Wednesday, February 04, 2009

The Problem globally is that everyone is waiting for 'the market adjustment' to become temporary. It won't be temporary.

From the years 2000-2007 the 'hubris' of the Bush USA Treasury 'hyper-inflated' the markets. There were all kinds of changes and so called 'perks' such as the extention of the NY Stock Exchange into Europe.

That 'hubris' is all it was and what is happening is a 'deflation' of a balloon that was 'more than just a housing bubble.' The 'adjustment' the USA and global markets are 'feeling' isn't simply a transition through a 'bad time' to return to 'good times.'

What occurred during seven years of Republican spending in the USA while they expanded the debt and annually raised the USA debt ceiling was an artifical economy based in unnecessary construction through priorities that supported a political agenda void of benevolence toward global economic stability.

The Bush Years will be measured in GOVERNMENT WASTE including the time it has taken to defeat al Qaeda.

That 'waste' was never viewed by global partners as such, but, as a ? perhaps ? new way of market strategy. It wasn't a market strategy at all, it was pure unadulterated politics. It was GROSS mismanagement by the Executive Branch of the USA Government at every turn regardless to topic. Power brokers. The Bush Years are laced with power brokers, not, good government.

If one wanted to 'analyze' the years going forward from the time Former President Clinton took office there would be a far different outcome and far more stability had Bush/Cheney not conned the Executive Branch away from Former Vice President Gore.

This 'market CRASH' (and when the Stock Exchange fell 50% in one year, that my friends, is a crash, not a recession.) occurred due to "W"rongful spending, "W"rongful priorities and I apologize for the fear that gripped this country for so long that 'enabled' such tragic outcomes to global stability.

Americans have decidedly taken their country back and what that means to the global markets and growing number of USA allies, is that the USA has a lot of work to do, including being vigilant to prevent another September 11th.

I would hope every nation that has stood by in strength and compassion during this decade will come to understand the vast responsibility the USA has toward all of them and doling out funds 'willy-nilly' when those funds are desperately needed to return stability to the USA while we change our 'polluting' ways is irresponsible. It is irresponsible to our own citizens and to global citizens.

It is not protectionism. It is inclusion. It is all in the 'eye of the beholder' and there is no room for greed anywhere. Different from a Republican administration and Congress, every USA penny needs to be conserved and distributed prudently. For every 'return' on investment by American citizens that literally used their own paychecks to elect our new President, there will be vast more return to the global stability and market places.

The arguement that 'international competition' will bring 'the best value' to the USA for its economic stimulus is INVALID. We, as Americans can determine what a 'fair paycheck' looks like and how that impacts the 'cost' of rebuilding our infrastructure. With proper 'bidding' from American companies for government contracts their won't be any need for international competition to insure 'fair prices' for 'raw materials.'

I do not anticipate 'free wheeling' market competition as there was with Bush. Bush's 'Rule of Law' was a joke and he simply removed all laws and regulations that insured fair and honest market practices. There won't be any more 'fraud' to cause global instability. The 'one' place terrorist networks seek to 'hurt' nations and societies is 'within' their market strategies. We as a world intent on peace and benevolence can't allow that to happen and we need to have 'regulatory' infrastructure that promotes prosperity even in the face of possible tragedy.

What occurred under Bush and Paulson was complete exploitation of markets while ignoring the dangers of economic collapse and how that opens up the possibility of terrorist infiltration. As an example the 'mess' that is Pakistan and its lack of a cohesive market strategy is all too clear.

While a 'strong USA' seems a little scary to a world still traumatized by the last eight years, there is nothing to say 'a USA gaining strength enough' to be a 'strong partner' isn't in the best interest of the global community.

NOW, is the time for nations to take inventory of the 'best strategy' to consent to in all venues, including the extreme and present dangers of a warming planet.

NOW, is the time to 'summit' and create 'that world' of perfect balance.

NOW, is when the USA's people have offered up their favorite son ready to make agreements and sign treaties. Let us not waste what the citizens of the USA have started.



China shows recovery signs, US job loss slows
(Agencies)Updated: 2009-02-05 08:11

BEIJING/LONDON -- Improved manufacturing data from China on Wednesday suggested its downturn may be bottoming out and US employment figures were not quite as bad as forecast, but crisis-hit Russia's sovereign debt rating was cut.
US data showed another steep drop in private sector employment but the rate of job losses slowed in January for the first time since September last year. ADP Employer Services said private employers cut 522,000 jobs in January -- slightly fewer than forecast -- after a revised 659,000 jobs were lost in December.
This marked the first slowdown for four months but analysts were cautious before wider US payrolls data on Friday. "I wouldn't put too much meaning into this report. Overall, aside from the the job losses, consumption all over the world is down. That's troubling," said Win Thin, senior currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman in New York...

Russia to control Eurasec anti-crisis fund - Medvedev

$10 billion. If President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin can convince their allies, including Iran, to stop nuclear proliferation, the USA should entertain the 'idea' of economic enhancements between what will then be a strong alliance for PEACE.

I would imagine that such a Peace Directive would also help bring about the nuclear disarmament of Pakistan and India as well.

Russia, Allies Offer to Assist U.S. in Afghanistan (Update2) (click here)
By Lucian Kim and Ken Fireman
Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Russia and four former Soviet republics offered to help the U.S. campaign in Afghanistan even as one, Kyrgyzstan, moved forward on a decision to cut off American access to an air base used for war supplies.
Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev said the five countries, including the Central Asian nations of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, are ready for “full-fledged and comprehensive cooperation” with NATO forces in the region. He spoke on state broadcaster Vesti-24 today.
At the same time, Kyrgyz Security Council Secretary Adukhan Madumarov said on the same channel that the U.S. air base at the Manas airport near Bishkek must cease operations within 180 days. The base would be crucial to President
Barack Obama’s plans for a buildup of troops to defeat the Taliban in Afghanistan.
The Kyrgyz Parliament will likely vote Feb. 6 on legislation formally renouncing the agreement allowing U.S. operations at the base, the Interfax news agency reported from Bishkek....


Russian arms exports to China may drop significantly (click here)
18:14
04/ 02/ 2009
MOSCOW, February 4 (RIA Novosti) - Russian arms sales to China could shrink from 40% to 10%, the head of a state-controlled arms exporter said on Wednesday.
In the past several decades Russia has been selling Su-27 and Su-30 fighters, Varshavyanka-class diesel submarines, and air-defense systems to China, among other types of weapons and equipment.
Rosoboronexport's general director Anatoly Isaikin did not say exactly when the Chinese share was expected to drop, stressing, however, that Russia was unfazed by the prospect.
"After all, sales volumes [across the world] are still high," he said in an interview with Nezavisimaya Gazeta.
He said Russia's cooperation with Beijing "is reaching a fundamentally new level - the development of dual-purpose products with high-tech components."
Isaikin said Russia had signed the first military contract this year for the delivery of more than 100 engines for the Chinese J-10 fighter.
He added that China would continue to buy military transport aircraft, fuel tankers, and aircraft engines from Russia, and was also interested in air-defense system and naval systems.




Eurasian Economic Community (click here)


Russian aid to Kyrgyzstan not linked to U.S. airbase closure (click here)
20:31
04/ 02/ 2009
MOSCOW, February 4 (RIA Novosti) - Russian financial assistance to Kyrgyzstan is not linked to the Central Asian country's decision to close a U.S. military base, a deputy Russian foreign minister said Wednesday.
(Video)
"We do not think these two events are connected," Grigory Karasin told journalists, adding that the decision to close the Manas base had been made independently by the Kyrgyz government.
"Russia and Kyrgyzstan are very close countries cooperating in many spheres. We were able to provide aid which could possibly help Kyrgyzstan get through a critical economic and social phase," he said, adding that the loan was the result of "many months of work by our ministries."
Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev said in Moscow on Tuesday he would demand the closure of the airbase, used to support antiterrorism operations in neighboring Afghanistan, citing Washington's refusal to discuss higher rental payments and its reluctance to address the 2006 killing by a U.S. serviceman of a local....



CSTO's rapid-reaction force will be equal of NATO's - Medvedev (click here)
20:49
04/ 02/ 2009
MOSCOW, February 4 (RIA Novosti) - The collective rapid-reaction force to be created by a post-Soviet regional security bloc will be just as good as comparable NATO forces, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday.
The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) agreed on Wednesday at a summit in Moscow to set up the new force, to be based in Russia.
Medvedev said the force, to be comprised of a "sufficient" number of units, would be "well trained and well equipped."
"Russia is ready to contribute a division and a brigade," he said. "This gives you an idea of the scale."
The Russian president also said the CSTO was open for cooperation with the United States in the fight against terrorism in Central Asia....

Gitmo hearing still on docket, despite Obama order


...Susan Crawford, a Bush appointee who oversees the tribunal system, has not withdrawn charges against Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, the alleged mastermind of the USS Cole bombing, and Monday's hearing remains on the schedule, the Pentagon confirmed Wednesday....

The former administration of the USA won't be brought to trial by the Obama Administration. An action like that would have to include Congress as well. But, the 'real' trials for such an action would come through the international courts and I am confident there are those, including Americans, that are seeking the venue for justice in what is the longest reign of an oppressive government in the USA.

The Obama White House is going to have to insist on Gates 'getting tough' with Gitmo. Some bad habits are hard to break. I really don't see why an Executive Order was ignored. It looks like treason to me. It isn't as though President Obama opened the gates of Gitmo and turned them loose on the country again.

February 4th, 2009 1:21 am

Some call for Bush administration trials (click here)
Want ex-leader accountable on Iraq war

...Though the new president probably didn't notice them, the protesters holding the "ARREST BUSH" placards illustrated a thorny problem he will have to confront, perhaps sooner rather than later.
While most viewed Obama's inauguration as a fresh start for the country, many on the political left - among some of Obama's most ardent supporters - want to hold George W. Bush accountable for what they believe were illegal activities in office, including misleading Congress on the Iraq war, spying on Americans, and permitting coercive interrogations that critics consider to have been torture....

Every year Saudi Arabia comes out with a list of 'The Most Wanted Terrorists.' The list in past years had usually about 30 people. The Saudis are also very successful in capturing all those listed on "The Most Wanted Terrorist" List as well.

This year there are 11 former Gitmo detainees that have reappeared as problems for Saudi Arabia.

11 former Gitmo inmates on Saudi wanted list (click here)
By PAUL SCHEMM – 11 hours ago
CAIRO (AP) — The Saudi government acknowledged Wednesday that 11 men on the country's most wanted list are former Guantanamo prisoners who went through rehabilitation, raising doubts about a program intended to counter extremist religious ideology.
President Barack Obama signed an executive order closing down the prison in Cuba on Jan. 22 — his second day in office — leaving nations scrambling over what to do with a potential flood of released detainees.
Some 133 of Guantanamo's over 700 inmates were Saudi, according to Interior Ministry spokesman Gen. Mansour al-Turki, and 117 have returned to Saudi Arabia and been through rehabilitation programs.
"Besides the 11 people (on the list) who came from Guantanamo, there are still 106 people who have gone through this rehabilitation program and are doing okay," he told The Associated Press.
With a majority of the 9/11 hijackers from Saudi Arabia and hundreds of youths streaming into Iraq to join the insurgents, there has been a concerted government effort to counter with deprogramming sessions involving clerics, psychologists and sociologists....


Deviants disappearing from Kingdom: Experts (click here)

Arab News
MAKKAH: Terror experts in the Kingdom are claiming that terror-suspects have fled Saudi Arabia as they no longer find it congenial for the growth of extremist ideologies.
“The deviant ideology is disappearing from the country and its advocates have no choice but to leave the country as indicated by the details recently published by the Ministry of Interior,” Maj. Gen. Yahya Al-Zayedi, a Saudi security expert, told Al-Madinah newspaper.
“Security operations in the Kingdom have proved to be a total success in checking the spread of extremist activities and driving them out of their hiding places.
The operations have also foiled their conspiracies against the country, society and religion, and unveiled the falseness of their claims. This is the circumstance under which militants figuring in the list ran away from the Kingdom,” Al-Zayedi said....

Some of the state's legislative branches are attempting to exert 'State's Rights' over federal military instillations. They don't have any right to impede the military. What this amounts to is a way of 'making a statement.' I suppose they could try to challenge the US DOD in the Supreme Court, but, that is like the tail wagging the dog, the States just don't have jurisdiction over the operation of the military.

Don’t bring Gitmo prisoners to Georgia, congressman says (click here)
U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey says legislation will keep 240 Guantanamo detainees out of state
By
BOB KEEFE
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Not that Georgia was ever in line to become the next Gitmo, but just in case, U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey has introduced legislation he says will keep that from happening.
Gingrey (R-Marietta) got the backing of the rest of Georgia’s Republican House members for his “No GITMO in Georgia Act” that he says will ensure current detainees at the Guantanamo Bay detention center are not relocated to the Peach State when the Cuban facility closes....

Gitmo resolution advances in KS House (click here)
TOPEKA House members give first-round approval to a resolution against bringing detainees from Guantanamo Bay to Kansas.
The resolution states the Legislature's opposition to bringing any of the some 240 suspected terrorist detainees now held on the base in Cuba to Kansas.
Fort Leavenworth is among three military sites in the United States under consideration by the Pentagon.
President Barack Obama has signed an executive order calling for the closure of the Guantanamo prison within a year.
Today's brief debate sends the measure to final action.
The Senate approved the measure on Monday, with 38 of the 40 members sponsoring the resolution.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has written Defense Secretary Robert Gates stating her opposition to moving detainees to Kansas.

Where is The Middle Class in all this Joe Biden ? This is OUR Stimulus and OUR Tax Base. No one else's.

Biden to Lead Task Force on Issues of the Middle Class
Group's Goal: Raise Standard of Living For Working Families

By Anne E. Kornblut and Anthony Faiola

Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, January 31, 2009; Page
During his first major White House event since taking office, Vice President Biden on Friday announced that he will be leading a task force on issues affecting the middle class....


President Obama introduces Vice President Biden, who delivered remarks on the Middle Class Working Families Task Force during a signing ceremony in the East Room.

“Buy American” needs to stay in the Stimulus Legislation. We are NOT to 'sell out' the country to outsourcing !

Geithner is diverting the Stimulus to the priorities of others, rather than the priorities of the American people.

I'd like to know why Senator Chris Dodd isn't heading up Commerce?

The article at the title to the article is from The Straits Times, a Singpore paper. China. You know the country, the one that currently OWNS the USA.

...To supporters, including labour unions that helped the Democrats retake the White House last year, a 'Buy American' clause is just common sense at a time of economic crisis and massive layoffs....


FTSE 100 (above - Europe)

Hong Kong stocks rise on China manufacturing data (click here)
The Associated Press
Published: February 4, 2009

HONG KONG: Hong Kong's key stock index rose more than 2 percent Wednesday on better-than-expected news about China's manufacturing industry.
The blue-chip Hang Seng Index added 287, or 2.3 percent, to 13,063.89.
Investors were heartened by a report pointing to possible recovery in Chinese manufacturing. While manufacturing shrank again in January, the contraction was less severe than in recent months and seen by some as a sign China's stimulus measures might be taking hold.
"The results suggest that government measures to revive lending and infrastructure spending as well as to boost consumption are beginning to work," Dariusz Kowalczyk, chief investment strategist of SJS Markets, wrote in a report Wednesday.
Shares in commodity producers and shippers led the way on hope of greater demand for resources in China....


The DOW


If Europe and Asia want a stimulus package they can do it themselves. Does anyone actually believe there is a reason to 'share?'

NO !

This stimulus is NOT a global stimulus, it is a stimulus designed to return jobs to the American people and the USA TAX BASE.

I do believe Mr. Geithner, who seems to think he can railroad over top of American workers by capping Executive pay, wants to hand over OUR country's stimulus to every other country in the world.

Hell NO !

The last $700 billion BAILOUT 'got lost in the shuffle' somewhere between the shores of the USA and that of Europe and Asia. The Stimulus is NOT going to do the same thing. I am a bit outraged by the 'siding' with more OUT SOURCING by Mr. Geithner, a 'Goldman Sachs' Homeboy ! He needs to resign and PAY HIS TAXES !

This is a President to be proud of. This bill will lighten the load of the states and the Governors can start to prioritize a little differently.


US President Barack Obama, surrounded by members of Congress and US Vice President Joe Biden (3rd R)

The 2008 Presidential Election was an easy win for our President. North Dakota's three electoral votes went to McCain. I noted, however, that when it comes in caring for North Dakota's children, the newspapers there tell it like it is with enthusiasm. President Obama is making friends in North Dakota. Do I detect a Red State turning Blue?

(click title to article - thank you)

With BC-Children's Health, moving nationally BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) Members of North Dakota's congressional delegation say a bill extending health coverage to 4 million uninsured children nationwide will ensure that nearly 5,000 North Dakota children will have access to coverage.

President Barack Obama signed the bill Wednesday. It calls for spending an additional $32.8 billion on the State Children's Health Insurance Program, known as SCHIP. It currently enrolls an estimated 7 million children.

North Dakota Congressman Earl Pomeroy and Senator Byron Dorgan say the bill will ensure that about 3,500 North Dakota children enrolled in the Healthy Steps program will continue to have coverage. And another 1,300 children are now expected to be covered.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 02-04-09 1833CST





Why should we pay for thier golden parachutes? What did they ever do for us?

I am proud of the President. He did well. This is going to 'move' the executives that are holding on to their positions from those jobs. It will make room for new and younger executives that are anxious to turn the corner on corporate failure. They'll come into the job, hone the companies they lead and begin 'again' to earn higher salaries and bonuses.

Nice. It is about time the young people in this country has a chance to lead their own economy. Very nice. I can't wait.


President Barack Obama has placed an annual $500,000 (£345,000) pay limit on bank executives whose institutions require further rescue funds from the US government. (click title to entry - thank you)