Archive for the 'Economy' Category
Stanford Depositors Swarm Banks
February 18th, 2009Via: Reuters: Hundreds of people lined up to withdraw money from banks in Antigua and Caracas affiliated with Texas billionaire Allen Stanford, a day after the tycoon was charged with an $8 billion fraud. The brash, 58-year-old financier’s whereabouts remained unclear on Wednesday, a day after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accused him of […]
Germany Passes Law Allowing it to Nationalize Banks
February 18th, 2009Via: Reuters: The German cabinet approved a law on Wednesday letting it nationalise banks, setting aside a reluctance to seize private property in the latest government intervention worldwide to tackle the financial crisis. Germany said it was not planning to extend the role of the state through the bill, which it described as a last […]
The Invisible Hand of the Market: British Troops Seize £50 Million of Afghan Opium
February 18th, 2009What I think is happening here is that the USUK smack industrial complex has decided to drive up the street price of heroin. My theory will be confirmed if we hear that Obama’s escalation of the war in Afghanistan includes counter-narcotics operations. Why now? First of all, heroin is cheap. Too cheap: A gram of […]
The New Depression: “This is the mother of all postwar crises, which has barely started and remains out of control.”
February 18th, 2009This article starts off well enough, but it goes off the rails. The problem is not “unregulated capital.” There are volumes of regulations related to capital and we don’t need an additional Soviet Ministry of Money Rules. The problem is the composition of the capital in the first place. The problem is the arbitrary ability […]
Black Hole: GM to Seek Another $30 Billion in Aid, Will Cut 47,000 Jobs
February 18th, 2009Via: AP: General Motors Corp., presenting a dire outlook for the future, said Tuesday it may need $30 billion in total government financing to weather the economic downturn and would cut 47,000 jobs worldwide and shutter five more U.S. factories in a massive restructuring plan. The automaker is already surviving on $13.4 billion in federal […]
U.S. Accuses Texas Financial Firm of ‘Massive’ Fraud
February 17th, 2009Via: New York Times: Stopping what it called a “massive ongoing fraud,” the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday accused Robert Allen Stanford, the chief of the Stanford Financial Group, of fraud in the sale of about $8 billion of high-yielding certificates of deposit held in the firm’s bank in Antigua. Also named in the […]
U.S. Military Preparing for “Violent, Strategic Dislocation Inside the United States”; Possibly from “Economic Collapse”
February 17th, 2009Via: TruthDig: The specter of social unrest was raised at the U.S. Army War College in November in a monograph [click on Policypointers’ pdf link to see the report] titled “Known Unknowns: Unconventional ‘Strategic Shocks’ in Defense Strategy Development.” The military must be prepared, the document warned, for a “violent, strategic dislocation inside the United […]
Russian Industrial Output Falls 20%
February 17th, 2009Via: Financial Times: Russia’s industrial production plunged 20 per cent in January, a fall that could herald a much larger than expected drop in gross domestic product this year, economists fear. The decline was its largest month to month drop since records began seven years ago. “The horrendous industrial production data in January have left […]
California Budget Crisis: 20,000 State Jobs Hang in the Balance
February 17th, 2009Via: CNN: California lawmakers were told to bring their toothbrushes and prepare for a long day Tuesday, with the goal of passing a budget as the state faces a $42 billion deficit and 20,000 layoff notices were set to go out to state workers Tuesday. “Bring a toothbrush, bring any necessities you want to bring, […]
RUSSIA: STOCK EXCHANGES HALTED
February 17th, 2009Via: MarketWatch: Russian stocks tumbled Tuesday, prompting the RTS and the Micex stock exchanges to suspend trading for one hour at 4:05 p.m. Moscow time. The dollar-denominated RTS stock index plunged 9.4%, while the ruble-denominated Micex stock index fell 9.6%. The decline in Russia followed a tumble in oil prices and declines on global stock […]
