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Post by kramer on Feb 11, 2009 22:44:24 GMT -6
I've been reading a fair amount of stories about buying gold. How does you do this? Do you actually go and pick up the gold bars at a bank or where ever they are selling it?
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Post by kramer on Feb 8, 2009 17:44:11 GMT -6
I'd like to throw shoes at Barney Frank, Dodd, and some of the other politicians who helped us get into this economic mess.
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Post by kramer on Feb 8, 2009 17:38:21 GMT -6
You know what, I can see things like this (banks receiving bailout funds and then turning around and hiring foriegn workers) leading to civil unrest with the violence directed at bankers and the executives who are sending our manufacturing and IT jobs overseas. If this does happen, I can also see violence directed at the politicians who helped set the conditions that caused this mess.
Kramer
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Post by kramer on Feb 4, 2009 18:59:47 GMT -6
Eventually the Obama Administration will be forced to address the mega huge problem of empty, vacant houses which grows bigger daily. I have predicted an Obama program of the feds buying houses then converting them into rent-to-own homes. The monster 19 million emty homes will consume the housing market. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Feb. 3 (Bloomberg) -- A record 19 million U.S. homes stood empty at the end of 2008 and homeownership fell to an eight-year low as banks seized homes faster than they could sell them. www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=ap.iU9iqfn20&refer=usWow, that's a HUGE number. I would have never guessed that it was that high. Should be good for young homebuyers... kramer
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Post by kramer on Feb 1, 2009 12:14:01 GMT -6
Unreal ... simply unreal. AP Investigation: Banks sought foreign workersBy FRANK BASS and RITA BEAMISH, Associated Press Writers SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Banks collecting billions of dollars in federal bailout money sought government permission to bring thousands of foreign workers to the U.S. for high-paying jobs, according to an Associated Press review of visa applications.news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090201/ap_on_bi_ge/bailout_foreign_workersJust about every time I come to this site, I read something that pisses me off like this. WTF is going on?
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Post by kramer on Jan 31, 2009 17:24:16 GMT -6
Well there were some of us here who predicted this, and sadly it has come to fruition. Not only do they need a "buy American" clause for steel, any TARP funds should come with a "must be invested or spent in America" clause. This is just maddening. We can only hope if this shit keeps happening, it will wake up many of the uninformed masses as to who has been selling them out all these years! www.laht.com/article.asp?CategoryId=12396&ArticleId=320909General Motors to Invest $1 Billion in Brazil Operations -- Money to Come from U.S. Rescue Program By Russ Dallen Latin American Herald Tribune staff
"SAO PAULO -- General Motors plans to invest $1 billion in Brazil to avoid the kind of problems the U.S. automaker is facing in its home market, said the beleaguered car maker.
According to the president of GM Brazil-Mercosur, Jaime Ardila, the funding will come from the package of financial aid that the manufacturer will receive from the U.S. government and will be used to "complete the renovation of the line of products up to 2012."
"It wouldn't be logical to withdraw the investment from where we're growing, and our goal is to protect investments in emerging markets," he said in a statement published by the business daily Gazeta Mercantil."
Damn does this piss me off... What a frigging joke! Can we revolt and kick the living shit out of these politicians?
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Post by kramer on Jan 24, 2009 18:03:02 GMT -6
So a week after posting this story, IBM pulls this crap where I live. I just love the first sentence. IBM begins layoffs, won't say how manyby Rick Smith Posted: Jan. 22, 2009 Research Triangle Park, N.C. — Less than 24 hours after IBM reported profits that far exceeded Wall Street expectations, Big Blue began a series of layoffs across the company in North America on Wednesday.www.wral.com/business/story/4375560/Interestingly, this reporter keeps a blog where he posted some of the emails coming in from workers being affected by the "RA" -- resource action. Here are some of their comments: localtechwire.com/business/local_tech_wire/opinion/blogpost/4375508/It is also worthy to note that employees caught talking to the press are "subject to dismissal or loss of severance benefits." Here is the union's response to the cuts: localtechwire.com/business/local_tech_wire/opinion/blogpost/4345090/I didn't even know IBM workers had a union. I like their main demand: "Cut exec pay and perks before putting the ax to more workers." This should be the demand of every worker in the US right now. Wow, layoffs "less than 24 hours after IBM reported profits that far exceeded Wall Street expectations?" WTF is going on? I've also got a problem with IBM saying they will fire anybody who talks to the press. I hope somebody does that, gets fired, then sues and wins many millions. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 24, 2009 17:58:13 GMT -6
This is probably a stupid question but, if every nation was on the gold standard, could a nation devalue it's currency?
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Post by kramer on Jan 22, 2009 18:05:11 GMT -6
And speaking of Obama's picks, his 'energy czar' Carol Browner was a member of Socialist International's 'Commission for a Sustainable World Society' which calls for developed nations to reduce our economies and global governance. SI has since removed her name from the site. www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jan/12/obama-climate-czar-has-socialist-ties/Guess SI is getting their wish because we keep shipping jobs offshore. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 22, 2009 18:01:07 GMT -6
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Post by kramer on Jan 22, 2009 17:57:06 GMT -6
from Dean Baker's "Beat the Press": WSJ Says That Crash Promulgator Plays Central Role in Planning Obama Economic PolicyJanuary 20, 2009 by Dean Baker " The Wall Street Journal told readers that former Treasury secretary and Citigroup honcho Robert Rubin is playing a central role in designing President Obama's economic policy. It would have been appropriate to note that with the possible exception of Alan Greenspan, Mr. Rubin is the person most responsible for the policies that lead to the current crisis.
Mr. Rubin was a staunch advocate of the policy of one-sided financial deregulation under which the government ignored prudential regulation while continuing to allow major banks to benefit from the government's "too big to fail" insurance policy. Mr Rubin also actively promoted an over-valued dollar which led to the enormous trade deficit of recent years. In addition, he had a "bubbles are fine" approach that allowed huge asset bubbles to grow unchecked.
The WSJ does note that Mr. Rubin personally profited from these policies in his role as a top Citigroup executive, but it does not point out the extent to which he was directly responsible for the policies that have produced the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. If Mr. Rubin is in fact playing a large role in determining the economic policies of the Obama administration, this should be serious cause for public concern." www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/beat_the_press_archive?month=01&year=2009&base_name=wsj_says_that_crash_promulgatoWasn't Rubin in charge of CitiCorp? How have they done under him? And I like how Citi and ACORN teamed up to give people with ITIN's (i.e. illegals) better interest rates on home loans than US citizens. This started in '04. People like me who have been playing by the rules are getting the phucking shaft because we get to pay the regular interest rates. Now those people who shouldn't have bought homes in the first place are going to get their mortgages reduced. This phucking infuriates me to no end. The only way I would be fine with this is if they reduce my mortgage (and everybody else's) by the same average amount. Rubin is also part of the group of democrats that see globalization as a good thing because they see it as a way to reduce the world's poverty. But I guess I shouldn't worry because they think that giving the unemployed or homeless Americans free healthcare will make them feel better. Can't wait to go to a doctor's office and see it filled with illegals waiting to get their free healthcare.. while I have to wait my turn after them. Sometimes I think we need to kick some socialist ass... along with the asses of the neo-cons. I can't stand what they have done. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 15, 2009 14:36:21 GMT -6
Wow, some good news for a change.
Be nice if this forum had it's own category for good news. Most of what I read here is bad news.
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Post by kramer on Jan 15, 2009 14:34:23 GMT -6
Republicans need to boot the neo-cons (aka non-cons) out of the party. I'm practically ready to bail from the republican party myself because of these non-cons.
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Post by kramer on Jan 13, 2009 17:53:42 GMT -6
There is for those who are on the receiving end of these social programs and aren't working. Healthcare will be paid for somehow, by taxes or unfunded public spending or debt. I was just pointing out that the people who think the big 3 will be saved from healthcare costs if we go to universal/national healthcare are wrong. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 13, 2009 13:56:30 GMT -6
Union wages at meat packing plants used to be $20/hr. . Now they're about $11, thanks to the unions accepting illegals, no doubt in cahoots with management. I remember the Carpenters' union striking to get $24 an hour - back in 1974. . Today carpenters get about half that - not adjusted for inflation. GB Thanks for the info GB. I'm no fan of unions but what you said pisses me off. I'd rather legal union workers make more than illegal union workers. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 13, 2009 12:17:13 GMT -6
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Post by kramer on Jan 13, 2009 12:12:22 GMT -6
I'd like to know what the average or medium pay is for jobs like construction today vs 10 or 15 years ago when there were very little hispanics doing those jobs. I'd be telling if they are getting paid less (adjusted for inflation) than workers were back then.
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Post by kramer on Jan 13, 2009 11:33:32 GMT -6
Bill Moyers had Leo Gerard, Prez of United Steel Workers on Friday night. Leo said if we had universal healthcare like other countries, the big 3 wouldn't be in trouble. The big 3 and other companies will be taxed to pay for everybody's healthcare. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 12, 2009 22:03:32 GMT -6
Is it that because our representatives just aren't catching on? Or is it that they don't even care? Based on what I've read from some very well known leftist NGO's and advocacy groups, there are some very prominent democrats in favor of globalization because they are trying to reduce the world's poverty. As far as republicans, I think many of them go along with globalization because American manufacturers would probably go out of business trying to compete against cheaper made foreign goods. This is intrinsically doable — but only if we-the-people can wrest control back control of our government, and take it out of the hands of the globalist plutocrats and financial gangsters who've parasitized American workers and the American middle class. I agree 110%. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Jan 5, 2009 17:40:40 GMT -6
Obama to hire 600,000 new government employees ============================================= The president-elect says he wants to "create three million new jobs" -- this is a change from a few weeks ago, when he said he wanted the plan to create OR SAVE two million jobs. He says the "No. 1 goal of my plan ... is to create three million new jobs, more than 80 percent of them in the private sector.” If you do the math: 20 percent of three million means 600,000 new government employees. blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2009/01/prez-elect-make.htmlUsing ULC's cost for each of these new jobs ($250,000) that he calculated in another forum, those 600,000 jobs will cost us $150,000,000,000.00. [sarcasam]Why don't they just print money and give it to us all?[/sarcasam]
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Post by kramer on Jan 3, 2009 23:33:58 GMT -6
One of the engineers on this board should try to apply for the job, and find out how much they're paying. I tried to find out myself, but they won't provide any information on salary offered. It would be real interesting to find out how much they are offering. I happen to be a mixed-signal semiconductor product engineer. Too bad I my experience isn't with microprocessors.
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Post by kramer on Jan 2, 2009 15:04:17 GMT -6
This makes me angry. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Untold thousands of illegal immigrants live in public housing at a time when hundreds of thousands of citizens and legal residents are stuck waiting years for a spot. The issue made headlines in November with news that Zeituni Onyango, an aunt of President-elect Barack Obama, was living in Boston public housing while in the country illegally. The federal government, which funds the lion's share of the nation's public housing, requires only that illegal immigrants share a home with at least one family member who is in the country legally and pay their share of the rent. While there are no hard numbers on illegal immigrants in public housing, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reports that 29,570 people are "ineligible noncitizens." New York City has about 260,000 people in line for housing aid. Chicago recently opened its waiting list for the first time in about 10 years and collected 259,000 names in four weeks for 40,000 slots. "As long as that waiting list includes American citizens or legal immigrants, there's no reason an illegal alien should occupy any of that housing," news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090101/ap_on_re_us/public_housing_immigrantsYeah, this also makes me mad... Another thing that makes me mad is that the US Army has a brigade patrolling America: www.armytimes.com/news/2008/09/army_homeland_090708w/Yet we can't get decent military enforcement of our borders. Maybe our public housing needs more illegal tenants???
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Post by kramer on Dec 26, 2008 19:53:54 GMT -6
Originally from Reuters. Re-posted by Patrick.net: Mortgage Re-Defaults Rising With No Sign of Slowing22 Dec 2008 " The rate of home mortgage borrowers defaulting after their loans are modified is rising and shows no signs of leveling off, U.S. banking regulators said on Monday.
The data showed that after 6 months, nearly 37% of mortgage loans modified in the 1st quarter were 60 or more days delinquent.
After 3 months, 19% were 60 or more days delinquent or in the process of foreclosure.
"One very troubling point is that, whether measured using 30-day or 60-day delinquencies, re-default rates increased each month and showed no signs of leveling off after 6 months or even 8 months,'' John Dugan, head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, said in a statement.
The number of delinquencies rose across all loan categories, although subprime loans had the highest default rates...." www.cnbc.com/id/28352060?ref=patrick.netAnybody know how to translate the following excerpt from the above link: Here's the answer: Give those who are in danger of defaulting bigger financial breaks (i.e. you and I will be paying more of our money to help them pay for their home loans). And this pisses me off to the max, especially since I just found out yesterday that ACORN and banks like CitiBank had special sweetheart deals for low income people (including illegals) where they'd get a lower 30 year fixed rate mortage than the general public and could put less money down. The kicker is that they kept this program low key so as not to make the working idiots who are playing by the rules to buy their homes mad. The other problem I have with this is that it's going to slow down the needed correction in housing prices which means it's going to prolong this economic mess. What a bunch of frigging idiots we have running this country. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Dec 26, 2008 16:16:28 GMT -6
... along with deregulation started in the Reagan years and exacerbated by Greenspan’s monetary policies, is what brought the country to this catastrophic place, Batra says. Deregulation started in the Carter years: And I agree that Greenspan's policies played a role. But I didn't read one thing about subprime loans and their role in this economic mess. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Dec 19, 2008 17:58:22 GMT -6
The 2nd Amendment is still open to interpretation. Lets see, right after the country was formed, did government officials go around and confiscate the guns from people who weren't in a milita? No. Why? Because they intended for private citizens who aren't in a militia to keep and bear arms. This effectively ends all arguments over the 2nd amendment as far as I'm concerned.
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Post by kramer on Dec 14, 2008 18:15:16 GMT -6
I think it started with the most favored nation status granted to China in the 1980's and has been exacerbated ever since with increasingly more devastating trade policies. Clinton shares a big part of the blame with his renewal on MFN for China. www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/06/03/china.trade/Actually, it was Clinton who gave them permanent MFN (he called it PNTR) trading status and this was after the Clinton Admin and the DNC were caught receiving illegal contributions from the communist Chinese government. Kind of makes one wonder if giving them PNTR was payoff for their contributions. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Dec 14, 2008 13:00:10 GMT -6
Where's your proof? When did F&F ever 'encourage' banks to give shoddy loans? Ok, I'm pressed for time (watching football) but here are some quick points with links. If you read the scathing of HUD villagevoice link, you'll see that the Bush admin implemented every single suggestion that the previous HUD wanted when Clinton was in office. That doesn't absolve Bush of his role in this mess... But it also means that democrats get some of the blame for the fallout during Bush's time since he implemented the previous admins and HUD's plans. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Dec 13, 2008 22:55:10 GMT -6
To me, this says that the deregulation that occurred on Wall St. also led to the collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They had to offer risky loans in order to compete or lose market share. In other words, the Republican line that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac started the financial crisis is bogus. It is the other way around. I disagree, I believe F&F set the stage for this mess. Ask yourself this: If F&F never had 'encouraged' banks to give 100% loans to people with no verifiable income and who had bad credit and where the down payment was sometimes as little as $500 dollars, do you think would bank lending rules have evolved on their own to the point where banks would be making these types of loans? No frigging way. And if you were a banker and were being 'encouraged' to make these loans to people with bad credit, why wouldn't think that it's ok to make them to people with good credit? Add in the implicit backing of these loans by the government and you have the recipe for getting this mess started. On other point to consider. Both Bill Clinton and Robert Reich have said that part of the blame goes to democrats. There are other democrats who have also said this. Everybody is to blame from what I've read. And based on what I've read, I think democrats deserve more blame than republicans. Kramer
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Post by kramer on Dec 12, 2008 0:13:41 GMT -6
I missed this on Lou Dobbs today. What possible justification could there be to let ANY more workers into this country? We've lost 2 million jobs over the last year, our working age population has increased by 2 million over the last year, and the number of American officially Unemployed has increased by a whopping 3 million over the last year. Worse still, the number of Americans not working has increased by 4 million over the last year. And, last but not least, we now have 90 million working age Americans that are not employed at present. What possible need is there for more workers? We've got a labor SURPLUS to the absolute max. If this was a Bush Administration decision, then Obama's very 1st act his first day in office should be to reverse that decision. That's a no-brainer from anyone's standpoint. January is right around the corner. Then we'll see if Obama has even one populist bone in his body, or whether he's just another globalist Corporatist puke like Bush. I suspect he's globalist because I know he was at a meeting where they discussed sending jobs offshore to reduce the world's poverty (but, I don't know what he said so my assumption could be wrong). He's also big on the UN and had recently introduced a bill to pay something like 0.7% of our GDP into a UN poverty reduction fund (or something like it). I don't think this means one is a globalist but it's along the same lines... reducing world poverty at the expense of America. And btw, that effing infuriates me that I have to be taxed to pay the UN. I wish that Americans would revolt and tell the UN to kiss our asses.
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Post by kramer on Dec 10, 2008 19:27:14 GMT -6
WTF is going on here? Seriously, this really torques me. I am against these bailouts but at the least, the money should stay in the US.
This is a great site for economic information but every time I come here and read something, I leave mad.
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