Hughesair (Inflection Point)

Retired physician and air taxi operator, science writer and part time assistant professor, these editorials cover a wide range of topics. Mostly non political, mostly true, I write more from a lifetime of experience and from research, more science than convention. Subjects cover medicine, Alaska aviation, economics, technology and an occasional book review. Globalization or Democracy documents the historical roots of Oligarchy, the road to colonialism and tyranny

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Location: Homer, Alaska, United States

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Wednesday, September 28, 2011

The Twist

It should come as no surprise. The monthly trade deficit in excess of 10 billion for as long as I can remember drained the endless wealth of America's middle class, "going on empty." OK, you say that money comes back as investment into our economy and that is partly true. You say, free global trade will benefit us all, and that too would be partly true.

However. The money that came back, bought treasury bonds over financing our unrestrained National debt and our banks creative investment instruments designed to over leverage foreign investment. And, secondly, We did not engage in free trade; it was one sided. The entire world was living high on our unbalanced trade, some more than others.

Furthermore we allowed American industry to outsource jobs and manufacturing to lower foreign labor cost, thus placing an even greater drain on American worker wealth. It is no surprise that the wealth that did return to our economy profited only the big business and banking class that did so contribute to our consumer's empty tank.

Yea the housing crisis was the final nail in the coffin, but it too was a ponzi scheme just like the previous  real estate fiasco's. ie. the HUD banking crisis, the Savings and Loan crisis and now the Sub-Prime crisis. Call it a scheme "Too big to prosecute," along with, "banks too big to fail." We have, over two generations, removed all of the safe-guards put in place after the last depression in the  name of privatization and deregulation.

And then there is the "Military-Industrial Complex" that Eisenhower warned us about. Is it running the show or what?

The world economy, for too long, has depended on us. They will not emerge from their financial problems until we get our own house in order, or tragically cease to matter.

The way out of this mess is forward, but we cannot go forward with any significant growth until we regulate and control mortgage banking, big banks, outsourcing of jobs and the trade imbalance. We can't do any as long as we piss it away on policing the world for the benefit of multinational oil cartels, never mind the out of control local cartels and monopolies supported by our good friends on the hill.

The founding fathers argued over how to conduct the vote: free men only, educated men only, property owners only etc. Our government has it's own twist -- money only! Ha, it's free speech. Now only the banking class has money. I thought this was suppose to be a classless society. We have a plutocracy instead.

The twist never was a very good dance, and neither is the dance they are doing in Congress. I don't think any of them have the balls to stop campaigning for their own self interest and start fixing things right.

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