.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goeOUTRy2es



Liszt's father played the piano, violin, cello, and guitar. He had been in the service of Prince Nikolaus II Esterházy and knew Haydn, Hummel and Beethoven personally. At age six, Franz began listening attentively to his father's piano playing and showed an interest in both sacred and Romani music. Adam began teaching him the piano at age seven, and Franz began composing in an elementary manner when he was eight. He appeared in concerts at Sopron and Pozsony (German: Pressburg; Slovak: Bratislava) in October and November 1820 at age 9. After the concerts, a group of wealthy sponsors offered to finance Franz's musical education abroad.

In Vienna, Liszt received piano lessons from Carl Czerny, who in his own youth had been a student of Beethoven and Hummel. He also received lessons in composition from Antonio Salieri, who was then music director of the Viennese court. His public debut in Vienna on December 1, 1822, at a concert at the "Landständischer Saal," was a great success. He was greeted in Austrian and Hungarian aristocratic circles and also met Beethoven and Schubert.<11> In spring 1823, when the one year leave of absence came to an end, Adam Liszt asked Prince Esterházy in vain for two more years. Adam Liszt therefore took his leave of the Prince's services. At the end of April 1823, the family returned to Hungary for the last time. At end of May 1823, the family went to Vienna again.

Towards the end of 1823 or early 1824, Liszt's first published composition appeared in print, a Variation on a Waltz by Diabelli (now S. 147), which was Variation 24 in Part II of Vaterländischer Künstlerverein. This anthology, commissioned by Diabelli, included 50 variations on his waltz by 50 different composers (Part II), Part I being taken up by Beethoven's 33 variations on the same theme, which are now better known as the Diabelli Variations, Op. 120.


A fascinating man, a marvelous life, a wonderful time to be a musician.

[Hotler]

79. GOD DAMN MOTHER FUCKING SONS OF BITCHES, COCK SUCKING ASSHOLES...

RAT BASTARDS, RAT FUCKING TRAITORS. I just sat down to watch "To Big To Fail" for the first time. I know I'm behind in seeing the film. I've read and reread all about what went down, but this film really puts a face to the whole fucking mess. I came this close to taking my shotgun to the tv. Everyone one of those God damn bastards sons of bitches need to hang from the lamp post on wall street. French razor for all of them. Somebody hold me back. Skinned alive and covered in lemon juice is to good for them. Bud white where are you? Jesus fucking christ. It's going to take me a month to come down off of this rant. I need a drink. Thanks for letting me rant. See you all in SMW on Monday. :mad: :argh: :grr: :banghead: :banghead: Sorry for my bad language

[DemReadingDU]

80. I need to see that movie!

Is there any way to watch it, besides HBO? Can 'Too Big to Fail' be rented somewhere?

Hang in there Hotler, rant all you want, we understand how you're feeling, cause we feel the same way.

[Demeter]

82. Try This

http://www.movie2k.to/movie-679471-Too-Big-To-Fail-film.html

I've never done anything like this before, and I don't have the time to experiment today...let us know how/if it works!

[DemReadingDU]

108. Just now got my grandkids back home

We spent the whole day at the Air Force Museum, lots and lots and lots of planes.
http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/

I think the highlight was sitting in an F-4 Phantom and playing with the joystick and buttons and gauges.
http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=314

or maybe it was sitting in the F-16
http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=10267



Maybe tomorrow I can check out the link to the TBTF movie.

[Hotler]

91. Demeter and Weekend Economist. I apologize for...

my foul mouth and uncontrolled anger last night. Obi Wan and Yoda would not be proud of me for allowing my emotions to get the best of me. Demeter you give up your time to put together a fine Weekend Economics thread and I polluted with my rudeness. I could have started my own OP rant in GD or else where. That level of my anger is usually reserved for animal and child abusers. Again I apologize.

[Demeter]

94. Hotler, I don't mind in the least

It's not like you make a habit of it, or that we have small children on this site.

Some people (take my Condo board, please!) seem to think that Freedom of Speech doesn't mean what it says. If you can't have a frank discussion of an issue (which is what is going on there), then you are going to have to take the consequences(I am telling everyone about it personally, in the attempt to inform the community of their best candidates in the upcoming election, and their worst).

Being a liberal, or a progressive, or anything left of stupid means acceptance of unpleasant news and high feelings.

Violence, however, especially organized violence against non-combatants, is totally off.

[Tansy_Gold]

109. many many many

:hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug: :hug:

Hotler, we've all been there, we've all done that. You're in very, very, VERY good company.

[xchrom]

81. France Retreats in German Clash Over Bailout Fund Leverage

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-21/french-view-that-efsf-should-act-as-a-bank-not-definitive-baroin-says.html

France retreated from a clash with Germany over how to expand the power of Europe’s bailout fund as finance ministers entered the second of a six-day marathon to stave off a Greek default and shield banks from the fallout.

The French proposal that the fund, the European Financial Stability Facility, should get a banking license enabling it to borrow from the European Central Bank “is no longer an option,” Dutch Finance Minister Jan Kees de Jager told reporters today in Brussels. He said two options were under consideration, declining to discuss them further. Still, there are “big differences” among countries, he said.

The French flexibility indicated progress toward easing the threat to the global economy stemming from Greece. As they began their consultations yesterday, the euro-area finance chiefs received an assessment from auditors that Greek finances have taken a “turn for the worse,” requiring more official aid and deeper investor writedowns.

Stocks and the euro rallied on signs that policy makers may heed prodding from global leaders including President Barack Obama to calm global markets. Officials are also considering unleashing as much as 940 billion euros ($1.3 trillion) to fight the debt crisis, almost double the current ceiling, by combining the 440 billion-euro EFSF and its planned successor, the European Stability Mechanism.

[Demeter]

83. Last night there was frost on the grass, tonight, frost on the car windows

I got the patio door insulation up yesterday, plan to do the north-facing windows later this week. Winer is coming now, folks. Prepare for the inevitable!

[xchrom]

86. we have a very light frost on the grass here.

i let the dogs sleep on the bed for extra warmth.


though i HATE it when they suddenly get up & do that round & round thingy & plop back down.

[Demeter]

95. They must be small dogs

I've never seen our old Lab, may he rest in peace, or the grandpuppy (60 lb) do that circle thingy. The cats, though, they do that and more.

[xchrom]

98. they're about 45 - 50 lbs -- medium dogs.

my old boy sport -- he could make you crazy w/ the circle dance -- these 2 don't drag it out quite so long.

[Demeter]

84. This Church Is Divesting Millions from Bank of America

http://www.good.is/post/people-are-awesome-this-church-is-divesting-millions-from-bank-of-america-to-say-no-more/

the Bank Transfer Day movement, the grassroots effort to get Americans to leave their major banks for smaller institutions—regional banks, credit unions, etc.—by November 5. The goal is to punish the big banks for predatory lending—a hallmark complaint at the beginning of the financial crisis—and their recent adoption of loads of absurd fees—a hallmark complaint of people on Occupy Wall Street.

So far, there's no real way to measure if Bank Transfer Day is having a pronounced impact on companies like Bank of America, which infuriated customers this month by instituting a $60 annual fee for using debit cards. But if the above video is any indication, the divestment movement isn't a flop just yet, and it might turn out to be a rousing success.

The video shows Eduardo Samaniego, pastor of Most Holy Trinity Church in San Jose, California, announcing that his parish and the parish school will be leaving Bank of America and putting their $3 million into a local credit union. The decision, Samaniego tells the small crowd assembled, was made "in order to say, 'No more,' to Bank of America to use our money in investing in bad loans and not negotiating fairly."

Regardless of your religious beliefs, if you're standing in opposition to the financial industry, this looks like your kind of church.

[Demeter]

85. Which Bank Is the Worst for America? 5 Behemoths That Hold Our Political System Hostage

http://www.truth-out.org/which-bank-worst-america-5-behemoths-hold-our-political-system-hostage/1319299908



THERE'S ALSO AN INCREDIBLY DETAILED, VERY LONG COLUMN THAT GOES WITH THIS GRAPH

SEE LINK

[Demeter]

87. Scientific analysis reveals financial 'super-entity' that controls global economy

http://www.ufppc.org/us-a-world-news-mainmenu-35/10633

AND ITS MEMBERS ARE:

THE TOP 50 OF THE 147 SUPERCONNECTED COMPANIES

1. Barclays plc
2. Capital Group Companies Inc
3. FMR Corporation
4. AXA
5. State Street Corporation
6. JP Morgan Chase & Co
7. Legal & General Group plc
8. Vanguard Group Inc
9. UBS AG
10. Merrill Lynch & Co Inc
11. Wellington Management Co LLP
12. Deutsche Bank AG
13. Franklin Resources Inc
14. Credit Suisse Group
15. Walton Enterprises LLC
16. Bank of New York Mellon Corp
17. Natixis
18. Goldman Sachs Group Inc
19. T Rowe Price Group Inc
20. Legg Mason Inc
21. Morgan Stanley
22. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc
23. Northern Trust Corporation
24. Société Générale
25. Bank of America Corporation
26. Lloyds TSB Group plc
27. Invesco plc
28. Allianz SE 29. TIAA
30. Old Mutual Public Limited Company
31. Aviva plc
32. Schroders plc
33. Dodge & Cox
34. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc*
35. Sun Life Financial Inc
36. Standard Life plc
37. CNCE
38. Nomura Holdings Inc
39. The Depository Trust Company
40. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance
41. ING Groep NV
42. Brandes Investment Partners LP
43. Unicredito Italiano SPA
44. Deposit Insurance Corporation of Japan
45. Vereniging Aegon
46. BNP Paribas
47. Affiliated Managers Group Inc
48. Resona Holdings Inc
49. Capital Group International Inc
50. China Petrochemical Group Company

* Lehman still existed in the 2007 dataset used

AND THERE'S A DETAILED COLUMN WITH SUPPORTING LINKS

[xchrom]

88. Santander gains $1 billion from sale of US unit stake

http://www.elpais.com/articulo/english/Santander/gains/billion/from/sale/of/US/unit/stake/elpepueng/20111021elpeng_4/Ten

Leading Spanish bank Banco Santander said Friday it will accrue a net capital gain of $1 billion (727 million euros) from the sale of part of its holding in its Santander Consumer USA unit.

Santander said the proceeds from the sale will be used to strengthen its balance sheet. The bank declared a core capital ratio of 9.2 percent at the end of June.

The sale will be executed by Santander Consumer USA increasing its capital by approximately $1.15 billion, with Sponsor Auto Finance Holdings Series, an entity held by funds affiliated with Warburg Pincus, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Centerbridge Partners, investing $1 billion in the company and Dundon DFS approximately another $150 million. The transaction values the company at $4 billion.

Following the capital increase, Santander will have a 65-percent stake in Santander Consumer USA, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Warburg Pincus and Centerbridge Partners through Sponsor Auto Finance Holdings Series 25 percent, and Dundon DFS 10 percent. Santander Consumer USA booked a profit of $455 million

[Demeter]

89. Occupy the Mortgage Lenders By Simon Johnson

http://www.nationofchange.org/occupy-mortgage-lenders-1319290830

Participants in the Occupy Wall Street movement are right to argue that the big banks have never properly been investigated for the mortgage origination, aggregation, and securitization behavior that was central to the financial crisis – and to the loss of more than eight million jobs. But, thanks to the efforts of New York’s attorney general, Eric Schneiderman, and others, serious discussion has started in the United States about an out-of court mortgage settlement between state attorney generals and prominent financial-sector firms. Talks among state officials, the Obama administration, and the banks are currently focused on reported abuses in servicing mortgages, foreclosing on homes, and evicting their residents. But leading banks are also accused of illegal behavior – inducing people to borrow, for example, by deceiving them about the interest rate that would actually be paid, while misrepresenting the resulting mortgage-backed securities to investors. If these charges are true, the bank executives involved may fear that civil lawsuits would uncover evidence that could be used in criminal prosecutions. In that case, their interest would naturally lie in seeking – as they now are – to keep that evidence from ever seeing the inside of a courtroom. The scale and structure of any out-of-court mortgage settlement should address the damage inflicted by the alleged pattern of behavior. Many Americans now have too much debt. About 10 million mortgages are estimated to be “underwater” (the house is worth less than the loan). And, in key markets around the US, four years into the housing slump, home prices continue to fall.

If these were commercial loans, creditors would consider restructuring them – extending the payment schedule and typically writing down principal. But, in America’s home mortgage market, this is much less common. Banks want neither millions of negotiations nor, most importantly, the need to face the losses implied on their loan portfolio. As a result, households want to spend less and pay down their debts. To some extent, this is the natural aftermath of any credit boom. And household deleveraging in the US will take a long time.

Policymakers can respond in three ways. First, they could do nothing – apparently the preference of the Republican congressional leadership, which recently wrote to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to demand that he not try to stimulate the economy further. Second, they could continue to rely on conventional monetary and fiscal policy to pull the economy out of the doldrums. This is the approach still preferred by the Obama administration, despite its poor performance. Third, we could adopt an alternative approach that directly reduces the value of underwater mortgages. At this point, any improvement in consumer balance sheets would directly stimulate the economy and create jobs.

Start with the proposal made by Martin Feldstein, who recommends a trade: the government should reduce the value of mortgages when they are sufficiently underwater, with the government and the banks splitting the losses; in exchange, the borrower must agree that the new loan becomes “full recourse.” That means that lenders could pursue borrowers’ other assets – not just the house – in case of default. The key to this proposal is that banks must agree; it is a voluntary debt restructuring, compelled by no legal authority. In principle, banks should be attracted to the proposal, because restructured loans are less likely to default. In practice, the banks have consistently dragged their feet on mortgage restructuring – and are laying off staff, rather than hiring people who could help them deal with an initiative of the required scale. Feldstein calculates that the one-time cost of principal reduction would be around $350 billion. Of course, in our current fiscal environment, it will be hard to find additional resources from the budget. But $350 billion is roughly what the financial sector as a whole earned in an average quarter during the credit boom – and profit levels in recent quarters have reached or exceeded those levels. So, if the entire write-down cost were covered by banks, most of them would lose the equivalent of no more than one year’s profits – spread over several years. Those boom-time profits were in any case overstated, because they were not adjusted for risk. And when the downside risks materialized, the losses were largely socialized – the primary reason why US public debt has soared in recent years. Asking shareholders and management to pay a relatively small amount is entirely fair and appropriate under these circumstances...If the banks were ever really held accountable for the social costs of their behavior, the bill would far exceed $300-400 billion. Realistically assessed, the full downside legal risks to financial institutions are in excess of $1 trillion – particularly if it can be demonstrated that the “mortgage-backed securities” sold to investors were not backed by mortgages at all, because the proper legal paperwork was never done. Any settlement should also include the banks’ explicit agreement that they will support modifying America’s bankruptcy law to enable inclusion of mortgages in the usual court-run processes. If the Occupy Wall Street movement tells us anything, it is that the last thing the US economy needs is more households overwhelmed by debt.

[Demeter]

100. How to Make Banks Really Mad: Occupy Foreclosures

http://www.truth-out.org/how-make-banks-really-mad-occupy-foreclosures/1319304436

Could the next step after camping in Zuccotti Park be camping out in homes facing foreclosure?

As people think a bit more critically about what it means to “occupy” contested spaces that blur the public and the private and the boundaries between the 99% and the 1%, and as they also think through what Occupy Wall Street might do next, I would humbly suggest they check out the activism model of Project: No One Leaves. It exists in many places, especially in Massachusetts — check out this Springfield versionof it — and grows out of activism pioneered by City Life Vida Urbana. It is similar to activism done by the group New Bottom Line and other foreclosure fighters. Here is PBS NewsHour’s coverage of the movement.

The major goal of Project: No One Leaves is to mobilize as many resources as possible to protect those going through foreclosure and keep them in their homes as long as possible in order to give them maximum bargaining power against the banks. For those focused on “weapons of the weak,” this moment — with banks and creditors using state power to conduct massive amounts of foreclosures, thus impoverishing poor neighborhoods through a financialized rationality — is a crucial opportunity for resistance...

[Demeter]

90. Occupy the Boardroom

http://www.alternet.org/occupywallst/152813/occupy_the_boardroom%3A_9_angry%2C_heart-breaking_messages_to_wall_street%27s_elites_from_the_99

_640x466_310x220

That photograph of well-heeled traders sipping champagne on a balcony high over Zuccotti Park as they look down on the Occupation below is already an iconic image, capturing the haughty detachment with which Big Finance has received this rapidly spreading expression of popular outrage.

The movement is now using a variety of strategies to take its message directly to the "1 percent” – to make sure they can't ignore the protests from the comfort of their sheltered enclaves. A new effort, Occupy the Boardroom, offers those whose economic security has been crushed by the recession a chance to send messages directly to a banking executive of their choice.

Ordinary people can post their letters to OccupyTheBoardroom.org, and activists promise to do whatever it takes to deliver them to the intended recipients. “Life gets awfully lonely for those at the top,” reads a tagline on the site. “What can we do to let them know someone's thinking of them? Maybe they need some new friends!”

The project is making Big Finance nervous.

[Demeter]

99. Time to Move from Occupy Wall Street to Prosecute Wall Street

http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/13091

In his new book, available from Truthout with a contribution, Glenn Greenwald states it bluntly: "The central promise of the American founding - that all would stand equal before the rule of law no matter what other political and economic inequality was allowed - has been abandoned."

Moreover, the ruling elite and the wealthiest Americans have become exempt from a uniform standard of justice, Greenwald argues in "With Liberty and Justice for Some": Instead, the United States now has the exact opposite of a single set of laws before which everyone is equal. It has an entrenched two-tiered system of justice: the country's most powerful political and financial elites are virtually immunized from the rule of law, empowered to commit felonies with full-scale impunity and to act without any constraints, while the politically powerless are imprisoned with greater ease and in far greater numbers than in any other country on the planet.

According to an October 19 Reuters article: "Citigroup Inc will pay $285 million to settle charges that it defrauded investors who bought toxic housing-related debt that the bank bet would fail, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said on Wednesday." Please notice the word defrauded in the description of Citigroup's action. The law is divided into basically two areas: civil and criminal. Defraud generally is an action that falls into the criminal class of law. Throughout the follow-up to the near collapse of the American economy caused by Wall Street's defrauding, mismanagement, malfeasance and greed, the basic reaction of the Obama administration has been to let the perpetrators of a crime so large it defies comprehension go free. Not only have they gone free, but many of them are still in charge of nearly monopolistic financial entities that, in many practices, amount to - at least in part - criminal enterprises that gouge consumers and defraud investors alike.

Yes, a few "guppies" have been prosecuted, and financial firms like Citigroup have paid some fines that they will just recover in write-offs and more financial scams. It's not just a slap on the wrist; it's giving the appearance of punishment, when it is really no skin off the hide of the criminally negligent banks. Furthermore, Citigroup is claiming -- and the SEC isn't disputing -- that it clears them of liability for other charges against the bank. It's a public relations move by the SEC, not a finding with any legal repercussions - for the firm or for individuals....For weeks, under orders from Mayor Bloomberg - and with the likely cooperation of the FBI - protesters have been treated like criminals by a highly militarized police force. In essence, the New York Police Department has become a publicly paid security force to protect the "Masters of the Universe" on Wall Street, who have committed unfathomable crimes against the nation...

[bread_and_roses]

92. Woman with a megaphone going on and on about Fed Reserve at our local Occupy

Yesterday, putting my time in at our local "Occupy" had the misfortune to be there at a time when a woman with a megaphone was haranguing everyone and taking up all the air with a sign and a rant about the Federal Reserve. "Occupy" being a non-structured event, no one interfered, but it was very annoying.

I desperately wanted to tell her that almost no one knows what the Federal Reserve is/does or who Bernanke (photo and "WANTED" on her sign) is. Hell, even I cannot remember from day-today what the hell the FR is/does/how it abets the Plutocracy in anything like a coherent enough way to explain it to someone else. (I say "even I" not because I'm the brightest crayon in the box but because I DO read more about this "stuff" than probably 98% of the general populace).

Talk about not getting "messaging." People know what foreclosures are. They know what unemployment is. They know (or think they know) what the Bail-Out was. The Federal Reserve? Not so much, to say the least.

[Demeter]

93. The Fed Is, However, A Favorite Tea Party Target

Not that they have any concept of it, either.

They need a time limit, perhaps, on ranting.

[bread_and_roses]

96. Yep. She's also call out, "Tired of the Gov't Stealing Your Money?"

I really wanted to throttle her. Oh, well. She was mostly ignored, seemed to have no friends or entourage there, so maybe she'll get tired of it soon.

[Demeter]

97. Definitely a TP plant, then.

[Demeter]

101. A High-Profile Executive Job as Defense Against Mental Ills

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/health/23lives.html

I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY...I'M HAPPY THIS WOMAN FOUND A SOLUTION. I JUST WONDER ABOUT ANYONE ELSE INVOLVED.

[Demeter]

102. If the Greeks Can Shut Their Country Down, Why Can’t We?

http://www.truth-out.org/if-greeks-can-shut-their-country-down-why-cant-we/1319133709

In an effort to stop Greece’s parliament from voting for further austerity measures today and tomorrow, the Greek people have effectively shut the entire country down, as part of the 48-hour general strike...The strikes have shuttered government offices, public services, shops and even bakeries. Taxi drivers walked off the job, as did air-traffic controllers (though they shortened their work stoppage from 48 hours to 12). Unfortunately, as has been common in past demonstrations in Greece, some protesters broke windows of storefronts and clashed with the police, throwing rocks and molotov cocktails at them. Despite the many images of such violence, Theodora Oikonomides, a Athens resident who was at the enormous rally today at Syntagma Square told the Guardian that: A group of between 20 and 40 people, really no more, then started throwing stones. I recognised some of them from previous events. They never seem to get arrested...

As I watch the Greeks give everything they’ve got to stop this legislation from going through, I couldn’t help but wonder why protests in the US haven’t attempted a general strike, which is one of the most powerful nonviolent tactics. While there were citywide general strikes during the Great Depression, like the 1934 general strike that shut down San Francisco for four days, a true nationwide general strike to my knowledge has never been either attempted or successful in this country.

Yes, the United States is a much larger country both geographically and numerically, which would make organizing such an action more challenging, but if Greece can pull it off, why can’t we? If the Occupy Wall Street movement is eventually to put the kind of pressure on the government and corporate power to truly address the structural problems with our economic and political systems, a serious nationwide general strike that clearly demonstrates who actually makes this country tick may be called for.

[bread_and_roses]

103. "Is a general strike illegal? In short, yes"

Fascinating background/history/how-tos on General Strike here

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/03/13/955964/-Anti-Capitalist-Meetup:-General-Strike-FAQs

Included in the background info:

In 1947, the Republican Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act that explicitly defined new "unfair labor practices" applicable only to unions, including jurisdictional strikes, wildcat strikes, solidarity or political strikes, secondary boycotts, secondary and mass picketing. In addition, unions were required to provide 60 days advance notice of strikes and submit to mediation during that period. The power to enjoin strikes was granted to the executive branch of the federal government, and federal courts were given jurisdiction in cases suing for damages against unions that violated no-strike clauses.

Truman vetoed the bill, but both houses over-rode the veto with many Democrats joining Republicans.

Labor's hope that the federal government would serve as a fair referee in labor disputes died with the passage of Taft-Hartley, and the Democratic Party's promise to repeat(*) the Act has never been fulfilled in the 60+ years since passage.

*I think this is a typo for "repeal"
my emphasis added


The article, btw, is not arguing against a General Strike.

The unions supine acceptance of T-H (should've gone on General Strike then) and their continued acceptance of the crumbs sprinkled their way by the Ds has been the death of real power for the working class.

Even now, where are the calls for a shorter work week (at no pay loss) to create more jobs? Where are the calls for universal health care? Where are the calls to "forgive" student debt? For a minimum wage that is actually a living wage? For lowering the age of SS/MA and universal "pension" (SS) that keeps people out of poverty?

All our energy goes into fighting for crumbs.

(Reading what I just wrote ... I have no hope. I see no future.)

[Hotler]

104. Not enough people feeling the pain yet.

Still too many with the attitude "I have mine. Fuck the rest of you." A very small part of me says let the repugs have 2012. Let them finish driving this car off the cliff. Then the pain will set in. I know it is a cold and cruel thought.
Another reason is that the MSM and our politicians have this country divided worker against worker, R against D, neighbor against neighbor. I have not done any research, but I guess that Greece doesn't have much of a Fox News, teabagger, Limbaugh influence to divide their country. When repugs and teabaggers realize that even their own Republican politicians in Washington don't give a crap one bit about them except when it comes time to ask for campaign dollars they may go hmmmm.
If you really want to see a mass protest tell the repugs that Obama is going to sign an executive order all citizens are to turn in ALL their firearms in 7-days or face 10 yrs. in prison. :evilgrin:

[bread_and_roses]

105. Really interesting article on OWS - especially on youth participation

http://www.alternet.org/story/152789/%E2%80%9Cwhat_did_we_actually_do_right%E2%80%9D_on_the_unexpected_success_and_spread_of_occupy_wall_street/?page=entire

...“We are watching,” I wrote, “the beginnings of the defiant self-assertion of a new generation of Americans, a generation who are looking forward to finishing their education with no jobs, no future, but still saddled with enormous and unforgivable debt.”

... In a way, this is nothing new. Revolutionary coalitions have always tended to consist of a kind of alliance between children of the professional classes who reject their parents’ values, and talented children of the popular classes who managed to win themselves a bourgeois education, only to discover that acquiring a bourgeois education does not actually mean one gets to become a member of the bourgeoisie. You see the pattern repeated over and over, in country after country: Chou Enlai meets Mao Tse Tung, or Che Guevara meets Fidel Castro. Even US counter-insurgency experts have long known the surest harbingers of revolutionary ferment in any country is the growth of a population of unemployed and impoverished college graduates: that is, young people bursting with energy, with plenty of time on their hands, every reason to be angry, and access to the entire history of radical thought. In the US, the depredations of the student loan system simply ensures such budding revolutionaries cannot fail to identify banks as their primary enemy, or to understand the role of the Federal Government—which maintains the student loan program, and ensures that their loans will be held over their heads forever, even in the event of bankruptcy—in maintaining the banking system’s ultimate control over every aspect of their future lives...

... How, then, do you expect a young American voter to feel, after casting a vote for a fundamental change to our political and economic system, on discovering that in fact, they have elected a man who twenty years ago would have been considered a moderate conservative?

I mean that word, “conservative,” in its literal sense by the way. This literal sense is now rarely used. Nowadays, in the US, “conservative” has come to mean “right-wing radical,” but it used to mean someone whose main political imperative is to conserve existing institutions, more or less exactly as they are—and this is precisely what Obama has turned out to be. Almost all his greatest political efforts have been aimed in one way or another at preserving some institutional structure under threat of radical transformation: the banking system, the auto industry, even the health insurance industry, since Obama’s main argument in pushing for health care reform was that the US health care system, based on for-profit, private insurers, was not economically viable over the long term, and indeed, what he ended up doing was preserving exactly that for-profit system in a way that it might endure for at least another generation. Considering the state of the US economy in 2008, it required genuinely heroic efforts not to change anything. Yet Obama did expend those heroic efforts, and the result was no structural change in existing institutions of any kind at all.

much much more - especially about "vertical" vs "horizontal" (ie, top-down vs non-hierarchical) action, direct democracy, a sprinkle of history, some interesting links.

[Demeter]

106. The Kid and I Just Got Back From the Big City

where we saw a double feature: The Medium, by Mennotti, and Carmina Burana by Orff. The two story lines were cobbled together a bit, but it worked. The Circ de Soleil performers and the chorus and soloists did an excellent job interpreting the texts, and the music is just spectacular. I hope they recorded this staging on film, for it was well worth the trip through construction on the north route in, and darned if there wasn't construction on the south route out of the city on the way home.

The costumes and set gave a Hieronymus Bosch feel to the production, while the acrobats' costumes reminded me more of Papageno and Papagena.

On the way back to the car park, we also got to see the Lions Drum Corp performing on the street. It was quite thrilling, even if the Lions lost...I'd like to say I was indulging in nostalgia for my birth city, but I left so long ago (1969), and we never spent much time downtown anyway, and it's all changed, too.

[Demeter]

107. Thanks everyone for sharing our vigil this weekend

While I'd say the consensus was: We see no hope, we have no future; simple curiosity compels me at least to track the writhing and twisting of the snakes on Wall St and in DC and foreign and local capitals.

Maybe we'll be able to build enough of a data base to change the world...at least for ourselves.