Nice post, chillpariah. I agree with your sentiments, and I too am sympathetic to the tea party roots.

Quote:

2) Voters Elsewhere
I would like to know where all the people upset over these DC policies were the past 10 years.

I can tell you where I've been. Ten years ago I was working hard, starting a family, saving money, paying my mortgage, and I got most of my information by reading newspapers. I believed that Alan Greenspan was a genius.

In the years that followed, I sometimes wondered aloud how everybody except me could afford to drive a brand new GMC Yukon with chrome rims. It slowly dawned on me that Americans individually and collectively had a debt problem.

Eventually I found this forum and lurked for a long time before joining. It has been a real eye-opener, and not an entirely pleasant learning experience.

While I've never been a fan of government handouts (generations on welfare, paying single women with our tax dollars to make and raise babies, etc.), until 4 or 5 years ago I had no idea how much trouble we were/are in. Today I am one of the people upset over DC policies. Ten years ago I didn't know what I know now.

Vicious_cycle:
I found this site in early 2009, but had been concerned about debt for some time. It seemed like there was debt everywhere: individuals, businesses, and government. I knew there was a problem looming, even if I couldn't articulate it.

Ever since I paid off my student loans back in the 80s I've avoided debt like the plague. Maybe that was due to the influence of my parents, who lived through the (first) Great Depression.

I think you're unfair to the Teaparty. The Teaparty is not happy with the deal, and is not happy with the GOP.

The Teaparty is a movement, a concept, an idea. It's still alive. As you said I "associate" myself with the Teaparty yet I agree with you that what is happening is a fraud. So why do you take issue with someone who agrees with you? Do you not understand the principles espoused by the Teaparty?

I've seen you trash the Teaparty repeatedly and I don't understand it. Sure, if someone "associated" with the Teaparty gets co-opted then they're worthy of scorn. But that, by its nature, means they're no longer associated with the Teaparty.

No need to soil an entire movement when the inevitable happens and a few sellouts emerge. The movement lives on.

Unfortunately the Nov. 2010 was the first step in a long journey back to fiscal reality. Many more need to be replaced in CONgress and the White House and the Supreme Court. We didn't get to this predicament in one election cycle nor will we get out of it one election cycle. The dumb Dems are stacking the deck against us and attempting to make it impossible for the conservative/libertarian majority of the USA to vote them out of office.

Nov. 2012 needs to be a stronger punch and many still won't get the message.

You folks are delusional. The Corporato-fascists are in full control and they like it the way it is.

Dems voted in 2006 & 2008 thinking Bush's overspending and corruption was going to be reigned in also.

SURPRISE!

We're going over the brink ... at least be sure to prepare.

chill,
i believe that most americans previously trusted their government and did not realize what actually could happen. i certainly was unaware that the government could bail out bad investment banking losses.

most people just try and lead their lives until they get hit once with a hammer, then they are paying attention to that hammer.

how many people do you know that asked about the bank bailout, "can they do that"?

how many people do you know that asked about the monetization of debt by the federal reserve, "can they do that?"

those two heinous acts made most people sit up and start watching that hammer, although some americans really could care less i am sorry to say.

Point is the same, but I think when you were talking about cotton, you were showing a graph of copper; cotton graph would be better though

That chart alone is the equivalent of a one hour documentary. No explanation needed. The dissembling hubris of both sides is obvious to one and all.

Would be nice if MSM had it available for interviews, eg. yesterday Robert Rubin was explaining on NPR why US default on debt was "out of the question". After getting him to admit that chart did indeed represent an accurate picture, wouldn't it have been refreshing to have someone follow up by asking him who was responsible for putting the US in a position where defacto default was even a consideration?

Instead of deferring to him as a "sage", he should have been put on the defensive about his role in doing away with Glass-Steagall and increasing leverage at investment banks that are now FDIC banks. Default has become an option not simply because US taxpayers prefer not paying their debts but rather that the financial geniuses running investment banks have forced it upon us against our will.

Paper currency would make for some crappy toilet paper, no pun intended. Would probably make good tinder to start the fires when people start rioting, though.

Quote:

These are quite time-consuming to produce and edit - it may only be three or four minutes, but it takes a hell of a lot longer to put them together.

Really? Maybe you should ask the community for help. I produce these for work on a regular basis, although I normally do crude animation like stuff in PPT. I can whip one of these out in 1-2 hrs, and that is with doing the animation.

Deal? What f'n 'deal'?

Debt Jumped $54.1 Billion in 8 Days Preceding Boehner-Obama Deal to Cut $38.5 Billion for Rest of Year
Saturday, April 09, 2011

lol, Yes, the American citizen is this stupid!

The Daily History of the Debt Results
Historical returns from 03/30/2011 through 04/07/2011

http://www.treasurydirect.gov/NP/NPGatew....

The data for the total public debt outstanding is published each business day. If there is no debt value for the date(s) you requested, the value for the preceding business day will be displayed.

( Debt Held by the Public vs. Intragovernmental Holdings )



Date Debt Held by the Public Intragovernmental Holdings Total Public Debt Outstanding
03/30/2011 9,590,804,946,759.17 4,619,335,041,477.56 14,210,139,988,236.73
03/31/2011 9,651,643,154,138.73 4,618,471,376,661.65 14,270,114,530,800.38
04/01/2011 9,649,667,078,138.63 4,601,507,438,169.85 14,251,174,516,308.48
04/04/2011 9,650,003,952,066.04 4,593,927,612,150.53 14,243,931,564,216.57
04/05/2011 9,649,972,136,434.37 4,612,172,326,463.57 14,262,144,462,897.94
04/06/2011 9,649,960,380,158.64 4,609,801,606,721.02 14,259,761,986,879.66
04/07/2011 9,652,195,544,012.12 4,612,049,982,299.46 14,264,245,526,311.58

One of your best videos to date, Karl. I agree with it, and I'm sure most ticker forum members agree with it, but what has always puzzled me is why your messages, in this case a simple to understand video, don't get picked up by some major news program investigative reporter, such as 60 minutes, dateline, nightline, etc. and get the national exposure it deserves. Blog talk radio is great, Ratigan is great, even the limited plugs on Kudlow is fine, by it doesn't get to the attention of Joe and Jane 6 pack. They simply are not tuning in those programs. The bottom line is, in order for your ticker's to gain some real momentum, they need to get reported to more of the American public via primetime programming. Has nobody in the MSM got the balls to expose the fraud and lies? After reading your tickers for more than two years, and agreeing with damn near everything you have to say, one of two things must be apparent:
1) What you have been saying all these years is not true, your opinions are not factually based, and therefore the MSM dismisses them as just another bloggers right to free speech, with little to no substance.
2) You are being ignored because there is some force (political or otherwise) that keeps the MSM from pursuing the truth and exposing our government for the lies and deception it represents.

In either case, your message is not being heard by the majority of the public, which in my mind is a travesty. Until it becomes realized, it's not much more than the musings of a very intelligent man trying to expose the government for what it really is---a dysfunctional system comprised of men and women masquerading as leaders who supposedly represent the people. I think not. You think not. Now if we could only get someone credible to embrace your message and disseminate it to all of America, I think we could really accomplish something. I know there has to be important people in the media that read this forum. I challenge them to have the courage to take the "Ticker Guy" seriously, crunch the data and charts he posts, and simply use your brain to conclude the kind of trouble this country is facing. Then, do your damn job and present it for all the world to see. Is it really that difficult?

If anybody is interested in Steven LaTourette's form letter reply to me after I bashed him on Sunday, here it is, below (complete with typos and spelling errors):

Quote:

Dear Mr. (Vicious_Cycle):

Thank you for contacting me the budget and federal spending. I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts and concerns with me.

I can certainly understand the frustration you are feeling regarding the pace Congress is moving to cut funding. I've heard from many people across the district with those same concerns and to be honest I echo them.

Six months ago, shortly before the election, the Democrats who ran Washington were preparing an "omnibus" spending bill loaded with earmarks and new taxes on small business. Today, the House is due to vote on a bill that cuts $315 billion from the federal budget over the next 10 years. That is the largest non-defense spending cut in our history. Its earmark-free and has zero tax hikes. These are real cuts.

This deal, though, isn’t a cause for celebration or back-patting. It’s what government should be doing when 40 cents out of every dollar is borrowed from places like China. This agreement, though, isn’t perfect. I would have like to seen more cuts and more programs eliminated. But it is exactly what we need to due to pave the way for the “Path to Prosperity” budget offered by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), which moves the debate from cutting billions of dollars to cutting trillions. It also cleans up the budget mess left by the last Congress — sending a signal to job creators nationwide that we have begun to end Washington’s spending binge.

I know some of my constituents haven't been happy with the short term CRs and this full year one. But we need to start some place. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) confirms that the spending cut agreement on the House floor tomorrow will cut spending by nearly $40 billion – or $78.5 billion less than President Obama proposed in his FY 2011 budget.
I know you and others wanted more, but, let me tell you some of the things that are in the legislation. They include:
- One Obamacare program is eliminated altogether in this agreement; a second is cut nearly in half.
- Four of the Obama administration’s controversial “czars” are eliminated – and the president is prohibited from replacing them. These include the “czars” charged with overseeing his government takeover of health care and tasked with implementing the president’s job-crushing national energy tax. They’re gone. The administration is signaling it will challenge the constitutionality of these provisions. We say: Bring it on.
- The agreement also secures Senate votes and debates on de-funding the president’s top priority his job-crushing health care law.
- The Environmental Protection Agency, considered a prime source of government overregulation, is to have its budget cut by 16 percent.
- More than 40 other ineffective Department of Education programs will also be eliminated — including Educational Technology State Grants, Even Start, Advanced Credentialing, Mental Health Integration, Exchanges with Historic Whaling Partners, Women’s Educational Equity, Tech-Prep Education State Grants, Smaller Learning Communities, Legal Assistance Loan Repayment Program, Thurgood Marshall Legal Opportunity Scholarships and B.J. Stupak Olympic Scholarships.

Again, I know some are not happy with the deal. The spending cut agreement to be voted on today isn’t perfect – not by a long shot. But it’s an important step toward getting Washington spending under control and eliminating some of the barriers that are hurting job growth. There are many more steps, more cuts, and more reforms to come.

Once again, thank you for taking the time to contact me. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate in contacting me again.


Very truly yours,


Steven C. LaTourette
Member of Congress