Topic: Economics
The Swedish Chef "Banks" Some Chocolate Mousse Unbelievable action from the Riksbank, Government Sachs, and commentary from Joe Saluzzi of Themis Trading, yet a little funny at the same time. As the Romans would say "Hostem inveni et interfice."by Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution
(libertarian)
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Swedish Chef, from the Riksbank: "Yum, yum, yum for the Chocolate! Good, good! Chocolate!" (stirs batter)
Swedish Chef: "... And now, the mousse! Moose, moose! Moo, the moose!!" (pulls a moose into the room, pets it)
Swedish Chef: "... And now, the chocolate and the moose!!" (splats some chocolate on the moose's nose)
Kermit, the Austrian Economist: "Wait a minute!! Enough!! Stop!!!"
Ever see something that is just complete nonsense? From the perspective of the Austrian economist, the below also qualifies.
The Swedish Krona (SEK) is one of the world's "top" currencies. Along with 5 other currencies, it defines the Dollar Index (see "The Money Matrix - What is a Dollar Bill Worth? (PART 2/15)"). Tomorrow, on July 8th, the Swedish central bank, the Riksbank will cut the deposit rate to -0.25%. That's not a misprint. Negative 0.25%. Our central planners, Bernanke, Geithner, Summers and Bair are probably looking on with jealousy.
A negative deposit rate means that for balances held by member banks at the Riksbank, they will lose money over time. The banks may then even charge their customers a negative rate for carrying a balance. This might make some sense, but the banks don't even have the money to start with!!Just like America's FED, the Swedes practice fractional reserve banking, which by its very nature is completely fraudulent - the banks have very little of the depositor's money, about 3-4% for the American banking system as I showed here "Off a Cliff with No Airbags: The FED Banking System Quivers in Fright".
Why wouldn't a Swede, say with 20,000 SEK, just take out his money, covert it into paper, and rent a security box at the bank for 50 SEK? If he keeps his currency in electronic form, he will lose about 50 SEK for the year anyways!
The Kermit in me just wants to shout, "STOP, YOU IDIOTS!!!" This Keynesian stupidity has no apparent end.
Kermit's runner-up for stupidity is Government Sachs, of whom I gave a scathing review last week here "The Bubble Blowers: Goldman Sachs and Cap and Trade". Sergey Aleynikov, a former employee of Goldman Sachs who worked on programming with dual US-Russian citizenship, was arrested at an airport last Friday per Bloomberg. Allegedly he placed GS's proprietary trading software on a German server where it may have been downloaded.
Now anyone who studies modern quant, bond or stock trading realizes the big investment firms just leverage up to their eyeballs and trade during milliseconds on the exchanges - anything to make a profit. While there is something very, very wrong with this as well - listen to Joe Saluzzi of Themis Trading here, I have no objections in principle if someone is able to write a program smart enough to make monster profits. Where I have a problem is what Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Facciponti said:
"The bank has raised the possibility that there is a danger that somebody who knew how to use this program could use it to manipulate markets in unfair ways. The copy in Germany is still out there, and we at this time do not know who else has access to it."
Strange use of words, eh? That you would be able to "manipulate markets in unfair ways." Does this mean that when Goldman Sachs used the program, they were manipulating the market in an unfair fashion? I innocently wonder, but I already know the answer. Keep your eyes peeled for "Unlocking the Money Matrix - The Summers Gold Price Suppression Scheme" which is already written and coming soon!
History repeats itself. The robber barons of the middle ages, and the robber barons of today. The people bowing before the combination of bankers and politicians, bearing the sword of legislation. (Source, copyright expired)
The truth of the matter is that much of the world's population still live like Dark Age serfs under a medley of central bankers and planners, corporatocrats (new word), and a massive economic dead-weight, our politicians and our federal government. Try reading Howard Katz's "Why the FED is Depreciating the Currency."
People, be wary, we are probably going to get hit pretty much by what GEAB N 36 calls "three rogue waves" - massive unemployment, many corporate bankruptcies, and then a dollar/pound/US Treasury crisis. They have been mostly correct in the past - the housing bubble, stock market crashes, performance of the USDX, etc. Look at how America had 11 of the world's Top 20 banks in 1999 by market capitalization. In 2009, we just have 3 of the Top 20 while the Chinese went from zero to 5.
HOSTEM INVENI ET INTERFICE. People, locate and destroy the enemy.
Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution
Note - Not sure what quant trading is? I am certainly no expert, but I now know enough to be considered 'armed and dangerous.' A free class in quant trading is available here. It's obviously self-taught.
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
As always, unlike the NFL, the author grants full permission to allow any accounts of, rebroadcasts, retransmissions, repostings of this article to your blog or anywhere else in order to promote the Restoration of our Republic.
Veritas numquam perit. Veritas odit moras. Veritas vincit. Truth never perishes. Truth hates delay. Truth conquers.
Tu ne cede malis sed contra audentior ito. Do not give in to evil but proceed ever more boldly against it.
The views expressed in this
article are those of Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution only and do not represent
the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution is
solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an
employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
Just so that my remarks don't get so FAR down on the other article that no one can see them, I'll add a few right here. Even though I don't intend to read through this piece of puffery that you've posted.
Let me say that I looked through your congressional website, and found it GREATLY LACKING in any substance about ISSUES except those having to do with MONEY.
Nothing about MARIJUANA, ABORTION, GAY MARRIAGE, STEM CELL RESEARCH, GUN CONTROL, PRESCRIPTION DRUGS, even the DRINKING AGE for adults. You can VOTE and JOIN THE MILITARY at 18, why can't you DRINK in some states?
And, if you don't think these are PERSONAL LIBERTY issues, then you're not much of a PERSONAL RIGHTS ADVOCATE.
Why can't I smoke pot in my home? Why can't I grow it for myself and sell it to people I want to? Shouldn't that be a personal liberty?
Why can't I give someone an abortion if they ASK for it, and I can do it? Isn't that a personal liberty issue?
Why shouldn't I be able to pack a GUN like they used to in the old west? Ain't that'a PERSONAL LIBER'TEE isshoe, pard'ner?
Come on, Jake, you're DUCKING more issues than an aging prize fighter!
And, tell me why abortion laws, cigarette laws, drinking, guns, and marijuana would be better as LOCAL LAWS than as NATIONAL LAWS? It's because if you make them ILLEGAL in one county, they'll be legal in the next and that defeats the whole purpose of making it ILLEGAL in the first place.
Your notion of LOCAL LAWS being superior to NATIONAL LAWS is about as naive as someone who thinks they won't get AIDS if they "think positive thoughts".
One last comment. You write on your congressional website: "Property should be owned by people, not government."
What about parks, highways, libraries, courthouses, schools, the water supply, bridges... Come out of the DARK AGES, Jake. Your BIGOTRY for INDIVIDUALISM is clouding your SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY.
Posted By: Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution
Date: 2009-07-08 13:10:37
Dear Mr. C -
The above list ARE issues about liberty, I will be addressing them on my future website - what you looked at is just very rough - so I won't be ducking them at all. Quite the contrary. The presentation that you read obviously can't cover every single issue.
I am not sure where you get "Your notion of LOCAL LAWS being superior to NATIONAL LAWS" I have written that the US Constitution is the supreme Law and state and local laws AND acts should not conflict with it.
With regards, to "Property should be owned by people, not government." you bring up a good point in regards to highways, courthouses, etc. Let's also assume for the purpose of conversation that its a necessity for government and not consider any plan like privatization of highways, which is possible but only if the locals want to do it.
People have given the State surrogate powers to build and repair roads, bridges, usually locally schools. However, you missed the point later in the presentation that a government = a set of laws, and is not a person, although it officers certainly are. So when you walk into a public park or historic site owned publicly, it's really partly yours.
However, you missed the point of the slide, which points that gov't ownership of people's private property and private companies should not be allowed.
For anyone else reading this, hope you enjoyed the article!
Guys like YOU can see RAIN in every SUNNY SKY. Everything you look at, except for your LIBERTARIAN FACE in the mirror, makes you realize how trivial, unimportant, irrelevant, and impotent you are. Keep hoping for things to get worse. Because "hope" is all you've got!
I covered all this namby-pamby stuff about privatizing highways and sanitation systems in my articles about the immortal "Libertarianville". You're NOT going to get LOCAL UNITS of government to build roads and bridges with VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS! Ha! Ha! Ha! When are you guys going to get your heads out of the DONUT FACTORY and admit the limitations of your INDIVIDUALISM MANTRA?
My criticism of LOCAL CONTROL stems from your assertion that there should be "more local and less national". What I've been trying to pound into that cement area of your beliefs is that the MORE LOCAL you make things, the LESS UNIFORM and the MORE CHAOTIC they are. Outlaw guns in one place, they'll buy them in another. Outlaw booze or drugs in one place, and they'll buy them somewhere else.
The whole gimmick that MORE LOCAL means MORE CONTROL ignores the implications of LOCAL ELITE. The big corporations in your LOCAL AREA and RICH INDIVIDUALS are going to control what happens in the LOCAL AREA. Haven't you seen enough westerns to see what happens when ONE, WEALTHY LAND OWNER dominates a town? He controls water rights, grazing rights, railroad rights, employment, the SHERIFF -- whatever.
We need more UNIFORMITY for better enforcement and regulation. You OPPOSE national control of local municipalities as I understand your position.
Let me say, too, that if that website is a RAW, UNFINISHED statement of your politcal positions, you sure don't know how to EDIT. It's as long as a book of ENCYCLOPEDIAS right now!
But, that's always been some of your strategy, I'm sure. You wear people out with volumes of things about this and that so that they can't really see where you're leading them. What you have never understood, however, is that the people you need to CONVINCE aren't going to read that stuff anyway.
But, this is YOUR LESSON to learn. Beat yourself up over it. Keep pounding out the volumes of UNREAD PRINCIPLES, and you'll find yourself IGNORED, UNDERFUNDED, and not even able to break the 5% level of those who vote.
But, by golly, I'll bet you're PROUD of yourself for that 5%. What you don't seem to understand is that that's like getting a 5% on a test. It means that 95% of your answers were WRONG!
Just one more caution.... That stuff on page 26 of your website about "Prosperity via Monetary Policy Change" is apt to get you ARRESTED! You're calling for an overthrow of the US GOVERNMENT! Ha! Ha!
Not that anyone would ever believe you could do it, but sometimes they don't even need that much provocation to arrest you.
Posted By: Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution
Date: 2009-07-08 14:02:08
Ah yes, you haven't written here in awhile. As I remember your "Libertarianville" article was just a bunch of straw man arguments. Amusing, but not convincing.
I think you also might like to check out my response to the "strawman" accusations in my article: [link edited for length] if you think I missed some explanations.
Saying that roads and bridges and sewers will not be built without the feds is ridiculous. If all that federal money stayed in the state then I imagine that there would be plenty of cash for such things. The beauty of it is that it's easier to see where the money is being utilized(or wasted) rather than disappearing into the black hole of D.C. How can you not see that we are on an unsustainable- I repeat- UNSUSTAINABLE road of debt and spending. How can this not be obvious. "What I've been trying to pound into that cement area of your beliefs is that the MORE LOCAL you make things, the LESS UNIFORM and the MORE CHAOTIC they are. Outlaw guns in one place, they'll buy them in another. Outlaw booze or drugs in one place, and they'll buy them somewhere else." Exactly! Fuck your uniformity. I'm not an anarchist. Govt. is a necessary evil and the Constitution sums up the kind of govt. I want rather nicely.
Want to comment on this
article? Leave your comment here. Your email address is
required to track your comment. However, we will neither
publish your email address nor distribute it to other
organizations or persons. The only reason we might use
it would be if we needed to contact you regarding your
comment. All comments are subject to our
terms of use policy.
