Comments on: U.S. mouth writing checks its body won’t cash

By: Paul

Paul — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 16:54:41 +0000

The US came off the gold standard and now has gone over to the debt standard. The actual price of something means nothing anymore. The buyer only looks at the payment amount and wants immediate gratification regardless of the price. This is the basis for the inflation that has crushed the USD.

By: perk

perk — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 04:57:22 +0000

On the subject of CDS, do you know that people are buying insurance on US issued T-Bills? Now who would be the counter-party to that? What company can claim they will have the funds to cover you if the US government fails? I guess it would be the Saudis and Chinese.

By: David E. Connolly, Jr.

David E. Connolly, Jr. — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 01:14:16 +0000

Our women will be wearing Burkas, and our daughters will be handed off as Saudi domestics if we stay on our present course. Our continued reliance on fossil fuels, and cheap tainted products from China will cause us to deplete our savings, and inevitably fall into servitude to the producers of the world. I suggest emphasis in 21st century job skills, solar panels, motor scooters, and domestic production! Why allow China to corner the commodities market with deals in Africa, South America, and Australia, while we sit on our hands? We should be fighting them for this stuff, and making our own products. We should make these domestic products of top quality, the way we used to. Disposable products are contributing the most to global warming and toxic byproduct emissions through their production, and these products are inherently designed to require replacement, making them a never ending source of energy consumption and toxicity. Using foreign oil is like smoking crack, and buying Chinese goods instead of making them ourselves is cracked. Production is needed to back up our currency, or currency devaluation, and an undermining lack of confidence in our monetary systems will prevail. Already the Chinese are backing off of American debt, and suggesting an official world reserve currency. We have dug ourselves into a hole by doing less and less real work, and expecting our standard of living to somehow miraculously be maintained through manipulation of other people’s money. Now it has been revealed that all of this was the proverbial house of cards, and the creditors are calling.

By: Pete Cann

Pete Cann — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:59:28 +0000

I agree with other folks: who on earth is a credible writer of credit default swaps at this time? And as far as the ones who are doing it with no rational credibility, are we going to bail them out next???

Why is it being done? Some clown satisfying a paper policy in a way he knows amounts to zip?

By: Anubis

Anubis — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 16:05:23 +0000

The U.S. government has been writing checks it’s ( expletive deleted) can’t cash and not paying back debt since Ronald Reagan. Those who sew a foul crop must reap that harvest.

By: Peter H

Peter H — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 13:14:20 +0000

On the topic of “burden sharing” and “costs”, I’d like to suggest putting the political leaders into the spot light as well. For example, why has Tony Blair been allowed to slip out of the driving seat just as he steered not just the British economy, but large parts of the global economy, over the edge of a cliff, and then swans off to be a Middle East Peace Envoy, where he achieved more than he did anywhere else (and that added up to nothing) after which he now seems be trying to wrangle his way into his newly founded Catholic faith’s politics. The banks bad behaviour was a direct result of poor legislation, and even poorer administration of legislation, which the politicians are responsible for. The greedy little two-homers, property investors etc., should be burned if they put themselves in the fire.

By: Mr neil Maysiur

Mr neil Maysiur — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 01:22:24 +0000

hi do the people really think that we lend the banks money for it to be rested over a period of time for it to stay there forever and we cant get hold of it and mis trust in us the lenders for them not even to give a little loan of our money back too us an keep on saying that word administration beating around the bush legacy keep trying to fool us the public for how long i must say every country can not be in the euro

By: Gregory Hessenauer

Gregory Hessenauer — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:31:31 +0000

James, when dishonestly and corruption has permeated the core of government and society it does not matter which way we reason. What will be will be.

I have had a personal and shocking revelation that showed me the extent and depth of corruption and dishonesty in government and permanently corrected my hitherto held views.

See:http://bankofenglandsspecialliquidit yscheme.blogspot.com/

By: Andrew Franks

Andrew Franks — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:24:46 +0000

Read Mr. Cole above. Then let the banks fail. Send the depositors down the street to a regional bank that isn’t as stupid as a giant. Nothing is too big to crash. It will be cheaper. Insist in adding economics and finance as mandatory courses in school. The current course of action is expensive and dumb.

By: Jonathan Cole

Jonathan Cole — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:02:49 +0000

Does it occur to anyone that these CDS instruments are not a safe way to insure against default? CDS do not seem to have the same capital reserve requirements of other financial instruments in banking and insurance. Why hasn’t this type of derivative which is partly responsible for this catastrophic economic meltdown been outlawed or highly regulated. Or maybe we should all just get into the CDS business. It’s kind of like a license to steal. Hey buddy, want to buy some insurance?