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Couple interesting articles on the economy...

As those of you who follow this blog know, I've been thinking for a while now that the economy has been heading sideways now with little or no good news suggesting things will get better.

A couple articles caught my attention this week:

Housing prices: No rebound in sight

Three years in to this 'recession' and we're still talking about the housing market hasn't bottomed out yet? That is a bad sign.

Buffett Blasts Washington for 'Silly' Game of 'Russian Roulette'

Despite all the damage to average American, politicians continued to act like idiots. Looks like we might need an actually Great Depression to clear out the partisan politics and silliness going on.

On a side note, Buffett continues to blow the horn that America is the greatest country ever and will remain so.

I use to take Buffett seriously, but if the USA running a 14-trillion dollar debt doesn't rattle his cage, I don't think anything will. I'm sure there were lots of folks saying everything was fine right before Rome started to burn.

His comments on the current debt ceiling issue made me laugh - you know you are in trouble when the rich start making comments like this....


He suggests some of America's biggest corporations could help prevent a U.S. default, if there's a gap of just a few days, by voluntarily pre-paying its September quarterly taxes. Berkshire, he says, would be willing to do so as an act of patriotism, and Buffett would "make a few calls" to his fellow CEOs.

Having said that, I do think Buffett says something prolific in the very next paragraph:


As for changing a tax code that has "not been shaped by logic," Buffett repeats his long-standing advice: "I would go after the very rich." But, he says, it would take a combination of "leadership and outrage" to make significant changes when those who benefit from a particular aspect of the code will fight strongly to retain that advantage.

Austerity Coming to America: How to Reduce Your Risk Now


Love this quote:


"The day of reckoning is here. We talk so much about debt and deficits, about how it puts a burden on our children and grandchildren. But now we are the children and the grandchildren, we are the people that are going to have to pay the bill," says Cox. And THAT is why YOU need to pay attention and take action to protect yourself and your financial future, starting right now.

Jeff Cox, the co-author of Debt, Deficits and the Demise of the American Economy is predicting a crisis ahead. Hard to disagree with the guy.

What makes me laugh is that Greece is broke. Yet if you take their debt and divide it by every person in the country, it comes to roughly 43k per person. If you take the debt of the USA and do the same thing, it comes to about 45k per person.

Doesn't take a genuis to figure out that the only reason the USA isn't Greece is because of bailouts from China.

China Headed for Recession in 2-3 Years: Fund Manager

Speaking of China...

Apparently China has joined the club when it comes to - yes, I'll say it - fucked up financial practices. They are thought to be carrying over 500 billion of debt that they've hidden from view by offloading it through what I gather is the equivalent of dummy corporations (which take the money on behalf of local governments so that it doesn't appear on their books).

But China doesn't have to worry, they are holding something like three trillion dollars of US debt, so if they can't pay their bills they can always sell US debt (in the form of the bonds they hold) to.... to.... to... ummmm, Australia?

This is so nuts you gotta laugh.

'Perfect Storm' Coming for Global Economy in 2013: Roubini




I'll say this, if we do enter a double dip at least this time people won't be able to complain that the media wasn't on top of it. Last time no one was talking about credit swaps and Fannie and Freddie and the whole world got blind sided. This time the media is at least reporting on the facts of what could be coming.

All of this is why I'm going to make a crazy prediction in my next post...

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