Bush -US "economy" and its consequences

[Shadow]

Bush Economy Sheds 62K Jobs in June; Sixth Straight Monthly Decline

By Dean Baker,



Private sector job gains in the Bush years may fall below 3 million by November. The employment to population ratio (EPOP) fell to 62.4 percent in June, its lowest level in more than three years, as the economy lost another 62,000 jobs in June. This was the sixth consecutive month in which the economy lost jobs. The private sector lost 91,000 jobs in June. With the April and May numbers revised down by 76,000, the job loss in the private sector over the last three months has been 273,000, an average of 91,000 a month. The private sector has now shed 578,000 jobs since employment peaked in November.

Job loss continues to be led by construction and manufacturing, but most sectors are now losing jobs. Construction lost 43,000 jobs in June, with both residential and non-residential construction now shedding jobs. Employment in residential construction has fallen by 15.8 percent since its peak in February of 2006. By comparison, real spending is down by almost 50 percent over this period. The fact that employment has fallen so much less than production undoubtedly reflects the fact that many undocumented workers never showed up in the employment data.

Losses were widespread across sectors. Manufacturing lost 33,000 jobs in June, a number that would have been larger had it not been for the return of about 15,000 striking workers in the auto sector.

The retail sector lost 7,500 jobs, with 4,800 of the lost jobs in auto dealers. Auto dealerships have shed just 25,900 jobs (2.1 percent of total employment) over the last year. Given the sharp falloff in sales this number is likely to increase substantially in the months ahead.

In the same vein, employment in the real estate sector has fallen by 2.4 percent from its peak in January of 2006. With sales of existing homes down by almost 30 percent, sales of new homes down by almost 50 percent, and prices down by 15 percent, it seems virtually certain that there will be much more job loss in this sector in the months ahead.

The temporary help and the larger employment services sectors are both shedding jobs at rapid rates, losing 30,400 and 56,900 jobs, respectively in June. These two sectors, which are often seen as harbingers of future employment trends have, respectively, lost 150,000 and 200,000 jobs since January.

The health care sector, which had been adding jobs at a rate of more than 30,000 a month, added just 14,500 jobs in June. The earlier rate was clearly unsustainable, since it would imply enormous increases in health care costs. Similarly, educational services, another key growth sector, added 15,300 jobs in June, a rate that is also not likely to be sustained in the months ahead.

State and local governments added 25,000 jobs in June. They have added 233,000 jobs over the last year. With most state and local governments now facing severe budget shortfalls, this pace will surely slow in the new fiscal year.


continued here:

http://www.alternet.org/workplace/90510/

[Shadow]

ECONOMY
Hurting, Not Whining

Yesterday, in an interview with the Washington Times, former Sen. Phil Gramm, the so-called "econ brain" of presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), remarked that the United States has "sort of become a nation of whiners." "Thank God the economy is not as bad as you read in the newspaper every day." "You've heard of mental depression; this is a mental recession," he said. Yesterday afternoon, McCain said that Gramm "does not speak for me," despite the fact that Gramm's comments mirror what McCain said in April: "A lot of our problems today, as you know, are psychological." Gramm's apparent desire to keep to a minimum discussion of the real and painful effects of the nation's stalling economy is not surprising, given that he shares the same harmful conservative ideology as McCain and Bush. Gramm played a key roll in gutting many of the institutions designed to keep the economy sound. Serving Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee between 1999 and 2001, he "routinely turned down Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt's requests for more money to police Wall Street." Later, he "pushed to end oversight" of energy futures trading for a key campaign contributor and his wife's onetime employer, Enron. Around the same time, "Gramm pushed through a historic banking deregulation bill that decimated Depression-era firewalls between commercial banks, investment banks, insurance companies, and securities firms." The financial maneuvers enabled by Gramm's legislative measures would become "the heart of the subprime meltdown." More recently, it was revealed that Gramm was "being paid by a Swiss bank to lobby Congress about the U.S. mortgage crisis at the same time he was advising McCain about his economic policy." But while Gramm is able to insulate himself, and even profit from, the negative effects of his legislative and lobbying record, the vast majority of Americans are not so fortunate

.Here are 10 real examples of how Americans are hurting in the current economy:




HOUSING FORECLOSURES INCREASING: As a result of the subprime lending crisis, "housing foreclosures nationwide were up 50% in June compared with the same month in 2007." In California alone, foreclosures have reached an average of 500 per day.

HOMELESSNESS INCREASING: The number of homeless people in America over the age of 50 is "steadily increasing."

HEALTHCARE COSTS RISING: According to a report by the Government Accountability Office, "health-care costs are growing much faster than the economy." Costs are rising so significantly, some Americans are delaying retirement.

GAS PRICES RISING: The national average gas price is $4.09, up 33 percent from this time last year. Gas prices are now expected to hit "$4.25 by the fall and then stay at more than $4 a gallon until the end of 2009."

JOB LOSSES INCREASING: In the first six months of this year, a total of 438,000 jobs have been lost, bringing unemployment to 5.5 percent. The CEO of Bank of America commented, if unemployment continues to rise, "all bets are off."

FOOD COSTS RISING: "U.S. food prices rose 4 percent in 2007" -- the fastest rise in 17 years -- and as a result, food stamps have considerably less buying power.

HEATING AND ELECTRICITY COSTS RISING: Heating oil costs across the North are expected to be "up 60 percent from last year," and utilities across the country are "raising power prices up to 29%."

REAL WAGES DECLINING: "Slower wage growth and faster inflation has led to falling real hourly and weekly earnings for most workers."

LEISURE SPENDING DECLINING: As a result of the rising cost of living, Americans are "tightening their belts and thinking twice about spending extra bucks on entertainment and leisure products."

VALUE OF DOLLAR DECLINING: The dollar "has been declining steadily for six years against other major currencies, undercutting its role as the leading international banking currency."


from: "the progress report.

[Shadow]

***USATODAY.com Breaking News***
WASHINGTON (AP) - Congress has passed a housing rescue bill aimed at sparing 400,000 struggling homeowners from foreclosure. President George W. Bush is expected to sign the measure quickly.




will it work???? Short term answer or long term solution??

[Shadow]

Thar She Blows

The Last Hurrah for the Banking System

By Mike Whitney

28/07/08 "ICH" --- The Bush administration will be mailing out another batch of "stimulus" checks in the very near future. There's no way around it.The Fed is in a pickle and can't lower interest rates for fear that food and energy prices will shoot to stratosphere. At the same time, the economy is shrinking faster than anyone thought possible with no sign of a rebound. That leaves stimulus checks as the only way to "prime the pump" and keep consumer spending chugging along. Otherwise business activity will slow to a crawl and the economy will tank . There's no other choice.
The daily barrage of bad news is really starting to get on people's nerves. Most of the TV chatterboxes have already cut-out the cheery stock market predictions and no one is praising the "impressive powers of the free market" anymore. They know things are bad, real bad. A pervasive sense of gloom has crept into the television studios just like it has into the stock exchanges and the luxury penthouses on Manhattan's West End. That same sense of foreboding is creeping like a noxious cloud to every town and city across the country. Everyone is cutting back on non-essentials and trimming the fat from the family budget. The days of extravagant impulse-spending at the mall are over. So are the "big ticket" purchases and the "go-for-broke" trips to Europe. Consumer confidence is at historic lows, disposal income is a thing of the past, and all the credit cards are at their limit. The country is drowning in red ink.

Something has gone terribly wrong with the economy, but no one knows what it is? In the last three months bank credit has shrunk faster than any time since 1948. The banks aren't lending and people aren't borrowing; that's a lethal combo. When credit-creation slows, the economy falters, unemployment rises and the misery index soars. That's why Bush will have to mail out more stimulus checks whether he wants to or not; his back is against the wall. He'll try to make it look like the economy is still breathing on its own and just needs a spell on the respirator before resuming its normal activities. But Bush is wrong; we've reached Peak credit and the blood-transfusions won't work anymore. The vital signs have shut down and rigamortis is already setting in. Our goose is cooked.

MORE BANK RUNS

On Friday, after the market had closed, the FDIC shut down two more banks, First Heritage Bank and First National Bank. Two weeks earlier, regulators seized Indymac Bancorp following a run by depositors. The FDIC now operates like a stealth paramilitary unit, deploying its shock troops on the weekends to do their dirty work out of the public eye and at times when it will least effect the stock market. The reasons for this are obvious; there's only one thing the government hates more than seeing flag-draped coffins on the evening news, and that's seeing long lines of frantic soccer moms and blue-collar working guys waiting impatiently to get what's left of their savings out of their now-deceased bank. After all, flag-draped coffins merely indicate that we're losing a war, but lines at the bank prove that the system is broken. And the system is broken, that's why people are depressed and confidence is waning.

Banks-runs are a shock to the collective psyche; they demonstrate that the stewards of the system are imcompetent and have made a mess of things. When depositors see a bank run they realize that their hard-earned money is not safe. That's why they get edgy and cut back on their spending. When their confidence wanes, it extends to the whole system. Suddenly they start questioning everything they once took for granted. They become skeptical of the institutions which, just days earlier, seemed rock-solid. That's why bankers surround themselves with marble columns, vaulted ceilings and lofty-sounding titles; to maintain the illusion of security while masking the truth, that fractional banking is the biggest scam in history. It relies on the "greater fools" theory which assumes that bankers can be trusted to only create credit when it is backed by sufficient capital. But it is not true. The banks have put us all at risk.

Bank runs are a direct hit on the foundation of the free market system. Unchecked, the tremors can ripple through the entire society and trigger violent political upheaval, even revolution. The public may not grasp their significance, but everyone in Washington is paying attention. They take it seriously, very seriously. It is a sign that the system is disintegrating and it may be irreversible.

SABER-RATTLING AT THE FDIC

An article in the San Francisco Business Times said that the FDIC is worried about the reporting on Internet blogs. They'd rather keep banking system's troubles out of the news. The publicity just further undermines the publics confidence and spreads fear. Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., summed it up like this after the run on Indymac:

"The blogs were a bit out of control. We're very mindful of the media coverage and blogs in controlling misinformation. All I can say is were going to continue to stay on top of it. The misinformation that came out over the weekend fed a lot of depositors' fears."

Is that a threat? The cure for a failed banking system is adequate capital and prudent oversight not threats to critics of the system. That's balderdash. Commissar Blair apparently believes that bloggers should be treated the same way as journalists in Iraq, who, if they veer ever so slightly from the Pentagon's "the surge is a great triumph" script, find themselves on the smoky end of an M-16 at some unmarked checkpoint outside Baquba.

If Blair wants people to take her seriously, she should stop the paramilitary-type mothballing operations to shut down banks and tell the American people the truth about what is going on. The banking system is busted; Blair knows that as well as anyone. Now its time for someone to accept the mantle of leadership, step up to the microphone and tell the public what they really need to know:

My fellow citizens, we are embroiled in the greatest financial crisis our nation has ever faced and we will have to take emergency action to keep the entire system from melting down."

How hard is that? But it won't happen, because everyone in the administration has an aversion to telling the truth; it's like the Devil and Holy WaterBesides, its easier to blame the bloggers, that harmless subspecies that spend long hours pecking away at their keyboards in their windowless 5' by 7' hovels.

Bloggers aren't the problem; the problem is a system that's collapsing from decades of abusive credit expansion creation and insufficient capital. Now everyone is going to pay for the excesses of the few.


continued here:

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20373.htm

[Shadow]

Bush Will Leave Behind Half Trillion Dollar Deficit As Legacy



President Bush will leave an estimated $562 billion dollar federal budget deficit in his wake next year, saddling the next President with the largest deficit in U.S. history.

The White House projects a $482 billion deficit for 2009, but fails to include roughly $80 billion dollars in additional Iraq war funding. The administration's refusal to include its full estimate of war costs violates new Congressional mandates requiring the White House to include inevitable expenditures in its projections, and also represents a break from tradition followed by previous administrations.

The figure is likely to be even higher still, since the White House projections assume the economy will grow at a rate of 2.2 percent next year, a rosy prediction fully a half point higher than the "blue chip" consensus of business economists. The administration also believes inflation will fall to 2.3 percent in 2009 after averaging 3.8 percent this year, while the blue chip panel predicts a 3 percent inflation rate for 2009.

The White House in February forecasted that next year's deficit would be $407 billion, far below the current projection of $482 billion, illustrating the Bush White House's tendency to exaggerate the economic outlook. The $482 billion deficit would easily shatter Bush's previous record deficit of $413 billion set in 2004.

Bush inherited a $127 billion budget surplus from President Bill Clinton, following a 10-year period of uninterrupted economic growth, the longest expansion in U.S. history.





My oh my and how they (neo con fanatics ) bashed Clinton. Seems the US pop did not know when it had it good. (and still don't ) Seems they want what they have now ........Like they could not predict what bush would do when they allowed him to be elected.





cont'd here:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-f-kennedy-jr-and-brendan-demelle/unearthed-news-of-the-wee_b_116481.html

[Shadow]

America's $53 trillion jumbo loan


The next president and Congress must not let the national debt surprise the country the way the subprime crisis did.

Americans are now tasting the sour fruits of unaffordable mortgages: foreclosure, bankruptcy, falling markets. The nation, too, is staring at overwhelming debt, made worse by this week's forecast of a whopper federal deficit. Washington mustn't let this burden rise, for the sake of global financial markets and future US generations.

It's true that the $482 billion deficit chasm estimated for fiscal year 2009 doesn't look so deep when taken as a percentage of the overall economy – 3.3 percent of gross domestic product compared to the 1983 nadir of about 6 percent.

But this is just one "mortgage" that the federal government (i.e., taxpayers) must meet. It owes on all the deficits it has accumulated over the years (the national debt), and it has jumbo liabilities to come in the form of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

Adding all those liabilities together, the government has dug itself into a $53 trillion fiscal hole – the equivalent of $175,000 per person living in the United States. If the White House and Congress continue to follow the do-nothing plan, in another 30 years or so the federal government will spend more than twice as much as it raises in taxes.

That sounds like a long way off, perhaps, but the time to fix it is now – before it develops into a red-ink tidal wave that makes the current home-lending crisis look like a puddle.

It can be done, but how?

First, when in a hole, stop digging. Republican presidential candidate John McCain says he'll balance the budget by the end of his first term, but he's vague on many details. Whoever wins will have to resist financial pressures to keep borrowing – to dig an even bigger hole to China and other countries, which already hold nearly half of US debt.

Democrat Barack Obama says he'll cut waste and eliminate part of the Bush tax cut, but makes no promise to balance the budget. He suggests raising the Social Security tax on high earners as a way to shore up that troubled system.

But Washington won't be able to tinker its way to paying for the government's retirement and health-care obligations – by far the biggest fiscal drains. Only fundamental reform of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid can move America to dry ground.

continued here:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0801/p08s01-comv.html

[Lightweaver]

Anyone who is aware of GW's history knows that he has failed at every job he has ever held, so none of this should come as a surprise. He is no more qualified to be president than a hamster is.

[quirk]

Anyone who is aware of GW's history knows that he has failed at every job he has ever held, so none of this should come as a surprise. He is no more qualified to be president than a hamster is.

Though in fairness to him can anyone be qualified to be president and what exactly would you see as the necessary qualifications needed? One of the false promises of democracy after all is that anyone can become president which in itself should rule out the need for qualifications.

[Lightweaver]

Though in fairness to him can anyone be qualified to be president and what exactly would you see as the necessary qualifications needed?

A demonstration of leadership and success in the working world would be a good start...:) GW never demonstrated either, but his family has money and political connections so it didn't matter and we got stuck with him. :mad:

[quirk]

but his family has money and political connections

Which are in essence the real qualifications needed to become president and this gets to the essence of the whole democracy illusion - there is only democracy for the few within the ruling class.

[Shadow]

The first wave of Americans to default on their home mortgages appears to be cresting, but a second, far larger one is quickly building.

Homeowners with good credit are falling behind on their payments in growing numbers, even as the problems with mortgages made to people with weak, or subprime, credit are showing their first, tentative signs of leveling off after two years of spiraling defaults.

The percentage of mortgages in arrears in the category of loans one rung above subprime, so-called alternative-A mortgages, quadrupled to 12 percent in April from a year earlier. Delinquencies among prime loans, which account for most of the $12 trillion market, doubled to 2.7 percent in that time.

The mortgage troubles have been exacerbated by an economy that is still struggling. Reports last week showed another drop in home prices, slower-than-expected economic growth and a huge loss at General Motors. On Friday, the Labor Department reported that the unemployment rate in July climbed to a four-year high.

While it is difficult to draw precise parallels among various segments of the mortgage market, the arc of the crisis in subprime loans suggests that the problems in the broader market may not peak for another year or two, analysts said.

Defaults are likely to accelerate because many homeowners’ monthly payments are rising rapidly. The higher bills come as home prices continue to decline and banks tighten their lending standards, making it harder for people to refinance loans or sell their homes. Of particular concern are “alt-A” loans, many of which were made to people with good credit scores without proof of their income or assets.

“Subprime was the tip of the iceberg,” said Thomas H. Atteberry, president of First Pacific Advisors, a investment firm in Los Angeles that trades mortgage securities. “Prime will be far bigger in its impact.”

[bay]

Bush Will Leave Behind Half Trillion Dollar Deficit As Legacy



President Bush will leave an estimated $562 billion dollar federal budget deficit in his wake next year, saddling the next President with the largest deficit in U.S. history.

The White House projects a $482 billion deficit for 2009, but fails to include roughly $80 billion dollars in additional Iraq war funding. The administration's refusal to include its full estimate of war costs violates new Congressional mandates requiring the White House to include inevitable expenditures in its projections, and also represents a break from tradition followed by previous administrations.

The figure is likely to be even higher still, since the White House projections assume the economy will grow at a rate of 2.2 percent next year, a rosy prediction fully a half point higher than the "blue chip" consensus of business economists. The administration also believes inflation will fall to 2.3 percent in 2009 after averaging 3.8 percent this year, while the blue chip panel predicts a 3 percent inflation rate for 2009.

The White House in February forecasted that next year's deficit would be $407 billion, far below the current projection of $482 billion, illustrating the Bush White House's tendency to exaggerate the economic outlook. The $482 billion deficit would easily shatter Bush's previous record deficit of $413 billion set in 2004.

Bush inherited a $127 billion budget surplus from President Bill Clinton, following a 10-year period of uninterrupted economic growth, the longest expansion in U.S. history.





My oh my and how they (neo con fanatics ) bashed Clinton. Seems the US pop did not know when it had it good. (and still don't ) Seems they want what they have now ........Like they could not predict what bush would do when they allowed him to be elected.





cont'd here:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-f-kennedy-jr-and-brendan-demelle/unearthed-news-of-the-wee_b_116481.html

Incredible, and isnt' the first lesson of economics that you can't borrow your way out of debt???

to think, the shrub inherited a country in peace time with a balanced budget and growing economy......

boggles the mind...

maybe I'll use my economic stimulus check for a plane ticket to ireland!

[Shadow]

The Heart of the Economic Mess

:hmmm:

By Robert B. Reich,



Most Americans can no longer maintain their standard of living. And the core problem isn't the housing crisis or rising oil and food prices.

tThe Federal Reserve Board's "beige book" for June and July offers a clear explanation for why the economy has slowed to a crawl. It shows American consumers cutting way back on their purchases of everything from food to cars, appliances and name-brand products. As they do so, employers inevitably are cutting back on the hours they need people to work for them, thereby contributing to a downward spiral.

The normal remedies for economic downturns are necessary. But even an adequate stimulus package will offer only temporary relief this time, because this isn't a normal downturn. The problem lies deeper. Most Americans can no longer maintain their standard of living. The only lasting remedy is to improve their standard of living by widening the circle of prosperity.

The heart of the matter isn't the collapse in housing prices or even the frenetic rise in oil and food prices. These are contributing to the mess, but they are not creating it directly. The basic reality is this: For most Americans, earnings have not kept up with the cost of living. This is not a new phenomenon, but it has finally caught up with the pocketbooks of average people. If you look at the earnings of nongovernment workers, especially the hourly workers who comprise 80 percent of the work force, you'll find they are barely higher than they were in the mid-1970s, adjusted for inflation. The income of a man in his 30s is now 12 percent below that of a man his age three decades ago. Per-person productivity has grown considerably since then, but most Americans have not reaped the benefits of those productivity gains. They've gone largely to the top.

Inequality on this scale is bad for many reasons, but it is also bad for the economy. The wealthy devote a smaller percentage of their earnings to buying things than the rest of us because, after all, they're rich. They already have most of what they want. Instead of buying, the very wealthy are more likely to invest their earnings wherever around the world they can get the highest return.

This underlying earnings problem has been masked for years as middle- and lower-income Americans found means to live beyond their paychecks. But they have now run out of such coping mechanisms. As I've noted elsewhere, the first coping mechanism was to send more women into paid work. Most women streamed into the work force in the 1970s less because new professional opportunities opened up to them than because they had to prop up family incomes. The percentage of American working mothers with school-age children has almost doubled since 1970, to more than 70 percent. But there's a limit to how many mothers can maintain paying jobs.

So Americans turned to a second way of spending beyond their hourly wages: They worked more hours. The typical American now works more each year than he or she did three decades ago. Americans became veritable workaholics, putting in 350 more hours a year than the average European, more even than the notoriously industrious Japanese.

But there's also a limit to how many hours Americans can put into work, so Americans turned to a third coping mechanism: They began to borrow. With housing prices rising briskly through the 1990s and even faster from 2002 to 2006, they turned their homes into piggy banks by refinancing home mortgages and taking out home-equity loans. But this third strategy also had a built-in limit. And now, with the bursting of the housing bubble, the piggy banks are closing. Americans are reaching the end of their ability to borrow, and lenders have reached the end of their capacity to lend. Credit-card debt, meanwhile, has reached dangerous proportions. Banks are now pulling back.

As a result, typical Americans have run out of coping mechanisms to keep up their standard of living. That means there's not enough purchasing power in the economy to buy all the goods and services it's producing. We're finally reaping the whirlwind of widening inequality and ever-more-concentrated wealth.

The only way to keep the economy going over the long run is to increase the real earnings of middle-class and lower-middle-class Americans. The answer is not to protect jobs through trade protection -- that would only drive up the prices of everything purchased from abroad. Most routine jobs are being automated anyway. Nor is the answer to give tax breaks to the very wealthy and to giant corporations in the hope they will trickle down to everyone else. We've tried that, and it hasn't worked. Nothing has trickled down.

Rather, the long-term answer is for us to invest in the productivity of our working people -- enabling families to afford health insurance and have access to good schools and higher education -- while also rebuilding our infrastructure and investing in the clean energy technologies of the future. We must also adopt progressive taxes at the federal, state and local levels. In other words, we must rebuild the American economy from the bottom up. It cannot be rebuilt from the top down.


From here:

http://www.alternet.org/story/93729/

[Shadow]

WALL STREET in CRISIS


.......more here:

http://www.financialpost.com/news/story.html?id=792437



seems that the self destructive economics of the US will cause the demise of the US "empire".


Makes the "terrorist" issue seem benign in comparison. The only REAL threat to the US is the US itself.~ the deteriorated economy being the biggest factor.

[Shadow]

Yahoo! Alerts Yahoo! News -
Wednesday, September 24, 2008, 6:04 PM PDT


WASHINGTON (AP) Bush says 'our entire economy is in danger,' Washington taking 'decisive action'





leaves one a tad speechless.:hmmm: Gee, what was his first clue??

[Shadow]

CBS/AP) A divided Congress narrowly rejected a highly anticipated, and wildly unpopular, $700 billion plan to bail out Wall Street banks in an attempt to revive a struggling U.S. economy.

The vote was 205-228.

The vote followed more than three hours of passionate debate during which one lawmaker exclaimed, "America, you should be outraged by what Washington is about to do, because Washington is not listening to you."

Wall Street was listening: the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 700 points.

Republicans and Democrats were equally divided: many Democrats voted against the bill, many citing lack of protections for homeowners facing foreclosure; many Republicans voted for using taxpayer dollars to shore up a private market, despite concerns it would usurp the free market.

The deal comes amid further signs of general economic deterioration Monday, as the Commerce Department reported that consumer spending was unchanged in August - worse than anticipated, and the weakest showing since spending was also flat in February.

CBS News senior White House correspondent Bill Plante said the deal agreed to by Congress and the Bush administration to help relieve the credit crisis is expected to be voted on this morning.

"It's a bill we've come to and worked on together," said House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio. "It's a bill that we believe will avert the crisis that's out there."

Plante reports that the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 will give the Treasury Secretary $700 billion to buy up bad mortgages from banks, but with conditions: Instead of handing over all of the money at once, the bill allocates $250 billion now and requires the president to certify that the next $100 billion is needed.

Congress can hold up delivery of the final $350 billion.

Companies whose bad loans are purchased must give the government an ownership stake so that taxpayers will benefit from their future growth.

The bill requires the Treasury to help the people whose mortgages and purchases keep their homes, something on which Democrats insisted. And in a provision Republicans fought for, it also sets up a program under which banks could buy government insurance for some of the loans, rather than selling them outright.

There will be restrictions on companies who sell those bad loans to the treasury, as well as limits on executive compensation, and on golden parachutes, and the bill sets up oversight: The Treasury Secretary, the Federal Reserve Chairman and other government officials must review what's done under the new law.

President Bush this morning called the legislation a bold bill "that will help keep the crisis in our financial system from spreading throughout our economy."

He said it was an improved version over what his administration first proposed to Congress a week ago. "The bill provides strong bipartisan oversight, so Americans can be certain that their tax dollars are used carefully and wisely.

"We'll make clear that the United States is serious about restoring confidence and stability in our financial system."

Mr. Bush sought to reassure angry taxpayers and nervous congressional members who will soon be facing re-election that "Both the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office and the Office of Management and Budget expect that the ultimate cost to the taxpayer will be far less than [$700 billion]. In fact, we expect that, over time, much if not all of the tax dollars we invest will be paid back."

"I fully understand that this will be a difficult vote. But with the improvements made to this bill, I'm confident that members of both parties will support it. Congress can send a strong signal to markets at home and abroad by passing this bill promptly.

However, if Congress was listening, you might not know it from the anger that came out on the House floor this morning from those opposed to the bill.


More here:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/29/national/main4484536.shtml

[Shadow]

-- Rejection of U.S. bailout plan sees Dow Jones close 610 points down after shedding more than 730 at one stage.

:hmmm:

[Shadow]

Senate Passes Sweetened $700B Bailout
The Senate has passed a $700 billion rescue package for financial companies.





.....no surprise.

[ciaranxavier]

this is only going to ripple outwards. scary time to have stocks.

[Shadow]

Dow Sinks 348 Points As Congress Drags Feet
The Dow closes 348 points down as investors worry whether the House will pass the $700 billion bailout package.
:hmmm:


(news alert from inbox...)

[Shadow]

More "breaking" ( in more ways than one:-( new:

Despair about a weakening global economy is sweeping across Wall Street,
propelling the Dow Jones industrials down more than 800 points and giving
the blue chips a new record for a one-day point drop.

[Shadow]

Thousands of Troops Are Deployed on U.S. Streets Ready to Carry Out "Crowd Control"

By Naomi Wolf, AlterNet. Posted October 8, 2008.



Members of Congress were told they could face martial law if they didn't pass the bailout bill. This will not be the last time. Background: the First Brigade of the Third Infantry Division, three to four thousand soldiers, has been deployed in the United States as of October 1. Their stated mission is the form of crowd control they practiced in Iraq, subduing "unruly individuals," and the management of a national emergency. I am in Seattle and heard from the brother of one of the soldiers that they are engaged in exercises now. Amy Goodman reported that an Army spokesperson confirmed that they will have access to lethal and non lethal crowd control technologies and tanks.

George Bush struck down Posse Comitatus, thus making it legal for military to patrol the U.S. He has also legally established that in the "War on Terror," the U.S. is at war around the globe and thus the whole world is a battlefield. Thus the U.S. is also a battlefield.

He also led change to the 1807 Insurrection Act to give him far broader powers in the event of a loosely defined "insurrection" or many other "conditions" he has the power to identify. The Constitution allows the suspension of habeas corpus -- habeas corpus prevents us from being seized by the state and held without trial -- in the event of an "insurrection." With his own army force now, his power to call a group of protesters or angry voters "insurgents" staging an "insurrection" is strengthened.

U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman of California said to Congress, captured on C-Span and viewable on YouTube, that individual members of the House were threatened with martial law within a week if they did not pass the bailout bill:


"The only way they can pass this bill is by creating and sustaining a panic atmosphere. … Many of us were told in private conversations that if we voted against this bill on Monday that the sky would fall, the market would drop two or three thousand points the first day and a couple of thousand on the second day, and a few members were even told that there would be martial law in America if we voted no."
If this is true and Rep. Sherman is not delusional, I ask you to consider that if they are willing to threaten martial law now, it is foolish to assume they will never use that threat again. It is also foolish to trust in an orderly election process to resolve this threat. And why deploy the First Brigade? One thing the deployment accomplishes is to put teeth into such a threat.

more here:

http://www.alternet.org/rights/101958/

[BFSmith@764]

Anyone who is aware of GW's history knows that he has failed at every job he has ever held, so none of this should come as a surprise. He is no more qualified to be president than a hamster is.


Right you are; I remember saying when he first became President that by the time he leaves office the country will be bankrupt. But there are die hard Bush supporters who still believe that Bush is a good President. I am sorry for the person who will replace Bush (assuming Mr. Bush does not supend the election) because the next President will be the one whom they will blamed when the Country continues to slide further into depression.

[Shadow]

I am sorry for the person who will replace Bush (assuming Mr. Bush does not supend the election) because the next President will be the one whom they will blamed when the Country continues to slide further into depression.~~ BFS.
__________________




Well, "they" can try to blame the next leader...... but hopefully most americans will have smartened up enough to see the truth as it is without falling for the silly blame game that is such a pronounced factor in US politics.

Who knows, maybe the US will actually grow some gonads and see that bush gets the kind of JUSTICE he deserves and would mete out on anyone else that did what he has done.


the thing is that the collective "we" have not seen most of the destruction this bush regime has caused due to the censored "reporting" to the public . Not sure the general population could emotionally handle how bad his regime has been and the degree of destruction it has created.


IMHO......what we ARE SEEING, is but the tip of the iceberg. That alone is very concerning. There are too many wonderful , intelligent , and knowledgable americans that do not deserve what has been thrust upon them via the bushevik term(s) in office.

Like some others here....... I always thought it would be the economy that would potentially do the US in. Ya see , no one has to "invade" or war on the US to get some control of the loose cannon it has become on the world stage. the US is doing the job itself in the most destructive way possible as it will try to take down a lot of other nations that way too.


Ya know, it is almost a JOKE to read the most recent BBC news alert:

Bush holds crisis talks with EU

as he is not even relevant anymore.........and his regime has been the one that is responsible for the current crisis. A crisis manager he is not. A leader, he is not and never was ( bought MONEY bought him a lot of priviledge and position), and an ethical person , he is NOT.


We, I is afraid, ain't seen nuthin' yet.

(sorry , if that sounds like a vent......but we are in some dangerous times, and they have been created by the most fundamental / basic/ destructive of human traits. Greed, (for megabucks and power), and all that goes with such greed. Arrogance and stupidity factor in as well. (IMHO)

[BFSmith@764]

Well, "they" can try to blame the next leader...... but hopefully most americans will have smartened up enough to see the truth as it is without falling for the silly blame game that is such a pronounced factor in US politics.

Who knows, maybe the US will actually grow some gonads and see that bush gets the kind of JUSTICE he deserves and would mete out on anyone else that did what he has done.


the thing is that the collective "we" have not seen most of the destruction this bush regime has caused due to the censored "reporting" to the public . Not sure the general population could emotionally handle how bad his regime has been and the degree of destruction it has created.


IMHO......what we ARE SEEING, is but the tip of the iceberg. That alone is very concerning. There are too many wonderful , intelligent , and knowledgable americans that do not deserve what has been thrust upon them via the bushevik term(s) in office.

Like some others here....... I always thought it would be the economy that would potentially do the US in. Ya see , no one has to "invade" or war on the US to get some control of the loose cannon it has become on the world stage. the US is doing the job itself in the most destructive way possible as it will try to take down a lot of other nations that way too.


Ya know, it is almost a JOKE to read the most recent BBC news alert:

Bush holds crisis talks with EU

as he is not even relevant anymore.........and his regime has been the one that is responsible for the current crisis. A crisis manager he is not. A leader, he is not and never was ( bought MONEY bought him a lot of priviledge and position), and an ethical person , he is NOT.


We, I is afraid, ain't seen nuthin' yet.

(sorry , if that sounds like a vent......but we are in some dangerous times, and they have been created by the most fundamental / basic/ destructive of human traits. Greed, (for megabucks and power), and all that goes with such greed. Arrogance and stupidity factor in as well. (IMHO)

It will be too late by then to hold Bush responsible, in fact I think its too late right now, unless the entire country rise up as one take a whole day off from work and demand that Bush not only step down, but the he be brought to trial for what he has done.....but I am not going to hold my breath on the one.

[Shadow]

but the he be brought to trial for what he has done.....but I am not going to hold my breath on the one.
~~ BFS


nor am I. :mad: It is a statement about the US culture /society too. They impeach someone because of some personal issues ...... (that are not a crime nor anyone elses business) and yet don't bother to do so in a situation where the crimes are blatantly obvious .



there is something seriously WRONG with the ethical, aspects of such a society. as it says, that these crimes have approval (silent , passive endorsement from the population)

this is very concerning too....... as this means the US can be defined as a rogue nation. (perhaps it is just as well, that it has gone broke ..... as it might make some realize that the path they have been on is highly questionable / undesirable. A path determined by a select few / rich and powerful )

[BFSmith@764]

~~ BFS

this is very concerning too....... as this means the US can be defined as a rogue nation. (perhaps it is just as well, that it has gone broke ..... as it might make some realize that the path they have been on is highly questionable / undesirable. A path determined by a select few / rich and powerful )

The problem with that is that the people who are responsible are some of the same ones that are destroying the country and out of its demise will arise a freightingly more terrifying world power that will make the U.S. look little kitten in comparison.

[Shadow]

self explanatory: :(


http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d17/mgb2005/Washingtoninhorror.jpg