Great Christmas Gift for many famlies … NOT

Unemployment Filings Reach 26-Year High (Washington Post)

The number of people filing for unemployment benefits hit a 26-year high last week, as the deepening recession forced more employers to cut jobs.

First-time claims for unemployment rose 5.4 percent, to 586,000 for the week ending Dec. 20, the Labor Department reported this morning. The last time claims were that high was Nov. 27, 1982. The four-week moving average, which is a less volatile indicator, rose to 558,000 from 544,250, also a 26-year high.

Food on the table, fuel in the heater and a roof over their heads may be the greatest gifts for many this Christmas season.

Good to keep things in perspective … good to make sure children understand that many men, women and children won’t have any ‘desired’ gifts this Christmas — they will be happy to have that roof over their heads, warmth so they don’t freeze to death, and food in their bellies… and that’s here in America as well as other areas of the world.

As the good book says, “Count your blessings” and as an old song says, “Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God has done.
Count your blessings, name them one by one…count your many blessings, see what God has done.”

Here’s wishing everyone a very Happy Christmas!

U.S. Titanic by Jim Quinn

U.S. Titanic by Jim Quinn

On Thursday morning, September 18, 2008 a tragedy almost befell the 450 billionaires and 3,000,000 millionaires that live in the United States. The billionaires were on their way to becoming millionaires and the millionaires were about to leave the club. Luckily, Hank Paulson, U.S. Treasury Secretary, felt their pain. His $700 million portfolio was probably taking a bit of a haircut too. There are 305 million people living in the United States. The net worth of all the households in the U.S. as of June 30, 2008 was $56 trillion. The 450 billionaires have a net worth of approximately $1 trillion and the 3,000,000 millionaires have a net worth of approximately $11 trillion. So, 1% of the population currently owns 21% of the net worth in this country. Many of these billionaires and millionaires have accumulated their wealth by managing other people’s money. The customers never have the yachts. The money managers have the yachts. The 1% ruling elite are deciding the fate of your grandchildren in Washington D.C. this week out of public view. The ruling elite have the most to lose. Whose best interest do you think they are looking out for?

Excellent question. Much more in the article. Thanks Tweeny for the heads up on this article.

Be sure to read through to below the Titanic analogy because “We the People” are being sold a bill of goods and being required to sign an unlimited power of attorney to supposedly bailout, errr, ‘rescue’ the country from certain death.

Ron Paul – My Answer to the President

Ron Paul wrote his Answer to the President on the CampaignForLiberty website. It starts out like this:

The financial meltdown the economists of the Austrian School predicted has arrived.

We are in this crisis because of an excess of artificially created credit at the hands of the Federal Reserve System. The solution being proposed? More artificial credit by the Federal Reserve. No liquidation of bad debt and malinvestment is to be allowed. By doing more of the same, we will only continue and intensify the distortions in our economy – all the capital misallocation, all the malinvestment – and prevent the market’s attempt to re-establish rational pricing of houses and other assets.

Last night the president addressed the nation about the financial crisis. There is no point in going through his remarks line by line, since I’d only be repeating what I’ve been saying over and over – not just for the past several days, but for years and even decades.

Still, at least a few observations are necessary.

Then he goes into it! Amazing letter! I just wish the mass media and others those who stand to profit from this would report on this. They always keep this type of sound information from the general public.

Austrian School? Check out Mises.org for more on Austrian Economics.