Marc Brands Liberty -- Cartoon -- Swim Vets For Truth

Voting Machines in Greece

Our Economy has been in a "Credit Bubble"

Credit Bubble Has Helped Create the Overleveraged American Consumer

The unappreciated dilemma is that the typical American has already over-consumed beyond any reasonable standard. Not only has demand been boosted by strong wealth effects, the boom has been much the result of stretching credit use to an extreme. That means household debt is now at an all-time record high, having increased from 68% of personal disposable income to 95% over the last fifteen years. And with confidence that prosperity is here to stay, the US savings rate stands at a record low level. It is little wonder our domestic economy has been so strong; 'It's been a great party', fueled by an enormous credit binge.

Just look around. Traditionally the bulk of mortgage loans required a 20% down-payment. Now, a whole industry has mushroomed that makes its living lending almost exclusively to home buyers offering little, if any, down-payment and poor credit is not an issue. In fact, today 40% of borrowers require some type of mortgage insurance to qualify for a loan. But poor credit and lack of a down payment are not a problem for today's creative financial infrastructure that through the alchemy of modern finance, pools these mortgages together and sells them to buyers hungry for yield. Or that is how it has worked until quite recently. Now, with de-leveraging and risk aversion, the market has disappeared for risky mortgage securities.

The Iraq Catch 22

...there is unrest because we wont leave, so we must fight to restore security, witch causes more unrest because we are still there, so we must fight harder to restore security, witch ...

Doesn't it sound perfect....

If your goal is to stay in the region forever, and keep on milking Defense Industry pork forever ?

Daily Kos || IRAN THREATENS PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE

Touche, damn it

From NYT:

DOHA (AFP) - Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani warned that Iran might launch a preemptive strike against US forces in the region to prevent an attack on its nuclear facilities.

"We will not sit (with arms folded) to wait for what others will do to us. Some military commanders in Iran are convinced that preventive operations which the Americans talk about are not their monopoly," Shamkhani told Al-Jazeera TV when asked if Iran would respond to an American attack on its nuclear facilities.

"America is not the only one present in the region. We are also present, from Khost to Kandahar in Afghanistan; we are present in the Gulf and we can be present in Iraq..."