Five Warning Signs of Continuing Economic Collapse

It’s not Armageddon. But it’s not economic recovery. We’re not all going to live happily ever after.

The Statue of Liberty front shot, on Liberty I...

We’ll not be returning to the status quo ante 2006. That’s gone forever. The assumption of endless growth and prosperity is over in America. The American Dream of the past half-century is cooked.

What about more jobs, jobs, jobs for American workers, like the politicians pretend they believe? They can’t deliver it. Not going to happen. Glimmers of recovery here and there, maybe; but it will be the exception, not the rule.

Reindustrialization of America? Maybe a little bit, but new industry won’t need factories filled with unskilled workers. Or any kind of workers. Automation, robotization, computerization. All signs point to fewer jobs, not more jobs.

The promise of more jobs and economic recovery is a lie, or at least a mirage. I have to believe that many knowledgeable people in high places are aware of the truth. But they dare not say it out loud. Too many Americans are still in denial.

In order for people to accept the loss of the endless growth and prosperity model, they have to be able to replace it with a substitute. Leaders of government and business have not been able to come up with a substitute. They don’t know what to do except dissemble, and hope for a miracle.

The signs of continuing collapse in the near term and medium term are all around. Here are five of the most important warning signs, Continue reading

‘Responsibility’ is Key to World Economic Crisis

Is the present generation willing to accept the simple responsibility of paying its bills?

Or will we refuse to pay? That’s what it all comes down to, isn’t it?

The Roberts decision upholding the Affordable Care Act turned the spotlight on RESPONSIBILITY.  The effect of the High Court decision is to require that people of means take responsibility for buying their own health insurance. Some view that as an unreasonable request.

The decision also leaves a central question open to debate. Will society accept responsibility for the health care costs of the poor? The High Court’s position on Medicaid essentially requires each state to decide whether it will accept responsibility for its poor citizens. (A related question is: Can individuals act responsibly to preserve their own health?)

On the world economic stage, the crisis in Europe also spotlights responsibility.

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Supreme Court Health Care Decision Divides The States

Fascinating complexity in the decision written by Chief Justice John Roberts upholding the Affordable Care Act!

English: President George W. Bush announces fr...

President George W. Bush, a Republican, announces his nomination of John Roberts to be Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

First of all, Justice Roberts, a conservative Republican appointee, voted with the High Court’s “liberal” justices to create the 5-4 majority upholding the law. Republicans and conservatives across the U.S. hysterically called him a “traitor.”  Wait. Isn’t a patriot’s first loyalty to the United States of America, not to any political party?

The frightening possibility is that some partisans no longer see loyalty to the U.S. as a patriot’s first loyalty. It’s possible that some of the more extreme Tea Party loyalists have already seceded from the United States in their own troubled minds.

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John Roberts’ “Can-Do” Doctrine Scandalizes Conservatives

“I will find a way or make one.” — Admiral Robert E. Peary, American explorer

“As between two possible interpretations of a statute, by one of which it would be unconstitutional and by the other valid, our plain duty is to adopt that which will save the act.”  Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes

By all accounts, Chief Justice John Roberts believes that the Supreme Court of the U.S. should try to find a way to uphold  a law enacted by Congress, rather than declare it unconstitutional. In other words, declare a Congressional act unconstitutional only if it really is unconstitutional.

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John Roberts Is Man Of The Hour

Official 2005 photo of Chief Justice John G. R...

Official 2005 photo of Chief Justice John G. Roberts (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Supreme Court decision today on the Affordable Care Act, AKA “Obamacare,” shocked my system. It was the first jolt of optimism about the future of America that I’d felt in months. And I hadn’t expected to have any reaction at all.

Chief Justice John Roberts is the man of the hour. With one stroke he won for himself a place in American history.

I can’t claim full understanding of the High Court’s ruling upholding the Affordable Care Act. My gut reaction is it changes everything. It goes far beyond the legal issues at hand. This ruling might be the turning point that saves the American system.

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Quote

“Bring on the populist battle we have been waiting for. The 1% vs the 99%.”

Jonathan Taplin

Jonathan Taplin (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The quote is from Jon Taplin. Everyone who’s serious about the 2012 election and the continuing economic crisis would  probably appreciate his blog at http://jontaplin.com. I know his savvy essays have helped me understand what a political and economic predicament we’re in. 

English: Logo of NPR News.

Human Trafficking Clip From NPR

Today on NPR’sTell Me More,” a brief but informative discussion about “human trafficking” — more accurately, “modern slavery” — throughout the world today, and also in the U.S.  Please click below to hear the 11-minute conversation.

http://www.npr.org/v2/?i=155431942&m=155431935&t=audio

Austerity Is The New Name For Slavery

austerity

(Photo credit: 401K 2012)

Slavery is the oldest economic system in the world, and the most persistent. Just as surely as accounting and lawyering were not the first professions, capitalism and communism were not the first economic systems.

Slavery is also, I believe, one of the oldest forms of social structure. I imagine the tribe was the first social structure, closely followed by enslavement, but it might have been the other way around.

It is said that Satan goes by many names, and I believe that slavery also goes by many names.

The world has hardly ever been secretive about slavery. It’s been openly practiced from Biblical times to modern times.   Continue reading

President Obama’s Deportation Reprieve For Children Without A Country

Thank God!  Finally, a hand reached out in humanity and compassion to innocent young people!  It’s limited compassion, but it’s a step toward forgiveness of young people persecuted for doing nothing wrong except being the children of their parents.

President Barack Obama is announcing today a reprieve for 800,000 children of immigrant parents. No deportation for two years, for those who qualify.

The hand of compassion the President offers by executive order is temporary. A two-year reprieve. The young people will continue to live in anxiety about the future. And they will carry a sorrowful burden of worry about their parents and grandparents. The two-year reprieve offers no “path to citizenship.” Not for the children, and certainly not for the adults. These young people remain children without a country.

What will be the backlash? Will Americans demand that parents and grandparents be deported as a sacrifice for the lives of their children? Is President Obama sacrificing his presidency? Can Republicans tolerate a little compassion?

The irony is that these children of hard-working immigrants can play a critical role in the future strength and greatness of the United States.

— John Hayden

North Dakota Oil And Natural Gas Boom: Open Questions

English: Sunflowers in Traill County, North Da...

Sunflowers in Traill County, North Dakota. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

North-dakota

North Dakota landscape (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

North Dakota is a happening place. I wish I had time to write a full update to my 2009 post on the geography of frugal living in North Dakota, which continues to attract readers every day. Clearly, frugal living is not the central issue in 2012.

Much has happened in the past three years, and I imagine the changes in North Dakota must be fascinating. This week’s news that North Dakotans will vote on whether to eliminate property taxes gives a hint of what’s going on. While most states struggle with unmanageable budgeting problems, and some totter on the edge of insolvency, North Dakota is apparently flush with revenue.

North Dakota’s prosperity seems entirely connected to the booming energy industry. The state has the lowest unemployment rate in the nation. I imagine that workers are flocking to the state, and housing must be in short supply.

North Dakota is flat

The Northern Plains: Big sky, flat prairie. It’s easy to forget that people live and work here, too.(Photo credit: Matthew Bietz)

Any comments from folks on the scene in North Dakota would be welcome.  All the positive news raises a few questions:

  • How many of the newcomers will adapt to the harsh North Dakota winters? Conversely, how will the people of the rural and somewhat insular Northern Plains adapt to the influx of newcomers?
  • Are prices rising and shortages developing? How much will wages and prices fluctuate in coming months and years?
  • Could the North Dakota boom be the first part of a boom-and-bust cycle?
  • How will U.S. energy policy develop regarding innovations in oil and natural gas extraction?  And pipelines?
  • Exactly what are the environmental implications of whatever is going on, deep underground in North Dakota? Are adequate precautions being taken, or are corners being cut?
  • How will the new wealth be divided? Will longtime North Dakota residents and landowners be ripped off or forced out? Will workers be paid fairly, or will most of the gains accrue to large energy companies? Will the energy industry take over or buy out North Dakota government and politics?
  • The boom can’t be limited to North Dakota only. What about South Dakota, and Montana? And Canada? Are the Northern Plains in danger of becoming an economic colony of the global oil and gas industry?

Anyone with answers or opinions is welcome to comment.

You want to know more about North Dakota? Of course you do. You can go right to the source.

— John Hayden

Map of North Dakota

Map of North Dakota (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Category:U.S. State Population Maps Category:N...

North Dakota state population density map based on Census 2000 data.  (Photo credit: Wikipedia)