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Watching History Unfold
Obama's War Mongering
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet
*******************

For one to say: "These are perilous times," in reference to our current position on the time continuum, would be a vast understatement. 

With a military spent and degraded, the US stands on the cusp of a THIRD WORLD WAR, which will -- win, lose, or draw, likely finish America for good.

Our President is insistent upon involving the US in the "trigger conflict" which will, undoubtedly, set the wheels in motion that will spark a regional conflagration drawing in the remaining nations of the world due to the strategic location of the shooting war itself.

To make matters worse, our national legislature, the Congress, appears ready to endorse the President's war mongering.  Frankly, I had thought they had better sense.  But I now believe I was woefully wrong.  They really ARE that dumb.

The argument that Obama's war will be short-lived and have a narrow strike zone and limited scope is all unadulterated Bovine Scatology.  The moment the first American bomb strikes Syrian soil it's:  "GAME ON!"  The proverbial powder keg will explode and all hell will break loose all over the world.  That includes inside the contiguous United States, as well.  This time it is entirely likely that America will have war on its own shores.

If you have ever, as an adult, taken a fall, you know there is a split second when your mind suddenly grasps that your body is going to fall and strike the hard floor and there is absolutely nothing you can do to prevent it.  In that same instant your mind begins preparing for the painful aftermath, which it is now certain is forthcoming.  All of this takes place in an instant.

That's where this scribe is in assessing Obama's coming war in Syria -- or should I say: Obama's war in the Middle East, or even Obama's Third World War?  The frustrating inability to do anything to prevent it is palpable.

It's as though the United States is on a pre-planned excursion into Hell, itself, and the American people, like blind lemmings, are marching right along behind their Luciferian leader into the jaws of perdition having been easily convinced the heat they feel is only the rays of a friendly sun.

The systematic dismantling of the United States by the marxocrats is nearly complete now.  Only one thing remains:  Destruction of America's military might.  That, too, it appears, is approaching an advanced stage. 

Consider the following from David G. Bolgiano in an OP-ED piece n the September 1st edition of the Fayetteville Observer of Fayetteville, NC, the home of Ft. Bragg:

"There has been a systemic winnowing of steely eyed killers from our military's senior-leader ranks. In their place are effete politicians with Harvard Kennedy School of Government-like credentials but lacking true, close-in killing experience. Under such leadership, the lives of suspected al-Qaida and Taliban are valued the same as our own young men and women.

This misguided approach to fighting a counterinsurgency fails, as Winston Churchill stated, to "decline utterly to be impartial as between the fire brigade and the fire." This raises a serious overarching question, "Why fight?" If the current crop of leaders and lawyers were running the show back in 1944, the entire E Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of "Band of Brothers" fame would have been court-martialed. Moreover, we would now all be speaking German."  SOURCE: http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/09/01/1279594?sac=fo.military  

Mr. Bolgiano goes on to say in his excellent article: "Unfortunately, ill-informed and untrained lawyers have created an unnecessary legal bogie monster by substituting fuzzy notions from human rights law for the sound doctrine of the law of war. We now conduct war by such silly notions as "warrant-based targeting" and "minimum force." The enemy has become quite adept at using this tactic of "lawfare" to make us much less combat-effective.

Many commanders are afraid to use force when their own troops are under attack."  (Emphasis by underlining --MINE.  ED) SOURCE:  http://www.fayobserver.com/articles/2013/09/01/1279594?sac=fo.military

Through decades of scripture study I have wondered, as I am told many of you have as well, why the US (or American army) is not identified amongst the other armies of the great nations of the world in the scripture covering the final battle, the Battle of Armageddon. 

Could it be that THE US ARMY WILL NOT BE THERE  because -- there will be no United States in existence to send an army. 

For old-timers, like me, watching history unfold today is akin to watching a review of things past. 

One of the things one learns as one grows older is that history does, in fact, repeat itself. The old adage that those who refuse to learn the lessons from history past are doomed to repeat the mistakes their forebears made -- is also true -- and in spades!

Who would have thought that a few pistol shots resulting in the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria on June 28th, 1914 would lead to not one, but two, world wars?  With brief respites, the nations of the world were at each other's throats for the next 30 some-odd years.

If Obama gets his way, the US will be interfering in a civil war in a nation in which there are no vital national security interests for the United States.  None.

Are the people of Britain, France, and Germany smarter than the US?  Each have said "no" to standing with Obama in a war which is undoubtedly the "initializer" for a greater conflict. 

The American people have cast their lot with the peoples of Britain, France and Germany.  BUT -- the LEADERS of the American people seem ready to defy the American people, the lessons of history, and even common sense, to involve the United States in a conflict that (I BELIEVE) will ultimately lead to the collapse of the US and it's final break up into a number of smaller nations.

Somehow, the American people have come to view electing a President as equal to electing a prom king or even a student body president.  It has become a popularity contest. And THIS is the result. A leader who, when he deigns to lead at all, tends to lead the nation toward defeat and destruction. 

Today America resembles an out of control "Merry-Go 'Round," or carousel, accelerating faster and faster with no way for the riders to get off.  The ONLY option is to hold on and wait for the crash.

©  J. D. Longstreet

Click to enlarge.

Here's the theory. We need to add drinking jobs at least as fast as we lose manufacturing jobs (per capita, so job growth can keep up with population growth). 0% is therefore the goal. Achieve that and the world is our oyster! We've been doing great since November of 2010. That's nearly 3 years of solid performance. Let's hope we can sustain it permanently this time!

Hey, I never said it would be easy over the long-term. As seen in the following chart, there may be a chance though.


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Thanks to the increased frequency of hangovers brought on by exponentially increasing heavy drinking, the future's too bright. I gotta wear shades. Sigh.

See Also:
Sarcasm Disclaimer

Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart
CDC: Alcohol Usage Trends

TPM - Hmm, What say you?



Via: Memeorandum

by:Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA
Liberty -vs- Tyranny

Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

Republican Senator John McCain, the RINO that he has turned into, has decided to oppose the Senate draft resolution on Syrian intervention because it doesn't go FAR ENOUGH in insuring America's continuing military posture in the region. Of course Mr. McCain claims he opposes boots on the ground but this is nothing more than political BS. For McCain it is quite likely the truth is "whatever it takes to topple Bashir al-Assad is his real position. And we all know how well that worked out for the nation on many fronts with Iraq, don't we?

FOX News - Sen. John McCain, President Obama's biggest cheerleader on Capitol Hill for a strike in Syria, said Wednesday that he would not support a Senate panel's draft resolution authorizing the use of force -- forcing a key Senate panel to delay a vote.

"There are a number of people who are unhappy," McCain told reporters on Capitol Hill. Asked if he supported the measure, McCain said, "In its current form, I do not."

The decision was a setback for the administration's effort to win swift support from Congress for an attack. McCain's opposition, though, is likely a negotiating tactic to win more aggressive language in the resolution. McCain said Wednesday afternoon he wants to see a provision that states U.S. action must be aimed at a "reversal of momentum on the ground."

It's unclear how far the rest of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will go, with some members worried the resolution already goes too far. The committee pushed off a planned meeting and possible vote until Wednesday afternoon, though the committee's top Republican, Sen. Bob Corker, said he's fairly certain they can begin work on the resolution later in the day.

McCain, who has long favored stepped-up U.S. involvement in the Syrian civil war, said he opposes the resolution crafted by fellow Sens. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and Bob Corker of Tennessee. The resolution puts a 90-day limit on action and says no American troops can be sent to Syria (Emphasis Added)... {Read More}

Hopefully saner heads prevail and the President is denied Congressional support for this yet another unjustified military intervention into another sovereign nation's civil war. Hasn't the nation wasted enough lives and treasure on the foolish notion it's our job to police the world?

Via: Memeorandum

UPDATE:

President Obama has made it clear he has the right to intervene in Syria (exercising his executive authority) whether or not Congress gives it's approval. NICE. The War Powers Act and the Geneva Accords working in favor of the grand design to achieve that One World Order with the U.S.A. leading the way. Something the American Oligarchy has long sought to achieve. Going back to Woodrow Wilson and the failed League of Nations.

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL - President Barack Obama said he retains the right to order strikes against Syria even if Congress doesn't authorize them, but he is seeking approval from U.S. lawmakers because he thinks it will strengthen America's response.

"We will be stronger as a country in our response if the president and Congress does it together," Mr. Obama said at a news conference on Wednesday in Stockholm.

Asked whether he would launch strikes in Syria if Congress doesn't authorize them, the president said: "As commander in chief I always preserve the right and the responsibility to act on behalf of America's national security. I don't believe that I was required to take this to Congress. But I did not take this to Congress because I think it's an empty exercise."

What national security issue what that be Mr. President?

It certainly seems like an empty exercise. Especially so if Congress has leveler heads and votes no on authorizing unjustified military intervention.

His comments come after leading lawmakers from both parties said Tuesday they would support military action in Syria to deter the future use of chemical weapons, pushing the U.S. closer to military strikes against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. But many of the rank-and-file lawmakers remain unswayed, and Congress could ultimately vote against military action in Syria, forcing Mr. Obama to act unilaterally.

Mr. Obama also lashed out at critics who said he boxed himself in by saying last year that if Mr. Assad used chemical weapons he would be crossing a "red line" that would prompt U.S. action. "I didn't set a red line," Mr. Obama said. "The world set a red line" when it outlawed the use of chemical weapons, he said.

"My credibility's not on the line. The international community's credibility is on the line, and America and Congress' credibility is on the line because we give lip service to the notion that these international norms are important," Mr. Obama said, referring to international laws against the use of chemical weapons.

Well Mr. President, to many who remember prior words and positions you have spoken/taken yes, your credibility is on the line.

Via: Memeorandum

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This linear trend failure is making a most spectacular recovery! What a rare treat in this brave new era of trend failures!

Nixon Shock


August 04, 2011
Bloomberg: The Nixon Shock

In hindsight, good luck on that one Burns!


Good luck to you as well Bernanke!

August 6, 2013
More Than a Quarter of Fast-Food Workers Are Raising a Child


The following chart shows the additional percentage of 16- to 19-year-olds employed in July compared to those employed in January of that same year.


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The long-term pressure is clearly to the downside, and that means that summer jobs have definitely become an endangered species. Of course, that's also true of employment in general for this age group. The jobs just aren't there. And in my opinion, no amount of optimistic wishing is going to make them magically reappear either, especially over the long-term. Sigh.

Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: 25- to 54-Year-Old Workers / 55+ Year-Old Workers
St. Louis Fed: 16- to 19-Year-Old Employment Rate

Have I told you lately how much I love talking with you? Yes, you.

I love the comments you leave me each and every day and because of those comments I've started a lot of great friendships through this blog. I try my very best to answer each and every comment that comes in, but for some of you that's hard to do.

Yes, its the dreaded 'no-reply' comment discussion. I'm not the first to talk about this and there are many out there who will tell you how to correct this (here, here and here) but the crib notes version is, if you have a Blogger profile (which you can have even if you don't have a blog of your own) and your profile does not include your email, then you are a no-reply blogger. Also, if you have your Google + account linked as your blogger profile then you are a no-reply blogger as well.

This is frustrating because then I can't email you back. I used to do my best to research how to get a hold of the no-reply commenters and would sometimes be able to find an email address after a lot of digging but that is a lot of time. A lot.

So PLEASE check your profile and make sure that your email is listed, because I want to chat with you.

And one other thing for all of you fellow bloggers out there. In my former life I was in the big world of web development. Exciting, I know. And in that life I learned a few cardinal rules in the world of the web, one of which is broken all the time. Every single link within a post, whether it goes to another page on your blog or an entirely different site, should open in a new window.

You don't want a reader to be in the middle of an engrossing post that you worked hard to create to click on a link within the middle of your story and be taken away to another site. It is just like putting down a book only to find when you come back that you've lost your place. So frustrating. And frustrating to you as well if that reader doesn't end up going back to your site to finish that post. You don't want that.

The good news is that this is a super easy fix. When setting up your link, just make sure to click the 'open this link in a new window' box and you are all set.


So those are my two public service announcements for the day. And to thank you for your patience during this school lesson, I have a treat for you on Friday. You will love it, trust me.

And by the way,

via

Shackles Of The NEW American Slavery 
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet
********************

Long before the Progressives got hold of our Public Education system in the United States, educators used to actually teach history.  Those days, however, are long, long, gone.

Knowledge of one’s history is integral to the character of a person, of a people and of a nation. History is OUR story.  It is the record of our victories and our failures.  It tells us where we have been and tells us how we got here. It forms the basic foundation for any plans we formulate for where we intend to go in our collective future.  History is vital.

For history to yield a true course into the future it is absolutely necessary that the records be absolutely complete. That means history should always tell the whole story — the good, the bad, and the ugly — ALL of it.  The records should always include those events of which we are justly proud — and — justly ashamed.  For without the entire record, studying our history would be akin to reading a newspaper from which articles of critical importance have been cut out and discarded.

A scholar attempting to study our history would never get the entire story, the entire record, and any decisions made, or actions taken, based on his study of recorded history would, of necessity, be flawed.  But the scholar would never know those decisions and actions were indeed, flawed, because his own studies were, to put it mildly, incomplete.
Insufficient knowledge often referred to (commonly) as ignorance, has been the root cause of the downfall of many nations. And it now appears it has become the root cause of the downfall of The United States of America.

Today, America faces one of its worst crises ever.  A Constitutional Crisis looms on America’s horizon as the current government seeks to expand its powers into areas where it has no constitutional authority.  Congress continues to cross constitutional lines and into legislative territory held sacrosanct by the constitution for the states and/or the people… not the federal government.  Our President simply by passes Congress, and the constitution, and makes law himself and then decrees its existence.

Nullification laws used by the southern states prior to the American Civil War to try to warn Congress they were “out of bounds” are being dusted off and returned to use by several states while many other states are actively considering them.

How did we come to this?

National Ignorance.

I contend that had it not been for ignorance of the constitution, ignorance of America’s collective history, ignorance of the history of western civilization, the current government of the US would not be in power today. There is simply no way, short of rebellion, for a leadership so bent on transforming America from a constitutional republic into a socialist/communist nation, to have ever come to power.

Americans are a “breed apart.”  Unlike our European cousins we tend to abhor government intrusion and intervention in our lives.  We fought a war against a world superpower when we were only 13 colonies stuck on the eastern seaboard of a vast mostly unknown, and certainly un-conquered, continent, to break free from the shackles of a government which resembles, far too closely, the government we have today in our nation’s capital.  It is a vital part of our story — of our history.

But ignorance has taken a toll, a horrible toll, on America.  A generation, or more, of Americans do not know who they are.  They don’t know that Americans fought a war to free themselves from a tyrannical government much like the one currently ruling over us today in Washington, DC.  Too, they are ignorant of their rights, which were granted by God and the US Constitution.  It is THIS ignorance that has brought America to the precipice to which she desperately clings today.

America’s current national leadership is only the tip of an iceberg.  It is just the tip a movement that has been toiling, for nearly a century, behind the scenes to bring about this transformation of America into some sort of collectivist state, a socialist/communist state, if you will.  If they are finally successful they will install an all powerful central government which will impose it’s will on every American at a whim.  Representative government will be gone.  “Consent of the Governed” will have no meaning, whatsoever.  It will, effectively, re-impose slavery in America – and this time – we will ALL be slaves.

Even today the powerful Obama Administration has extended its tentacles into practically every  aspect of our lives.  What is truly frightening, however, is this:  Now that Obamacare is law;  bonds have been forged that will enslave every American and tether us to the government as slaves forever.

© J. D. Longstreet

Ariel Castro

Diana, the female vigilante image sketch released by Juárez local police and the Chihuahua state attorney general's office.

Woman claims the bus drivers had violated women and local Juárez police haven't done anything, which drove her to seek justice.

by:Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA
Liberty -vs- Tyranny


As Congress considers the irrational logic behind the Obama Administration's argument for military intervention in Syria the likely Democratic Party nominee for President in 2016, Hillary Clinton, comes down squarely on the side of the MIC and continuation of the United States of America's role as the world's policeman. Just as did the current Secretary of State, and former anti war activist John Kerry has done. Prepare yourself America for more of the same, as this nation actively seeks a way to continue to lose credibility worldwide.

POLITICO - Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton backs President Barack Obama’s move to urge Congress to back a targeted effort in Syria, in the first comments from her camp since the president unveiled his plan, POLITICO has learned.

“Secretary Clinton supports the president’s effort to enlist the Congress in pursuing a strong and targeted response to the Assad regime’s horrific use of chemical weapons,” a Clinton aide told POLITICO.

Calls had been increasing on Clinton to weigh in on the president’s plan for Syria.

Clinton is giving a speech next week that she’d indicated would focus on the debate over the National Security Agency, but it is possible that the focus could shift.

The potential 2016 presidential contender has been picking her spots on the national issues she chooses to discuss, as she takes time since leaving Foggy Bottom to develop her office at the Clinton Foundation and give speeches, as well as work on her new memoir.

But avoiding Syria was hard to imagine, even as Clinton associates insist she hasn’t made up her mind about a run for the White House. Her tenure at the State Department will be both the platform for a future campaign, should she launch one, and not commenting would leave the appearance of daylight between her and the incumbent, who is pushing hard to sell Congress on authorizing a limited strike.

It was reported earlier this year by The New York Times that the White House had nixed a proposal by Clinton and former CIA head David Petraeus to arm some Syrian rebels...

Which by the way means siding squarley with Al Qaeda. {Read More Here}

The Geneva Accords and the War Powers Act aside it is becoming more clear than ever why the Founding Fathers cautioned and advised future generations to steer clear of foreign interventions.

Witness the party of WAR and advocate for continued expansion of the Military Industrial Complex. The very same that President Dwight Dwight Eisenhower warned America of in his Farewell Speech to the Nation in 1961, note especially his comments beginning at approximately the 6 min. and 20 sec. mark.

Unfortunately our nation has been on a constant military footing non stop since WW II. The question for this nation is, "when will it be time time to stand down?"

Via: Memeorandum

Click to enlarge.

From 1993 through 1999, one could estimate with great precision how much money was being spent on office construction simply by knowing how the stock market was doing.

From 2000 through 2007, one could still make a reasonably accurate estimate.

From 2008 to present, this device could have done better.


Click to enlarge.




Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: S&P 500 vs. Office Construction Spending
St. Louis Fed: Employment Level - Sales and Office Occupations

The Wisconsin Hispanic Scholarship Foundation Board expected to meet and discuss the expulsions of multiple people during August 23-25 from its annual Mexican Fiesta grounds after people had paid admission and no refunds were ever returned.

Click to enlarge.



Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart

Hello September!!
A new month, a NEW reason to look forward to. I'm sure I'm not the only one feeling this way, right?
Here is my wish list:

TO GO:
New York Fashion Week is just around the corner and I'm very excited to head in the The Big Apple tomorrow as a Community Corespondent for Polyvore.

TO WEAR:
Shades of bloody red on almost everything ( I predict a lot of monochrome outfits this season).

TO BUY:
Every season I try to update my closet with a few essential pieces. Now I 'm focused on colored and printed jackets/ coats/. (And some bitter colors heels :)

TO ENJOY:
Last but not least I want to walk through colored falling leaves in my favorite places...

I hope you all enjoy this beautiful season!
Thank you for your visit.




                                                                                               Burgundy everything:

                                                                  Sweaters: Miu Miu & Proenza Schouler/ option Here and Here
                                                                  Pants: Tory Burch/ Here
                                                                  Skirt: The Row/ option Here
                                                                  Hat: Otte Alexis/ Here and Here
                                                                  Gloves: French Connection/ option Here
                                                                  Makeup: Lipstick NYX Here , Nail lacquer: Tom Ford/ Here , Eye Brow: NYX/ Here



                                                                                             Paste Coloured & Printed Coats:

                                                         
                                                                  Pastel coat: Max Mara/ option Here 
                                                                  Check coat: Ganni Mother of Pearl/ Here and option Here 
                                                                  Animal print jacket: Topshop/ Here

                                               
                                                                                              Bitter -Colours Shoes:



                                                                  Slipers: Zara/ option  Here
                                                                  Blue Heels: Sergio Rossi/ Here
                                                                  Burgundy Heels: Sam Edelman/ Here

War On Terror LOST
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet
*****************************

America has lost the War on Terror.

I can hear the exclamations now: "Whoa!  Wait a cussed minute, Longstreet!"  How EVER did you come up with that idea, huh?"

It's not exactly an Idea.  It's more like a fact.   In fact, it IS a FACT!

All America has accomplished, so far, anyway, is to "wall" ourselves in. Heck, we have barely scratched the enemy, the terrorists.  Each week, or so, we take out a few desert dwelling bomb-makers and terrorists out in the wilderness of the Middle East with Hellfire missiles from a circling drone, pat ourselves on the back, and then go right back to monitoring the phone calls, and email of American citizens.

The average American citizen has had far more freedom taken from him, denied him, refused him, since the so-called War on Terror was declared than any of the countries aiding and abetting the terrorists themselves.

In the dozen years since 9-11-01, America has become a police state, a surveillance state, a state in which citizens are as surely caged in as any criminal in any prison in the country.

All the "walls" America has built, electronic and otherwise, intended to keep the terrorist out have the equal and opposite reaction of keeping Americans in! Each of the new national security laws forces American citizens to give up more and more of our freedom and liberty in exchange for promised security.

It strikes me that national security laws are in many ways akin to gun control laws.  They limit the freedom of the citizen but do next to nothing to deter crime or terrorism.  Summed up, it is the American citizen being shafted - not the terrorist.

Look.  All governments seek power and then MORE power.  It is what they do.  It is the nature of the beast.  Anything that will assist them in accruing more power is sought after continuously and vigorously.

The citizens of any country are most at risk when their country is under threat of war.  Sadly, those citizens are equally at risk from the enemy AND from their own government.

The at risk citizen's government quickly learns that fear of a looming threat knocks down all sorts of walls erected to hold a government at bay and protect the freedom of citizens.  Oft times they will embellish and inflate the threat to create a sense of fear and a longing for security which they can then use and manipulate to expand the power of government.  That power will outlast the threat and eventually become a part of the so-called "New Normal."  We have seen it -- right here in the United States -- since 9-11-01.

Ted Koppel, in a piece he wrote for the Wall Street Journal in August, said the following:  "Terrorism, after all, is designed to produce overreaction. It is the means by which the weak induce the powerful to inflict damage upon themselves—and al Qaeda and groups like it are surely counting on that as the centerpiece of their strategy."  SOURCE:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324653004578650462392053732.html

Our beloved constitution has been steamrolled in the name of national security.  Law abiding citizens are monitored by the government 24/7.  For the first time in our lives, and in the life of the country, we have a sense that Big Brother is hovering, just over our shoulder, watching and listening to everything we say and do.  As we now know, the feeling was/is correct.

Terrorists live to create mayhem, mischief, and discord within their enemy's camp.  They have been wildly successful in doing just that in the camp we call America.  They have met with success in their efforts while we are in a state of denial seeking more and more security provided by the federal government.  The federal government could not be happier!

The terrorists have clearly won.

Americans have surrendered our most precious freedoms in the name of fighting terrorism.  In the past decade we have called for -- and gotten -- some of the most anti-freedom and anti-liberty laws in the history of America.

I'm not alone in my assessment of America's defeat in the War on Terror.  Consider the following:  "And the terrorists have won. If a primary purpose of terrorism is to induce fear, and Americans are willing to give up their most precious freedoms in the name of fighting terrorism, how is this anything less than a monumental victory for our enemies?"  SOURCE:  http://dailycaller.com/2011/12/02/the-terrorists-have-won/#ixzz2dZKTrIqs

Freedom, once lost, is almost impossible to regain. I didn't say that.  One of our Founding Fathers (and later President) , John Adams, said that!  The freedom and liberties we are giving up today in the name of security are, for all intents and purposes, gone forever.

It has long been thought that the demise of America would be at her own hand.  By voluntarily giving up freedom, some dating  to the Magna Carta, Americans are making certain that a new America is aborning.  It is not an America your father, nor your grandfather would recognize.  Alas, it will not be included among the "free" nations of the world.

© J. D. Longstreet  

Click to enlarge.



Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart

Click to enlarge.

Assuming that the Fed has permanently put a stop to all future recessions and recent trends can therefore remain in place, then 2092 is looking to be quite the year! That's when residential construction employment per capita will have made a full recovery!

I'm only bringing it up because, as seen in the following link, party hats are still in such short supply! Reserve yours early!

September 1, 2013
America resilient 5 years after worst GDP loss since ’30s


Sales are "surging" as we shed the excesses of the past! And credit is easing so we can borrow even more! Hurray!


It is Mark Zandi's vast knowledge of the inner workings of our economy that I admire most. Take his decision to purchase Florida real estate near the peak. Genius! What a relief it must be to him, both as a consumer and as an investor, to directly participate in one of the healthiest and most robust dead cat bounces in all of recorded history! Is it any wonder he's filled with such optimism?


Click to enlarge.

See Also:
When "Sure Things" Break Part II (Musical Tribute)

Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: Residential Construction Employees per Capita
St. Louis Fed: Florida House Price Index / CPI

I'm interrupting this holiday weekend to tell you that you must read the September issue of Lonny. It is so good. Extra good. Crazy good.





Like I said, crazy good. I've read it twice already and probably will pour over it once more before the day is thru. Go over to Lonny and check it out.

Carry on.

Click to enlarge.

As seen in the chart, the unsustainable exponential growth party ended in the first quarter of 2000. In my opinion, those who think our problems all started during the Great Recession are therefore quite mistaken.

Welcome to the new normal! It involves all kinds of exponential trend failures!

Since 2000, we've revisited the median twice. Let's hope we don't revisit the realistic worst case (as seen in the 1950s and 1970s). I say realistic worst case in that historical perspective rear view mirror looking way. Should you be looking out the front window, your realistic worst case may vary!

For what it is worth, I've been permanently bearish since 2004. As a retiree, I no longer have any desire to swing for the fences. I just don't think this economy can support sustainable fence swinging any longer, not that it ever really could. As seen in the chart, the 1980s and 1990s were just an unsustainable exponential growth illusion of prosperity. Those expecting to go back to that era are far more optimistic than I could ever be (especially from these already elevated levels).

This is not investment advice.

See Also:
Stock Market Analysis - The Bearish Case

Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart

Click to enlarge.

Oh, yeah. Totally sustainable.

See Also:
Sarcasm Disclaimer

Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: Custom Chart

by: Les Carpenter
Rational Nation USA
Liberty -vs- Tyranny

Confronted with a series of wrenching choices over Syria, Obama chose the course that best reflects fidelity to the Constitution as written. Hopefully, in the days ahead, taking that less traveled road by presidents will make all the difference. Walter Shapiro,Yahoo News

President Obama, looking beyond the partisan arguments, in the final analysis made the right decision based on the letter of the Constitution he is sworn to uphold.

Article One, Section Eight of the Constitution reads as follows: "The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;

To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian Tribes;

To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;

To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;

To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;

To establish Post Offices and post Roads;

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;

To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;

To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;

To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;

To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;

To provide and maintain a Navy;

To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;

To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;

To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings; —And

To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof."

Credit to the President, after initially using the "Bully Pulpit" to make what I consider an erroneous case for military strikes against Syria he found the good sense to place the decision where it rightly belongs. With the Congress of the United Sates of America.

Read the full article HERE.

Via: Memeorandum