The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is warning that this current crisis has several striking similarities with the Great depression and they even claim that this situation in many ways is worse.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the IMF, said millions of people risk being pushed back into poverty as the economic storm ravages the most vulnerable countries. "The human consequences could be absolutely devastating. This is a truly global crisis, and nobody is escaping," he said. Telegraph
I find this kind of interesting. Finally some of the mainstream economists is telling some kind of truth and this at the same time as some journalists and several criminally insane politicians are saying they are seeing the crisis “ease off”. But of course the IMF idiots do not connect the dots and they are calling for even more stimulus madness. In other words they recognize the crisis but they want to worsen it.
The IMF said the US is at the epicentre of this crisis just as it was in the Depression, setting the two episodes apart from normal downturns. However, the risks are greater this time. "While the credit boom in the 1920s was largely specific to the US, the boom during 2004-2007 was global, with increased leverage and risk-taking in advanced economies and many emerging economies. Levels of integration are now much higher than during the inter-war period, so US financial shocks have a larger impact," it said. Telegraph
Again they are right, but they are also missing a couple of crucial elements that will make this depression much worse than the “great” one. First of all even if we are much richer today, the economies are built on a shakier foundation in the sense that the basic production capacity is more focused on services and borrowed money today. During and after the Great Depression the production capacity was less based on borrowed money and people did not have high personal debts with credit-card debts and high mortgages. Also the service sector was minimal. But maybe the higher levels of richer are the worst thing in this case. Since our drop is that much higher, the pain will be greater.
Abrupt halts in capital flows can have "dire consequences" for emerging economies, it said. Eastern Europe has already suffered the effects, with a 17.6pc fall in industrial production in February. The region is highly vulnerable to the credit crunch since it owes more than 50pc of its GDP to Western banks. Telegraph
This a kind of a wrong statement since there is a difference between capital as in ‘money’ and real capital with attached value. What Eastern Europe and the rest of us need is higher production and the wealth that comes with it, not only paper money that the IMF idiots are talking about. And IMF is also urging for more stimulus money which is also money without any value. In best case scenario (if there is such a thing in this case) more money (stimulus) can halter the crisis and get people spending and borrowing again, temporally postponing the depression. The problem with that scenario however is that in doing so they are actually building up the crisis with even more fictive money and even more borrowing which in the end will leave us with an even bigger crisis.
What we ought to be doing is to cut today’s enormous governments and their spending with at least half; preferably much more, freeing much needed capital for the private sector. In doing so we should also erase all the thousands of socialist laws that are hindering markets to act independently. Finally we should also let the crisis happen and not bail out banks or bad businesses. Let the crashes happen, let people go bankrupt, let it hurt, it should hurt. A smaller crisis over a year or two will be bad, but in comparison with what is coming at the horizon now that would be nothing. And if we never want to see something like this again we should take away money handling, money printing and dealing from the state and put it on the market attached to objective values. If this does not happen, another crisis will come, and then another and they will continue to come and go. That’s if we survive the coming depression.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Please listen to Schiff
For those of you who think I’m the only one saying we are going towards really horrific times, you can listen to this guy. Just as myself, he predicted this current crisis and just like me he is afraid what can come out of it. And we are not alone in this; there is lots of other economist saying the same thing. Search the net, look around. Have you ever wondered why those voices aren’t heard?
Even though Peter is talking about America and is very focused on what’s going on there, the US is by no means alone in heading for the abyss. United Kingdom is maybe even in deeper trouble. Most of the Eastern European countries are also in big trouble and so are Japan who are into their 73463th (or something) stimulus. And do not listen to a word they are saying about China “turning upwards again”. Some so called "experts" is saying that the crisis is halting in China and people are seemingly shopping a bit more again. But that’s just it; they are spending, not producing and this thanks to massive bailouts. It is a scam. An illusion.
So when a couple of the world’s biggest economies tremble and fall, what do you think is going to happen to the rest of us? Most of the countries in Europe are doing pretty much the same idiotic thing that the US and UK are doing, although at a smaller scale and still with some resources to take from, but when this crisis really hits us, really really hits us, this is going to be mindboggling. Are you prepared? Are you ready to face this depression created by collective thinking and big government? I think it is already too late to turn back, but I’m a realist, other people who believe in capitalism are optimists and think we can turn it upwards in a year or two if we just let go of the socialism that got us into this mess. This is going to be really scary, really horrifying and really ugly.
Even though Peter is talking about America and is very focused on what’s going on there, the US is by no means alone in heading for the abyss. United Kingdom is maybe even in deeper trouble. Most of the Eastern European countries are also in big trouble and so are Japan who are into their 73463th (or something) stimulus. And do not listen to a word they are saying about China “turning upwards again”. Some so called "experts" is saying that the crisis is halting in China and people are seemingly shopping a bit more again. But that’s just it; they are spending, not producing and this thanks to massive bailouts. It is a scam. An illusion.
So when a couple of the world’s biggest economies tremble and fall, what do you think is going to happen to the rest of us? Most of the countries in Europe are doing pretty much the same idiotic thing that the US and UK are doing, although at a smaller scale and still with some resources to take from, but when this crisis really hits us, really really hits us, this is going to be mindboggling. Are you prepared? Are you ready to face this depression created by collective thinking and big government? I think it is already too late to turn back, but I’m a realist, other people who believe in capitalism are optimists and think we can turn it upwards in a year or two if we just let go of the socialism that got us into this mess. This is going to be really scary, really horrifying and really ugly.
Great news from around the world
The number of foreclosures in Miami-Dade and Broward continued rising. Filings were up 15 percent over last year, but jumped 50 percent from February. In all, one in every 182 homes in the county were in some state of the foreclosure process.
China Eastern Airlines Ltd., one of China's three major state-owned carriers, said it suffered a 15.3 billion yuan ($2.2 billion) loss for 2008 due to high fuel costs, fewer passengers and a wrong-way bet on fuel hedging contracts.
General Growth Properties Inc., owner of some of the nation's most prominent malls, including the Glendale Galleria, filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors Thursday, marking the biggest real estate bankruptcy in U.S. history.
Southwest Airlines Co. reported a surprisingly large loss in the first quarter as traffic fell in what the CEO called the carrier's toughest revenue environment ever.
The number of people in US receiving jobless benefits exceeded 6 million for the first time, the government reported today, and housing construction unexpectedly plunged to its second-lowest level on record -- fresh evidence that the recession is far from over.
Sales in the US is down 1.1 last month.
China’s economy grew more slowly than usual in the first quarter, and joblessness increased, but fairly strong investment and consumer spending helped prevent falling exports from dragging down economic output even further,
AbitibiBowater Inc., the largest North American newsprint maker, filed for bankruptcy protection on Thursday after failing to secure support for its proposed restructuring plan.
UK annual public borrowing is set to rocket to almost £175bn over the next two years, Alistair Darling, the chancellor, is expected to announce in next week’s Budget. At more than 12 per cent of expected national income in the next financial year, this would be the worst deficit since the Second World War.
But the really good news is that the US stock exchange have risen 24% the last four weeks which is the fastest and highest climbs in decades. You will understand why this is so great news in a couple of months from now.
China Eastern Airlines Ltd., one of China's three major state-owned carriers, said it suffered a 15.3 billion yuan ($2.2 billion) loss for 2008 due to high fuel costs, fewer passengers and a wrong-way bet on fuel hedging contracts.
General Growth Properties Inc., owner of some of the nation's most prominent malls, including the Glendale Galleria, filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors Thursday, marking the biggest real estate bankruptcy in U.S. history.
Southwest Airlines Co. reported a surprisingly large loss in the first quarter as traffic fell in what the CEO called the carrier's toughest revenue environment ever.
The number of people in US receiving jobless benefits exceeded 6 million for the first time, the government reported today, and housing construction unexpectedly plunged to its second-lowest level on record -- fresh evidence that the recession is far from over.
Sales in the US is down 1.1 last month.
China’s economy grew more slowly than usual in the first quarter, and joblessness increased, but fairly strong investment and consumer spending helped prevent falling exports from dragging down economic output even further,
AbitibiBowater Inc., the largest North American newsprint maker, filed for bankruptcy protection on Thursday after failing to secure support for its proposed restructuring plan.
UK annual public borrowing is set to rocket to almost £175bn over the next two years, Alistair Darling, the chancellor, is expected to announce in next week’s Budget. At more than 12 per cent of expected national income in the next financial year, this would be the worst deficit since the Second World War.
But the really good news is that the US stock exchange have risen 24% the last four weeks which is the fastest and highest climbs in decades. You will understand why this is so great news in a couple of months from now.
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