Monthly Archives: February 2010

Women Become Majority Workers

This has been on my mind ever since I heard Aaron Russo suggest the elites were behind Women’s Suffrage because they wanted to change America from a country in which half the people worked and paid taxes to a country where everyone worked and paid taxes. As it typical they hi-jacked a legitimate movement for their own purposes.

I was interested to see this report from thedailybell.com. They quote some news then offer analysis along the same lines as Aaron Russo:

At a time when the world is short of causes for celebration, here is a candidate: within the next few months women will cross the 50% threshold and become the majority of the American workforce. Women already make up the majority of university graduates in the OECD countries and the majority of professional workers in several rich countries, including the United States. Women run many of the world’s great companies, from PepsiCo in America to Areva in France. Women’s economic empowerment is arguably the biggest social change of our times. Just a generation ago, women were largely confined to repetitive, menial jobs. They were routinely subjected to casual sexism and were expected to abandon their careers when they married and had children. Today they are running some of the organisations that once treated them as second-class citizens. Millions of women have been given more control over their own lives. And millions of brains have been put to more productive use. Societies that try to resist this trend-most notably the Arab countries, but also Japan and some southern European countries-will pay a heavy price in the form of wasted talent and frustrated citizens. – Economist

Dominant Social Theme: Hurray for women …

Free-Market Analysis: The liberation of women is in our opinion another dominant social theme, one of the longest running of the power elite’s promotions. The real push for women to become part of the work force happened in the 20th century. Not surprisingly, this was the century that saw the imposition of full-fledged central banking around the world. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was still culturally a problem for women to work, but the power elite promotion was launched to make women “modern” and it is still ongoing.

If you want to implement global governance, you need to break down the family unit as much as possible. Nothing can stand in the way of the state. From the power elite’s standpoint, getting women into the workplace in the name of “equality” solved a lot of problems at once. It left children parentless during much of the day, so that the state itself could take over childcare. And without the firm guidance of the full family, many children, especially girls, became much more promiscuous at an early age which also contributed to a fracturing of private culture.

. . . . But the real reason, in our opinion, that woman’s liberation is a power-elite promotion, and a very long-running one, has to do with central banking. The erosion of fiat money earning meant inevitably that to keep up there would have to be more than one wage earner in the household. Woman’s liberation was promoted, in our opinion, as a way of making it culturally acceptable for women to work – so as to conceal the degradation of the currency.

Toyota vs. Government Motors

The media has been hyperventilating over safety concerns in Toyota vehicles, presumably for our sake. Now that the government owns and runs GM, I cannot take this news without suspicion.

Austrian Economist Patrick Barron said it best:

The U.S. government owns General Motors and now it gets to sit in judgement of GM’s most successful rival, punishing it and waging a public relations campaign to malign Toyota’s products. Sounds like another great way–in addition to the “Cash for Clunkers” program–for the government to provide a backdoor subsidy to its captive company and its union supporters.

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Toyota’s Troubles Deepen
Toyota Motor Corp.’s quality crisis deepened Tuesday, as U.S. regulators accused the company of dragging its feet on fixing defective gas pedals and threatened civil penalties and further reviews of Toyota products.

The move means that Toyota’s efforts to address its biggest-ever safety and public-relations mess are far from over. Last week, the administration indicated it had no issues with how Toyota had responded to the sudden-acceleration reports, which led the company to recall about six million vehicles and have been linked to at least five fatalities.

“While Toyota is taking responsible action now, it unfortunately took an enormous effort to get to this point,” Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood said Tuesday in a statement. “We’re not finished with Toyota and are continuing to review possible defects and monitor the implementation of the recalls.”

Mr. LaHood said Transportation Department officials flew to Japan in December to meet with Toyota executives and remind the company “about its legal obligations.”

Toyota woes mount as gov’t examines Prius brakes
Toyota faced mounting pressure Thursday as the government opened a probe of brake problems with the Prius, a crown jewel of its lineup. The beleaguered automaker said it was “too soon” to decide whether to add the hybrid to the millions of cars it has recalled.

. . . . The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it would assess the scope of the problem and the safety risk to about 37,000 cars that could be affected.

Premier: Israel to keep parts of West Bank forever

Israel’s leader declared his country’s permanent claim to parts of the West Bank on Sunday, angering Palestinians again and complicating efforts by President Barack Obama’s Mideast envoy — though the same claim was also made by previous, more moderate premiers.

Timing and context lent weight to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to two Jewish settlements and his declaration that they would remain in Israel forever. He planted a tree at one of them — Maaleh Adumim, home to about 30,000 Israelis about two miles (three kilometers) from Jerusalem — a symbolic act of ownership.

“Our message is clear: We are planting here, we will stay here, we will build here. This place will be an inseparable part of the state of Israel for eternity,” Netanyahu proclaimed, just as envoy George Mitchell was trying to restart peace talks after a yearlong stalemate. (Read more from news.yahoo.com)

Remember, they hate us because they are radical fanatics.

Ronald Reagan on Afghanistan, March 21, 1983

To watch the courageous Afghan freedom fighters battle modern arsenals with simple hand-held weapons is an inspiration to those who love freedom. Their courage teaches us a great lesson—that there are things in this world worth defending. To the Afghan people, I say on behalf of all Americans that we admire your heroism, your devotion to freedom, and your relentless struggle against your oppressors.

Smoke and Mirrors – the Fed’s Alleged Profits

A few days ago, the Fed announced that it had “earned” a record-high amount of money in 2009. Then it turned $46 billion over to the Treasury. Here we are in the midst of a serious recession, with the unemployment rate high, the housing market still in a slump, and the stock market making only small steps toward recovery. In this climate, the Fed is making profits.

That’s impressive, isn’t it? Unfortunately, the Fed’s huge earnings are a signal that the economy is still in terrible shape and that its condition is worsening.

Let us take a closer look at the Federal Reserve’s balance sheets (Read more from mises.org)

Robert Fisk: Why does the US turn a blind eye to Israeli bulldozers?

“Palestine” is no more. Call it a “peace process” or a “road map”; blame it on Barack Obama’s weakness, his pathetic, childish admission – like an optimistic doctor returning a sick child to its parents without hope of recovery – that a Middle East peace was “more difficult” to reach than he imagined.

But the dream of a “two-state” Israeli-Palestinian solution, a security-drenched but noble settlement to decades of warfare between Israelis and Palestinians is as good as dead.

Both the United States and Europe now stand idly by while the Israeli government effectively destroys any hope of a Palestinian state; even as you read these words, Israel’s bulldozers and demolition orders are destroying the last chance of peace; not only in the symbolic centre of Jerusalem itself but – strategically, far more important – in 60 per cent of the vast, biblical lands of the occupied West Bank, in that largest sector in which Jews now outnumber Muslims two to one. (Read more from independent.co.uk)

Obamanomics

Obama unveils $3.83T budget with massive deficits
President Barack Obama sent Congress a $3.83 trillion budget on Monday that would pour more money into the fight against high unemployment, boost taxes on the wealthy and freeze spending for a wide swath of government programs.

The deficit for this year would surge to a record-breaking $1.56 trillion, topping last year’s then unprecedented $1.41 trillion gap. The deficit would remain above $1 trillion in 2011 although the president proposed to institute a three-year budget freeze on a variety of programs outside of the military and homeland security. (Read more from news.yahoo.com)

Obama vows to fight for jobs in retooled message
President Barack Obama tried to revive his battered agenda and rally despondent Democrats on Friday with a renewed emphasis on jobs. (Read more from news.yahoo.com)

This lies somewhere between idiocy and shameless pandering. The pandering is evidenced in the obscene something-for-everyone budget which attempts to buy votes by sprinkling money on every special interest you’ve ever heard of. The idiocy comes from running a deficit on one hand and from presuming to create jobs on the other. In fact, government does not have the power to create jobs, because government has nothing which it doesn’t take from its people. Government only has the power to redirect jobs. Efficient, private-sector jobs must be destroyed so that in-efficient, politically motivated, public-sector jobs might be created.

Institute for Justice Senior Attorney Steve Simpson on 1st Amendment Decision

This is a good, rational discussion of a heated issue. Mr. Simpson is right about constitutionality. I’m sorry the discussion never turned to root of the problem. Lobbying is an inevitable consequence of a gigantic government that massively redistributes wealth and regulates almost every aspect of our lives. There are 34,000 registered lobbyists in Washington DC. They compete over all the money filtering through our government. If you want less lobbying, advocate less government.

Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein Will Take A $100 Million Bonus This Year

Update: Goldman Sachs says this rumor is “speculative nonsense.”

The rumor at the World Economic Forum at Davos is that Lloyd Blankfein will get $100 million this year.

“This is Lloyd thumbing his nose at Obama,” a banker at one of Goldman’s rivals told The Times.

Goldman doesn’t report the exact pay of their top executives until the end of this month, but there is good reason to believe the $100 million number is accurate.

In 2007, Blankfein got a $67.9 million bonus. In 2009, Goldman’s profits topped 2007’s by $1.8 billion. (Read more from businessinsider.com)

If Goldman were a private company operating in the free market, this wouldn’t be an issue, but Goldman Sachs takes bailouts — overt and covert — with monies taken from the American people by force.

Many people now say the government should crack down on their compensation. I say maybe, but the line between government and business should not have been perverted in the first place. The best and only regulation that works is forcing irresponsible companies to face the consequences of their behavior.

Secret Banking Cabal Emerges From AIG Shadows

Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) — The idea of secret banking cabals that control the country and global economy are a given among conspiracy theorists who stockpile ammo, bottled water and peanut butter. After this week’s congressional hearing into the bailout of American International Group Inc., you have to wonder if those folks are crazy after all.

Wednesday’s hearing described a secretive group deploying billions of dollars to favored banks, operating with little oversight by the public or elected officials.

We’re talking about the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, whose role as the most influential part of the federal-reserve system — apart from the matter of AIG’s bailout — deserves further congressional scrutiny.

The New York Fed is in the hot seat for its decision in November 2008 to buy out, for about $30 billion, insurance contracts AIG sold on toxic debt securities to banks, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Merrill Lynch & Co., Societe Generale and Deutsche Bank AG, among others. That decision, critics say, amounted to a back-door bailout for the banks, which received 100 cents on the dollar for contracts that would have been worth far less had AIG been allowed to fail. (Read more from bloomberg.com)

S&P fires warning shot at Japan

Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services today revised to negative from stable its outlook on the ‘AA’ long-term rating on Japan. . . . .

The outlook change reflects our view that the Japanese government’s diminishing economic policy flexibility may lead to a downgrade unless measures can be taken to stem fiscal and deflationary pressures.

At a forecasted 100% of GDP at fiscal year-end March 31, 2010, Japan’s net general government debt burden is among the highest for rated sovereigns.

. . . .

Japan enjoyed a highly productive, export-oriented economy for decades. Then an economic downturn in the mid-1990s, followed by the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997, shattered the bubble. The government responded by using massive stimulus spending and financial-system bailouts to maintain economic growth. Rather than jolting the economy into health, this lead to accumulating public budget deficits that were ultimately covered by government bonds, which resulted in surging government debt.

Sounds a lot like what we’re doing here.

I received this in an email from a friend, then found another occurrence of the storyhere.