5.25.2012

Central Banks boost gold holdings, again.



Latest figures from the IMF show that Central Banks have continued to increase their gold holdings significantly in April, after a big increase the previous month.


The latest official Central Bank gold holding figures from the IMF confirm that Central Banks around the world are continuing to buy gold - some in pretty large quantities which should be yet another stabilising factor for the gold price - and if the trend continues suggests that the CBs will buy even more this year than last - and that's only the ones which let the world know exactly what their gold reserves are!
The latest figures not only show some substantial gold buying in April, but also a big lift in gold purchases by The Philippines which actually date back to March, but were slow in being notified to the IMF.  The Phillipines' March gold purchases amounted to no less than 1.033 million ounces - 32 tonnes - of the yellow metal - the biggest volume since Mexico bought around 78 tonnes a little over a year ago - and increased tet country's gold reserves by almost 20%.
The Phillippines was not the only laggard in reporting increased gold reserves though.  Tiny Sri Lanka raised its reserves by an even greater 39%, but dating back to January, with a rise of  2.177 tonnes to 7.807 tonnes  - obviously far less significant in the global picture but yet another indication of the perceived significance of gold in particular in the Asian economies.
The most significant reported gold purchases in April itself included 29.7 tonnes by Turkey (a 14% increase in its reserves, but this is thought to have largely been due to its policy of acceptance of gold as collateral from commercial banks), 2.92 tonnes by Mexico,  2.02 tonnes by Kazakhstan, and 1.4 tonnes by the Ukraine. 
The continued buying by Central Banks does continue to indicate an underlying unease about the sovereign debt situation and its impact on the value of some key reserve currencies- not least the dollar and the euro.
In an email to Mineweb respected New York gold analyst, Jeff Nichols, commented "The lastest IMF data on central bank gold reserves was just released earlier today -- showing gold purchases by Mexico, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Russia, and the Philippines. Undoubtedly, China and perhaps a few other countries bought gold but did not report their purchases to the IMF."  This reiterates the widespread belief that some countries - of which China is thought to be the major entity - for political reasons do not report their total holdings to the IMF, but hold new gold purchases in accounts that are not reported until it is considered politically expedient to do so.  Last time China reported an increase in reserves was in 2009.
Since then there has been much speculation that China could be building up its reserves at a rate of four or five hundred tonnes a year or more given the level of domestic gold production and the big surge in imports seen.  Although China is the world's sixth largest holder of gold, the metal only represents a tiny 1.8% of its reserves and there have been a number of presumably government approved (is there anything else in China?) statements by officials that do suggest the nation is carefully buying on dips in the gold price so as not to create disruption in a relatively orderly global gold market.
Overall reported Central Bank gold purchases last year amounted to over 450 tonnes - the highest for nearly 50 years and The World Gold Council and GFMS have suggested that this year will see another 400 tonnes or more flowing into Central Bank coffers - and the purchases to date suggest that this target may well be achieved.  Gold may have fallen out of Central Bank favour for a few decades but the realisation now is increasingly that it should be a significant part of a country's foreign reserve base as fiat currencies the world over lose their intrinsic value.

3.04.2012

I Won't Pay Movement (Origins Greece)

6/4/1963, A known attempt was made to strip the Federal Reserve Bank (a private corporation) of its power to loan money to the U.S. Gov't at interest

6/4/1963, A known attempt was made to strip the Federal Reserve Bank (a private corporation) of its power to loan money to the U.S. Gov't at interest. On that day President Kennedy signed Executive Order #11,110 that returned to the U.S. Gov't the power to issue currency, without going through the Federal Reserve. The power was taken from the gov't on 12/22/1913 when the federal reserve act was signed. It handed  to the few men that own the federal reserve bank of new york sole power of a country's money. This private corporation owns the right to print our money and issue it charging interest, setting the interest rate. Ultimately keeping the gov't, and citizens forever in debt.

President Kennedy's order gave the Treasury the power "to issue silver certificates against any silver bullion, silver, or standard silver dollars in the Treasury


With the stroke of a pen, Mr. Kennedy was on his way to putting the federal reserve bank of New York out of business.
If enough silver certificates were to come into circulation; they would have eliminated the demand for federal reserve notes.
This is because the silver certificates are backed by silver, and federal reserve notes are backed with nothing. Worthless.

Executive Order 11,110 could have prevented the national debt from reaching its level, which is close to 70 trillion dollars. An inconceivable number. It also would have given the gov't the ability to repay its debt without going to the federal reserve and being charged interest in order to create the new money.
Executive Order 11,110 gave the U.S. the ability to create its own money backed with silver.

He was assassinated 5 months later. No more certificates were issued.
Executive Order 11,110 was never repealed by any U.S. President and is still valid.
No President has utilized it since.

2.24.2012

Adrian Douglas Speaks About Silver

`Adrian Douglas was born in 1957 in England. He graduated from Cambridge University in 1980 in Natural Sciences. He worked for 20 years in the Oil & Gas Industry with Schlumberger where he reached senior management positions in Marketing and Sales. Adrian established a highly successful consultancy business specializing in pricing and marketing called InnovoMark - Innovative Marketing - www.innovomark.com. He developed unique methodologies related to pricing and marketing which have been incorporated into proprietary training programs.
The study of commercial enterprise pricing led to a deep interest into the market pricing mechanisms of financial assets. As a result Adrian developed a unique algorithm and methodology for analyzing financial futures markets, and in particular identifying appropriate entry and exit points. The technique has been named "Market Force AnalysisTM" (MFATM) and a patent is pending. Adrian has been interviewed for various internet radio stations and for TV as well as making presentations at investment conferences.

Adrian is also a Director of the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee (GATA); a non-profit organization that is an advocate for a freely traded gold market.

2.22.2012

American Silver Eagle



 The American Silver Eagle is the official silver bullion coin of the United States. It was first released by the United States Mint on November 24, 1986 and is struck only in the one troy ounce size.
 American Silver EagleThe Bullion American Silver Eagle sales program ultimately came about because the US government wanted, during the 1970s and early 1980s, to sell off what it considered excess silver from the Defense National Stockpile.

"Several administrations had sought unsuccessfully to sell silver from the stockpile, arguing that domestic production of silver far exceeds strategic needs. But mining-state interests had opposed any sale, as had pro-military legislators who wanted assurances that the proceeds would be used to buy materials more urgently needed for the stockpile rather than merely to reduce the federal deficit." Wall Street Journal

More American States Now Seeking Silver And Gold Currencies

Concerns that the Federal Reserve System and the United States dollar could collapse at any moment, legislators across at least 13 states have begun to seek out alternative currencies.

Representatives in states including Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Tennessee and South Carolina have begun their quest to gain approval from their state government to issue their own alternative currency or even just explore it as a possible option.

“In the event of hyperinflation, depression, or other economic calamity related to the breakdown of the Federal Reserve System … the State’s governmental finances and private economy will be thrown into chaos,” A Republican Rep said.

 Under the United States Constitution, states are not allowed to print their own paper money or issue their own currency, however it does allow states to make “gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts,” which means that states are able to create a competing, alternative currency market based on precious metals instead of the fiat currency we call the dollar.



2.15.2012

BLUE GOLD


The global water crisis and the commodification of the world's water supply


A Finite Resource

It is commonly assumed that the worlds water supply is huge and infinite. This assumption is false. In fact, of all the water on Earth, only 2.5 percent is freshwater, and available freshwater represents less than half of 1 percent of the world's total water stock. The rest is seawater, or inaccessible in ice caps, ground water and soil. This supply is finite.

As Allerd Stikker of the Amsterdam-based Ecological Management Foundation explains "The issue today, put simply, is that while the only renewable source of freshwater is continental rainfall (which generates a more or less constant global supply of 40,000 to 50,000 cubic km per year), the world population keeps increasing by roughly 85 million per year. Therefore the availability of freshwater per head is decreasing rapidly."

Most disturbingly, we are diverting, polluting and depleting that finite source of freshwater at an astonishing rate. Today, says the United Nations, 31 countries are facing water stress and scarcity and over one billion people lack adequate access to clean drinking water. By the year 2025, as much as two-thirds of the world's population-predicted to have expanded by an additional 2.6 billion people-will be living in conditions of serious water shortage and one-third will be living in conditions of absolute water scarcity.

World Resources, a publication of the United Nations Environment Program, the World Bank and the World Resources Institute, has a dire warning "The world's thirst for water is likely to become one of the most pressing resource issues of the 21st century...ln some cases, water withdrawals are so high, relative to supply, that surface water supplies are literally shrinking and groundwater reserves are being depleted faster than they can be replenished by precipitation."

Groundwater over-pumping and aquifer depletion are now serious problems in the world's most intensive agricultural areas. In the U.S., the High Plains Ogallala aquifer, stretching some 800 miles (1,300 km) from the Texas panhandle to South Dakota, is being depleted eight times faster than nature can replenish it. The water table under California's San Joaquin Valley has dropped nearly ten meters in some spots within the last 50 years. Twenty-one percent of irrigation in the U.S. is achieved by pumping ground water at rates that exceed the water's ability to recharge (and most water used for irrigation cannot be recycled).

 

Continue reading:

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Water/Crisis_BG.html 

2.13.2012

Athens In Flames

Feb 13, 2012

Over the weekend, more than 45 buildings across Athens were set ablaze by violent protesters. The fires began as the Greek Parliament passed a strict package of austerity measures, in an effort to meet demands by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. The measures, which were prerequisites for a $170 billion bailout, included steep public-sector job cuts and a 20 percent reduction in the minimum wage. More than 80,000 Greeks reportedly demonstrated in the streets of Athens -- among them, a small, violent group that hurled firebombs at riot police and set dozens of fires. More than 120 police and protesters were injured. The next step for the new austerity measures is implementation, and that may face strong opposition as well. Collected here are scenes from a weekend of unrest in Athens



















2.12.2012

Greek Cabinet Approves Bailout Bill



Mr. Papademos, the sole technocrat in a coalition of feuding politicians, tried to assert his authority after six cabinet members resigned over European Union and International Monetary Fund demands for yet more pay, pension and job cuts in return for the financial rescue.
“It goes without saying that whoever disagrees and does not vote for the new program cannot remain in the government,” he said in televised remarks.
Greece faces bankruptcy unless it gets the funds from the IMF and EU by March 20 when it has to repay €14.5-billion in maturing bonds.
A former central banker, Mr. Papademos tried to raise Greeks’ spirits as the nation enters its fifth year of recession, saying economic growth would return in 2013 despite accusations that the austerity is merely driving Greece into a downward spiral.
Any alternative to the rescue would be much worse, he said in opening remarks using the word “catastrophe” four times.

However the biggest police trade union said it would issue arrest warrants for Greece’s international lenders for subverting democracy, and refused to “fight against our brothers.” A daily newspaper depicted German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a Nazi uniform with a swastika armband.


Greece Set To Agree On Next Bailout As Germany Demands Action

"It would create conditions of uncontrolled economic chaos and social explosion," Papademos said.
"The country would be drawn into a vortex of recession, instability, unemployment and protracted misery and this would sooner or later lead the country out of the euro," he said.
The EU and IMF say they have had enough of broken promises and that the funds will be released only with the clear commitment of Greek political leaders that they will implement the reforms whoever wins an election potentially in April.
"The promises from Greece aren't enough for us any more," German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said in an interview published on Sunday in Welt am Sonntag newspaper.
German opinion polls show a majority of Germans are willing to help, Schaeuble said, "but it's important to say that it cannot be a bottomless pit.
"That's why the Greeks have to finally close that pit. And then we can put something in there. At least people are now starting to realize it won't work with a bottomless pit."
"Greece needs to do its own homework to become competitive - whether that happens in conjunction with a new rescue program or by another route that we actually don't want to take..."
When asked if that other "route" meant Greece would have to leave the euro zone, Schaeuble said: "That is all in the hands of the Greeks themselves. But even in the event (Greece leaves the euro zone), which almost no one assumes will happen, they will still remain part of Europe."

2.11.2012

The Montreal Gazette - ATHENS, Feb 10 (Reuters)


Greece's largest police union has threatened to issue arrest warrants for officials from the country's European Union and International Monetary Fund lenders for demanding deeply unpopular austerity measures.

In a letter obtained by Reuters on Friday, the Federation of Greek Police accused the officials of "...blackmail, covertly abolishing or eroding democracy and national sovereignty" and said one target of its warrants would be the IMF's top official for Greece, Poul Thomsen.
The threat is largely symbolic since legal experts say a judge must first authorize such warrants, but it shows the depth of anger against foreign lenders who have demanded drastic wage and pension cuts in exchange for funds to keep Greece afloat.
"Since you are continuing this destructive policy, we warn you that you cannot make us fight against our brothers. We refuse to stand against our parents, our brothers, our children or any citizen who protests and demands a change of policy," said the union, which represents more than two-thirds of Greek policemen.
"We warn you that as legal representatives of Greek policemen, we will issue arrest warrants for a series of legal violations ... such as blackmail, covertly abolishing or eroding democracy and national sovereignty."
The letter was also addressed to the European Central Bank's mission chief in Greece, Klaus Masuch, and the former European Commission chief inspector for Greece, Servaas Deroose.
Policemen have borne the brunt of the anger of massed protesters who frequently march to parliament and clash with police in riot gear. Chants of "Cops, pigs, murderers!" are regularly hurled at policemen or scribbled on walls.
Thousands turned out on Friday for the latest protest in Athens, this time against new austerity measures that include a 22 percent cut in the minimum wage.
A police union official said the threat to 'refuse to stand against' fellow Greeks was a symbolic expression of solidarity and did not mean police would halt their efforts to stop protests getting out of hand.

(Reporting by Lila Chotzoglou, Writing by Deepa Babington, editing by Tim Pearce)




FIREMEN UPSET IN BRUSSELS

2.10.2012

Celente - Gold, Silver, War, Systemic Collapse & Social Unrest



Fears about the stability of the financial system, a looming war and a stampede of wealthy investors into hard assets, today King World News interviewed Gerald Celente, Founder of Trends Research and the man many consider to be the top trends forecaster in the world.  Celente had this to say about an increased number of investors that have been crowding into gold and other hard assets:  “The smart people are (buying gold) and more and more people are waking up to it.  So the people that are going to survive and thrive are going to be the ones that are prepared, the ones that are going to see history before it happens and get ready for it and there are very few.”

Greek prime minister warns of 'uncontrolled chaos' if country defaults

Lucas Papademos, prime minister, struggled to maintain order in parliament ahead of Sunday's crucial vote on the budget plans which he needs to win to secure Greece's €130bn (£109bn) bail-out.
Five ministers resigned in protest over the budget plans, which include tough spending and pension cuts, that were approved on Thursday by political leaders.
Late on Friday night, the remaining memebers of the cabinet approved the draft bill of austerity measures which the country's parliament will vote on on Sunday.
Earlier in the day, George Karatzaferis, leader of Greek far right in coalition, walked out of the national unity government saying he would refuse to vote on Sunday. Although his party cannot block the vote, his stance rattled European markets.
"Humiliation was imposed on us. I will not tolerate this... no matter how hungry I might be," he said. "Greece must not and cannot be outside the EU. But it can do without the German boot."

NEW MARGINS TAKE EFFECT MONDAY

The CME Group, which operates the Comex and the Nymex, said late Thursday it will reduce margins for gold, silver and platinum futures, effective Monday. (See related story)
Gero said normally the reduction in margin would have helped lift prices, but given the change of heart by the eurozone officials, the supportive news regarding margins was diminished.
Gero said the reduction in margin means the exchange feels the volatility that prompted the previous rise in margins has eased somewhat. “Margins have to do with volatility. It’s insurance for the buyer and the seller,” he said.

1.22.2012

Gold for Oil: India and Iran Ditch Dollar – (Iran and Russia also agree on using own currencies for trade) - Report



According to a new and yet unconfirmed report, India bought oil from Iran using gold. India certainly has the gold resources to fund the oil, while Iran is under pressure by the West, due the continuation of its nuclear program.


There were reports that officials have been floating this idea for some time, and now, as the EU finally decided upon an oil embargo on Iran, more details became available, yet still pend confirmation.


Oil is priced in US dollars, and bypassing the greenback posed challenges for both parties. Two banks are reportedly involved in this deal: India’s state owned UCO Bank and Turkey’s state owned Halkbank.
Both banks don’t have any business with the US and therefore are less vulnerable to sanctions. According to the report, an Indian delegation has spent time in Tehran and finalized the details of the transactions.
The annual capacity of trade between these two countries is 12 billion dollars. With gold trading at around $1668, that is around 7.2 million ounces of gold.

The step joins Russia and Iran’s announcement to begin trading in their own domestic currencies rather than use the US dollar – a reserve currency. 
LINK TO STORY: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/20/russia-iran-currency-idUSL6E8CK0Y720120120

These details about the gold for oil deal come on the day that EU officials announce an oil embargo on Iran starting on July 1st. Tensions between Iran and the West are mounting and oil is already on the up.
The time it took the EU to reach the decision, and the late implementation date make it very easy for Iran to enlarge exports to oil hungry and fast growing Asian countries. Europe will most likely suffer most from the sanctions considering the nations that depend on Iranian oil most are countries in economic turmoil within Europe, including Greece, Italy and Spain.

The use of gold for buying the No. 1 commodity, will likely have positive implications for the precious metal, if this report is confirmed and especially if the use of gold widens to China – the world’s No. 2 economy.

1.20.2012

Asian Nations Start Currency Reforms to End their Use of Dollars

On December 25, 2011 it was reported that the world’s second and third largest economies will open currency swap lines in a move to side-step the U.S dollar and conduct trade in their own currencies. In a meeting between Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Chinese Premier Wen Jianbao they officially announced their governments' intentions to conduct bilateral trade in yuan-yen without using U.S. dollars. The Japanese government said direct yen-yuan settlement should reduce currency risks and trading costs. Japan also announced it will start buying Renminbi bonds to hold as a reserve currency.
China and Japan, long time adversaries who disagree on most issues with regards to foreign policy can agree on one thing…to stop using dollars. Japan also topped off a busy week by signing a currency swap agreement with India with the same stated goal of moving bilateral trade between the two countries out of the USD.

1.03.2012

Ignorance Is Not Bliss

(I do not promote any political party or nation)


Although some political movements are in good intention they are destructive at the core because they focus on the surface of   the problem. The lack of knowledge of most protesters is promoting the objective of dividing ourselves and blaming others for our problems, this is exactly what the persons controlling the current system actually want. Chaos, disorder, economic collapse, and most of all fear. These are all orchestrated events, planned well in advance by people who will benefit highly from these predictable behaviours of the masses. You  ask why would the political leaders of today allow these things to happen? The coming global economic collapse of the system is a very well orchestrated event, where a few sources will create massive debt onto nations and buy them for pennies on the dollar when the collapse occurs.  Some political leaders are involved by ignorance and some out of fear for what would happen to them if they would decide to go against the powers that be. Others are just simply profiting from this train wreck waiting to happen. Bankers (money changers) have been trying to implement a system of centralization for thousands of years. Some call it the new world order, I just call it evolution. They are attempting to evolve to be the strongest and most powerful force as all memes and genes do in a fractal sense. In the end it is up to the people to fight for what they believe would be the right way for the pursuit of peace and happiness.

A big part of the problem is that many people most of the time think about what is best for their own personal desires. People are much happier to turns a blind eye as to why Iraq was invaded, so as long as they continue to get cheap gas at the pump back home. Many of the same type of people will protest that others are being taken advantage of by working for inhumane salaries but will turn once again a blind eye as long as they can get cheaper prices at Wal-Mart and other stores alike for items made in countries where people come second to profits.
Central Banking:
John F. Kennedy was a great president of the world’s modern super power. Besides his popular speech that was probably enough itself to get the few at the top of the food chain agitated, he announced that he was going to stop burrowing money from private banks and resort back to the constitution which states that only the government can provide money and be in charge of the money supply of the country, and that all debts shall be payable in gold and silver. Instead the Federal Reserve which is a private institution now prints and lends the money to the American people and charges interest on that debt. According to the founding fathers of The United States Of America this is an act of treason. Remember those men?  The ones that risked being hung by writing and signing the constitution. I wonder what they would think of the current empire they were hoping to secure by signing the constitution. There are echoes of  JFK coming from another presidential candidate of modern day, his name is Ron Paul, I wonder if the same would happen to him would he get elected, my guess would be yes. Although his memes would spread a lot further in today’s age of information if he would be assassinated.

Let’s take a look at some more modern day individuals that have attempted to challenge the US Dollar backed by the world’s biggest private banks. Although not as democratic as JFK in their methods of governing, it is interesting to note none the less. Less than a year before Iraq was invaded Saddam Hussein announced that he would stop trading his oil in US dollars and would only accept Euros instead. This is a good time to point out that the US dollar is the global reserve currency at the moment and all oil transactions must first be converted to US dollars before any transaction is made in other currencies. We saw what happened to Saddam Hussein when he attempted to challenge the US dollar. Coincidence? Move onto Libya, Less than a year to the invasion of Libya Gaddafi announced that he would create a new currency backed mostly by gold, he named it the Dinar. He is now dead, murdered with no fair trial as international law permits, and so is his idea for a new currency that would compete with the US dollar. Now I know there are far more than just one reason for the invasions of these nations however you can rest assured these were not merely coincidences.

A destabilization of the oil rich states in the Middle East is in the agenda, so don’t get too comfortable with today’s low oil prices, they are heading much higher in the near future. There are oil reserves being held in certain countries that will only be released once a certain price for oil is reached, and today’s prices are not profitable enough for that to happen.  

Quantitative Easing:
The massive amount of money being printed by the Federal Reserve and other private central banks around the world is going to lead to hyper-inflation. The fact is many politicians and economists try to confuse you by suggesting that printing money may lead to inflation or that they have a plan to take the money they print out of the money supply before it causes inflation, however do not be deceived by this language used by bankers to deter the common person whom doesn’t have the extensive knowledge of how money works and where it comes from, from asking further questions. I would advise anyone who hasn’t seen the documentary Money Masters, to do so. The truth is the moment you print money you are creating inflation. It will not lead to inflation, it is inflation. By definition inflation is an increase in the money supply and deflation is a decrease in the money supply. So inflation begins the moment you print, not later down the road as if it were a symptom of the disease, it is the disease. If you understand this simple fact you will also understand why food prices and prices for precious metals have increased so rapidly in the past few years.

As smaller banks and nations accept this debt (bailouts, money printing) they will simply be foreclosed on and will be bought out by the few bigger banks at the top during the collapse. Before the collapse is allowed to take place, massive amount of debt will be accumulated. These bankers have no nationality and do not care about any individual nation. They are simply the profiteers of this carefully orchestrated plan to total ownership and power.

There will be a massive transfer of wealth away from the middle class in the coming years, it would be wise to take the right steps towards protecting your family. Understand that this has happened many times in history to many countries and empires and only those who were prepared had the best chance for survival. I suggest you start, if you haven’t already, transferring your paper money into hard assets such as gold and silver instead of holding paper promises made by the same people that are devaluing the value of fiat currencies by simply printing more of it. By paper money I mean everything that holds your funds on paper, such as fiat currencies, including equities, mutual funds, etfs, pool accounts etc. I do not deny that there is still time to profit from such investments as they are likely to go up in the short term because of inflation however it is a very high risk to take knowing that a run on the American dollar and banks is just around the corner.  Only a simpleton can’t see that the debt being accumulated all around the world can never be paid. Here is a statistic that you can check for yourself, if the American citizen was taxed 100%, it still would not be enough to pay off the debt and all liabilities accumulated. In this sense I consider the American dollar to be the greatest Ponzi scheme of all time. Amazingly nobody has gone to jail for all the criminal and immoral activity on Wall Street and in the banking system, it is not that surprising, rationally how do we expect the same people that are controlling the game to throw themselves out of the game?  The same way governments turn to the same people who have caused all the economic problems of today to fix them. We are allowing the same mistakes that happened in history to repeat themselves. Since the Federal Reserve was brought into control of the money supply in 1913, the US dollar has lost more than 95% of its purchasing power. Gold did not lose any purchasing power. Governments argue that gold isn’t money, so why is it so widely held by banks as a reserve? Gold is the only real money because governments can’t just print more of it whenever they need funds to expand their empires. How would have the US funded all its military spending had the US dollar still been pegged to gold, they simply wouldn’t have. That’s why in 1971 the gold standard was removed from the US currency and it simply became another printable fiat currency.

The Solution:
Modify the everyday things in your life that support the current system. If you understand that bankers are stealing your wealth by devaluing your currency,  simply take your money out of the bank. If you want to challenge low wages in countries such as China stop consuming useless items that you do not need that are made in China, instead buy domestic to promote production and job creation in your own nation, you’d be surprised at how many things in your life make that list. Also stop resorting to government or other people in general to help you without taking the proper precautions, because in the end it is your responsibility to protect yourself and your family. In a case where natural disaster or economic collapse can leave store shelves empty and interrupt your access to water or even food, government officials will not be able to help you. The benefit of our species is that we were able to plan ahead, that’s how our ancestors were able to help our species grow to one of the most dominant species on our planet, that’s what got us this far. Instead of waiting for disaster to come, be prepared. Not storing water in food for at least short term can be the difference between life and death for you or your family. When you seek advice from a medical professional and he/she skips on asking you in their inquiry about your diet and lifestyle and goes directly to prescribing you prescription drugs to treat yourself, research the ingredients of those drugs yourself before blindly taking them into your body. Everybody knows you are what you eat, so before you fill your body with potentially harmful chemicals, especially those pitched by psychiatrists, do your research. Your mental well being may depend on it. I am not saying that all doctors are evil and out to get you, at most the doctor is simply doing his/her job and is primarily concerned with feeding their own family. It is your responsibility to conduct further research on what you are prescribed and what other more natural alternatives you might be able to take. Since corporations and state have become hand in hand in most cases such as the pharmaceutical companies, amongst many others, the main objective has been to maximize profits at all costs, even at the cost of life. It is not a conspiracy, it is simply what corporations do, maximize profits. If a doctor is told to vaccinate your child with a certain vaccine by his superiors in the industry he/she is simply doing his job by doing so. If your child gets neurological damage due to the some of the preservatives used in vaccines, such as mercury used in many of today’s vaccines, that becomes your problem for not being more vigilant. I’ll put aside my theories on how vaccines may be one of the causes of the rise in autism in children due to my lack of scientific evidence. However it has been scientifically proven that mercury actually kills cells in the brain if the mercury is not expelled from the body quick enough. Question psychiatrists when prescribing mind altering chemicals when in fact a scientific physical test has never been done to prove there is a chemical imbalance in the brain that causes certain behaviour disorders, as suggested by the DSM committee. The age old question is who benefits? The ones selling the drugs. Considering the pharmaceutical industry is a billion dollar yearly industry it is not surprising that doctors don’t ever recommend one natural plant amongst thousands of medicinal plants used by eastern medicine for thousands of years proven to cure so many illnesses and depression. Many corporations have found their ways into our lives by using tactics such as bribery and lobbyists at the tune of millions and billions of dollars that have found their ways into the pockets of selfish politicians, scientists and even doctors. For corporations and corrupt politicians the profit for treating disease is very profitable. Finding cures might make a lot of sense, but it doesn’t make a lot of dollars.

George Georgoudakis
GGG Commodities Fund


12.03.2011

Secret Loans

According to the GAO audit, $16.1 trillion in secret loans were made by the Federal Reserve between December 1, 2007 and July 21, 2010.  The following list of firms and the amount of money that they received was taken directly from page 131 of the GAO audit report....

Citigroup - $2.513 trillion
Morgan Stanley - $2.041 trillion
Merrill Lynch - $1.949 trillion
Bank of America - $1.344 trillion
Barclays PLC - $868 billion
Bear Sterns - $853 billion
Goldman Sachs - $814 billion
Royal Bank of Scotland - $541 billion
JP Morgan Chase - $391 billion
Deutsche Bank - $354 billion
UBS - $287 billion
Credit Suisse - $262 billion
Lehman Brothers - $183 billion
Bank of Scotland - $181 billion
BNP Paribas - $175 billion
Wells Fargo - $159 billion
Dexia - $159 billion
Wachovia - $142 billion
Dresdner Bank - $135 billion
Societe Generale - $124 billion
"All Other Borrowers" - $2.639 trillion

This report was made available to all the members of Congress, but most of them have been totally silent about it.  One of the only members of Congress that has said something has been U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.
The following is an excerpt from a statement about this audit that was taken from the official website of Senator Sanders....
"As a result of this audit, we now know that the Federal Reserve provided more than $16 trillion in total financial assistance to some of the largest financial institutions and corporations in the United States and throughout the world"

11.26.2011

Venezuela Takes Shipment of European Gold Holdings

Merentes didn't specify the quantity of gold shipped on Friday but told a rally of
supporters outside the central bank headquarters that it was valued at around $300
million. In August, President Hugo Chavez announced plans to repatriate foreign
reserves as part of a broader effort to nationalize the country's gold sector.
CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuelan officials Friday welcomed the first air shipment of
overseas gold holdings as part of a controversial move to repatriate the country's
foreign reserves held in North America and Europe.

We’ve Had Enough Government ‘Stimulation’


After three years and $4 trillion in combined deficit spending, unemployment remains stubbornly high and the economy sluggish. That people are still asking what the government can do to stimulate the economy is mind-boggling.
That the Keynesian-inspired deficit spending binge did create jobs isn’t in question. The real question is whether it created any net jobs after all the negative effects of the spending and debt are taken into account. How many private-sector jobs were lost or not created in the first place because of the resources diverted to the government for its job creation? How many jobs are being lost or not created because of increased uncertainty in the business community over future tax increases and other detrimental government policies?
Don’t expect the disciples of interventionist government to attempt an answer to those questions any time soon. It has simply become gospel in some quarters that massive deficit spending is necessary to get the economy back on its feet.
The idea that government spending can “make up for” a slow-down in private economic activity has already been discredited by the historical record—including the Great Depression and Japan’s recent “lost decade.”
Our own history offers evidence that reducing the government’s footprint on the private sector is the better way to get the economy going.
Take for example, the “Not-So-Great Depression” of 1920-21. Cato Institute scholar Jim Powell notes that President Warren G. Harding inherited from his predecessor Woodrow Wilson “a post-World War I depression that was almost as severe, from peak to trough, as the Great Contraction from 1929 to 1933 that FDR would later inherit.” Instead of resorting to deficit spending to “stimulate” the economy, taxes and government spending were cut. The economy took off.
Similarly, fears at the end of World War II that demobilization would result in double-digit unemployment when the troops returned home were unrealized. Instead, spending was dramatically reduced, economic controls were lifted, and the returning troops were successfully reintegrated into the economy.
Therefore, the focus of policymakers in Washington should be on fostering long-term economic growth instead of futilely trying to jump-start the economy with costly short-term government spending sprees. In order to reignite economic growth and job creation, the federal government should enact dramatic cuts in government spending, eliminate burdensome regulations, and scuttle restrictions on foreign trade.
The budgetary reality is that policymakers today have no choice but to drastically reduce spending if we are to head off the looming fiscal train wreck. Stimulus proponents generally recognize that our fiscal path is unsustainable, but they argue that the current debt binge is nonetheless critical to an economic recovery.
There’s no more evidence for this belief than there is for the existence of the tooth fairy.
Not only has Washington’s profligacy left us worse off, our children now face the prospect of reduced living standards and crushing debt.



This article originally appeared in a PolicyMic debate between the Cato Institute’s Tad DeHaven and Demos senior fellow Lew Daly.