December 20, 2008
"This is an American-made crisis magnified by U.S. incompetence"
"The rest of the world has very good cause to be angry with the United States. This is an American-made crisis magnified by U.S. incompetence. Bush and Paulson will leave office in disgrace."
- Economist David Hale, December 2008
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38 comments:
Not incompetence.
Total criminality and the complete break down of the rule of law and morality.
Not to mention a completely ignorant, brain-washed and apathetic population that would make the Founding Fathers disgusted.
Does anyone realize how shocked the Founders would be or Americans of that age would be to see what the American people have become?
A bunch of pig ignorant, fat, slovenly, self-obsessed, image obsessed, celebrity obsessed, immoral, borderline retarded, lazy, weak, totally dependent, poorly dressed, bad taste having, GMO/hormone/anti-biotic preprocessed rat-sh*t eating slaves to the state.
That's the way they would see American's today. To get an idea of the cultural/educational/moral/intellectual divide between the people of the Founders time or even 100 years ago and the people of today go rent the movie Idiocracy. That should give you a clue.
" Not incompetence.
Total criminality and the complete break down of the rule of law and morality. "
Wait, I take exception.
I believe Bush is an incompetent drunkard.
But I also believe he is noting but a puppet.
So other than that, carry on.
People are taught that you can become rich in America . There are countless rags to riches stories in America . When the con artist offers limited people a chance at a better life ,they are blinded by thinking
that their golden opportunity has
arrived .Its so easy to con people into get rich quick schemes or any easy money lure .
Wall Street conned people back in the 1920's into the great stock market mania that crashed .
The Moral Hazard of what Wall Street and the Politicians did is starting to play out . The great betrayal of trust will not be a easy thing to overcome, in spite of Wall Street wanting to find the buzz words to get things moving again . The refusal to bring people to Justice just served to make people want to get out of the game .People will not be able to forget that the so-called Authorities betrayed them .
In Russia ,the common man or women deals in cash and keeps their money under their mattress after losing life savings in the banks in the late 1990's .A decade has not changed the Russian people's opinions on the risk of handing over hard earned money to someone else .
The regulations that came after the Great Depression served America very well and there was no reason to get rid of those long standing regulations involving financial transactions.
The whole system lured one American after another into the Ponzi scheme and people were brainwashed into the concept of leverage and debt and that even loan fraud was ok .
Yes ,this is a man-made crisis .
I believe Wall Street and Big Business ,who were in bed with the Politicians made this problem . The regular everyday Citizens just will respond to any brainwashing they get . Why do you think they play commercials over and over again .
When the politicians started polling
people to find out what their buttons were ,so they could stroke them more effectively ,the game changed . I think half the time polling is to find out how effective a bogus PR campaign has been .
Rising Empires are built on sacrifice, hard work, integrity, foresight, flexibility, tenacity, guts, blood, sweat and tears.
Declning Empires are characterized by corruption, imcompetence, sense of entitlement, arrogance, igorance, visions of grandeur, get rich quick schemes, immorality, short term fixes, BS and hot air.
Through our own actions and greed we have totally discredited ourselves in front of the world. From frabricated evidence in Iraq to various financial schemes originating on Wall Street. Our leaders and our populous are unwilling and unable to reverse course. No pain in the short term can be tolerated. We will employ every possible mechanism to sustain the unsustainable.
A vet once told me that birds are the worse animals to work with. In the wild, if they show any sign of illness, they get eaten. So a bird will act hale and healthy right up to the time it drops off its perch- by that time it is usually too late to save it. The economy (and politics) is the same way. Every possible mechanism will be employed to make things look good. Anything that can be borrowed against the future to shore up problems now, will be borrowed. The end result will be that when the end comes, it will come with shocking swiftness.
How about a little Cramerica bitches??? He'll tell us what to do!
"Anonymous said...
Not incompetence. . . . "
Nice post. My feelings exactly except those responsible should be immediately censured, imprisoned tried and executed when found guilty.
No Appeals. No Nothing. Executed.
Happy Kwanza
Oh keefer...
when the USSA defaults on its foreign debts...
it will be more than anger.
At the start of The Odyssey, the gods are gathered in the house of Zeus, who says:
"See now, how men lay blame upon us gods for what is after all nothing but their own folly."
The Father of Gods and Men might well have the same reaction to today's financial folly. Consumers, financial executives, and legislators all seek bailouts and a quick fix, but ignore the basic fact that the roots of the crisis lie in their own folly. Hard-working nations are the future, and nations of lazy fools are on their way out.
Bullsh1t Nation. George Carlin said it best.
America's greatest export was cemptence. Bush AND Cheney (don't forget Dick as much as he wants to hide) presided over one incompetent moment after another.
America's great source of power has always been agriculture. We have land that is the invy of the world like the Arabs have Oild fields that are the envy of the world.
We just need to take a deep breath. Pull our head out of warm pink glow of our own asses and get back to work and we will be fine.
1. Build and Populate good Schools teaching a Classical Liberals Arts education of Math, Science, History, Art, and Economics.
2. Take care of the land and our water resources and the number one to all other industrial concerns.
3. Change our housing situation from suburb/urban high rise to village and town square.
4. Change our transportation model to mass transit, small commute vehicle, and truck rental.
5. Champion reason, embrace ethics, and celebrate humanity as our basic values system. HYper-capitalism and "GOD" has been a disaster. Open educated minds practising true free markets work very well.
DMP
DMP
Amazing how the ‘Saudi internet image patrol’ has been so successful.
Good news is that in nature the cream will ultimately rise to the top.
Those who are able to ignore the noise will continue to rake in fortunes.
The truth is that no other civilization, society, or country offers opportunity to the average citizen even close to what is possible in the US of A.
When the cream does rise up it will be clear that the age of information allowed inexperienced and corrupt investors from across the globe to participate in our markets and that was what caused today’s incredible opportunities.
So, I lay the blame for our current financial dilemma squarely on the greedy Eurabia investor.
Connect the dots and you’ll be ahead of the game.
Not to mention a completely ignorant, brain-washed and apathetic population that would make the Founding Fathers disgusted.
Does anyone realize how shocked the Founders would be or Americans of that age would be to see what the American people have become?
I don't think they would be surprised. They had problems that their generations had fallen into which caused them to revolt. They wouldn't like it, but they would understand.
Were was FBer 'economist David Hale' during the Housing boom?
What a Monkey
Why gold?
We all know that there is no better safer place to invest our future then in America,
so if we all convince ourselves that America is to blame for our loses then what to do?
The only other perceived place to save your hard work is in Gold.
Wrong!
Even with the dollar collapsing due to the massive inventory created by the bailouts etc.
It wont be Gold nor Oil that will preserve your life longs savings.
Gold has no practical value aside for some specialty uses and ancient folklore.
Oil - people will never forget the pain of $4.00 a gal at the pump and will continue to reduce its consumption by conservation and alternative energy sources. The big change is that most people are willing to pay more for alternative energy to contribute to energy independents.
No free lunch
No more get rich quick with Gold
No more get rich quick with Fossil Fuel
Good ol focus, hard work and deliver value still works, and will make you rich.
Hmmm, how bout creating my very own America bashing blog, seems to be the current trend. Nahh - wont last.
The good news:
"If the United States can't get out of the recession in a reasonable period of time, it will be very hard to accomplish other foreign policy objectives because it won't have the resources or the will," Robert Hormats, the vice chairman of Goldman Sachs International..."
Indulge yourself all you like, America.
What all the horseshit politics of division couldn't accomplish, economic reality soon will.
Keep meddling to prolong and worsen. ;^D
.
Hyperinflation: Could it really happen?
.
"...Credit-card wielding U.S. consumers, who have been shelling out $10 trillion a year on the made-in-China universe, can no longer sustain the global economy; others, even in conservative Bavaria, are going to have to step into the breach. Brazil, the Gulf states, India and China all face tests of whether their increased wealth will now be matched by an increased sense of global responsibility.
Their emergent middle classes probably hold the key to long-term economic growth now that the industrialized world's indebted and aging consumers have run out of cash. If the new powerhouses do not deliver, a wave of disastrous protectionism could ensue..."
Translation: Hopefully anybody left who still has some cash will start spending it on on worthless crap like we did, instead of investing it in productive enterprises.
Unfortunately, the latter is how they came to possess that capital.
Oops for us. Where the FUCK was our sense of "global responsibility?"
Couldn's have been said better.
We forgot along time ago in this country how to build something of real worth through had work.
Everyone got sucked into the "get rich quick scheme" ... engineers, doctors, lawyers ... all were easy prey.
Now, we'll see just how good a dead bird looks right before it falls off it's perch.
yoski said...
Rising Empires are built on sacrifice, hard work, integrity, foresight, flexibility, tenacity, guts, blood, sweat and tears.
Declning Empires are characterized by corruption, imcompetence, sense of entitlement, arrogance, igorance, visions of grandeur, get rich quick schemes, immorality, short term fixes, BS and hot air.
Through our own actions and greed we have totally discredited ourselves in front of the world. From frabricated evidence in Iraq to various financial schemes originating on Wall Street. Our leaders and our populous are unwilling and unable to reverse course. No pain in the short term can be tolerated. We will employ every possible mechanism to sustain the unsustainable.
A vet once told me that birds are the worse animals to work with. In the wild, if they show any sign of illness, they get eaten. So a bird will act hale and healthy right up to the time it drops off its perch- by that time it is usually too late to save it. The economy (and politics) is the same way. Every possible mechanism will be employed to make things look good. Anything that can be borrowed against the future to shore up problems now, will be borrowed. The end result will be that when the end comes, it will come with shocking swiftness.
The US will not default on its debt. They'll just print more dollars.
The luxury of having your debt in your currency. Unlike all the other countries out there that are blowing up.
I'm hearing in East Europe people are getting their paychecks then rushing out to the currency exchange to exchange their local currency for US dollars.
Could you see a day where people in the US get paid in dollars and then rush out to exchange them for euros? or yen?
We're gonna see some whacked out sh*t in 2009 folks.
Get popcorn.
And gold.
KEITH:
Here's Lereah Admitting Guilt.
How about a new thread and a template to write to officials demanding Lereah be investigated and prosecuted for a Federal Fraud Crime?
The Admission First, then the rest of the article follows.
Happy Holidays. Bushco-Cheneyburton next?
Tracking Realtor Spin
1. “There’s no question there is a strong demand for housing from a growing population.” - David Lereah, NAR Chief Economist
2. “For the foreseeable future, the demand for homes will continue to outstrip supply” - Al Mansell, NAR President
3. “We’ve been expecting sales to remain at historically high levels, but this performance underscores the value of housing as an investment and the importance of homeownership in fulfilling the American dream.” - David Lereah, NAR Chief Economist
Which leads up to the January 2009 issue of Money Magazine, where Lereah admits what we’ve already known:
Former real estate bull admits, “I spun”
Working for realtors, David Lereah was famously optimistic. Not anymore.
By Donna Rosato
As chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, David Lereah was famously optimistic. Now a private consultant, he’s abandoned what he calls the “positive spin.”
Q: Were you wrong to be so bullish?
A: I worked for an association promoting housing, and it was my job to represent their interests. If you look at my actual forecasts, the numbers were right inline with most forecasts. The difference was that I put a positive spin on it It was easy to do during boom times, harder when times weren’t good. I never thought the whole national real estate market would burst.
Q: The NAR’s latest forecast calls for a slight increase in home prices next year. Thoughts?
A: My views are quite different now. I’m pretty bearish and have been for the past year and a half. Home prices will continue to drop. I think we’ll see a very modest recovery in sales activity in 2009. But we’ve still got excess inventories, a bad economy and a credit crunch that will push prices down further, another 5% to 10% more. It’ll take a long time to get back to the peak prices we saw in many markets.
Q: Any regrets?
A: I would not have done anything different. But I was a public spokesman writing about housing having a good future. I was wrong. I have to take responsibility for that.
Some fun threads from back in time:
The Big Picture: NAR and Housing Forecasts
San Diego Home Blog: Spin Class - David Lereah and NAR
Matrix: David Lereah Resigns, Spin Takes A Smoke
Patrick.net: Is David Lereah going to Hell?
The Mess That Greenspan Made: NAR Housing Report: Declining Home Prices Induces Heavy Spin
Housing Panic: David Lereah, the most discredited economist in world history, finally admits housing crash going to get worse, expects US home values to plummet 20%
Hat tip to Chifi!
Realtor Chief Economist: “I spun”
Categories: Housing Bubble , National Real Estate
AKA: Why you should ignore your Realtor and everything the National Association of Realtors Says
David Lereah was the Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR) up until April 2007, the time period otherwise known as the “Bubble”. His outrageously bullish forecasts earned him the name the title: Baghdad Bob of real estate.
His continually rosy forecasts, in the face of a rapidly deteriorating market even led some to start blogs to keep track of his spin, the David Lereah Watch was probably the most famous of these.
Criticism wasn’t coming from bloggers alone, mass media journalists routinely took aim at Lereah, and even his predecessor Larry Yun, one of the most scathing appeared in Slate:
Worst. Forecasters. Ever?
By Daniel Gross
Posted Monday, Dec. 10, 2007
As the housing decline began to take center stage, NAR forecasts were an important market event. This spurred investment research firm Investech Research to publish this gem:
Our own RentingInNJ came up with his own compilation, which spurred the wildly popular (one of the most widely linked and traffic’ed NJREblog posts ever):
Tracking Realtor Spin
You know what is even more amazing about this financial mess? The media and "experts" keep saying that this is "a crisis", "a financial meltdown", "a once in a century occurrence", "the credit markets are frozen", etc....
They all act as if our nation was hit by a tsunami or an earthquake that no one saw coming. Well anyone who read, researched and analyzed this bubble saw it coming. All you had to do was think for yourself and be objective.
However, despite the fact that we ripped off the world, what amazes me even more is that people from around the world still trust us. They still buy our Treasury securities hand over fist. They are the ultimate dolts and idiots.
It is a shame that a great nation such as ours has come down to this; make phony wealth/bubbles just to spur on consumption.
"Gold has no practical value aside for some specialty uses and ancient folklore."
-----------------------------------
Gold is a univerally accepted currency.
Gold has no liability attached to it.
Gold has no hidden agenda.
Gold is a time tested and proven storehouse of value.
Gold by being a proven storehouse of value is a reliable measure of value.
Paper currencies have never survived the test of time.
Paper currencies have always had a hidden agenda inherent in central banks.
Paper currency has a poor record as always acceptable, as a storehouse of value, and as a measure of value.
It has always been, so it will always be.
End of story.
another american america hater.
we are to blame for the housing bubble in Spain? real estate prices in london?
give me a break. amazing how much the left hates america.
Lady Di said,
Bravo!
Nicely said!
Many say golds value is antiquated,
In many countries around the world gold is part n parcel of their economies.
So just because we poo poo it,
that doesn't make it worthless!
.
High level executives COULD face layoffs at Bank of America
Another round layoffs at Bank of America. This time high level executives may be at risk of losing their jobs. Sources tell our news partners at the Charlotte Observer- that just days after one group of upper level executives were let go, more may be leaving soon.
O.K., O.K.,
So the dollar is worthless, gold is ancient folklore
So what the Hell you guna invest in?
I agree a nice firearm and plenty o lead is wise.
But like the guy just prior to Y2K,
bought a 20ft. shipping container had it delivered to his property. Spent time installing shelves, then filled it with Sacks of flour and rice etc., (figured he'd make a killing selling wheat flour and food stuffs to the starving)
Only to have a couple thousand pounds of supply spoil!!!!
My point....nothing beats lead if it All falls apart!
Gold is great in a still somewhat functioning economy.
Bread is great...but for a very short time!
.
sounds kind of like the old story,
Two guys negotiating over how much bread for gold or how much gold for bread?
First guy, " I want 10oz. of gold for one loaf"!,
Second guy, "I'll give you 1oz. for one loaf"!
They argue,
"Can't eat gold, bread only last a short time"!
Third guy walks in white a nice Colt (Smith, Ruger, etc.)...
Walks away with gold and bread!
believe me. if I were in negotiations for bread with my gold, I'm going in armed to the teeth!
"The truth is that no other civilization, society, or country offers opportunity to the average citizen even close to what is possible in the US of A.
When the cream does rise up it will be clear that the age of information allowed inexperienced and corrupt investors from across the globe to participate in our markets and that was what caused today’s incredible opportunities.
So, I lay the blame for our current financial dilemma squarely on the greedy Eurabia investor."
... arrogance, igorance, visions of grandeur, ...
Exactly the type of attitude that drives this country into the ground.
Bush and Paulson are leaving another mess call the Option Arms, Alt-A loans, and NINJA loans (No Income, No Job or Assets)
The 8 Million Foreclosures By 2012 forecast was based on a MILD Recession.
What would the forecast be in a HARD Depression.
Remember Option Arms and Alt-A loans were given to small business owners many of whom were able to claim high incomes.
http://www.housingwire.com/2008/12
/10/forecast-8-million-homes-
to-foreclose-in-coming-years/
Forecast: More Than 8 Million Foreclosures By 2012
A recent Credit Suisse research and analytics report has predicted that 8.1 million homes — 16 percent of all mortgages — will be in foreclosure in the next four years, up from the 6.5 million estimated in April.
“At the time, most viewed our [original] forecast as being overly gloomy,” a team of analysts, led by Rod Dubistsky, wrote in reference to the April forecast.
“However, based on the trends in delinquencies we were observing, the growing negative equity and our home price forecast, the forecast seemed reasonable.”
Talk, talk, talk ... still, business as usual in this country ... at least until the rioting starts.
Here in HB, I'm hearing more grumbling from the residents - especially from the older ones.
Many people who were wealthy on paper, are now wondering how to make ends meet in the coming years.
These same people here in HB voted for Bush Co., and now they are complaining because *their pockets* are getting picked.
Even though I'm a resident here, I feel it fitting that so many here who snubbed their noses at outsiders are now taking it in the shorts.
The US is more open with its faults.
Do you see the third world tin horns airing their dirty laundry?
Lets see what $25 oil does to Hugo Chavez.
I come by this on occasion to listen to the sad poor people who don't see the opportunity right in front of their faces. I've been busiser than ever in the last 6 months making more than 60K in that time. USA sucks if your really stupid, this country only rewards the smart the dumb will always be poor. This crisis has nothing to do with the USA, real estate got out of control around the world and that's our fault. Must be nice to be dumb and poor. Some people get it and some don't. Keith you get it, except for your blind support for Obama. Obama=Bush. Nobody gets elected without the OK from the guys with the big bucks. Nobody.
This is a Western World banking and real estate crisis, not entirely of US making. The UK and Spain have similar problems. Why not ask about the areas in the US where real estate did not go hog wild? Long story, but in these areas there was less land use regulation and fewer yuppies and other idiots willing to compete at any price for a piece of the pie. House prices are relatively stable in large parts of the US. My house has not dropped in value at all; of course neither did it quadruple in value in the last 10 years. It is your tough luck if your house quadrupled and you HELOCed half of it and now the price has dropped 40%. Boo Hoo! I never thought anybody, least of all the Federal government, owed me a bailout because my house rose in value only slightly above the rate of inflation. I still have a nice place to live and it's paid off. If it drops in value, so what? At least I'm not paying rent!
Sadly, I will be paying the price in the form of taxes and the coming depression.
I am mostly appalled by the greed of the paper traders on Wall Street, who added no value to the American economy. The idea is that these guys should have been investing in businesses that would have propelled the interests of the US. At the end of the decade of trading we're left with a bunch of worthless derivatives. I would like to see some of these guys go on trial. I don't see how what they did is any different than the Ponzi scheme run by Madoff. I also think Madoff is scamming the authorities. Sure, his kids didn't know anything about it! He's taking the fall to protect his family and already has assets squirreled away. Have you noticed how the guy smirks? There is so much greed and immorality! Why are the bankers not being charged?
give me a break. amazing how much the left hates america.
It's amazing how delusional the fake conservatives that call themselves Republicans these days are about how grand the United States is. What a rude awakening the next decade will be for you poor chumps.
Gold, silver, and Oil will bankrupt many as it drops to the floor, bringing dumb investors to their knees. Oh yeah, oil was gonna go to two hundred you say. Hey, it is your money, go ahead and gamble it like a moron. It will start dropping back down on its way to 34 bucks a barrel by year's end (it will eventually get to 34, not at years end, but heading towards it on its way down.) As for gold and silver, if you buy it now you are really making a huge mistake.
"The regulations that came after the Great Depression served America very well and there was no reason to get rid of those long standing regulations involving financial transactions."
Well put. And who does the "relaxing" of these long standing regulations rest on: Chris Cox, George Bush, Henry Paulson, Alan Greenspan. These idiot's apparently thought that 78 YEARS of regulation was just too tempting to change. THAT is the reason the Republicans will not have power for at least another decade. When the books come out about the crooks and conmen under the watch of Commander in chief stupid, people will see just how corrupt and ignorant the "leadership" is. And for those of you that say "it was not the President's fault the economy tanked" I just leave you with this talking point - Who in America holds the highest Executive office? Whose job is it to be the leader, and to make sure in his post that HIS cabinet is following HIS direction? Who sets the national agenda? Who can veto or endorse votes by congress? Who answers ultimately to the American people? Who sets foreign policy?
Think about that for a bit, and while not directly and completely under the control of the President, by virtue of the job, the blame MUST ultimately land at HIS FEET!!!
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