Debt Rattle March 27 2016
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NPC Pittsburg Water Heater Co., Washington DC 1920 • Hugh Hendry: “If China Devalues By 20% The World Is Over” (ZH) • The Great Deflation: Stocks To P
[See the full post at: Debt Rattle March 27 2016]As a general reminder, the US economy since the end of WWII has always grown via the expansion of auto sales and new home sales. Those were the great wellsprings of consumer debt growth. After the last crisis autos have recovered spectacularly but new home sales linger at 50 year lows.
Home improvement and HELOC, home equity line of credit, are a weak substitute for new home sales. New home sales will never rocket up again so the American economy will from now on have one hand tied behind its back. It should be noted the fracking thing was advanced with the intent of replacing new home sales as an engine of credit expansion and GDP growth. Fracking was the thing that made the US ‘recovery’ stronger than the ROW. With that now over 1% growth, all things being equal which they aren’t of course, should be the expected baseline.
“Some questions must be asked. If nobody else does that, you get Trump.”
Yeah, you might end up with someone who actually asks questions. Perish the thought! Some of the questions and positions put forward by Trump are set out in “Which Presidential Candidate Am I?”
“I am the only candidate who opposed the Iraq War in 2004 and has strongly denounced it in 2016.
I am the only candidate who has rejected the policy of meddling in Syria and trying to overthrow the Assad regime.
I am the only candidate who has said that the U.S. president should be a neutral broker in peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
I am the only candidate who has not rattled the sword at Russia but instead has warned about the possibility of World War III if we pursue a belligerent course.
I am the only candidate who has questioned our government’s close relations with Saudi Arabia.
I am the only candidate who has questioned the need for continued membership in NATO, relic of the Cold War and instrument of US/Euro wars of aggression.
I am the only candidate who has said he wants good relations with all countries and would have a strong military that wouldn’t be necessary to use.
I am the only candidate who has expressed a willingness to normalize relations with Cuba (during the Florida debate, which elicited boos from the audience).
I am the only candidate who has rejected the bipartisan program of economic globalization, including NAFTA and TPP (unfair trade agreements driven by transnational corporations).”
Read the rest for yourselves. Questions are such messy things, aren’t they? As the above article says, Trump “…has said some dumb things, some crass things, some wrong things. But let’s give credit where credit is due and stop listening to the corporate media for our understanding of populist politics. They are century-old masters of disinformation, mass distraction, and divide-and-conquer.”
Truth is messy too. We can we “wowed” by a well-rehearsed smooth-talker, someone who has all of his lines written for him and then reads them off a teleprompter, who speaks of honor, equality, bringing jobs back home, or we can be unsettled by a shrill and loud comb-over who is actually asking tough questions and demanding some answers.
Which would you prefer? A liar-in-chief whose allegiance is to corporations, Wall Street, multinationals, or someone who actually “might” for once show some allegiance to his country?
Contrasting what Hillary Clinton said in her book “Hard Choices” against what really happened in Libya:
Obama (the narcissistic, yet Presidential-looking man) said in 2011: “The task that I assigned our forces [is] to protect the Libyan people from immediate danger and to establish a no-fly zone.… Broadening our military mission to include regime change would be a mistake.”
Assistant Secretary of State Philip Gordon said two days later: “The military mission of the United States is designed to implement the Security Council resolution, no more and no less.… I mean protecting civilians against attacks from Qaddafi’s forces and delivering humanitarian aid.”
James Steinberg, Clinton’s deputy, said the very next day: “President Obama has been equally firm that our military operation has a narrowly defined mission that does not include regime change.”
Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said: “The goals of this campaign right now again are limited, and it isn’t about seeing him go.”
Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense, said: “Regime change is a very complicated business. It sometimes takes a long time. Sometimes it can happen very fast, but it was never part of the military mission.”
Just last month, Robert Gates said: “I can’t recall any specific decision that said, ‘Well, let’s just take him out.'”
Yet, in March, 2011 Tomahawk cruise missiles were launched and they landed just 50 yards from Qaddafi’s personal residence. Cries must have been heard from the British submarine that launched them, “God dammit, we missed him!”
Later that day, Vice Adm. William Gortney, Director of Joint Staff was asked: “Can you guarantee that coalition forces are not going to target Qaddafi?” His response was: “At this particular point, I can guarantee that he’s not on a targeting list.” When it was then pointed out that it was Qaddafi’s personal residence that had been attacked, Gortney added, “Yeah. But, no, we’re not targeting his residence. We’re there to set the conditions and enforce the United Nations Security Council resolution. That’s what we’re doing right now and limiting it to that.”
Read the rest of the lies. Paul Craig Roberts said the establishment would have especially chosen Obama BECAUSE he was “new”, wouldn’t really know what’s going on. I contend they also would have seen his narcissism and knew he wouldn’t really give a shite about what really happened.
Smooth-talking, long-legs-in-a-fine-suit Obama – and everybody got sucked right down the tubes. And now Bernie (who has voted in favor of every war the U.S. has recently entered) and Clinton (a shark wrapped inside a woman) want their turn to cause more mayhem? I think I’d rather go with the guy who wants to at least ask some questions.
“Liar, Liar, Can’t Wait to Fire” Clinton? Get ready for war with Russia if she gets in.
So Justin Trudeau (a featherweight compared to his father, who at least was well-read) feels sorry for the Syrians and brings a few thousand in (goes and greets them at the airport, a touchy-feely moment captured by the press, Trudeau looking like a child who just got a new puppy), yet he continues to be a part of NATO, the organization responsible for destroying Syria, Libya, Iraq…..no questions asked.
He’s all chummy with Israel (who slaughter Palestinians), and agrees with the Conservative resolution not to use BDS (boycott, divestiture and sanctions) against Israel because that “promotes the demonization and de-legitimization of the State of Israel”. Yeah, we wouldn’t want anybody de-legitimized now, would we?
“Israel’s occupation is routinely compared to apartheid by Israelis – and not just critics of the government. Michael Ben-Yair, Israel’s attorney general from 1993 to 1996, wrote:
“We enthusiastically chose to become a colonial society, ignoring international treaties, expropriating lands, transferring settlers from Israel to the occupied territories …. We developed two judicial systems: one — progressive, liberal in Israel. The other — cruel, injurious in the occupied territories. In effect, we established an apartheid regime in the occupied territories immediately following their capture.”
Out-of-his-league! But really good at singing “Kumbaya”, and really, really enjoys himself at White House dinners where he kisses ass well.
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