Reality

Video:  Reality

House Republicans  -  See our plan for jobs and economic growth: http://jobs.GOP.gov

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Top Ten Sequester Lies

Liberty.com: By now you’ve probably heard more than you care to about this looming “sequester” and chances are good that you’ve been fed lies, cleverly disguised as fear mongering clichés, courtesy of liberals.

Does the following sound familiar? The budget sequester Obama opposed will hurt the economy, arbitrarily cut $85 billion in spending, and put hundreds of thousands of federal employees out of work; yet Republicans refuse to compromise. There are nine lies right there. Let’s break them down for the low-information voter:

1. The sequester will hurt the economy. Spending cuts don’t hurt the economy; they show investors and employers that we’re trying to resolve our debt crisis. They also pave the way for tax cuts, which—from JFK to Reagan to Clinton to Bush—have stimulated the economy.
2. Obama opposed the sequester. Obama swore to veto attempts to repeal the sequester his party stuck into the Budget Control Act. Democrats bet that in the sequester game of chicken, Republicans would flinch, because they wouldn’t be able to stomach defense cuts. Democrats bet wrong.
3. Hundreds of thousands of federal employees will lose their jobs. Whatever time these workers spend off the job, they will most likely be paid for via furlough appeals or unemployment benefits. No furloughs even begin until April, which gives negotiators a month to work things out.
4. Fires won’t be put out, crime won’t be stopped, air traffic will halt, etc. All the essential functions of government will continue during a sequester. Most agencies have ballooned since Obama took office; a return to 2009 levels isn’t going to send them into a tailspin.
5. The cuts are arbitrary. The bipartisan supercommittee hashed out the cuts in the sequester, half each from domestic and military spending. Yet propagandists make it sound as though lawmakers opened the federal registry and randomly targeted hapless employees to fire.
6. Republicans won’t compromise. Republicans didn’t consider the sequester ideal, but realized it might be the only way to force Democrats to cut spending. Republicans are willing to take a haircut on defense if Democrats will trim a whisker off the leviathan entitlement state.
7. There will be large budget cuts. The sequester will yield cuts of $85 billion—a whopping three percent of the projected $3.6 trillion 2013 spending (also known as a “budget” before Democrats came to power). The Washington Post admitted, “[S]ome White House allies worry the slow-moving sequester may fail to live up to the hype.”
8. The sequester will cut $85 billion out of the 2013 budget. Actually, it will cut only $44 billion. The $85 billion figure references the cut in “spending authority,” the other half of which Congress will merely postpone indefinitely until voters have forgotten about it.
9. The sequester will cut spending. Actually, the sequester will merely slow spending increases. Even with the sequester, the 2013 budget will be larger than in 2012. The sequester will no more cut spending than shooting a bullet through shrubbery will reverse its course.
10. Republicans can win the sequester fight. Republicans can win the sequester fight… only if they stand up and make the above points—in easy-to-digest language, with concrete examples, refutations of fear-mongering quotes, and relentless attacks on Obama for lying to Americans and treating them like children.

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Senate GOP ponders ceding power to President Obama

Sequestration: Chicken Little Not Only Fears Armageddon, He Prays For It

Senate GOP ponders ceding power to President Obama

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Sequestration In Context: US Borrows Cost Of Sequestration Every 28 Days

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‘Obama’s Mess’: Just What the Sequester Fiasco Needed…An Explosive PAC Ad

TheBlaze:  As the automatic spending cuts (i.e. the sequester) set to take effect on March 1 quickly approach and Washington, D.C., ratchets up its hand-wringing doomsday rhetoric, we wondered: What else could be added to the drama?

How about a Super PAC ad?

Good news, everyone! Crossroads GPS has got us covered:

Video - Crossroads GPS: ‘Obama’s Mess’

“The sequester is Obama’s mess. Don’t help him clean it up,” reads the video’s description.

Well, the president did play a role in this political soap opera, but he wasn’t alone:

Yes, as TheBlaze mentioned a few days ago, “the sequester is the result of a deal struck by Congress in 2011, the president signed off on it, and now no one wants to take responsibility for it.”

(@BecketAdams) on Twitter  -  Featured image screen grab.

Related:

Rand Paul: Sequester Is A Pittance

Flashback Video: Obama said he would veto any attempt to stop Sequestration

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More Americans Will Use Food Stamps For Thanksgiving This Year Than Ever Before and TANSTAAFL Is About To Become A Common Term

More Americans Will Use Food Stamps For Thanksgiving This Year Than Ever Before

By Elizabeth Flock - November 20, 2012 RSS Feed Print

More Americans will use food stamps to buy their Thanksgiving dinner this year than ever before, according to a new report from the nonprofit government watchdog group The Sunlight Foundation.

[PHOTOS: Presidents Pardoning Turkeys, Meeting Dinner]

The Food Stamp Challenge, which challenges higher-income families to live as if they are on food stamps, estimates that a person on food stamps has a budget of about $1.25 per meal. In other words, a family on food stamps must buy an entire meal per person for less than the cost of an average cup of coffee.

Usage of food stamps among low and no-income families has spiked since the collapse of the U.S. financial system four years ago. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, average participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamp program, has increased 70 percent since 2007. And economists have warned that usage of food stamps won't go down until unemployment improves.

[SANTORUM: Only Buy USA-Made Christmas Gifts]

This Thanksgiving, 42.2 million Americans will be on food stamps, according to the Economic Policy Institute. This is roughly the size of the populations of California and Connecticut combined.

Not surprisingly, feeding millions of Americans isn't cheap. The cost of the SNAP program last year reached $72 billion, the highest to date, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

[ENJOY: The U.S. News Collection of Obama Cartoons]

Those costs are a source of major contention in Congress, which stalled on a bundle of legislation known as the farm bill this summer because it could not agree how much money should be spent on food stamps. The farm bill, which directs the nation's food policy, devotes about 80 percent of its budget to the food stamp program.

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TANSTAAFL Is About To Become A Common Term

The disintegration of an economy and a society can take two courses. One course is like rust. It is slow and barely perceptible. The other is a sudden collapse. The first course, if left untended, eventually  turns into the second.

The US economy is now rusting away. Arguably it has been for decades. For anyone interested in looking, the signs are there. They will soon become unavoidable for even the most disinterested of our citizens.

Dan Amos correctly described what is happening as a result of Washington’s overbearing involvement in the economy:

All government-directed economic activity grows at the expense of the private sector. And the election suggests that government coercion will drive even more U.S. economic activity in the future. This is a shame, because freely adjusting prices, competition, and innovation elevate living standards. Mandates, price controls, and subsidies — coercive actions — depress living standards. Quality falls. Shortages develop and persist.

Mr. Amos is correct but does not forcefully convey the reality of a dying economy. These effects are beginning to appear.

Many businessmen hung on, hoping for a change in the madness that passes for economic leadership and policy. These hopes were dashed with the re-election of the ideologue driving the madness. Obama won the electoral college, but not the confidence of business. They are just beginning to cast their votes and it does not bode well for the future. Here is a partial list of the business reactions to the outcome of the election:

LAYOFFS ANNOUNCED SINCE ELECTION:

1. Abbott Labs 700
2. Activision 30
3. Adventist Health 48
4. Airlines SAS 6000
5. AMD 400
6. American Cotton Growers 110
7. ArcelorMittal 20
8. American Independence Museum 4
9. Ameridose 790
10. American Airlines 4400 + 800 leaving voluntarily
11. American Coal 54
12. Atlantic Lottery Corporation 16
13. Assc Milk Producers 130
14. Aveo Oncology 45
15. ATI 172
16. Bankia 5000
17. Bechtel Power Corp 277
18. Bigpoint Games 47
19. Boston Scientific 1200
20. Brake Parts LLC 75
21. Brattleboro Retreat 31
22. Bristol Myers 500
23. Career Education 900 + Closing 23 Campuses
24. Cigna 1300
25. Citigroup 100
26. Commerzbank 6000
27. Consol Energy in W.V. 145
28. Covidien 595
29. Crouse Hospital Syracuse NY 70
30. Cummins 150
31. CVPH 27
32. DEP in Tallahassee FL 15
33. DuPont, Co. 64
34. Eagle-Tribune, Andover 21
35. Emanuel Medical Cente 24
36. Energizer Holdings 1500
37. Ericsson 1550
38. Exide Tech, Laureldale 150
39. City of Findlay, OH 39
40. First Energy 400
41. Gameforge Berlin 20
42. Gamesa Energy 92
43. GenOn Energy Inc 33
44. Glen Falls Hospital 29
45. Groupon 80
46. GT Advanced Tech 165
47. Harris’ Broadcast 17
48. Hawker Beechcraft 400 + Facilities closing
49. Hill Rom 200
50. Hills Holdings 300
51. HMX Group 567
52. Hostess 627
53. Iberia Airlines 4500
54. ICM of Colwich 25
55. ING 2350
56. Judson University 21
57. Juniper Networks 500
58. Kaiser Permanente 84
59. Kinetic Concepts 427
60. Kratos Defense Security 125
61. Lackawanna County PA 11
62. Lightyear Network Solutions 12+
63. Lonza 500
64. Majestic Star Casino/hotel 80
65. Major Wind Company 3000
66. Martha Stewart Living 70
67. Medtronic 1000
68. Mills Manufacturing NC 68
69. Momentive, Inc. 150
70. Monitor Group 235
71. Montco Behavioral Health/Dev 58
72. NBC 500
73. Nebraska Medical Center 38
74. Neovia Logistics Services 52
75. New Energy 40
76. Ormet 200
77. Panasonic 10000
78. PayPal 320
79. Penn Refrigeration 40
80. Penske Logistics 50
81. Pepsi 4000
82. Philips Electronics 218
83. Pierce Mfg 325
84. Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne 100
85. Research in Motion 200
86. Rheem Manufacturing 50
87. Sentry Foods 70
88. Shaw’s Supermarket 700
89. Shawano foundry WI 90
90. Smith & Nephew 770
91. Smithfield Packing Co. 125
92. Solel Solar Systems 140
93. Southeastern Container 15
94. SpaceX 100
95. SRA Intl Inc 222
96. St. Jude Medical 300
97. Stryker 1170
98. Sulake 60
99. Sun Media 500
100. TE Connectivity 620
101. TECO Coal Corporation 90
102. Texas Instruments 1700
103. The Providence Journal Co 23
104. TMX Group Ltd. 100
105. Turbocare 220
106. Turkey Point Nuclear Plant 277
107. Oce North America, Inc. 135
108. Turbocare OCE 220
109. UBS 10000
110. US Cellular 980
111. UtahAmerican Energy Inc 102
112. Volvo Trucks Pulaski County 300
113. Wake Forest Baptist Medical 950
114. Welch Allyn 275
115. West Ridge Mine 102
116. Westinghouse 50
117. World Media Enterprises Inc 105
118. WPS Health Insurance 600
119. Wright Patterson AFB 115
120. Wyodak Coal Mine 11
121. Xerox 2500
122. Yakima Reg Med Ctr Washington 10+

ANNOUNCED BUSINESS CLOSURES SINCE ELECTION:

1. Bakers Footwear closing 150 stores nationwide, including 21 in California
2. The SCA plant in Barton – Plans Staff Reductions
3. Handy Hardware to close its 2-year-old Meridian, Miss. warehouse
4. Caterpillar Inc. will close its plant in Owatonna Minn.
5. Waltz Pharmacy in Waldoboro Maine
6. Zac’s Place in Hinsdale IL
7. Lone Star Steakhouse at 70th and O streets and Ruby Tuesday at 56th Street in
8. Lincoln NE
9. Career Education Corp – Closing 23 Campuses – 900 Jobs Lost
10. Handy Hardware to close its 2-year-old Meridian, Miss. warehouse
11. Shamrock Bar at Payne City’s Rose Avenue. in GA
12. Monitor Company Group LP
13. ThinkEquity LLC
14. Homer City Funding LLC
15. Caterpillar Inc. will close its plant in Owatonna Minn.
16. Mount Pleasant’s Albrecht Sentry Foods
17. The Target store at Manassas Mall Va.
18. Millennium Academy in Wake Forest NC
19. Target Closing Kissimmee FL Location
20. Calgary’s iconic Rideau Music store ( International )
21. The Andover Gift Shop in Andover MA
22. Grand Union Family Markets Closing Storrs Location CT
23. Movie Scene Milford Location NH
24. Update: TE Connectivity Closing Greensboro Plant – 620 Layoffs Expected
25. Gomer’s Fried Chicken in South Kansas City
26. Kmart in Homer Glen
27. Fresh Market on Pine Street in Burlington
28. AGC Glass North America to permanently close its Blue Ridge Plant in Kingsport Tenn.
29. The Target store at Platte and Academy in Colorado Springs
30. Island Colors – A Carolina Beach Clothing Store
31. The Roses store on Reynold Road in Winston-Salem NC
32. Meanders Kitchen losing its West Seattle location at 6032 California Ave
33. Bost Harley-Davidson at 46th Avenue North and Delaware Ave. in West Nashville TN
34. Townsend Booksellers in Oakland
35. The Kmart store in Parkway Plaza off University Drive in Durham NC – 79 Jobs Lost
36. Guarantee Shoe Store in Beaumont Texas
37. Associated Milk Producers Inc. Closing manufacturing facility in Dawson Minn. – 130
38. Jobs Lost
39. FacadeTek Inc Closes Whitestown Facility – 72 Jobs Lost
40. Comet Market in Punxsutawney Pa.
41. JC Penney store in Miracle City Mall Titusville FL
42. TurboCare Inc Closing Manchester CT Facility – 88
43. The United Colors of Benetton store on Armitage Avenue IL
44. Update: Bicycle shop Ten 27 Cycles 1027 Davis St. in Evanston IL
45. Two Sears Product Rebuild Centers in The Woodlands Texas
46. FesslerUSA Clothing Maker Closing in PA
47. Ralph Lauren’s plans to close its 14 stand-alone Rugby locations
48. Nashville Sash & Door Co. Inc Tenn.
49. First Portuguese church in North America in Bedford Mass Closing?
50. International Fashions in Carbondale’s University Mall IL
51. Harper’s Old Army Surplus Store in West Monroe La
52. Nova Financial Holdings
53. The Party Warehouse in West Springfield Mass.
54. TLC Wine and Liquor at 1205 W. Main St in Kent Ohio?
55. The HAPPY Place 1042 N Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, CA
56. Air Carrier Accessory Services – Chapter 7
57. SOW Inc. shelter on South Broad Street GA?
58. Systemax Inc., Closing Miami County Ohio Computer Plant – 120 Jobs Lost
59. Textbook publisher McGraw-Hill Cos. Closing 2 Distribution Centers – 166 Layoffs
60. First Place Financial Corp
61. Nash Finch Closing Cedar Rapids Iowa Food Distribution Center
62. Johnnie’s Foodmaster MA Closing all 10 Locations
63. Rainbow Foods will be closing its Forest Lake location MN – 59 Layoffs
64. Berry’s Camera Shop Inc. in Downtown Lafayette
65. Schreiber Foods to close their food packaging plant in Ravenna – 70 Jobs Lost
66. Kmart store at 5300 Salem Ave. Trotwood Ohio
67. Mr.Christie plant in Toronto ( International ) 2013 – 550 Jobs Lost
68. Coffee with T cafe in Stevenson Village business MD
69. Minas Basin Pulp and Power are closing a mill in Hantsport ( International ) – 135

ACTUAL LAYOFFS:

1. The Colonial Country Shoppe on Park Street in Adams MA
2. Vestas Wind Systems Closing R&D; Office in Louisville – 60 Jobs Lost
3. Dollar Castle in downtown Ferndale MI
4. Bistro One West in St Charles IL
5. Sun Dog Diner in Neptune Beach FL
6. Jim’s Builders Hardware in Wichita, Kansas
7. Madeleines Bakehouse in Fort Wayne Indiana
8. Barnes & Noble plans to close its doors in Union Station Dec. 31
9. The Semiahmoo Hotel in Blaine Washington
10. Highland Curves CA
11. The Salem Sport Shop in Salem Ohio
12. Navistar International Corp. to Close truck assembly plant in Garland, Texas – 900
13. Jobs Lost
14. Divine Mercy Catholic Books & Gifts Denton Texas
15. Singer Mental Health Center in Rockford IL
16. Garelick Farms Ends Production at Bangor Maine Facility
17. Fashion Tech Window Coverings in Portland?
18. Custom House Tavern Chicago IL.
19. Jim’s Builders Hardware in Delano
20. Lone Star Steakhouse at 1801 22nd St. in West Des Moines
21. Sears to Close Woodlands Product Rebuild Center – 117 Jobs Lost
22. Whitehead Inc Rockford Real Estate Company
23. Robert’s Mens Shop in Downtown New Philadelphia Ohio
24. Fort Tecumseh Olde Fashun Store in Ohio
25. Lakewood Beginnings Child Development Center in Lakewood Ohio
26. Green Fields Seed & Feed in Grand Junction Colo.
27. The Army and Navy Store in Melrose Mass.
28. Vitalistic Therapeutic charter school PA
29. Diamond Foods Inc Closing a plant in Fishers Indiana
30. Old Town Alehouse 5233 Ballard Ave in Seattle
31. Space Aliens restaurants in Minot and Grand Forks ND
32. DeWaay Financial Network LLC
33. Sears at Quail Springs Mall Oklahoma City OK.
34. Fashion Bug in O’Fallon MO is closing in January
35. Kmart Store in Oak Hill W. Va
36. Update: Jett & Hall men’s clothing store in Richmond KY
37. D.C. school List of Possible Schools Closing to Be released Later today
38. Dunkin’ Donuts in Holly Hill FL
39. Hostess Brands Inc Permanently Closing 3 Bakeries Following a Nationwide Strike
40. Philips Electronics subsidiary Lightolier will close its local fluorescent light
41. fixture manufacturing plant in Willington
42. Smithfield Packing Co. will close in 2013, laying off a total of 400 employees
43. SuperFresh outlets in Marlton and Westmont NJ
44. The Bagel Shoppe in Katonah NY
45. Ben Franklin and Homestead House Gifts in the Kimball Ridge Center in Waterloo IA
46. Several West Virginia Suzuki dealerships Being Forced to Close
47. Kowalski Cos Closing All 4 of its Metro Detroit Delis but to Continue Food
48. Production
49. Three Memphis charter schools and one in Nashville Tenn. Could Close Due to Poor
50. Test Scores
51. The Custer School District SD – Closing 2 Rural Schools
52. The Dressing Room, on North Lincoln Avenue IL
53. The Utica office of IBOPE NY

BANKRUPTCIES:

1. AMF Bowling Worldwide Inc
2. Aletheia Research & Management Inc
3. Omtron USA
4. Helmkampf Construction in Olivette
5. Clear Light Publishers
6. Monitor Company Group LP
7. ThinkEquity LLC
8. Homer City Funding LLC
9. US Suzuki Distributor – Chapter 11
10. Revolt Technology

This list should frighten every thinking American. It is a huge warning regarding what lies ahead. These changes are coming to an economy that is already unable to provide jobs or sustain living standards.

Decline is a slow process, until it becomes fast. It is not easy to see at first. It should be obvious to most that our economy is approaching a critical stage. When you have destroyed the trust and confidence of business, there will be no job creation.

Some parting words are in order for those responsible for the decisions reflected above. Shutting down and giving up is anathema to the spirit that built this country and is now only found among our entrepreneurial class. It goes against the very fiber that drives success. It is a last resort for entrepreneurs.

The decision to quit is lonely, involves guilt, self-doubt and remorse. It is the last act for someone that has tried everything to avoid it. Giving up and withdrawing is not an act of retribution. People do not willingly choose to go to Galt’s figurative gulch. They are forced there.

While the masses exult in the continuation of their  food stamps, cell phones and other booty, the real story of this election is yet to be told. The nation is about to find out that policies and elections have consequences more important than free stuff.

The war against private enterprise can no longer be denied. President Obama’s re-election ensures that it will continue and likely accelerate. The makers are beginning to give up. The takers don’t have a clue. Soon the country is going to get a real-life lesson in economics. TANSTAAFL (There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch) is about to be learned.

View article...

Stephanie S. Jasky, Founder, Director - FedUpUSA.org -  h/t to Tony Caputo

"America is at that awkward stage. It's too late to work within the system, but too early to shoot the bastards." -- Claire Wolfe

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Technorati Tags: food stamps,holidays,Thanksgivings,joblessness,TANSTAAFL,economy,layoffs,ObamaCare,taxes,jobs

Customer Deposits Are Property of the Bank: Close Your Account NOW

By Susanne Posel - heintelhub.com - August 24, 2012 – h/t to MJ

In June of 2012, Eric Bloom, former chief executive, and Charles Mosely, head trader of Sentinel Management Group (SMG) were indicted for stealing $500 million in customer secured funds.

Both Mosely and Bloom were accused of “exposing” customer segregated funds “to a portfolio of highly risky derivatives.”

These customer funds were used to “back up personal investments” which were part of “collateral for a loan from Bank of New York Mellon” (BNYM).

This loan derived from stolen customer monies was “used to purchase millions of dollars worth of high-risk, illiquid securities, including collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, for a trading portfolio that benefited Sentinel’s officers, including Mosley, Bloom and certain Bloom family members.”

Fast forward to August 9th of 2012, and the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals (CCA) rules that BNYM can be moved to first in line of creditors over the customers that had their funds stolen by SMG.

When a banking customer deposits their money into their bank account, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SPIC) are in place to protect the customer from fraud or theft.

The ruling from the CCA means that these regulatory systems will not insure customer funds, investments, depositors and retirees who hold accounts in banks.

In fact, the banking institution is now legally allowed to use those customer funds deposited as collateral, payment on debts for loans made, or free use on the stock market to purchase investments as the bank sees fit.

Fred Grede, SMG trustee, explained that brokers are no longer required to keep customer money separate from their own. “It does not bode well for the protection of customer funds.”

Since the ruling gives banks the right to co-mingle customer funds with their own, no crime can be committed for the use of customer deposited monies.

According to Walker Todd , former lawyer for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Cleveland:

“Basically, there is a new 7th Circuit opinion saying that there is no reason to impose a constructive trust on a lender’s takings of customers’ funds from client commodity firms that were used (inappropriately) to secure the firms’ borrowings, as long as the lender can say that it did not know WITH CERTAINTY that customers’ funds were being repledged. Negligence and misappropriation (vs. knowing criminal intent) are now a sufficient excuse for letting the lender keep the money and go to the head of the line for distributions in bankruptcies of the client commodity firms.”

When a customer deposits money into a bank, the bank essentially issues a promise to have those funds available when the customer returns to withdraw the deposited amount.

When the same customer withdraws funds from their account (whether checking or savings) the customer assumes that the bank has enough funds to cover their withdrawal; including the presumption that their monies are separate from the bank’s assets.

Now, those funds are up for grabs by the bank at their discretion without explanation to the customer – nor is the bank obligated to recoup the customer should they “lose” those funds due to bad loans, bankruptcy or stock market loss.

In Texas, Pamela Cobb, manager of Bank of America (BoA), stole an estimated $2 million from customer funds for personal use. Cobb had been taking customer segregated funds since 2002.

Customers have complained of fraudulent charges placed on their accounts that BoA cannot explain. When the customer brings these charges to the in-house fraud department, they are given the run-around until they acquiesce.

Other customers have had their private possessions stolen right out of their safety deposit box held at BoA. The safety deposit box was drilled into and the contents shipped to the BoA corporate holding center in South Carolina.

In 1992 to 2003, Citibank called their theft of customer funds “account sweeping” wherein they stole more than $14 million from customers nationally.

Using computerized credit card processes to remove positive and negative balances from customers, the scheme included double payments or funds paid out on returned purchases that were then attributed back to the customer.

At Chase bank, an anonymous employee opened an account under a customer name (targeting an Alzheimer’s sufferer), complete with a personal debit card.

An estimated $300 per day was withdrawn on the fraudulent account. When family representing the victim alerted Chase, they brushed them off with an internal investigation claim – even as the family sought legal action.

Banking fraud against the elderly has risen of late, since banks realize they can steal massive amounts of cash from their aging customers with little to no repercussions.

The recent ruling on SMG has given the banking industry the legal backing they have been lacking when stealing from their customers.

Our financial institutions have been planning for a financial collapse wherein the US government will not offer assistance.

The resolution plans required by the Federal Reserve Bank, described schemes to have the major domestic banks remain afloat by selling off assets, finding alternative sources of funding, reducing risky measures that make a quick buck. These strategies were to be perfected with “no assumption of extraordinary support from the public sector.”

The mega-banks, through Wall Street, are also acquiring firearms, ammunition and control over private mercenary corporations like DynCorp and ‘Blackwater” as authorized by the Department of Defense (DoD) directive 3025.18 .

DynCorp is a military-based private mercenary contractor that provides (among other services) intelligence training and support, international security, contingency plans and operations. Ninety-six percent of their funding is based on annual revenues from the US federal government.

The international branch of DynCorp has operated as a “police force” even assisting local law enforcement during Hurricane Katrina.

Named as investors for the amassing of gun and ammunition manufacturers are Citibank, BoA, Barclays and Deutsche Bank who are pouring money into Cerebus and Veritas Equity who have taken over private corporations involved in the controlling riot situations.

The Federal Reserve Bank, one of the heads of banking cartels, has their own police force which operates as a protective security for the Fed against the American public.

As part of the Federal Reserve Act signed in 1913, the designation of a Federal Law Enforcement – special police officers that are exclusively regulated by authority of the Fed (whether in uniform or plain clothes.

These specialized police officers (who train with Special Response Teams) can work in tandem with local law enforcement or US federal agencies. These officers are heavily armed with semi-automatic pistols, sub machine guns and assault rifles as well as body armor.

Of recent, when withdrawing cash from an ATM, the daily allotted amount has decreased with some banks, thereby forcing the customer to go into the branch and extract the difference with a teller.

At this point, according to anonymous informants, the customer is taken into a backroom to be questioned as to why they want the cash, what they are purchasing with the cash, why they are not choosing to use a debit card or another form of digital trade to make the purchase. These questions are not only intrusive, they are illegal.

Some anonymous sources have said that banking representatives who conduct the integrations are directed to keep a record of customer responses on an online application that will be sent to the FBI in conjunction with Patriot Act mandates on tracking banking activity.

Customer funds are no longer secure, no longer backed by the FDIC or other insurance corporations, and banks are legally allowed to co-mingled customer money with other funds of the bank. The only safe place for your money is with you.

Now is the time to close your bank account.

Susanne Posel is the Chief Editor of Occupy Corporatism Our alternative news site is dedicated to reporting the news as it actually happens; not as it is spun by the corporate-funded mainstream media. You can find us on our Facebook page.

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Technorati Tags: DOD,Banks,Big Brother,banksters,money,BoA,New Economic World Order,global elites,NWO,Blackwater,DynCorp,FDIC,Deutsche Bank,Barclays,Cerebus,Veritas Equity,savings,your savings,Citibank,Federal Reserve,private army,SMG,preparedness,BNYM,the FED,banking cartels,International bankers,investors money,survival

Obama Assists Bain Takeover at OMB and Tries to Hide It

Red State:

It looks like President Obama is assisting in a friendly takeover of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), by Bain Capital.

As you may have heard, earlier this year Obama picked Jeff Zients to lead the OMB. You might not have heard that Zients worked at Bain from 1988-1990. The Zients White House biography did not originally admit that fact.

Now Obama has appointed another former Bain consultant, Boris Bershteyn, to head the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), which is part of the OMB. Recognizing how awkward this is for Obama’s re-election campaign, Bershteyn’s tenure at Bain has been edited out of his official White House bio. This is an obvious and glaring attempt to hide Obama’s friendly Bain takeover of the OMB.

The audacity of Obama’s hypocrisy in attempting to hide his Bain takeover of the OMB, while continuing to attack Romney’s private sector service at Bain and refusing to condemn the despicable ad by an Obama-supporting super PAC that attempts to link Romney to a woman’s death from cancer (completely unfounded), knows no bounds.

Even worse, Obama’s Bain takeover of the OMB completely undermines the core of the Obama campaign’s argument about Romney’s private-sector experience. After all, just last month last month Obama said:

“When some people question why I would challenge his Bain record, the point I’ve made there in the past is, if you’re a head of a large private-equity firm or hedge fund, your job is to make money… That’s part of the American way. That’s part of the system. But that doesn’t necessarily make you qualified to think about the economy as a whole, because as president, my job is to think about the workers. My job is to think about communities, where jobs have been outsourced.”

Obama has obviously changed his mind, and private-sector experience at Bain no longer disqualifies one from public service. The proof is in the pudding, Obama just appointed another Bain man to be head of Regulatory Affairs, arguably one of the administration positions most impactful to Americans’ lives and well-being. The Bain argument has always been a nothing-burger designed to distract the media and voters from the real issues. Obama himself just proved it.

This obviously shows that Bain Capital types and it’s Founder Mitt Romney are much more suited to fix the economic crisis America faces than the overwhelmed and inexperienced President Obama and his advisors who helped put us here. Guess Team Obama is just giving Team Romney a head start  with these appointments!!  Add the Ryan, Chairman of the House Budget Committee VP pick to the equation and the choice in November is clear and obvious!

“Obama Appoints 2 Former Bain Consultants.....What A Hypocrite!” …City-Data Forum

h/t to MJ

Related:

Obama puts another Bain alum in his budget office ... –  You just can’t make this stuff up!

Energy Loan Watchdog is an Obama Donor

Court strikes down EPA coal rule

CBO warns of significant recession if Congress doesn’t act to avoid fiscal cliff  -  Predictions have worsened because Obama’s economy is so much worse than expected (Just announced another 4000 jobs lost since last week.)

Exposed: The “Free” Energy Hoax 

Pew Report: Middle Class Has Suffered 'Worst Decade in Modern History'

Seems both the Occidental and Columbia College Records of President Obama’s show he is listed as a FOREIGN EXCHANGE STUDENT  -  and indicate that Obama attended "under the name Barry Soetoro and received financial aid as a foreign student… Connection Here?  It shows a pattern of a lifetime of smoke & mirrors and lies…  How can we trust him to lead our country and make decisions for us and future generations…

Haven’t heard about most of this?  Gallup: 60 Percent of Americans Believe Media Are Biased Toward Obama and the Left

Technorati Tags: Bain Capital,smoke and mirrors,Obamaland,OMB,OIRA,Mitt Romney 2012,Romney-Ryan,Liar-in-Chief,one-term Obama,Office of Management and Budget,debt,finance,economic crisis,Obama hypocracy,CBO,EPA

Shocking Newsweek Cover: Hit the Road, Barack - Why We Need a New President - Updated

NewsBusters:

After some of the recent Obama-loving/Romney-bashing Newsweek covers, the one hitting newsstands Monday is guaranteed to turn some heads.

Under the picture of our dear leader are the words, "Hit the Road, Barack: Why We Need a New Leader."

The article is written by Niall Ferguson, a British historian and economist that backed John McCain in 2008.

After an introduction, Ferguson made his case:

In his inaugural address, Obama promised “not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth.” He promised to “build the roads and bridges, the electric grids, and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together.” He promised to “restore science to its rightful place and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost.” And he promised to “transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age.” Unfortunately the president’s scorecard on every single one of those bold pledges is pitiful.

He continued:

[T]he total number of private-sector jobs is still 4.3 million below the January 2008 peak. Meanwhile, since 2008, a staggering 3.6 million Americans have been added to Social Security’s disability insurance program. This is one of many ways unemployment is being concealed.

In his fiscal year 2010 budget—the first he presented—the president envisaged growth of 3.2 percent in 2010, 4.0 percent in 2011, 4.6 percent in 2012. The actual numbers were 2.4 percent in 2010 and 1.8 percent in 2011; few forecasters now expect it to be much above 2.3 percent this year.

Unemployment was supposed to be 6 percent by now. It has averaged 8.2 percent this year so far. Meanwhile real median annual household income has dropped more than 5 percent since June 2009. Nearly 110 million individuals received a welfare benefit in 2011, mostly Medicaid or food stamps.

Welcome to Obama’s America: nearly half the population is not represented on a taxable return—almost exactly the same proportion that lives in a household where at least one member receives some type of government benefit. We are becoming the 50–50 nation—half of us paying the taxes, the other half receiving the benefits.

And all this despite a far bigger hike in the federal debt than we were promised. According to the 2010 budget, the debt in public hands was supposed to fall in relation to GDP from 67 percent in 2010 to less than 66 percent this year. If only. By the end of this year, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), it will reach 70 percent of GDP. These figures significantly understate the debt problem, however. The ratio that matters is debt to revenue. That number has leapt upward from 165 percent in 2008 to 262 percent this year, according to figures from the International Monetary Fund. Among developed economies, only Ireland and Spain have seen a bigger deterioration.

Ferguson also took aim at the media's coverage of Obama:

Yet the public mistakes his administration’s astonishingly uninhibited use of political assassination for a coherent strategy. According to the Bureau of Investigative Journalism in London, the civilian proportion of drone casualties was 16 percent last year. Ask yourself how the liberal media would have behaved if George W. Bush had used drones this way. Yet somehow it is only ever Republican secretaries of state who are accused of committing “war crimes.”

Indeed. As we've seen in the past three and a half years, Obama can do virtually anything he wants and his media will either applaud or look the other away.

That said, after spending the bulk of his lengthy piece chronicling the current White House resident's missteps, Ferguson spoke glowingly about Paul Ryan:

He is one of only a handful of politicians in Washington who is truly sincere about addressing this country’s fiscal crisis....But one thing is clear. Ryan psychs Obama out. This has been apparent ever since the White House went on the offensive against Ryan in the spring of last year. And the reason he psychs him out is that, unlike Obama, Ryan has a plan—as opposed to a narrative—for this country. [...]

The voters now face a stark choice. They can let Barack Obama’s rambling, solipsistic narrative continue until they find themselves living in some American version of Europe, with low growth, high unemployment, even higher debt—and real geopolitical decline.

Or they can opt for real change: the kind of change that will end four years of economic underperformance, stop the terrifying accumulation of debt, and reestablish a secure fiscal foundation for American national security.

And this is actually Newsweek's cover story this week making one ask a simple question: Why?

Since Tina Brown's Daily Beast took over the failing magazine, it has been one of the most left-leaning publications in the country.

So why with less than three months to go before Election Day would they publish a 3,200-word cover story severely criticizing Obama whilst basically endorsing his opponent?

Could it be the Daily Beast/Newsweek combination has not been attracting the kind of readership they expected, and they believe a little objectivity was in order?

Or is this just a tiny dose of conservatism before a deluge of the most biased Obama-loving/Romney-bashing imaginable?

As the late Ed Hart used to say, we will know in the fullness of time.

(HT NB reader Dave Smith)

About the Author

Noel Sheppard is the Associate Editor of NewsBusters.

The article behind the Newsweek latest edition…

Niall Ferguson: Obama’s Gotta Go

Originally posted Aug 19, 2012 1:00 AM EDT

Why does Paul Ryan scare the president so much? Because Obama has broken his promises, and it’s clear that the GOP ticket’s path to prosperity is our only hope.

I was a good loser four years ago. “In the grand scheme of history,” I wrote the day after Barack Obama’s election as president, “four decades is not an especially long time. Yet in that brief period America has gone from the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. to the apotheosis of Barack Obama. You would not be human if you failed to acknowledge this as a cause for great rejoicing.”

Despite having been—full disclosure—an adviser to John McCain, I acknowledged his opponent’s remarkable qualities: his soaring oratory, his cool, hard-to-ruffle temperament, and his near faultless campaign organization.

Yet the question confronting the country nearly four years later is not who was the better candidate four years ago. It is whether the winner has delivered on his promises. And the sad truth is that he has not.

In his inaugural address, Obama promised “not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth.” He promised to “build the roads and bridges, the electric grids, and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together.” He promised to “restore science to its rightful place and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost.” And he promised to “transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age.” Unfortunately the president’s scorecard on every single one of those bold pledges is pitiful.

In an unguarded moment earlier this year, the president commented that the private sector of the economy was “doing fine.” Certainly, the stock market is well up (by 74 percent) relative to the close on Inauguration Day 2009. But the total number of private-sector jobs is still 4.3 million below the January 2008 peak. Meanwhile, since 2008, a staggering 3.6 million Americans have been added to Social Security’s disability insurance program. This is one of many ways unemployment is being concealed.

In his fiscal year 2010 budget—the first he presented—the president envisaged growth of 3.2 percent in 2010, 4.0 percent in 2011, 4.6 percent in 2012. The actual numbers were 2.4 percent in 2010 and 1.8 percent in 2011; few forecasters now expect it to be much above 2.3 percent this year.

Unemployment was supposed to be 6 percent by now. It has averaged 8.2 percent this year so far. Meanwhile real median annual household income has dropped more than 5 percent since June 2009. Nearly 110 million individuals received a welfare benefit in 2011, mostly Medicaid or food stamps.

Welcome to Obama’s America: nearly half the population is not represented on a taxable return—almost exactly the same proportion that lives in a household where at least one member receives some type of government benefit. We are becoming the 50–50 nation—half of us paying the taxes, the other half receiving the benefits.

Niall Ferguson discusses Obama's broken promises on ‘Face the Nation.’

And all this despite a far bigger hike in the federal debt than we were promised. According to the 2010 budget, the debt in public hands was supposed to fall in relation to GDP from 67 percent in 2010 to less than 66 percent this year. If only. By the end of this year, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), it will reach 70 percent of GDP. These figures significantly understate the debt problem, however. The ratio that matters is debt to revenue. That number has leapt upward from 165 percent in 2008 to 262 percent this year, according to figures from the International Monetary Fund. Among developed economies, only Ireland and Spain have seen a bigger deterioration.

Not only did the initial fiscal stimulus fade after the sugar rush of 2009, but the president has done absolutely nothing to close the long-term gap between spending and revenue.

His much-vaunted health-care reform will not prevent spending on health programs growing from more than 5 percent of GDP today to almost 10 percent in 2037. Add the projected increase in the costs of Social Security and you are looking at a total bill of 16 percent of GDP 25 years from now. That is only slightly less than the average cost of all federal programs and activities, apart from net interest payments, over the past 40 years. Under this president’s policies, the debt is on course to approach 200 percent of GDP in 2037—a mountain of debt that is bound to reduce growth even further. Read full article HERE

Related:

SE Cupp Thoroughly Thrashes MSNBC Host’s ‘Racist Code’ Conspiracy Theory

Technorati Tags: Newsweek,rats deserting the ship,Obama lies,real hope and change,SE Cupp,media,MSM,campaign lies,changing winds,news and politics,politics,Election 2012,2012 Election

Optimism for a Change

By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton – The Noisy Room

My husband and I woke up this morning at 6 AM to the happy news of Mitt Romney’s VP choice – Paul Ryan. Seriously – we were so happy we were laughing and crying. Optimism for a change.

Wielding an economic sword, with a military backdrop and the shield of faith, Romney and Ryan will wipe the progressive floor with action, devotion and truth. Time for the Snoopy Dance! Ryan is the Tea Party pick and with a devout mindset, the line between the light and the dark has been drawn and sides are now chosen. I choose the light.

Can you imagine the gnashing of teeth on the left with a humble Mormon and a devout Catholic saying the kinds of things Reagan used to say and meaning it? Furthermore, can you imagine a debate between the intellectual leader of the conservative movement and the progressive… what would you call him? The progressive jester? Fool? Dunce? Incompetent nitwit? So many choices, so many idiots.

Yes, it’s the clean team versus the dirty duo. Can you imagine what would have happened if Reagan and Kennedy had managed to run on the same ticket? Instead in 2008, we got Sith Lord Palpatine and Jar-Jar Binks pushing debt, doubt and despair.

Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan – America’s Comeback Team. Optimism for a change.

Full speech: Romney at Nauticus

Here is Mitt Romney’s Speech in Norfolk, Virginia (highlighting is my emphasis):

Ladies and gentlemen:

It’s great to be back in Virginia and here in Norfolk. Your city’s beauty is only matched by its proud heritage as a defender of freedom. Today we take another step forward in helping restore the promise of America. As we move forward in this campaign and on to help lead the nation to better days, it is an honor to announce my running mate and the next Vice President of the United States: Paul Ryan.

Paul Ryan is a leader.

His leadership begins with character and values. And Paul is a man of tremendous character, shaped in large part by his early life.

Paul’s father died when he was in high school. That forced him to grow up earlier than any young man should. But Paul did, with the help of his devoted mother, his brothers and sister, and a supportive community. And as he did, he internalized the virtues and hard-working ethic of the Midwest.

Paul Ryan works in Washington – but his beliefs remain firmly rooted in Janesville, Wisconsin. He is a person of great steadiness, whose integrity is unquestioned and whose word is good.

Paul’s upbringing is obvious in how he has conducted himself throughout his life, including his leadership in Washington.

In a city that is far too often characterized by pettiness and personal attacks, Paul Ryan is a shining exception. He does not demonize his opponents. He understands that honorable people can have honest differences. And he appeals to the better angels of our nature. There are a lot of people in the other party who might disagree with Paul Ryan; I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t respect his character and judgment.

Paul is in public life for all the right reasons – not to advance his personal ambitions but to advance the ideals of freedom and justice; and to increase opportunity and prosperity to people of every class and faith, every age and ethnic background. A faithful Catholic, Paul believes in the worth and dignity of every human life.

With energy and vision, Paul Ryan has become an intellectual leader of the Republican Party. He understands the fiscal challenges facing America: our exploding deficits and crushing debt – and the fiscal catastrophe that awaits us if we don’t change course.

Paul Ryan combines a profound sense of responsibility for what we owe the next generation with an unbounded optimism in America’s future and an understanding of all the wonderful things the American people can do.

Paul also combines firm principles with a practical concern for getting things done. He has never been content to simply curse the darkness; he would rather light candles. And throughout his legislative career he’s shown the ability to work with members of both parties to find common ground on some of the hardest issues confronting the American people.

Paul and I are beginning on a journey that will take us to every corner of America. We are offering a positive, governing agenda that will lead to economic growth, to widespread and shared prosperity, and that will improve the lives of our fellow citizens. Our Plan to Strengthen The Middle Class will get America back to work and get our country back on track.

We offer solutions that are bold, specific, and achievable. We offer our commitment to help create 12 million new jobs and to bring better take home pay to middle class families.

To strengthen the middle class, we will provide our workers and our children with the skills to succeed. We’ll cut the deficit, have trade that works for America, and champion small business. And finally, we will unleash our energy resources to achieve North American energy independence.

We will help care for those who cannot care for themselves, and we will return work to welfare. As poverty has risen to historic and tragic levels, with nearly one out of six Americans now having fallen into poverty, we will act to bring these families into the middle class. Unlike the current president who has cut Medicare funding by $700 billion, we will preserve and protect Medicare and Social Security. Under the current president, healthcare has only become more expensive. We will reform healthcare so that more Americans have access to affordable healthcare, and we will get that started by repealing and replacing Obamacare.

And at a time when the President’s campaign is taking American politics to new lows, we are going to do things differently. We are going to talk about aspirations and American ideals; about bringing people together to solve the urgent problems facing our nation. And when that message wins in America, it will be a victory for every American.

Today is a good day for America. And there are better days ahead. Join me in welcoming the next Vice President of the United States – Paul Ryan.

It should be noted that Romney accidentally called Ryan the next President of the United States, but graciously came back up, said he goofed and welcomed his running mate in true Presidential fashion. When was the last time we had a real leader admit he goofed and not just for political grandstanding?

The Tea Party’s favored son, Paul Ryan, will save America from the fiscal cliff looming ahead of us. You know the one Obama wanted to push us over while framing Republicans for his own dastardly deed – it’s called projection. Romney/Ryan will rebuild the middle class, slash the debt and right the American ship. Instead of Obama’s “You didn’t build that!,” Romney and Ryan in one voice tell us that: “If you have a small business, you did build that!” They’ll also restore us to constitutional principles and consent of the governed, not ruling by the elite.

On to Paul Ryan’s remarks (highlighting is my emphasis – I dare you not to smile):

Thank you Governor Romney, Ann. I am deeply honored and excited to join you as your running mate.

Mitt Romney is a leader with the skills, the background and the character that our country needs at a crucial time in its history. Following four years of failed leadership, the hopes of our country, which have inspired the world, are growing dim; and they need someone to revive them. Governor Romney is the man for this moment; and he and I share one commitment: we will restore the dreams and greatness of this country.

I want you to meet my family. My wife Janna, our daughter Liza, and our sons, Charlie and Sam.

I am surrounded by the people I love, and I have been asked by Governor Romney to serve the country I love.

Janesville, Wisconsin is where I was born and raised, and I never really left it. It’s our home now.

For the last 14 years, I have proudly represented Wisconsin in Congress. There, I have focused on solving the problems that confront our country, and turning ideas into action; and action into solutions.

I am committed, in heart and mind, to putting that experience to work in a Romney Administration. This is a crucial moment in the life of our nation; and it is absolutely vital that we select the right man to lead America back to prosperity and greatness.

That man is standing next to me. His name is Mitt Romney. And he will be the next president of the United States.

My dad died when I was young. He was a good and decent man. I still remember a couple of things he would say that have really stuck with me. “Son you are either part of the problem or part of the solution.”

Regrettably, President Obama has become part of the problem,…and Mitt Romney is the solution.

The other thing my dad would say is that every generation of Americans leaves their children better off. That’s the American legacy.

Sadly, for the first time in our history, we are on a path which will undo that legacy. That is why we need new leadership to become part of the solution – new leadership to restore prosperity, economic growth, and jobs.

It is our duty to save the American Dream for our children, and theirs.

And I believe there is no person in America who is better prepared – because of his experience; because of the principles he holds; and because of his achievements and excellence in so many different arenas – to lead America at this point in its history.

Let me say a word about the man Mitt Romney will replace. No one disputes President Obama inherited a difficult situation. And, in his first 2 years, with his party in complete control of Washington, he passed nearly every item on his agenda. But that didn’t make things better.

In fact, we find ourselves in a nation facing debt, doubt and despair.

This is the worst economic recovery in 70 years. Unemployment has been above 8 percent for more than three years, the longest run since the Great Depression. Families are hurting.

We have the largest deficits and the biggest federal government since WWII.

Nearly 1 out of 6 Americans are in poverty–the worst rate in a generation. Moms and dads are struggling to make ends meet.

Household incomes have dropped by more than $4,000 over the past four years.

Whatever the explanations, whatever the excuses, this is a record of failure.

President Obama, and too many like him in Washington, have refused to make difficult decisions because they are more worried about their next election than they are about the next generation. We might have been able to get away with that before, but not now. We’re in a different, and dangerous, moment. We’re running out of time — and we can’t afford 4 more years of this.

Politicians from both parties have made empty promises which will soon become broken promises–with painful consequences–if we fail to act now.

I represent a part of America that includes inner cities, rural areas, suburbs and factory towns. Over the years I have seen and heard from a lot from families, from those running small businesses, and from people who are in need. But what I have heard lately troubles me the most. There is something different in their voice and in their words. What I hear from them are diminished dreams, lowered expectations, uncertain futures.

I hear some people say that this is just “the new normal.” High unemployment, declining incomes and crushing debt is not a new normal. It’s the result of misguided policies. And next January, our economy will begin a comeback with the Romney Plan for a Stronger Middle Class that will lead to more jobs and more take home pay for working Americans.

America is on the wrong track; but Mitt Romney and I will take the right steps, in the right time, to get us back on the right track!

I believe my record of getting things done in Congress will be a very helpful complement to Governor Romney’s executive and private sector success outside Washington. I have worked closely with Republicans as well as Democrats to advance an agenda of economic growth, fiscal discipline, and job creation.

I’m proud to stand with a man who understands what it takes to foster job creation in our economy, someone who knows from experience, that if you have a small business—you did build that.

At Bain Capital, he launched new businesses and he turned around failing ones – companies like Staples, Bright Horizons and Sports Authority, just to name a few. Mitt Romney created jobs and showed he knows how a free economy works.

At the Olympics, he took a failing enterprise and made it the pride of our entire nation.

As governor of Massachusetts, he worked with Democrats and Republicans to balance budgets with no tax increases, lower unemployment, increase income and improve people’s lives.

In all of these things, Mitt Romney has shown himself to be a man of achievement, excellence and integrity.

Janna and I tell Liza, Charlie and Sam that America is a place where, if you work hard and play by the rules, you can get ahead.

We Americans look at one another’s success with pride, not resentment, because we know, as more Americans work hard, take risks, and succeed, more people will prosper, our communities will benefit, and individual lives will be improved and uplifted.

But America is more than just a place…it’s an idea. It’s the only country founded on an ideas. Our rights come from nature and God, not government. We promise equal opportunity, not equal outcomes.

This idea is founded on the principles of liberty, freedom, free enterprise, self-determination and government by consent of the governed.

This idea is under assault. So, we have a critical decision to make as a nation.

We are on an unsustainable path that is robbing America of our freedom and security. It doesn’t have to be this way.

The commitment Mitt Romney and I make to you is this:

We won’t duck the tough issues…we will lead!

We won’t blame others…we will take responsibility!

We won’t replace our founding principles…we will reapply them!

We will honor you, our fellow citizens, by giving you the right and opportunity to make the choice:

What kind of country do we want to have?

What kind of people do we want to be?

We can turn this thing around. Real solutions can be delivered. But, it will take leadership. And the courage to tell you the truth.

Mitt Romney is this kind of leader. I’m excited for what lies ahead and I’m thrilled to be a part of America’s Comeback Team. And together, we will unite America and get this done.

Thank you.

Video - Ryan eviscerates Obama on Obamacare in 6 minutes:

We won’t blame others, we will take responsibility… Wow. Imagine that… The adults have returned to our hallowed halls and somebody is going to get an ass whupping. Good times. And Romney and Ryan have the courage and conviction to tell the truth. We will be that shining city on a hill once more – I know it.

What do you want to bet Obama and Biden have never sat down and prayed together? I don’t know that Romney and Ryan have prayed together, but I have no trouble envisioning that. Obama and Biden? Not so much.

We have the comeback team. We have optimism for a change.

Paul Ryan: “This is our generation’s defining moment” 

Romney-Ryan is the right team for this moment!!

Romney to Announce VP Pick – Insider Says Paul Ryan Will Be Vice Presidential Running Mate

Technorati Tags: Economy and Money,Get Involved,Knowledge Is Power,News and politics,Politics,Small Victories,Stand Up,Strength,budget,economy,fiscal responsibility,GOP vice presidential candidate,jobs,Mitt Romney,Paul Ryan,Reaganesque,real hope,Romney-Ryan,Saving America,tea party,tea party favorite,Team Romney,Veep,VP,Wisconsin,solutions,morning in America,the right team for the right moment,GOP,Election 2012,2012 Election,GOP ticket

Dancing on the Global Fiscal Cliff

By: Terresa Monroe-Hamilton – The NoisyRoom

And the depths of chaos beckon while the financial sands beneath our feet shift into oblivion. Today, we offer you a metaphor salad to describe the current progress of the financial apocalypse. Yep, more happy news from the economic war front.

To say we are skating on thin ice globally as well as here in the US is an understatement of epic proportions. It’s the new and improved walking dead economies – it’s the end of the economic banking world and I feel fine. In fact, it should leave all of us breathless.

While Wall Street manipulates the hell out of the markets and bankers play games with our future (and they have butter fingers by the way), we are told to chill… everything is under control and we are in a slow recovery. Black is white; up is down. And by the way, I have a bridge that is to die for — just sign here. Never mind the second Great Depression taking place. Pardon moi if confidence is in the toilet these days and if we don’t believe the powers that be any more. We’re fickle that way.

It was claimed that MF Global was a freak – that it would never happen again. That is until PFGBest came along and made lightning strike twice in the same spot. What? Nothing to see here sheeple… Quick, invest, invest, invest! From The Economic Collapse:

PFGBest is a brokerage firm in Cedar Falls, Iowa that mostly handles agricultural futures.

All hell broke loose when the National Futures Association discovered that a bank account that was supposed to be holding 225 million dollars of customer funds was only holding about 5 million dollars instead.

So where is the other 220 million dollars?

That is a very good question.

Of course it is not a promising sign that the head of PFGBest tried to commit suicide when this news came out.

Next, we were told a wave of city bankruptcies would NEVER occur in the US, we nodded and smiled like idiots and said that we believed the weasel politicians. California is turning into Greece at an alarming rate with three cities in the last 2 weeks going toes up and many more to follow — first came Stockton, then Mammoth Lakes and now San Bernardino. Just nod some more if you get it now. From The Los Angeles Times:

The city’s fiscal crisis has been years in the making, compounded by the nation’s crushing recession and exacerbated by escalating pension costs, lucrative labor agreements, Sacramento’s raid on redevelopment funds and a city reserve that is tapped out, officials said.

And this is not unique to California. It’s happening all over the US, you just don’t see it in the press because it makes Obama look bad. Take a long, hard look at Scranton, Pennsylvania where all city employees were just put on minimum wage. They wouldn’t raise taxes (who would want to?), so the mayor reduced wages. He had to do something because they are BROKE.

We were told to have faith in global interest rates, that they couldn’t possibly be manipulated by insiders — that is until the LIBOR scandal. Whoops! In fact, watch this scandal… it will literally rock the world and bring economies to their knees. Count on it. If financial dreamers dream, then it’s nightmares all around. Welcome to global collusion. More from The Economic Collapse:

It turns out that banksters have been colluding to fix global interest rates for years.

“Liborgate” is being called the biggest financial scandal in history. Libor is important because it is one of the key benchmarks used to set prices for hundreds of trillions of dollars of loans, securities and derivatives.

British banking giant Barclays has already admitted that they were involved in manipulating Libor.

Barclays has already agreed to pay $453 million in fines to British and U.S. authorities.

But the truth is that it would have been totally impossible for Barclays to have manipulated Libor by themselves.

So who else was involved?

The Wall Street Journal puts it this way:

At stake is both the integrity of the world’s financial system and the credibility of the U.K. authorities to police it. Long before the current scandal, many European policy makers had concluded that London during the boom was the Wild West, whose loose standards are a threat to European financial stability. The Libor scandal suggests U.S. regulators have reached similar conclusions. The Commodities Futures Trading Commission, the U.S. regulatory body that first started investigating rate-fixing, left little doubt how seriously it regards the abuses it uncovered.

Get the hell out of the system, right now. Don’t stubbornly stand on the deck of a fiscal Titanic as it sinks. Head for the lifeboats and nix the suicide folks.

We were also told that Greece was an anomaly. Just another twist of fate — couldn’t happen again. Until Spain that is, who looks an awful like a repeat of Greece only worse. And as has been foretold on this blog over and over, it’s a chain reaction and more catastrophe to follow and soon. It’s summertime in Fiscal Hell, don’tcha know.

Don’t let the austerity they are pushing in Greece fool you. It consists of taxes that no one can pay if they want to continue eating. It does reduce spending and government bennies, but it is too little too late. Europe is on the way down, big time. Spain will make Greece look like a walk in the fricking park. Again from The Economic Collapse:

Can anyone still possibly deny that Spain is going down the exact same road that Greece has gone?

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is proposing a huge slate of tough austerity measures including a 3 point increase in the Value Added Tax on goods and services. If that 3 point hike is implemented, the Value Added Tax will rise to 21 percent.

Could you imagine going to the store and paying a 21 percent sales tax?

Ouch.

Rajoy is promising that these measures will get Spain back on the right track.

Of course we have already seen how well such austerity measures have worked in Greece.

The unemployment rate in Spain is already up to 24.4 percent, and now these austerity measures will slow the economy down even more.

No wonder there is rioting in the streets. You can see high quality footage of the rioting that has been going on in Spain this week right here. At one point police were seen firing rubber bullets at the protesters.

But of course the citizens of Spain could not live way above their means forever. At some point every debt bubble ends, and when that happens the results are often incredibly painful.

You are looking into America’s not-too-distant future. Truth be told, if the Obama administration was honest about our unemployment rate, it would read over 15% and personally, I think it is closer to 23 or 24%.

So, as we gleefully dance ever closer to the global fiscal cliff — and a crumbling cliff at that — maybe just maybe we should actually look at what is going on around us globally and locally here in the US. It’s not just finances, it’s morality, ethics, our culture — the whole ball of wax and we are coming undone quickly. As a nation, we need to fall to our knees and declare a covenant with God and fast or we will realize a reckoning few can envision. Thus endeth the lesson.

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