Inaugural Speech

Barry, My Liege :

We wish you and yours Hog Manay, a very Happy New Year.

We recognize that it is a promising and simultaneously challenging time for you and for the United States of America and our Economic National Security.

My Liege, as you consider your Inaugural Speech for your second term as well as the verdict of history on your Presidency, we beseech you humbly for a few simple things.

We pray you, My Liege, restore Constitutional processes to your killing programs so that neither you nor your successors can take a life on your sole decision. Then and only then will we be able to consider you as a President of the United States of America instead of the Royal position you have assumed.

Your renditions continue [http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/renditions-continue-under-obama-despite-due-process-concerns/2013/01/01/4e593aa0-5102-11e2-984e-f1de82a7c98a_story.html] and your assault on the Fourth Amendment cooperates with Congress [http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/editorials/article/Unwarranted-intrusions-on-civil-liberties-4160170.php].

We beseech you to speak the truth about our situation. We know that you cannot right all the wrongs we face, but perhaps by speaking the truth you can establish a direction and a vision for our future that takes us toward our shared ideals.

We pray you address the income and wealth imbalances which afflict us today. They are not sustainable and will destroy our Noble Experiment unless corrected in the near future.

Let us be clear, My Liege, simply raising the marginal tax rate to 39.6% on those who make obscene incomes will not correct the problem. Truly correcting these inequities requires radical restructuring. My Liege, we will be happy if you acknowledge that.

While I can list a number of specific actions which will 'turn the ship around', in your phrase, I have written that list in this space on earlier occasions. See this for details : Saturday, September 22, 2012, Recovery and Restoration of the USA, 2013

We wish you be ambitious, My Liege. We pray you choose Franklin D. Roosevelt and Theodore Roosevelt as your models.

You will disappoint us severely if you are cautious and ignorant of our true issues, My Liege.

My Liege, we pray you speak to history and act for history in your coming term, for that is what we require as a country.

Your faithful servant,

The Lucky English

Barry, My Liege :

If the Scots were miserable in the latter part of the 18th Century, the English must have been better off.

They were, according to Wingfield-Stratford :


"...But when the war was over and the inflated prosperity of the farmer collapsed like a pricked bubble, though [war measures] may have provided the best temporary expedient for keeping land under the plough, easing the burden on the farmers and providing some sort of employment for the labourers, the plight of the countryside was catastrophe. The ratepayers, many of whom were themselves on the verge of destitution and who were , besides, crushed to the earth by enormous taxation, could not afford to be generous. Relief and wages combined were forced down to the bare pittance necessary to keep body and soul together, and this level was steadily depressed until the countryside of England, which had been not so long ago famed as the land of roast beef and plum pudding in scornful contrast with that of the 'skinny Frenchmen', was peopled by gaunt and half-starved wretches shirking about on Sundays - as Corbett puts it - "in ragged smock frocks with unshaven faces, with a shirt not washed for a month and with their toes peeping out of their shoes," droves of slaves, under arbitrary tyranny of their parish overseer, often harnessed, men and women together, to the parish cart. And yet the squires and big landowners were basking in the noontide of prosperity, trapping and transporting men to preserve pheasants, and spending long days on horseback in the pursuit of vermin."

This is what the Republicans will have for us, My Liege. It is the legacy of unfettered Free Market economics.

We pray you fight for us.

Your faithful servant.

Living With Classic Economic Policies

Barry, My Liege :

Here follows a somewhat personalized view of the effects of Classical Economic policies like those proposed by the Republican Party on real people including some of my ancestral family :

From THE HISTORY OF BRITISH CIVILIZATION, Esme Wingfield-Stratford, D Sc., M.A., Ex-Fellow of King's College, Cambridge, Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., London First Edition 1928, Second Edition, 1930, Reprinted 1932, 1933, 1938, 1942, 1945 and 1948, pp 886-887

LIFE IN THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS in the late 18th and early 19TH century.

'We can only glance, in passing, at the meanest and most shameful of all the rural oppressions of this time, the sense of which was not the English countryside, but the Highlands of Scotland. Under the influence of the Romantic movement, and particularly of Sir Walter Scott, there was much sentiment about clan loyalty, Bonnie Prince Charlie, and so forth. The kilt and tartan, which were now again legalized became symbolic of

"Old, unhappy, far-off things
And battles long ago."

But the chieftains, whose functions as military leaders of the tribe had lapsed since the strong hand of Butcher Cumberland had brought the King's peace into their remotest fastness, were by no means sentimental where the main chance was concerned. Poor soil and primitive methods of cultivation might maintain a hardy population in contentment, but as a business proposition it would pay to get rid of the clansmen and turn the whole land into pasturage for sheep and cattle - only in the fullness of the Victorian era did the claims of pleasure demand the replacement of men by deer. Even before the "forty-five", evictions had started in the Isle of Skye, but it was towards the end of the eighteenth century and at the beginning of the nineteenth that practice became common of the chieftain turning on his tenants and driving them out of their homes, with every circumstance of brutality to shift for themselves or perish miserably. The first Duke of Sutherland, in the second decade of the century, gained an infamous pre-eminence by the wholesale eviction of his hapless people, who were forced out when their crops were standing, whose roofs, furniture, and even stock were burnt, some of whom were generously offered allotments on the barren sea-shore, without boats or the money to buy them - nay, a notice was posted on a church door threatening with eviction anyone giving shelter to those already evicted. The black list of robber and traitor chieftains then and subsequently includes such names as Campbell, Macdonald, Fraser, Cameron of Lochiel, Hamilton, Gordon, and many another whose tartan figures proudly at Highland gatherings to-day, as if the colours of Judas were an honorable distinction.'

Your faithful servant,

Merry Christmas, My Liege

Our very best wishes of the Season to Sasha, Malia, Michelle and you, My Liege.

It is a time to take a respite from the cares of our Nation and enjoy family time.

Those cares will resurface soon enough.

Perhaps the time and distance can give a perspective on your second term.

We here in the real world wish that you will try for greatness, My Liege.

Here is a quote from Deepak Chopra writing about the movie and the man Lincoln during the Civil War:

"The heel of history is hard on their necks. Their passions rise and fall with every turn of the war. Lincoln was different. He understood that he was the still point at the center, the one mind whose clarity and judgment must save the day - or it wouldn't be saved."

[http://www.deepakchopra.com/blog/view/977/is_obama_a_man_of_destiny?]

We pray you be that 'still point at the center' and save our Nation from its dangers.

For we have no place else to turn and you give us hope that your are up to the task.

Make no mistake, it is a very big task.

Know this, the bolder you move the more will we be with you.

Do not be small, My Liege. It is time to be big.

Your faithful servant,

NRA - RAT - Real American Terrorists 9

Barry, My Liege :

The National Rifle Association, NRA, and its Vice President and CEO Wayne LaPierre earn their designations as RATs [Real American Terrorists] by their profiting from the death of innocent Americans.

It is an organization in which its sponsors make money from the deaths of Americans.

Here is a link to some of their corporate sponsors : http://www.friendsofnra.org/corporate-sponsors.aspx

My Liege, I live in an American city where I hear automatic weapon fire almost every night, sometimes close and sometimes far away. Last week in my city two 15 year old girls were shot to death on the street in the early morning hours by automatic weapon fire to their faces and then their backs as they crawled away to die.

Occasionally I see the cars of the shooters fleeing a recent murder. It is usually at least two cars. I don't know if they are running away from the police or the associates of the people they shot. They are most likely running away from their victim's associates since my city is short of police by about 40%.

Into this situation, Mr. LaPierre and his backers sell military grade weapons with occasionally zero restrictions or background checks if the weapons are bought at 'gun shows'.

The NRA is funded by gun makers. It's sole purpose is to reduce restrictions on weapon sales.

Their rhetoric about the Constitution and hunting is simply part of a shell game. Their is no Constitutional right to military style weapons in a private home and legitimate hunters do not need .50 caliber machine guns to kill deer.

This is madness.

My Liege, I agree with you that it is time to stop it.

Some Americans may wish to express their anguish about gun violence in their community.

Write to Mr. LaPierre at this address

National Rifle Association of America
11250 Waples Mill Road
Fairfax, VA 22030
800-672-3888

Your faithful servant,

SAY NO! To China Buying US Battery Secrets

Barry, My Liege :

Here is a case that may justify direct government intervention into the bankruptcy process to prevent harm to the Military National Security of the United States.

Battery maker A123 is being sought by Chinese auto company Wangxian.

Details are here : http://seekingalpha.com/article/1066601-a123-bankruptcy-the-national-security-question

But some of the company's lithium ion battery technology was developed with government funds. And, that technology may give Chinese military a leg up on US weapons.

My Liege, there is more here than market forces.

Tell Little Timmy to tread carefully on the deal in his role at the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.

Or, his and our grandchildren may face Chinese weapons developed with battery technology developed under A123 DOD contracts.

We pray you are VERY careful, My Liege.

Your faithful servant,

MITCH MCCONNELL - G-RAT : Government Real American Terrorist 8

Barry, My Liege :


Mitch McConnell earns his terrorist designation through his adherence to extremely partisan politics regardless of any effects on the Economic National Security of the United States of America.

His was the voice that said - "My number one priority is making sure President Obama’s a one-term president," as quoted by President Obama, interview on CBS’ “60 Minutes,” recorded on Sept. 12, 2012, and aired on Sept. 23. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/when-did-mcconnell-say-he-wanted-to-make-obama-a-one-term-president/2012/09/24/79fd5cd8-0696-11e2-afff-d6c7f20a83bf_blog.html]

He was well positioned to work on that goal as Senate Minority Leader who assumed office January 3, 2007. Using a variety of legislative tricks he was able to prevent many Presidential initiatives from becoming law. Many of these initiatives were non-partisan and necessary to the normal functioning of government. His stoppage of these actions had led most American voters to distrust the government's ability to accomplish any task.

His most widely known accomplishment was to prevent a settlement of the Debt Ceiling issue in 2011. For the first time in our history, the Full Faith and Credit of the United States of America was questioned on financial markets.

Would it not for his personal financial position, it might be said that his actions were simply ideology driven politics. He has stated that he does not want the President to fail, but that so long as Barack Obama is President, the Republicans will be unable to achieve their goals. This is a fine distinction and hard to reconcile with his personal circumstances.

Specifically, his personal worth has skyrocketed from approximately $7 million in 2007 to approximately $ 25 million in 2010. [http://www.opensecrets.org/pfds/CIDsummary.php?CID=N00003389&year=2010]

My Liege, this is the message for Mr. McConnell : 'If you damage the Economic National Security of the United States and benefit financially from that damage, then you are a TERRORIST and a traitor.'

We pray you are able to defeat Mr. McConnell in all his activities.

Your faithful servant,

Fall Country Studies Published

Barry, My Liege :

The McKeever Institute of Economic Policy Analysis [MIEPA] is pleased to announce the publication on its website [www.mkeever.com] of detailed studies of the economic policies of Hong Kong, India, Nicaragua, Philippines, and Vietnam.

One country which has not been previously analyzed by Specialists is submitted : Nicaragua is analyzed by Specialist Jose Arebalo; the analysis may be read at http://www.mkeever.com/nicaragua.html

Hong Kong is analyzed by Specialist Sin Ying Wong ; the analysis may be read at : http://www.mkeever.com/hongkong.html

India is analyzed by Specialists Ashwini Shridhar and Intern Specialist Tasha Agarwal ; the analyses may be read at http://www.mkeever.com/hongkong.html

Philippines is analyzed by Specialist Kara Chua Olegario ; the analysis may be read at http://www.mkeever.com/philippines.html

Vietnam is analyzed critically by Specialist Quy Nguyen Sr. ; the analysis may be read at http://www.mkeever.com/vietnam.html

Your faithful servant,

RUPERT MURDOCH – RAT - Real American Terrorist 7

Barry, My Liege :


Rupert Murdoch has earned his designation as a RAT [Real American Terrorist] through his systematic degradation of the media he controls into political propaganda, police and public official corruption, flouting of anti-monopoly laws, disregard for the personal harm he causes private individuals and for many additional practices.

Freedom of the press is a cornerstone of our democracy as pointed out by Lord Justice Leveson in his inquiry into Rupert Murdoch's News of the World scandal in England :

'The press, operating properly and in the public interest is one of the true safeguards of our democracy. As Thomas Jefferson put it: “Where the press is free and every man able to read, all is safe.” '

The full executive summary of the report is available here : http://www.official-documents.gov.uk/document/hc1213/hc07/0779/0779.pdf

Rupert Murdoch has clearly abused his position as owner of multiple media outlets in order to increase his profits; he has done so while harming each country in which he operates.

He harms the host country in two primary methods. First, all his media outlets provide a consistent bias toward a questionable ideology of conservative thought.

He has converted famous newspapers such as the Wall Street Journal in the United States and The Times in England into biased screeds from their formerly respected position as objective journals.

Second, he abuses the freedom of the press to publish sensational stories which often damage the lives of private citizens who happened by chance to be affected by a story. Here is how Lord Leveson puts it :

'For many years, there have been complaints that certain parts of the press ride roughshod over others, both individuals and the public at large, without any justifiable public interest...there has been a recklessness in prioritising sensational stories, almost irrespective of the harm that the stories may cause and the rights of those who would be affected (perhaps in a way that can never be remedied), all the while heedless of the public interest.'

This space takes note of Mr. Murdoch's recent loss of his mother and extends its sympathies. However, that does not diminish the desire for him to alter his behavior.

Your handwritten letter may be able to convey your experiences of the harm he has created.

Mr. Murdoch can be reached here :

Rupert Murdoch
Chairman and Chief Executive
News Corporation
1211 Avenue of Americas
8th Floor
NY, NY 10036


The main telephone number for News Corp is 212-852-7000, and they should be able to put you through to Mr. Murdoch's office.


Your faithful servant,

ERIC HOLDER - G-RAT Real American Terrorist - 6

Barry, My Liege :

Your Attorney General has earned his G-RAT [Government Real American Terrorist] designation by his failure to prosecute the perpetrators of three direct attacks on the Economic National Security of the United States of America.

Since his Office of Attorney General of the United States is at the pinnacle of our governmental structure, his office or person is not required to benefit personally from his actions to earn that designation.

It is sufficient that the actions of his office strike at the heart of the Constitution and our Economic National Security.

My Liege, it can be said that Mr. Holder as your employee simply carries out your policies. If that is true, then you, My Liege, should own this designation as well.

First, Federal Prosecutions of financial fraud have fallen to a 20 year low on his watch.

This failure harms our Economic National Security because criminal actions by some organizations and individuals in the financial sector caused our current Recession. Without effective prosecutions of the organizations and individuals, they are likely to create additional recessions.

An article by Alexander Eichler provides details here : http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/15/financial-fraud-prosecution_n_1095933.html

Second, many monopolies and oligopolies continue to exist in the United States. Such organizations are illegal under various statutes because their existence harms our Economic National Security.

Monopolies harm our Security because they take exorbitant profits by charging higher prices than would competitors in a competitive industry. This taking creates accumulations of wealth with no social benefit and contributes to our economic inequality.

This space discussed some specific industries which appear to be monopolies or oligopolies under the terms of the statutes in a posting of May 2012.

Industries in which the four largest firms in terms of market share take more than 60% of total revenues are classed as monopolies or oligopolies and should be prosecuted.

Here is a list of industries in which companies earn these abnormal profits [the numbers after the name of the industry refer to the percentage share of total revenues for the industry earned by the four {4} largest firms] in 2002 :

Cigarettes 97.8

Guided Missiles 94.8

Aircraft 81.3

Breakfast cereal 80.4

Electric Lamps, Light Bulbs 75.4

Tires 77.6

Automobiles 67.6

Cookies, Crackers 69.3

Tortillas 57.4

Men's and Boy's Shirts 56.4

Dolls, Stuffed Toys 56.9

Fluid Milk 46.0

Ships, Boat Building 44.0

As a comparison, here are the industries and concentration ratios in 1997 :

Cigarettes 99

Cane Sugar Refining 99

Primary Copper 95

Glass Containers 91

Beer 90

Small-arms Ammunition 90

Electric Light Bulbs 89

Aircraft 85

Breakfast Cereals 83

Motor Vehicles 82

Household Refrigerators 82

Photo Equipment and Supplies 81

Turbines and Generators 78

Flat Glass 77

Fiber-Optic Cable 71

Men's Slacks 69

Tires 69

Motorcycles and Bicycles 68

Gypsum Products 68

Soap and Detergents 66

Lawn, Garden Equipment 64

Data is readily available to the Attorney General about these noncompetitive industries.

Lastly, 'union busting' activities harm our Economic National Security by preventing workers from enjoying better incomes and contributing to our economic inequalities.

While some of the prosecutions may fall to the NLRB, the Attorney General has a duty to investigate and prosecute egregious violations of Federal Law. He has not done so.

Here are some facts from a recent survey : 'In 91% of the union recognition petitions filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in the survey, a majority of workers indicated they wanted a union before the process began. In several cases, workers demonstrated more than 80% support. However, unions were victorious in only 31% of the campaign in which they filed a petition.'

Barry, my Liege, if Mr. Holder continues these policies, The United states will continue to decline.

We pray you for relief.

Your faithful servant,

CEO Crooks Wet Themselves

Barry, My Liege :

A group of CEO's has entered into the discussion about the fiscal cliff and Social Security.

They should be ashamed of themselves.

Here is the URL of an article describing their embarassment :

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/25/deficit-reduction-council-fiscal-cliff_n_2185585.html

While they have benefitted obscenely from government subsidies and handouts, they are asking that poor and middle class folks give up even more of our pensions and healthcare so they can continue increasing their fortunes.

Their gall positively astounds.

It is clear what they want from us, so let it be clear what we want from them.

This is what we want :

1. A death tax that confiscates all their wealth except for a set figure not to exceed $100 million ; that's enough for anybody.

2. An incomes policy that sets a maximum for all income received in any year of $ 2 million ; that's enough for anybody.

3. A law which forbids any non-natural person from contributing to political campaigns.

4. Criminal prosecutions and personal civil liability for any and all individual employees who violate security and banking laws.

5. Elimination of any government subsidies for any company which violates federal law.

6. Aggressive enforcement of laws which protect individuals from fraud, misrepresentation or criminal acts by all corporations.

7. Effective securities laws and enforcement.

8. A law which regulates the salaries of public corporation officers and directors.

9. Aggressive prosecution of companies found guilty of 'union busting' tactics.

10. Aggressive enforcement of anti-monopoly laws so that no single company or affiliated group of companies can control more than 25% of any market.

My Liege, that is a start.

What we really want is to take back our country from the crooks who have stolen it and who now have the gall to publicly threaten us with the loss of our futures.

We need your help here, My Liege, for we are weak and destitute.

Your faithful servant,

WAL MART - C-RAT Corporate Real American Terrorist 5

Barry, My Liege :

WAL MART earns its terrorist designation on Black Friday for the most prosaic of reasons : its business model minimizes costs by maximizing the external costs to the community and world at large in the name of higher Earnings Per Share.

In a study by the Center for Community Planning and Development at Hunter College and THE PUBLIC ADVOCATE FOR THE CITY OF NEW YORK, Bill de Blasio dated January 2010, WAL MART was found to be a poor corporate citizen and a danger to the Economic National Security of the United States of America. Here is the URL for the study : http://advocate.nyc.gov/files/Walmart.pdf

The study found that : " Wal-Mart’s formula for financial success includes: low-wage labor, limited health benefits, and leveraging of government subsidies.......Wal-Mart depresses area wages and labor benefits contributing to the current decline of good middle class jobs, pushes out more retail jobs than it creates, and results in more retail vacancies....Wal-Mart store openings kill three local jobs for every two they create by reducing retail employment by an average of 2.7 percent in every county they enter...Wal-Mart has thousands of associates who qualify for Medicaid and other publicly subsidized care, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill. For instance in Ohio Wal-Mart has more associates and associate dependents on Medicaid than any other employer, costing taxpayers $44.8 million in 2009...."

These alone are indictment enough but do not represent the entire negative impact on people.

Indicating their global spread, here's a quote from the WAL MART Watch 2005 Annual Report [available here - http://walmartwatch.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/2/files/pdf/2005-annual-report.pdf] :


"...In 2000, the National Labor Committee found workers at the Qin Shi Handbag Factory in Zhongshan, China earning 3 cents an hour working 14-hour shifts, 7 days a week, 30 days a month. Forty-six percent of the workers earned nothing at all and were actually in debt to the company. They were housed 16 to a room and subjected to physical and verbal abuse...."

The tragedy here is most of these practices are legal. The illegal practices are conducted through bribery.

My Liege, it is clear that continuing this business model will result in harm to the United States of America.

Please write a letter to one of the Board members, especially if you work at WAL MART as one of their 2.7 million associates - 1.4 million in the USA.

WAL MART BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Rob Walton
Chairman of the Board of Directors

Aida M. Alvarez
Former Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration

James W. Breyer
Partner of Accel Partners; Founder and CEO of Breyer Capital

M. Michele Burns
Executive Director and CEO of the Retirement Policy Center sponsored by Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc.

James I. Cash, Jr.
James E. Robison Emeritus Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School

Roger C. Corbett
Retired CEO and Group Managing Director of Woolworths Limited

Douglas N. Daft
Retired Chairman and CEO of the Coca-Cola Company

Mike Duke
President and CEO, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Timothy P. Flynn
Retired Chairman of KPMG International

Marissa A. Mayer
President and CEO of Yahoo!, Inc.

Gregory B. Penner
General Partner of Madrone Capital Partners

Steven S Reinemund
Dean of Business and Professor of Leadership and Strategy at Wake Forest University

H. Lee Scott, Jr.
Retired President and CEO of Walmart

Arne M. Sorenson
President and CEO of Marriott International, Inc.

Jim C. Walton
Chairman and CEO of Arvest Bank Group, Inc.

Christopher J. Williams
Chairman and CEO of The Williams Capital Group, L.P.

Linda S. Wolf
Former Chairman and CEO of Leo Burnett Worldwide, Inc. (“Leo Burnett”)

Write to each director at this address

Walmart Home Office

702 SW 8th Street
Bentonville, AR 72716-8611
479-273-4000

Your faithful servant,

POTUS - [G-RAT] Government Real American Terrorist 4

Barry, My Liege :

As POTUS, you carry a duty to protect the values and laws which make us unique among nations. Our Constitution enshrined those laws which protect us from a tyrannical government.

But, My Liege, you and your predecessors have systematically destroyed our protections against arbitrary actions by your government.

Your office has earned the 'Terrorist' designation by destroying those protections. Since your office is at the pinnacle of our governmental structure, your office or person is not required to benefit personally from your actions to earn that designation.

It is sufficient that the actions of your office strike at the heart of the Constitution.

Here is a quote from a posting in this space dated January 12, 2012 :

'Only through established processes and laws can Americans be free. Without those processes and laws, then we are simply subjects of a King and slaves to his whims. We are not citizens.

The Founding Fathers knew first-hand what it is like to live under a regime with no laws and no controls. They chose to die fighting rather than to live under that system.

And, Barry, your administration has completed the installation of an arbitrary and potentially despotic Kingship in the USA.

You have made us into slaves subject to your whims.

It does not matter at all that these actions were taken in the name of protecting us from terrorists.

The taking of these actions has given victory to the terrorists. And Barry, you did it.

The specific actions you have taken were described by George Washington University Professor Jonathan Turley in a recent article in the Washington post titled “10 reasons the U.S. is no longer the land of the free”.

Here is a list of the actions as taken from a piece by Boris Volkhonsky in the Voice of Russia; read it here: http://english.ruvr.ru/2012/01/19/64179378.html

" 1. Assassination of U.S. citizens – “President Obama has claimed, as President George W. Bush did before him, the right to order the killing of any citizen considered a terrorist or an abettor of terrorism.” He also notes that countries such as Nigeria, Iran and Syria have been routinely criticized by the U.S. for extrajudicial killings of enemies of the state.

2. Indefinite detention – under the National Defense Authorization Act, terrorism suspects are to be held by the military; the president also has the authority to indefinitely detain citizens accused of terrorism. Here the U.S. finds itself in the company of often-criticized Cambodia. Even no less criticized China has recently codified a more limited detention law for its citizens.

3. Arbitrary justice– the president now decides whether a person will receive a trial in the federal courts or in a military tribunal (the way it is done in China and Egypt).

4. Warrantless searches – the president may order warrantless surveillance, including a new capability to force companies and organizations to turn over information on citizens’ finances, communications and associations (similar laws exist in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan).

5. Secret evidence – the government routinely uses secret evidence to detain individuals and employs secret evidence in federal and military courts.

6. War crimes– in 2009, Obama administration said that it would not allow CIA employees to be investigated or prosecuted for such actions as waterboarding terrorism suspects which amounts to torture and crimes against humanity. Other countries that resist independent investigations of similar war crimes include Iran, Syria and China.

7. Secret court – the government has increased its use of the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and the administration has asserted the right to ignore congressional limits on such surveillance. Similar Pakistan surveillance under the unchecked powers of the military or intelligence services exists in Pakistan.

8. Immunity from judicial review – the Obama administration has successfully pushed for immunity for companies that assist in warrantless surveillance of citizens, blocking the ability of citizens to challenge the violation of privacy (similar practice is common for China).

9. Continual monitoring of citizens – the Obama administration has the right to monitor every move of targeted citizens without securing any court order or review. Similar massive surveillance systems exist in Saudi Arabia and Cuba.

10. Extraordinary renditions – the government now has the ability to transfer both citizens and noncitizens to another country under a system known as extraordinary rendition, which has been denounced as using other countries, such as Syria, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan, to torture suspects."

The laws which you have enacted give absolute life and death power to the President of the United States over any citizen for any reason.

While I might trust you, I surely do not trust a Newt Gingrich or a Rick Perry or a Mitt Romney with that power.

But, it is not about trust. It is about laws and freedom.

I am willing to die fighting to protect my freedom from the arbitrary power of you, Barry Obama.

I do not support a country where a private company can corrupt a government so that a war is fought to make that private company richer.

Under your laws, that can happen with no challenge. And, if I speak out, you can have me killed in order to protect those profits.

It is NOT acceptable and it IS worth fighting and dying to overthrow, just as we did in 1776.

Your subject, and not liking it.'

Idiot Bankers - Do NOT Rescue Them

Barry, My Liege :

Well, well, well.

Looks like our esteemed bankers have just lost the paper ownership records of EVERYTHING in the flood.

And, My Liege, they don't even know what is missing. We can be pretty sure it will be many billions of dollars.

There is one thing certain : They will ask taxpayers to make them whole.

We should NOT do that.

They are big boys. That's one reason they have capital - to cushion us from their mistakes.

Here is a cut and paste URL to the story :

http://dealbreaker.com/2012/11/hurricane-sandy-destroys-trillions-of-dollars-of-securities-but-thats-no-big-deal/


Perhaps it is time for bankers to grow up.

Your faithful servant,

Path to Greatness

Barry, My Liege :

The good news about your situation today is a clear path to greatness for you ; and, the even better news is the United States of America will be a better country if you walk that path.

You will achieve greatness by restoring the Economic National Security of the United States of America.

Make no mistake, the path is difficult to walk. It will test you to the utmost.

Restoring our security will require you to pass several laws through Congress ; and, that is where the difficulties lie.

The list of laws we need is enumerated in this space as published on 9.22.12 with the title 'Recovery and Restoration of the USA, 2013'.

Now, it happens that your party does not have a majority in the House of Representatives, which means that you will have to secure the votes of some Republican House members for every law you pass.

I cannot overstate the importance of your personal involvement in the process. You cannot outsource the campaign.

Only your personal, intimate involvement will succeed.

Nobody else, not even Nancy Pelosi or John Boehner, can get this done for you.

And, My Liege, you have between 6 and 12 months to accomplish all that you can accomplish - it will be too late after that.

Here is an amateur's suggestion about how to walk that path.

First, create a list of each law required to complete the path.

Then, for each law, find a number of Republican Representatives needed to pass the House.

Ideally, each such Representative will be from a closely fought election where the Democrat opponent is a strong contender.

Contact the three largest campaign contributors to the Republican's election campaign and determine that each is indifferent to the proposed law.

Then, you personally make an offer to each backer and to the Representative that in exchange for the vote on your proposal, the Democrat challenger will not receive Party financing for the next election.

Of course, the Republican House members will be different for each law you work on, but the process will be similar.

We cannot overstate the stakes for our country here, My Liege.

Succeed here and the country is saved.

Fail here and the great American experiment is dead.

We wish you Godspeed, My Liege.

Your faithful servant,

FOR SALE - Republican Respect

Barry, My Liege :

The election was great news for the country and for you. Congratulations on your victory.

But, the following message is for the leaders in the opposition Party, The Republican Party, but you can read it if you want.

To McConnel, Boehner, et al : your Republican Party embarrassed our country with its incompetent performance in the election.

To survive as a functioning country, we need two competent political parties so that policy proposals can be vetted thoroughly.

That cannot happen unless and until the Republican Party reforms its policies into a coherent platform.

Your current platform is a mash up of outdated ideas, false assumptions, bad arithmetic and economic policies which have been proven to be unworkable.

For example, one of your Party's primary policies is that lower taxes on high income individuals will result in more investment and job creation.

This idea is false.

The American electorate understands that your party's ideas are false or irrelevant.

No amount of pandering to social concerns like homophobia, misogyny or fear of immigration can overcome a core of ideas which is perceived as outdated.

The Republican Party faces the likelihood of irrelevance unless it updates its messages.

So far, no one has proposed a coherent set of policy ideas for the Republican Party.

And yet that is what your Party needs.

As a remedy, the author hereby proposes to create a coherent Republican Party platform of economic policies that will do all these things :

* Appeal to the Conservative base

* Attract ethnic minorities, women and young people into the party

* Revitalize the party as an institution

* Make our country stronger by energizing the political debate

* And, provide more election winners.

It is a win-win proposition. The Republican Party wins back its relevance and the country wins a respectable opposition.

While such a platform is a bargain at any price, I hereby offer to provide this for a medium six figure price.

Since my specialty is national economic policy analysis, I am the logical person for this task.

It will be the greatest bargain imaginable for the GOP.

And, since I have consistently provided a deep understanding of the Democratic policy base, I am able to provide its counter easily.

To see the Democratic economic policy base, scroll to this post : Recovery and Restoration of the United States, 9.22.12

Please contact me directly at : mckeever.mp@gmail.com

Best regards,

MONSANTO - C-RAT Corporate Real American Terrorist - 3

Barry, My Liege :

Monsanto is a Corporate Real American Terrorist [C-RAT] because of its long standing policy of making profits from products which cause cancer in animals and humans. Their history includes dioxin, Round Up and now GMO's, products which interefere with the genetic structure of our food.

It does so to collect profits for its shareholders at the expense of our health.

Monsanto's business model appears to be to maximize profits from cancer causing products while allowing the greater society to pay for the medical costs of its products.

As just one example of the harm done to animals consuming its genetically modified products, the Daily Mail reported on a French study of rats consuming GMO modified corn : "The animals on the GM diet suffered mammary tumors, as well as severe liver and kidney damage. The researchers said 50 percent of males and 70 percent of females died prematurely, compared with only 30 percent and 20 percent in the control group." [http://www.naturalnews.com/037249_GMO_study_cancer_tumors_organ_damage.html]

My Liege, I do not recommend that you or your family eat any products made from corn grown in the United States. That recommendation is based on the practice that the United States of America does not have any labelling laws which require that food products with GMO's be labelled as such. Most other industrialized countries do have such laws. But, we cannot know what is in our food.

Additionally, Monsanto routinely places false information in the media about its products and practices as well as supressing any press reports about scientific work which demonstrates harm from its products.

A further business practice of the company is to patent genetically modified seeds made by farmers on other countries and then charge those farmers a fee to use the seeds. There are reports of strong arm tactics as well.

Even though the company's practices are obviously unethical, they are legal under our justice system.

Perhaps Monsanto's Board is simply maximizing profits while waiting for the legal system to catch up to our morals.

Here are links with futher discussion of the company :

http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/?lid=210


http://www.nationofchange.org/just-one-monsanto-s-crimes-or-why-we-can-t-trust-epa-1334496958

In the meantime, My Liege, we should publically villify the company and its business practices. Additionally, any person who has a family member suffering from cancer should write a detailed hand written letter explaining the effects of that cancer on the body and family of the disease.

You can write the individual Board member listed below at the Monsanto address below or at their other affiliation :

1. David L. Chicoine, Ph.D. is president of South Dakota State University and professor of economics.

2. Janice L. Fields is president of McDonald’s USA, LLC, a subsidiary of McDonald’s Corporation.

3. Hugh Grant is the chairman and chief executive officer of Monsanto Company.

4. Arthur H. Harper is managing partner of GenNx360 Capital Partners.

5. Laura Ipsen is corporate vice president of Microsoft Corp.'s Worldwide Public Sector organization.

6. Gwendolyn S. King is president of Podium Prose, a speakers bureau.

7. C. Steven McMillan is a retired chairman of the board and CEO of Sara Lee Corporation.

8. Jon R Moeller is chief financial officer of The Procter & Gamble Company.

9. William U. Parfet is chairman of the board and chief executive officer of MPI Research Inc.

10. George H. Poste, Ph. D., D.V.M. is chief executive of Health Technology Networks.

11. Robert J. Stevens is chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Lockheed Martin Corporation.


Here's how to contact them :

Monsanto Company
800 N. Lindbergh Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63167

Email: queries.media@monsanto.com

Media Hotline
(314) 694-NEWS (6397)


Your faithful servant,

Hit The Ground Running

Barry, My Liege :

Now is the time to propose your specific agenda for your second term.

You cannot wait.

The Reps are disoriented and unsure of what to do.

Don't let them organize before you announce your agenda.

My Liege, it is also time for you to be a hard negotiator.

Make your positions extreme and hold to them until the opposition makes the first offer of compromise.

Strike while the iron is hot.

Our country needs you now.

Your faithful servant,

UPDATE 2014 - Jamie Dimon RAT Gets Raise !

Barry, My Liege :

Unbeliveably, the Real American Terrorist and criminal Jamie Dimon was awarded a raise. Sadly for the Republic, he should be in jail instead.

http://www.sfgate.com/business/bottomline/article/You-can-bank-on-it-a-raise-for-Dimon-but-no-5175448.php

Continuing here -



The recent Great Recession was a financial meltdown caused by inadequate regulation as stated by Former FED Chairman Alan Greenspan.

Mr. Dimon is the CEO of JPMorgan Chase which is one of the surviving banks and arguably the largest financial institution in the country.

Mr. Dimon is also too rich for a Democracy ; details of his financial condition are here : http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=170444&ticker=JPM

His wealth and income constitute a conflict of interest with the Economic National Security of the United States of America.

Specifically, he wants to maintain the regulation free banking industry which resulted in the recent banking meltdown. He wants to maintain that structure even though it has caused irreparable harm to a large share of the population. He wants to maintain it because he profited significantly as a result.

More importantly, without changes to the industry and regulation structure as it currently exists THE UNITED STATES WILL EXPERIENCE FURTHER FINANCIAL CRISES.

Mr. Dimon earns his Terrorist designation because he funds and directs a lobbying and political payoff effort dedicated to eviscerating meaningful regulation changes for his personal financial benefit and aggrandizement.

He personally bribes Representatives, Senators and Administration officials at the highest levels through our despicable - albeit legal - campaign finance laws.

Fortunately for the rest of us, Mr. Dimon was docked 50% of his annual pay due to his poor oversight of a trading scheme that cost J P Morgan about $ 6 billion; http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-01-16/jpmorgan-halves-dimon-s-pay-over-whale-losses

Please write him a letter with your experiences and concerns. His address is below.


Mr. Jamie Dimon
JPMorgan Chase
270 Park Avenue
New York, NY
(212) 270-6000

Your faithful servant,

Write A Letter to A RAT [Real American Terrorist]

Barry, My Liege :

The real terrorists we need to manage are the RATs - the rich American bastards who write our laws to give themselves a tax break or a monopoly.

These are the folks who are actively destroying the American Dream for the real folks like me and you - the way you used to be before you got famous and powerful.

You see, one of the things that happens to rich folks is that they insulate themselves from real people. They don't know any real people so they have no understanding of our lives.

My Liege, I know that you work hard to maintain your ties to reality, but a lot of the RATs don't.

After all, I can imagine that life in their air conditioned bubble is a lot more comfortable than life in the streets with the heat and the rain.

But, that insulation from American reality means that the RATs don't see what happens to real folks every day.

Maybe we can remedy that.

Let's do this : let's ask everybody in the country with a real problem or grievance to write a letter to a RAT.

If we can send each RAT several five or ten page letters from real people each week, maybe they will read the letters and will have a deeper understanding than they do now.

There is no immediate revolution that will happen from this, but maybe our country will be a better place to live over time.

You might ask what kind of letter we should write.

Well, the first thing is to make it a hand written letter instead of a computer print out. Hand written letters pass by the screeners more easily and convey a more heartfelt message than a printed letter.

As far as the content goes, it can be just about anything the writer wants to say.

Maybe your mother has diabetes and you can't afford her medication since she has no health insurance and you lost your job and your house. Explain that.

Maybe your only son came back from Iraq as a quadriplegic who needs 24 hour care and has to be spoon fed. And, maybe you're just a little depressed about that. Tell your RAT all about it.

Maybe you're really angry about the rich bastards who have ruined your life and you want to tell one exactly how you feel. Go ahead - do it now.

My Liege, you get the idea.

One can hope it will catch on.

This space will contribute by naming RATs occasionally and by providing mailing addresses for them.

Perhaps the world will be better as a result.

Your faithful servant,

Real American Terrorists - 1. KOCH BROTHERS

Barry, My Liege :

The dangerous terrorists in the United States of America are NOT the idiots with fake bombs made by the FBI ; nor are they the poor souls struggling to survive in the desert while dodging drone strikes.

The real terrorists are the rich American bastards who write our laws to give themselves a tax break or a monopoly while systematically looting the Middle Class of our jobs, houses, pensions, education and health care.

My Liege, I will call them out by name in this space.

One hopes that the Real American Terrorists [RATs] named here stay healthy, but spend much of their time watching their backs and planning to move out of the country.

Make no mistake, the Economic National Security of the United States of America is damaged by their very presence and it will be enhanced by their removal to another country.

The criterion by which a person will be named in this space is that he or she actively seeks to harm the country economically while personally profiting from that harm.

Sadly, many of the RATs believe that their success in taking money from others is somehow beneficial to the country.

That belief is claptrap.

Taking from many to enrich one does NOT benefit the country.

We all do well when we all do well.

And, the rich among us do better when we all do well.

This space takes that as a given and embarks on naming names.

KOCH BROTHERS

First up are the KOCH BROTHERS.

These guys are so bad, there is even a movie about them : http://www.kochbrothersexposed.com/

They are BILLIONAIRE brothers who inherited most of their wealth and have embarked on a political crusade to move the United states of America back to the 19th century or to the feudal era.

They fund systematically a myriad of organizations which publish false studies, lobby for harmful legislation at the State and National level as well as other initiatives too numerous to mention.

They also give grants to public universities with the proviso that any professors hired and any research done must be approved by their foundation : just exactly the opposite of standard academic practice and the opposite of the search for truth.

The more I read about the KOCH BROTHERS, the worse they appear.

They call themselves Conservative and Libertarian, but they are really radical people dedicated to ruining the lives of ordinary Americans so that they can continue to become richer.

They should be ashamed of themselves.

And, they should be publicly villified whenever they venture into the public arena.

Here is how to find them :

Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation
http://www.cgkfoundation.org/


Charles Koch Foundation
1515 N. Courthouse Rd.
Suite 200
Arlington, VA 22201
Phone: 703-875-1770
Fax: 703-875-1766
Email: email@charleskochfoundation.org

Media inquiries: mediainquiries@charleskochfoundation.org
Grants information: grants@charleskochfoundation.org



David H. Koch Charitable Foundation
http://www.kochfamilyfoundations.org/about.asp

Contact information is difficult to find, so try this :


KOCH INDUSTRIES

600 14th Street Northwest #800 Washington, DC 20005
(202) 737-1977



Your faithful servant,

Populist, Left Leaning Economist Writes

Barry, My Liege :

This space has been honored to be identified as an '...explicitly populist and left-leaning economic blog ...'.

Well, alrighty then.

Without further ado, I will try to provide a basic four of the principles which guide comments in this space ; please bear in mind that this is NOT a formal essay but rather a short list of fundamentals, many of which have been published previously.

A. RECOVERY - GREAT FORTUNES, GREAT INCOMES - published 5.18.12 :

The accumulation of great fortunes and large incomes in the United States has a deleterious effect on economic growth and job creation.

Economic growth and job creation comes from people who invest in businesses. It is well known that business investing is risky...

In conclusion, My Liege, it is clear both theoretically and practically that people with large incomes and fortunes do not wish to invest in business start-ups. Any activity that increases already large fortunes will take money away from people wishing to start new businesses, thus reducing economic growth and the Economic National Security of the United States.

B. CONSERVATIVE ECONOMIC THEORY, WRONG IN 1776, WRONG NOW - published 9.30.12 :

Adam Smith's WEALTH OF NATIONS, the book which codified and justified [today's conservative] philosophy, was published in 1776, the year of our revolution. Some of our founding fathers explicitly acknowledged that the invisible hand identified by Adam Smith helped in drawing our Constitution.

And, our conservative friends rely on that coincidence to support their free market beliefs.

But, it is significant that even Adam Smith suggested that a just and moral society requires curbs on the free play of market forces in order to secure a decent life for all people.

As he wrote his book, he surely observed the life around him. The life he observed consisted of great accumulations of capital and material wealth together with unimaginable social misery in the England of the 18th century.

C. WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF THE GOVERNMENT IS DOWNSIZED - Published 8.16.12 :

Part of the populist credo is the idea that an adequately sized Government is required to protect citizens from the effects of both criminals and unbridled market forces.

In August, this space discussed the real world effects of 'drowning government in the bathtub' by looking at places where the government is unable to restrain criminal elements.

'According to John P. Sullivan, who has written extensively on this phenomena over the past several years, a "criminal insurgency" occurs when criminal enterprises compete with the state not for traditional political participation, but rather to free themselves from state control in order to maximize profits from illicit economic activity. In so doing, TOC [transnational organized crime] elements seek to establish zones of "dual sovereignty" within states where they have freedom of movement, perceived legitimacy from the communities they exploit, and the complicity or acceptance of state political actors. Ultimately, the result is pervasive corruption, evidenced by a reciprocal criminalization of politics and politicization of crime.'

D. THE JOBS THEORY OF GROWTH [http://www.mkeever.com/apply.html]

This space uses a new theory of economic growth and bases its comments on that theory. This JOBS THEORY OF ECONOMIC GROWTH is delineated in the parent website at the link above.

Previous theories of economic growth measured numbers of ourput and dollars while ignoring any social effects ; this new theory addresses the social results of growth for each person.

In the economic circular flow of money and goods, businesses sell goods to consumers and hire workers to produce and sell those goods. The workers take their wages and buy products and services from businesses.

The classical economist's way of looking at the flow was to say that 'Supply creates Demand'. In other words, business must hire workers to create products and those workers in turn use their incomes to create demand for businesses by spending their wages. Classical economics then looks at businesses as the foundation of economic activity for their efforts to create products by hiring workers. While creating a product or service the business pays workers wages which then creates an income for consumers. Classical economics focuses on business product creation and assumes the demand will follow.

The jobs theory turns that around to make this statement: 'Demand Creates Supply'. In other words, if consumers have an income, businesses will be formed to supply products to consumers. Then, the focus is on the consumer's income - if consumers have an income, business will cater to that income by creating products for consumers to buy.

Economic growth then becomes the creation of new businesses and jobs; and, it is measured by the number of jobs created. One cannot just measure the number of businesses created since one new business may create hundreds of jobs while another new business creates only one job.

When more jobs are created, then the economy grows. It is measurable - just count the number of new jobs created and subtract the number of jobs lost. If the number is positive, then there is economic growth. If the number is negative, then the economy has shrunk.

For example, the number of people working in the USA grew from 64,630,000 in 1959 to 145,926,000 in December of 2006, according to the 2007 Economic Report of the President [http://www.gpoaccess.gov/eop/tables07.html]. This is a growth of two and one quarter times over a 47 year period.

During that same period, the population grew from 177,830,000 in 1959 to 299,801,000 in 2006. This was a growth of about 68%.

Not only did the absolute number of jobs grow by 125% during that period, the number of jobs grew almost twice as fast as the population.

The number of jobs per capita is derived by dividing the number of jobs by the population. It grew from 0.36 in 1959 to 0.49 in 2006. In other words, one working person supported nearly two non-working people in 1959, but one working person supported only one non-working person in 2006. Economic growth is measured by an increase in per capita jobs.

Thank you for your attention, My Liege.

It is an honor to be considered a populist and I hope that the views above may help you in your campaign to defeat the forces of Republican repression.

Your faithful servant,

Plutocrats USA

Barry My Liege :

A new book, 'Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else', by Chrystia Freeland is attracting some attention since the author has personally interviewed some of the new very rich.

While I have not read the book yet, I listened to an interview with Ms. Freeland during which she described the attitudes of some of the newly rich toward those less fortunate.

Apparently, some of the new rich who have created fortunes with their enterprise and genius have little or no interest in sharing any of their wealth with anyone.

Still resonating is a quote from one of the new rich as mentioned by Ms. Freeland to the effect that if American workers want to make more wages than Chinese peasants, then American workers will have to be more productive than Chinese peasants.

My Liege, we both know that worker productivity, or the value of work produced per hour worked, is primarily a function of the capital and technology invested into the workplace.

In fact American workers ARE more productive than Chinese workers largely because we have more capital invested in our workplaces than do Chinese.

There is a deeper problem here, though : the deeper problem is the attitudes of some of the new rich. It is the 'Let them eat cake' attitude of Marie Antoinette which tipped into the French Revolution beginning in 1789.

This attitude is well represented throughout history wherever there is a large gulf between the super rich or royalty and the mass of population.

Whether in American plantations operated with slave labor before the Civil War, European Feudal villages, slave labor camps in Nazi Germany or the Gulags of Soviet Russia, powerful people routinely abuse and profit from the less fortunate.

Our 1776 Revolution sprang from a desire to treat people differently. But, the new rich would drive us back to feudalism and slavery.

In order to more fully understand where the drive toward world markets is taking us today, here's what life looks like for those Chinese peasants who have become the standard bearer of workers' rights and privileges as taken from an article by Gethin Chamberlain in The Observer, Saturday 3 December 2011 [http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/dec/04/chinese-toy-factories-christmas-disney]

'....investigators spent three weeks in the industrial cities of Shenzhen and Dongguan. In some cases, they found that employees:

■ worked up to 140 hours overtime a month;

■ were paid up to a month late;

■ claimed they were expected to work with dangerous tools and machines without training or safety measures;

■ had to work in silence and were fined up to £5 for going to the toilet without permission.

Perhaps the most insidious effect of the long hours and poor wages was how it tore families apart, separating mothers and fathers from their children for all but a few days a year. Many workers were too afraid to speak to the investigators from human rights group Students & Scholars Against Corporate Misbehaviour (Sacom), but two women did agree to talk on condition that their names were changed.

Wang Fengping, 27, has two daughters, seven and five. They live a 10-hour train journey away from the On Tai Toys factory. She and her husband earn £200 a month making toys for Disney and others, but cannot afford to bring the children to the city. Instead, the girls are cared for by their grandparents. Wang calls them two or three times a week. The younger one always asks her when she is coming home. "Very soon," Wang always replies.

The reality is that they will meet only once a year, at Chinese New Year. She keeps her spirits up by telling her workmates stories of how well the girls are doing at school. Sometimes she sings them songs the girls have learned at school and then sung to her down the phone. "Our family will not die from hunger, but cannot be fed with this wage level," she said....'

My Liege, that is a future we do not want for our children and grandchildren. We pray you can find a way to prevent our drift toward that future.

Your faithful servant,

This Space - Officially Enlightened !

Barry , My Liege :

This space has been included as one of the 100 most enlightened economics sites on the interweb.

The entire list is here : http://www.economicsdegree.net/enlightened-economists/

This space is listed under the Global Economics heading as Number 82. Here is the introduction from that site :

'82. Clear and Present Danger

This explicitly populist and left-leaning economic blog responds to political and economic news and topics. In addition to its analysis, the site contains a clearly humorous tone, with its oddly feudal theming and all of its posts beginning with “Barry, My Liege.”

Econ Highlight: Conservative Economic Theory, Wrong in 1776, Wrong Now'

Below is the offical notification :


'Hello

I'm following up with you about the list EconomicsDegree.net has published of the Top 100 Sites for Enlightened Economists.

I emailed you last week to let you know you'd been nominated, and I'm pleased to report that your site made the Top 100. You can view the list here: http://www.economicsdegree.net/enlightened-economists/

We've created a badge you can post on your site to let your readers know you were selected. You can use the embed code below or the attached image.



While our site is geared toward prospective students in economics, and they will no doubt find this list to be useful, we also published it to benefit all readers interested in economic topics. Congratulations, and thanks for maintaining such a useful site!

Feel free to email me with any questions or feedback about the list.

Best,
Amy'

Your faithful servant,

US Fails GINI Test

http://www.rand.org/publications/randreview/issues/2012/fall/leadership/income-inequality.html

Barry, My Liege :

The United States of America is more unequal in income distribution than most European countries as well as Japan, South Korea, India, Turkey, and Israel.

Several rapidly growing developing economies, including Brazil, show greater inequality, according to the Rand Corporation in the link above.

This is remarkable since the United States is classified as an industrialized country where citizens should enjoy the benefits of that development.

My Liege, this is the biggest problem for your second term.

We pray you act wisely for all our benefit.

Your faithful servant,

Romney Slip Slides

Barry, My Liege :

While it is true that the public perception of Mr. Romney is poor, your job is to aggressively pin him down.

We cannot rely on those assumed negative perceptions to sway voters to you unless you call him out in public.

You will be helped by finding a few points he makes that are either inconsistent or intensely disliked and then nail him to the wall on those issues.

It is time to kick him when he is down.

My Liege, he throws up so much smoke that it gives the impression of a fire.

Truly, his was a show of smoke and mirrors

But, your job is to call him on it.

And, please don't be polite about it.

We want you to fight for us.

Your faithful servant,

This Space - Enlightened !

Barry, My Liege :

This space is honored to be nominated by Economics Degree.net for inclusion in a list of the 100 most Enlightened economics websites available for people wishing to learn about economics.

You can learn more about the organization here : http://www.economicsdegree.net/

Here is the nomination notification :

" Hello

I work for EconomicsDegree.net, a website that offers news and informational resources about higher education in the world of economics and finance. In addition to providing info for prospective students, we aim to highlight economic trends locally and globally through blog posts and other content on our site. With that goal in mind, we’re preparing a list that acknowledges the Top 100 Sites for Enlightened Economists.

I’m pleased to tell you that we have nominated Clear and Present Danger for inclusion on our list!

If your site is featured on the final list, we’ll provide a badge that you can use to publicize your inclusion through your site and social media accounts.

Once the list is published, we’ll be reaching out to other sites about economics, international politics, business, and finance to ensure maximum recognition for your site.

Additionally, if you wish to nominate another economics blog or website that you feel is worthy of a spot on our list, please let us know.

Best,

Amy "

This space will post further information as it becomes available.

Your faithful servant,

Conservative Economic Theory, Wrong in 1776, Wrong Now

Barry, My Liege :

It is stated and implied by economic conservatives that a minimum of government interference into the everyday activities of the economy will create the best of all possible worlds.

'When producers are free to sell what they wish and consumers are free to buy what they will, then the invisible hand of the market place will deliver the greatest material good to the greatest number of people' is how many conservatives express it.

Although this bedrock belief of many conservatives has been proven wrong by countless studies and theories, it persists to this day.

My Liege, it is worth considering the world in which those theories were created to see where they may be correct and or false.

That world of the 18th Century coincided with the birth of the United States of America.

Adam Smith's WEALTH OF NATIONS, the book which codified and justified this philosophy, was published in 1776, the year of our revolution. Some of our founding fathers explicitly acknowledged that the invisible hand identified by Adam Smith helped in drawing our Constitution.

And, our conservative friends rely on that coincidence to support their free market beliefs.

But, it is significant that even Adam Smith suggested that a just and moral society requires curbs on the free play of market forces in order to secure a decent life for all people.

As he wrote his book, he surely observed the life around him. The life he observed consisted of great accumulations of capital and material wealth together with unimaginable social misery in the England of the 18th century.

Describing that life, here is Esme Wingfield-Stratford, D.Sc., M. A., Ex-Fellow of King's College, Cambridge in THE HISTORY OF BRITISH CIVILIZATION, Routledge & Kegan Paul, Ltd., London, 1928, pp 739-740:

"Such was the agricultural revolution of the eighteenth century, and true to the principles of the time, full play was given to individual enterprise in the simple faith that all things would work together for good for those who loved money. It would have been utterly alien to contemporary habits of thought to have made a serious effort to estimate, much less to control, the social relations of this increase of productive capacity. The peasantry and yeomanry, who were so hard hit by the process of enclosure [diverting public lands to private ownership], were at the same time crippled by the rapid development of the factory system, and the consequent loss of domestic manufactures which had helped them to eke out a living. But quite apart from either of these handicaps, the small man, in this age of rapid innovation, was at a hopeless disadvantage against superior capital and education. Gradually the big estates began to eat up the small ones, and the poor man, with all the odds against him, was silently edged off the land by encroaching capital."

We pray you are able to see the dangers to our countrymen from the application of that philosophy.

Your faithful servant,

UPDATE 10.25.12 : Drones Create Terrorists and Will Continue

http://livingunderdrones.org/

Barry, My Liege :

It is time to scale down the drone campaign. It appears to be killing more civilians than militants.

With that result, we are creating families and tribes of people with very good reasons to hate us.

Many people hate us already.

We should not inflate that number recklessly.

But, My Liege, your administration has codified the program and it will likely continue for the forseeable future.

Read it here : http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/plan-for-hunting-terrorists-signals-us-intends-to-keep-adding-names-to-kill-lists/2012/10/23/4789b2ae-18b3-11e2-a55c-39408fbe6a4b_story.html

Your faithful servant,

Recovery and Restoration of the USA, 2013

http://www.mkeever.com/owsplaneleven.doc


Barry, My Liege ;

There appears to be a possibility that the Democratic Party will capture your office as well as both Houses of Congress.

Regardless of the degree of probability of that outcome, you have the immediate responsibility to write a series of laws and regulatory changes before your inauguration which will restore the United States of America to a democratic country and reduce the power of our moneyed elites.

My Liege, as I have said before, if that fortunate circumstance should arise it will be our last chance to keep our country great and honorable.

But, My Liege, seizing that opportunity will REQUIRE that you and your second term administration IMMEDIATELY after inauguration pass the series of laws that you are preparing now.

You will have a very small window of opportunity to accomplish this task.

We pray you administer that work diligently.

As a start I offer below my list of 13 specific areas that require changes. These suggestions have been published before and I beseech you to take each seriously.

1. STRENGTHEN UNIONS - Union organizing and negotiating rights are created by Federal labor laws. When unions can organize and press for higher wages, the country benefits from higher incomes going to the middle class. It is true that unions can be messy organizations, but overall they succeed in raising middle class incomes when they can function freely. This will increase middle class purchasing power and help restore Aggregate Demand.

An inevitable result of raising wages through union activity will be that businesses have to raise prices to survive - that will require some adjustments to our trade policies as discussed below.

2. ENHANCE LABOR LAW ENFORCEMENT - Some business owners think they have an economic incentive to interfere with union actions ; they will have to pay higher wages if unions are successful. In our history, blood has been shed in labor disputes.

Henry Ford knew that true national prosperity lies with workers receiving wages high enough to buy the cars he made, but many business owners are not so enlightened.

When there is little labor law enforcement or penalties for labor law violations, then labor law has little effect.

The United States should enforce labor laws vigorously.

3. ESTABLISH ANTI-MONOPOLY LAWS - Monopolies are bad for the country, per se. Such firms have economic incentives to charge higher prices and sell fewer products than firms in competition. Their actions create a deadweight loss from economic activity not undertaken and further transfer some consumer surplus to monopoly profit. This results in less economic welfare for the country and thereby damages our National Security.

The United States should strengthen existing anti-monopoly laws, increase enforcement activity and write additional anti-monopoly laws.

The concept that monopoly is a reward for efficient firms is a false concept which serves to undermine National Security.

4. CANCEL FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS - United States trade policy does not work. We adhere to a low tariff concept that undermines our National Security. It does so by transferring jobs to foreign countries and by facilitating huge trade imbalances which serve to transfer wealth created in the United States to our trade partners.

It is time to change trade policies so that we import only as much as we export.

Our trade partners do not reciprocate our trade encouraging practices and in fact use their trade laws and national customs to protect their domestic industries. It is time to recognize reality in trade.

5. TAX AWAY GREAT FORTUNES AND GREAT INCOMES - Huge concentrations of wealth and annual income harm our economy by diverting money away from risky investments in economic growth and into safety seeking investments.

It is well known that the primary criterion of investing is safety of principal. People with large amounts of money are risk averse and do NOT wish to risk that money in new ventures, preferring to find safer investments.

Our economy will grow faster and we will be more secure when we do not have extraordinarily large income and wealth concentrations. Then will capital have greater incentives to take risks and create growth.

6. CREATE NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL POLICY - The United States should create a blueprint for our future economic growth. We should establish industries in which we wish to participate and then establish policies which encourage and protect companies in those industries.

Industries should be chosen on the basis of the likelihood that they will create good jobs in the future.

Critics argue that the government is unable to make sound predictions in this area since even private companies have difficulty doing so.

While that may be, there are countries which use this practice with great success and many more countries which are beginning to establish this process. The government of South Korea established this practice in the 1950's and was able to convert a nation of rice farmers and fishermen into an industrial powerhouse.

7. EXPAND PUBLIC UTILITY INDUSTRY DESIGNATIONS AND REGULATE EACH DESIGNATED INDUSTRY WITH AN ELECTED COMMISSION - There are some businesses which require a government protected monopoly for some reason ; for example, some industries like electricity generation and distribution require such huge capital investments that investors will not make that investment unless assured of freedom from future competition.

In these cases it makes economic and national security sense to regulate the prices charged to the public so that the company earns a normal profit, which allows a return to investors sufficient to ensure survival and uninterrupted service provision, but does not allow for monopoly profits.

Any industry whose products or services are regularly used by more than one third of the population and in which there are few suppliers is a candidate for public utility designation.

8. ENSURE FINANCIAL SYSTEM STABILITY BY RESTORING GLASS-STEAGALL - Stability in our financial system is required for our national security.

We know absolutely that the financial system cannot regulate itself without great harm to our economy.

Under Glass-Steagall we had stability for 50 years.

Restore it.

It is the only choice.

9. KEEP SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE - Not only do these programs provide dignity to people who have worked all their lives, they provide significant income to help support Aggregate Demand.

There are pressures to reduce or destroy these programs. The stated reason is the budget deficit, but the real reason is simple greed from the financial system.

Countries which have chosen to reduce pensions and healthcare because of a fiscal deficit problem are now experiencing recessions and high unemployment.

No country in history has been able to cut its way to prosperity. Many countries have found prosperity by borrowing in bad times to sustain employment.

10. INSTALL SINGLE PAYER HEALTH CARE - Regardless of the outcome of the Supreme Court's decision, there is no place for profit in the healthcare system. If we can eliminate insurance company profits, we can pay for our healthcare with current expenditures.

11. MANAGE DEBT TO BORROW IN BAD TIMES, PAY BACK IN GOOD TIMES - With a properly functioning national government, we can use fiscal policy wisely to keep full employment and growth achievable.

The Federal Budget is the flywheel of the economy - it prevents stalls when the engine's speed declines.

12. REDUCE MONEY REQUIRED FOR NATIONAL ELECTIONS BY REQUIRING BROADCASTERS TO PROVIDE FREE POLITICAL ADS - One of the reasons for our corrupt political system is that elections are very expensive.

But, most of the money goes to running political ads on broadcast media. Since broadcast media receives a license from the FCC to use their frequencies, we can require them to run free ads as a condition of their licenses.

This would reduce the cost of running for office and, consequently reduce the opportunities for political corruption.

Other election financing reforms should be pursued as well.

13. RESPECT BUT DO NOT FEAR OCCUPY PROTESTORS - Occupy protestors are about 20% of our people who have been harmed by market failures in our system. They are exercising their Constitutional rights to seek redress of their grievances.

Creating a rigid, militaristic response to a peaceful protest is the opposite of our founding principles.

If they follow our past history of peaceful protest, they may well be the force that helps correct our imbalances.

In conclusion Barry, My Liege, we pray that you will remember these issues after you finish discussing any limited election issues such as gay marriage and student loan costs.

Your faithful servant,

Feudalism Redux : Romney's Economic Plan

Barry, My Liege :

Your opponent has taken the trouble to tell us exactly what he would do if elected.

Even though he is not worthy of our trust, let us take him at his word for the nonce.

According to FORTUNE Magazine in its September 3 issue, his plan is presented as a 5 point plan with each point numbered below.

My Liege, how anyone can imagine that the economic travail we experience today can be solved by five overly simplistic mantras is insulting to any thinking person.

Putting that aside, here then are the essential points of the Romney plan, with my comments below.

(1) "Aggressively promote domestic energy development, especially fossil fuels."

Even if we disregard the obvious corruption evidenced in this idea, it is clearly a disastrous public policy for the economy and the environment. Economically, our appetite for foreign oil funds many of our sworn enemies and destroys our economy by inflating our foreign trade deficit.

Our future lies with alternative and renewable energy.

(2) "Expand the market for U.S. goods overseas by negotiating new trade agreements and standing up to China on intellectual-property and currency issues."

It is a good idea to manage trade more effectively. We can give him that.

However, the problem is that our current policies create incentives to offshore and outsource jobs created by American companies. We should focus our policy changes in that area.

We will experience higher demand for our exports when, and only when, the domestic economies of our trading partners become stronger.

(3) "Improve workforce skills by transferring job-training programs to the states and going after teachers' unions, which, he says, stand in the way of school choice and better instruction."

This abomination ties together two disparate canards; each has to be considered separately.

Nearly all job training programs do not result in measurable job gains. The single effective remedy for job loss is to stimulate domestic aggregate demand by raising middle class incomes.

Our current policies do the exact opposite: our policies reduce middle class incomes and transfer incomes and wealth to the super rich monopolists.

The best way to raise middle class incomes is to reverse the trend toward weakening unions. With stronger unions, workers will have an opportunity for a middle class life.

Teachers' unions are not hurting public education; lower tax revenues are hurting public education. The only way to get better public education is to raise tax revenues by raising tax rates or growing the economy.

(4) "Attack the deficit through budget cuts, not tax increases."

Here is the centerpiece in the Romney/Kock plan to return the United States of America to feudal times. The plan is astoundingly simple : loot all funds devoted to middle class and poor people and transfer them to the 'private markets'. Then, lower taxes on rich people and raise them on poor people.

That will solidify our present kleptocratic, oligarchic social structure and reduce the possibility that we may someday return to a Democracy.

Tax cuts do NOT create jobs says the Congressional Research Service [http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/editorials/article/Low-tax-rates-may-not-boost-economy-3872573.php].

(5) "Reshape the regulatory climate to 'encourage and promote small business' rather than swamp it."

That last item, says Fortune, "covers his most consistent and passionate campaign pledge, the repeal of the Affordable Care Act."

I will simply misquote James Carville here : 'The only reason Republicans don't like regulation is the same reason that crooks don't like cops - they can't steal as much.' Apologies to Mr. Carville.

As an additional comment, and as a student of economic thought since 1960, it is my humble opinion that the 'economists' who write this drivel should be forced to disclose both their financial interests and the theoretical foundations of their incoherent rants.

Your faithful servant,

Muslim Fanatics

Barry, My Liege :

It is difficult to sympathize with the outrage of a few Muslims over a stupid video.

These may be the same people who think a religious act is to slit the throat of an innocent civilian on live television.

Treat them with distance, keep our powder dry and otherwise ignore them. Such demonstrators will evenutally go away.

Of course, some may continue to blame the United States for their difficulties.

That cannot be changed.

Your faithful servant,

California Hardens Heart - Tells Students to Join Fastrack or Leave

Barry My Liege :

Now, it's official - students have to grow up, now.

In California you don't have time to try out things or explore different directions.

If you don't commit to a four year plan, you can't enroll in Community College.

That means that immigrants who want to learn English so they can communicate with their Americanized grandchildren, downsized folks who want to train for a new job and average kids who are not sure of what they want to do by age 18 are all out of luck.

There is no room in the California Community College system for them anymore.

Jeffery Fang, a City College of San Francisco student says it best : 'it won't be possible to require students to develop education plans because there aren't enough counselors to help them. He said the new rules also "will pretty much shut out re-entry students because they have too many units."'

My Liege, the hands that used to offer help are withdrawn. Folks who look for that helping hand are left to the marketplace.

Here's what the market sounds like -

'Step right up! English language lessons for 4 weeks of 50 minutes per lesson, four lessons per week, that's 28 lessons with free access to our library for only $1,500. But wait, student loans are available. Our consellors will help you apply. Don't be left out. Other plans are available and REMEMBER - SOME CLASSES QUALIFY FOR A STUDENT VISA!!!

Don't forget, community college classes are not available to you so you can no longer sign up for classes at $150 per semester. This is your best deal.'

It is just sad.

These colleges have been a stairway to the middle class for generations of students of all ages, nationalities and backgrounds.

My Liege, we undestand that money is short everywhere.

But, how can it help our country to take away a ladder to the middle class?

Here is the article : http://www.sfgate.com/education/article/Community-colleges-No-room-for-lingerers-3854934.php

Your faithful servant,

Used Car Salesman - Romney

Barry, My Liege :

It seems appropriate to suggest a stump speech gambit for your consideration.

It is a stump speech gambit since it is somewhat mean spirited - although spot on for voters - and televising it would likely call forth an equally mean spirited response from the Reps.

Maybe the idea can go under the radar on the stump; but, it'll be even more effective if the Reps pick it up and make it a news item.

Here it is :

'How y'all doing tonight? I am really glad to be here in ________________.

You know, one of the things my opponent says a lot is that you should ask the question "Are you better off than you were four years ago?

Well, you know what, I like that question. If you remember, four years ago the economy was in free fall, folks were losing their jobs, the stock market average was down to half what it is now and housing prices were starting to fall. It was a pretty bad time for us all.

Things ARE better now.

But, good ol Paul Ryan keeps saying we are not better off. Dude, you don't get to make up facts. Holy Cow, where is he anyway?

We know we're not done with fixing the economy, but we have made some pretty good steps in the right direction.

And, we KNOW that you want us to finish the job!

Now, my opponent is asking you to vote for him so he can take over.

He wants us to change horses in mid-stream - you know what, my grandmother always said that was a bad idea. And, she was usually right, and she is right this time too. Changing horses in the middle of a river is a really bad idea.

But, here's another thing about my opponent : he is a pretty slick guy who plays fast and loose with the truth.

If he were selling me a used car, I'd want someone else to vouch for what he told me because I just don't trust the man.

Plain and simple, I just don't trust him.

And, if you don't trust him either, then it is a real bad idea to trust him with the whole economy.

After all, he and his running mate told us that they want to take away Social Security and Medicare. And that was just before they said they would make Social Security and Medicare stronger.

How can you trust that?

He has a record of saying that everything will be just fine and then firing a whole lot of people.

He works from the same playbook as some of the State governors like Scott Walker. He was the guy who promised fiscal conservatism for Wisconsin; then, after he was elected, he cut taxes for corporations and claimed a fiscal crisis as a result of declining tax collections. His solution was to cut State government union bargaining rights and to reduce pensions.

We don't want that in the United States.

We want to take care of our people. We don't want to leave them to fend for themselves in a cutthroat market.

Folks, I am asking for your votes so I can finish the job we started in 2008.

Don't let the super slick hucksters bamboozle you into doing something you will regret for the rest of your life.'

My Liege, please use whatever portion of the foregoing you find useful.

Your faithful servant,

U S Incomes Drop : NO FED Action !

Barry, My Liege :

The continuing decline in wage income in the USA will make any recovery more difficult. As noted before in this space, our current problem is that Aggregate Demand is too low to spark a recovery.

On top of that, the Government of the United States is poised to create a fiscal and financial crisis due to the likely inability to make any compromises on the Federal Budget.

The question arises - Should or should not the FED create another monetary stimulus? It should not since there already exist oceans of cash that are idle. More will not help.

In the immortal words of the Jack Nicholson movie, '....maybe this is as good as it gets.....'

My Liege, if that is true, then we are in a new normal of declining incomes, declining living standards, high unemployment and decreasing Economic National Security.

Here's what Bloomberg says about our wages : 'American incomes declined more in the three-year expansion that started in June 2009 than during the longest recession since the Great Depression, according an analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by Sentier Research LLC.'

Read the whole article here :

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-23/u-s-incomes-feel-more-in-recovery-sentier-says.html

Here's a new article on 'HOW TO FIX THE ECONOMY' by Henry Blodgett :

http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-fix-the-economy-in-one-simple-chart-2012-8

It is not rocket science, My Liege, even magazine writers get it.

Evem more on shrinking middle class :

http://www.sfgate.com/business/bottomline/article/Middle-class-shrinks-as-incomes-decline-3819526.php


Your faithful servant,

SUPREMES AND NSA UPDATE - Supremes Won't Stop Domestic Spying

Barry, My Liege:

The NSA collects and saves every telephone call and email made by every United States citizen and does so without a warrant and in direct violation of the US Constitution.

The operation is called TRAPWIRE, and you can read about it here :

http://rt.com/usa/news/trapwire-abraxas-cubic-surveillance-251/


HERE'S WHERE THE SUPREMES PASS THE BUCK: http://libertycrier.com/u-s-constitution/supreme-court-lets-stand-telecom-immunity-in-wiretap-case/

And here :

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/opinion/the-national-security-agencys-domestic-spying-program.html

The people who reported this have been deemed 'enemies of the state'. These American heroes are William Binney, Kirk Wiebe and Thomas Drake.

See a video of their discussion here: http://current.com/shows/viewpoint/videos/nsa-whistleblowers-warn-of-secret-spying-programs-that-can-target-anyone/

The 'data' remains available for any law enforcement official to request at any time in the future. That is the purpose of the Colorado data center - to warehouse our calls and emails so they will be available in case we become an 'enemy of the state' someday.

England is proposing the same thing: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/18/uk-surveillance-law_n_1527145.html

Your faithful servant,

What Will Happen if the Government is Downsized

Barry My Liege :

It is no secret that the Republican Party and its backers want to reduce the size of the American national government.

Perhaps it is worthwhile to look to countries where the national government has been downsized to see how people are doing there.

We can look at Central America to find places where the national government is unable to provide basic services to people.

'According to John P. Sullivan, who has written extensively on this phenomena over the past several years, a "criminal insurgency" occurs when criminal enterprises compete with the state not for traditional political participation, but rather to free themselves from state control in order to maximize profits from illicit economic activity. In so doing, TOC [transnational organized crime] elements seek to establish zones of "dual sovereignty" within states where they have freedom of movement, perceived legitimacy from the communities they exploit, and the complicity or acceptance of state political actors. Ultimately, the result is pervasive corruption, evidenced by a reciprocal criminalization of politics and politicization of crime.'

But, My Liege, such places are not just problems for their residents, they become problems for the United States as well.

Here's a second quote from David C. Eckley in his article "Criminal Insurgency' is a Growing Threat in Central America" : 'Governments that are incapable of meeting their citizens' basic needs represent unstable regions that may directly threaten the American people.'

See, the thing is that these transnational organized crime (TOC) elements corrupt or kill local government officials and enlist the entire population in their violence.

Read the entire article here : http://www.mexidata.info/id3430.html

It's something that you need to monitor carefully, My Liege. We do not want TOC elements bringing their activities to the United States.

Your faithful servant,