Friday, June 25, 2010

THE WORLD CHANGED

39 years ago ( Jack Benny's age) the world changed maybe irrevocably.


It is important to know what changed in 1971 and how that event relates to our present "situation": a shifting manufacturing base to foreign soils, indebtedness, rising unemployment, poverty and malaise.


President Nixon, at the urgings of Professor Friedman, took us off the Gold Standard,

i.e. the dollar was no longer backed by our treasury of gold. You could no longer present a dollar to the U.S. Treasury and receive 1/35 oz of gold, as the official redemption price was $35/oz.


The proclamation at the time didn't ruffle many feathers, since it was common knowledge that there was a hoard of dollars in foreign hands that if presented for payment would overwhelm our remaining gold supply .The 1945 Bretton Woods agreement made the U.S. dollar the world's currency and medium of exchange and

acceptable for payment of bills and debts, since it was considered to be " good as gold" and freely exchangeable.


The fact is that with the gold standard little gold actually changed hands as payment. If a country sold you coffee and you sold them bicycles, only the difference in cost/price was settled in gold.


After the 1971 proclamation,the USA was under no obligation to surrender their gold,

so their was no barrier to increasing the $ supply. Katie bar the door!


REF:"The Gold Standard: Generator & Protector of Jobs" by Hugo Salinas Price

www,plata.com.mx June 16, 2010


"The abandonment of the gold standard in 1971 is closely tied to the massive unemployment the industrialized world has suffered in recent years;. . The world's financial press, in which leading economists and analysts publish their work, never examines the relationship between the abandonment of the gold standard and unemployment, de-industrialization, and the huge chronic export deficits of the Western world powers;. . .t is an act of self-censorship to avoid incurring the displeasure of the important financial and geopolitical interests that are behind the financial press


From the end of World War II through the 1960s, all well-governed nations in the world sought to maintain a constant balance between their exports and imports. They all wanted to maintain a situation where they exported more than they imported, so that they could accumulate growing Treasury reserves of gold . . The exception to the rule was none other than the US. All well-governed countries sought to export more than they imported, except the US.

The US was not overly concerned with maintaining a balance between exports and imports, because - according to Bretton Woods - the US could pay its export deficits by the simple expedient of sending more dollars to pay its creditors. As the sole source of dollars, the US had a clear advantage over the rest of the world; they could pay their debts in (redeemable) dollars that they themselves printed...

Economists of the day warned of the danger of this practice, which resulted in a constant loss of American gold. From over 20,000 tons at the end of World War II, US gold reserves dropped year by year as certain countries, notably France, insisted on redeeming their dollars for gold at a rate of 35 dollars per ounce of gold. France incurred intense displeasure in Washington and New York due to its demands for gold in exchange for dollars; some analysts attribute the unrest in France in the spring of 1968 to covert operations by the US intelligence services, in a show of America's disapproval of the behavior of France, led at the time by General Charles de Gaulle.

The US did nothing to slow the loss of gold. In the early months of 1971, Henry Hazlitt, a solid classical economist, predicted that the dollar would have to be devalued; he said it would be necessary to increase the number of dollars that would be needed to obtain an ounce of gold from the United States Treasury. Only months after his warning, the dam burst, and in August 1971 the US was forced to devalue its currency, because the amount of gold in its reserves had fallen to a dangerous level. (Today, many doubt that the US has the 8,000 tons of gold it claims to have in its vaults at Fort Knox and the US Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.). . .

Since then[1971], all world trade - or most of it, as the euro, the pound sterling, and to a lesser extent the yen all compete with the dollar - is conducted using dollars that are nothing more than fiat money, fake money. Because all the world's other currencies were bound to gold through the dollar, the immediate consequence was that simultaneously they also became fiat money, fake money with no backing.

The consequences of that fateful day have overthrown all order and harmony in economic relations among the nations of the world, while facilitating and expediting the global expansion of credit because part of the dollars exported by the US ended up in the reserves of Central Banks around the world.

Countries began to accumulate dollars as the expansion of credit in the US advanced inexorably, now free of the restraint formerly imposed by Bretton Woods. The rest of the world was forced to accumulate dollars in reserves, because having insufficient dollar reserves, or having reserves that did not grow, or worse, having falling reserves, was a clear sign for monetary speculators to attack a country's currency and destroy it with devaluation.

As the loss of gold ceased to be a limiting factor, the last restrictions on the expansion of credit were stripped away. A heavy flow of dollars to all parts of the world spurred the expansion of global credit, which did not stop until 2007. The international banking elite always strive to obtain greater profits and to that end always seek to expand credit. Starting in 1971, freed of the restraint of being required to pay international accounts in gold, or with dollars redeemable for gold, the constant unfettered creation of credit and still more credit ensued. It was boom time in the US.

The US, which paid the rest of the world with its own irredeemable dollars of no intrinsic value, lauded the adoption of "free trade" and "globalization". The US could buy whatever it wanted, anywhere in the world, in any quantity, and at any price. Starting in the 1990s, its export deficits became alarming, but nothing was done to reduce them; on the contrary, they grew year by year.. .

Down with import tariffs! Free trade with the world! The new vision offered the enthralling, seductive picture of a globalized world without borders, where everyone could buy and sell where they liked, with no limits. The 90's were years of unbridled optimism for globalization!

Free Trade is unquestionably beneficial for humanity at large. It is good to be able to buy goods where they are cheapest; some countries enjoy conditions that favor them in production of certain things; each country should produce those things in which it has an advantage over other countries. Thus, the whole world can benefit from the good things each country has to offer. It is an appealing and sound doctrine, but… there is a crucial catch: the doctrine of Free Trade was conceived for a world where the sole means of payment was gold. When the doctrines of "Free Trade" and the "Comparative Advantages of Nations" were developed, the economists of the day could not imagine a world that did not use gold, but instead relied on a fiat money that could be created at will by a single country.

The "globalization" of the 1980s and 1990s and to date is based on the ideas of "Free Trade". However, in the absence of the gold standard that existed when the doctrine was conceived, "globalization" had completely destructive results, which have caused the de-industrialization of the West and the rise to power of Asia.

In the decades prior to 2007 a massive fleet of cargo ships was created, which sailed for the US and Europe - the West in general, Mexico included - bearing all kinds of inexpensive, quality products made in Asia. The flood was so great that local factories in the Western World were forced to move to Asia, to employ cheaper labor and continue to sell their products in the West.

. . .how many industries, large and small, have ceased to exist in the US and the West in general, because Chinese competition killed them.[?] . . how hard it is to find a product that can be produced at a profit in the developed countries.[?] It is very difficult to find a niche for any product to be manufactured locally. The flight of factories to Asia to take advantage of lower wages caused unemployment where local factories were closed. For the same reason job creation is slow or non-existent.. .

These evils appeared because gold was eliminated as a) a constraint on the expansion of credit and the creation of money, and b) the only form of payment of international debt.

Under the gold standard all players in international trade knew that it was only possible to sell to a country that sold something else in turn. It was not possible to buy from a country that did not buy in turn. Trade was naturally balanced by this restriction. The "structural imbalances" so commonplace today were unheard of.

The gold standard imposed order and harmony. If President Nixon had not "closed the gold window" in 1971, the world would be radically different today. China would have taken a century or more to reach its present level. China could not buy much from the US, because it was poor; therefore, China could not sell much to the US.

All this changed radically with the abolition of the gold standard.

Everything changed because the United States, having removed gold from the world monetary system, could "pay" everything in dollars, and without the gold standard as a limiting institution, it could print dollars ad libitum - without limit. Thus, in the 1970s the United States started to buy huge amounts of high quality products from Japan, while the Japanese boasted: "Japan sells; Japan does not buy." A situation that was impossible under the gold standard became perfectly possible under the fiat dollar standard. The Japanese became gigantic producers, their country an island transformed into a factory. Japan accumulated vast reserves of dollars sent from the US in exchange for Japanese products. This in turn triggered the de-industrialization of the US.. . .

After 1971, the US embarked on a protracted, large-scale expansion of credit. As the nation was de-industrialized and high-paying jobs in industry disappeared, a lack of disposable income for the population was replaced with easy and cheap credit, to conceal the stagnation in per capita income. Consumer credit drove imports from Asia and furthered de-industrialization even more. The great expansion of American credit was made possible because the gold standard, which restrained the expansion of credit by the banking system, had been abandoned. It is no coincidence that some analysts have observed that in real terms, American workers have had no real increase in their income since 1970.

All mainstream economists consider the elimination of the gold standard perfectly acceptable. They still do not see, or do not want to see, that the "Law of Unforeseen Consequences" is at work: the enormous advantage the US gained by being able to pay unlimited amounts in irredeemable dollars has become the fatal cause of the industrial destruction of the US - and of the West in general. A Mexican saying applies: en el pecado llevas la penitencia - "sin brings with it its own punishment".

Today the situation is far worse. China, with a population of 1.3 billion, has become a formidable power. No one can compete with China in price. China sells vast quantities of goods to the rest of the world, without the rest of the world having any chance of selling similar quantities to China, and China can do so, because today trade deficits are "paid" not in gold, but in dollars or euros or pounds sterling or yen, which will never be scarce: they are created at will by the USA, the European Central Bank, the Bank of England, or the Bank of Japan.

A fearful monster has been created as a consequence of the elimination of the gold standard, which imposed a limit: "You can only sell to those who sell to you; you can only buy from those who buy from you." This limit no longer applies; everything is disarray, inequality, imbalance; "structural imbalance" prevails because we no longer have the gold standard.

The credit expansion boom has ended, and in its place we have a global financial crisis. Today the problem of "structural imbalance" and the de-industrialization and unemployment it has produced in formerly industrialized countries acquires greater relevance with every passing day. What is to be done with the masses of jobless men and women? No one knows the answer, because the answer is not acceptable to the thinkers of today: the correction of "structural imbalances" and re-industrialization, in other words the creation of new jobs, lies in restoring the gold standard worldwide.

The "globalization" so highly praised by the financial press in recent years, has become the worst imaginable nightmare. It is no longer possible to support the unemployed with government handouts. The Sovereign State is close to bankruptcy. Thus, nature takes its revenge on those who dared violate its laws by seeking to impose false money on the world.

How did we stray so far from our heritage? Something for nothing, easy credit, no money down,buy now, pay later. Credit first seduced us, then it killed and buried us.

With Love and Kindness,


THE HATMAN


Friday, June 18, 2010

THE UNRAVELING

REF:"Two Decades of Greed- the Unraveling" www.theburningplatform.com


The reader is not going to like this recap of how we got into this mess, but perhaps in looking back will help form our future:


"We are currently in the midst of a Fourth Turning. This twenty year Crisis began during the 2005 – 2008 timeframe with the collapse of the housing bubble and subsequent repercussions on the worldwide financial system. It is progressing as expected, with the financial crisis deepening and leading to tensions across the world. It will eventually morph into military conflict, as all prior Fourth Turnings have. The progression from High to Awakening through the Unraveling took from 1946 until 2006. The most treacherous period of the Saeculm [A saeculum is a length of time roughly equal to the potential lifetime of a person or the equivalent of the complete renewal of a human population.] is upon us.. . The last Unraveling period in U.S. history from 1984 through 2005 was symbolized by Boomer greed, materialism, debt and selfishness. . .[classified by Strauss and Howe as the third turning.]


The Unraveling began during the 2nd Reagan term with the “Morning in America” feel good landslide re-election campaign. The Dow Jones Average on January 1,1984 was 1,259. The National Debt was $1.6 trillion. The oldest Baby Boomer turned forty-one in 1984, with the youngest just twenty-four years old. This generation of 76 million over-indulged spoiled social activists is the proverbial pig in a python. Whatever path this generation chooses to take transforms the country for better or worse. The term Yuppie was coined in the early 1980’s as the egocentric Boomers poured onto Wall Street beginning their upwardly mobile perfectionist careers. The country was exhausted from the 1960s turmoil and the depressing 1970s. Failed presidencies, oil shortages, raging inflation, and American hostages had left an America that was looking for a renaissance.. . .


Ronald Reagan’s first term required extreme measures by Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker to break the back of inflation. By raising interest rates to 18%, Volcker set the stage for a 20 year bull market in stocks and bonds. Reagan survived an assassination attempt, the U.S. military conducted a successful operation in Grenada, Reagan fired 11,000 air traffic controllers, and an unprecedented peace time military buildup was initiated. This created an atmosphere for economic revival, led by the Boomers. A new laissez faire era heralded by Ronald Reagan was based on his belief that government was the problem, not the solution. His goal was to cut the size of government while slashing taxes and unleashing the animal spirits of the free market.


The 1980’s proved to be a confidence building decade after two decades of tumult. With the most egocentric self centered generation in the history of the world entering the prime of their careers, a double shot of renewed confidence and debt accumulation began a cycle of greed and hubris like none ever seen on earth.

The Boomer heroes of unbridled greed were Michael Milken, Ivan Boesky, Carl Icahn and Boone Pickens. Leveraged buyouts, where corporate raiders used huge amounts of debt to takeover companies, taking them private, firing thousands of workers, spinning it off as an IPO, and reaping enormous profits, were hailed as the savior of free markets by Wall Street. These deals generated gigantic fees for the firms advising on the LBOs. This Boomer led societal mood of wealth accumulation at the cost of gutting corporations and screwing the working class became ingrained in the fabric of America.. . .

The 1980’s proceeded as expected with strengthening individualism and weakening institutions. The GI Generation Heroes began to depart from the scene. This steady, cautious, risk adverse generation that built American industry and finance were being pushed into retirement by the Baby Boomer Generation. The old civic order was cast aside and the cultural revolutionaries stormed the gates. Baby Boomers seized control of Wall Street, having never experienced a bear market, never faced adversity, and never having to care about anyone but themselves. A brooding sense of pessimism began to creep into the mood of the country. Fiduciary responsibility towards your clients and proper risk management was considered old school. Maximizing profits, generating fees, and getting rich was the mantra of the new Wall Street generation. As the Boomers grew rich and cynical on the street of dreams, moralistic charlatan frauds like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton exacted their share of profits for themselves and their constituents. The working middle class sunk deeper into despair as their wages continued a two decade long stagnation. Real hourly earnings were the same in 2005 as they were in 1984, and 10% below the level of 1972. . . .

The trickle down crowd, mostly Republicans, contended that a rising tide lifts all boats. In theory that sounds great. In practice, it has proven to be a lie. During the 1980s and 1990s, all boundaries regarding compensation were obliterated by the “Me Generation”. Executive pay packages began to skyrocket as they were viewed as rock stars and masters of the universe. The ratio of CEO’s pay to the average worker’s pay leaped from 30 to 1 in 1980 to 250 to 1 by 2005. If CEOs had performed phenomenally over this time period, a case could be made for this leap. But, corporate America and certainly Wall Street had brought the US economy to the brink of disaster by 2005. This outrageous pay disparity contributed to the deepening anger in the country simmering below the surface.. . . .

The appearance of progress on some issues overshadowed the underlying deterioration of societal institutions and practices. Social Security was “saved” by Alan Greenspan and his commission. Essentially he manipulated the CPI calculation downward, screwing future generations of seniors out of their rightful payouts. Politically difficult decisions regarding Medicare and Medicaid were deferred to sometime in the distant future. With oil prices averaging $20 per barrel through the 1980s and 1990s, a coherent long-term energy strategy seemed unnecessary to the next election cycle politicians who control this country. The deregulation of the Savings & Loan Industry gave them many of the capabilities of banks, without the same regulations as banks. Imprudent real estate lending, fraud and insider transactions by S&L executives, protected by high powered Washington politicians, led to the first financial crisis. The failure of 747 thrifts and losses of $160 billion to the taxpayer can be attributed to lax oversight and fraud. . .

The delusion of the American populace cannot be underestimated. Their worshipping at the altar of materialism and adoration of Hollywood created pop culture was crucial to the societal delusion. Without the corporate consumerism marketing machine, an unlimited amount of credit provided by bankers, and ultra-low interest rates supplied by the Federal Reserve, the delusions of grandeur could not have been realized. Credit cards didn’t even exist until 1968. Until the 1990s mortgage lenders followed the 28/36 rule. Your mortgage payment, including taxes and insurance, couldn’t exceed 28% of your monthly gross income. All of your debt payments couldn’t exceed 36% of your monthly gross income. Homebuyers rarely put down less than 10% of the home’s value. Home equity loans were virtually non-existent. The subprime loan market for homes and automobiles was miniscule. In the early 1980s auto loans averaged 45 months and buyers put 12% down on the purchase. By the mid 2000s auto loans averaged 64 months with only 5% down on the purchase. By 1999, 40% of all cars on the highway were leased. The proliferation of easy credit allowed average people to live a life of excessive opulence, occupying 7,000 sq ft McMansions, driving BMWs, and wearing Rolex watches. Americans bought so much stuff on credit they couldn’t fit it all in their oversized abodes. So they needed to rent outside storage for their stuff. In 1984 there were 6,601 facilities with 290 million square feet of rentable self storage in the U.S. In 2009, there were 46,000 self storage facilities with 2.21 billion square feet, a 762% increase. . .

The “creativity” of Wall Street was complimented by corporate America instituting “free trade” and “globalization” policies (NAFTA) supported by politicians in Washington DC. The terms free trade and globalization were code for corporate CEOs shipping US manufacturing jobs to China, India, and Vietnam, while expanding their corporate earnings per share 3 cents above analyst expectations per quarter. As reward for gutting American industry, the CEOs demanded their Board of Director toadies give them stock options for 1 million shares and $10 million raises. Does it require a Harvard degree and ingenious brilliance to fire 100,000 American workers making $20 per hour and build a plant in China paying peasants $1 per hour and depending on cheap oil to inexpensively ship the goods back to America? Only one problem, people without jobs have trouble buying stuff. Without middle class jobs, corporate CEOs turned to their Harvard buddies on Wall Street to create $1.2 quadrillion of financial derivatives to convince the middle class they really had wealth to spend on cheap Chinese goods. This corporate/banking collusion was fully supported by their paid for representatives in Washington DC. This unholy alliance between big business and big government enriched the ruling elite, while impoverishing the middle class. . .

The nation had an opportunity to come to our senses with the election of George Bush in 2000. The gravity of the coming Saecular Winter could have been moderated through prudent actions taken on the fiscal, political, and defense fronts. The autumnal Unraveling is a time of foreboding and a brooding pessimism. As a howling wind begins to blow, leaves turn brown and wither, determined squirrels scurry around collecting acorns in preparation for the bitter snowy Winter ahead. The opportunity to judiciously prepare was wasted after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on America. The colossal overreaction to an attack by a terrorist organization consisting of a few thousand members, ensured that the coming Winter will be harsh, deadly, and more bitter than any ever experienced in U.S. history. Prudence, caution, intelligence, and sound judgment were required. Recklessness, haste, stupidity, and hubris were employed. The result was that the Crisis that arrived in 2005-2008 will be more painful and possibly fatal for the United States. The multiple wars of choice, immense housing bubble, stunning government deficits and unaddressed unfunded liabilities have created a nation weakened and unprepared for the harsh reality ahead. The Empire of Debt has reached epic proportions."

We are undoubtedly reaping what we have sewn. Our financial and unemployment problems are but mirrors of the moral and manners of our population. The 76 million Boomers have multiplied themselves with the generations X and Y. A group more self involved has never been before.

Are they capable of rebuilding this country; probably not, because they are a know-nothing, underline the correct answer group who should have been left behind if only to grow up and take responsibility for their own actions, not just take from others. Stop whining you louts, grow up and show up.

With Love and Kindness,


THE HATMAN


Friday, June 11, 2010

LIBERTY


REF: "A Fair Probe Would Attack Liberty Misinformation" by

Thomas Moorer, Admiral U.S. Navy,former Chief of Naval Operations, former

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , published in the 1/16/2004 edition of the Stars and Stripes


June 8, 1967, 43 years ago, Israel attacked the USS Liberty, killing 34 American servicemen and wounding 172. The wounded were left to die, being betrayed by our government, specifically the Lyndon Johnson administration and the now infamous Robert McNamara, the Secretary of Defense.


"U.S. military rescue aircraft were recalled -- not once, but twice -- through direct intervention by the Johnson administration. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara's cancellation of the Navy's attempt to rescue the Liberty, which I confirmed from the commanders of the aircraft carriers America and Saratoga, was the most disgraceful act I witnessed in my entire military career.


A 1967 investigation by the Navy, upon which all other reports are based, has now been fully discredited as a cover-up by its senior attorney. Capt. Ward Boston, in a sworn affidavit, recently revealed that the court was ordered by the White House to cover up the incident and find that Israel's attack was "a case of mistaken


Some distinguished colleagues and I formed an independent commission to investigate the attack on the USS Liberty. After an exhaustive review of previous reports, naval and other military records, including eyewitness testimony from survivors, we recently presented our findings on Capitol Hill. They include:

* Israeli reconnaissance aircraft closely studied the Liberty during an eight-hour period prior to the attack, one flying within 200 feet of the ship. Weather reports confirm the day was clear with unlimited visibility. The Liberty was a clearly marked American ship in international waters, flying an American flag and carrying large U.S. Navy hull letters and numbers on its bow.


* Despite claims by Israeli intelligence that they confused the Liberty with a small Egyptian transport, the Liberty was

conspicuously different from any vessel in the Egyptian navy. It was the most sophisticated intelligence ship in the world in 1967. With its massive radio antennae, including a large satellite dish, it looked like a large lobster and was one of the most easilyidentifiable ships afloat.


* Israel attempted to prevent the Liberty's radio operators from sending a call for help by jamming American emergency radio channels.


* Israeli torpedo boats machine-gunned lifeboats at close range that had been lowered to rescue the most-seriously wounded.


As a result, our commission concluded that:

* There is compelling evidence that Israel's attack was a deliberate attempt to destroy an American ship and kill her entire crew.

* In attacking the USS Liberty, Israel committed acts of murder against U.S. servicemen and an act of war against the United States.

* The White House knowingly covered up the facts of this attack from the American people.

* The truth continues to be concealed to the present day in what can only be termed a national disgrace.


What was Israel's motive in launching this attack? Congress must address this question with full cooperation from the National Security Agency, the CIA and the military intelligence services.


The men of the USS Liberty represented the United States. They were attacked for two hours, causing 70 percent of American casualties, and the eventual loss of our best intelligence ship."



Israel, a nation created by inserting it into palestine territory has enjoyed the favor of the world because of the holocaust in WWII. The displaced Jews of Europe were allowed to settle into a formally declared state in 1948. So we have the Jewish state and the Jewish people.


It is difficult for the Israel supporters, including Christian leaders, to get around the idea that the created state and the people are two separate things. New testament writings clearly state that the Christians are but a branch of a Jewish tree.


Yet the state of Israel does not worship the God of Abraham and Isaac, but

the god of death and destruction. Their ruthless and murderous attack on the residents of Gaza and the May 31 ,2010 attack on the Gaza relief ships, are clear examples of an outlaw state, totally without mercy, humanity, or common decency.


In the 1950's We were consumed with the notion of communist infiltrators

in our government influencing our policies. Today we need to get aware

of the power of Israel agents in position of influence in our government,

media, corporations and finance. The bullets and bombs that Israel uses to commit these atrocities are furnished by the U.S.A. We provide them with $3 billion dollars of aid each year plus weapons and equipment.


Admiral Moorer called the attack on the USS Liberty and the calling off our support a national disgrace. Certainly the lack of outrage at the attack on the Gaza peoples and aid ships is hardly a credit to our virtue. That the Obama administration has responded with the usual doublespeak is not surprising. When we look back to former administrations, we see the continued blind eye toward the Zionists.


Secretary of State Hillary Clinton continues to rage against Middle East countries, Iran, Pakistan, North Korea and others without let-up. Why should the United States be a trumpet for the real aggressor: Israel?


How disgraceful is it that we persuaded the UN Security council to vote sanctions against Iran who is operating within the guidelines of the Atomic Energy Commission, while remaining silent on the Zionist aggression against Gaza?


Kenneth Copeland, Pat Robertson, John Hagee The Trumpet, TBN

Wake Up!


With Love and Kindness,




THE HATMAN



Monday, June 7, 2010

THE END OF A YEAR

A year has rolled around since THE HATMAN first posted a blog, June 7, 2009. As promised, the blogs have been to the point, and largely the author's opinion about events, world conditions, economic principles, spiritual perceptions and social conditions.


Some blogs you agreed with, some you did not. Some were perhaps repetitive and boring, but hopefully all to the point and germane to the issue or issues we face or faced in this year of our time as citizens of this age.


When the blog started all that was desired was to speak {or write} out about these things, but as we look back we see the drama of one year in the pursuit of collapse, unfolding in printed form. This year represents the results of decades of foolish policies and leadership lack in America and the rest of the world. We don't seem to learn from previous mistakes, but continue to repeat the errors recorded in history.


Although not intended in the beginning, apparently it is possible to gather all these

missives into one bound book, which we intend to pursue. The cost is now unknown ,

but as soon as we get the first one, we will advise you as to our cost plus shipping and make copies available to you for your libraries.


One other comment, as an aside, THE HATMAN has learned what a lousy speller

he is and without the aid of Mac's spelling check, you wouldn't believe how bad a

supposedly literate person can spell.


The plan for future: Blogs will be submitted weekly or more often if the need to speak out on an issue seems needed.


With Love and Kindness,


THE HATMAN

Saturday, June 5, 2010

A CARDBOARD PRESIDENT

Unknown Source:

No amount of posturing, buffing up, or Q&A briefing book drills could hide the reality that this man is on a raft at sea accompanied by an equally bewildered boatload of companions who have no idea how they arrived in such deep water, hundreds of miles from land, and with no clue that they are in trouble, let alone what to do about it.


What we've received instead from the ideology of identity politics and big government has been the spread of competency and accountability so thin that the federal government is utterly incapable of defending our shores and borders from invasion -- one by sea in the form of a massive crude oil slick, the other by land in the waves of illegal immigrants flooding Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and California. In utter exasperation, the citizens of Arizona finally took matters into their own hands, only to be vilified by Obama and his cohorts, who have neither the will nor the capacity to do anything about it.


REf: "Anatomy of a Failing Presidency" by Geoffrey P. Hunt, www American Thinker.com

"Barack Obama is on track to have the most spectacularly failed presidency since Woodrow Wilson. In the modern era, we’ve seen several failed presidencies–led by Jimmy Carter and LBJ. Failed presidents have one strong common trait– they are repudiated, in the vernacular, spat out. Of course, LBJ wisely took the exit ramp early, avoiding a shove into oncoming traffic by his own party. Richard Nixon indeed resigned in disgrace, yet his reputation as a statesman has been partially restored by his triumphant overture to China .

But, Barack Obama is failing. Failing big. Failing fast. And failing everywhere: foreign policy, domestic initiatives, and most importantly, in forging connections with the American people.. . . Clarice Feldman of American Thinker produced a dispositive commentary showing that Obama is failing because fundamentally he is neither smart nor articulate; his intellectual dishonesty is conspicuous by its audacity and lack of shame.

But, there is something more seriously wrong: How could a new president riding in on a wave of unprecedented promise and goodwill have forfeited his tenure and become a lame duck in six months? His poll ratings are in free fall. In generic balloting, the Republicans have now seized a five point advantage. This truly is unbelievable. What’s going on?

No narrative. Obama doesn’t have a narrative. No, not a narrative about himself. He has a self-narrative, much of it fabricated, cleverly disguised or written by someone else. But this self-narrative is isolated and doesn’t connect with us. He doesn’t have an American narrative that draws upon the rest of us. All successful presidents have a narrative about the American character that intersects with their own where they display a command of history and reveal an authenticity at the core of their personality that resonates in a positive endearing way with the majority of Americans. We admire those presidents whose narratives not only touch our own, but who seem stronger, wiser, and smarter than we are. Presidents we admire are aspirational peers, even those whose politics don’t align exactly with our own: Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, Harry Truman, Ike, and Reagan.

But not this president. It’s not so much that he’s a phony, knows nothing about economics, and is historically illiterate and woefully small minded for the size of the task–all contributory of course.[emphasis added] It’s that he’s not one of us. And whatever he is, his profile is fuzzy and devoid of content, like a cardboard cutout made from delaminated corrugated paper. Moreover, he doesn’t command our respect and is unable to appeal to our own common sense. His notions of right and wrong are repugnant and how things work just don’t add up. They are not existential. His descriptions of the world we live in don’t make sense and don’t correspond with our experience.. ."

The above is a cogent writing about this no-nothing, do-nothing, public speaker of other's words, phony contrived individual who occupies the highest office in our land.

It has been said that God protects babies, drunks and fools. Our foolish American people need divine protection from this impostor and his whoring congressional cohorts.

With Love and Kindness,


THE HATMAN


Friday, June 4, 2010

MORE CRACKS AND CRACKUPS AHEAD

We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force.” — Ayn Rand

Excerpted from: Leap2020.eu" GEAB N°42, February16,2010


". . . behind the « sophisticated » dissertations on the exit from the crisis and the end of the policies of support for the economy and the financial sector hides a very simple truth, but one which governments and central bankers are unable to express: they don’t know what to do? when to do it? how to do it? and if they should do it alone or with the other big global players? Indeed if the lack of preparation to the start of the crisis resulted from world leaders inability to imagine a crisis could happen, for many months now, it has been their inability to correctly judge the true situation of the world economy and the interaction of the large number of extraordinary measures taken everywhere on the planet which now condemns them to remain passive. Between now and the end of this semester, this lack of action will simply leave the place to mere reactions to social, economic and political events. All this will take place within a framework of complete disorder, reinforcing everyman-for-himself trends which have become clearer and clearer since the end of 2009.

his situation of intellectual paralysis explains why, for months now, from bankers’ meetings to G20 conferences, one only hears positive statements on the inevitable end of the emergency measures taken in 2008/2009, whilst still observing that these extraordinary measures remain in place. As always happens in these cases, the impetus for the decision will be caused by a reaction to a sudden event and not by strategic, pro-active, carefully calculated thinking. The refusal during 2009, to face up to the crucial question of the recasting of the international monetary system (1) creates a constantly shifting situation and the eventual systematic shattering of the community of interests between the big global players: disparate priorities between the Euro and Dollar zones, growing tensions between Beijing and Washington on the Yuan-Dollar exchange rate, etc… which, henceforth, encroach more and more upon the spheres of commerce and diplomacy.


On the same simple truth: the short term financing needs of the world’s banking system and Western states are now much, much larger than available savings. We are currently at the beginning of a huge wave of repayment and/or refinancing of loans made at the end of the pre-crisis period (2005/2007) that is, loans made during this period of complete financial irresponsibility, especially for schemes where profitability has collapsed due to the crisis or where the value attributed by the counterparties becomes increasingly fanciful. Simply put, it is time to pay the « bill » for all those commercial real estate investors, loans to governments, states, barely solvent cities, etc.) who believed they could have a « free lunch » in the years 2005/2007. The circumstances of a lasting economic crisis creates the worst situation possible for any repayment or refinancing.


. one the one hand the crisis has caused the collapse of average profitability of almost all economic activities (for those which have avoided bankruptcy), profitability now hovering around 2% to 5% rather than above the 10% expected for most financial transactions entered into in the 2005-2007 period.


. on the other hand, the competition to access financing has become, as is always the case in times of crisis, a real grabbing match, with households, businesses, financiers (classic), as well as Governments (and local authorities) and banks themselves. As LEAP/E2020 anticipated over two years ago, with the crisis causing the disappearance of around 30 trillion in « ghost assets », 2010 will see the start of « the ball of the damned » where, in order to repay or refinance their debts, every household, business, authority, financial institution and country will be desperately looking for resources or profits that it no longer has (due to loss of employment, falling profits, lower tax receipts, or increasing costs related to the crisis) or even trying to obtain new credit terms at a time when there are limited offers of credit for a large number seeking it.

One of the most glaring examples of this situation is, without doubt, the exclusion effect caused by US public financing huge needs: internally, businesses and households are marginalised in the face of the increasing need for credit by the American state; externally, those countries in the weakest financial condition will be excluded from accessing credit or indeed be obliged to pay huge additional financial charges, when they are unable simply considering to just ask for aid. . .


In the United States, where all possible scenarios exist in an election year, we also note a growing disconnect between pronouncements (and the statistics) and reality. If one takes the only indicator of US Treasury bond buying, one finds on the one hand a Federal government and the Fed explaining that they are selling like « hot cakes whilst the need to sell more doesn’t stop growing due to increasingly bigger deficits; and on the other, where the main buyer of US Treasury bonds over these last few years (China) has steadied its purchases and even undertaken the task of reducing its holdings ). Knowing that American households have no savings and that deficits of all kinds weigh down the major countries of the planet which are therefore unable to substitute to Chinese purchases. . .


The LEAP/E2020 team expects a rapid increase in tensions between Washington and Beijing in the coming months : it was, in effect, just what the United States had promises not to do to the Chinese, very concerned over the growing risk of their Dollar denominated assets losing value. Add to that the sale of arms to Taiwan, the meeting with the Dalai Lama, commercial spats and Iran, and we consider that the second half of 2010 will be favourable to the beginning of a settling of scores between Washington and Beijing, which will only aggravate the crisis.. .

To summarise the United States, the Eurozone, the United Kingdom, Japan and China are going to see their dreams of growth reduced to nil from the second half of 2010 onwards."


Fumble and Foolishness are the hallmarks of our leaders and regulators. As they go, they

are singing "it is not my fault".


With Love and Kindness,



THE HATMAN


Thursday, June 3, 2010

Copied from:www.ColoradoGold, by Don Stott, May 20, 2010
"Argentina, Venezuela, and America"

In 1902, Argentina was one of the wealthiest, most industrialized, prosperous nations on earth. Automobiles, electricity, and telephones were common. Millions of acres of rich farmland, navigable rivers, and accessible seaports, graced Argentina. It made and grew what it consumed, and exported goods throughout the inhabited world. It was second only to the United States in wealth, and second only to Britain in sea power.

In 1916, running under the promise of "Fundamental Change," Hipolito Irigoyen was elected as president. He immediately mandated pension insurance, health care insurance, a minimum wage, and began building public housing, and all sorts of what he called programs of "stimulus." Union membership was encouraged, and union protection laws were passed. Quickly, income from taxes was far less than government spending. Taxes were raised, but spending continued, as Argentina's economy slowly crumbled, although Irigoyen did keep Argentina out of World War One. He left office in 1922, and was re-elected in 1928, when he nationalized the oil industry and a few others as well. By 1930, Argentina was in such a deplorable state, that a military coup overthrew him. He died shortly after that. Argentina, through a 14 year period, had degenerated slowly but surely, due to the exact same things which have killed most, if not all economies. Reckless spending, welfare, plus feeding and housing what became an underclass. In every nation, due to politicians passing laws to assure their re-election by giving monies out of various public treasuries.

When WW II broke out, Argentina proclaimed neutrality, and refused to break relations with Germany and Japan. After the war, Nazi's felt quite at home in Argentina. In 1946, Juan Peron was elected, and quickly became a harsh ruler, imprisoning those who disagreed with him, a-la, Abraham Lincoln, 85 years previously. Peron instituted a new constitution, giving previously unheard of powers to the government. His wife, Evita was put in charge of labor relations. Under Peron, the middle and upper classes were targeted with high taxes, and a VAT was instituted. Spending by government, and proliferation of bureaucracy continued, until inflation reached 3,000% finally, and Peron was overthrown by a military coup. He later came back, like a bad check, to do more damage. Today, Argentina seems to be fairly stable.

Venezuela is doing the same thing now, under a communist dictator. Venezuela is the pits, and getting worse, with power blackouts, and huge unemployment. Venezuela is copying Argentina, Zimbabwe and Cuba, with the same results. Worthless currencies, huge government, seizing and nationalizing private businesses, inflation, suppression of freedoms, and eventually I assume, riots. Venezuela's Chavez is destroying a once proud, capable, prosperous nation, with collectivism, and harsh dictatorship. Cuba's Castro has turned a once happy, warm, hospitable nation, into a crushing communistic dictatorship. America is traveling down the same road as did the above nations.



Greece is having more riots today as I finish this, and rumor has it that Germany wants out of the euro, and is secretly printing marks. Spain and Portugal, both euro nations, are in deep doo do because of exactly the same things that killed other economies. Stupid politicians giving away the public treasury to the unworthy. America's official debt is now close to $13 trillion, plus another $60 trillion in promised payments in future years, and it is absolutely unpayable other than with printed scrip, known as dollars. Depression over? Not by the skin of your chinny chin chin! 477,000 new applicants for unemployment insurance last week, and the stock markets around the world are fading. Tough times ahead, I believe.


This begs a simple question. Is government a way to prosperity? Is government in any nation, in any year, or under any circumstance, an efficient or cost effective way to accomplish anything? Throughout history, and hundreds of years, and even thousands of years, no government has ever been able to 'help' anyone or group by subsidizing them or handing out other people's money by means of high taxes. Governments which are good, protect, and do not subsidize! Subsidization steals from Paul to pay Peter, and both Peter and Paul are harmed. Paul is de-capitalized, and Peter learns how to live on someone else's work and effort. Now, we have the Obama regime, trying to take over every facet of America, ruining the prosperity producing Pauls, making millions of dependent 'Peters,' and destroying America. The masses are revolting, as witnessed by Kentucky, Utah, and Massachusetts, with more to follow. It's all the result of the Tea Party Movement. God Bless the Tea Party Movement!

With Love and Kindness,


THE HATMAN

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

CRACKS ARE STARTING TO APPEAR

REF::LAST TRUMPET NEWSLETTER ,June 2010 "The Coming Spiritual Twilight"


". . There are many who never look at things from a spiritual standpoint, and there are those that have the God-given ability as true Christians to look into the depth of what is happening in the corresponding unseen world. It is essential that we understand that since the beginning of the world there has been a conspiratorial adversary called Satan. Satan knows that his time is limited. History is filled with the activities of this rebellious dark prince, and Bible prophecy guides the children of God every step of the way and helps them to understand what is truly happening.

. . .We are now at the end of the age at the very end of time when Satan makes his final grand attempt to seize upon the entire world and set himself up as the one world dictator in the form of a man. As he does this, it become ever clearer to Christians what is happening. However, to the undiscerning and unbelieving, there is confusion, anxiety, and misunderstanding.[emphasis added]

Never has there been a time in our nation's history when the people of America have been so alienated from their own government, and everything now seems to be happening at once. The huge budget deficits, the astronomical national debt, the senseless wars, and even the many disasters have left people wondering.

Our nation of the United States of America is populated by approximately 300 million people. All of these people are governed by a relatively small group of elitist rulers including the President, Vice President, Cabinet members, the House, the Senate, and the Supreme Court. America has always taken great pride in stating that the government is "by the people, for the people, and of the people." We have noticed, especially since Barack Obama became President, that the ruling class believes that the vast majority does not know what is good for them. The people of the United States are continually being ignored by those governing them. This concept is not new but is found within the writings of Dr. Albert Pike, the infamous Freemason, who wrote the book Morals and Dogma. In his book, he made it clear that the great populations must be micromanaged and that they do not know enough nor do they possess the ability to make decisions physically, spiritually, economically, and so on. We are watching in horror as Obama and his administration completely and absolutely function independently, being completely out of touch with the American people. No matter how great the protests, Obama pushes forward to what is now clearly identifiable as Marxist socialism.

Many people have wondered why Obama has such a driving force toward government run health care. The answer is that there are so many things built into that massive bill that have nothing to do with health care. Obama has used this to push forward his agenda in many and varied ways. We remember hearing his campaign pledge when Barack Obama clearly stated that he wanted a national security force, not the National Guard or anything like that, but a civilian one. If people were listening, they would know that on July 2, 2008, in a speech made in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Obama called for a police state. Buried within the revisions of the health care bill in subtitle C, entitled "Increasing Supply of the Health Care Work Force," under section 5210 is a provision establishing a ready reserved core. This is Obama's private army. In this ready reserved core, all commissioned officers shall be appointed by the President of the United States. Commissioned officers of the ready reserved core must at all times be subject to the call of active duty by the surgeon general."

We keep up the pretense of a democracy, but we are hardly even a republic. The many are governed by the few. Government, federal, state, county and city now consume more than 49% of our nations total income, plus compliance with the regulations ordered by government regulations account for an additional 15%. Our government takes almost 2/3rds of our money. Who are the slaves and who are the slave owners?


With Love and Kindness,


THE HATMAN

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

ONE-WORLDERS ARE AT IT AGAIN


REF:"Mexican President wants to disarm Americans" by

Aaron Dykes www.Prison Planet.com

Philipe Calderon, the President of Mexico, when addressing our congress, to reenact the ban on assault weapons. He wants to disarm us before we are integrated into the North American Union system. Calderon, who has had little or no success

dealing with the drug cartels in his country, placed the blame on American's weapons.

". . Calderon who wants to tell us how to run our country audaciously criticized Arizona's new immigration law. If that doesn't fry your burgers, then think about our President Obama, who should have expressed righteous anger at these uncalled for remarks, joined the assault on our sovereignty by the statement "we are not defined by our borders."


Calderon, was elected in the middle of the night amid protests of a crooked election. Our President serves under a cloud of doubt that he was born in the United States.


These are insignificant issues to those who would put us under foreign control.


This whole idea of a North American Union treaty has never been brought before congress or the people, but just a scheme cooked up by Busch and others who would enslave us.



With Love and Kindness,




THE HATMAN