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	<title>Comments on: James K. Galbraith Reponds to Geithner&#8217;s Toxic Asset Plan</title>
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	<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/</link>
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		<title>By: Gitcheegumee</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862828</link>
		<dc:creator>Gitcheegumee</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 16:21:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862828</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;@ 182:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The blueprint was created  in the 70’s over at Stanford Research Institute.It was called the Changing Images of Man.It is the planned collapse of America-and the blueprint for  economic  shock and awe required to create an acquiescent populace,under martial law.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This is available in PDF form on the net,or you can read an excellent synopsis by Peter Chamberlin on a site called Online Journal.[Just type Changing Images of Man in the seqarch engine there .]&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Of particular note are the quotes of David Rockefeller,publicly thanking the media for concealing this plan from the public for the last 40 years or so.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>@ 182:</p>
<p>The blueprint was created  in the 70’s over at Stanford Research Institute.It was called the Changing Images of Man.It is the planned collapse of America-and the blueprint for  economic  shock and awe required to create an acquiescent populace,under martial law.</p>
<p>This is available in PDF form on the net,or you can read an excellent synopsis by Peter Chamberlin on a site called Online Journal.[Just type Changing Images of Man in the seqarch engine there .]</p>
<p>Of particular note are the quotes of David Rockefeller,publicly thanking the media for concealing this plan from the public for the last 40 years or so.</p>
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		<title>By: acquarius74</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862787</link>
		<dc:creator>acquarius74</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 15:18:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862787</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;Thank you, tx49holdem.  I’ve read and re-read your excellent critique of our economic situation, and wish I could deny the truths I find there.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p&gt;We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;If we could see the unrolled blueprint of that economic plat, would the name at the top be:  &lt;em&gt;Architectural Plan for the Economic New World Order ?? &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I don’t think there are to be any rooms in that design allotted for the disappearing middle class or the poor among the peoples of the world.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Thank you, tx49holdem.  I’ve read and re-read your excellent critique of our economic situation, and wish I could deny the truths I find there.</p>
<blockquote><p>We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system</p>
</blockquote>
<p>.  </p>
<p>If we could see the unrolled blueprint of that economic plat, would the name at the top be:  <em>Architectural Plan for the Economic New World Order ?? </em></p>
<p>I don’t think there are to be any rooms in that design allotted for the disappearing middle class or the poor among the peoples of the world.</p>
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		<title>By: tx49holdem</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862709</link>
		<dc:creator>tx49holdem</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 10:18:19 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862709</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;In response to Cathyg @ 174&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The goal is and always has been to eliminate any national government (especially the US govt.) as a powerful force in the world and to remove any restrictions on asset accumulation that nations might enact to best protect their sovereign interests.  The REAL reason for support of these programs is to provide for mechanisms where financiers and rulers outside the reach of US law who are not beholden to any sovereign people (i.e. the United States) can, for purely commercial driven reasons, funnel sovereign cash to multinational financial conglomerates and their minions. The true financial plan (not the one they sell to voters) that is well known by insiders is and always has been to so indebt the US government that no social programs can survive and thereby nullify the USA as a force for control of monopolistic interests around the world.  The true goal of such programs is to provide for a means by which puppet administrations (that are elected via media driven programs owned by transnational corporate interests) can enact legislation that will destroy the US economy with a giant debt bomb that is at least ten times more destructive than any physical bomb could ever be.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When the current administration is doing financial things like directly taking treasury funds and stuffing them into the pockets of specialized interests that lay outside of our country while at the very same time they are actually increasing the US debt load so much that the USA could ACTUALLY and REALISTICALLY be facing bankruptcy - then there is a real threat to national sovereignty and security.  Vastly powerful globalized interests support the election of such government representatives.   THEY ARE COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ALLIES.  It is ALWAYS about the mixing of foreign payoffs with trying to stop the ability of the US government to intervene and regulate them.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We are at the juncture of the most serious crisis in modern history, one that is not strictly a financial crisis but rather a much broader transformation, one that is not strictly limited to economic collapse. Let us be under no illusion, there are powerful interests behind these processes and the movement of these financial indicators.   &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Movements of the stock markets and money markets are heavily manipulated and they are manipulated largely as a result of what we understand as derivative trade. It is the capability of the financial institutions (and powerful individuals who are part of institutions that are not necessarily visible within the financial architecture such as the hedge funds) to trigger upward and downward movements in speculative onslaughts through mechanisms like “short selling” that can make the stock market go up or down without necessarily buying or selling.  Disinformation concerning financial movements is then inserted into the circuit of financial and economic news with the ability to trigger major collapses.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We must understand the types of instruments that have been concocted over the last ten to fifteen years since the enactment of the Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 which deregulated the financial architecture and created a new environment.  It is the regulatory (policy) environment which creates the crisis rather than some spontaneous movement in market values.  It is not the interplay of market values.  What we are dealing with is a massive transfer of wealth resulting from speculative trade and the manipulation of stock markets, money markets, and currency markets.  We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system.    &lt;strong&gt;The bailouts that are being put forth do not constitute a solution to the crisis but are rather quite the opposite; they are the cause of the crisis.&lt;/strong&gt;  What they do is contribute to an even greater concentration and centralization of financial wealth into the hands of a very few financial institutions.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In response to Cathyg @ 174</p>
<p>The goal is and always has been to eliminate any national government (especially the US govt.) as a powerful force in the world and to remove any restrictions on asset accumulation that nations might enact to best protect their sovereign interests.  The REAL reason for support of these programs is to provide for mechanisms where financiers and rulers outside the reach of US law who are not beholden to any sovereign people (i.e. the United States) can, for purely commercial driven reasons, funnel sovereign cash to multinational financial conglomerates and their minions. The true financial plan (not the one they sell to voters) that is well known by insiders is and always has been to so indebt the US government that no social programs can survive and thereby nullify the USA as a force for control of monopolistic interests around the world.  The true goal of such programs is to provide for a means by which puppet administrations (that are elected via media driven programs owned by transnational corporate interests) can enact legislation that will destroy the US economy with a giant debt bomb that is at least ten times more destructive than any physical bomb could ever be.  </p>
<p>When the current administration is doing financial things like directly taking treasury funds and stuffing them into the pockets of specialized interests that lay outside of our country while at the very same time they are actually increasing the US debt load so much that the USA could ACTUALLY and REALISTICALLY be facing bankruptcy &#8211; then there is a real threat to national sovereignty and security.  Vastly powerful globalized interests support the election of such government representatives.   THEY ARE COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ALLIES.  It is ALWAYS about the mixing of foreign payoffs with trying to stop the ability of the US government to intervene and regulate them.  </p>
<p>We are at the juncture of the most serious crisis in modern history, one that is not strictly a financial crisis but rather a much broader transformation, one that is not strictly limited to economic collapse. Let us be under no illusion, there are powerful interests behind these processes and the movement of these financial indicators.   </p>
<p>Movements of the stock markets and money markets are heavily manipulated and they are manipulated largely as a result of what we understand as derivative trade. It is the capability of the financial institutions (and powerful individuals who are part of institutions that are not necessarily visible within the financial architecture such as the hedge funds) to trigger upward and downward movements in speculative onslaughts through mechanisms like “short selling” that can make the stock market go up or down without necessarily buying or selling.  Disinformation concerning financial movements is then inserted into the circuit of financial and economic news with the ability to trigger major collapses.  </p>
<p>We must understand the types of instruments that have been concocted over the last ten to fifteen years since the enactment of the Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 which deregulated the financial architecture and created a new environment.  It is the regulatory (policy) environment which creates the crisis rather than some spontaneous movement in market values.  It is not the interplay of market values.  What we are dealing with is a massive transfer of wealth resulting from speculative trade and the manipulation of stock markets, money markets, and currency markets.  We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system.    <strong>The bailouts that are being put forth do not constitute a solution to the crisis but are rather quite the opposite; they are the cause of the crisis.</strong>  What they do is contribute to an even greater concentration and centralization of financial wealth into the hands of a very few financial institutions.</p>
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		<title>By: tx49holdem</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862708</link>
		<dc:creator>tx49holdem</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 10:16:31 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862708</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;In response to  Cathyg @ 174  (show text)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;    Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The goal is and always has been to eliminate any national government (especially the US govt.) as a powerful force in the world and to remove any restrictions on asset accumulation that nations might enact to best protect their sovereign interests.  The REAL reason for support of these programs is to provide for mechanisms where financiers and rulers outside the reach of US law who are not beholden to any sovereign people (i.e. the United States) can, for purely commercial driven reasons, funnel sovereign cash to multinational financial conglomerates and their minions. The true financial plan (not the one they sell to voters) that is well known by insiders is and always has been to so indebt the US government that no social programs can survive and thereby nullify the USA as a force for control of monopolistic interests around the world.  The true goal of such programs is to provide for a means by which puppet administrations (that are elected via media driven programs owned by transnational corporate interests) can enact legislation that will destroy the US economy with a giant debt bomb that is at least ten times more destructive than any physical bomb could ever be.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When the current administration is doing financial things like directly taking treasury funds and stuffing them into the pockets of specialized interests that lay outside of our country while at the very same time they are actually increasing the US debt load so much that the USA could ACTUALLY and REALISTICALLY be facing bankruptcy - then there is a real threat to national sovereignty and security.  Vastly powerful globalized interests support the election of such government representatives.   THEY ARE COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ALLIES.  It is ALWAYS about the mixing of foreign payoffs with trying to stop the ability of the US government to intervene and regulate them.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We are at the juncture of the most serious crisis in modern history, one that is not strictly a financial crisis but rather a much broader transformation, one that is not strictly limited to economic collapse. Let us be under no illusion, there are powerful interests behind these processes and the movement of these financial indicators.   &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Movements of the stock markets and money markets are heavily manipulated and they are manipulated largely as a result of what we understand as derivative trade. It is the capability of the financial institutions (and powerful individuals who are part of institutions that are not necessarily visible within the financial architecture such as the hedge funds) to trigger upward and downward movements in speculative onslaughts through mechanisms like “short selling” that can make the stock market go up or down without necessarily buying or selling.  Disinformation concerning financial movements is then inserted into the circuit of financial and economic news with the ability to trigger major collapses.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We must understand the types of instruments that have been concocted over the last ten to fifteen years since the enactment of the Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 which deregulated the financial architecture and created a new environment.  It is the regulatory (policy) environment which creates the crisis rather than some spontaneous movement in market values.  It is not the interplay of market values.  What we are dealing with is a massive transfer of wealth resulting from speculative trade and the manipulation of stock markets, money markets, and currency markets.  We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system.    &lt;strong&gt;The bailouts that are being put forth do not constitute a solution to the crisis but are rather quite the opposite; they are the cause of the crisis.&lt;/strong&gt;  What they do is contribute to an even greater concentration and centralization of financial wealth into the hands of a very few financial institutions.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In response to  Cathyg @ 174  (show text)</p>
<p>    Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.</p>
<p>The goal is and always has been to eliminate any national government (especially the US govt.) as a powerful force in the world and to remove any restrictions on asset accumulation that nations might enact to best protect their sovereign interests.  The REAL reason for support of these programs is to provide for mechanisms where financiers and rulers outside the reach of US law who are not beholden to any sovereign people (i.e. the United States) can, for purely commercial driven reasons, funnel sovereign cash to multinational financial conglomerates and their minions. The true financial plan (not the one they sell to voters) that is well known by insiders is and always has been to so indebt the US government that no social programs can survive and thereby nullify the USA as a force for control of monopolistic interests around the world.  The true goal of such programs is to provide for a means by which puppet administrations (that are elected via media driven programs owned by transnational corporate interests) can enact legislation that will destroy the US economy with a giant debt bomb that is at least ten times more destructive than any physical bomb could ever be.  </p>
<p>When the current administration is doing financial things like directly taking treasury funds and stuffing them into the pockets of specialized interests that lay outside of our country while at the very same time they are actually increasing the US debt load so much that the USA could ACTUALLY and REALISTICALLY be facing bankruptcy &#8211; then there is a real threat to national sovereignty and security.  Vastly powerful globalized interests support the election of such government representatives.   THEY ARE COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ALLIES.  It is ALWAYS about the mixing of foreign payoffs with trying to stop the ability of the US government to intervene and regulate them.  </p>
<p>We are at the juncture of the most serious crisis in modern history, one that is not strictly a financial crisis but rather a much broader transformation, one that is not strictly limited to economic collapse. Let us be under no illusion, there are powerful interests behind these processes and the movement of these financial indicators.   </p>
<p>Movements of the stock markets and money markets are heavily manipulated and they are manipulated largely as a result of what we understand as derivative trade. It is the capability of the financial institutions (and powerful individuals who are part of institutions that are not necessarily visible within the financial architecture such as the hedge funds) to trigger upward and downward movements in speculative onslaughts through mechanisms like “short selling” that can make the stock market go up or down without necessarily buying or selling.  Disinformation concerning financial movements is then inserted into the circuit of financial and economic news with the ability to trigger major collapses.  </p>
<p>We must understand the types of instruments that have been concocted over the last ten to fifteen years since the enactment of the Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 which deregulated the financial architecture and created a new environment.  It is the regulatory (policy) environment which creates the crisis rather than some spontaneous movement in market values.  It is not the interplay of market values.  What we are dealing with is a massive transfer of wealth resulting from speculative trade and the manipulation of stock markets, money markets, and currency markets.  We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system.    <strong>The bailouts that are being put forth do not constitute a solution to the crisis but are rather quite the opposite; they are the cause of the crisis.</strong>  What they do is contribute to an even greater concentration and centralization of financial wealth into the hands of a very few financial institutions.</p>
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		<title>By: tx49holdem</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862707</link>
		<dc:creator>tx49holdem</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 10:13:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862707</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;In response to  Cathyg @ 174  (show text)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;    Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The goal is and always has been to eliminate any national government (especially the US govt.) as a powerful force in the world and to remove any restrictions on asset accumulation that nations might enact to best protect their sovereign interests.  The REAL reason for support of these programs is to provide for mechanisms where financiers and rulers outside the reach of US law who are not beholden to any sovereign people (i.e. the United States) can, for purely commercial driven reasons, funnel sovereign cash to multinational financial conglomerates and their minions. The true financial plan (not the one they sell to voters) that is well known by insiders is and always has been to so indebt the US government that no social programs can survive and thereby nullify the USA as a force for control of monopolistic interests around the world.  The true goal of such programs is to provide for a means by which puppet administrations (that are elected via media driven programs owned by transnational corporate interests) can enact legislation that will destroy the US economy with a giant debt bomb that is at least ten times more destructive than any physical bomb could ever be.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When the current administration is doing financial things like directly taking treasury funds and stuffing them into the pockets of specialized interests that lay outside of our country while at the very same time they are actually increasing the US debt load so much that the USA could ACTUALLY and REALISTICALLY be facing bankruptcy - then there is a real threat to national sovereignty and security.  Vastly powerful globalized interests support the election of such government representatives.   THEY ARE COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ALLIES.  It is ALWAYS about the mixing of foreign payoffs with trying to stop the ability of the US government to intervene and regulate them.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We are at the juncture of the most serious crisis in modern history, one that is not strictly a financial crisis but rather a much broader transformation, one that is not strictly limited to economic collapse. Let us be under no illusion, there are powerful interests behind these processes and the movement of these financial indicators.   &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Movements of the stock markets and money markets are heavily manipulated and they are manipulated largely as a result of what we understand as derivative trade. It is the capability of the financial institutions (and powerful individuals who are part of institutions that are not necessarily visible within the financial architecture such as the hedge funds) to trigger upward and downward movements in speculative onslaughts through mechanisms like “short selling” that can make the stock market go up or down without necessarily buying or selling.  Disinformation concerning financial movements is then inserted into the circuit of financial and economic news with the ability to trigger major collapses.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We must understand the types of instruments that have been concocted over the last ten to fifteen years since the enactment of the Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 which deregulated the financial architecture and created a new environment.  It is the regulatory (policy) environment which creates the crisis rather than some spontaneous movement in market values.  It is not the interplay of market values.  What we are dealing with is a massive transfer of wealth resulting from speculative trade and the manipulation of stock markets, money markets, and currency markets.  We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system.    &lt;strong&gt;The bailouts that are being put forth do not constitute a solution to the crisis but are rather quite the opposite; they are the cause of the crisis.&lt;/strong&gt;  What they do is contribute to an even greater concentration and centralization of financial wealth into the hands of a very few financial institutions. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Our government is allocating bailout money to major financial institutions under the TARP that in point of fact results in a much broader ability to consolidate these institutions and use them to buy out other banks.  The US Treasury is handing money to the banks that are using it to enrich themselves and these very same banks are also the creditors of the government.  The 700 billion dollar bailout has increased the public debt which causes the debt rating to be affected negatively.  &lt;strong&gt;WHAT THE HELL?&lt;/strong&gt; We are actually bailing out the banks!  Only a portion of government bonds and treasury bills are held by the banks so the creditors become the public at large and the banks become the brokers of that public debt.  The banks then sell the government bonds on the money markets.  Thus, by handing bailout money to the banks, our own government is in effect financing US indebtedness.  The government is giving money to the banks so that the banks can then lend money back to the government to pay the bailout.  It is an absolutely circular process.  This leads to an absolute spiraling of the public debt.  No one has of yet actually dared to discuss this.  The situation is extremely critical. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Following the collapse of the Bretton Woods fixed exchange rate system in 1971 we saw the beginning of a massive restructuring of the financial architecture of our country.  Such action was being handled by people in charge like Paul Volker, who was then the head of the Federal Reserve, and who is now on the Obama advisory board.  In Nov. 99 there was a major turning point of the financial architecture through the adoption of what is called the Financial Services Modernization Act. This was a Republican initiative adopted in the Graham-Leach-Bliley bill.  It was essentially pushed through by Republican Senator Phil Graham during the last year of the Clinton administration.   Larry Summers played a very key role in this legislation and is now the White House Economic adviser to President Barack Obama.  At that time Summers was the Chief Economist of the World Bank and had been appointed Secretary of the Treasury. Consequently, those persons who are now set to advise and manage the financial architecture under the Obama administration were the architects of the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999.  This act is essentially what created the environment that has triggered the current financial crisis.  The people behind this piece of legislation are the people who are now in charge.  The people who are the cause of the current crisis are now being brought back as the solution.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The Financial Services Modernization Act repealed a major piece of legislation that went back to 1930’s under the Roosevelt administration which was called the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933.  The Glass-Steagall Act was a response to the speculation market with its attendant manipulation and fraud that had led to the crash of Wall Street in 1929.  It was a reform policy of the banking and financial sectors to keep the commercial banks on one end and the merchant banks and stoke brokerage groups on the other to prevent them from coalescing.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Following the removal of this protective mechanism, the sovereignty of creditors over governmental policy has been established and made it possible for financial institutions to call the shots and maintain tremendous power.  Politicians are being bought up and becoming figureheads for these same financial super powers.  This is a deliberate process that has been preceded by mechanisms that involved deregulation of the exchange market. The intrigues behind this (and the way in which these financial institutions managed to ransack even our most technologically advanced systems) are enabled through the buying out of our capital and productive base. These financial institutions want to buy out the real economy of our country with all of its capabilities.  &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;These very powerful cabals are embedded within globalized, transnational entities that have geopolitical agendas that control the flow of money and credit for their own profit and who have ultimately come to control the political apparatus.  There are effective measures that can be implemented very expediently but the current power configuration within our government is more interested in protecting global financial interests than our own domestic interests.  We must respond NOW and in a meaningful way to disarm the speculative apparatus that has been put in place to destroy or sovereignty by using what Keynesian economist refer to as Financial Disarmament.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In response to  Cathyg @ 174  (show text)</p>
<p>    Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.</p>
<p>The goal is and always has been to eliminate any national government (especially the US govt.) as a powerful force in the world and to remove any restrictions on asset accumulation that nations might enact to best protect their sovereign interests.  The REAL reason for support of these programs is to provide for mechanisms where financiers and rulers outside the reach of US law who are not beholden to any sovereign people (i.e. the United States) can, for purely commercial driven reasons, funnel sovereign cash to multinational financial conglomerates and their minions. The true financial plan (not the one they sell to voters) that is well known by insiders is and always has been to so indebt the US government that no social programs can survive and thereby nullify the USA as a force for control of monopolistic interests around the world.  The true goal of such programs is to provide for a means by which puppet administrations (that are elected via media driven programs owned by transnational corporate interests) can enact legislation that will destroy the US economy with a giant debt bomb that is at least ten times more destructive than any physical bomb could ever be.  </p>
<p>When the current administration is doing financial things like directly taking treasury funds and stuffing them into the pockets of specialized interests that lay outside of our country while at the very same time they are actually increasing the US debt load so much that the USA could ACTUALLY and REALISTICALLY be facing bankruptcy &#8211; then there is a real threat to national sovereignty and security.  Vastly powerful globalized interests support the election of such government representatives.   THEY ARE COMMERCIAL AND BUSINESS ALLIES.  It is ALWAYS about the mixing of foreign payoffs with trying to stop the ability of the US government to intervene and regulate them.  </p>
<p>We are at the juncture of the most serious crisis in modern history, one that is not strictly a financial crisis but rather a much broader transformation, one that is not strictly limited to economic collapse. Let us be under no illusion, there are powerful interests behind these processes and the movement of these financial indicators.   </p>
<p>Movements of the stock markets and money markets are heavily manipulated and they are manipulated largely as a result of what we understand as derivative trade. It is the capability of the financial institutions (and powerful individuals who are part of institutions that are not necessarily visible within the financial architecture such as the hedge funds) to trigger upward and downward movements in speculative onslaughts through mechanisms like “short selling” that can make the stock market go up or down without necessarily buying or selling.  Disinformation concerning financial movements is then inserted into the circuit of financial and economic news with the ability to trigger major collapses.  </p>
<p>We must understand the types of instruments that have been concocted over the last ten to fifteen years since the enactment of the Financial Services Modernization Act in 1999 which deregulated the financial architecture and created a new environment.  It is the regulatory (policy) environment which creates the crisis rather than some spontaneous movement in market values.  It is not the interplay of market values.  What we are dealing with is a massive transfer of wealth resulting from speculative trade and the manipulation of stock markets, money markets, and currency markets.  We are dealing with a very major transformation of the structure and architecture of the financial system.    <strong>The bailouts that are being put forth do not constitute a solution to the crisis but are rather quite the opposite; they are the cause of the crisis.</strong>  What they do is contribute to an even greater concentration and centralization of financial wealth into the hands of a very few financial institutions. </p>
<p>Our government is allocating bailout money to major financial institutions under the TARP that in point of fact results in a much broader ability to consolidate these institutions and use them to buy out other banks.  The US Treasury is handing money to the banks that are using it to enrich themselves and these very same banks are also the creditors of the government.  The 700 billion dollar bailout has increased the public debt which causes the debt rating to be affected negatively.  <strong>WHAT THE HELL?</strong> We are actually bailing out the banks!  Only a portion of government bonds and treasury bills are held by the banks so the creditors become the public at large and the banks become the brokers of that public debt.  The banks then sell the government bonds on the money markets.  Thus, by handing bailout money to the banks, our own government is in effect financing US indebtedness.  The government is giving money to the banks so that the banks can then lend money back to the government to pay the bailout.  It is an absolutely circular process.  This leads to an absolute spiraling of the public debt.  No one has of yet actually dared to discuss this.  The situation is extremely critical. </p>
<p>Following the collapse of the Bretton Woods fixed exchange rate system in 1971 we saw the beginning of a massive restructuring of the financial architecture of our country.  Such action was being handled by people in charge like Paul Volker, who was then the head of the Federal Reserve, and who is now on the Obama advisory board.  In Nov. 99 there was a major turning point of the financial architecture through the adoption of what is called the Financial Services Modernization Act. This was a Republican initiative adopted in the Graham-Leach-Bliley bill.  It was essentially pushed through by Republican Senator Phil Graham during the last year of the Clinton administration.   Larry Summers played a very key role in this legislation and is now the White House Economic adviser to President Barack Obama.  At that time Summers was the Chief Economist of the World Bank and had been appointed Secretary of the Treasury. Consequently, those persons who are now set to advise and manage the financial architecture under the Obama administration were the architects of the Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999.  This act is essentially what created the environment that has triggered the current financial crisis.  The people behind this piece of legislation are the people who are now in charge.  The people who are the cause of the current crisis are now being brought back as the solution.  </p>
<p>The Financial Services Modernization Act repealed a major piece of legislation that went back to 1930’s under the Roosevelt administration which was called the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933.  The Glass-Steagall Act was a response to the speculation market with its attendant manipulation and fraud that had led to the crash of Wall Street in 1929.  It was a reform policy of the banking and financial sectors to keep the commercial banks on one end and the merchant banks and stoke brokerage groups on the other to prevent them from coalescing.  </p>
<p>Following the removal of this protective mechanism, the sovereignty of creditors over governmental policy has been established and made it possible for financial institutions to call the shots and maintain tremendous power.  Politicians are being bought up and becoming figureheads for these same financial super powers.  This is a deliberate process that has been preceded by mechanisms that involved deregulation of the exchange market. The intrigues behind this (and the way in which these financial institutions managed to ransack even our most technologically advanced systems) are enabled through the buying out of our capital and productive base. These financial institutions want to buy out the real economy of our country with all of its capabilities.  </p>
<p>These very powerful cabals are embedded within globalized, transnational entities that have geopolitical agendas that control the flow of money and credit for their own profit and who have ultimately come to control the political apparatus.  There are effective measures that can be implemented very expediently but the current power configuration within our government is more interested in protecting global financial interests than our own domestic interests.  We must respond NOW and in a meaningful way to disarm the speculative apparatus that has been put in place to destroy or sovereignty by using what Keynesian economist refer to as Financial Disarmament.</p>
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		<title>By: ImNORMLRU</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862705</link>
		<dc:creator>ImNORMLRU</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 09:35:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862705</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;Kucinich&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Kucinich</p>
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		<title>By: acquarius74</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862642</link>
		<dc:creator>acquarius74</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 05:48:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862642</guid>
		<description>&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p&gt;Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You’re getting to the real meat of the matter a lot faster than I, Cathyg.  The only thing I know to do is stick with these fine diarists and commentators here at FDL and learn all I can from them.  (I’d name them with high praise, but fear that I’d miss some - senior moment, ya know.)&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Anyway, thank you for your comment.  Join in often.  We need to see this thing from many perspectives.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<blockquote><p>Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>You’re getting to the real meat of the matter a lot faster than I, Cathyg.  The only thing I know to do is stick with these fine diarists and commentators here at FDL and learn all I can from them.  (I’d name them with high praise, but fear that I’d miss some &#8211; senior moment, ya know.)</p>
<p>Anyway, thank you for your comment.  Join in often.  We need to see this thing from many perspectives.</p>
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		<title>By: MarkH</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862634</link>
		<dc:creator>MarkH</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 05:39:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862634</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;Jamie wrote:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p&gt;
The NYT article points out that pools of RMBS can be sold for about 30 cents on the dollar now. But banks are unwilling to sell for less than 60 cents
&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Last Fall the Dodd/Frank HOPE for Homeowners plan would have let banks cooperate with homeowners and modify mortgages at only about a 20% loss in principal. They refused…because they’re idiots.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Now they are likely to lose 40% or more and they’re just plain blackmailing government by saying they must be paid big or they’ll hold the assets, refuse to make loans and let the economy crater.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I say they’re all criminals and Gitmo is calling.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Jamie wrote:</p>
<blockquote><p>
The NYT article points out that pools of RMBS can be sold for about 30 cents on the dollar now. But banks are unwilling to sell for less than 60 cents
</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Last Fall the Dodd/Frank HOPE for Homeowners plan would have let banks cooperate with homeowners and modify mortgages at only about a 20% loss in principal. They refused…because they’re idiots.</p>
<p>Now they are likely to lose 40% or more and they’re just plain blackmailing government by saying they must be paid big or they’ll hold the assets, refuse to make loans and let the economy crater.</p>
<p>I say they’re all criminals and Gitmo is calling.</p>
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		<title>By: acquarius74</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862625</link>
		<dc:creator>acquarius74</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 05:31:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862625</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;You’re welcome.  About a week-10 days ago I had an update to Windows; nearly drove me nuts.  I sent enough error reports to them and it seems ok now.  Had some trouble with Firefox, too, and got an alert from my McAfee security system that this (FDL) site had been infected and did I want them to send an alert.  I checked yes.  No trouble since.  Maybe have your security system run a scan?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I’d sure be interested in seeing your answer to Cathyg @ 174.  I’ve been groping for the answer to her questions for quite a long time.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Thanks again for your work.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>You’re welcome.  About a week-10 days ago I had an update to Windows; nearly drove me nuts.  I sent enough error reports to them and it seems ok now.  Had some trouble with Firefox, too, and got an alert from my McAfee security system that this (FDL) site had been infected and did I want them to send an alert.  I checked yes.  No trouble since.  Maybe have your security system run a scan?</p>
<p>I’d sure be interested in seeing your answer to Cathyg @ 174.  I’ve been groping for the answer to her questions for quite a long time.</p>
<p>Thanks again for your work.</p>
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		<title>By: Cathyg</title>
		<link>http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862388</link>
		<dc:creator>Cathyg</dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 22 Mar 2009 02:07:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://firedoglake.com/2009/03/21/james-k-galbraith-reponds-to-geithners-toxic-asset-plan/#comment-1862388</guid>
		<description>&lt;p&gt;Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Any administration can have industry-captured idiots at the helm making policy that screws the taxpayer.  But to have two administrations within six months, with different ideologies, with different players, come up with the same bad idea seems too unlikely to be a mere accident.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;So it probably isn’t an accident. Which means that an approach with low chance of success and high chance of blatant transfer of a great deal of wealth from public to private hands is being pursued deliberately.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Why?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Why is a second set of elected and appointed officials supposedly dedicated to the public good embarking on a course that will almost certainly cause great harm and further suffering to citizens who are innocent of causing this debacle?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Where is the pressure coming from?  Can Wall Street and corporate kleptocrats, as disgraced as they are, still muster enough cojones to make their buds in D.C. dance?  Are there foreign players (China, Saudi Arabia for two) with enough power to make the U.S. government actively promote policies that run against the best interests of the citizenry?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
		<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.</p>
<p>Any administration can have industry-captured idiots at the helm making policy that screws the taxpayer.  But to have two administrations within six months, with different ideologies, with different players, come up with the same bad idea seems too unlikely to be a mere accident.</p>
<p>So it probably isn’t an accident. Which means that an approach with low chance of success and high chance of blatant transfer of a great deal of wealth from public to private hands is being pursued deliberately.</p>
<p>Why?</p>
<p>Why is a second set of elected and appointed officials supposedly dedicated to the public good embarking on a course that will almost certainly cause great harm and further suffering to citizens who are innocent of causing this debacle?</p>
<p>Where is the pressure coming from?  Can Wall Street and corporate kleptocrats, as disgraced as they are, still muster enough cojones to make their buds in D.C. dance?  Are there foreign players (China, Saudi Arabia for two) with enough power to make the U.S. government actively promote policies that run against the best interests of the citizenry?</p>
<p>Something’s going on here that we’re not seeing.</p>
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