tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post8111431835777123106..comments2024-02-28T22:03:57.237-05:00Comments on The Automatic Earth: December 15 2009: Why China won't succeed AmericaIlargihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09698428009501267664noreply@blogger.comBlogger144125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-19193767599547628042009-12-19T15:17:19.893-05:002009-12-19T15:17:19.893-05:00Kevin Hasset - trickle down Republican shill.
And ...Kevin Hasset - trickle down Republican shill.<br />And you reprint his drivel about deficits and "earmarks" and tax and spend liberals.<br />Totally irrelevant, 1984 take meant to harp, confuse and obfuscate the real problems while pretending that the last ten years never happened.<br />Amazing you reprint this crap.redboathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07690071678463013234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-87307627424808131892009-12-17T14:18:02.953-05:002009-12-17T14:18:02.953-05:00el g,
My friend you gave me a WTF moment there. B...el g,<br /><br />My friend you gave me a WTF moment there. But, since you left-handedly dragged me into that conversation, I will admit that I was once a smoker. Up to three packs a day during my GI days.<br /><br />All it took for me to quit was a pretty lady I was smitten with asking me to smoke outside, as I was about to light up. I tossed the pack across the room and that was that. Yes, I am Phlogiston Água de Beberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16269917130349144430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-73269070514466783502009-12-17T14:14:16.472-05:002009-12-17T14:14:16.472-05:00Ahimsa,
My cup floweth over with empathy for Ilar...Ahimsa,<br /><br />My cup floweth over with empathy for Ilargi!<br />,)<br /><br />I think he should receive 'most civil' man of the year award with El Gal coming in a close second.<br />I'll be the runner up.<br /><br />:)carpe diemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14488224761512097840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-65515142744019108862009-12-17T14:11:55.766-05:002009-12-17T14:11:55.766-05:00Hi Ahimsa,
I have been aware for a while of Costa...Hi Ahimsa,<br /><br />I have been aware for a while of Costa Rica being number one on the world happiness index. I wonder how much of it has to do with most of the pretty girls over 17 carrying around infants :-) However, it is not a total paradise. Some other problems:<br /><br />1) It has an extended "monsoon" season which can be pretty depressing. I actually had to put my el gallinazohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00642036843036726232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-10377188697661074692009-12-17T14:07:56.108-05:002009-12-17T14:07:56.108-05:00New post up.
(20)10 Trends: The Year of the Wake-...New post up.<br /><br /><a href="http://theautomaticearth.blogspot.com/2009/12/december-17-2009-2010-trends-year-of.html" rel="nofollow">(20)10 Trends: The Year of the Wake-up Call<br /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />.Ilargihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09698428009501267664noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-78893771780968245532009-12-17T14:01:29.090-05:002009-12-17T14:01:29.090-05:00Well Mr Market is a master player is he not, first...Well Mr Market is a master player is he not, first he creates a mini panic that has many people crying out, "head for the hills" then he deftly creates a slope of hope, which we are in now, where all the suckers who ran for the hills realize how 'naive' they were and start buying any risky asset in sight.<br /><br />This year Mr Market has gotten quite a leg up in emerging VKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06843562351166927162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-70292878277329774512009-12-17T13:48:20.373-05:002009-12-17T13:48:20.373-05:00I.M. Nobody
Anatomy of the processes of a barely ...I.M. Nobody<br /><br />Anatomy of the processes of a barely functional brain:<br /><br />Dora> the film, The Guns of Navarone> first contact with the word Scopolamine, used by the "humane" SS officer to avoid torturing their client captives>kicking nicotine<br /><br />So coming back to the kicking coffin nails, I have noted a huge variation among the human population as to the el gallinazohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00642036843036726232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-20926966360294679252009-12-17T13:35:48.700-05:002009-12-17T13:35:48.700-05:00re china not replacing the us:
Of course no-one w...re china not replacing the us:<br /><br />Of course no-one will achieve the same <i>scale</i> of dominance in a post carbon world. All nations will face lower standards of living. The question is, which region will be the <i>relatively</i> dominant among all other regions.<br /><br />I think the manpower issue that Ilargi raises will settle that question. If the world must go back to manpower, gylangirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15070402756630613211noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-14693173857530204542009-12-17T13:27:06.412-05:002009-12-17T13:27:06.412-05:00@VK...I don't see why it is assumed that the M...@VK...I don't see why it is assumed that the Market will call<br />the boyz. While the data remains hidden the Market can't see any better than the rest of us.<br />What do I not grasp about the market?scandiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07924260428840006237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-36798977794555051722009-12-17T13:25:17.851-05:002009-12-17T13:25:17.851-05:00Losses not yet stated:
1. $1+ trillion of toxic m...Losses not yet stated:<br /><br />1. $1+ trillion of toxic mortgages now on the Federal Reserve's balance sheet, most of which are worth, at best $0.30 on the dollar and many of which will be totally worthless.<br /><br />2. Citigroup alone has nearly $1 trillion in "off book" items that it cannot value at market rates or they blow up in their face.<br /><br />3. There's an Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-42327009085478463272009-12-17T13:22:18.950-05:002009-12-17T13:22:18.950-05:00Recently,on learning that the film director, Werne...Recently,on learning that the film director, Werner Herzog, shares my appreciation for a Polish journalist, Ryzard Kapucinski, I decided to explore Herzog's huge repetoire of films.<br />May I highly recommend a documentary, a true story of survival:<br />Little Dieter Needs to Fly by Werner Herzog( 1998 ).scandiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07924260428840006237noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-5227742983454396772009-12-17T13:15:44.412-05:002009-12-17T13:15:44.412-05:00Chaos and El G,
Thought this might be of interes...Chaos and El G, <br /><br />Thought this might be of interest.<br /><br />"Why is Costa Rica Smiling? This Central American Country tops the Happy Planet Index"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/climate-action/why-is-costa-rica-smiling/" rel="nofollow">http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/climate-action/why-is-costa-rica-smiling/</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-15943247205406776732009-12-17T12:46:49.466-05:002009-12-17T12:46:49.466-05:00"Or I can lay in an all-night stock of tequil..."Or I can lay in an all-night stock of tequila, limes and reefer and puke up the entire miserable tale like some 5,000 word tequila purged Congolese stomach worm. I have chosen to do the latter."<br /><br />-Joe Bageant<br /><br />Amazing essay. If that it what it takes, keep the tequila, limes, and reefer flowing.<br /><br />I sent it out to my contacts with the subject heading, "el gallinazohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00642036843036726232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-75915041445802008172009-12-17T12:37:51.325-05:002009-12-17T12:37:51.325-05:00VK,
I poured all that sweat onto the keyboard and...VK,<br /><br />I poured all that sweat onto the keyboard and you had already described it so much more elegantly.<br /><br />I bow in your general direction.<br /><br />@el g<br /><br />Ah, the derringers are certainly not to be scorned, but I'm thinking that invoking an image of something like <a href="http://www.avalanchepress.com/dora.php" rel="nofollow">Dora</a> might better focus minds Phlogiston Água de Beberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16269917130349144430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-62833998798474797142009-12-17T12:09:08.673-05:002009-12-17T12:09:08.673-05:00Cheryl said...
Could someone articulate what acco...Cheryl said...<br /><i><br />Could someone articulate what accounts for the 10 fold difference in loss estimates.<br /></i><br />Well, Cheryl is nothing if not articulate. Me, not so much, but I'll try.<br /><br />The words unreported and unrecognized are not usually taken to be synonyms. Let us suppose that in the world of banking an unreported loss is one that is that is known, but thanks Phlogiston Água de Beberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16269917130349144430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-81032282672250266582009-12-17T12:09:06.611-05:002009-12-17T12:09:06.611-05:00I'd like to toss another semi-related issue ou...I'd like to toss another semi-related issue out their. It has to do with the insurance industry.<br /><br />The banking mafia seems to draw most of the media attention, but the insurance racket is a close and very related second.<br /><br />Lately, I've been getting reports from friends and extended family of insurance companies sending out house inspectors on residential home owner'sTop Hat Cathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18062738110354384414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-33243214733766073812009-12-17T12:02:38.686-05:002009-12-17T12:02:38.686-05:00El G,
"The husband of my dentist here in Cos...El G,<br /><br /><i>"The husband of my dentist here in Costa Rica owns a small organic farm with cows (only for dairy), sheep, tilapia ponds, and crops. It is only a couple of km from where I live, and I had it set up that I would become "intern" labor to try to learn some new stuff in my old age."</i><br /><br />Wonderful!<br /><br />Wish your rotator cuff heals quickly. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-54092540837009343182009-12-17T11:53:36.443-05:002009-12-17T11:53:36.443-05:00I am learning.
You are learning.
We are learning.
...I am learning.<br />You are learning.<br />We are learning.<br /><br />Blogs, such as TAE, the Market Ticker, Zero Edge, TOD, etc. are noting and discovering new facts and connections every day about what happened and what is going on in the financial system.<br /><br />It was not operating as most thought, as per the “Rule Book”.<br />Since the financial meltdown, it was required, to throw out jalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16969819389823705458noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-57197169060417744272009-12-17T11:32:52.063-05:002009-12-17T11:32:52.063-05:00Nice summary, VK.
And when Mr. Market calls the b...Nice summary, VK.<br /><br />And when Mr. Market calls the bluff, pushes his chips to the middle of the table, and starts to finger his derringer, how do you see the details playing out?el gallinazohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00642036843036726232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-65091351291129837702009-12-17T11:04:42.948-05:002009-12-17T11:04:42.948-05:00@ Cheryl
If there were only 1-2 Trillion in losse...@ Cheryl<br /><br />If there were only 1-2 Trillion in losses remaining, that would be peanuts. The FED printed up 1.55 Trillion to buy up toxic MBS and Treasury paper. And still the problem has not been cured, in fact there is no solution in sight in the current paradigm. <br /><br />Think about it this way, the US Govt has implicitly and explicitly guaranteed, loaned, subsidized and given aboutVKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06843562351166927162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-50412073124642239702009-12-17T10:58:29.205-05:002009-12-17T10:58:29.205-05:00We have much MSM discussion about the Treasury sa...We have much MSM discussion about the Treasury sale of Citi equity, and the rush for the top scum at Citi to get out of any TARP restrictions so that they can cast off as Santa arrives from the Titanic with their lifeboats full of plunder. But no where in these discussions do I find the Treasury's guarantee against $300B (with a capital B) of Citi bonds. Was this simply a figment of a el gallinazohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00642036843036726232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-68924317643646966122009-12-17T10:57:35.344-05:002009-12-17T10:57:35.344-05:00The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims...The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week as the recovery of the nation's battered labor market proceeds in fits and starts.<br /><br />http://tinyurl.com/ylhkgv8Hombrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12930734368916487826noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-91517058590341010332009-12-17T10:31:18.656-05:002009-12-17T10:31:18.656-05:00Cheryl,
I'm guessing your examples don't ...Cheryl,<br /><br />I'm guessing your examples don't include potential losses on derivatives. Even then their estimates are very low. It's hard to see through the fog of Bada Bing! accounting, but it should be clear that the losses are much bigger than can be proven using either the banks' own numbers or those of for example the government, parties that have enough vested interest Ilargihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09698428009501267664noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-8567998408203861332009-12-17T10:29:11.990-05:002009-12-17T10:29:11.990-05:00I think Ed Gorey has probably called Citi's de...I think Ed Gorey has probably called Citi's debt rattle pretty accurately. Least we forget, the architect of Citi's demise is also the King Rat who is behind all of O-nan's decisions and appointments, the undoubtable Robert Rubin. To paraphrase Herbert Morrison, the announcer of the Hindenburg disaster, "Oye the humanity!"<br /><br />Re I.M. Nobody<br /><br />The stock el gallinazohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00642036843036726232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4921988708619968880.post-43741811459020418402009-12-17T10:09:00.079-05:002009-12-17T10:09:00.079-05:00Top Cat said: Years ago, a good friend of mine, a...<b>Top Cat said: <i>Years ago, a good friend of mine, a recovering alcoholic, told me about his own pet theory relating to sugar cane and the New World....</i></b><br /><br /><br />Top Cat, you should know that your friend is a thief: I've read that theory (the same words you have quoted as your friend's theory) in the book "Sugar Blues" by William Dufty.redcatbikerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08645491470348404443noreply@blogger.com