ECONOMIC REPORT CARD – FAIL

We are now three and one half years into Barack Obama’s presidency. I thought a few pertinent charts would help us assess the success of his economic policies. Upon his election he demanded an $800 billion stimulus package in order to keep the unemployment rate from surpassing 8%. The $800 billion was to be spent over two years we were told and then government spending would be scaled back to pre-stimulus levels. There were 145 million Americans employed when Obama was elected. There are 9 million more working age Americans today than there were in 2008. There are now 142.4 million employed Americans. So, we’ve added 9 million potential workers and still have 2.6 less Americans employed. We have the same number of Americans employed as we did in early 2006, when there were 17 million less working age Americans.

The Obama stimulus plan was passed with everything he wanted. Democrats controlled the House and Senate and gave him exactly what he proposed. By October 2009, the unemployment rate was 10%. Obama’s stimulus package and economic policies have been so successful that he has been able to get the unemployment rate all the way down to 8.2% after three and one half years, even though he said his stimulus package would keep the unemployment rate under 8%. And all it took to get the unemployment rate down to 8.2% was for 8 MILLION Americans to leave the labor force. A critical thinking person who doesn’t swallow the crap peddled by the BLS and the rest of the government propaganda machine might question WHY 8 million Americans would leave the workforce when people desperately need income. If the labor participation rate had stayed constant, the current unemployment rate is 10.9%.

070612rbjune

The long-term chart below tells the true story. The BLS classifying millions as not in the labor force is a crock. The Obama apologists and sycophants peddle a false storyline about Baby Boomers retiring as the cause for this labor force decline. The fact is people over the age of 55 have the highest participation rate in history and it continues to rise. Of the 142.4 million employed Americans, only 114 million works more than 35 hours per week, with 28.4 million working part-time. That means that 20% of those employed are part time workers with no benefits. In 2008, prior to the ascendency of Obama, there were 125 million full-time workers and 20 million part-time workers. Obama has been able to increase the percentage of part-time workers from 14% to 20% in just over 3 years. Remember this fact when Obama touts the 3 million new jobs he’s created since 2010.

If you were wondering what the 8.5 million Americans who have left the labor force since 2008 were doing, look no further than the millions of bedrooms now functioning as classrooms for the University of Phoenix and the other on-line, for profit diploma mills that have proliferated with the doling out of hundreds of billions in cheap government student loans. These for profit diploma mills know how to game the system and get their money even if the students drop out after a few months. They educate 12% of students, receive 25% of federal student aid and account for nearly 50% of loan defaults. Sounds like a great business model.

Low interest Federal government loans have skyrocketed from $100 billion when Obama took office to $450 billion today. Total student loan debt has surpassed $1 trillion, with the average student graduating with $25,000 of debt and many more burdened with $100,000 or more of debt. Those part-time jobs making lattes at Starbucks aren’t cutting it. Default rates are already at a ten year high and are poised to skyrocket as more people graduate into a jobless job market. Not only is the American taxpayer on the hook for the $450 billion of direct Federal student loans, but the Federal government is guaranteeing another $450 billion. When the student loan bubble pops, the taxpayer financed bailout will be epic. And this is all being engineered by the Obama administration in order to artificially reduce the unemployment rate. Does this graph remind you of another bubble that resulted in a few problems for the American taxpayer?

After three and a half years, Obama’s policies have led to 11 million less full-time workers and 8 million more part-time workers – just like he drew it up on the board when he committed $800 billion of your tax dollars to saving our economy through classic Keynesianism. Obama declared the stimulus would be a two year jolt to get our economy back on track. Federal government spending was $2.7 trillion in 2006, $2.7 trillion in 2007 and $3.0 trillion in 2008, the last three years of Bush’s administration. If spending stayed on a standard trajectory, it would have been $3.1 trillion in 2009, $3.2 trillion in 2010, $3.3 trillion in 2011 and $3.4 trillion in 2012. With the end of the Iraq occupation in 2010, it should have dropped by $200 billion, resulting in total spending of $3.1 trillion in 2011 and $3.2 trillion in 2012.

Obama declared the stimulus would be short-term. Federal government spending should have risen to $3.5 trillion in 2009, $3.6 trillion in 2010 ($300 billion stimulus – $200 billion Iraq withdrawal), and then revert back to $3.3 trillion in 2011 and $3.4 trillion in 2012. Let’s see whether Obama was honest in his promises:

Federal Government Spending

2009 – $3.5 trillion

2010 – $3.5 trillion

2011 – $3.6 trillion

2012 – $3.8 trillion

After three and one half years of stimulus spending, Cash for Clunkers, Home Buyer Tax Credits, mortgage modification programs, Fannie, Freddie & FHA accumulating billions in bank losses, zero interest rates, QE1, QE2, Operation Twist, unlimited student loans, wars of choice in the Middle East, mark to fantasy accounting standards for Wall Street, and hundreds of billions in bonuses for criminal bankers, we are left with a $5.3 trillion (50% increase) higher national debt and a $300 billion (2.3% increase) higher real GDP. That’s not exactly a big bang for your Keynesian buck. The response you will get from the Obama apologists is, “Imagine how bad it would have been if we didn’t spend the money”. This is a classic liberal response when their solutions are a total failure. Krugman will declare that if we had only spent another $2 trillion all would be well.

As you can see, Obama and all the politicians in Washington DC are really good at spending your money on pork projects, paying off campaign contributors and compensating their corporate cronies. Do you see any reversion back to normalized spending? How can current spending be $300 billion higher than the two stimulus years if Obama was telling the truth in 2009? The Obamanistas declare we are still in an emergency and must borrow and spend to save the economy. The emergency never ends for politicians of both parties. This is how they have bastardized John Maynard Keynes’ theory. They love to implement spending when the economy is in the dumper, but they forget his admonition to pay down debt during the good times. It never happens. There will always be another emergency. Even 2nd grade level Sesame Street fans can see the Federal government spending and debt accumulation never reverses. It couldn’t be any more obvious, unless you are an intellectually dishonest Keynesian ideologue hack (aka Krugman).

This brings us to the crowning economic achievement of the Obama administration. His most successful program is unequivocally the SNAP food stamp program. When Obama assumed power in January 2009 there were 32 million Americans on food stamps and the annual cost of the program was $44 billion. Today there are 46 million Americans on food stamps and the annual cost is pacing at $75 billion. He has been able to get fully 15% of the U.S. population enrolled in this fantastic program and the Department of Agriculture is even running advertisements to convince more people to join.

And don’t worry about any restrictions. You can buy as much soda, ice cream, cheetos, and fudge brownies with your SNAP card as you choose. Of course, you are still free to purchase higher end fare.

A cynical less trusting soul than me might even conclude that Obama’s goal is to provide government entitlements to as many people as possible in order to win votes in the upcoming election. One might ask how he can tout an economic recovery and the millions of “new” jobs he has created since 2010, when 6 million people have been added to the food stamp rolls since his economic recovery officially began in 2010. I’m confused by the Obama distinction between success and utter failure.

Not far behind the food stamp program, the SSDI program has been another resounding Obama success. He has been able to enroll twice as many participants in this program as jobs created since the end of the recession. There are already 10 million people on SSDI costing the American taxpayer in excess of $150 billion per year. There are 250,000 people per month applying for benefits and the program will be broke by 2015. In a shocking development, when people began to roll off the 99 week unemployment gravy train, the number of new SSDI applications soared. I guess they were depressed at not being able to collect unemployment for two more years.

Bob Adelman recently summed up the SSDI scam:

“The program, funded federally but administered by the states, is being milked by many who have run out of unemployment benefits and other resources and haven’t been able to find work. At present one out of every eight working-age, non-retired individuals receive disability payments, some for “mental disorders” and “back pain.” Claims for mental disorders, for instance, have more than tripled from 10 percent of cases in 1982 to 32.8 percent in 2012, with half of those based on “mood disorders” such as depression or anxiety. Back or neck “problems” have increased by 31 percent and were the top cause of disability for 50- to 64-year olds. Depression and anxiety and other emotional problems increased by 20 percent, and now constitute one-third of all disability claims. Once on the rolls, beneficiaries have little incentive to return to work because their disability entitles them to additional benefits such as food stamps, Medicaid, Section 8 housing, and student-loan forgiveness. As a result less than one half of one percent of those on disability ever go back to work.”

I’m depressed by the results of Obama’s economic policies. Maybe I should apply for SSDI.

It appears that former college professor Obama never paid attention in his macroeconomics undergraduate course. The “guns versus butter model” doesn’t enter the equation for a profound thinker like Barack. Why do hard choices need to be made when Ben Bernanke is manning the printing press? In the real world, a nation has to choose between two options when spending its finite resources. It can buy either guns (invest in defense/military) or butter (invest in production of goods), or a combination of both. This can be seen as an analogy for choices between defense and civilian spending in more complex economies. Politicians and bankers have been ignoring this rational model since 1971 when Nixon closed the gold window. Why make difficult choices when you can borrow and print your way to prosperity? As a country we’ve chosen guns, butter, BMWs, McMansions, free unfunded healthcare, unfunded pensions, unfunded sickcare, and DHS implemented security for all. In order to prove himself tougher than George W., Obama, the socialist, has actually increased war spending by 23% to an all-time high. Fiat currency is an amazing invention. Guns, butter and healthcare for all.

Mainstream media liberals like Ezra Klein dutifully trot out charts and storylines trying to convince the ignorant masses that Obama is not to blame for the soaring national debt. They declare it was the Bush tax cuts and his wars. This blame Bush storyline is growing old as Obama has already extended the Bush tax cuts once, ramped up wars in the Middle East and cut payroll taxes for the last two years. The Office of Management and Budget has calculated the total increase in the national debt will be $7.8 trillion after eight years of Obama, 269% more than was accumulated during the Bush reign of error. I believe the $7.8 trillion is ridiculously optimistic. The national debt has increased by $5.3 trillion since Obama took office. It will go up another $200 billion by the end of this fiscal year. It will surely exceed $1 trillion per year during a 2nd Obama term as he would extend most of the Bush tax cuts, extend the payroll tax cuts, continue to increase war spending, and the hidden delayed Obamacare costs would arrive. His eight year report card will show a $9.5 trillion increase in the national debt, reaching the magic grand total of $20 trillion. The national debt to GDP ratio will be close to 120%.

This scathing assessment of Obama’s economic policies is by no means an endorsement of Mitt Romney or his economic plan, since he has never provided a detailed economic plan. After four years of a Romney presidency, the national debt will also be $20 trillion as his war with Iran and handouts to his Wall Street brethren replace Obama’s food stamps and entitlement pork. There was only one presidential candidate whose proposals would have placed this country back on a sustainable path. The plutocracy controlled corporate mainstream media did their part in ignoring and then scorning Ron Paul during his truth telling campaign. The plutocracy wants to retain their wealth and power, while the willfully ignorant masses don’t want to think. The words of Ron Paul sum up what will occur over the coming years as the interchangeable pieces of this corporate fascist farce drive the country to ruin:

“Deficits mean future tax increases, pure and simple. Deficit spending should be viewed as a tax on future generations, and politicians who create deficits should be exposed as tax hikers.” 

“A system of capitalism presumes sound money, not fiat money manipulated by a central bank. Capitalism cherishes voluntary contracts and interest rates that are determined by savings, not credit creation by a central bank.”

“Believe me, the next step is a currency crisis because there will be a rejection of the dollar, the rejection of the dollar is a big, big event, and then your personal liberties are going to be severely threatened.”

 

The politicians, bankers and corporate titans running this country are too corrupt and cowardly to reverse the course on our path to destruction. The debt will continue to accumulate until our Minsky Moment. At that point the U.S. dollar will be rejected and chaos will reign. The Great American Empire will be no more. At that time sides will need to be chosen and blood will begin to spill. Decades of bad decisions, corruption, cowardice, ignorance, greed and sloth will come to a head. The verdict of history will not be kind to the once great American Empire.

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DaveL
DaveL

Really? On the unemployment issue. Am I supposed to believe YOU or Hilda Solis? You…Hilda….You…Hilda. You must be racist or something because Hilda says things are looking very good. Doesn’t Obama count people who are looking for a job as working at someting?

DaveL
DaveL

Just wait until they get the transportation bill funding money out to the states so they can put all those laid off teachers, firefighters, policemen and emergency care people back to work rebuilding our bridges, roads, sewers and schools.

Steve Hogan
Steve Hogan

Not just Fail. Epic Fail. Failure on steroids.

The fact that this economic ignoramus will probably get another presidential term to drive the final nail in the coffin of the American experiment tells you all you need to know about the craven, stupid, and hopelessly lazy citizen that would trade his principles and independence for a welfare check and chains.

Regardless of which corporate tool eventually takes the reins in 2013, the US of A is kaput. Done. Put a fork in it.

If you have the means to escape, do so. Get out. I am. I refuse to be a dairy cow to be milked. I won’t consent to the ongoing rape of the productive class in this country to buy elections from infantilized “adults.”

This ship has hit the iceberg. Time to head for the life boats.

DaveL
DaveL

One more time tonight. And seriously. Can anyone recommend a real good, honest book about how things actually were during the Great Depression. Not just individual anecdotal shit, but accounts of life everywhere in this country. Not “The Forgotten Man”. That read like a history book of names and dates.

DaveL
DaveL

Ok, I lied, like Obama.

Jim…What the hell is this?

“Economic Report Card – Fail
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 07/08/2012 – 23:10 “

marissa
marissa

Regarding your article “When Obama assumed power in January 2009 there were 32 million Americans on food stamps and the annual cost of the program was $44 billion. Today there are 46 million Americans on food stamps and the annual cost is pacing at $75 billion. He has been able to get fully 15% of the U.S. population enrolled in this fantastic program and the Department of Agriculture is even running advertisements to convince more people to join.”

Anecdotally, I saw the most amazing thing last week on a trip downtown in My American City. A city bus with the usual paid billboard advertisements on its exterior…..enticing citizens to enroll in the SNAP program! Our government is actually pitching welfare benefits to the public-at-large from city buses! Staggering. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Ironically, in Moscow Russia, city buses advertize private businesses and my favorite ad for Choco-Pies, a Little Debbie type snack cake.

Reversal of fortune?

Seriously! The government is tempting the public (who can still read) with proclamations

Tony D
Tony D

Obviously an accurate assessment but a bit hard on Obama personally. Whoever was in the wheelhouse was always going to bring the same results. As you point out,it’s the system that is broken. The US citizenry have the system they deserve and this blame goes back a lot further than Bush/Obama. A great article that shows the US is rooted (as we like to say in Australia)
I also think the legal system has a lot to answer for in western societies as people have been taught that they are “entitled” with little personal responsibility. This set the seeds for the mentality that now exists where people believe they are entitled to be cared for by the government.
Despite a deflationary short term this spending and money creation has to eventually end in total loss of confidence in the currency,I.e. Hyperinflation. The question is how long it will take ? Probably longer than we think, especially for the worlds reserve currency which can get away with this for longer than anyone else due to creditor forbearance and belief in the “might” of the US.

Civet Cat
Civet Cat

I’m glad to see that for this article at least, you have abandoned the “blame Boomers for this mess” thesis. You are finally starting to wake up to the fact that the political system was broken years ago and not the doings of one generational cohort or another.

mark branham
mark branham

Hi admin,

You have done a good job of figuring out how and what but you’ve failed to explain who and why.

Ultimate power does not reside in governments. Governmental figures take orders from their masters, the Oligarchs. So while Obama and the policies of this administration are the instrument of the Oligarchs, they are merely taking orders. Railing against the economic policies of the administration fails to place the blame where it belongs. The Obama administration is an easy and identifiable target, much more accessible than some nebulous and shadowy unknown force, but it’s still misplaced. If McCain had been elected, you would be railing against the republicans as nothing of importance would change. That’s because the system is in charge.

If you want something tangible to blame, blame the monetary system. Debt money has replaced money. We no longer have wealth, we have debt. All money, save for the bills in your pocket, are debt money. Once on the debt money tiger, there is no way off except to get eaten.

Like locusts, the debt money monetary system bleeds a nation dry of resources. Then, instead of recognizing their error, those few who benefit from such a system merely look for a fresh host to feed upon. Europe is dead, the US on the way to being dead, but Asia is the new host. And the reason is simple, that’s the only place on earth where people can borrow new money into existence.

Debt money is a ponzi scheme. It depends on new debt to pay off the old debt. Failure to create new debt money results in failure of the ponzi scheme. The who is the banking cartel. The banks create new money out of thin air; the system depends on borrowers to borrow new money into existence. Ever wonder why we’re no longer called citizens? Our value to the state where debt money rules is ONLY our ability to borrow new money into existence. When we are no longer able to borrow new money, we are valueless. The system depends on us to borrow, when we no longer can, we may be tossed aside without even a backward glance.

There is no failure of economic policy. It’s doing exactly what the Oligarchs want. The new paradigm is China. The last thing any self-respecting oligarch wants is competition. The U.S. Is being restructured. The world’s new policeman doesn’t want any competition from the former world’s policeman.

The only question must be – do we really deserve to govern ourselves? The american people have had choices but have consistently chosen to stick with their masters. We seem to prefer someone else to do our thinking for us. It may be that Ron Paul was our last chance. We may not get another. A vote for either is a vote for more of the same. My old Australian friend is confident that america will produce the leader we need at just the right time to right this ship of state. Perhaps so. I think it more likely that historians 2000 years from now will identify this opportunity as our last great hope.

Cynical30
Cynical30

I call BS. The economy must be in full recovery mode because I actually saw a Chevy Volt on my commute today. Yes, they actually DO exist!

Mike, Admin's section 8 neighbor
Mike, Admin's section 8 neighbor

Mister Admin:

Another great weekend at the Jersey Shore. Sorry you had to miss it, but I guess somebody has to work and pay taxes, and that’s you sucker. I hope you enjoyed your commute today, all the stress, and knowing about 1/2 your wages are going to me, one way or another.

I liked your article. It shows the power and the glory of the government, and especially our dear leader, President Obama. Hundreds of thousands of people are no longer burdened by having to work. They are on disability and Welfare, but disability really is the “holy grail” of entitlements. Once you get in, your in for life, and qualify, like we do, to live at the beach, get free cash/EBT, free food and SNAP benefits, all the free healthcare and medicine we might ever need, free phones, internet, cable T.V., even a gas allowance. And, if Obama wins re-election, you can expect more free stuff, entitlements, and benefits than ever before.

Obama isn’t a socialist. Just because 50% of the population is living off the other 50% doesn’t mean socialism. Well, I’m not sure really, because I dropped out of school after the ninth grade. This gave me certain disadvantages, but I made up for it quickly by becoming disabled. Now, me and my family are living the American dream, and I don’t have to work a day in my life. I hope you and your readers are working hard on this Monday, we have many expenses you have to pay for, and we’re on our way to eat out again, and you get to pay. It isn’t wealth redistribution, we deserve it, and more. Now, get back to work, sucker, ha ha.

Ceasar
Ceasar

Americans love to scold, or laugh at ‘socialist’ countries in other parts of the world. Anytime a country hiccups, the Wall Street Journal and Forbes pundits waste no time to spit out endless columns about yet another socialist failing state.

Domestically, we see endless insults thrown at the other guy, or political party, accusing them of ‘socialism’ on just about everything.

But the truth is U.S. of A. HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST SOCIALIST STATE FOR A CENTURY.

When the Republicans gained power, they borrow and spend like no tomorrow. On armaments, wars and corporate welfare.

When the Democrats gained power, they borrow and spend like no tomorrow. On social welfare.

And of course, when the Federal Reserve gained power, and they have been in power non-stop since about 1913, they borrow from thin air and spend like no tomorrow. On private banks and the federal government.

Socialist, socialist and socialist. One has to go back to the 16th century to find an empire so packed full of socialist clowns disguised as, well, anything but a socialist. And what would that country be? The Spanish Empire. They plundered gold from the New World, and borrowed from other European states, to maintain the good time and wage wars against ‘evils’. The Spanish king said he was just doing God’s work.

If you really want to know, the Spanish Empire, despite stealing about 50,000 tones of gold, didn’t quite work out. It defaulted on its sovereign debt 6 times as the 17th century arrived.

Big Dick
Big Dick

Bend over and open your mouth. The Obama train and Romney truck will soon be giving it to you. Just choose which way you want to take it in!

Maddie's Mom
Maddie's Mom

marissa,

Enticing? Tempting?

Hell, they are on their knees BEGGING people to hold their hand out.

Advertising on city buses and promoting the notion of having “parties” to sign people up for food stamps? Yes, FOOD STAMPS!!! I refuse to use the new pc term: “SNAP card”.

Aside from the obvious vote buying, what is going on here?

Something is very, very wrong in our country and I mean in a very bizarre, disturbing and sinister way.

Mary Malone

Great article Admin. Too bad the news is so dire – but best to face the music and ramp up the exit strategy.

For a long while I thought we could turn this ship of fools around. Now I see very clearly, thanks to the data you refuse to allow us to ignore, that it is over.

I have changed my prayer from asking God to halt the collapse to begging him to deliver it.

Colma Rising
Colma Rising

OH THE NUMBERS

At what point did the joke really happen?

Well…. there’s one thing left to do:

SSS

Story within a story.

The grocery store receipt (with lobster and steak charges) Admin posted in the article ticked me off. I thought it was a fake. Wrong, hotshot. It’s genuine.

Seems a guy named Louis Cuff in Menominee MI purchased those items and must have dropped the receipt in the parking lot. Someone found it and turned it over to the police. The finder must have been really mad like most Americans would be.

Well, turns out that what Louis did was perfectly legal, but what he did with the food wasn’t. He resold it and was subsequently arrested. Turns out, the police found out he had done this on at least two prior occasions.

Don’t know the status of the case, but let’s raise our glasses of Mountain Dew and give Louis a rousing toast:

“FUCK YOU, ASSHOLE.”

Man of the Hour Louis Cuff
http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS_c5tUX2BsqYex9shA4ZuGNZWwfS0SCK-hfMmkZxYe9_UjAeLPoAhttp://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS_c5tUX2BsqYex9shA4ZuGNZWwfS0SCK-hfMmkZxYe9_UjAeLPoA

Novista

Ceasar and desist,

I’d say 1891 …

Plutori
Plutori

You know, this all makes me kind of sad…

A dark shadow is looming on the horizon, ya know?

It wont be here for a year, or two, or three, or four… But it will come…

And when it does, what will happen?

My first guess is war, starvation, and quite a few less humans…

It kind of makes me sad, I like this world, but I understand it’s not sustainable.

I get to go to basic military training in a little more than a month from now, I guess I better take everything I learn there to heart.

sensetti
sensetti

@Plutori “I get to go to basic military training in a little more than a month from now, I guess I better take everything I learn there to heart”.

Learn to whistle Dixie before you go in( most soldiers are from the south) and remember one thing the next march to the sea will go through the Northern States, the need to clean up both coasts is also ever present and will require much work. Thank you for your service and good Luck.

“Soldiers also come from a narrower segment of society—geographically and culturally—than ever before. Nearly half of all Army recruits come from military families. Southerners disproportionately populate all the branches, while the middle-class suburbs surrounding the nation’s largest cities—New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston and Philadelphia—produce relatively few service members despite having a large percentage of the nation’s youth population”.

Plutori
Plutori

Damnit sensetti, now you’re making me feel bad man.

Making me sound like a soldier… No, i’ll be working as a Satellite Communications Operator & Maintainer (MOS 25S1).

I get to train with the infantry at Benning though, and my job is pretty important, but still man, don’t make it sound like i’m frontlines.

Plutori
Plutori

Wouldn’t dream of it Admin, you’re the one who who’s given me the evidence that I need to enjoy everything while it lasts, because it wont last long.

I wonder, do you remember me from a couple years back? Back when I asked TBP what should my course of action be for preparation for the impending economic collapse?

I even posted my picture there.

ecliptix543

Plutori – As one who has been down that road, I must tell you something you will most definitely NOT be told by a recruiter or at MEPS: You are not obligated to go until you actually get on the bus/airplane on the way to basic. Once they’ve spent money on you, your ass just became the Emperor’s plaything. And he WILL play with it.

Satcom operator, eh? You’ll end up being very useful when the Emperor decides to turn off civilian comms in preparation for the upcoming Cleansing of the Proletariat. Be very, very sure that you’re ok with being ordered to aid a government in acts of open treason and war crimes.

sensetti
sensetti

Plutori “good on you ” as KB would say.

ecliptix543

I never thought ol’ Stucky would end up as a Section 8 beach bum, but I guess stranger things have happened in Wildwood before. How’s he doing anyway?

ecliptix543

sensetti – You could add NY, CT, RI, and NJ to that list if the enlisted person in question makes friends with the Puerto Ricans in basic. Talk about some partying motherfuckers… Probably the coolest group of people I ever hung out with was the Puerto Rican car club Sharp Image in New London, CT when I was in submarine school. Their weekend barbeques had more amazing titties and fantastic ass than 6 month’s worth of Colma and AWD pix here – those guys knew how to get it done! 20 years later, I finally got to go to PR for three weeks for work and damned if they didn’t have it even better in Ponce and San Juan!

ecliptix543

I hope he finds what he’s looking for, even if he doesn’t know what it is.

Colma Rising
Colma Rising

Pllutori:

I totally remember….

You’re going to seee things a little differently. Good. Everything isn’t as it seems.

Listen to Cliptix about the Puerto Ricans…. and Mexicans too. The ones there actually give a shit. Along with the good ol boys Sensetti speaks of, they love this country for reasons a lot of people have forgottten. Fast cars, women, opportunity, hard work.

You’re from around my area…. good on you for giving a shit.

Eyes forward…. see what passes through and see what remains.

What else can be said?

Oh: DO NOT GET MARRIED…. wait until you’re out. That is the single best economic advice any soldier can be given. The incentives may be there, but remember: Divide them by two and it really becomes clear.

DaveL
DaveL

“Cynical30 says:
I call BS. The economy must be in full recovery mode because I actually saw a Chevy Volt on my commute today. Yes, they actually DO exist!”

Was it being driven by David Copperfield, because he’s the only person I know that could make one of those fucking things appear out of nowhere?

PlatoPlubius

DAMN! If that Food Stamp chart was a chart for gold, some might suggest it is going parabolic!!! Holy Sinking Ships Batman!

Colma Rising
Colma Rising

Plato: It’s ridiculous, isn’t it!?

Parabolic…. now if only the geniuses in charge would acknowlege the other end a little further down the x-axis.

But that would take math.

That would take an admission of failure.

Math and admissions of failure do not exist amongst most academic social scientists…. well, not in the normal sense of the word.

OH THE NUMBERS

Plutori
Plutori

Ah, thanks for the support guys, I had to get some sleep.

sensetti, I’ll keep it all in mind, I’ve got friends in NC, and I’ll be spending 37 weeks in GA, so I’ll probably meet some people there too eh?

ecliptix, I know I don’t have to go there, but it’s honestly the best thing I can do with my life at the moment… And let’s just hope it doesn’t come down to communications having to be shut down.

Admin, glad you remember me, I think everyone thought I was the worst federal spy ever or something.

Plutori
Plutori

Oh, and Colma, trust me when I say my love if is pretty lacking.

Hartzman
Hartzman

FINRA, SEC, DOL, CFPB, FTC, FRB, and PCAOB Wells Fargo Whistleblower Filing

http://hartzman.blogspot.com/2012/06/finra-sec-dol-cfpb-ftc-frb-and-pcaob.html

Llpoh
Llpoh

Each time Admin posts one of these fine articles, I am struck by how insane the people are in general. I still believe Obama is odds on favorite to be re-elected. How the fuck is that possible?

Some above said that anyone tasked with the presidency would have failed. Maybe so. But I would at least expect a leader to be shouting the truth at every moment given the predicament the country is in. Instead there is vast silence and lies. For this I blame him. He therefore is to be held fully responsible as he made no attempt at doing the right thing.

And yet it is probable he will be re-elected. I hope there is something left of value when he is done, but I doubt it.

SSS

Plutori

Your MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) in satellite communications will likely serve you well for the rest of your life. Pay attention. Stay out of trouble. Learn as much as you can. Gain as much experience you can. Your skills will be quickly transferable to the civilian world, if that is your choice at the end of your enlistment.

And if you get a chance to travel, whether on a TDY or PCS, regardless of whether it’s stateside or overseas, jump at every opportunity. It will literally be the chance of a lifetime. Trust me. I took that route and gained knowledge that is NEVER available in a classroom.

And the best wishes to you from a retired member of the US Air Force..

SSS

llpoh

Obama reelected? Wait until about mid-October. If there’s movement towards Romney in the polls, Obama is toast. If not, well…… Until then, don’t sweat the small shit.

ThePessimisticChemist
ThePessimisticChemist

Admin – That picture made me spit out some coffee.

Novista

Plutori

I wish you good luck on the road ahead.

That being said, “expect the unexpected” is always a good attitude to embrace. I was drafted in 1959. Met a bloke from Atlanta who became a good friend. He had opted to enlist, three year term, to get a guaranteed MOS. Somewhere along the way, a funny thing happened to his paperwork …

I was glad I’d not gone that route, two years as a draftee was a better option. I thought. But a strange thing about ‘contracts’, when they are one-sided, you are the do-ee and they are the doers. So in 1961 JFK came into office saying too much was spent on the military and he ordered a cutback. Some of my buddies got out three months early. Going by the trend, I was two weeks away from early release from active duty.

Instead, JFK flip-flopped and everything became open-ended. So thanks, JFK, for four months and three days extra for no good reason.

Another thing you will learn, in military life there are regulations (rule of law) — and there’s pragmatism. I did basic t Ft. Hood and then sent for specialist training at Ft. Knox. Toward the end of the time there, everyone got a form requesting preference of location assignments.

Most of the married guys were desperate to stay stateside. When the herd goes one way, you have to know it ain’t gonna work.

Also married, my preference was Germany, where my grandparents came from or Japan, as I had an interest in Asian history. Heh. Needless to say, I remained stateside and many of the married blokes got what they deserved. And I remained stateside.

In a very bizarre way. Day after day, travel orders came out. A fried from Buffalo, NY and myself waited anxious to see how fucked we were going to be. Came the morning to get on the bus and go to the airport and we two still had NO travel orders. “Sarge!”

“Don’t worry about it. Get on the bus. It will be taken care of.”

And we arrived at the airfield. Still no travel orders. And then the sergeant gave his final order:

“Get on the fucking airplane.”

WTF. No idea where it was even going. And we arrived in Washington, DC. Bob and I took turns calling army phones and by chance, someone at Ft. McNair said, “Get in a taxi and come here.”

It was Friday night and we arrived at dusk. Walked into HQ and saw the party activities starting. Company clerk came carrying a silver tray with bottles and glasses. “Have a drink, you the guys with no paperwork? Don’t worry about it, we will fix things.” Fun place.

And that’s how I came to be assigned to G-2 in the MDW.

(I can imagine our resident spook’s hair on fire… )

Plutori
Plutori

Sounds interesting, Novista.

Honestly, I won’t mind being really anywhere on Earth, and I’m already used to moving around a lot… I’m 18 and I’ve lived in 9 different places already, in 5 different states (The paperwork on that was annoying, btw). So, that won’t really be an issue.

Since I’m gonna be airborne too though, maybe they’ll airdrop me in somewhere to examine something.

SSS,

Yeah, I picked the job because it’ll transfer over really easily. Pretty sure if I can handle a military computer I can handle a civilian one.

Come to think of it, both my parents work as IT… Must be their influence, I dunno.

SSS

Actual photo of SSS awaiting Admin’s next smart ass comment.

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SAH

Re: Elmo… Don’t you know this guy is just one of those damned ‘Animal Spirits’ the Keynesians are trying to save our sorry asses from? Those damned Animal Spirits, sending us into frenzied periods of financial conservativism, lack of consumer confidence, and of saving instead of spending…. The Animal Spirits control our collective conscience, with no good emperical reason whatsoever, and they do it just because they are evil Animal Spirits who want to mess up the economy. Thank god no one in Government listens to Elmo and Hayek. The government has seen the light – Elmo and the other Animal Spirits are America’s greatest enemy, but I heard that when governments feed them enough stimulus money that they eventually hibernate. That Keynes… The only one with the vision to see the Animal Spirits at work, in something as seemly dry and mathematical as economics.

Re: To the kid joining the military – someone else posted the best advice ever – DON’T GET MARRIED. That only works if you go into the service married (often fails anyway). Focus on your time in and your job, and you will be fine. Military life is NO WAY to start a new marriage, please dont do it. One of my buddies just shipped back from his 3rd deployment in Afghanistan, another deploys next month for his 2nd… Both good guys with awareness. There have to be people who see the truth in every realm of society, otherwise we can’t rebuild in the future. Honor the Constitution, what America is supposed to be, and yourself, and you will be making a positive contribution to the world regardless of what the oligarchs decide to do.

John B.
John B.

Using hard data is the best way how to show people the truth. Thank you for being one of the few honest bloggers who actually care about the real impact of the government policies. There is also interesting info about the increasing trend of U.S. immigration to Canada. It speaks for itself. And if the instability grows, many Americans would turn Canadians very soon. We are not that different in the end.

You are definitely right about the main issues. To count part time jobs as a full employment into statistics is a fraud. Government propaganda uses many tools to gain support. Food stamps being one of them.

Novista

John B.

The oz ship of fools is headed for its own iceberg, they just don’t know it.

From the ABS: “According to established international standards, everyone who works for at least one hour or more for pay or profit is considered to be employed.”

From The Age two hours ago: “AUSTRALIANS are dropping out of the workforce at unprecedented rates. Since the end of 2010, Bureau of Statistics figures show, two-thirds of the growth in the adult population has been among people who are neither employed nor unemployed, just sitting on the sidelines.”

Julia had the hubris to lecture the G-20 that the world could adopt the Australian economic miracle. Bring out the unicorns!

The truth is, we have a two-speed economy: resources and banking. The latter put their lending effort at 60% onto housing. And as for mining, praise China forevah (but it ain’t gonna happen) and the July 1 ~carbon tax~ , world numero uno and the Greens who want to close down all mines and plant trees to hug. But still angling for more ‘super profits’ taxation to assist in whittling down the great deficit in the nation’s history … cognitive dissonance is very popular in Canberra.

KillGOP
KillGOP

Under Bush debt increased about 5 trillion (from the Treasury’s website); Your article says Obama increase will be 7.8 trillion (8 years). That’s a whopping 269% increase according to your advanced math skills. When i went to school, many years ago, that would be 156%, but then again i didn’t go to an ivy league school, so i am out of date with my math skills. Thanks for the new math example. I will vote Republican next time, after all, facts don’t matter – as Americans we can argue about them.

Colma Rising
Colma Rising

Hey Einstein:

Here’s your math lesson:

Divide 8 by 2. That is 4.

Mulitiply 4 X 2…. that’s eight.

Now take your percentage increase under Bush…. divide by two.

Getting the picture?

Not that I don’t think the function isn’t simply the same…. a parabola.

Knee-jerk political hacks don’t do dat math though…. of any persuasion.

So kindly stick your comment in your ass.

Novista

You gave him too easy (and complete) a target.

mrkinz
mrkinz

Water, Food, Guns, Ammo, Shelter, Survivalist Equipment, Homemade Energy. And even maybe a few people whom you can actually say you ” Trust ” – Now there’s your new short & long term investment people! As is self evident, that dollar, that Krugerand, or that big house on the hill isn’t going to be worth jack to you In the not too distant future. Unfortunately, this way of life is coming to a painful, abrupt, and sorrowful end for all of us. Hopefully you’ll be ready for it, and I wish the very best of luck to all of you.

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