So the world awaits Mr Federal Reserve Bernanke's speech this afternoon as from all indications he will launch or at least propose another QE or Quantitative Easing which will be the third iteration. Let me explain ...
QE is Fed-speak for pumping more liquidity, money, into the general economy in such things as bail outs, direct injection of cash, you know, that stuff that the Fed can authorize printing on paper with no backing thus a US IOU saying "trust me, we are good for it." Oh, it also means additional Treasury bond auctions in trying to thus increase our Mt Everest Debt Mountain to an even higher peak. Oh, by the way, Congress is still back home and if you are tired to hearing me beat that drum, realize that we should but look across the Atlantic to assess the UK response to the rioting and looting. Let me run that dog for a moment if I may ...
Why all the turmoil in the UK that sort of sneaked up on the world, the host of the next Olympic Games? It is really simple and illustrative for America and what lies ahead, ready? Mr. Cameron, the young, brash, head-screwed-on-straight Prime Minister of the UK came to power in a very similar, smaller scale of course, debt ridden economy like America is today. He, rightly, forces Parliament to embark upon austerity measures to reduce the debt and make the UK economically viable again. Remember Greece ... same thing so we have a global perspective don't we? The rioting in the UK, like Greece and I believe in the US if our Prime Minister / President and Parliament / Congress ever decide to fix this mess in the US, which is yet to be done, will no doubt lead to mass demonstrations and rioting for it hurts. When you hear / read the term austerity, it means economic pain and turmoil. But austerity is not an option, it is a decision to be made sooner or lager and America is choosing to keep American in a debt-buoyed bubble to prolong the eventual hurt. Mr. Cameron is keeping his Parliament in session to work jointly to find a fix to the woes of the UK .... TOGETHER!
In other words, the US is choosing to not attack the cancer but rather to fund better treatment centers and technology, terrible metaphor but well targeted I believe, instead of truly, jointly, aggressively attacking the core issues of this nation. We are living far beyond our means economically as individuals and as a nation. Our GDP per Capita or our Standard of Living that is sustainable is more aligned with France or Germany and we are witnessing, painfully, the economic forces and political ineptitude and guts, drive our economic standard of living to a more sustainable level meaning living within our means. This is a long, painful but necessary "correction" is the politically correct term but pain, fear, anger, worry, disappointment, riots, civil unrest, etc, etc will be the norm in all probability.
It never ceases to amaze me when I see a situation that is running leaderless and how something or someone, good or bad, usually bad, will fill that gap. Aren't you tired of the blaming now Reagan, the two Bushes, Clinton, the dog catcher, the firemen in Alabama, etc, etc, and, oh by the way, Mr Obama for all this trouble they have created with doubling, tripling, etc, etc, the national debt? Old "W" is still carrying the water for all of this now three years into a new Presidency and majorities in Congress. Hum, me wonders? Please know that, for me, this is not about a party but a systemic failure. There is more than enough blame and will be for a couple of generations for yes, this will now project to my grand children's children that I will never see but they will be paying the price and that, frankly, angers me.
The other option, which I think painfully is best in the long run, is that it is past time to take the training wheels of protection off this massive economy and what was the 20th century's global growth engine and allow the economic forces Adam Smith taught us three hundred years ago to clean this mess up. Obviously the politicians cannot, the government surely cannot, pundits cannot but we, the citizenry can if once we decide enough is enough. This citizen has seen and heard and swallowed more than enough!
I was reading Psalms 106 this morning and realized we really are no different than what King David wrote about in his song / Psalm with the Israelites constantly turning their back on God and how God would "remind" them painfully of who was really in control. Here we are in 2011 and, ahh, that Psalm is as true today as in the deserts of the Sinai thousands of years ago. Frankly, we really are getting what we deserve for, as a nation and as a global population, we have turned away from our Sovereign God in every way in cultural changes that are condemned in the Bible are now the norm. Prayer is a no-no publicly. We are killing unborn children unabashedly. See where I am going?
Having said all of that, it really boils down to what we can do other than whine and worry ... we can pray for our leaders, our nation and pray for a return to the very principles our Founders built this country upon. We need God's Hand and He is there; He has not moved for our God is a constant meaning it is we that have turned from the Biblical principles and teachings. So the prayer must be that people, like the Israelites endured, go through enough pain / motivation to realize it is not we that can turn this mess around but only a God that loves His creation, His people!
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