Financial Crisis

[teletiger]

Stupidity =: Repeat the same process and expect a different result.

Morgan Stanley Plans to Turn Downgraded Loan CDO Into AAA Bonds

"Two years after the credit markets began to seize up, costing the world’s biggest financial institutions $1.47 trillion in writedowns and losses, banks are again taking so- called structured finance securities and turning them into new debt investments with top credit ratings."

Not to worry though. the toxic part of the bond only has a 7% default rate. Hahahaha. Next year? Well thats a different story.

"Yes Guv, I know guv, but this new computer has got a much smaller virus than the one I sold you last year".

So for all you Bondsmen/women/dogs out there....."fill 'yer boots".

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...id=aeTzfvEedKpQ

Regards.

[12DrinkMore]

Stupidity =: Repeat the same process and expect a different result.

I imagine that they are hoping for exactly the same result. They offload the subprime crap designated "AAA" to the pension schemes and give themselves huge bonuses in the process for the success in conning the rest of us.

Can't see any difference, and very sadly can't see any regulators coming along and putting a stop to it. Absolutely incredible as it is now publicised for all to see. Surely any manager of any portfolio who buys into this crap now should be hung, drawn and quartered. And as for the rating agencies, well really, do they still have the audacity to give such "products" any rating except for "junk"? They should surely also be brought down for fraud.

Until the snake-oil salesmen have been castrated and put into jail this will continue. The bankers are relentless in their pursuit of fraudulent gains.

[teletiger]

Faith in our leaders?

“Exit strategies will vary from country to country depending on domestic economic conditions and public finances,” leaders of the eight economies -- U.S., Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Canada and Russia -- said in a draft statement today at their annual summit in L’Aquila, Italy."

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...id=al0ppyphuW8A

Let me just translate that: We haven't got an exit strategy.

Don't expect too much action in world markets right now.....they're too busy pissing themselves laughing.

“Exit strategies will vary from country to country depending on domestic economic conditions and public finances,”

The markets will pull out these little boys (us) one at a time, take them (us) round the back, pull their (our) pants down and give us a good shafting. Stick a sweetie in their (our) gobs and send us back into the Economy 101 classroom.

Still, as Alex says, have another beer and enjoy the weather.

Regards.

[flying]

Ok been a slow day but this is funny

Forget gold or silver...Forget CAD or Yen etc....

This is where its at baby!!

[AlexLah]

Nice new crisp toiletpaper I.O.U's.

And I found a nice device for Naam and his dog.

[flying]

Nice new crisp toiletpaper I.O.U's.

Wow payable after 10/2/09 eh? Interest free?

What do you suppose California would say if the folks living there sent in State Property taxes on checks dated that way?

[AlexLah]

If I remember well they promised a 3.5% annual rate.

[AlexLah]

So, just found this one.

Seems I am not the only one that thinks of an October crash............week of 5 seems good as there is a 9 in it.

Let me check with "The Oracle"

Here the clipper the clip: http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?play=1&amp...3659&play=1

Edited July 9, 2009 by AlexLah

[AlexLah]

Overnight Interest Rate Update 07.09.09

Thursday, 09 July 2009 04:03:33 GMT

Current

Yesterday

USD 0.25125

0.25875

GBP 0.54375

0.54375

EUR 0.28125

0.43250

JPY 0.12500

0.13125

CHF 0.08333

0.08500

AUD 3.05250

3.03000

CAD 0.17833

0.18333

NZD 2.82500

2.42500

[BlackJack]

ref: Peter Schiff, who loudly warned of the October 2008 stock market crash and accompanying recession as far back as 2006.

Old Schiff has been very vocal over the last couple of years, and gold is something he persistently pushes. Here is a nice application to look at the gold price against the main currencies over the last two decades.

http://www.bullionvault.com/gold-price-chart.do

Are we now in a bubble or is this a permanent rise in the price of gold? Will it continue to rise? Will a prolonged recession cause gold owners to sell as they need the cash, or will more buyers come onto the market buying gold as a hedge against inflation/deflation? Although I doubt it, could governments confiscate gold and make it's possession illegal (the US has been there already)?

Gold is not a one-way bet and so far I have avoided it.

I suppose gold can be looked at many ways

Klingons have their ways and gold bugs have theirs

However the fact remains that gold has been used as a currency, a trade item or hording for thousands of years and so has been around much longer than the GOD currency that the USA invented.

Unhooking the dollar from the gold standard was Nixon's idea and if a currency is not hooked to something of real value we can continue to expect the banksters to keep up their fraud.

Gold needs to AGAIN play a strategic role in any trade currency.

Fiat money is set to fail as all those before it.

Edited July 9, 2009 by BlackJack

[flying]

U.S. Food-Stamp Recipients Reached Record 33.8 Million in April

That is about half of Thailand's population isn't it?

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=new...id=aDhdHJrK42P0

I like to post this here so we can look back in Oct & see what it is then.

Mr. O said it will be 35 million..... Wish he was taking bets on that

An average of about 35 million people are expected to be receiving food stamps each month in the year that begins Oct. 1, according to the budget President Barack Obama sent to Congress in May.

[flying]

The Great American Bubble Machine

Matt Taibbi on how Goldman Sachs has engineered every major market manipulation since the Great Depression

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story..._machine/print#

Five good multiple videos with Matt Taibbi

On the first one he states during the oil run up that last summer GS & MS traded every barrel of oil 27 times before it reached the consumer.

The 2nd one was good too. Where he speaks as we have about the ordinary person having no way to affect the outcome.

3rd one talks about where so many high placed GS employees have ended up...guess

Also guess who was the biggest campaign contributor to Mr O ?

Edited July 9, 2009 by flying

[cloudhopper]

A viewpoint from the world's 8th largest economy regarding 2H09

http://www.doctorhousingbubble.com/the-fin...covery-in-2009/

[12DrinkMore]

For the Brits...

A short paper on how that <deleted> "No more boom and bust" Brown inherited a healthy economy and through utter incompetence ran it into the ground. And in the process took the UK steadily down various international "league" tables.

http://www.cps.org.uk/cps_catalog/The%20St...er%20Labour.pdf

There will be no recovery before that arrogant bully is out of power.

[churchill]

The Great American Bubble Machine

Matt Taibbi on how Goldman Sachs has engineered every major market manipulation since the Great Depression

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story..._machine/print#

Five good multiple videos with Matt Taibbi

On the first one he states during the oil run up that last summer GS & MS traded every barrel of oil 27 times before it reached the consumer.

The 2nd one was good too. Where he speaks as we have about the ordinary person having no way to affect the outcome.

3rd one talks about where so many high placed GS employees have ended up...guess

Also guess who was the biggest campaign contributor to Mr O ?

http://zerohedge.blogspot.com/2009/07/bloo...oldmangate.html

[AlexLah]

I went to the website where you can see if you are eligible for foodstamps.

Typed in single person, no home/shelter no benefits nothing.

You get between 166-175 USD worth of foodstamps.

Can you survive in the US on roughly 5 USD a day?

[teletiger]

A very good piece there 12D. Worthy of inclusion on every school curriculum.

"We will need to do more to make sure banks put aside more capital during the good times, so they are better insulated during the downturns". Calamity Brown. Mar. 2009.

What a classic statement, whilst running his own annual 34 billion+ budget deficit.

Regards.

[citizen33]

A very good piece there 12D. Worthy of inclusion on every school curriculum.

"We will need to do more to make sure banks put aside more capital during the good times, so they are better insulated during the downturns". Calamity Brown. Mar. 2009.

What a classic statement, whilst running his own annual 34 billion+ budget deficit.

Regards.

I agree that this is an interesting article. To my mind though phrases such as 'continue to be a potential burden' illustrate its biases.

[12DrinkMore]

Am I living in the same universe?

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...id=a_Xb00lMEnNM

July 10 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. economy will expand faster than previously forecast in the second half of this year and in 2010 as a revival in consumer spending signals an end to the recession, a Bloomberg News survey showed.

Growth will average 1.5 percent in the July-to-December period, compared with last month’s 1.2 percent projection, according to the median of 57 forecasts in the survey taken from July 2 to July 8. The jobless rate will exceed 10 percent early next year and average 9.8 percent for 2010.

Signs of stability in the housing market, improving consumer confidence and smaller declines in auto sales are reinforcing forecasts for gains in consumer purchases. While the recovery is likely to be tempered by job cuts and shrinking household wealth, most economists said a second stimulus package won’t be needed.

But who am I to argue?

If the whole mess stabilises and interest rates start rising it will be happy days in LOS once again. Come on Darling, push 'em up to 6% again. h what a joy that would be

It's just that I have a nagging feeling that this is not over and we are being fed a diet of hope over reality. But maybe not?

[AlexLah]

It is very simple 12.

When there were the first articles in the MSM where Paulson was warning that the whole financial system in the world would blow up many people panicked, stock market crashed hundreds of thousands lay-offs and continuous doom and gloom reporting. Another mental state of fear/panick was created. So most likely now when they instruct the MSM to report positive stories and (again) saying the worst is over they hope the sheeps return to spending and factories start hiring again. The influence of well thought out media campaigns is enormous on those that do not see or are ignorant.

It is like being in a marriage where in the beginning all goes well but after some years the relation is dead and both know it but have to show that the relation is still going strong by having a child or two. When the guy is asked if he does not find it a bit strange that both children have different skin colors he answers he loves his wife and children and mentions he is still married and many of his friends have been divorced.

It is like Jcon saying all traders know the market is rigged and manipulated, just accept and live with it. Or Naam saying there is not a thing we can do about when you referred to those cancerous entities. As most people are now conditioned and have some fear of loosing their job, they will keep silent and not stand up.

Look how some parts of the world has changed after 9/11 and that being one of the reasons Naam for example decided to live elsewhere.

The constant lies that are being downloaded into people's minds is sickening. The message of change that was the center of the newly elected US president's campaign, the promise of more transparency, closing down of Gitmo and the withdrawal of troops from Iraq and many other promises made. My question is: What positive change have you seen?

Mind altering drugs being prescribed to children as young as 12 saying some of them suffer from depression as a survey found out, a survey sponsored by the big pharmaceutic companies. H1N1 vaccines being shipped and tested on some homeless people where 18 died of it and then lab test showed that Baxter included some dangerous virus cells in some of the samples they send.

I can go on and on showing that this world as projected by the MSM is just not the real world. We are shafted big time, but most will just bend over and accept the 20 Dollar bill that the rapist left after abusing them.

[midas]

After an hiatus here's an article about the possibility of civil unrest.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment...ly-ticking.html

I wonder, Abrak, whether the TV will really be enough to captivate the peeps?

Yes well this passage in particular reminds us this time it's not only about the theory of economics...............

" We are moving into Phase II of the Great Unwinding. It may be time to put away our texts of Keynes,

Friedman, and Fisher, so useful for Phase 1, and start studying what happened to society

when global unemployment went haywire in 1932. "

And even studying what happened in 1932 is in some respects only of limited value

as far as USA is concerned because this time around we are told even back in 2007

" The United States has 90 guns for every 100 citizens, making it the most heavily armed society in the world"

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSL2834893820070828

And when they resort to knocking on doors in USA to collect their tax dollars that's when we should start to see

This takes on an even greater dimension

Bread, milk, handgun

Jun 4th 2009 | NASHVILLE

From The Economist print edition

Stocking up on the necessities of life

This spring the state legislature proposed a clutch of bills allowing people to carry guns in previously restricted public areas. One bill allows handguns in bars and restaurants, as long as the owner sanctions it and the gun carrier does not drink alcohol. Another permits handguns in state and local parks. Both passed by wide margins. A third bill allowing judges to carry handguns, even in the courtroom, awaits a final vote and is expected to pass.

http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstate...ory_id=13788631

[flying]

If you have the time & a good connection..........

Max Keiser interviews Dr. Michael Hudson

Pretty good show 3 parts

Edited July 11, 2009 by flying

[AlexLah]

Are there any loonies out there that still don't believe the world is very much controlled by the big banks?

I have now seen even mortgages with a 40 year term, woehaaahaaaaaa, welcome new slave of debt.

And it seems there was a sufficient supply of alcohol for the Russian Tsar during the lates G8 summit, have a look, ha ha ha!

Oh and what about those lunatic conspiracy theorist here on the forum talking about a possible new world currency?

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...id=aeFVNYQpByU4

[12DrinkMore]

If you have the time & a good connection..........

Max Keiser interviews Dr. Michael Hudson

Pretty good show 3 parts

Nice observations, loosely transcribed

"GS is being immodest in making profits of 100,000,000 a day"

"it would be a disaster for the banks if people could afford their housing without going into debt, because the product that banks sell is debt"

"Affordable housing is the banks' idea of hel_l"

"The banks consider that all of a persons income over and above what is needed to feed themselves should be paid to banks as interest"

[flying]

"GS is being immodest in making profits of 100,000,000 a day"

Pretty good eh?

When listening to how the computer instigates thousands of trades in a blink.......It makes you realize a few things....

As time goes on & the more & more we read about GS & the power they wield.

Both in the markets & looking at where most FED Reserve candidates/govenors come from....Or who was Mr O's biggest campaign contributor... Funny they also put a lot of cash donations into McCain too.....Or the fact that they can call the justice department & get action on retrieving that program as fast as they did....Or many more .... Does it make you wonder? Makes me wonder if in fact they could actually be the man behind the curtain...

[AlexLah]

Ha ha ha ha, sorry I am in a good mood today.

So does it still seem a crazy idea that the people in control (or owners) of those big banks are the real puppetmasters?

And does it still seems a crazy idea that a lot of "events" could have been planned by such powers?

Think about all the bail outs and the extra interest that has to be payed by future tax income, where does that go, na na na na?

[AlexLah]

Sunday afternoon reading material.

http://cedar.barnard.columbia.edu/faculty/...final_edit1.pdf

[AlexLah]

And if you thought Big O really cares about healtcare/insurance you might spend some time watching and understanding another big scam.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=66...KsK&q=sicko

[12DrinkMore]

The Great American Bubble Machine

Matt Taibbi on how Goldman Sachs has engineered every major market manipulation since the Great Depression

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story..._machine/print#

Here's an article that counters some of the accusations made by Taibbi.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/KG09Dj04.html

[Datsun240Z]

I remember the Euro coming in lower value than de Dollar, later in the years the Euro turned more powerfull than the Dollar. And here we are now, in the shit.