New World Authority: The Fed’s Automatic Bailout Bill

Congress intends to grant the Federal Reserve even more powers to control the economy of the United States with HR 3996. This gives the Fed complete power on top of  dollar creation worldwide, excess credit, and low interests rates to cause financial bubbles and control corporate financial power. This power allows for full-scale abuse and manipulation of the system while profiting from transactions and time spent a/k/a administrative expenses. This gives authority of global banking system to run the economy of the United States at their own comfort. The bill secures automatic bailouts for the banks and powerful corporations through the power of the Federal Reserve, which is part of a global consortium of bankers (what I call the International Society of Central Bankers).

“Upon the written approval of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System… and the Board of Directors of the Corporation … and with the written consent of the Secretary of the Treasury, the Corporation may extend credit to or guarantee obligations of solvent insured depository institutions or other solvent companies that are predominantly engaged in activities that are financial in nature, if necessary to prevent financial instability during times of severe economic distress. There shall be available to the Corporation to carry out this section amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, including for the payment of reasonable administrative expenses.” (pages 43-44/253)

HR 3996 gives power to the Federal Reserve to force companies to obey financial orders from the Federal Reserve, making them an authority of power in their own right. (The nation has already been moving in this direction.) The Fed has the power to take over companies that Fed deems a threat to their own “safety and soundness” or to the “financial stability of the United States.”

Section 1105 gives the Federal Reserve the power to force financial holding companies into bankruptcy: “an involuntary case may be commenced by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System against an identified financial holding company.” (page 38/253)

Section 1701 gives the Federal Reserve the power “in unusual and exigent circumstances” to authorize immediate bailouts and assistance to any “individual, partnership, or corporation.” (page 253/253) Section 1701 enables the Federal Reserve the authority to bypass Congress when the next fiscal crisis occurs.

You can now see the danger that the Federal Reserve and global bankers pose to the national security and the solvency of all Americans if HR 3996 passes.

America and Sub-Optimal Solutions

Some economists and talking heads are finally figuring out that a national political paralysis is not a good thing. For generations the U.S. political system has been closely connected with money and a well-funded lobby. Gerrymandering on the part of politicians picks only the pockets of America. Americans have lost almost all control and China is cleaning the clocks of America. They own the U.S. national government through huge loans and in turn, the capital and power of the American people.

Now columnist Thomas Friedman is worried that America is producing “sub-optimal solutions” to big problems like an education system in decline and a weak economy. He also thinks cable news television distorts the truth and that the internet can be a terrible thing for the nation’s politics. He claims that American businesses have left the country, participating in America only when it suits their needs. Why? The corporate oligarchy is looking only after themselves. National concerns are not truly relevant to them.

Friedman talks about a crisis in self-governance but leaves out influence of the people. Strangely, Friedman doesn’t seem very concerned about the well-being of the American people or freedom of expression. He sees open viewpoints as a vehicle for extremists. He is concerned only with corporatism and how this is linked with government with the means of controlling the current power structure.

Why Job Cheerleading Won’t Save the Economy

Unemployment is at a “26-year high” with 17.5 percent of formerly employed Americans that are no longer looking for work or underemployed.  The unemployment rate for workers aged 16 to 24 is at 19 percent. The unemployment rate for young African-Americans at 30 percent. The average length of unemployment is at a record high as the ratio of job seekers to open positions is currently 6 to 1. This is dismal news for Americans. As their “patriotic duty” many firms are now telling their employees that hours must be cut in order to save jobs. No less than 60 million American households are living at or below the poverty level. The nation is not seeing real ideas or action that even remotely resemble the urgency and aggressive action when banks and investment firms needed saving.

Behind the scenes, political powerhouses and their talking heads hope that cheerleading will do the trick. Surely the talent of the American people will save us says the court jester of economics, Warren Buffett. I cite the CNBC party show that is sure to insult your intelligence. The economy and the American people don’t need upbeat civic cheerleading about greatness. The nation needs serious action outside of more wars overseas. We need to realize that we have war going on right here.

The nation can expect weak recovery of consumption and economic growth coupled with larger budget deficits. The nation can expect greater delinquencies in real estate and the continued fall in real estate prices. The nation can expect greater losses for banks and financial institutions across the board in all sectors and a corresponding rate of bank failures.

Noriel Roubini’s Global Economonitor says: “we can expect that job losses will continue until the end of 2010 at the earliest. In other words, if you are unemployed and looking for work and just waiting for the economy to turn the corner, you had better hunker down. All the economic numbers suggest this will take a while. The jobs just are not coming back.”

Mr. Roubini says “that the unemployment rate will peak close to 11% and will remain at a very high level for two years or more.” This will put the real unemployment rate soundly past 18%. Last year, I predicted a real unemployment rate of 25%. Either way, the nation has some suffering to go through since the political powers that be firmly refuse to bail out the American people. The land of politics continues to bail out the world with free handouts and political programs. We can bankroll and void toxic debt for freewheeling investment bankers and financial geniuses that abused the system, but we can’t risk lowering the debt or responsibility of the American people without making them homeless. Clearly, the American people are simply too talented. Politics still needs slaves to grist the mill. We need martyrs for the cause. The nation has them while China gains mastery over the national economy. What will politics sell next?

You can now appreciate why the world of U.S. politics doesn’t want to end the wars in the Middle East. With all the men and women in the armed forces coming home, we really would be a nation without work.

 

Wall Street Justice Obama Style

Over and over again, Americans see the same debacle unroll before their eyes, that is, if they are paying any attention. Earlier this year, billions in bonuses were paid to Merrill Lynch executives as the firm was failing. An agreement was made that Bank of America would pick up the pieces of Merrill Lynch with the support of the American taxpayer and later, BofA was bailed out as well. After a dance with the SEC, no wrongdoing was admitted.

After an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, Banking wunderkind JPMorgan agreed to a $722 million settlement. Why? It all rises from a risky derivatives deal that drove Alabama politics to the brink of bankruptcy. As part of the settlement, JPMorgan neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing despite overwhelming evidence that the financial group did actually engage in acute wrongdoing.

What passes for justice on Wall Street? Regulators give a banking institution that they back a fine that taps the corporate bottom line for wrongdoing. The banks are eager to quickly forget the whole thing by paying a modest fine and getting on with business as usual. There is no admission to wrongdoing and business continues. The government gets a fine to pad their already overbloated budgets that the American taxpayer is already floating. We must be stupid because we keep doing the same thing over and over.

No one admits to corruption, much less to making a mistake. Meanwhile, nobody pays back the taxpayer, much less actually pays off a debt of any kind.  Reality is a round robin of funny money, usury and blatant dishonesty. Where is the outrage? Nowhere, because we are too wrapped in our small lives and/or afraid of reprisals or perhaps the boogeyman. Perhaps by our collective refusal to stand up against politicians and bankers, we are admitting that any American would do exactly the same thing; that not one American is any better. What do you say? Probably very little.

Global Economic Crisis: G8 and the Papacy

During the G8 economic meetings and debate in Italy, Pope Benedict released a new encyclical saying “there is urgent need of a true world political authority.” In that document, Pope Benedict XVI urged G8 leaders meeting in Italy to rewrite global financial rules and to defend the world’s poor from the effects of the economic crisis.

responsibility of the market

In and of itself, the market is not, and must not become, the place where the strong subdue the weak. Society does not have to protect itself from the market, as if the development of the latter were ipso facto to entail the death of authentically human relations. Admittedly, the market can be a negative force, not because it is so by nature, but because a certain ideology can make it so. It must be remembered that the market does not exist in the pure state. It is shaped by the cultural configurations which define it and give it direction. Economy and finance, as instruments, can be used badly when those at the helm are motivated by purely selfish ends. Instruments that are good in themselves can thereby be transformed into harmful ones. But it is man’s darkened reason that produces these consequences, not the instrument per se. Therefore it is not the instrument that must be called to account, but individuals, their moral conscience and their personal and social responsibility.

responsibility of business

Owing to their growth in scale and the need for more and more capital, it is becoming increasingly rare for business enterprises to be in the hands of a stable director who feels responsible in the long term, not just the short term, for the life and the results of his company, and it is becoming increasingly rare for businesses to depend on a single territory. Moreover, the so-called outsourcing of production can weaken the company’s sense of responsibility towards the stakeholders — namely the workers, the suppliers, the consumers, the natural environment and broader society — in favour of the shareholders, who are not tied to a specific geographical area and who therefore enjoy extraordinary mobility. ...business management cannot concern itself only with the interests of the proprietors, but must also assume responsibility for all the other stakeholders who contribute to the life of the business: the workers, the clients, the suppliers of various elements of production, the community of reference.

The papacy has taken an interesting step by inserting itself into the G8 debate framework and  by ordering the involvement of Italy in the process. Certainly, in much earlier times, the papacy was directly involved in such matters without better consequences in those times. History is the best  witness of that truth. Now, the pope indicates that we need a man in charge once again as if the G8 institution is really in charge beyond politics. The real charge has been given to multinational corporations including central bankers on a global basis. The central bankers operate as a global corporate fraternal brotherhood through none other than the Swiss and Rome. Is the papacy and politics going to ‘take authority back’ or have they really lost any authority? The reality is that the papacy already holds ’such coveted authority’ through the central bankers. Most of them have simply forgotten their moral compass in their need to service their clients. Pope Benedict is simply reminding his league that he holds them to a higher priority and that they need to exert a new influence as they continue to profit from money lending.

Pope Proposes New Financial Order

According to the Associated Press, Pope Benedict XVI has called for a new world financial order guided by ethics, dignity and the search for the common good in the third encyclical of his pontificate.

Pope: Economy Needs Ethics

“Without internal forms of solidarity and mutual trust, the market cannot completely fulfill its proper economic function. And today it is this trust which has ceased to exist, and the loss of trust is a grave loss.” According to the Vatican, the economy needs ethics in order to function correctly, just as the implementation of ethical financing and systems of micro-credit and micro-finance indicate. In development programs, the principle of the centrality of the human person must be preserved, while international organizations might question the actual effectiveness of their bureaucratic and administrative structure. This is one of the central messages of Benedict XVIs new encyclical Caritas in Veritate that was published July 7th and signed by the Pope. If you have been following this blog, you know what is up right now. I don’t need to say another word. ~ E. Manning