New Deal Reprise

Simple explanation for the script called Buckaroos: The UMKC Mascot is the Kangaroos.

I found Mr. Auerback too soft and too fuzzy regarding the "banksters" and their shenanigans. There is a time for diplomacy and another for plain speaking. His idea is that "what do you expect if you let the foxes into the henhouse? It's the government's fault they didn't lock the house or post a guard," shows precisely that we are dealing with a criminal element. I much prefer Paul Craig Robert's sturdy, totally honest, and courageous assessments:

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article23810.htm

Also, Michael Hudson offers another interview in the same issue
of ICH, which makes the game transparently clear, in its version in
Iceland and Latvia. Hudson and Auerback pretty much share the same
economic perspective — they are "chartalists" — but Hudson is much
clearer, and he doesn't work for hedge funds.

Hosts and Parasites

The Consequences of Default

By Michael Hudson

What happens when a country goes broke?
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article23811.htm

You say that Mr. Auerback is subversive. In fact a huge percentage of what he said is just plain common sense in Canada. The received wisdom.

Great Stuff ... but is it the CDS or any specific type of instrument or is it the obsession with monetizing risk and creating leverage? If there were a real down-side for bad instruments and individuals and institutions were forced to "pay" for their bad bets wouldn't this tend to self correct?

[I'd say both plus, Marty. It's the obsession to monetize plus the opacity of the system plus the outright rigging of the system for the larger players. g.]

You talked about Obama perpetuating Bush’s economic policies, resulting in simmering public anger about "business as usual." And you asked what people are supposed to do, if they should wait for the next election cycle and elect someone else. I have another suggestion. (Hint: I recently listened to Howard Zinn on Bill Moyers Journal.) A citizen does not fulfill his/her democratic responsibilities by going out to vote once every four years. Do not rely on elected officials to implement the platform they were elected on. Even during administrations of great social change (JFK, Johnson), there was constant pressure from the people. The people must mobilize.

You also talked about the Tata car from India, cheap enough for the masses. Your guest thought it would be wiser to leapfrog to electric car technology, using the analogy where some developing countries have no land line telephones, having leapfrogged that technology and gone straight to cell phones. I would propose taking the longer view and learning from the US’s experience (or mistake?) and realize that the personal auto is not scalable. Consider how much fertile land has been paved over by freeways and parking lots in the US, how many annual traffic fatalities there are, and how much time we waste commuting. These problems won’t be solved by green cars. In addition, a solar car might (temporarily) lessen the peak oil problem, but it won’t be too long before we start talking about a peak [insert your favorite precious metal here] problem. Developing world governments (um... and the US) should be investing huge amounts of money in public transportation.