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 Posted - 01/04/2012 : 21:25:42
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Prosocial vs. Antisocial Behaviors As Rated On Our Quality Of Life Scale
WHAT PSYCHIATRICALLY IS THE POINT OF THIS BLOG?
The Ancient Struggle Between Good And Evil
Our ancient philosophies and religions didn't help us that well when it came to handling evil.
- The Ancient Greek philosophies taught us to "neither harm nor be harmed". They also taught us about the importance of courage, justice, moderation, and wisdom. Unfortunately, these ancient philosophies glorified war, permitted slavery, and prohibited anyone from charging interest on loans (the basis of capitalism).
- Christianity taught us forgiveness, treating others the way we want to be treated, and loving others. Unfortunately, Christianity had great difficulty dealing with evil. Christians were simply taught to "turn the other cheek" and to passively resist evil.
Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong and the other terrible dictators of the 20th Century have taught us that we must resist evil. Dictators don't respond to forgiveness and "turning the other cheek".
This blog will examine the ancient struggle between good and evil in the context of today's pending economic meltdown.
All the elements of this ancient struggle are evident in today's economy. We can see how suspiciousness, bearing grudges, feeling victimized, arrogance, greed, callousness, disrespect for other's rights, irresponsibility and dishonesty still personify evil, as they did in ancient times.
This blog will also argue that there is still much good in the world. Trust, forgiveness, gratitude, humility, generosity, kindness, respect, responsibility, and honesty still personify goodness in this ancient struggle.
This year, this ancient struggle might take on Biblical proportions. If the evil that is in our economy prevails; we all will witness a tragic global economic meltdown. It won't be the end of the world, but it will be a very painful experience for many of the world's most vulnerable citizens who lack the resources to weather this economic storm.
My hope is that there is enough good in our economy and culture to confront the evil that surrounds us. Thus I will continue to chronical this ancient struggle. |
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Posted - 01/04/2012 : 21:44:25
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THIS YEAR'S RECESSION WILL BE WORSE THAN 2008
Unfortunately, there are economic indicators that predict America and Europe may have a serious recession (or depression) in 2012.
This first chart illustrates that, in the past 5 years for the U.S. federal budget:
- There has been an almost 5-fold increase in federal government net operating cost.
- There has been an 8-fold increase in the federal budget deficit.
- In 2011, U.S. federal government"s "net operating cost" equaled the federal budget deficit. That meant that, for the first time in American history, the U.S. federal government had to borrow every dollar it spent to deliver its services. That is because every cent of tax revenue now has to go to pay the interest on the U.S. Total Debt (which is now more than $56 trillion). This single economic fact guarantees the economic collapse of America.
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Posted - 01/04/2012 : 21:55:55
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IN AMERICA, CORPORATIONS CONTROL THE GOVERNMENT, HENCE PAY LITTLE TAXES
This chart illustrates how American corporations pay little taxes.
In fact, America's largest corporation, General Electric, paid no federal taxes in 2010.
Many American corporations had record profits last year. |
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Posted - 01/04/2012 : 22:01:24
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U.S. Federal Government Spending Has Doubled In The Past Decade
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Posted - 01/04/2012 : 22:30:12
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U.S. Federal Budget 2011
Three items account for three-quarters of U.S. federal budget:
- 35% goes for U.S. Defense Spending (which includes Dept. of Defense + Dept. of Veteran Affairs + half of the "All Other" category [where the remainder of U.S. defense spending is hidden in the budget]).
- 24% goes to Medicare (Dept. of Health and Human Services)
- 21% goes to Social Security
America defense spending is almost as much as the rest of the world's combined defense spending. This insane level of military spending guarantees that America will go bankrupt.
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Posted - 01/04/2012 : 23:28:14
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THERE IS A GREAT RISK OF A GLOBAL FINANCIAL MELTDOWN IN 2012
Bill Gross is called the "Bond King" because he controls $252.2 billion in bonds at his firm (PIMCO). He has made a prediction for 2012 that you won't like. He stated: "The financial markets and global economies are at great risk." Normally financial leaders never, never say anything that would panic the market. That is why his warning of a financial implosion is so exceptional.
Bill Gross admits that, so far, he can't predict whether this 2012 global financial meltdown will be deflationary or inflationary. If it were deflationary, then the U.S. dollar would strengthen and prices would drop (including the price of precious metals).
It it were inflationary, then the U.S. dollar would tank as prices soared (including the price of precious metals).
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 00:05:33
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GOLD, PEACE AND PROSPERITY: Congressman Ron Paul
This brief pamphlet was written by Congressman Ron Paul in 1981. This is further proof of how Ron Paul is decades ahead of his fellow Congressmen in his understanding of economics. |
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 05:52:13
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BIGGEST ROLL-BACK IN AMERICAN CIVIL RIGHTS
On New Years Eve, President Obama signed into law the National Defense Appropriations Act, with Amendment 1031, which allows for the military detention of American citizens.
This new law is so loosely worded that anyone suspected of being a terrorist, or other enemy of the state:
- Can be placed in a military prison (where prisoners are currently being tortured with water boarding etc.).
- Can be kept in prison indefinitely without trial.
Adolf Hitler passed almost identical laws against "enemies of the state" which permitted Nazi Germany to declare martial law and put millions into concentration camps.
Of all the candidates for President, only Congressman Ron Paul has spoken out to oppose this new law. |
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 06:28:43
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WHY AMERICA WANTS TO GO TO WAR WITH IRAN
You must view this video interview with Paul Craig Roberts, former U.S. Assistant Treasury Secretary. |
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 06:56:56
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 12:24:26
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PMI ECONOMIC INDICATOR POINTS TO GLOBAL SLOWDOWN
The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) is a very important sentiment reading, not only for manufacturing, but also the economy as a whole.
This index is calculated by asking purchasing managers whether they are optimistic or pessimistic about 5 sectors of their industries. When 50% or more of these purchasing managers are optimistic; this usually indicates that their manufacturing industry is expanding. If manufacturing is expanding, usually the general economy is also expanding.
On the PMI, when less than 42% of purchasing managers surveyed are pessimistic; this usually indicates that recession is right around the corner.
This chart illustrates that:
- Purchasing managers were, on average, 7% more pessimistic in December 2011, compared to January 2011.
- Few nations had a PMI higher than 50% (which suggests that few nations will have an expanding economy). The most optimistic purchasing managers were in India, Canada and USA.
- On this index, Greece, Spain and Italy appear to be close to recession.
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 12:40:35
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Morgan Stanley Investment Bank's Predictions for 2012
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 12:52:07
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Business Insider's Outlook For Europe In 2012
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 12:57:49
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 13:01:50
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Posted - 01/05/2012 : 16:34:52
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Global Financial Collapse Coming In 2012
Steen Jakobsen, chief economist at Saxo Bank, predicts a 30% drop in the price of European stocks, and a global recession for 2012. I believe he is correct. |
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2012: The Year USA Realized It Was Broke [closed]
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