$1.7 Trillion Poorer
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- TheBlueOne0
I find it kinda funny that in the 21st century, with all the technological innovation and incredible transformation of the base structuring of our societies we still are using 19th century terms to describe our economics and 18th century terms to frame our politics.
While there are certain unchangeable verities about human nature, and certain accepted understandings of how complex systems operate, so many just put blind faith in a limited understanding of these tools.
I firmly believe that we need to discover a new theory for both politics - one that gets rid of the ugly 18th century post-counter-revolutionary French idea of "left & right" - and one that is far more descriptive of the actual forces and motives at play. "Left/Liberal" Right/conservative" are just useless propaganda tools that are used to not actually discuss and solve anything and simply maintain the status quo of both sides.
Equally so, in economics, the classical system of Keynsian vs. Friedman Free Markets is equally flawed and silly. Models that don't map to the actual territories anymore. In economics I suggest starting with Karl Polyani ( http://eh.net/bookreviews/librar… ) a critic, like Friedman of Keynsian systems, but didn't put blind faith in the concept of a "free market".
As that article above pointed out there has been a revolution in wealth creation in the financial industry - billions of dollars created out of "nothing". Now this "nothing" came from somewhere, just as much as all the technological change we see around us. It is real and it exists, probably as a consequence of increasing complexity, and information flows in markets and the resulting efficiencies.
Anyway, I know this is a waste to discuss this here. <sigh> I await hedge's silly remarks in response and the usual "Well what the fuck can we do we're just dumb designers"...
I leave you with this quote:
"If success or failure of the planet and of human beings depended on how I am and what I do ... How would I be? What would I do?"
— R. Buckminster Fuller
- hedge0
I'm not specifically targeting you Blue, but all I've been hearing lately from the popular media outlets (particularly liberal ones) and pundits is corporate & business bashing. Attacking the corporations that provide jobs to millions of Americans is a very bad idea, especially now. All I've heard from Obama indicate to me that he is the most anti-business presidential candidate I have seen in quite some time. Not good. We can't all work for the government or be freelance designers.
- Look at KBR or Blackwater or any number of hundreds of companies whose growth is war********
- I'm all for gov't contracts but why not produce something useful more than once? a bullet is not coming back.********
- Obama is anti-failure********
- Cherry picking a few companies to attack capitalism, I like your style.hedge
- corporations go offshore to dodge paying taxes. the new patriotism.mrdobolina
- Doesn't tell you anything about how we're taxing compared to those foreign countries?hedge
- hooray for bankruptcy! trickle down = debunked years ago bud.spifflink
- Look at KBR or Blackwater or any number of hundreds of companies whose growth is war
- key0
I think that Obama's success has hinged on his position as being anti-failure (thanks cap) because most of us have a very sick feeling about the current state of affairs.
There have been 2 major financial bubbles (tech and housing) that are working to undermine the financial security of the middle class who are also under large debt loads, in the last two periods of rapid economic growth salaries did not rise in parity, Bush is... yeah I'm at a loss.
On top of that is the entire re-emergence of the east issue and growing feeling of stagnation in the western world. These sorts of things historically lead to anti-trust legislation etc.
- Not that this is Obama's only strength by the way, but he has managed to represent change which feels a lot like a solution.key
- Petroleum might be a 3rd bubble...TheBlueOne
- TheBlueOne0
C'mon, I hardly think Obama is anti-business. No one who gets the nomination of any U.S. party can really be "anti-business" (see Kucinich, Dennis and Paul, Ron), although Obama might be for different businesses than currently sit on top of the heap - thus is painted by those at top as "anti-business".
If Obama gets in it's not going to be all progressive rainbows and unicorns. That's a fantasy - both of progressives and as a nightmare as created by the reactionary finnacial right-wing.
All this "new wealth creation" has come out of new financial tools - such as your beloved "hedge funds" which no one really understands so well and are changing month to month in how the tools are used. In other words they, like computer technolgy, are transforming their industry and the society around them and their are no laws about it. Or better put the tools are outracing existing social controls.
Just as technology is redefining serious issues about privacy, copyright and piracy in the legal area (still in massive flux) among others, these new financial tools are racing far ahead of any oversight and/or transparency in monitoring their legal working.
I do think with an Obama administration would seek to bring new oversight tools to this industry, hence the reactionary-knee jerk dismiassl of Obama as "liberal anti-business".
- Iggyboo0
Petrol is 134 dollars a barrell and rising due to the decreasing value of the dollar. All we have to blame on this is where we're spending our monday. If you buy you raise demand. Right now things are starting to get out of control... I really don't feel confident in either candidate right now because their is no quick fix to this mess. And hope I am sorry is not the answer.. Action is. You know the one thing thats negative about obama to me really is his connection to Deval Patrick and for those of you from Massachusetts Deval ran on this hope hype campaign and unfortunately the guy has done nothing for Massachusetts that's even close to what his hype was. So who knows. I just hope Obama is not the greatest blunder in the democratic party yet.
- Lol i need more coffee. Money not Monday.Iggyboo
- Correct. There is no quick fix to this. No candidate will fix it. It's a structural problem.TheBlueOne
- However, if you're in a hole the old advice is to stop digging. Which one guy might advocate over the other.TheBlueOne
- but how the fuck do you want me to spend my monday?!!??!CALLES
- Drilling in Alaska would relieve some crude price inflation.hedge