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Strategies & Market Trends : The Epic American Credit and Bond Bubble Laboratory -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: GraceZ who wrote (53468)	2/11/2006 12:08:32 PM
From: shades	Respond to of 110194

The problem with the system is that it was set up as a transfer payment system. Ponzi schemes are transfer systems. They rely on an exponentially larger number of people entering on the bottom of the pyramid in order to pay off those at the top. World population data and nation pop data shows these pyramids are gonna come to an end soon. The cost of a transfer system is that money that is simply transferred from one person to another and used to pay for living expenses, the money paid in is consumed rather than invested in a productive asset. My econ prof said there are 2 reasons for a federal gubbment and formation of a nation - wealth redistribution and national defense. Robert Rubin got the deficit under control by cutting the military in clintons administration - military was consuming 6% of GDP and he knocked them down to around 3 I believe - now General CHen shows you a chart that the chinese navy will be bigger than our navy in 10 more years. Thanks robert rubin! Productive assets have the ability to be worth more in the future, as they produce future income streams which may be worth a large multiple of the original investment. Investments also benefit from the time value of money. inside.c-spanarchives.org:8080/cspan/cspan.csp?command=dprogram&record=189152556 After the Victorians: The Decline of Britain in the World English-Speaking Union Wilson, A.N., Author Washington, District of Columbia (United States) ID: 189690 - 11/10/2005 - 0:55 - $29.95 I watched this earlier today Grace - the author said the problem with imperialism, democracy or even capitalism is that people no longer have doubt in thier idealogy. They don't question themselves - like Kerry told Bush - you can be CERTAIN but be wrong. Something that is dangerous. He said we still have these PRESIDENT WILSON era type policies of bringing democracy and capitalism and such to all the citizens of the world and this is dangerous and should be questioned. England tried this in the middle east, india, and people like TE Lawrence with his 7 pillars of wisdom and Ghandi were around to document the day by day failures. He said many believe in capitalism because they think it cuts through all race, gender and other type issues and is the great equalizer. He said that was a very shallow silly view not looking at deeper religious, cultural, social, and political constructs in making the world a better place - that we have to really think about what we want a NATION to be. But then I read this today about our wonderful capitalists: http://thehousingbubbleblog.com/ “‘I feel like a drug dealer,’ he said. ‘I’m horrified at the empire of debt we’re creating.’ Mr. Cruise said some of his customers are so intent on getting loans, they won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. ‘We’re enablers. We’re just middlemen. In a sense, we profit from their foolishness.’” Seems people are too dumb to do for themselves with CROOKS like this. BUt rush limbaugh today on cavuto said the dems suck because they try to stop people from handling thier own money - well with CROOKS like this I think rush is a big fat capitalist pig and we need dems to help protect us from these snake oil fuggers. inside.c-spanarchives.org:8080/cspan/cspan.csp?command=dprogram&record=138652921 Forum Running on Empty Institute for International Economics Washington, District of Columbia (United States) ID: 183041 - 08/09/2004 - 1:41 - $29.95 Bergsten, C. Fred, Director, Institute for International Economics Rubin, Robert E., Secretary (1995-99), Department of the Treasury Peterson, Peter G., Chairman, Blackstone Group Then I watched this a little later this morning - and peter peterson and rubin said we are FUGGED - no political people have the WILL to break it to the citizens we cannot keep thier benefits up and keep funding programs we cant afford - that any tax cut without reduces in expenditure is dumping our problems on our grandkids. That we need PAYGO. Today on Fox cost of FREEDOM - ben stien said more taxes on the rich, jim rogers said no taxes and let dumb suckers control thier money with evil LOAN OFFICERS - and rush limbaugh said GO Capitalism with his 300 million in MUNI bonds - so much for stock markets. Then I read about mickey mouse and sonny bono today on Slashdot relating to this: en.wikipedia.org Mary Bono, speaking on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, noted that "Sonny wanted the term of copyright protection to last forever," but that since she was "informed by staff that such a change would violate the Constitution", Congress might consider then-Motion Pictures Association of America (MPAA) president Jack Valenti's proposal of a copyright term of "forever less one day." ...The authors of the report believed that extending copyright protection would help the United States by providing more protection for their works in foreign countries and by giving more incentive to digitize and preserve works since there was an exclusive right in them. The report also included minority opinions by Herb Kohl and Hank Brown, who believed that the term extensions were a financial windfall to current owners of copyrighted material at the expense of the public's use of the material. Well i love Sonny's music and I GOT YOU BABE was cool - but screw his dead grave if he thinks he did it all ON HIS OWN self made AYN! What crap - the society I live in that he benefits from and that I CONTRIBUTE too helped him get to where he was AYN. Cashin IN just said we are not addicted to oil - we are addicted to gubbment handouts! I seriously question your ABSOLUTE views on crony capitalism being the best thing for this world with all that I have just posted above.

To: GraceZ who wrote (53468)	2/11/2006 9:30:30 PM
From: Fiscally Conservative	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 110194

There are a tad few points worth discussing here. "There is a theoretical limit as to how much the rate could be raised from here without putting people out of work." I suppose there might be in any tax increase,but we are not close to this. Theoretical limits are in and of itself an empty box. Theories need to be proven and then practiced. This has not been the case as of yet as we still face this Social Security debate. This raise in rate needs to be done. The quicker the better and the more equitable for all concerned. Another alternative approach would be to limit payouts,as in a reduction of benefits and maybe a combination thereof. To do nothing only makes matters worse for the inevitable time line for inevitable action draws ever nearer. "15.3% is a pretty steep percentage considering the regressive nature of employment taxes." Yes,it is. The Social Security tax rate for 2006 is 15.3 percent on self-employment income up to $94,200,or roughtly half for those who are not self-employed but still employed. If your net earnings exceed $94,200, you continue to pay only the Medicare portion of the Social Security tax, which is 2.9 percent, on the rest of your earnings. That's the way it is. "For some lower income workers it is the only Federal tax they will ever pay over their lifetimes, although with the earned income credit they do get some of it back, as the earned income credit acts like a negative income tax. Raising the rate further would have the same result that raising the minimum wage would, it would result in pushing the marginally employable out of the workforce." Lower income workers are adjusted for their lower income rate via the earned income credit yet still are equitably compensated at retirement regardless of the deductible earned income credit taken prior. Society can not be responsible for those whose incomes are near poverty level. Society can be compassionate. Responsibility needs to be shoulder by the individual,as hard as that may sound. It is equitable and just. Raising the rate further would not have the same result that raising the minimum wage would by pushing the marginally employable out of the workforce. Where you ever got that idea from astounds me. Those who can not compete in the workforce will be left behind. This is the way it has always been. This is not a new phenomenem or a cause an effect reaction from an increase in the wage component. "Their production wouldn't be able to pay for the increase needed in their salaries to make up the difference in what goes to them and what goes to taxes" You have got to be kidding,right? The increase needed in their salary to replace the increased adjustment on SS would come,granted maybe not at first. Inflation adjustments for the cost of living have always been a backward looking adoption and an inexact science onto itself. That never stopped the Federal government before from rising the SS rates.