Last posts on economy

Book ”Memoir of a Trustbuster: A Lifelong Adventure with Japan

2012-05-03T06:33:00+02:00

A story of an American economist named Eleanor M. Hadley who contributed to Japan's post-war democratization, especially in the field of redistribution of wealth of the nation.

She visited Japan before the war between the two nations started. She was an exchange student and studied Japanese. During the war, she studied economics in Harvard. After the war she was hired by US Occupational force, so called G.H.Q.

The book described her life experience in Japan. She toured Japan and witnessed severe poverty in rural areas. In those days poor peasant families had to sell their children to prostitutes, Geisha or servant house to earn living.

After second world war, what she was involved in was dismantling of Zaibatsu (Corporate conglamour) such as Mitsubishi, Sumitomo, Mitsui, and Yasuda. She, her colleagues and her superiors thought that was best way to rebuild Japan's economy. Pre-war time Japan was much like Plutonomy. Small portion of the population dominated most of the wealth. Dismantling of Zaibatsu was to hike tax on the rich and dissolve their share-holding companies to re-allocate the wealth to number of people in the country.

The below is photo of former residence of Mitsubishi Zaibatsu family.

It was like "Gone with the wind" for the family. Actually their residence was even occupied by the Yankees. They lost huge part of their asset by post-war economic reform. They did protest that but G.H.Q. actually did it with her advice.

Interesting thing is that kind of reform was even objected within G.H.Q. because this type of reform was more like communism. Forcibly taking away wealth from the rich, did not match with US free market economy ideology.

She and her colleagues were later dismissed from public office on suspicion of communist activity and treason. Her name was cleared 20 years later.

Thanks to G.H.Q's reform, Japan has become relatively egalitarian society among advanced nations. Ironically the U.S. at present has become plutonomy society. That is why "Occupy Wall Street" movement occurred. Only top 5% of the population dominates 60% of the nation's total wealth. Top 400 richest households wealth is equivalent to that of bottom half of the population.

The rich can do anything they want in the world's most democratic nation because they finance President, Senators, and Congressmen. They can even control media to shut down unfavourable information for them to manipulate mass-population.

Recent Micheal Moore's film described how plutonomic American society is and in contrast the film showed President Roosevelt's proposal of Second Bill of Rights during second world war.

The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the Nation;

The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;

The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;

The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;

The right of every family to a decent home;

The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;

The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;

The right to a good education.

All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals of human happiness and well-being.

Micheal Moore said it did not come to realization in the U.S. because Roosevelt died before the war ended. In fact Japan acquired the above rights. They are written in Japan's post war constitution.

Article 25. All people shall have the right to maintain the minimum standards of wholesome and cultured living.
In all spheres of life, the State shall use its endeavors for the promotion and extension of social welfare and security, and of public health.

Article 26. All people shall have the right to receive an equal education correspondent to their ability, as provided by law.
All people shall be obligated to have all boys and girls under their protection receive ordinary education as provided for by law. Such compulsory education shall be free.

Is it because of G.H. Q. people including Ms. Hadley?

If so, we should be thankful to her and the U.S.

I recently come up with the idea of my new novel. The title would be "Second Bill of Rights." The main character is a son of Japan's notable Zaibatsu family. Before the war he met a brilliant young American woman who was an exchange student like Ms. Hadley in Tokyo. He and she became good friends discussing arts, culture, politics and economical system of Japan, U.S. and rest of the world.

After the war, his family ruined. They saw each other again in Tokyo, this time she was a G.H.Q's economist. But the two got deeper relationship than pre-war time.

Doesn't it sound interesting?

The Plutocracy of Capitalism

2011-11-24T17:59:00+01:00

There is no real crisis in the developed world. Rather than shortage there has long been surplus of everything, and the only thing that was ever lacking was capital, but the reason for this is that capital is inequality. The profits made by one person from an investment comes from the same amount that others lost from the same investment, so that investment itself does not cause economic growth, but rather controls it: capital is a form of authority. As capital is needed for investment and investment for capital, capitalism is certain to lead to ever increasing economic inequality over time without wealth tax, all the more as the only way the working class can get the capital to invest fast enough to keep up with this economic inequality is by loaning money, through banks, from capitalists, but their interests come at the working class’ costs and capitalists’ profits, only increasing their debts to them. The same is true for public debt made by the government, which, without taxing the wealthy, can likewise only loan from capitalists in the name of the working class to pay public services, causing public debt which can in turn only be repaid by even further loaning, so that without enough wealth tax, public debt can only keep increasing once it is made. As the government’s loaning involves the creation of money, this in turn causes increasing inflation, up to a point that if one does not have enough capital to begin with, one can never invest it fast enough to keep up with inflation as loan interests increase. As this was the only way the government could pay public services without more wealth tax, even though the working class did all the actual work and the capitalists did nothing except own capital, which has no use to anyone, it is now the working class which is somehow supposed to pay for the work they did themselves as public services are privatized by capitalists, so that the working class can no longer afford them. The money from public services has to come from somewhere, and if they do not come from the wealthy through wealth tax, they can only come from the working class. Yet the public debt was made by the government, not by the public, who would never have done so knowing that they could never repay it. The public was therefore forced to loan money they could not repay without even knowing of it, and is therefore not responsible for it. As per Keynes, and the parable of Joseph and the seven years of famine, deficit spending should happen only during crises and surplus saving during booms (Cliff Notes: Fiscal Policy), but the government has always kept deficit spending through booms and crises alike, often under influence of corporations that profited from it the most. Because of deficit spending, corporations could keep growing without taxes until they got rid of competition from smaller businesses, allowing corporations to reduce wages and increase prices by reducing cost-effectiveness, with destocking of food allowing increased food prices and condemnation of buildings allowing increased housing prices. If all work were done efficiently, most would be unemployed, and most of the work that is left for the working class is in function of the very investments of corporations that increased economic inequality at their cost in the first place, and now that many corporations have invested as much as they can to outcompete each other, for many their services are no longer required, causing unemployment. Economic inequality decreases demand, however, which increases unemployment, which in turn decreases demand and so on, so that at some point it only costs capitalists as well as the working class, as money only has control over people if they can make use of it, and without employment, people are forced to live as much as they can without money, through cooperation. In many countries economic inequality is becoming so great that the only way it can continue is if capitalism becomes as dictatorial as communism itself, when to reduce the minimum costs at which the working class can survive they are forced to live in corporate communes, so that corporations would become much like past communist states, the greatest difference being that underperforming workers would be dismissed and left to die of starvation outside the communes. In this case, the projection that the top 1% would own 90% by the early 2100 would be quite possible. At such point there might be only a few corporations left, and they would own entire nations and become the new nations of the world. All this time, the working class could be kept from a revolution if only they were made to believe that it was their own fault that they were where they were. Weren’t it for the Internet generations, it would be likely to come that far, but in the anarchy of the Internet we found another world where we learned to cooperate in spite of capitalism, and by taking that cooperation out in the real world we will change it. We could outcompete corporations on our own through worker cooperatives, as cooperation is far more efficient that competition, and in doing so we could replace them. Through cooperation we could move from capitalism to democracy without the need of revolution, which will only replace one dictatorship with another. Even now, it is not only possible to live through cooperation and without competition, but it is even far easier if we but try, as almost everyone wants to give us their cooperation when they can, and the only reason no one ever cooperates is because no one ever wants to ask for it. Therefore, to teach people to cooperate we must ask for their cooperation and offer our cooperation even when they do not ask. We are part of capitalism only if we live through competition, but if we live through cooperation, we are already part of an anarchism that is always there and has always been there. Cooperation itself is the only revolution, as any other revolution is one that competes with another form of competition and so changes nothing. In this, the protests will not cause a revolution: the protests themselves are the revolution because of the cooperation they involve. Just ask what you need and give what you can, and they’ll give what they can and take what they need.

Rushkoff: Occupy Reality

Huffington Post: "Income Inequality Is At An All-Time High"

Zeitgeist: Moving Forward

The Free World Charter

Business Insider: 15 Mind-Blowing Facts About Wealth And Inequality In America

Think on That: Here’s what the Wall Street protesters are so angry about

(University of Minnesota: Chance favors the concentration of wealth, U of M study shows)

Votizen: Reform & Simplify the Tax System

CBS News: Watchdog: Corruption Ignited This Year’s Protests

Youtube: Inside Job

Olivier Berruyer: Gini Index USA

Piketty and Saez: Share of Total Pre-Tax Income

Piketty and Saez: Uneven Prosperity

Piketty and Saez: The Top Ten Percent Income Share

Why not stop admiring people like Steve Jobs!

2011-10-20T16:40:03+02:00

The Founder of computer giant, Apple, Steve Jobs died. He was a charisma, capable of inventing creative and sophisticated computer products such as Macintosh, iPhone, and iPad.

People mourned his death as though an emperor died.

But at the same time in his homeland, there was a contradicting movement "Occupy Wall Street." This illustrates how serious the economy as a whole is despite the Apple marked record high sales.

Most Americans are not talented and lucky to be like Steve Jobs. From childhood, everyone is told that if you work hard, you can make yourself successful person. The reality is not.

But why should we treat him like a hero? After all, he is one of ambitious or greedy businessmen who wanted to make a huge money and prove himself very talented. He wasn't a saint like Mother Teresa or Ghandi. Nor was he a civil activist like Martin Luther King.

He was a member of richest 1 % which "Occupy Wall Street" people scapegoat.

I support Occupy Wall Street movement. It is not happening just in the U.S. but worldwide including Japan. Younger people are having hard time finding decent jobs. Partly because only 1 % occupy vast majority of the wealth.

I think a lot of people are now seeing the limit of capitalism and materialism. It is time to change our value in life.

Death of Steve Jobs and Occupy Wall Street movement symbolize coming of new era.

Taxes and Competition

2011-10-15T21:16:00+02:00

It is often said that taxing the rich would decrease competitiveness, but either way someone has to pay for public services, and if the rich won’t, they can only be privatized so that people have to pay for them themselves, leaving the poorer without money to invest themselves and thereby keeping them from competing themselves. Not taxing the rich is to tax the poorer, and it just leaves the rich rich and the poor poor, which decreases competition between them rather than increasing it. Yet the same money we take from the poor in this way lest they would not compete, we actually give to the rich so that they would, as we use it to bailout corporations, even though if corporations go bankrupt, this itself is just part of the competitiveness of the market, allowing others to grow in their place and take over its employees. People do not compete for the amounts of money the richest have because no one needs that much, nor do they even want it for any other reason than so that the poorest would not have it and they could therefore feel above them, looking down on the 99% for not having done their best enough to all be in the 1%.

Loan Currency

2011-06-15T11:33:00+02:00

Instead of loaning money, we should use a separate currency which has no value in and of itself and is used as a promise that a particular sum will be paid in real currency, so that there is no risk to the purchasing power of regular currency and people know, when they accept loan currency, that they take risks, rather than that the risk is imposed upon them. This way, no banks would ever be needed.

Capitalist Colonialism

2011-05-12T15:22:00+02:00

“Poverty is the worst form of violence.”

— Ghandi

The greatest cause of starvation in developing countries is their debt to us: despots of developing countries loaned money from other countries for their own sake, and when the country had to repay these debts, its economy reorganized itself for the needs of the people of developed countries rather than its own, producing cash crops for export rather than food crops, which are then taxed by the government to repay debt. Inflation and food imports from other countries make sure that growing cash crops for other countries becomes far more profitable than growing food crops, which cannot compete with food imported from developed countries, so that many farmers shifted from food crops to cash crops for other countries, while others became factory workers to process those cash crops, while food was imported from other countries. Food import has increased over the past decades (IPS: Why Food Import Surges Are an Issue at The WTO). The food is often hard to transport to the villages, however, and due to high inflation due to monetizing debt, many often cannot even afford the food itself, let alone its transport. At the same time, farmers have no chance of selling their food in cities because they cannot compete with the food dumped there by developed countries. The food supply becomes more and more centralized in cities.

While the food surplus of developed countries is enough to feed all hungry people many times over (Taste the Waste: Uncovering the global food scandal), to increase profits of imports, exporting countries destock the food exports (IPS: Why Food Import Surges Are an Issue at The WTO), while wasting the vast majority, which is what allows farmers in developed countries to keep in business rather than suffering technological unemployment (Drovers: U.S. ag producers poised for near-record profit amid export boom).

During starvations, much of the food aids gets stolen (The Times, Jonathan Rugman: UN food stolen from the starving in Somalia fake camp fraud). The famine is caused by this very dependence on other countries for food imports, which is why “most people affected by famine survived not because of aid, but due to their own resourcefulness” (Wiley Online Library: Impact of a commercial destocking relief intervention in Moyale district, southern Ethiopia). Developing countries’ dependence on cash crop exports for food imports explains how famine increased so suddenly in the Great Recession, when cash crops were less in demand in developed countries (World Hunger Education Service Association: 2011 World Hunger and Poverty Facts and Statistics. By loaning money that they knew could never be repaid and demanding it to be repaid, we of the developed countries are accomplices in genocide, and so we will remain until we remit their debts, and that’s if we don’t speak of desertification. Famine has certainly become worse since 1994, and possibly worse than since at least 1982, especially since the death toll of the 1984-1985 Ethiopian Famine of 1 million may have been an overestimation (Human Rights Watch, Alexander De Waal: Evil days: thirty years of war and famine in Ethiopia). Through debt, slavery still exists as much as serfhood, and our colonialism has only become worse than ever, though now the colonies are owned not by governments but by corporations, one name that keep recurring on these matters being the World Bank. We are still as racist as we’ve ever been: no matter what explanation we give to the famines, the undertone has always been that they are too weak to take care of themselves, and therefore we have to control them. That’s not to say that the same undertone isn’t there for everyone else in our society, but nowhere else and never before has it killed so many. As long as we do not respect the need for independence, things like these will keep happening: Capitalism is but one system of dependence in the row of Communism, Fascism, and Despotism to have caused millions of deaths.

External Links:

The New York Times, Celia W. Dugger: Ending Famine, Simply by Ignoring the Experts

The Game of Capitalism

2011-03-07T21:31:00+01:00

American capitalism is retained not so much for economic reasons as for entertainment: it's a game of competition, even if no one, not even the winners, get out of it any better in terms of their lives.

The Internet Revolution

2011-03-03T15:57:00+01:00

As our media advanced, they led to increased social control because they were owned by an elite which controlled them. As our media are advancing even further, however, they become owned by the people themselves, so that they become uncontrollable. This is why, even though they caused many of the problems of the twentieth century, media will solve these same problems in the twenty-first. Throughout the world, it is now the Internet, more than anything, that is opening people’s minds, and it is likely this that is what has been leading to such upheaval in the past years, climaxing in the revolutions of 2011. Until the advent of the Internet, people have always been forced by media into a very narrow view of the world, meant to control them into adopting that particular view as their way of life. Due to the parallel nature of the Internet, as people’s mind’s adapted to using it they began to learn to consider other possibilities. They began to wonder if the way of life presented to them by society was really the best, if this was really everything that life had to offer them and the world.

This may be one of the causes of the Great Recession. Unable to adopt a new lifestyle in a system that will not allow it, more and more people become or, more frequently, remain unemployed. Economists find that the participation rate has been decreasing at an ever faster rate since 2000, at about the time the Internet became widely used. Since 2010, this decrease was unprecedented since at least 1960. “Some of the decline might be from workers going back to school, but some is probably due to people just giving up.” (Business Insider: Participation Rate 2011-1). These last words, “people just giving up”, is crucial. People are giving up because they are losing faith in society and its system. “A large portion of the decline in the participation rate was for people in the 16 to 24 age group,” and this is unsurprising, as this is the generation most influenced by the Internet. Their world is one which has opened too much for it to still fit into the small cubicle of a single lifelong profession. We are faced with a generation that is more and more reluctant to participate in the giant rat race of modernist materialism.

At the same time, information theory, through robotics and AI, is already decreasing the employment available to people in all classes (The New York Times, John Markoff: Armies of Expensive Lawyers, Replaced by Cheaper Software). Economics professor David Autor went so far as to say that the economy is being “hollowed out.” Before long, the only occupations that will be left will be creative ones, which simply do not fit into employment.

At the same time, in a word which is becoming increasingly informationized, in which what was once material property is being increasingly turned into information, capitalization will eventually become more and more difficult, because unlike materials, information is hard to contain, and becomes even ever harder to contain over time. Over time, the Internet will create a world in which humanity’s creations will go straight from the creator to the user, without capitalist in between, because they will neither be needed nor possible. It is only a matter of time before the Internet will spell the end of the era of capitalism.

It is also possible that this situation became worse to such extreme degree in so little time in December due to the 2010–2011 Middle East and North Africa protests, which, in as little as a month, already inspired the 2011 Wisconsin budget protests. At the same time, the situation in the Middle East and North Africa is at least partly the result of the Internet, with many of the protests being largely organized on social networking services such as Facebook and Twitter. Similarly, Barack Obama’s Facebook campaign is likely the main reason for his election as the United States’ first black president (The Sunday Times: Barack Obama is master of the new Facebook politics). It is no wonder, therefore, that Obama plans to connect 98% of the country through wireless internet (The Money Times): the reason people in rural areas appear to be more republican (RCAP: Daily Yonder blog: Republicans Win Rural -- and the House) may be said to be because of their lack of connection with other people, which, in urban areas, is higher first and foremost because of an increased use of media. Obama’s plans might not work out fast enough for his next Facebook campaign, but at least it might work out fast enough to prevent the next Bush from seizing power. Plans underway to connect the entire world through free wireless Internet (The Raw Story, Eric W. Dolan: Group plans to beam free Internet across the globe from space) began a little before the 2010-2011 Middle East and North Africa Protests, and similar plans to connect North Africa to free wireless Internet some time before that (Fast Company, Austin Carr: Kayak.com Cofounder Paul English Plans to Blanket Africa in Free Wireless Internet).

From all this one thing is clear: times are changing. The Internet is starting to rule the world, and through it, it is starting to be ruled by the people. A time of true, direct democracy is coming, and in such time, there is no place for the slavery of materialism. This is the real reason why, in the past years, we have been seeing it failing; but what we have seen so far is only the beginning of a worldwide revolution.

In addition, the Internet is changing people’s minds in a way is making them more and more unfit not only for work, but also for education. People using the Internet more often are increasingly becoming of the “fox” type rather than the “hedgehog” type (The Sunday Times: We need a dug-out canoe to navigate the net): that is they are becoming used to sating a curiosity of their own rather than being told what to know. The sense of freedom given them by the Internet makes them unfit for the slavery both of education and employment. (Education Week: Progress on Graduation Rate Stalls; 1.3 Million Students Fail to Earn Diplomas) By the time people in the Internet generation are studying at the university, many of them have already spent a lot of time learning about their subject on their own on the Internet. The same counts for many kinds of work: by the time people are looking for work, many of them have also spent a lot of time doing volunteering work on the Internet, as on forums, Q&A websites, online art communities, and open encyclopedias such as Wikipedia. As studying and working independently is so much more interesting, they lose motivation by the time they are studying for higher education or looking for work. More and more students drop out of higher education (Education Week: Progress on Graduation Rate Stalls; 1.3 Million Students Fail to Earn Diplomas) and stop looking for work for this reason. In every aspect of their lives the Internet is giving the new generations an ever increasing sense of independence that is setting them apart from the hierarchies of society.

This is all the more as education, being unadapted to the information age, has become obsolete in its failure of gathering relevant information, instead gathering all information it can find whether it is relevant or not, and, in its relative scarcity, seeking to use all of it. The Internet generation of students has become far better in finding relevant information on the Internet than their professors are, often effectively granting them access to all the relevant information their professor know and more. It requires great skill to do this, yet having grown up with the Internet, it is a skill they’re becoming increasingly good at, and, given the chance by a system which would educate these skills, would allow them to outdo their professors in every possible way in a matter of a few years or even months. After a while, one uses the Internet as though it were one’s own mind. It becomes an extension of one’s mind, and Internet searches, an extension of one’s thought processes.

Even now, unlike their professors, many students could find the answer to almost any relevant question in no time, and if they would do so when the need calls for it in their studies, they would remember it for the rest of their lives without needing to review it, because it would be to interest to them at that moment, and so the unconscious mind would have no resistance to remembering it whatsoever, while at the same time, it would already have its right place in their minds in its context of their studies. Unconsciously, the students realize the obsolescence of their educational system, as if they were allowed a system fit for them, they would now be able to study many times faster. There will be a time when, as they become the next generation of professors, they will create such Internet-based system, and as and when this happens, the Internet will rapidly become more user-friendly for the purpose of finding information. As the Internet itself grows in its AI, it would become easier to gain whatever information from the Internet one could ever need until it would not require any skill at all, so that anyone could use it on a professional level.

Due to the near-impossibility to censor the Internet, the Internet has become a medium to criticize society (think, for example, of Wikileaks), and due to this increasing criticism, there is a lack of a key element for the preservation of society in the minds of the Internet generation: identification, the sense of being part of something greater. More and more people are becoming aware of what their society really is and think to themselves that they do not want to be part of it.

TNW: How the Internet is Revolutionizing Education

TED: Where good ideas come from

A Human Right

Change the world

2010-11-07T09:49:00+01:00

See the news report of the below.

This is the wrong thing happening in the world. You get as much as you work. That is fine. But in reality only few people get most of what all of us have. Then most of us become poorer. That creates the problem.

There needs a system that redistributes the wealth. We need to change that way.

Why do we admire people who get so much? Those who get much more than what they need?

Change the value so that we do not have to treat such greedy people as role model.

My new novel idea ”Uptown Girl” inspired by the same titled song

2010-10-09T14:17:00+02:00

"Uptown Girl" is my favorite song sung by famous U.S. pop star, Billy Joel.

I recently heard the song again and then came up with new novel idea.

The title is "Uptown Girl."

The story is a daughter of big auto maker owner got out of boring party and stopped by a small bar.

She met a young bartender in a bar. They were alone and talking each other. He was surprised with her outfit which was unusual in the atmosphere of the bar. She wore high-class dress and pearl neckless.

They made friends each other and heard Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" together. They felt kind of mutual with the song.

Next week the uptown girl met a bartender in the factory of her father's company. She worked as a regular worker in the company. But he was a a temporary worker dispatched from a greedy temporary help company. The temporary help company's main shareholder was in fact her father's auto maker. The aim of outsourcing was to avoid taking responsibility as employer so that the company didn't have to hire workers as regular worker. They never have to raise salaries and provide safe and secured environment and it is easy to lay off.

He worked under severe condition. He decided to form a union with his colleagues in the temporary help company.

She met him again and learnt what he was doing. She was shocked to hear how her father's company treated workers to boost profit. She found out how she had been spoiled and known nothing about what was happening in real world.

Then she decided to join his activity to better the condition of the factory workers.

The bartender had a dream of creating a great hybrid engine. He studied it but was never accepted because of lack of academic background.

The story is actually not only inspired by the song but real social issue of the world. How the rich people exploit working class people's labor.

I don't know how Billy Joel came up with the lyric of the song but it surely reflects class gap issue in the world, not only in the U.S and Japan but the rest of the world. It is recently getting serious as the economy went bad so a lot of corporations have to lay off so many workers.

But class gap is in fact the result of capitalist economy system as German economist Karl Marx described.

Maybe we can think about that by listening to the song. The song was created by Billy Joel but is also covered by British singers, Westlife.

Uptown Girl by Billy Joel

Uptown Girl by Westlife

This one is good covered version as well.

News about US unemployment

2010-09-04T03:05:00+02:00

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The CIVETS: Windfall Wealth from the NEW BRICS

2010-08-26T16:57:59+02:00
http://moneymorning.com/2010/07/13/civets/ Forget the BRICs. There's a brand new set of emerging economies that could make investors windfall profits, according to a new article from Money Morning.It's been almost a decade since Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill conceived the "BRICs" acronym to convey the exciting investment potential of four key emerging markets (Brazil, Russia, India and China).But now, O'Neill is back – with a new list and a new acronym: The "CIVETS." Given how much money investors have made from the BRICs, the CIVETS (Columbia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey and South Africa) certainly deserve a closer look.Money Morning Contributing Editor Martin Hutchinson – a former merchant banker and leading expert on the global financial markets – breaks down the investment potential of these new growth markets … and even "rates" the likely winners and losers.In his new Money Morning article, Hutchinson shows:· How Colombia's new president could set the country on the path to incredible growth.· Why Indonesia's geographic location is key to its future.· What could hold Vietnam back from becoming the next East Asian "tiger" economy.· Why Egypt might not deserve to be on this list at all.· Why Turkey's economy is at a cross-roads – with the potential to either see incredible economic growth or to be a real danger to investors.· How South Africa's resource-rich potential could be blunted by corruption.Find out exactly which of these countries deserve your attention – and investment dollars – in: The CIVETS: Windfall Wealth From the `New' BRIC Economies**Please feel free to repost this story on your website. Please include a link to the original article on Money Morning.Money Morning is an online financial news site dedicated to showing investors how following global trends can help them profit ahead of the crowd.

Anthropoeconomics and The Universal Man Credit

2010-03-20T17:36:00+01:00

Dear Friends,
it is very time to say some truths, and for good Scientifics to get political support
in the "developped" countries, we know since long that the global situation is not satisfying vital conditons of human development, for most of the world population, who have no access to water, food, electricity, health, education.

The situation is alarming - but we are hyper-alienated.

Jean Ziegler, from the United Nations, discusses some elements below :

CONCEPTION FOR ANOTHER DEVELOPMENT :
In the "developped" countries, today millions of un-employed people cannot work but their efforts and competences could save millions of lifes every year. In the "developped" countries, education is based since long on structural and metric information, not on the meaning of the information, the consciousness-making process, that IN THE REAL WORLD counts to reveal what is REALITY TODAY.
As a result, for the new generations, education is a "social consciousness-making process" failing to give responses to the World-Reality today
A process of individual branches of knowledge, an expertise-oriented process rather than assimilation by other branches, putting each other in closed Scientific views, not in the Disciplinary Relation, is not favorising Social Consciousness. News today have some events, some comments, but do not a strong Reality mirror, and a problem-oriented knowledge press would be welcome.

What are our problems ?
What matters for us in the reality ? what counts ? Shall we not be conscient of the overall situation to act in this world ?
How to organize a New Reality ? Can we change the financial system and how ?
Can we introduce a new economy regulation based on Respect on Human Rights ?
Can we give Science and *objective-knowledge making-processes* more weight in the Social decisions and organization of Society ?

What is Reality for us ?
1. From a Scientific point of view, an objective description of Reality - is a description detached from the observor. Objectivity is being *scientific* - we prefer this word - regarding the reality.

Richard Feyman, in The Value Of Science, has defined here a very serious problem : What do we do with this knowledge ?

How to describe and modelize a Complex Reality ?
The response is Science again. The Karl Popper model of Reality is interesting with the 3 worlds : Real World, Perceived World, and Ideal World. Science is the knowledge of the unvariants between the Real and Ideal world : these 2 worlds are in correspondance in the scientific model.

SCIENTIFIC MODEL
Objectively, there is no possible change of an experience in the same experimental conditions.
The Scientific description is therefore independant from our Intentions to change it. We can only make its description more accurate. And this is the role of Scientific Progress.
The paradox is that Science is not well represented in the current Economy. In our System, Decisions are taken in reference to an Internal Past economic system. Not externally to another future system we can invent : the super-system?

ECONOMIC MODEL
In the current System, what is 1 dollar when you don't have food ? The answer is "it is 1 dollar" ! Here more information about the food crisis. In this context, current economics stay valid, but the situation is unacceptable. Current Economics fails because 1 dollar has no meaning of support in this context. We can continue counting in dollars, but we cannot say our measurment system shows the correction is not valuable economically. SO PERHAPS WE SHOULD STOP COUNTING IN DOLLARS. WE SHOULD COUNT ON PEOPLE ? Changing the Banking World-System with this UN Law proposition ? Here we appeal to Economists for prooving it would not be a valid model.
1. Every person living in this world should have the fundamental right to a good living conditions credit.
This credit would be financed by Banks and the World Bank. We need to change our world-view and world-system in reference to a Human Oriented System : ANTHROPO-LOGIC . The Credit Universal (Universal Man Credit) would be a fictive credit, convertible universally into real money function of the impact of the human and social activities of the actors involved in the satisfaction and maintenance of the Human Rights. UMC would be a contribution based transformation money system, a correction loop based development measurment. Every bank in the world would have to respect the right of financing vital needs satisfaction. Banks ensure this Credit is respected. It means they ensure conditions of universal fundamental rights. This is ANTHROPO-ECONOMICS.

We need to jump in a new economic model, where we understand Economics in relation to our  Universal Declaration of Human Rights. And the FIRST SEGMENT : " All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood ".

Lowering Taxes II

2009-07-30T20:55:03+02:00

Remember this post?

Well, i've been trying to come for reasons why it didn't work out as planned.

The first thing that comes to mind is that even if you give the money to the govt in taxes, it'll still spend it on stuff, and sending it back into the economy. So it has the same effect.

But there must be more. As a progressive, I believe in the redistributional effect of taxes, it's a means of taking money from the affluent to less wealthy. Take away taxes and what happens? The rich make more and more while the poor have less and less money and government help at their service. The problem is, those rich people aren't just going to poor all that more money into the economy, they'd ship it overseas or invest it in the housing market which then busts at some time because there's too much capital in there and prices go through the roof. Whereas poorer and lower middle class incomes would still spend that money on stuff like food, holidays, clothes etc, all those commodities with "real" prices which keep the economy healthy for a great part.

Now one question has been nagging at me for a while. We all would like the perfect society, where we pay just enough taxes to ensure the government can take care of us all and keeps the economy healthy. Can't we just compare all those countries with different systems and just see which one has the best? Of course, not all are the same, for example Norway is a great country I guess, but it does get a lot of income from natural gas. Still, can it really be that hard?

Environment and Economy

2009-06-07T19:24:00+02:00

When you look at the list of countries by income per capita, it becomes apparent that nature is apparently an important factor — countries such as Norway, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Ireland, Iceland, Danmark and so on have often been high on the list. Any causality there may be in this relationship is probably dual. On the one hand, richer people may have been more inclined to seek out nature, and the children of wealthy people are generally relatively wealthy themselves. On the other hand, nature may make people happier and thereby more productive.

Film”Fast Food Nation” Who are to blame?

2009-03-01T08:24:42+01:00

The film was more like documentary than drama. The story is fiction but it should be based on the facts.

A hamburger store chain manager goes to the meat processing factories to know why the poisonous bacteria were detected on beef for hamburger. The search reveals the harsh reality of fast food chain business and severe conditions of the workers in the factories.

This is something I, myself could more un-USA. But the film was of course produced by Americans. One of the characters was played by a famous actor, Bruce Willis.

The people involved in the story represent the problems of America and the world. Illegal immigrants from Mexico who seek much higher income than their homeland and end up working in meat processing factory where working condition is very, very dangerous.

Farmers who are fighting against corrupt food industry, liberal students who learn stupid system of their country but don't know how to change it.

Well, it just didn't happen in the U.S. Food industry is in fact scary sector. Very profitable but at the same time very competitive and people involved are very greedy.

But the bottom line is this phenomenon was caused by consumers' greed. We are always seeking cheaper products and more convenient way of life.

Then what we see in the end is McDonalds everywhere, people eating cheap but very poisonous beef.

What if we are more knowledgeable and considerate, things might be better.

I've heard that in Europe, there is a movement called "Slow Food. Slow Life."

Economy is rational allocation of wealth

2009-02-06T13:24:00+01:00

As Obama said in his inauguration speech, "we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works," good economical system does not mean capitalist economy.

As I recall my macro-economy course in U.S., definition of economy is "rational economy of wealth."

If only small number of people get most of the wealth, they would save most of what they earn, not using for consumption because they cannot do that even though they like jet-set life style. If the same amount of wealth was allocated to millions of workers, it will be all used up and circulated in the market and rejuvenate the whole economy.

Free economy, trickle down theory are old fashion ideas. Neo-liberalist economy resulted in today's financial crisis.

That doesn't mean socialist economy is better, it leads shortage of the goods like what happened in former Soviet Union.

Let's think about third way to create better system.

What's the U.S. Economic Bailout Costing?

2008-11-29T16:50:00+01:00

At the conservative estimate of $4.6165 trillion, so far (including the Citi bailout) (Bloomberg estimates the bailout even higher, at over $7 trillion already, which is $24,000 for every person in the country), the bailout would cost more in inflation-adjusted costs than:

the Marshall Plan,

the Louisiana Purchase,

the Race to the Moon,

the 1980s S&L Crisis,

the Korean War,

The New Deal,

the Invasion of Iraq,

the Vietnam War,

and NASA [hope that doesn't include The Race to the Moon ...],

which together total $3.92 trillion.

"The only single American event in history that even comes close to matching the cost of the credit crisis is World War II: Original Cost [to U.S.]: $288 billion, Inflation-Adjusted Cost: $3.6 trillion."

More scary details here, courtesy Barry Ritholtz at The Big Picture

Yes, taxpayers could get some of the money back (the Chrysler 1.5 billion bailout loan in the early 1980s was repaid in full with interest) (maybe), but even if taxpayers are on the hook for only $1-2 trillion, that's still between $3,200 and $6,500 per every man, woman, and child in the country.

Others suggest we should look at the cost of the bailout in terms of GDP, or in terms of national net worth. (And Nobel-prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, in his recent 'What To Do' essay, talks about the viability of solutions in terms of GDP.)

Doing the latter, one commenters says that the $4.6 trillion "is still quite modest. As a percent of total national net worth (government and non-governmental assets minus liabilities) it's less than 4 percent." (No idea where those figures come from.)

Another commenter crunches more numbers (with caveats, and sources, listed) to determine government expenditures inflation-adjusted as a percentage of time-relative annual GDPs:

the Marshall Plan (1947): $115.3 billion/$1,574.5 billion GDP in 1947 = 7.3% of 1947's GDP

the Race to the Moon (1961-69): $237 billion/$3,191.1 billion GDP in 1965 = 7.4% of 1965's GDP

S&L Crisis (1986-91): $256 billion/$6,742.7 billion GDP in 1988 = 3.8% of 1988's GDP

Korean War (1950-53): $454 billion/$1,915.0 billion GDP in 1951 = 23.7% of 1951's GDP

The New Deal (1933-36): $500 billion (Est)/$704.2 billion GDP in 1934 = 71% of 1934's GDP

Invasion of Iraq (2003-08): $597 billion/$10,989.5 billion GDP in 2005 = 5.4% of 2005's GDP

Vietnam War (1965-75): $698 billion/$3,771.9 billion GDP in 1970 = 18.5% of 1970's GDP

NASA (1958-2008): $851.2 billion/$5,423.8 billion GDP in 1983 = 15.7% of 1983's GDP

which total 153% of annual GDP relative to year of expenditure

In terms of GDP, the current bailouts (2008) -- estimated, conservatively, to cost $4,616.5 billion (or $11,523.9 billion GDP in 2007) -- would be 40.1% of 2007's GDP, a little less than the Korean and Vietnam Wars combined, but quite a bit less than the New Deal.

I wish my calculator went up to a billion, much less a trillion ....

Asia Weekly Focus

2008-10-10T18:23:00+02:00

This week has been all about the markets starting to factor in the prospect of a global recession, it's not just the banking crisis in the northern hemisphere, which has been driving a lot of volatility in the markets in the past year or so but now the prospect is very real of a global downturn. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says he's more concerned about the stability of Australia's banks than its competitiveness. The Commonwealth Bank has launched a bid to buy Bankwest, while Westpac is trying to takeover St George Bank. Australia's opposition says the global economic crisis is an opportunity for the big banks, and will reduce competition in the market.

But Mr Rudd has brushed aside those concerns. "Competition questions can be resolved over time," he said. "The stability of the system is of fundamental importance, not just to businesses, but to every working family in the country, every pensioner and carer wants to know the banking system is stable, that's our first responsibility and I don't back away from it." Australian shares closed down 8.3 percent as the global financial crisis drove a fresh round of losses on world stock markets. The Japanese Nikkei index is still down by more than 10 per cent after shedding a massive 11-point-four per cent earlier in the day. The selling frenzy has been repeated all around Asiatic continent, although not with the same intensity. Share prices in Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea have all dropped by about seven per cent. In the meanwhyle Singapore's government has released figures showing the economy has slipped into recession. The ASX 200 has dropped 297-points to four-thousand-and-24. The Australian dollar has also been hit hard, falling more than six cents from its overnight peak to 65-point-six-six US cents.

China's top negotiator on Taiwan will meet the island's president for the first time, a Taipei official said on Thursday, in what would be a further sign of improved relations between the diplomatic rivals. Ma's Nationalist Party (KMT) ruled all of China until Mao Zedong's Communists won the Chinese civil war and Chiang Kai-shek fled with the KMT to Taiwan. Taiwan is recognised by just 23 countries around the world compared to about 170 that recognise China. China has claimed sovereignty over democratic, self-ruled Taiwan since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949 and has vowed to bring the island under its rule, by force if necessary. But relations have improved since Ma came to office in May with pledges to boost the local economy by forging new trade and transit links with Beijing.

The two sides will also sign deals on regular flights and direct cargo shipments, PK Chiang, Taiwan's top negotiator on China policy. Chen Yunlin, head of China's Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait, would meet President Ma Ying-jeou in Taiwan at the end of October or at the beginning of November. At a landmark meeting in Beijing in June, China and Taiwan agreed to begin direct charter flights Friday through Monday and let as many as 3,000 Chinese tourists visit the island per day. Before direct flights, previously banned for security reasons, travellers would make time-consuming plane changes in Hong Kong or Macau.

China and Taiwan are in talks to add six more Chinese cities to the five that handle Friday-through-Monday flights, and to shorten some of the flight paths. Trade and transit links with fast-growing economic powerhouse China should help lift Taiwan out of a seven-year economic slump aggravated by the global financial crisis. Taiwan is in last place among emerging Asian markets, and these direct flights can add business opportunities. At a round of talks expected in mid-2009, negotiators will discuss investment guarantees, financial relations and double taxation.

The head of the Solomon Islands Leadership Code Commission Emanuel Kouhota has told members of parliament that it is illegal to borrow money from individuals, while in office. The commission is investigating members of the Sikua government for possible misconduct. Local media have reported 18 ministers and backbenchers secretly obtained so-called loans from a prominent Honiara businessman.

The Speaker of the Solomon Islands Parliament, Sir Peter Kenilorea, has told the allegations are serious. "If it is true that such a situation occurred, then all I could say is that I would concur with the view of chairman of the Leadership Code Commission that it would be improper, and that it could be considered as misconduct in office."

Security forces are patrolling the streets of Thailand's capital, Bangkok, in an effort to maintain calm a day after deadly clashes. The leaders of mounting protests in Thailand have been granted bail after turning themselves in on charges related to their campaign to topple the government. A senior People's Alliance for Democracy leader Sondhi Limthongkul says the police have granted him - and six others - bail unconditionally. Sondhi said he was heading directly to the protest camp at the prime minister's Government House offices, which the PAD have occupied since late August. No details were immediately released about the amount of bail. All seven protest leaders had turned themselves in on outstanding arrest warrants on charges of inciting unrest and illegal assembly. The move comes after PAD supporters and police clashed on the streets of Bangkok on Tuesday, with two people killed and hundreds injured. Leaders of the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy say they will continue their rallies until the elected administration steps down.

A new report shows middle income earners and younger New Zealanders are at risk of debt stress by Christmas. The New Zealand Herald reports Dun & Bradstreet's latest survey of consumer credit expectations shows a debt divide emerging in New Zealand as the global credit crisis impacts spending behaviours. One third of middle income earners and younger people expect to be forced to use their credit card to make ends meet, while one third of high income earners expect to lower their debt levels in the coming three months. The survey conducted last month shows younger New Zealanders and middle income earners face the greatest risk of debt troubles.

Written: by LuisB

U.S. Economy was fake after all!

2008-10-06T15:26:00+02:00

The U.S economy has been known as largest in the world.

But just recently it collapsed dramatically. Well, the time has come.

Most of the U.S. GDP, which is largest in the world comes from consumption, not production.

They buy many things from abroad. How come that is possible for people who don't produce so much buy goods from abroad?

It is because foreign countries lend them money buying U.S. treasury bonds. The biggest owner today is China.

They just print dollar bills if they have to pay the debts back because the U.S. dollar has been the world's key currency. Every country in the world uses that.

But the dollar value is just depreciating. And then this subprime loan crisis hit the economy. No one can rely on the U.S. economy.

Now the world is reconsidering how to deal with the U.S.

The U.S. is no longer supepower of the world. No country can be like that any more.

The U.S. is softlanding to be one of big countries in the world. President Obama would be the symbol of non-superpower America.

Maybe that is normalization of the world.

That may be the beginning of interesting era of human history.

All's Grand on the Naked Avenue....distinguishing Money from Markets..Golden Eagle's Opinion

2008-10-04T02:44:00+02:00

'Man looks in the abyss, there's nothing staring
back at him. At that moment, man finds his character. And that is
what keeps him out of the abyss.'

Lou to Bud in 'Wall Street'

'The main thing about money, Bud, is that it makes you do
things you don't want to do.'

Lou in 'Wall Street'

"There are eight million stories in the Naked City. This has been one of them."

ABC TV series 'Naked City'

Trees from the forests....Money from the Markets.

We are now 30 days out from the pivotal 2008 US congressional and Presidential elections.Our theme of 'The Hero with a Thousand Faces' with regard to Barack's Odyssey steps up pace in dramatic fashions.Economy, stupid.The Economy.Since our last TigerHawk post a week ago, we've had our predicted plunge in the New York Stock Exchange. The Dow Jones Industrials fell 777 points last Monday, September 29,2008.The largest ever one-day drop.Any numerologists in the house? Who writes this script?Even more than at 9/11, 2001.The immediate cause was the break-down of the 'Bail-out' agreement in the US House of Representatives.Remember that sell-off melt-down after the $85 Billion 'seizure' of AIG, and Wall Street's panic frenzy were only tamed with Hank Paulson's promise of a 'Bail-out' for the misbehaving financial industry.We, the collective citizenry are now responsible to assuage their fear of collapse by assuming purchase of their 'toxic' paper formerly called mortgage-backed securities or collateralized debt obligations.However, we called it here last week. The impolite topic of ideology arose in the US Congress. While Democrat Speaker Nancy Pelosi corralled her side of the aisle's votes, the Republicans splintered with an outbreak of Reaganism and challenged the Bush Treasury's plans.Remember no government,free enterprise etc? Well these elected officials, bombarded by antsy constituents back home, ready to vote for ALL 435 Congressional seats, felt it was time to renew their Reagonomics membership cards.The White House was not amused. A revolt and disrespect to an obvious lame duck Republican Administration by laissez faire purists.The White House had abandoned the 'Free Market' religion. The romper room crowd did not grasp the gravity and sophistication of the crisis. The matter was no longer about Wall Street and the Financial Industry, but was now 'bleeding' over to Main Street.The panic in banking circles has created a drying up of credit . Small businesses, corporations, municipalities and States are all credit starved facing operational contraction and shutdown,which means unemployment increases.Less money in the wallets and purses.The highway to

Obama Country.

Yesterday on the eve of the Vice-Presidential debate, the wires relayed McCain's pulling campaign resources out of Michigan. Apparently the management on the ground assessed the effort to be futile, as the economic hardship in the Auto state had smashed the Palin personality/McCain maverick hopeful game plan.In fact, five diverse polls all show Obama opening his lead in six of seven swing states.107 Electoral College votes of the winning 270 reside in these places. Last night's debate , while having no faux pas by the Alaska governor Sarah Palin, took nothing away from Senator Joe Biden, Obama's running mate.The worse the economic news, the greater Obama's poll numbers rise.A fascinating dynamic as a few months ago we were sure that Obama's experience and race would define the campaign. Arizona Senator McCain was of similar reasoning, bringing in a white young female to challenge and undermine Obama's 'rock star' charisma. Unfortunately, the Katie Couric interview was a bit disjointed at the very moment McCain need a boost deflecting away from the Wall Sreet crisi,s and its Main Street fall-out.California is now asking the Federal government for $7 Billion to bridge a budget short fall.. The September unemployment figures were a 5 year high,Guaranteed to compound the cosumers and investors' anxiety and fear.

'One thing's for sure: The next administration's economic team had better be ready to hit the ground running, because from day one it will find itself dealing with the worst financial and economic crisis since the Great Depression.'

Paul Krugman,New York Times

October 3,2008

Paul Krugman sounded the alarm today warning in his New York Times opinion piece that we're at the Abyss.What was an obscure Wall Street contagion has bled into all our lives.Main Street and Side Street.Our money, and money prospects are under attack and we all face converging challenges.Our collective Abyss. That is why McCain's diversionary tactics and' don't trust the 'exotic' guy's talk' strategy, is not making traction. The populace is poorer , skeptical and fearful.We need hope or a visionary leadership tonavigate away from from the abyss. We here at TigerHawk are not impressed with the details or thoroughness of Obama economic policy, However, we agree with many Americans that he seems to have a better grasp of the urgency, and the macro-economic complexity beyond tax breaks and budget balancing.Ask California's Republican Governor how far such ideological rigidity has got the Golden State back on the road to economic prosperity.The racist pathology and deceit of the mentioned Bradley syndrome/effect, is an obvious danger to Obama.Some whites cannot allow themselves to vote for a black man.An unfortunate and deep-seated legacy of Slavery. However,the depth of the Obama/Biden war-chest,aggressive ad-buys in Red-states, the increase of new voter registrations and the galvanizing of the African-American vote since his conversation in South Carolina, have put Wizard Karl R's low road former W victory formula, under pressure.Obama reminds us that he's been in the campaign for 19 months and always under-estimated.HRC will testify that the plan that Super Tueday would seal the Democratic nomination, was torpedoed by a bold and new electoral strategy by the Harvard Law graduate.Last election cycle in 2004 , Mr.Evil Bin Laden popped up that last campaign weekend to add to foreign policy and security debate. Let's see which Jack pops out of which box.

From Faith, Hope and Charity to Flower,Hope and Grand.

The epicenter of Los Angeles' banking and finance power is in the Bunker Hill area downtown L.A. We have reported on the Grand performances from the California Plaza on Grand Avenue.Along with Hope and Flower,all threeenvelope upscale and corporate Bunker Hill.In 1849 just two years after winning California from Mexico, the Christian Anglo settlers named the three hills-Faith,Hope and Charity Avenues. In time Faith became Flower,Hope retained its name, but Charity seemed too indulgent for the Protestant Industry and became Grand Avenue. Today Grand (north of 5th street and the Library) is the elite cultural center of Los Angeles exhibiting banking skyrise canyons. The Mark Taper Forum,The Walt Disney Concert Hall,The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, The Colburn Art School(Juilliard West) and The California Plaza all shout L.A's power, culture and dominance.We recently have been on assignment in this Financial/Cultural 'Hood, and have enjoyed the ambiance, aesthetics, the bold architecture and the multi-cultural populace occupying the corporate/banking towers.Despite the sophisticated veneer, one senses an imperceptible tension which is bordering on collective deer in the head-lights posture.The Naked City.The Naked Avenue.Similar to Manhattan. Millions of stories at the edge of the Economic Abyss. After all a few days ago Wachovia and WaMu(Washington Mutual) both had economic marriages of convenience. Despite the up-beat press releases to impress the share-holders, these folk on pay-roll in these Bunker Hill canyons are aware of the Corporate degradation in Wall Street, and the upper Corporate circles are unreliable and golden parachute obsessed.As Obama said at his nomination, its not about him or any one leader but it's about us all.The neighboring hill of Hope reminds them daily of America's spirit of resilience.

Golden Eagle Comments on the Wall Street Crisis.

We have a Vietnamese-Chinese Lady who was once a high-powered trader in the sophisticated markets from Bunker Hill high-rise offices. We started this discussion at our temple in China-Town and Golden Eagle has agreed to make a commentary here at TigerHawk, sharing her insights:

' It is unnecessary for the Federal government to bail-out Wall Street because:
Corporate CEOs took advantage of the lack of oversight and enriched themselves while running their companies into the ground.
The government has no business of becoming another investment bank itself. This is totally un-American and un-Capitalistic. I believe possible future profits of the proposed government bail-out would be spent on political pet projects( rather than down paying the budget deficit or national debt) which would benefit us the consumers or (Main street).

Proposed fix:
Create economic Oversight Agency by full time independent economists without political affiliation.
Create total transparency of all Wall Street transactions without golden parachutes for present or future CEOs.
Replace pseudo government agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
With independent investment Clearing-houses.
Maybe have private investment firms buy up bad portfolios, let them be insured at $70 Billion total and problems can be solved quickly.'

Golden Eagle

Ache',Paz Y Luz,

TigerHawk

Obama on the Economy:Strong Speech

2008-09-24T05:05:33+02:00

Wanted: Political Leaders

2008-09-02T17:45:00+02:00

POLITICS according to The New York Times:

(used with a sing. verb)
1. The art or science of government or governing, especially the governing of a political entity, such as a nation, and the administration and control of its internal and external affairs.
2. Political science.

"Art or science of governing" Hmm.. It seems (bloody obvious) that the world is running out of good political leaders.

For less than a year, Japan had 2 Prime Ministers who resigned from office. They were Abe Shinzo and Fukuda Yasuo, respectively. What happened to Japan? Well, it's happening everywhere in the world.

Recession is pandemic. I've heard the U.S. of A owes People's Republic of China a big debt. You might want to check the following:
[link]
[link]

And let's not go farther. No need to bother crossing the Great Ocean when we have our own country. The Pearl of the Orient is still in big debt. I wonder how much every Filipino owes.

As for overseas policies, Pres. GW Bush is still unable to have his desire to help make a Palestinian State. I'm actually glad he's failing with that. Curse is him who will divide the land of the Jews. That makes the son of a former president fortunate. And I hope U.S. State Secretary Condoleezza Rice will not enter the picture.

I think I should watch out for world leaders now and look for the one who is equipped with charisma, knowledge, wit, wealth and power to rule and please the world. Not that I will join his crowd.

Music:

Natalie Imbruglia - Torn

5 in state House race focus on jobs, economy

2008-07-29T08:51:27+02:00
State Rep. Brian Palmer's advice to whoever succeeds him as the elected speaker for the 36th District in Lansing: be bold. "We need people who will take bold steps to turn things in the state around," the outgoing state legislator said. "We don't want more of the same. We need people to be bold and take a chance." Palmer, R-Romeo, is term-limited at three two-year terms. AdvertisementOn Aug. 5, voters in the 36th District will choose a Republican and a Democrat to face off Nov. 4. The district, which is viewed as Republican territory based on its voting history, includes the northern Macomb County communities of Bruce Township, Shelby Township, the village of Romeo and Washington Township. Those who vote in the Democratic primary will have three candidates from which to choose; those who cast votes in the GOP primary will have two. Jeff Grundy, 62, and Greg Moore, 55, both of Washington Township, and Robert Murphy, 51, of Romeo are running as Democrats. Their rivals from the Republican Party are Matthew Hedge, 39, and Pete Lund, 44, both of Shelby Township. All five say the top issues facing the district -- as well as Metro Detroit and the rest of the state -- are Michigan's stagnant economy, its growing unemployment and rising energy costs. Grundy believes lawmakers must step up efforts to retain businesses in Michigan and lure new ones to the state to improve the state's health. He also thinks his background as a business development manager equips him the best for that task. "We've had lots of lawyers and bean counters, but we haven't had enough real business people in Lansing," he said. Meanwhile, Moore's plan for helping the district's residents focuses on promoting education -- especially for children. "I'm also pledging to donate $10,000 of my salary to my district to help its citizens, if I'm elected," said Moore, who boasts more than 20 years experience in the health care industry. The base salary for a state representative is $79,650. And Murphy, a mediation specialist, believes his skill as a negotiator makes him the best-suited candidate. "My training and experience has been invaluable in resolving problems," Murphy said. "I'm going to work closer with our U.S. congressional delegation to get funding for my district and the state from Washington." If elected, Hedge, who has more than a decade of experience in corporate finance management, plans to introduce legislation to lower taxes and cut government spending. "We have to lower taxes across the board and everything will follow from that," he said. "That'll attract capital into the Michigan marketplace and allow us to compete with other states." Pete Lund is arguably the most well known of the candidates because he's served as a Macomb county commissioner for the last 10 years. He is also the owner of a direct mailing company and an adjunct professor of finance and economics at Walsh College. "I understand how to work with others, put coalitions together and get things done," Lund said. He said his top priority will be to push for the repeal of the Michigan Business Tax to attract businesses to the state. Palmer's other of piece of advice for his successor: "You're going to have to do those things, which are the right things to do but they don't get you re-elected," he said. "You have to make your own way."

Business Opportunities in India: 5 Key Sectors .

2008-06-13T12:45:00+02:00
It’s official! India is happening. With an economy growing at the rate of 9 per cent, business opportunities in India are increasing more than ever before. So much, so that Investors around the world are making a beeline for doing business in India. The FDI Confidence Index 2007 by A T Kearney shows India as second most attractive destinations for foreign direct investment.Obviously, opening up of the market in the beginning of the nineties is paying dividends. Higher income generated at the bottom of the pyramid has fuelled the high octane growth of business opportunities in India across all sectors. Lion’s share of the business opportunities in India exists in the knowledge intensive industries like, Information Technology. Its enormous talent pool available at a reasonably low cost helps India to edge out the competition. According to a NASSCOM-Deloitte study, this sector has contributed 5.2 per cent of India’s GDP in 2007.Some other sectors that offer maximum business opportunities in India are:Telecom: Five leading telecom companies in the world have already invested large amounts to cash in the business opportunities in India’s telecom market. The sheer population of India reflects the growth potential of the segment. Oil and Gas: With a 25-50 per cent lower capital cost alongside the strategic location on the route of Middle East crude for East Asian and Pacific-rim markets India is fast emerging as the global hub for oil refining.Infrastructure: Growing at a rate of 8.6 per cent (2006-7), this segment offers tremendous business opportunities in India.Retail: India tops the AT Kearney's annual Global Retail Development Index (GRDI) for the third consecutive year, maintaining its position as the most attractive market for retail investment.Apart from the above, huge business opportunities in India lie the sectors like, financial services, healthcare and real estate.In the post reforms period, setting up a business in India, is not a worry at all. The elimination of license raj has been able to cut off bureaucratic red tape to much extent. The liberal regime has shaped up an investor friendly economic climate over the years.

Center for Resource Solutions: Green-e Certified Renewable Energy Sales Increase in 2007

2008-06-05T14:20:56+02:00
According to preliminary data, the Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) certified 15 million MWh of renewable energy sales in 2007, up more than 50% from 2006. This represents sales to more than 90,000 new residential customers and 50% more commercial customers, for Green-e certified renewable energy. The audited report will be released later in the fall.The CRS Green-e program in the US provides independent, third-party certification to ensure certified renewable energy meets environmental and consumer protection standards. The program currently certifies products for 190 participating vendors.For additional information click on this link

Money Woes - Profiles of Real People

2008-04-05T22:35:00+02:00
This series at CNN Money, which presents more than 50 brief, first-person profiles of individuals and families struggling financially with job loss, downsizing, reduced home values, student loans, gas and food prices, etc., is enlightening and disheartening at the same time. I empathised with the stories of many folks; this one really speaks to me.

immigrant efforts

2007-02-06T16:52:15+01:00

the second article in our series of interculturaliy in the world, i would like to present you something on how immigrants are effectively shaping a local economy by their energy and thrive.

this article has been edited from a herald tribune news magazine.

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Immigrant entrepreneurs shape a new economy
By Nina Bernstein
Tuesday, February 6, 2007

Manuel Miranda was 8 when his family immigrated to New York from Bogotá. His parents, who had been lawyers, turned to selling home-cooked food from the trunk of their car. Manuel pitched in after school, grinding corn by hand for traditional Colombian flatbreads called arepas.
Today Miranda, 32, runs a family business with 16 employees, producing 10 million arepas a year in the Maspeth section of the borough of Queens. But the burst of Colombian immigration to the city has slowed; arepas customers are spreading through the suburbs, and competition for them is fierce. Now, he says, his eye is on a vast, untapped market: the rest of the country.In the long run, as with bagels, "you're going to have arepas in every store," predicted Miranda, whose innovations include a "toaster-friendly" version (square instead of round), and an experimental Web site that offers online sales nationwide. "But I don't have the connections. I don't know the people who can advise how to take us to the next level."
As the flow of immigrants to suburban and small-town America outpaces the growth of bustling ethnic centers in New York, many foreign-born entrepreneurs like the Mirandas are facing an unfamiliar crossroads. In the city, rising rents and density hamper growth, while swelling ethnic enclaves in the suburbs generate competitors. Yet in other places, opportunity beckons as never before, as immigrants expand the tastes of mainstream America.
Whether these businesses exploit the new chances to break out or succumb to the new perils, the city's economy will feel the effects."Immigrants have been the entrepreneurial spark plugs of cities from New York to Los Angeles," said Jonathan Bowles, the director of the Center for an Urban Future, a private, nonprofit research organization that has studied the dynamics of immigrant businesses that turned decaying neighborhoods into vibrant commercial hubs in recent decades. "These are precious and important economic generators for New York City, and there's a risk that we might lose them over the next decade."
A report issued by the center Tuesday highlights both the potential and the challenge for cities full of immigrant entrepreneurs, who often face language barriers, difficulties getting credit and problems connecting with mainstream agencies that help businesses grow. The report identifies a generation of immigrant-founded enterprises poised for the big time — or already there, like the Lams Group, one of the city's most aggressive hotel developers, or Delgado Travel, with about $1 billion in annual revenues.

In Los Angeles, at least 22 of the 100 fastest-growing companies in 2005 were created by first-generation immigrants. In Houston, a telecommunications company started by a Pakistani man topped the 2006 list of the city's most successful small businesses.
But even in those cities and New York, where immigrant-friendly mayors have promoted programs to help small business, the report contends that immigrant entrepreneurs have been overlooked in long-term strategies for economic development.Some are doing just fine anyway. Lowell Hawthorne, the Jamaican-born chief executive of Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery, has parlayed a single bakery, opened in the Bronx in 1989, into more than 100 franchise restaurants nationwide.
Other companies, like Rajbhog Foods, which started as a mom-and-pop Indian sweets shop in Jackson Heights, Queens, seem to be on the edge of a similar breakthrough, even as they struggle with rising costs and shifting immigration patterns.
"Two steps forward and then back one step," said Sachin Mody, the chief executive and son of the founders. "That is the hardest part, to keep hurdling and keep evolving."Mody said the company had about 70 employees and three plants and sold its vegetarian products to stores in 41 states and Canada. Its catering operation handles Indian weddings and conventions for as many as 10,000. But six years ago, in recognition of a changing market, it began opening franchise stores in places like Jersey City and Hicksville, on Long Island, where Indians have settled in large numbers.
In some ways, New York may have a head start on the growing pains of immigrant businesses. The nation's recent surge of newcomers started earlier in the state and peaked by the mid-1990s, when immigration was still growing rapidly elsewhere.

Now, some children of the early influx are trying to build on their parents' success — success that has increased the cost of doing business, by driving up rents and creating congestion.
One example is Jay Joshua, a Manhattan company that designs souvenirs and then has them manufactured in Asia and imported. Jay Chung, who arrived from South Korea in 1981 as a graduate student in design, started printing his designs for New York logos and peddling them to local T-shirt shops. His company is now one of the city's leading suppliers of tourist items, from New York-loving coffee mugs to taxicab Christmas ornaments.But frustration mixes with pride when the Chungs, both U.S. citizens now, discuss the company's growth.
Thirty years ago their wholesale district was desolate. Now hundreds of importers are there, said Chung, a leader of the Korean-American business association. Members face a blizzard of parking tickets and high commercial rents — nearly $20,000 a month for 1,400 square feet, or 130 square meters, he said.
Seeking to relocate the wholesale site, the association made a deal with the city for a redevelopment in the College Point section of Queens, only to have the city back out eight months later. Older, white residents had expressed fear that the area would become like Chinatown or Flushing."It was a disaster for us — not only financially, but our image," Chung said.
Apologetic city officials offered five other locations, and the group is negotiating for a private project in the Jamaica section of Queens that could yield a 13- story center in four years. But the episode underscores the importance of partnerships with the city — and the pitfalls.

Immigrant entrepreneurs seem ambivalent about getting more attention from the city. Some are leery of red tape, though they would welcome, say, a municipal parking garage. Others cite concrete help they have received from city agencies.
When Mr. Miranda's arepas company, Delicias Andinas, was struggling with high trash bills two years ago, he said, a city agent in an industry retention program referred him to a recycler. Now much of the company's garbage — mostly corn leftovers — is sold to hog farms."They helped us out to a win-win situation," said Mr. Miranda, now an American citizen who calls himself "a dyed-in-the-wool New Yorker."
"For us, it was a big deal. Right now, I don't need money. I need knowledge."

edited by globalnomad