Big Lie

Huge majority wants Clapper prosecuted for perjury

"In the Democratic states of California and Hawaii, 54 percent and 58 percent of voters, respectively, want him prosecuted. In middle-of-the-road Iowa, it’s 65 percent. And in Republican Texas and Kentucky, it is 68 percent and 69 percent, respectively. These are particularly striking numbers because the 'not sure' numbers are relatively small. in this case, the polls show relatively few voters expressing such a sentiment. That suggests not only that the NSA story has seeped into the national consciousness, but also that people are specifically aware of — and disgusted by — the rampant lying by the Obama administration." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHuge majority wants Clapper prosecuted for perjury

Bill Bonner: Trust is falling

"Stocks are now as expensive as they were in 2007, says our old friend Mark Hulbert. As for bonds, they are at the top of a 30-year bull market. And gold? The metal bottomed out in 1998. It's gone up ever since, with a textbook correction over the last year or so. What's happening now? Slowly, gradually, like draining a huge lock on a canal, the bond market is dropping. Bonds rise on trust. They fall when trust ebbs away. Why should trust fall now? The simple answer is because it has run its course. Trust is cyclical. As it grows, people become more confident, more sure, and more reckless. Why hold back when there is nothing to fear?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Trust is falling

Study Rejects Cell Phone Driving Danger Claims

"A study published in the August edition American Economic Journal rejects the commonly held view that the proliferation of cell phone use among the driving public has made travel more dangerous. Politicians have seized on the perception and outlawed driving while talking on a handheld cell phone in eleven states. The researchers began by posing a difficult question for politicians: Why has cell phone use skyrocketed at the same time that traffic accidents and fatalities are at an all-time low? The study found that fatal accident rates did not see either a short-term or a long-term drop in the states that adopted cell phone driving bans." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingStudy Rejects Cell Phone Driving Danger Claims

DOJ, FBI admit they inflated claims about mortgage fraud crackdown last year

"The Justice Department and FBI have quietly acknowledged they grossly overstated the scope of a mortgage fraud crackdown, which the administration heralded with much fanfare a few weeks before last year's presidential election. The DOJ and FBI had long been dogged by claims that their numbers were inflated. Bloomberg has been reporting since October that the cases cited by Holder included charges filed during the George W. Bush administration. Bloomberg continued to press for clarification. The administration went dark on the issue until Friday, when the FBI acknowledged in a memo that it had conducted an 'extensive review' and found problems." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDOJ, FBI admit they inflated claims about mortgage fraud crackdown last year

Gold Gone? Germany baffled as Fed bars access to bullion

"The world is losing trust in the dollar as a safe haven. A major blow came after Germany's Bundesbank demanded the repatriation of a big chunk of its gold being held in the US. Because as RT's Gayane Chichakyan reports, some are concerned the assets of foreign nations in the Federal Reserve are not secure or even there. The Germans were infuriated when the US Federal reserve didn't even let them examine their own assets properly. Peter Boehringer, the founder and chairman of 'German Precious Metal Association', says that's a bad sign." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGold Gone? Germany baffled as Fed bars access to bullion

Why the White House Is Panicking About Obamacare

"About one in every four individuals who are eligible for Medicaid in this country has not bothered to enroll. About one in five employees who are offered employer-provided health insurance turns it down; among workers under 30 years of age, the refusal rate is almost one in three. Think about that for a moment. Millions of people are turning down (Medicaid) health insurance, even though it’s free! Millions of others are turning down their employers’ offers. Welcome to the huge disconnect in health reform. On the one hand there are the people who are supposed to benefit from health reform. On the other hand there are the people who talk about it and write about it." Continue reading →

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Bill Bonner: America’s faith-based economy

"Did Mary really ascend to Heaven on this day? Was she really a virgin? Did she really give birth to the son of God? You need faith to believe such things. Likewise, you need faith to believe that a piece of green paper is ‘money’. You are also supposed to believe that its managers will make sure this ‘money’ holds its purchasing power even as they do their damnedest to undermine it. But to believe that you need more than faith. You need a full frontal lobotomy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: America’s faith-based economy

Detroit, Demographics and Detonation

"The baby boom generation is an abnormality. It was the byproduct of halcyon days — not that we knew it at the time. But as we have seen in Detroit, when demographics shift from production to pension, there is trouble ahead. Low birth rates combined with a plethora of maturing adults on the cusp of retirement turns the pyramid of society on its head. Lower growth in itself is not a bad thing. We are still moving forward. The problem is certain promises (welfare and health commitments) have been made that cannot be kept if growth does not return to around the 3% mark. Putting this genie back in the bottle is going to be a political nightmare." Continue reading →

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Fmr. Comptroller David Walker: To help end budget gimmicks, pass this bill

"This bill, also championed by the youth-led 'The Can Kicks Back' campaign, would make it more difficult for Washington politicians to kick the can down the road by providing information about the long-term impact of today’s unsustainable fiscal policy. Specifically, the INFORM Act would expose two important but often ignored realities. First, with an aging population, rising healthcare costs and mounting interest expense, federal spending is set to automatically and dramatically increase the 'mandatory' part of our budget. Second, young people and future generations will disproportionately shoulder the burden of our fiscal imbalance." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFmr. Comptroller David Walker: To help end budget gimmicks, pass this bill

U. of California economist says real US debt $70 trillion, not $16 trillion

"James Hamilton believes the government leaving out certain unfunded liabilities that include government loan guarantees, deposit insurance, and actions taken by the Federal Reserve as well as the cost of other government trust funds, which bring the total amount the government owes to a staggering $70 trillion, he says. 'The biggest off-balance-sheet liabilities come from recognition of the fiscal stress that will come in the form of an aging population and rising medical expenditures,' Hamilton says, adding, 'There are many historical episodes in which off-balance sheet liabilities ended up having quite significant on-balance sheet implications.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU. of California economist says real US debt $70 trillion, not $16 trillion