The new Gilded Age – The psychology behind the aspirational rich in America and how people allow banks to swindle their financial security away.
A couple of weeks ago a survey of the ultra-rich by Fidelity Investments showed that most of these millionaires did not feel rich unless they had $7.5 million. Keep in mind that one out of three Americans do not have one penny to their name, not even stashed in the beat up mattress. It is […]
The financial elixir that is falling home prices – Lower home prices good for the economy – Median U.S. home price down to $157,000 taking up 3 times the annual household income instead of the bubble peak of 5. Adding jobs while home prices move lower? Banks big winners when home prices remain inflated.
It is interesting that in the short-term horizon of our economy falling home prices are occurring while jobs are being added. The banking sector during the early days of the crisis made it abundantly clear that falling home prices would lead to economic collapse. Yet the opposite is occurring. Why? First, inflated home prices eat […]
Federal Reserve and the opaque banking syndicate – If the economy were booming why does the Fed still hold over $2.5 trillion in securities? $640 billion current fiscal year budget deficit.
The Federal Reserve is one giant black box of financial mysticism in our economy. At least that is what the Fed wants the public to think so it can remain shrouded in mystery. Since the crisis slammed our economy and the bailouts started in mass, calls for greater Federal Reserve transparency have been echoed in […]
Austerity nation – 45 million Americans on food assistance programs. Americans shopping at discount dollar stores confronting the realities of a shrinking dollar and disappearing middle class.
From November to December of 2010 487,000 Americans were added to the food stamp program. Keep in mind this all occurred while the stock market continued to soar and has rallied nearly 100 percent from the lows reached in March of 2009. Working and middle class Americans barely have enough to pay for the monthly […]