Analysis Topic: Politics & Social Trends
The analysis published under this topic are as follows.
Monday, March 05, 2012
U.S. Recession Explanations, Does the ECRI Believe Its Own Economic Indicators? / Politics / Economic Statistics
By: Mike_Shedlock
Late last month in ECRI Sticks with Recession Call on CNBC; More than a Bit of an Exaggeration by Achuthan to Make His Call? I questioned the ECRI's use of coincident indicators to make a claim regarding recession
I count three instances between 1990 and 2000 where ECRI coincident indicators flagged a recession by the methodology Achuthan cited.Read full article... Read full article...
Sunday, March 04, 2012
Greece and Credit Default Swaps: Bucking the ISDA Cartel / Politics / Eurozone Debt Crisis
By: Janet_Tavakoli
Credit derivatives were originally hyped as hedging tools to protect the value of a portfolio. For example, if you own a bond, you can buy protection against the possibility of default by paying a protection premium, similar to the premium you pay on an insurance policy. The difference between insurance and the credit derivatives known as credit default swaps (CDS) is that you don't actually have to own the bond in order to "buy protection." But like an insurance policy, you have to negotiate the terms of the contract.
Sunday, March 04, 2012
Russia Election Fraud, Czar Putin Elects Himself President of Corrupt Russian Mafia State / Politics / Russia
By: Nadeem_Walayat
Czar "Prime Minister" Putin in September 2011 decided they would swap jobs again with his President front Man Medvedev and today Vladimir Putin elects himself President for another 6 year term in a repeat smoke and mirrors bogus fraudulent election.
Saturday, March 03, 2012
Planned Regime Change in Syria / Politics / US Politics
By: Stephen_Lendman
Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and now Syria had peace and calm until Washington intervened belligerently.
Strategies and tactics vary. Objectives are consistent. They involve replacing independent regimes with pro-Western ones by any means, including war.
Three unwinnable ones rage. Nonetheless, Obama plans more. Syria's target one. For the past year, US-instigated violence ravaged parts of the country. Thousands have been killed, many others injured.
Read full article... Read full article...
Saturday, March 03, 2012
Why Can’t Americans Have Democracy? / Politics / US Politics
By: Paul_Craig_Roberts
Syria has a secular government as did Iraq prior to the american invasion. Secular governments are important in Arab lands in which there is division between Sunni and Shi’ite. Secular governments keep the divided population from murdering one another.
When the american invasion, a war crime under the Nuremberg standard set by the US after WW II, overthrew the Saddam Hussein secular government, the Iraqi Sunnis and Shi’ites went to war against one another. The civil war between Iraqis saved the american invasion. Nevertheless, enough Sunnis found time to fight the american occupiers of Iraq that the US was never able to occupy Bagdad, much less Iraq, no matter how violent and indiscriminate the US was in the application of force.
Read full article... Read full article...
Saturday, March 03, 2012
U.S. War on Terror is Government Fraud / Politics / US Politics
By: Michael_S_Rozeff
The first thing to understand about terrorism against America is that it is negligible. Horrible as it was, the destruction of the Trade Towers was an outlier, that is, an event that lies way, way outside the main body of terrorist activity. It is no comfort to the dead, the injured and to their loved ones to point this out, but it is something that must be understood because failure to understand the realities of terrorism has led Americans to support aggressive war policies that are highly destructive of innocent lives and societies overseas and do not diminish the threat of terrorism. These immoral and unjust policies have increased the numbers of terrorists dedicated to destroying American life. As a negative bonus, they have undermined the economy and freedoms of America, thereby causing an untold increase in hardship among Americans now and in the future.
Friday, March 02, 2012
Iran Oil Trumps Iran Nuclear / Politics / Crude Oil
By: Andrew_McKillop
The US Energy Dept's 29 February report on world oil market trends carried baleful news for the gung-ho fraternity who want to turn Iran's nuclear installations into Dirty Bombs before Iran produces the Clean Bombs that other owner countries, like the US, Pakistan, France and Israel proudly possess.
Friday, March 02, 2012
Google and the Death of Privacy / Politics / Social Issues
By: Jeff_Berwick
You may or may not be surprised to hear this but I am not a big "privacy buff". You've probably noticed this as I've regularly detailed the minutiea of my personal life here for a number of years. I'm certainly not one of those who would protest against Google StreetView for taking photos of public locations. Take all the photos you want, Google.
Friday, March 02, 2012
Modern Myths that Destroy Humanity / Politics / Social Issues
By: Ashvin_Pandurangi
“All things are subject to interpretation; whichever interpretation prevails at a given time is a function of power and not truth.” –Friedrich Nietzsche
I'd like to take this opportunity to comment on an oldie but a goodie from the Indian environmentalist, Vandan Shiva. In her brief article for Odewire, "Two myths that keep the world poor", Shiva tears apart the logic of Harvard economist and neoliberal (-feudal), economic "shock therapy" advocate Jeffrey Sachs with all the force one would expect from the God of destruction. It was in response to a book written by Sachs called The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities of Our Time, which featured all the nonsensical arguments that “liberal progressives” like to spout off in magazines and on television these days.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 01, 2012
Unbelievable Stress of Making "Only" $200,000 After Taxes / Politics / US Politics
By: Mike_Shedlock
People who have nothing to eat, no job, and are about to be tossed out of their homes in foreclosure, really do not know what stress is.
To fully appreciate stress, please consider the sorry "plights" of Andrew Schiff, marketing director for Euro Pacific Capital, Daniel Arbeeny, a Wall Street headhunter, and hedge-fund manager Richard Scheiner.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 01, 2012
Bernanke Maintains Cautious Stance on Further Monetary Easing / Politics / Central Banks
By: Asha_Bangalore
Chairman Bernanke maintained a cautious stance in today’s testimony at the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and left the door open for additional monetary policy easing. He opened his remarks with the observation that the “pace of expansion has been uneven and modest by historical standards.” In his opinion, economic activity is likely to match the pace seen in the latter half of 2011. The U.S. economy advanced at an average pace of 2.4% in the third and fourth quarters of 2011.
Read full article... Read full article...
Thursday, March 01, 2012
ECB LTRO – Fatter than El Gordo / Politics / Credit Crisis 2012
By: Adrian_Ash
Gasp at the sheer size of El Tro, the €1 trillion money storm raining down on Europe's banks...
The FATTEST PRIZE in the world's biggest lottery, El Gordo – the "Fat One" – just keeps getting fatter, according to its promoters.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
India's Government Grudgingly Releases Report on Nuclear Power's Effect on Human Health / Politics / Nuclear Power
By: OilPrice_Com
India is betting heavily on nuclear power to meet its surging energy needs. While India currently has six nuclear power plants (NPPs) with 20 reactors generating 4,780 megawatts, seven other reactors are under construction and are expected to generate an additional 5,300 megawatts.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
US, Britain Gear Up for War on Iran / Politics / Iran
By: Global_Research
Bill Van Auken writes: The military commands in both the US and Britain have sought increased funding and stepped up deployments of arms and personnel to the Persian Gulf in preparation for an anticipated war against Iran.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the Pentagon, acting on the request of the Central Command, which oversees US military operations in the region, has requested the re-allocation of some $100 million in military spending to ratchet up war preparations.
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
The Key Players Are Showing Their Hands… Will Germany Go “All In”? / Politics / Eurozone Debt Crisis
By: Graham_Summers
As I’ve stated time and again, Germany is the only EU member that has the money to get Greece through this next round of debt payments (14.4 billion Euros coming due March 20). But Merkel isn’t going to give the money without Greece submitting to German fiscal demands.
However, there is no way Greece will submit to German fiscal authority. Heck the Greeks are even going so far as to bring up German war reparations from WWII!
Read full article... Read full article...
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
The State of the World: Explaining U.S. Strategy / Politics / GeoPolitics
By: STRATFOR
The fall of the Soviet Union ended the European epoch, the period in which European power dominated the world. It left the United States as the only global power, something for which it was culturally and institutionally unprepared. Since the end of World War II, the United States had defined its foreign policy in terms of its confrontation with the Soviet Union. Virtually everything it did around the world in some fashion related to this confrontation. The fall of the Soviet Union simultaneously freed the United States from a dangerous confrontation and eliminated the focus of its foreign policy.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Global 'Oil Shock' Could Sink Obama's Re-Election Bid / Politics / Crude Oil
By: Gary_Dorsch
As the price of North Sea Brent crude oil touched $125 /barrel last week, the topic of sharply higher gasoline prices suddenly caught the attention of the Main Stream Media (MSM). Spin artists for the re-election campaign of President Barack Obama were quick to deny any responsibility for soaring oil prices, and instead blamed the upward spiral on geo-political tension with Iran. However, since the days of the Yom Kippur War in October 1973, - when the OPEC cartel placed an embargo on crude oil sales and hiked oil prices by 70%, the price of gasoline has been a key variable effecting the outcome of US-presidential elections.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
When Oil Rides High The Snakeoil Flows / Politics / Crude Oil
By: Andrew_McKillop
The US energy department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) launched its annual Energy
Innovation Summit, 27 February, to a backdrop of oil price fear and a ritual bout of warnings on the
economic dangers of spiralling oil prices, from media friendly economic gurus usually peddling the
debt-deficit-and-doom storyline.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Inverted Totalitarianism and the Corporate State / Politics / US Politics
By: BATR
Stricken with a terminal disease, the decline of traditional society is unavoidable. For decades, the political institutions that fostered a Republic based upon individual liberty and responsibility fade into fond memory. Defenders of all that made America a shining example of human freedom are attacked and ridiculed for holding onto a moral and ethical system that is based upon the dignity of every individual. Most will blame the failure of this decay on the politicians that willfully pander to the masses with the next generation of social welfare programs. While defining a politician as a scoundrel, deserving damnation, seems obvious; the underlying source of the decay that eats away the culture comes from various directions.Read full article... Read full article...
Monday, February 27, 2012
U.S. Economy Extend and Pretend is Coming To An End / Politics / US Economy
By: James_Quinn
The real world revolves around cash flow. Families across the land understand this basic concept. Cash flows in from wages, investments and these days from the government. Cash flows out for food, gasoline, utilities, cable, cell phones, real estate taxes, income taxes, payroll taxes, clothing, mortgage payments, car payments, insurance payments, medical bills, auto repairs, home repairs, appliances, electronic gadgets, education, alcohol (necessary in this economy) and a countless other everyday expenses. If the outflow exceeds the inflow a family may be able to fund the deficit with credit cards for awhile, but ultimately running a cash flow deficit will result in debt default and loss of your home and assets. Ask the millions of Americans that have experienced this exact outcome since 2008 if you believe this is only a theoretical exercise. The Federal government, Federal Reserve, Wall Street banks, regulatory agencies and commercial real estate debtors have colluded since 2008 to pretend cash flow doesn’t matter. Their plan has been to “extend and pretend”, praying for an economic recovery that would save them from their greedy and foolish risk taking during the 2003 – 2007 Caligula-like debauchery.