A Perfect Economic Storm

 

A Perfect Economic Storm

The Great Depression, a worldwide economic collapse that began in 1929 and lasted roughly a decade.

 

Vulnerabilities in the Global Economy

In the 1920s, nations bounced back from the disruption and destruction caused by World War I, with factories and farms producing again, Richardson notes. But the nature of the economy in the United States and elsewhere shifted, as ordinary consumers buying durable goods such as appliances and cars—often on credit—became more and more important.

 Financial Speculation

Investors increasingly bought stocks on margin, in which they put down as little as 10 percent of the price of a stock, and borrowed the rest of the money, with their stock itself as collateral. Corporate stocks soared, and brokers made huge commissions.

But the bubble eventually had to burst. It did that on Black Monday, October 28, 1929, when the Dow Jones average declined nearly 13 percent in one day. That started a period of catastrophic declines that destroyed almost half of the Dow’s value in a single month. By 1932, at the nadir of the financial crisis, the nation’s public companies had lost 89 percent of their value.

Blunders by the Fed

The Federal Reserve System, created in 1913, was supposed to ensure the nation’s economic stability by controlling the money supply. But the still-new institution’s policies in the 1920s not only failed to stop the Great Depression, but to cause it. There was a drastic 67 percent increase in the money supply between 1921 and 1929.

But eventually, in 1929, the Fed’s board worried that speculation was out of control, and abruptly slammed on the breaks by contracting the money supply and raising interest rates. The Fed’s move to cool the stock market worked a little too well. “They got the stock market to come down, but then it came down a lot, and it came down very quickly.

After the Wall Street crash, nervous investors began to trade their dollars for gold.

The Fed then moved to jack up interest rates higher to protect the dollar’s value. But those high interest rates made it difficult for businesses to borrow money that they needed to survive, and many ended up closing their doors instead.

The Smoot-Hawley Act

Trade protectionists in Congress enacted the Smoot-Hawley Act, which was written in early 1929, while the economy still seemed to be going strong. But after the Wall Street Crash weakened the economy, President Hoover still signed it into law in 1930. The law raised U.S. tariffs by an average of 16 percent, to shield American factories from competition with foreign countries’ lower-priced goods. But the move backfired when other countries put tariffs on U.S. exports.

In The End

The unlucky thing was that all those factors combined in a sort of perfect economic storm, whose devastating effects had long-lasting repercussions. As Richardson notes, the U.S. economy didn’t again reach full employment until 1940—just in time for World War II

The Great Depression Legacy – The New Deal

The New Deal did more than attempt to stabilize the economy, provide relief to jobless Americans, and create previously unheard-of safety net programs, as well as regulate the private sector. It also reshaped the role of government, with programs that are now part of the fabric of American society.

Enter The Administrative State (aka Communism)

We often think about our government in many ways. However, with the emergence of the Administrative State, the government is involved in every part of citizen’s lives:

1. U.S. Department of Agriculture
2. U.S. Department of Commerce
3. U.S. Department of Defense
4. U.S. Department of Education
5. U.S. Department of Energy
6. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
7. U.S. Department of Homeland Security
8. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
9. U.S. Department of Justice
10. U.S. Department of Labor
11. U.S. Department of State
12. U.S. Department of the Interior
13. U.S. Department of the Treasury
14. U.S. Department of Transportation
15. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

The Coup We Never Knew

 

The Coup We Never Knew

Victor Davis Hanson Jan 05, 2023

 

Did someone or something seize control of the United States?

What happened to the U.S. border? Where did it go? Who erased it? Why and how did 5 million people enter our country illegally? Did Congress secretly repeal our immigration laws? Did President Joe Biden issue an executive order allowing foreign nationals to walk across the border and reside in the United States as they pleased?

Since when did money not have to be paid back? Who insisted that the more dollars the federal government printed, the more prosperity would follow? When did America embrace zero interest? Why do we believe $30 trillion in debt is no big deal?

When did clean-burning, cheap, and abundant natural gas become the equivalent of dirty coal? How did prized natural gas that had granted America's wishes of energy self-sufficiency, reduced pollution, and inexpensive electricity become almost overnight a pariah fuel whose extraction was a war against nature? Which lawmakers, which laws, and which votes of the people declared natural gas development and pipelines near criminal?

Was it not against federal law to swarm the homes of Supreme Court justices, to picket and to intimidate their households in efforts to affect their rulings? How then with impunity did bullies surround the homes of Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Samuel Alito, Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, John Roberts, and Clarence Thomas - furious over a court decision on abortion? How could these mobs so easily throng our justices' homes, with placards declaring "Off with their d--s"?

Since when did Americans create a government Ministry of Truth? And on whose orders did the FBI contract private news organizations to censor stories it did not like and writers whom it feared?

How did we wake up one morning to new customs of impeaching a president over a phone call? Of the speaker of the House tearing up the State of the Union address on national television? Of barring congressional members from serving on their assigned congressional committees?

When did we assume the FBI had the right to subvert the campaign of a candidate it disliked? Was it legal suddenly for one presidential candidate to hire a foreign ex-spy to subvert the campaign of her rival?

Was some state or federal law passed that allowed biological males to compete in female sports? Did Congress enact such a law? Did the Supreme Court guarantee that biological male students could shower in gym locker rooms with biological women? Were women ever asked to redefine the very sports they had championed?

When did the government pass a law depriving Americans of their freedom during a pandemic? In America can health officials simply cancel rental contracts or declare loan payments in suspension? How could it become illegal for mom-and-pop stores to sell flowers or shoes during quarantine but not so for Walmart or Target?

Since when did the people decide that 70 percent of voters would not cast their ballots on Election Day? Was this revolutionary change the subject of a national debate, a heated congressional session, or the votes of dozens of state legislatures?

What happened to Election Night returns? Did the fact that Americans created more electronic ballots and computerized tallies make it take so much longer to tabulate the votes?

When did the nation abruptly decide that theft is not a crime, and assault is not a felony? How can thieves walk out with bags of stolen goods, without the wrath of angry shoppers, much less fear of the law?

Was there ever a national debate about the terrifying flight from Afghanistan? Who planned it and why?

What happened to the once-trusted FBI? Why almost overnight did its directors decide to mislead Congress, to deceive judges with concocted tales from fake dossiers and with doctored writs? Did Congress pass a law that our federal leaders in the FBI or CIA could lie with impunity under oath?

Who redefined our military and with whose consent? Who proclaimed that our chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff could call his Chinese Communist counterpart to warn him that America's president was supposedly unstable? Was it always true that retired generals routinely labeled their commander-in-chief as a near Nazi, a Mussolini, an adherent of the tools of Auschwitz?

Were Americans ever asked whether their universities could discriminate against their sons and daughters based on their race? How did it become physically dangerous to speak the truth on campus? Whose idea was it to reboot racial segregation and bias as "theme houses," "safe spaces," and "diversity"? How did that happen in America?

How did a virus cancel the Constitution? Did the lockdowns rob us of our sanity? Or was it the woke hysteria that ignited our collective madness?

We are beginning to wake up from a nightmare of a country we no longer recognize, and from a coup, we never knew.

Victor Davis Hanson is a distinguished fellow of the Center for American Greatness. He is a classicist and historian at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and the author of "The Second World Wars: How the First Global Conflict Was Fought and Won," from Basic Books. You can reach him by emailing authorvdh@gmail.com.

 

545 vs. 300,000,000 People- by Charlie Reese

 545 vs. 300,000,000 People- by Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them. Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.

·       You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations.

·       The House of Representatives does.

·       You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

·       You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

·       You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million who are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power.

Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exist disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.  They, and they alone, have the power. They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses, provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees...

We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess! What you do with this article now that you have read it... is up to you.

1. Accounts Receivable Tax

2. Building Permit Tax

3. CDL license Tax

4. Cigarette Tax

5. Corporate Income Tax

6. Dog License Tax

7. Excise Taxes

8. Federal Income Tax

9. Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)

10. Fishing License Tax

11. Food License Tax

12. Fuel Permit Tax

13. Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)

14. Gross Receipts Tax

15. Hunting License Tax

16. Inheritance Tax

17.Inventory Tax

18. IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)

19. Liquor Tax

20. Luxury Taxes

21. Marriage License Tax

22. Medicare Tax

23. Personal Property Tax

24. Property Tax

25. Real Estate Tax

26. Service Charge Tax

27. Social Security Tax

28. Road Usage Tax

29. Recreational Vehicle Tax

30. Sales Tax

31. School Tax

32. State Income Tax

33. State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)

34. Telephone Federal Excise Tax

35. Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax

36. Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes

37. Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax

38. Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax

39. Telephone State and Local Tax

40. Telephone Usage Charge Tax

41. Utility Taxes

42. Vehicle License Registration Tax

43. Vehicle Sales Tax

44. Watercraft Registration Tax

45. Well Permit Tax

46. Workers Compensation Tax

 

Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, when our nation was the most prosperous in the world.

A Winning GOP Strategy

 

A Winning GOP Strategy

 Let me say at the outset that Trump is our man and clearly did phenomenal things while in office! Should he be the next president? I would like that as much as many others. What follows, is a perspective that it may be best for our country that Trump we love should not run. Hold on! Before you stop reading, let’s at least examine why this may be the best possible choice for our country.

 The fizzle of the hoped-for red wave likely has a rational that you, I, and others will not like, but is likely true. Let’s look at what that might be?

 The thesis is there are huge numbers of people that:

•   Fear Trump
•  and an equally large group that Hate Trump.
• If that were not bad enough, the media taps into both and hammers Trump relentlessly. This along with the Hollywood elite!

 That is what we call “the harsh reality!” Why? Because we don’t want it to be true! Is it fair to our hero Donald Trump? No! Is it fair to us? No! Regardless, we (Patriots) must accept it to deal with it. If we do not, we will see a disaster in 2024 like 2022 midterms.

 Consider if Trump runs again, it is highly likely the same strategy of “fear and hate” will be used!

•  Be fearful of Trump; he will take away your Socialist benefits!
•  Hate Trump; he will end your Globalist ideals!
•   All of that, while the media and the Hollywood Elite pile on!
•  Filling the airwaves with what the average American consumes.

 Can a powerful Conservative strategy overcome the above? I say yes!

 Possible Considerations:

•          Trump leads the MAGA movement and leads the party. Trump can mobilize the base like no one else!
•          Run a strong MAGA candidate for President. No appeasement to moderates!
•          Use MAGA accomplishments and policies against the Socialist Democrat failures! Be bold and be clear: “Make America Great Again!”

 Accepting the “Harsh Reality” is never easy. Refusal to do so always produces disastrous consequences. So, we must start a new winning strategy for winning in 2024 now!

Warnock Corruption Exposed!

Corruption! Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) has managed to double his salary since joining Congress.

Not only has he done that, but he is playing games with how he classifies his income to keep the money train rolling.

https://patriotunitednews.com/corrupt-democrat-senator-caught-pay-for-play-4/?utm_source=PUN%20Q4BS2&utm_medium=email&utm_content=subscriber_id:116817158&utm_campaign=Joe%20Biden%20Calls%20It%20Quits

The Time of the End has Come!

 

Understand Chicago and Understand What Is Happening to America

 Understand Chicago and Understand What Is Happening to America

For several years prior to 2020, violent crime in America’s major cities was on the decline. But since the riots that summer following the death of George Floyd, it is heading in the opposite direction.

Murders nationwide in 2020 rose a stunning 29.4 percent over the previous year, the largest annual increase since the FBI began tracking that data in the 1960s. The number of murders in Chicago climbed even more sharply, rising 55 percent. It was as if a switch had been flipped. At least ten major U.S. cities hit new murder highs in 2021, but Chicago led the way with 797, the city’s highest number in 25 years.

So, there’s violent crime aplenty in Chicago. But punishment? Not so much.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported that in 2020, police made carjacking arrests in only eleven percent of cases. And Cook County prosecutors working for State’s Attorney Kim Foxx approved felony charges in less than half of that eleven percent.

Too many Chicagoans are dead due in part to a broken criminal justice system.

In addition to legal reforms and improved policing, it’s time to stop making excuses for what one brave Chicago alderman, called “the borderline collapse of the family unit in many of our neighborhoods” and the effects of “generational gang life.” Political leaders need to stop walking on eggshells when it comes to talking about the breakdown of the nuclear family in low-income black communities. Young men need fathers—without fathers they flounder.

According to City of Chicago data, in every year from 1999 to 2009, more than 80 percent of all black women who gave birth were single. Among Latinos, that figure rose from 45 to 55 percent during that period, while for whites and Asians the numbers were dramatically lower.

More broken homes are directly correlated with more violent crime. Annual Chicago Police Department reports show that the neighborhoods with the highest murder rates are the same neighborhoods in which births to single mothers are highest. Among children raised in households headed by two biological parents, regardless of race, studies find greater educational attainment, higher adult income, and lower rates of incarceration.

There is much more, however, the above is a disturbing from the list!

The following are the predictable legal reforms to remedy what is ailing Chicago as well as the Nation:

•        Reapportion the budget to build and operate more courtrooms with more judges for speedier trials.
•        Stop releasing people charged with violent felony crimes—including juveniles charged with armed carjacking—on low-cash or no-cash bail.
•        Repeal state legislation that will outlaw most cash bail.
•        Repeal the statutes that severely restricts the ability of prosecutors to charge juveniles with felony armed vehicular hijacking.

There is an old saying amongst those that study people; “Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast”. Meaning, if one does not solve the cultural problems, nothing else one does will matter. That is the power of culture. Generational gang life, generational fatherless households and more!

Culture encompasses the social behavior, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups. If these do not change what is today will become the predictable future. Period.

There is a supportive role government at all levels can play. However, until the people in the cultures and sub-cultures do NOT look at themselves and say, “I’m disgusted with what I see and am determined not to be part of this from this day forward!” This action, followed by the influencers in the communities (sub-cultures).

The Left today has badly misappropriated the word “equity,” using it to mean equality of outcome—something to be achieved through affirmative action and economic redistribution (for victims from external forces). But real equity, in the old common sense meaning, cannot be given. Real equity requires the old-fashioned virtues. It is inextricable from full ownership of your own course in life. It is an inside out proposition.