Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Six Articles Showing The "Recession" Isn't Ending

  • One Sixth of All Construction Loans in Trouble (MISH)
  • FDIC Proposes Six-Month Extension for Debt Guarantees (Bloomberg)
  • Record drop in consumer credit outstanding in July (Wells Fargo)
  • Food Stamps Reach 33.8 Million in April, 5th Consecutive Monthly Record (MISH)
  • The Fed Can't Monitor 'Systemic Risk' (WSJ)
  • Greenspan, "Market Crisis Will Happen Again" (MISH)
Chart of Job Losses in Post WWII Recessions (MISH)

Excerpt from: Greenspan, "Market Crisis Will Happen Again" (MISH)
However despite his belief in a brighter future, the former Fed chief did warn that the path to recovery should steer clear of protectionism as applying strict regulations could hamper recent developments that have opened up global trade.
"The most recent endeavour to re-regulate is a reaction to the crisis. The extraordinary impact of these global markets is making a lot of financial people feeling they have lost control.
"The problem is you cannot have free global trade with highly restrictive, regulated domestic markets."
Ding Ding Ding we have a winner. Greenspan is correct "you cannot have free global trade with highly restrictive, regulated domestic markets."

And what bigger regulation is there than the Fed itself? The answer is "none". The Fed micro-mismanaged this crisis by its manipulative interest rate policies. Yet for all his faults, and Greenspan has many, the one thing he has consistently gotten correct is his stance in support of free trade.

Indeed, one of the biggest risks now to the global economy is a huge round of protectionism. Unfortunately, it's probably only a matter of time before Congress overreacts. That's human nature, Congressional style.
Blamed by some for not doing more to prevent the crisis, Mr Greenspan denied any responsibility for the problems gripping the global economy. "It's human nature, unless somebody can find a way to change human nature, we will have more crises and none of them will look like this because no two crises have anything in common, except human nature."
Human nature is is what allows people like Greenspan to never see their own role in the mess they created. It's human nature to blame someone else. The way to get Greenspan and Bernanke out of the way so that their "human nature" does not add to the problems is to abolish the Fed.

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