Too Big to Fail: A Fascist Fairy Tale

By: Jens C. Kolbjørnsen
Courtesy of infowars.com

“Fascism should rightly be called corporatism, as it is the merger of corporate and government power.” ~ Benito Mussolini

Now that we are pushing the three years anniversary of the dramatic financial events of September 2008, it is fair to say, for anyone who has researched the subject on their own, that this movie is nothing but a popularization of the mainstream version of a crisis that only has been postponed and worsened. It portrays the criminals of the revolving door between Washington D.C. and Wall Street as heroes, without so much as touching upon the real reason for the boom and bust phenomenon.

Let’s dissect the movie scene by scene.

The introduction shows the Clinton administration repealing Glass-Steagall and how home ownership all of a sudden became a part of the American dream. How Bush Jr. meant that inflating the largest mortgage bubble in history was “good not only for the soul, but also for the pocketbooks of the country.” Several news clips are shown, none of which include the accurate warnings given by free market economists such as Peter Schiff or Jim Rogers. Surprised talking heads announce how Bear Stearns are being sold for pennies on the dollar to JP Morgan before the story kicks off in Lehman Brothers’ CEO and Chairman Dick Fuld’s office.

Fuld seems surprised with the situation of his financial Titanic, which makes little sense considering the outrageous repurchase transactions he undertook prior to September 2008 to cover for the bank’s true leverage ratio. Fuld’s scapegoat is instead the police of the markets, the short sellers!

Morally correct Hank Paulson can’t recommend private investments, when being asked by Fuld to get in touch with Warren Buffett. Paulson’s advisers work hard throughout the story, but as Dennis Kucinich has pointed out in Congress, the question is who they are working for…

Value Warren doesn’t like what he sees unfolding in the banking sector (until he gets a friendly phone call from Blankfein later in the film) and refuses to touch Lehman at the current price. Fuld jokes about how no one forced mortgages on home buyers, but we all know of one institution that highly encouraged the credit mania with artificially low interest rates for years.

During Hank and Helicopter Ben’s weekly breakfast Hank says he has just spoken to Alan Greenspan who complains about the over-supply of housing, a problem which, according to Greenspan, easily can be solved by buying up all the houses and then burning them. This is a wonderful example of the broken window fallacy these people seem to live by. Letting the artificial bubble burst would make housing affordable, but burning houses to encourage economic (GDP) “growth” is seen as a better idea.

The Bernank mostly eats porridge throughout the movie, besides claiming he has spent his entire academic career studying the great depression. The detail that not unexpectedly is missing in this Krugmanian porn flick is that the measures now being implemented are strikingly similar to the ones that accelerated the JP Morgan margin call-triggered crash of 1929 into a depression that lasted until the central planning of WWII loosened its grip of the US economy in the late forties.

Back at Lehman “it’s not just a bad quarter” and management is panicking. Dick Fuld blows the deal with potential Korean buyers by trying to convince them that the firm’s portfolio of asset backed securities isn’t as bad as it appears. Fuld calls Kashkari at the Treasury out of desperation, but refuses to listen to his advice of selling at a lower price.

The following day, Timmy Geithner is “managing” the collapse of Fannie and Freddie from the squash courts. Obama is giving empty campaign promises of stability, which in all other languages than doublespeak means further instability, saying that nationalization of the two mortgage lenders may be an option. On his trip to the Beijing Olympics, Paulson receives a warning from the Chinese that they and the Russians might trash the entire mortgage market unless the US Treasury takes action (to prop up the phony credit-based economy).

It seems this sequence is supposed to justify breathing tax payer air into the corpse that is Fannie & Freddie.

Paulson scares Bank of America by sending a message that bailing out Lehman is not an option. When telling Geithner there is no legal support for the bailout, even though they just helped Jamie Dimon pick up Bear Stearns, Geithner replies that “legally, we haven’t figured out how yet” – a statement that should make red flags fly all over the place.

The Lehman stock keeps sliding and Paulson orders the Bernank to summon all the banks’ CEOs to a lockdown meeting at the Fed, where they surely already know their way around. At the airport Hank and his team meet with Christopher Cox from the SEC who asks whose private jet they’re flying. “That’s a rental, Hank put it on his card,” is the reply from another former (current) Goldman (Government) Sachs employee. SEC asks with authority if there’s anyone in the Treasury who isn’t from Goldman, whereupon we get a reassuring: “Chairman, just to be clear, there’s no conflict of interest here, Hank sold all of his shares in Goldman before he took office. Thanks for clarifying this, script writers.

The reproduction of the infamous mahogany meeting at the Fed is as full of clichés as it was in Wall Street II and climaxes when Cox from the SEC reaches out to the banksters: “Gentlemen, you are great Americans undertaking a patriotic duty.” This statement is so laughable that even Jamie Dimon cracks up.
After BofA decides to take a stake in Merrill Lynch, it becomes evident that Lehman has to go. But there is another problem arising, namely AIG “running out of cash.” The same fear mongering we were delivered through the media is being presented here; everything from airplanes to construction projects to life insurance relies on AIG in one way or another. The world would practically freeze unless AIG gets bailed out. We’re all familiar with the billions of dollars of CDS-related obligations the insurance giant held toward Goldman. The rest is unfortunately left to speculation, as the US justice system refuses to touch GS even when being handed rock solid proof on a silver platter by Carl Levin’s recent Senate hearing.
Other critics have mentioned how Paulson is portrayed as a financial Jesus in Too Big to Fail, an image that becomes embarrassing when he nearly cries to his wife over the phone about how the fourth largest investment bank is about to go down “on his watch.” The next day however, Hank and his team celebrate how media and Congress respond to “his decision” to let Lehman go.
Now the toxic assets really hit the fan and even IMF candidate Christine Lagarde complains to poor Paulson, “how did you dear to let Lehman go.” General Electric makes it clear how business in America will shut down unless the economic overlords take action to stimulate the banks. This is the build-up to the justification of the TARP bill. Paulson’s team basically comes up with the official version of the financial crisis in less than three minutes, again without mentioning the main facilitator behind the mortgage madness. “The whole financial system?,” asks the press secretary in awe after the briefing, almost in tears. “And what do I tell them when they ask why this wasn’t regulated?” “You tell them it’s already been overregulated through price control and subsidies for decades, you ignorant economic hitwoman,” is the reply she should have gotten in the movie…
One of the most shocking statements comes from the porridge-eating Bernank on the day of introducing TARP. The breakfast club partners in crime realise they can’t keep blatantly dumping money on companies of their liking, so they have to come up with a way of doing it complicated enough for the alphabet soup illiterate public not to understand that the exact same thing is going on: “This is a democracy. We cannot be men behind the curtains pulling the strings,” says the chairman of the unconstitutional creature from Jekyll Island which, according to Greenspan himself, is above the law.

The first draft of the TARP legislation is three pages long. Way too short for lobbyists who prefer bills to be at least a couple of thousand pages, but two pages too long for Ron Paul who has suggested new legislation should be readable for the people voting on it. When it comes to the size of TARP we learn the exact calculation behind 700 billion dollars. In reality, a Treasury spokeswoman told Forbes.com; “It’s not based on any particular data point. We just wanted to choose a really large number.”

Paulson tells Bernanke before meeting with the legislators that the only way the bill will go through is “to scare them shitless.” The Bernank doesn’t think this should be a problem. In Too Big to Fail, Paulson kneels before Nancy Pelosi, before having to beg the banks to receive more money. In reality, Paulson did scare members of Congress shitless and threatened with “martial law in America if this bill didn’t go through.” After the Bernank lectures the financial sub-committee about how the great depression did not play out, and after some spin management and additional fear mongering from the White house, the bill passes and Paulson saves the day, the economy and the world.

The only question left is whether the banks will start lending again, which Paulson confirms they will. In closing, we learn that after the passage of TARP, banks made fewer loans and the markets continued downwards. Unemployment rose to ten percent and millions of families lost their homes, but that in 2009, the markets stabilized and “the slide into a global depression was averted.” The biggest banks even repaid their TARP loans. In reality, all economic indicators are down, price inflation and unemployment are at record levels and the banks have ironically gotten away with the largest bank robbery in history.

 Too Big to Fail expectedly ignores most of the issues that Austrians have been pointing out all along. In addition to completely misleading the viewer when it comes to economic facts like the catastrophic consequences of monetary central planning and expansion of the money supply, the criminals behind what to most people appears to be an orchestrated bank robbery are shamelessly portrayed as heroes. I’d rather recommend picking up Meltdown by Dr. Thomas Woods for a proper understanding of the events presented in this establishment fairy tale.

Pieces of a Man: An Inward Reflection/Perspective of Gil Scott-Heron's Poetry...

Pieces of a Man: An Inward Reflection/Perspective of Gil Scott-Heron's Poetry...

I remember hearing for the first time Gil Scott-Heron's song Pieces of a Man, it struck a chord in me. I put it on repeat and listened to it well over thirty times, back to back to back. You see I come from a broken home, my father was a good man, but didn't always make the best decisions. My mother was a strong woman who fought for her man, doing everything in her power to keep our family together. But, my father was possessed by addiction. Yes, for some time of my young life, my father was a junkie, and it cost him his family and his career. I can pour my heart out to all who may read this because I am proud of my father and I love him. My father is a clean and sober man, has been for many, many years now. He is the greatest man I know and I love him dearly with all of his flaws and faults. It would be more than a decade later and through the music of Gil-Scott Heron, that I realized for a long time that my mother was looking at pieces of a man. Broken and shattered was my family, he hardly knew what he was doing, he could hardly understand, my mother, brother and sister were looking at pieces of a man. My father was always such a good man, and he was always such a strong man, but they saw him become broken pieces of a man. My mother continuously swept up the broken pieces of her man, trying in vain to put back together the pieces of her man. As my brother and sister watched our family being broken apart, they could hardly understand that our father had become pieces of a man. At times my father didn't know what he was saying, he could hardly understand that the hateful words coming from his mouth were from his own weak and broken pieces from within that had fallen off. I still remember the day that he left, the day that my mother told me my father was moving out and wouldn't be coming back. As he packed his belongings into his car, he looked at me and I got a glimpse of his his broken spirit. My father realized that my mother could no longer put him back together, unknowingly, I saw my father break apart into pieces of a man. I saw the broken pieces of what I thought was an invincible and unbreakable man... I dedicate this post to my father who has once again become a whole again, the legendary and incomparable Gil Scott-Heron who gave me some understanding. As well as all of the men and women, boys and girls whose families were and are broken because their fathers became pieces of a man......

America’s Politics of Fear...

America’s Politics of Fear...
Courtesy of rt.com

US President Barack Obama and the US Congress joined forces to successfully extend the Patriot Act until 2015, meaning broader domestic surveillance will pioneer through America for another four years.
The variety of far-reaching surveillance measures being used to collect information from most law-abiding citizens are being criticized as tools to perpetrate fear for political purposes.
The country that created Blackberry phones and gave birth to iPhones has more than 300-million wireless users. And in the name of national security, the US government will soon have a direct link to each and every hand held device.
Gathered at the scene of the September 11th terrorist attacks, Federal and New York City officials joined the presidents of the four largest wireless carriers to announce the nation's new tech tool. An alert system enabling the president and government agencies to blast every American with text messages warning of terror threats, weather disasters and kidnappings.
“It's like a police officer’s gun. It's there for a good reason. But we hope we never had to pull the trigger,” said New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly.
The cell phone alert system will launch in New York City and Washington, DC by the end of this year, expanding nationwide thereafter. Some carriers may allow cell phone users to opt out of receiving certain alerts, but Americans will not be allowed to opt out of the presidential texts.
Opponents say politicians are promoting more fear while providing little protection.
“Now we have a system of mandatory and inescapable alerts through every cellphone in the land. In the event that the government decides that something's happening that we ought to know about. Just as the introduction of the patriot act came after nine-eleven, this new technological invasion comes to us without any public discussion, right after the assassination of Osama Bin Laden, which has raised our terror alerts," said Mark Crispin Miller, NYU Professor and author.
He added that Americans are living in an age of creeping authoritarianism and scare tactics.
“The use of fear for any kind of government that craves any kind of control over people's lives and thoughts is that it makes people malleable. It makes people obedient. You go to any airport today and you see this in action. That people are taking off their shoes. Submitting to getting groped,” Miller commented.
Under the auspices of airport safety, babies, senior citizens and everyone in between must now endure pat-downs or pass through body scanners before boarding.
In the case Muslim-Americans, that may not be enough. Six days following the US assassination of Osama Bin Laden, four Imam's on two separate US flights were illegally kicked off planes for looking suspicious.
“You have a few hate mongers who can evoke emotions and that’s what people do. They play on people’s emotions. They play on people’s ignorance about Islam and Muslims and that’s created a climate of fear you see,” said Imam Al Amin Abdul Latif, President of the Islamic Leadership Council of NY.
In December, the department of homeland security began encouraging Americans to report suspicious activity to American largest food retailer, as Wal-Mart joined Washington’s “see something say something” campaign.The marriage between government and business has been accused of perpetuating a climate of panic and subsequent need for more surveillance.
“You need to create and enemy for people to rally around endless wars and we're spending fifty percent of our taxes on war and our national defense. When there's really no threat directly to this country. There's really a need to keep validating this spending,” said Abby Martin, journalist and founder of Media Roots.
Following the assassination of enemy number one, New York’s senior US Senator Charles Schumer called for an increase in rail safety funding and the creation of a no-ride list.
As US officials warn of more terror threats following Bin Laden's death, many Americans remain concerned, while others, are left wondering about the dangers of forsaking too much liberty for security.

American Income Inequality Ignorance...

American Income Inequality Ignorance...

Courtsey of rt.com
Georgetown and Congress Heights are both communities in Washington, DC, but although they are only a few miles away, they are in some ways, worlds apart.
However, when asked what class people see themselves in, residents of the two places gave similar answers, even though the median income in Southeast DC is about $29,000 and in Georgetown, it is closer to $140,000.
Georgetown resident Loretta Michaels said there are a lot of middle class people living in her neighborhood. “The IRS and our current President might think we’re filthy rich, but I don’t think we are,” she said.
Georgetown resident David Abrams agreed.“I absolutely consider myself middle class, absolutely.”
But several residents in southeast thought their neighborhood was also middle class.
Gary Burtless, Senior Fellow of Economic Studies with the Brookings Institution is not surprised.
“I can tell you what people thought until about five years ago.I think over 85 percent of Americans thought they were in the middle class,” he said.
A recent study found that Americans believe the richest 20 percent of Americans only hold about 59 percent of the wealth. The actual number is 84 percent. But ideally, they said the breakdown should be much more equal though clearly, it is not.
“America was a country that sort of stayed together historically with great unity on the glue that we all figured if we worked hard and played by the rules we’d do better than our parents and they’d do better than their parents and our kids would do better than us,” said Max Fraad Wolff, a senior analyst at Greencrest Capital.
Economists say that is no longer the case in the United States, and thatwe’ve gone from being one of the most upwardly mobile countries in the developing world, to the least, a trend that changed course in the 1970’s. Perhaps one reason is that the amount of money made by CEO’s in this country has skyrocketed while that of minimum wage workers has actually gone down since the 1990’s.
Noble prize winning Economist Joseph Stiglitz said the increase in concentration of wealth has been enormous.
“What’s happened in the last couple of decades is almost a quarter of all the income goes to the upper one percent, around 40 percent depending on how you measure it,” he said.
It is a reality that doesn’t seem to trickle down to those in the lower tiers, like Congress Heights Resident Adina Ge.
“In terms of class,” she said, “I think everybody with the economic situation that we’re in is probably all in the mid class right now.No one’s above.No one’s below.”
Jordan Estevao from National People's Action said many people know they are struggling, but they do not look at it in a sense of percentages. They understand inequality exists, but often still feel they are in the middle.
A great many more people are becoming more aware and are becoming angrier, he noted. Americans are turning out to voice their anger at protests, with 15,000 recently showing up in New York to protest Wall Street greed, he said.
“More and more people in urban, suburban and rural areas are waking up to the fact that large corporations, particularly the financial industry, need to do more to pay their fair share to fix the economy that they broke,” Estevao said.
Banks, Wall Street and the financial industry’s practices lead to the current financial crash, and they should be responsible for correcting the problem, he argued.
Estevao explained many of these companies are making profits and CEOs are receiving record pay. Meanwhile American unemployment remains high and the people are suffering.

20 Questions To Ask Anyone Foolish Enough To Believe The Economic Crisis Is Over

If you listen to Ben Bernanke, Barack Obama and the mainstream media long enough, and if you didn’t know any better, you might be tempted to think that the economic crisis is long gone and that we are in the midst of a burgeoning economic recovery.  Unfortunately, the truth is that the economic crisis is far from over.  In 2010, more homes were repossessed than ever before, more Americans were on food stamps than ever before and a smaller percentage of American men had jobs than ever before.  The reality is that the United States is an economic basket case and all of these natural disasters certainly are not helping things.  The Federal Reserve has been printing gigantic piles of money and the U.S. government has been borrowing and spending cash at a dizzying pace in an all-out effort to stabilize things.  They have succeeded for the moment, but our long-term economic problems are worse then ever.  We are still in the middle of a full-blown economic crisis and things are about to get even worse.
If you know someone that is foolish enough to believe that the economic crisis is over and that our economic problems are behind us, just ask that person the following questions….
#1 During the 23 months of the “Obama recovery”, an average of about 23,000 jobs a month have been created.  It takes somewhere in the neighborhood of 150,000 jobs a month just to keep up with population growth.  So shouldn’t we hold off a bit before we declare the economic crisis to be over?
#2 During the “recession”, somewhere between 6.3 million and 7.5 million jobs were lost.  During the “Obama recovery”, approximately 535,000 jobs have been added.  When will the rest of the jobs finally come back?
#3 Of the 535,000 jobs that have been created during the “Obama recovery”, only about 35,000 of them are permanent full-time jobs. Today, “low income jobs” account for 41 percent of all jobs in the United States. If our economy is recovering, then why can’t it produce large numbers of good jobs that will enable people to provide for their families?
#4 Agricultural commodities have been absolutely soaring this decade.  The combined price of cotton, wheat, gasoline and hogs is now more than 3 times higher than it was back in 2002.  So how in the world can the Federal Reserve claim that inflation has been at minimal levels all this time?
#5 Back in 2008, banks had a total of 27 billion dollars in excess reserves at the Fed.  Today, banks have a total of approximately 1.5 trillion dollars in excess reserves at the Fed.  So what is going to happen when all of this money eventually hits the economy?….
#6 If the U.S. economy is recovering, then why are shipments by U.S. factories still substantially below 2008 levels?
#7 Why are imports of goods from overseas growing much more rapidly than shipments of goods from U.S. factories?
#8 According to Zillow, the average price of a home in the U.S. is about 8 percent lower than it was a year ago and that it continues to fall about 1 percent a month. During the first quarter of 2011, home values declined at the fastest rate since late 2008. So can we really talk about a “recovery” when the real estate crisis continues to get worse?
#9 According to a shocking new survey, 54 percent of Americans believe that a housing recovery is “unlikely” until at least 2014.  So how is the housing industry supposed to improve if so many people are convinced that it will not?
#10 The latest GDP numbers out of Japan are a complete and total disaster.  During the first quarter GDP declined by a stunning 3.7 percent.  Of course I have been saying for months that the Japanese economy is collapsing, but most mainstream economists were absolutely stunned by the latest figures.  So will the rest of the world be able to avoid slipping into a recession as well?
#11 Next week, Republicans in the House of Representatives are going to allow a vote on raising the debt ceiling.  Everyone knows that this is an opportunity for Republican lawmakers to “look tough” to their constituents (the vast majority of which do not want the debt ceiling raised).  Everyone also knows that eventually the Republicans are almost certainly going to cave on the debt ceiling after minimal concessions by the Democrats.  The truth is that neither “establishment Republicans” nor “establishment Democrats” are actually serious about significantly cutting government debt.  So why do we need all of this political theater?
#12 Why are so many of our once great manufacturing cities being transformed into hellholes?  In the city of Detroit today, there are over 33,000 abandoned houses, 70 schools are being permanently closed down, the mayor wants to bulldoze one-fourth of the city and you can literally buy a house for one dollar in the worst areas.
#13 According to one new survey, about half of all Baby Boomers fear that when they retire they are going to end up living in poverty.  So who is going to take care of them all when the money runs out?
#14 According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, an average of about 5 million Americans were being hired every single month during 2006.  Today, an average of about 3.5 million Americans are being hired every single month.  So why are our politicians talking about “economic recovery” instead of “the collapse of the economy” when hiring remains about 50 percent below normal?
#15 Since August, 2 million more Americans have left the labor force.  But the entire period from August to today was supposed to have been a time of economic growth and recovery.  So why are so many Americans giving up on looking for a job?
#16 According to Gallup, 41 percent of Americans believed that the economy was “getting better” at this time last year.  Today, that number is at just 27 percent.  Are Americans losing faith in the U.S. economy?
#17 According to the U.S. Census, the number of children living in poverty has gone up by about 2 million in just the past 2 years, and one out of every four American children is currently on food stamps.  During this same time period, Barack Obama and Ben Bernanke have told us over and over that the U.S. economy has been getting better. So what is the truth?
#18 America has become absolutely addicted to government money. 59 percent of all Americans now receive money from the federal government in one form or another. U.S. households are now receiving more income from the U.S. government than they are paying to the government in taxes. Americans hate having their taxes raised and they hate having their government benefits cut.  So is there any hope that this will ever be turned around before disaster strikes?
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#19 The combined debt of the major GSEs (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Sallie Mae) has increased from 3.2 trillion in 2008 to 6.4 trillion in 2011.  How in the world is the U.S. government going to be able to afford to guarantee all of that debt on top of everything else?
#20 If the U.S. national debt (more than 14 trillion dollars) was reduced to a stack of 5 dollar bills, it would reach three quarters of the way to the moon.  The U.S. government borrows about 168 million dollars every single hour.  If Bill Gates gave every penny of his fortune to the U.S. government, it would only cover the U.S. budget deficit for 15 days.  So how in the world can our politicians tell us that everything is going to be okay?

Drones Becoming Pervasive Inside America...

Drones Becoming Pervasive Inside America... 

Unmanned aircraft have proved their usefulness and reliability in the war zones of Afghanistan and Iraq. Now the pressure’s on to allow them in the skies over the United States.

The Federal Aviation Administration has been asked to issue flying rights for a range of pilotless planes to carry out civilian and law-enforcement functions but has been hesitant to act.

The Washington Post reported in January:

The operation outside Austin presaged what could prove to be one of the most far-reaching and potentially controversial uses of drones: as a new and relatively cheap surveillance tool in domestic law enforcement.

For now, the use of drones for high-risk operations is exceedingly rare. The Federal Aviation Administration – which controls the national airspace – requires the few police departments with drones to seek emergency authorization if they want to deploy one in an actual operation. Because of concerns about safety, it only occasionally grants permission.

But by 2013, the FAA expects to have formulated new rules that would allow police across the country to routinely fly lightweight, unarmed drones up to 400 feet above the ground – high enough for them to be largely invisible eyes in the sky.

***

But when drones come to perch in numbers over American communities, they will drive fresh debates about the boundaries of privacy. The sheer power of some of the cameras that can be mounted on them is likely to bring fresh search-and-seizure cases before the courts, and concern about the technology’s potential misuse could unsettle the public.

***

When KPRC-TV in Houston, which is owned by The Washington Post Co., discovered a secret drone air show for dozens of officers at a remote location 70 miles from Houston, police officials were forced to call a hasty news conference to explain their interest in the technology.

A senior officer in Houston then mentioned to reporters that drones might ultimately be used for recording traffic violations.

Wired pointed out in February:

Campers may soon be able to regularly see something bigger and badder when climbing the High Peaks: Reaper drones flown by the New York Air National Guard’s 174th Fighter Wing based in Syracuse, New York.

And drones aren’t just buzzing over the Adirondacks. The proposal to begin training missions there is part of a bigger push to build a drone infrastructure for flying missions throughout the United States. So new drone bases are being built. The FAA is setting aside airspace for drone flights.

***

The latest example is the amendment proposed by Senators Charles Schumer (D-New York) and Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) to the “FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Act” (S.223) that would increase the number of “National Airspace System” test sites from four to ten. At least one of these sites would have to include a “significant portion” of public land.

***

Although it is hard to predict where the drone infrastructure will grow, if other defense contracting projects are a reliable guide, the drone-ification of America will probably continue until there is a drone aerodrome in every state …

Given that the national security apparatus has been hijacked to serve the needs of big business and tocrush dissent, it’s not far-fetched to think that information gained from drones will be used for purposes that are not necessarily in the best interests of the American people.

And as I noted earlier today, the U.S. is allowing military operations within the United States.

Remember also that Obama has authorized “targeted assassinations” against U.S. citizens.

And when John Yoo was asked last year whether drones could kill people within the United States, he replied yes – if we were in a time of war:

Of course, since the U.S. has declared a perpetual war (and see this), drones will always be in fashion.

And remember that Department of Defense training manuals consider protest to be “low-level terrorism”. And see this, this and this. And an FBI memo also labels peace protesters as “terrorists”.

So, I haven't really been writing as much as I used to on my blog. I made a conscious decision to fallback on my personal rhetoric and just post news articles related to my mission due to the fact that people think what I say is a game. The mission as of late is to inform as many people as I can of the increasing and purposely brought forth destruction of America. I have been asked, well what is the solution then? Honestly there is no solution aside from armed rebellion, which is looking more and more unlikely as the American people become more and more disenfranchised and disillusioned with what is happening in plain view. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to prepare yourself for the incoming economical tsunami that will flood the cities of America. The best bet for college educated Americans is to search for international opportunities. If you haven't noticed by now, many jobs are being outsourced to far and away countries and these are not just manufacturing jobs; thousands of jobs in the technology, human resources and call center industries as well. So the answer is to follow the jobs. Another problem is the deficit and spending, the American government will never reel that big fish in not only because it doesn't want to, but because it can't. A couple hundred billion dollars in debt with a strong economy is a hefty sum. Imagine hitting the debt ceiling at fourteen trillion dollars with the economy at the weakest it has been in quite a few decades. Quantitive easing, which is the act of printing money at surreptitious rates has been attributed to much of the economic turmoil which America now faces. This practice has caused a historic drop in the U.S. dollar and has caused a catatonic disturbance in the global markets. Yet, many countries around the world have shown respectable growth in their economies. Then we have education, where can I start with this one. I will leave it with it's just saddening as well as sickening the way the U.S. governement plays with the futures of these kids, which ironically happens to be the future of the country. To go along with such outlandish acts of tyranny towards American citizens is the police state which has been put in place due to the Patriot Act. Never before has the the attack against America been so blatant yet, intriguing at the same time. The U.S. is currently in unfounded wars and conflicts which cost billions upon billions of dollars. Seemingly, WWIII is looming in the air like a mushroom cloud from a nuke. The U.S. has been increasingly aggressive against China and Russia recently by encircling their interests. The question is: how long can the U.S. keep this up? It has been said that a super power can only sustain its power if it has the money to back it, military might alone will not suffice. As the U.S. continues to lose its money, it will continue to lose its power, thus, it is in your best interest to become an internationalist.

China Asks U.S. to Respect Pak's Sovereignty, Independence...

Courtesy of The Economic Times

BEIJING/ISLAMABAD: China on Thursday said the international community "must respect" Pakistan's sovereignty, tacitly confirming reports that it has asked the US not to violate Islamabad's territorial integrity, following the killing of Osama bin Laden.

Asked about reports that China has asked US during its recently concluded strategic dialogue with Washington to respect Pakistan's sovereignty as Islamabad came under heavy pressure after bin Laden's killing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Jiang Yu told media here that "sovereignty and territorial integrity of Pakistan must be respected."

"We believe that Pakistan has made great contribution to international counter-terrorism efforts, as well as huge sacrifices. The international community should understand and support Pakistan's efforts to restore national stability and develop its economy," she said.

According to Pakistan's state run APP news agency, Gilani told Pakistan media here last night after his meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao that "China supported Pakistan's cause on its own."

Gilani said the Chinese conveyed a clear message to the US that "there should be no harm to the Pakistani sovereignty and the US should understand and appreciate concerns of Pakistan."

China asked the US to work with Pakistan in improving their bilateral relations in view of the present scenario, he said.

Chinese leadership conveyed to the US that Pakistan should be helped and its honour should be upheld keeping in view its sacrifices in war on terror, he said.

He quoted Wen as saying that Pakistan faced challenges in the wake of killing of bin Laden and Chinese leadership was categorical in supporting Pakistan's stance as well as its concerns over national honour and sovereignty.

China has "warned in unequivocal terms that any attack on Pakistan would be construed as an attack on China", The News daily quoted diplomatic sources as saying.

The warning was formally conveyed by the Chinese foreign minister at last week's China-US strategic dialogue and economic talks in Washington, it said.

For his part, Gilani reiterated Pakistan's support for its policy of 'One China' and said his country fully supports China on the issues of Taiwan and Tibet.

During her briefing today Jiang skirted questions about Pakistan-China signing new defence agreements. Asked about assertions by Pakistan's Ambassador to China Masood Khan before Gilani's arrival that new defence deals would be signed, she said the two sides signed agreements in economy, technology, finance and energy resources.

"As to specific cooperation, please refer to relevant companies," she said, adding that China is actively implementing pledges to help pro-disaster reconstruction and exerting utmost to help tide over difficulties."

Peter Schiff: Quantitative Easing Driving Up Food Prices...

Peter Schiff: Quantitative Easing Driving Up Food Prices...

Economic and finance ministers from the G-20 nations are meeting in Argentina to discuss the increasing volatility among food and commodity prices.

The goal is to discuss and create policies aimed at increasing the global supply of commodities to keep up with increasingly demand.

However, discussion may be tense as both Argentina and Brazil oppose plans put forward by France and other countries who wish to regulate the price of commodities. They argue that producers are not at fault and that Wall Street and speculation are to blame.

Food prices are no longer established based on the traditional economic notion of supply and demand for a traditional market demand. Instead speculation markets created and controlled by Goldman Sachs control global food prices.

Peter Schiff, the president of Euro Pacific Capital explained that the volatility in the commodities market is caused by nations who print too much money and debase their currencies.

“We [United States] are the leader. The rest of the nations seem to be following in our footsteps, unfortunately,” he said. “The more money they print the higher the prices are going to go.”

Volatility is part of the market, he noted, but irresponsible monetary policies make the markets more volatile and drive prices up.

“If they want to put an end to the upward trajectory and the volatility they need turn off the printing presses, they need to let interest rates go up,” Schiff added.

People want to blame the weather, speculation and a number of other faults but they are not wholly to blame. The prices and volatility are caused by flawed monetary policy and quantitative easing

Weather happens, Schiff said. It is normal. Speculation has occurred for some time and can actually balance out the volatility. The true culprit is monetary policy and over printing of money.

“You have politicians printing money, debasing our currency. The natural consequence is pricing going up,” he explained.

Bailing out Wall Street and devaluing the currency caused the problem. As this policy continues as a means to prop up real estate markets and others, it forces food and energy prices up. Politicians however seek to evade the blame by demonizing the weather and speculators. 

Frederick Kaufman, a contributing editor to Harper’s Magazine and the author of “A Short History of the American Stomach” said supply and demand, climate change, and speculation are all contributing the volatility in the commodities market.

He explained that speciation treats the commodities market like the stock market, but commodities are not equities and the speculation has negatively impacted food prices.

“What we’re seeing is a whole new level of volatility in the markets,” Kaufman said. “What’s happened is we have hundreds of billions of dollars worth of new players who have entered this market through food derivatives. They are treating commodity markets as if they are stock markets. They are treating is as though we just pump more money in and we’re happy as we watch the price rise.”

Wall Street’s speculation and investment role has grown and as it has grown speculators out number market hedgers which hijacks the stability of the market.

“The entire nature and form of the market has been transformed,” he said. “Ultimately what we are seeing in more volatility because the money is funny money.”

Republicans Accuse Obama of Violating War Powers...

Republicans Accuse Obama of Violating War Powers...

A group of Republican Senators accused US President Barack Obama of violating a 1973 law that limits the White House’s war powers.

Citing Obama’s handling of the conflict in Libya, the Senators contend that the President entered into conflict in Libya without regard for the War Power Act. The law requires that all US forces sent into conflict by the President must be withdrawn within 60 days unless explicitly authorized by the US Congress.

In a letter to the President, Republican Senators Rand Paul, Jim DeMint, Mike Lee, Ron Johnson, Tom Coburn, and John Cornyn asked Obama whether he intended to abide by the law, a law often overlooked by Presidents, and ensure US forces are returned home within 60 days.

May 20 marks 60 days of US forces conducting operations over Libya.

"Last week some in your administration indicated use of the United States Armed Forces will continue indefinitely, while others said you would act in a manner consistent with the War Powers Resolution," the letter said. "Therefore, we are writing to ask whether you intend to comply with the requirements of the War Powers Resolution. We await your response."

Under the US Constitution only the Congress can legally declare war and commit troops to combat for extended periods of time.

The War Powers Act clarified what authority the White House holds in regards to the US military. It allows a US President to use US forces in the event of an attack on the United States, its territories or forces but requires that an extended use of force be approved by Congress within 48 hours of the commitment. Failure to receive approval means all US forces engaged must be withdrawn within 60 days. The withdraw may take place over a 30 day period, but must begin on or by the 60th day in conflict.

Previous inquiries to the Pentagon regarding the War Powers Act have been ignored or evaded.

"The War Powers Act question is above my pay grade, and so I would refer you to the White House," US Defense Secretary Robert Gates once said.

Ivan Eland, a senior fellow at The Independent Institute said Obama’s war in Libya is illegal and unconstitutional, but Obama is not the first US president to violate the law.

America’s founders wanted laws to restrict the power of an executive to send a nation to war, thus a requirement was made that war be declared by Congress – not a single leader.

Eland argued Congress has abdicated from their responsibilities to avoid having ot discuss the war or having to go officially on record for supporting or objecting to war.

“More Tea Partiers should get involved in this,” he said. “We’ve gone way off the end with executive rule and that’s not a good thing for a republic.”

Former US President Bill Clinton also ignored the War Powers Act, but he did go to Congress to approve expenses. Obama has given no plans to seek approval for funding for combat missions.

“He knows better,” said Eland, citing Obama’s past as a constitutional law professor. “He was the anti-war president. Now he has one more war than Bush.

America’s founding fathers foresaw this and wanted to prevent it. Unfortunately today much of the law is ignored.

Congressional Leaders Reach Deal to Extend Patriot Act...

Congressional Leaders Reach Deal to Extend Patriot Act...

US Congressional leaders in both the House and Senate have reached a deal to further extend the controversial US Patriot Act for another four years.

Key provisions of the law were set to expire on May 27. The extension keeps them in place for another four years. The deal will allow the government to continue to force private businesses to hand over records, grant warrantless wiretaps, and monitor any individual suspected of terrorist for any reason.

The deal was worked out between Republican House Speaker John Boehner, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. The proposal will not need to pass both the House and Senate within the next seven days to avoid a lapse in the law.
“Senators Reid and McConnell have introduced a clean, four-year extension of the Patriot Act, one of the critical tools the intelligence community has to keep America safe. The Senate will consider this legislation next week,” said Michael Brumas, a McConnell spokesman.

The Bush-era security measure has faced tougher opposition this year than in previous legislative sessions. A number of libertarian and Tea Party Republicans oppose the measure and have fought against it. The bulk of Democrats and Republicans however continue to support the anti-terror rule that many argue limits American civil liberties.

The majority of lawmakers do not favor permanent legislation, which is why the deal reached is for only four years. In addition, the deal means a vote to extend the measures again will take place during 2015 – a non-election year.

Civil liberties groups are angered by the compromise and argue a greater debate needs to be had in Washington.

“That is how the Patriot Act first came into being 10 years ago—without meaningful debate,” said the Bill of Rights Defense Committee in a released statement. “Today, despite the prior approval of the Senate Judiciary Committee of a bill introduced by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) to impose some (albeit inadequate) reforms, the congressional leadership is dictating the result of a long overdue policy debate that has never happened.”