Toppling Governments

I tuned into FeverIAm this morning and watched his video Don't Panic! The "Next Stage" is Officially in print!



The first link he provides is from the telegraph and talks about the third stage of the global economic crisis. The first was the financial markets, the 2nd was the credit crunch, and now they are citing the 3rd stage as according to Samuel Johnson of the IMF "where governments start to topple under the weight of this debt."


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/recession/5373334/SandPs-warning-to-Britain-marks-the-next-stage-of-this-global-crisis.html

Basically the debt has moved from the private sector to the public sector. In the next two years we could see AAA credit ratings stripped from the likes of the US and the UK. Ouch, this could send investment out of these countries and further squeeze their economnies. The big squeeze is on.

Reinhardt D-day is here!!!

May 11th the big day for Reinhardt has come and is on its way to being gone. The temperament on the streets is definitely moving towards optimistic even though there are no strong signs that we are anywhere near out of the woods yet. I sit on the sidelines and ponder the result about to come upon us. My favorite thing I've noticed is how many people act like they know exactly whats going on. I am gaining view of this social organization I've been born into and want to know more about this pretty mess.

Lately my first stop has been FeverIAm because he has an uncanny ability to uncover details most of us miss. As supported an hour ago on Fev's latest video by a comment by Youtube user aw3212

"FeverAmI (sic) doesn't ask for anything, doesn't expect us to think a certain way and he gives us facts and information that we'd otherwise miss"

FeverIAm's New Video



People love to get all gossippy on the Reinhardt situation as evidenced by the banter on godlikeproductions but I am not that interested in the personality stuff as much as I am in the solid info, so lets keep that in mind as we continue.

Fever's first link http://www.marketwatch.com/story/jpmorgans-weapons-of-mass-destruction is about JP Morgan and how they managed to stay out of trouble on certain risky investments because they vconjured, and thus knew to steer clear of them. As Marsh puts it:

There were central bankers who kept interest rates too low, the politicians who turned a blind eye toward bloated international liquidity, the regulators who were too lax and the chief executives who were too aggressive. Also, the Americans and British persisted in running unsustainable current account deficits, while the Germans and Chinese piled up unsustainable surpluses.

Reinhardt Countdown Looms Closer

Reinhardt is a modern day Nostradamus of sorts. You can find out about him by searching once you've navigated past Doug and Django. He is credited with predicting the fall 2008 collapse well in advance of its tumble.

Reinhardt's website: Enterprise Corruption

Many have soured on his predictions since his website went to an expensive pay format. You can find talk threads about him on the website godlikeproductions.

Here FeverIAm's video regarding Reinhardt. He cites health provisions as the big deal in the Obama stimulus plan. Globalizing your health info will send your data overseas within seconds. Mike gets into Reinhardt and his love of cycles. When everything gets stored electronically ...




Now as the countdown to May 11 nears we can only wonder what is next. Here is a vid on Youtube about the prediction





Legatus is an organization founded by Dominos Pizza owner. Reinhardt insists this is the pivotal connection and they will be having a big gathering in the days leading up to May 11.


The banks are in jeopardy beginning this month according to some folks. Here FeverIam talks about the capitalization of banks and their ability to withstand swings. The results have yet to be revealed.



Hal Turner's Leaked Report on Bank Stress Tests

Keep Your Eyes On the Warren Buffett Table

On ABC's Good Morning America Warren Buffett assured us of a recovery on the way.
http://www.abcnews.go.com/Business/Economy/story?id=7495356&page=1

He has been claiming around the circuit these days that the actions taken so far have navigated us past the Pearl Harbor phase of the recession. On deck are the Bank Stress Tests which have been held back another week. The world is uneasy and the state of the American Banks is a big reason why. We are going into a pivotal phase in the economic and political maelstrom. It is amazing we even listen to a figure like him considering he got taken for a ride along with everyone else. The only difference is he can afford to shave off a few billion dollars in cash.

One can only wonder if this is all false optimism or if the likes of Reinhardt are on to something. He pegs May 11th as the big day.

Remember to take the path of the rhino, keep your eyes on now, and check back later for another update on whats going on.

When pigs fly, and when the swine flu

I am unable to watch videos on youtube for some reason. I updated my flash and checked my Java settings. What is going on? I'm not a techy so i am lost. I realized my embedded video worked here so let me try that with the new FeverIam drop



And if you came from my twitter post let me know with a comment so I can confirm I'm not talking to myself as I've been known to do, lol.

Does Twitter mean you have no REAL LIFE?

This video made me laugh several times striking a chord with me as I twiddle away time like I secretly have it to burn.

Trouble_with_twitter
Uploaded by leila_taiwan

I saw a lot of blogging on this video so I am curious what people have to say about it. Here is one of the better ones:

http://english-vg1.blogspot.com/2009/04/tweet-tweet.html

Swine Flu Spreads Across the US

The Swine flu has been moving across the United States via Mexico with lightning speed. In parts of Asia I heard they were checking people's temperatures as they got off the plane.

This story is from CNN about 8 students in NY who may have the Swine Flu.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/26/swine.flu.ny/index.html?eref=rss_latest

On Twitter the tweets are going crazy as I see on my TwitScoop cloud. Declares Emergency, floats ominously in the center of the billow.

Terry Gilliam

I am such a big fan of this man's work. He is beyond the funniness he exudes but is deeper into the psyche. What a king of his method.



"There is always somebody out there who is foolish enough to give me money."

This a piece from the unfinished Don Quixote movie with Johnny Depp.



Here is the Documentary about the making of Brazil:

Twitter Unprofitable?

I recently started using twitter and found this article while fishing around there:

http://www.hostnexus.com/blog/twitter-loses-funding-announces-closure/

Basically twitter is a pain in the ass to monetize and they can't find the solution.

FeverIAm has a new video.

Don't" Panic! UK Budget - Spending cuts on the way!

The Neighborhood Informers

On his blog FeverIAm uncovers this Border incident via the following vid:



http://feveriam.blogspot.com/2009/04/baptist-pastor-beaten-tazed-by-border.html

KDenninger's latest vid tells us to look past party lines in evaluating Tea Parties.

Pay Attention!!! Whats Going Around

Around the horn we go. What is on the antenna waves today. Once you have subbed to a billion people you are instantly broadcasting lots of different frequencies. Lets explore a few of them as they show themselves.

Youtube User: demcad (all caps) Reginald



I am a little shaken by the lack of tact seen by the media folks in his clips. T-bagging? How juvenile have we become? The key is that the Commercial Real Estate Collapse could be a really big domino.

Lets keep this random flow going and see what else is voicing. The Young Turks got a vid about Representative Kirk saying people are so angry they are ready to shoot people.



I must say this no censoring my subs as they come out of the gate is a little unnervy but maybe thats what this blog needs is a little random power and less cute diminutive curating all of the time.

Media, Lies, And Pirates

Here are some other ways of looking at the Pirate Showdown with the US in Somalian waters.



Read this article about Pirates that I found by recommendation of this video by Adam Hintz

America's Underemployed Become Our UnderInsured

The rising unemployment and flimsy insurance coverage is putting thousands of American's lives at risk as they are unable to pay for Healthcare. Regardless of the technological advances we make it becomes prohibitive to the common man.

This Journeyman Pictures installment disabled their embedding so follow this link to watch the 20 minute Documentary focusing on first the Texas Hospital system and then the system at large.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5S2eRthEhiw

Moldova's Twitter Fueled Revolution

Social Networking sites are taking on new roles as people use their lightning quick ability to relay information. Linked below is a Wired article about how it is shaping up in Moldova.

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2009/04/inside-moldovas.html

Be Smart!

Affirmations are stated in the positive. Don't be stupid becomes Be smart. And this is how I've turned the thoughts of Market Ticker's latest post into the affirmative so Pay Attention!!!

http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/951-Do-Not-Be-Stupid.html

The bulls are running wild temporarily and there are little fundamentals to back it up. Parties on the Titanic are not my cup of tea but Tea Parties seem to be for some folks lately.

The party atmosphere you see around this false bubble is going to sweep the table of cash and leave the retail investor holding bloated shares with no value acording to K-Den. Tax season will hit the market hard and though we can't predict the exact market on any given day Denninger warns us to keep a hand near the "Sell button."

Ridng waves on the Titanic can make a little recovery cash but you can't build your flimsy house of cards on the winds of tsunami. Be ready! Be smart!

Money Can't Make You Live Forever

The human urge for immortality is seen in the creation of monuments strewn among our planet. By taking the physical materials of brick and mortar the Eternalist fashions their record of existence for the generations to come. Fame, I want to live forever is how the movie said it, and so goes it with the names of philanthropists, saints and scholars that have paraded through history. Ernest Becker in Escape from Evil, his sequel to Denial of Death asserts that Money has taken over as the new God. As our cultures adapted from its primitive forms the loss of ritual became replaced from the power of churches out into the hands of the secular via coinage. As royalty developed out of these early cultures the common men began to imitate the Kingly desire to collect:

silks, courtesans, fine swords, horses, and monuments, city palaces, and country estates - all the things that can be bought with gold.

Not only do we pass on our life's work through our children but also through the things we leave behind and this is how money has replaced religion. As money filled the vacuum of the lost rituals of early man churches began to harness the power of money as churches became the first banks, priests the first bankers, and Juno Moneta in Rome the first mint. This flow of power justified with God-like powers held sway over the secular world as counterfeiting became a sin equal with sacrilege.

The temple's became clearinghouses for all the materials that can be bought by gold, and now backed by the apparent Divine authority of the Church you can now carry God with you home, thus secularizing society. Money set a trend where the material world becomes king and the invisible world is denied. What you can't see doesn't exist and there lies the great repression. This is the concept of sin, as the arising of guilt from the separation from the power and protection of the Gods, and the creeping in of uncertainty and doubt.

The failures of any system such as Religion, or Economic structures as the end all solution to the predicament of the human condition to bind time and satisfy our actual experience blows up in our face as we attempt to fashion a meaningful role in the passage of our life.

G20 Cop Sidelined Pending Investigation

The Guardian has released info stating that the now embattled cop appearing in the video assaulting newspaper vendor Ian Tomlinson shortly before his death has not been interviewed yet by the investigators. Officials say that the investigation is going on properly despite people questioning their handling. In the video attached to the article you can see a ring around the fallen Tomlinson as protesters look on. Family members of the fallen man want answers and the lack of them is the reason cited by the man who released one of the original videos to surface. A second autopsy may reveal more information as to the assault. This story sure is fluid as details seem to be sprouting everywhere. The early official story has changed dramatically

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/apr/10/g20-assault-investigation

Here is a heartwrenching personal profile of a man who endured a hard life on the streets away from his family as he wanted to regain his foothold on normalcy.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/g20-summit/5126578/G20-death-Ian-Tomlinson-profile.html

Here are the final words his good friend and employer heard before he set out to his demise (taken from the above linked article)

At 7pm, I had run out of papers so I told him to go home," said Mr Smith.

"His last words to me were: 'see you tomorrow Barry, if I'm still living and breathing'.

"It tears me apart thinking about that now."

G20 Protest Death Clearly Caused By Police

As always FeverIam assists my websearch for pertinent information again with his quick videoblasts regarding the unsettling death of Ian Tomlinson at the hands of police. There seems to be a lot of blame to go around as the handling of the case brings up more questions than one can reasonably answer. The senselessness is
awe-full an creates a gaping jaw for me.

Here are the vids:



The Telegraph article:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/g20-summit/5129138/G20-protest-death-new-video-shows-Ian-Tomlinson-was-hit-with-baton.html

Original Guardian Video:



And the FeverIam posts:

http://feveriam.blogspot.com/2009/04/footage-of-ian-tomlinsons-last-minutes.html

http://feveriam.blogspot.com/2009/04/new-footage-of-ian-tomlinson-from-itn.html

What I'm Watching

I've been silent for almost a week as I've not found the mindset to properly write on the happenings around and about. I decided to break the trend and rather than wait for inspirations I've decided to just tell y'all what I'm watching. It begins with a re-education vid by VotersThinkDotOrg. I subbed to them knowing they provided clips similar to CSpan Junkie. They are obviously of the Republican ilk which ventures me to ask the question am I becoming a Conservative as I get older? Hmmm, from a Progressive to a Conservative maybe not yet but there is definitely a shift in my thoughts as I grow older. I partially blame Robert Anton Wilson for his constant challenge of reality tunnels in the book Prometheus Rising.

Anyway here is the vid about the Americorps may be brainwashing our youth.




Here is a DPRJones offering which has been mirrored off the Thunderf00t channel it appears. I must admit I do watch T-f00t and find his intellect worth listening to but I sense his angry adversarial way off-putting. I try to keep my personal asides in check although I know that he doesn't always play fair and thus leaves himself vulnerable to attack by someone who can passively counter his mudslings which at times fall below the belt despite his insistings of debating prowess. This vid is about VenomFangX making money for some kids hospital which appears to be a way to enrich himself. Profiting from vidmaking seems to be a sore point for Mr. T-f00t considering it was a big part of his debate recently with HowTheWorldWorks.




This is a vid from George4Title who I must admit I find his constant advertising for his hyperinflation site annoying. It covers unrest in Moldova.

Capitalism is Dead!

Today I met my teacher Father Maximus Gregorios and he had an important current events bulleting he had received from a "person in the know" which is that Captialism is Dead. He also signalled the end of organized religion and democracy as over, finito. Then in a sychronious moment I had this video in my Youtube Subscription Box marking the very same statement. Take a look and listen and tell me what you think.

Libraries Are Becoming Homeless Shelters

I've always seen libraries here in NYC harbor homeless people during the day but this article leads one to believe it will only get worse. The Borders near my job where I go to read always has people taking naps, carrying 8 assorted bags, and eating sandwiches hunched over. I'm sure they do a massive job corraling these people out of the store but folks always seem to be hanging around. Not that I should talk, although I bring only myself into the premises. Take a look at this article from the NY Times that looks into the taxing of the library system with people in need.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/02/us/02library.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

Global Currency

Although the Russian and Chinese proposals are devastating to the American's as they look at moving away from the US Dollar as the reserve currency one must see the logic here. People on CNN kept saying that they don't see the change happening but I wonder if that is just wishful thinking and being caught in not being able to see a shifting future. The changes that are happening are sweeping and many of the talking heads either can't grasp it or are not allowed to express their true feelings. Approaching my middle age I have been telling people for years that we are going to see big things in our lifetime (and I don't mean good things). Now that everything is coming on us so quick I must admit developments have arisen at an alarming rate. I wonder about all of the people who are relying solely on mainstream media to make their analyses. I am thankful for poeple such as VisonVictory for bringing angles not seen on the Boob Tube.

Officer Powertrip Becomes Humbled

When Ryan Moats tried to get to his dying mother-in-law's side he was treated to a verbal lashing by a bugged out cop. What could be going through officer Powell's mind as he lambasted the NFL player for running the red light and having a bad attitude. Obviously common sense wasn't flowing through his brain because he acted like a fool. It calls to mind the incidents I have had in my days growing up with unreasonable officers who behave as if the job has gotten to their head. This mentality is dangerous and irresponsible but I don't think you can just pin it on one man but have to open the responsibility to a culture of oppression. The law enforcement ethos seems to thrive on this type of behavior.

Once again we are treated to the celebrity buzz as everyone is quick to mention this incident involves a professional athlete. While I commend Ryan Moats for maintaining a cool head through the incident and not allowing it to escalate any further, I also have to think that if he wasn't who he was, would he still get the media attention? Cetainly somthing to think about.

Lets see sense seep into the theater of law enforcement and not this type of inane behavior. And to all the cops that act like human beings I also ask that you become a force to stop this nonsense from your peers because silence equals tacit approval.

Like Zinn said, "You can't be neutral on a moving train."

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/crime/stories/033009dnmetinterview.4a6b471.html

Market Ticker First Quarter Wrap-up

I ran through this entry and found it valuable in light of the times. Basically Denninger is saying we need to lower our debt or perish, and that the current policies are not allowing this to happen. We could have helped ourselves last time the economy contracted back a few years ago but instead pumped it up with hot air setting the timer to the present calamity. Now the games being played hold more dire consequences as the balloon has expanded in a way that could pop into quite a nasty little mess. When we were children didn't anyone tell these people not to play with fire. I think it was Denninger who compared the Bureaucrats to arsonists watching their fire and rather than dousing the flames with water have brought in more oil to their infernal party of demise. Of course those are in my words but carry his message. As a matter of fact directly check his report out here:

http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/911-Three-Month-Wrap-Up-1Q-2009.html

You Can't Be Neutral On A Moving Train: Zinn

I just rented the documentary of the title of this entry and was treated immediately to several great quotes from Howard Zinn.

"They say we are disturbing the peace but there is no peace, what we are disturbing is the war."

"If you don't know your history then it is like you were born yesterday."

"I've always resented the smug statement of politicians, media commentators, and corporate executives who talked of how, in America, if you worked hard enough you would become rich. The meaning of that was: If you are poor, you haven't worked hard enough. I knew this was a lie, about my father and millions of others—men and women who worked harder than anyone."

"...if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory."

Right on!

Be Inspired!

Take a gander at this really cool vid called "Inspired" from Youtube user:

http://www.youtube.com/fckuvrymch


She pulled together snippets of several users videos to create a wonderful snapshot of the societal changes we are facing.




Well its bedtime so I will post this baby and add to the blog in the morning. Enjoy!

FeverIAm Links

FeverIAm as always has left us lots of little breadcrumbs to follow along the yellow brick road and I will give you a quick rundown of what he has provided us.

He begins by linking us to an article in Times Online (UK) about flaws in a database designed to protect children which may actually endanger children by assisting ppeople in locating them through information obtained via the database called ContactPoint:

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/families/article5962974.ece

Our next stop is in reference to the fact that the BBC has announced they will begin monitoring social networking sites such as Facebook, Bebo, and Myspace. They claim they need to track down criminal gangs and terorists but the Civil Liberties folks are up in arms. In his recent video FeverIAm (Mike) pointed out what self respecting terrorist would be broadcasting their intentions over these sites. The snoopers claim they don't care about the content of the interactions but rather seeing who is talking to who.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7962631.stm

He then leads us to a website letting out a call to be mindful of videos forwarded by friends via email that lead to dodgey websites which could be set up to profile you as a possible threat to the existing power structure. The technique is called Memeering and the explanation shows how falling into multiple categories which challenge the powers that be could land you in a round-up to get you out of the way before pivotal stages of the developing storm. It reminds me of what we have seen here in the USA centered around the political conventions in the last 5 years.

http://www.urbansurvival.com/week.htm

If you are not scared enough we go next some articles about the battles being waged against terrorism starting with small groups inspired by Al Qaeda trained and possibly living in the UK waiting to levy an attack.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/lawandorder/5041633/Anti-terror-strategy-highlights-threat-of-small-terrorist-groups.html

Gordon Brown on the escalating offensive being prepared against terrorism.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/mar/22/gordon-brown-terrorism

Flaws in the counter-terrorism efforts of the UK

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7961934.stm

Now as I look over the content from his March 25th entry I see it is chock full of links so rather than attempting to briefly describe them all just go here and take a look for yourself

http://feveriam.wordpress.com/2009/03/25/still-here-in-aarhus-enjoy-some-of-the-stuff-im-reading/

I realize that following these links and attempting to get my arms around them can be time consuming and in the passage of time they become less critical as new developments take their place in prominence. Thus I am contemplating ways to keep up with his flurry of information as well as others, my varied interests and finally all of the Economy Crisis data I've been coming across. This entry will do for now until I can better present "Whats going on." It takes a little while to get one's feet planted so to speak.

I realize it may be overkill to be broadcasting the same material which you can get direct from the source but as my insights develop I am sure I can make this venture worth the read. I request that if you have found your way here to stick with me and also to chime in with your thoughts. Remember the game we are playing is our Lives.

Bucky on Specialization

Specialization may be the way we are corralled in our work-a-day lives (nowadays if we are lucky), but it is not our natural way of being. According to Buckminster Fuller in his book, Operating Manual for the Spaceship Earth, specialization causes extinction, and forcing oneself into a form of slavery where you bargain your freedom for a safe position in society. Shame on us if we jump off the deep end and open up our possibilities. These days with so many people out of work I am sure a lot of people are finding the need to de-specialize.

Fuller says look at a healthy child. See the wonder and curiousity. See how that child is far from specialized as they go about exploring and understanding their world. That is the same search for knowledge we stifle as adults in our cubicle and apartment based societies of brick and concrete. We put each other and ourselves in boxes unnecessarily. I am glad I had Bucky's handy little Operating Manual nearby to point that out.

Around the Horn

That is baseball talk for those of you that don't know and it is when they throw the ball around the diamond after a strike out. I have copped the term to indicate my Rundown on the goings on of my favorite analysts of the gloom and doom we are now facing.

TheModernMystic has left us with a video to ponder over the next week while he travels



FeverIam said he has a video processing now but left this ominous message on his blog that he has been warned. He won't go into details but he left clues and they are disconcerting. He takes it as a warning to backup his stuff. Ouch! We all should be backing up our stuff because you certainly can't trust our HOSTS to protect our data.

http://feveriam.wordpress.com/2009/03/23/ive-been-warned/

Take note of the link at the bottom of his entry about the Cardinal of Chicago meeting privately with Obama.

Obama Woos Investors

The eagerly awaited new plan from the US to save the economy and find a way to clear some of the bad assets off the balance sheets of their biggest banks is unveiled today. Wall Street initially reacted positively with the S&P up 7%. This plan is getting a better initial reaction than past plans. The idea is to get private investors in on the game and begin the task of setting prices on these toxic assets. Several of the organizations that would be asked to participate are showing early receptivity as seen by the comments from representatives of Blackrock out of NY, and PIMCO. The plan comes at a tumultuous time when not only is the fundamentals of the economy in dire jeopardy but public sentiment is boiling over regarding the AIG executive bonus fiasco. Now the very same people who the American taxpayer is so livid over for their pocketing of bailout funds are to be wooed into this latest concocted solution with the lure of double digit profits. Is it any wonder why Wall Street is reacting so well to this plan. The new plan looks to line the coffers of the very same people that got us into this tsunami in the first place.

Besides how positive can we be at this point when we see the mishandling in the past. The earlier plan called the Super SIV failed to garner private investment interest back in October of 2007. Then the TARP plan that came out late 2008 also failed. Now as we leave the gate on this one reactions seem to be more upbeat. They have finally made an attractive offer to investors as they court insurance companies, as well as hedge and pension funds. Of course the verdict is not out yet since we are just getting rolling. With so much at stake and so many snags abound it makes one wary of any new grand solutions. Mind you this is all supposed to unclog the economy and get things moving again. Even if it does that we have a lot more hurdles to overcome. In his typical fashion Obama tempered enthusiasm although he assured us we are "moving in the right direction." Wall Street certainly thought so with three firms that stand to benefit from the plan all rising, Blackrock Inc up 18%, Blackstone up 24%, and Fortress Investment Group up 37%.

Lets hope we are because in the wake of public sentiment over AIG and the clamoring in Congress things will have to look really promising if they are going to dole out anymore money if this plan expands. The price tag not unlike the Iraq War seems to keep going up like the debt itself. The other variable is what is the plan to coax the toxic assets from the banks at a severe loss. There are no guarantees the banks will give up their assets. Richard King of Invesco said banks may not "sell securities at below current marks."

It becomes a fools game when the US Government continues to have to go to same people that got us into trouble and ask then to help us. Maybe this is the way the game has to be played but it sure hurts and I have half a mind to think there was a better way. We've handed and continue to hand over the store to the honchos who've raided our cookie jar. What is going to stop them from doing it all over again? The firms that are excited about the plan stand to make some money, the banks can fight another day, and the taxpayers continue to hold on to a shred of hope as the rug keeps getting pulled out from under them. One view that fell from the pack today that I thought was interesting was from Kenneth Windheim of Strategic Fixed Income who said it would be cheaper to nationalize the banks, bring in new management, and sell off the assets. That may be a simplified way of looking at it, and I know Nationalizing banks is a big scary step but in the predicament we are in it sounds like it m ay end up happening anyway even after all of this tinkering.

Link to Reuters Article
http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-CreditCrisis/idUSTRE52M6YV20090323

Link to Bloomberg Article

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a6o1E0WQ5jPM&refer=news

Narcissism

In order to unwrap the idea of a Hero, our guide Ernest Becker brings us to the concept of Narcissism. It is funny how we keep finding ourselves back at the Greeks. Freud showed us how we repeat the tragedy of self absorption from antiquity.

Becker quotes Aristotle's definition of luck as when the arrow hits the other guy.

As Becker puts it:

Narcissism is what keeps men marching into point-blank fire in wars

Man's animal nature overrides his ability to help his selfishness. His narcissism becomes inseparable from how he sees himself and develops his sense of worth.


Wikipedia Says:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narcissism_(psychology)

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/narcissism

The Hero's Burden

Becker begins the first Chapter of Denial of Death centering the concept of heroism as a truth that encompasses our main calling on this planet. He sums up the whole creation of social science from Freud to Marx as an expostion on the details of heroism.

According to Webster's Hero is defined as:
1a.)a mythological or legendary figure often of divine descent endowed with great strength or ability, 1b.) an illustrious warrior 1c.) a man admired for his achievements and noble qualities

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero

With our fascination with superheroes and calling firefighters heroes on 9/11 you can see how important this concept is to our human psyche.

Otto Rank's Art and Artist is Beyond Praise

Ernest Becker mentions seeing Frederick Perl's call Otto Rank's Art and Artist "beyond praise', and he couldn't imagine any book dealing with science could be such a thing. He immediately searched it out and read it finding this to be true. He said Rank is "something else" as in he is ouot of this world or some other hip way to describe his genius. He warns us that Rank is hard to read but to experience the full joy you must go direct to the source and Becker only outlines the scope of Rank's system of thought.

From Wikipedia entry on Rank:
In 1974, the cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker won the Pulitzer prize for The Denial of Death (1973), which was based on Rank’s post-Freudian writings, especially Will Therapy (1929-31), Psychology and the Soul (1930) and Art and Artist (1932/1989). The feeling of anxiety, writes Rank in Will Therapy (1929-31), divides into two currents, running in opposite directions: one toward separation and individuation; the other toward union and collectivity.

Myth of the Birth of the Hero (Rank):
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/mbh/index.htm

More Eros, Less Strife

Creating harmony out of the array of views. We don't want to bog ourselves down in arguing or closing in around our beliefs self-righteously but rather search for the unifying thread of truth and logic that permeates throughout all of the fields of human inquiry. So much is staked out in our petty wars and ego plays for no resultant good. Becker sees this basically as the engine propelled by the denial of our fear of death.

According to Norman O. Brown the world needs more eros and less strife.

What is Eros? Becker defined it as "the urge to unification of experience, to form, to greater meaningfulness."

Wikipedia Link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eros_(love)

More Becker quotes from the Preface of Denial of Death: knowledge is "strewn all over the place, spoken in a thousand competitive voices." "there is no throbbing vital center.", "there has to be revealed the harmony that unites many different positions."

"harmonization of the Babel of views on man and on the human condition, in the belief the time is ripe for a synthesis that covers the best thought in many fields from the human sciences to religion."

"not to oppose and to demolish opposing points of view but to include them into a larger theoretical structure."

"the problem is to find the truth under the exaggeration, excess elaboration, and distortion."

The Synthesis of Ernest Becker

In 25 years of reading through so many different opinions it comes a time to pull together from all of these voices and speak my own. I feel drowned out by the opinions and assertions that bandy about while I am left silence or driving friends and family with my disjointed rants. No longer could I get by with rambling stories about all of the evils, mysteries, and fascinations in the world to be uncovered and examined. I needed to pull together something more cohesive. I needed to create a synthesis of all the pieces and find the patterns. I can get so bogged down by details and repetition that I lose sight of the underlying structure. Of course as I get my footing into the writing element over time my voice will come to the fore. In the meantime I apologize for my shortcomings in expressing my vision as it comes to me along the way.

A synthesis is a combination of parts that form a whole. With this in mind the beginning piece is very crucial and thus must be the cornerstone of the whole work. I push forth the cornerstone of my investigation revolves around creating harmony from the array of elements. In the book, The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker, the word synthesis is used in 6 of the 12 reviews of the inside cover. They proclaim such things as; psychophilosophical synthesis, a new synthesis, a brilliant passionate synthesis of the human sciences, a desperately needed synthesis of the most important discipline in man's life, creative contribution to a synthesis if this generation's extensive explorations in psychology, a profound synthesis of theological and psychological insights about mans nature. Sounds mouthwatering doesn't it. It makes you want to read the book. The book is quite good and I plan to get into it during the course of things.

The quote at the start of the preface of Denial of Death is from Otto Rank who was a student of Freud and is the primary focus of Becker's book along with the work Of Norman O. Brown. The Otto Rank quotes is as follow:

"for the time being I gave up writing - there is already too much truth in the
world- an over-production which apparently can't be consumed!"

Becker defines his mission as:

"show that the fear of death is a universal that unites data from several
disciplines of the human sciences, makes wonderfully clear and intelligible
human actions that we have buried under mountains of fact, and obscured with
endless back and forth arguments about the "true" human motives.. here in the
end of the 20th century and we are choking on truth"

I venture to say it has only got worse.

Related Links:

Pulitzer Prize Winning Book:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Denial_of_Death

Documentary Film about Becker's Work
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_from_death

Synthesis Defined
http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=synthesis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synthesis
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/synthesis

Blog Essay regarding Becker, Rank, and Past Imperfect.
http://peripateticphilosopher.blogspot.com/2006/06/past-imperfect.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Rank

Iranian Reaction to Obama Video Message Lukewarm at Best

The Ayatollah reacted to Obama's Video Message saying he will wait to see real changes in U. S. Foreign policy.

From the NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/22/world/middleeast/22iran.html?ref=world

“They chant the slogan of change but no change is seen in practice,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a speech before a crowd of tens of thousands in the northeastern holy city of Mashhad.
Still, he left the door open to better ties with America, saying “should you change, our behavior will change, too.”

He also took exception with Obama wishing the Iranians a New Year message and calling them terrorists in the same breath.

So the volley begins...

Arrested Man for Feeding the Homeless

Talk about laws doing nothing but causing a nuisance. This man was arrested for feeding the homeless because there is a city ordinance stating you need a permit to feed more than 25 people. He fed 30 so they arrested him.

Fun With Words: Defining Power

Power is defined in my Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary as a possession of control, authority, or influence over others.

According to Dictionary.com:
1.
ability to do or act; capability of doing or accomplishing something.
2.
political or national strength: the balance of power in Europe.
3.
great or marked ability to do or act; strength; might; force.
4.
the possession of control or command over others; authority; ascendancy: power over men's minds.

According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_power

Politcal Power is seen as an act of domination by its very definition.

Anthony Robbins provides his understanding of power in his book, Unlimited Power as such:

“I don't think of power in terms of conquering people. I don't think of it as something to be imposed. That kind of power seldom lasts. But you should realize that power is a constant in the world. You shape your perceptions, or someone shapes them for you. You do what you want to do, or you respond to someone else's plan for you. To me, ultimate power is the ability to produce the results you desire most and create value for others in the process. Power is the ability to change your life, to shape your perceptions, to make things work for you and not against you. Real power is shared, not imposed. It's the ability to define human needs and to fulfill them—both your needs and the needs of the people you care about. It's the ability to direct your own personal kingdom—your own thought processes, your own behavior—so you produce the precise results you desire.”


There is a difference between Imposed Power and Harmonious Action. There has to be value on both sides of the bargain or else you produce misery when might and deceit are the tools.

Karl Denninger lays down his laws

In today's Market Ticker Karl Lays down his laws over Executive Pay.

http://market-ticker.denninger.net/archives/890-On-Executive-Pay.html

He says all executives from companies forced to take government funds need to follow the same guidelines as federal employees. He also talks aboout giving voting rights to shareholders on par with the political voting system.

Lifestyles of the Rich and Infamous at AIG

There are now tour buses going up to the houses of AIG Executives whose names have leaked out.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/22/nyregion/22cnd-tour.html?hp

Strange Days Indeed. It turns out the bonuses paid are higher than previously announced and are really 218 Million

Pay Attention! The Truth is behind the AIG HYPE!!!

CNN American Morning yesterday had Ron Paul break down the bonus HYPE and the real story which is the 700 Billion misappropriated funds not the 165 Million.

CNNs Kiran Chetry mentions the 1 Trillion we dropped into the atmosphere from out of nothing. The bill gets rammed through the Govt. and then they read the fine details. What a joke. And then on top of it the same man Geithner talks about moving swiftly amid talks for his head over his Bill loophole with Chris Dodd.

It is the moneyfunneling that is bigger than the corporate greed context

Youtube Page Up and Running

Now I have got my youtube page in the early works stage and a brand new playlist

My Youtube page:

http://www.youtube.com/user/EyesOnNow

And the FeverIAm: Ides of March Playlist:



It is in reverse chronological order starting with Mike's most recent posts. Enjoy, and stay informed.

Many Thanks,
David

Obama and Iran

Obama is reaching out to Iran which shifts the outward appearance of U.S. policy for the first time in over 50 years. He mentions the holiday of Nowruz, a ancient Persian holiday representing the first day of spring and the New Year of the Iranian calendar.

Wikipedia contained an interesting entry about the holiday of Nowruz:

...An important day during the time of the Achaemenids (c. 648-330 BC), where kings from different nations under the Persian empire used to bring gifts to the emperor (Shahanshah) of Persia on Nowruz.

Here we have Obama, a leader from a different nation offering the gift of renewed relations. How long has this idea been incubating to reach out to Iran in this way? And what is the foreign policy reasoning?

He begins by speaking directly to the Iranian people and their leadership. After giving them recognition for their great contributions through history he talks about the strained relations the US and Iran have had for 3 decades. 1979 was the year of the hostage crisis and the overthrow of the US inserted Shah.

Guardian Article and Obama Video:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/21/barack-obama-iran-video-message

Now using the renewal of the holiday he is reaching out to allow Iran to enter into its rightful role on the world stage. It comes in interesting times when Iran is brokering deals around the world for its oil resources. And at the same time the US is losing its superpower status by the minute. After the rhetoric of the Bush/Cheney buildup against Iran one is left to wonder if this is a dramatic shift or merely trickery in disguise.

What is going on now?

Hello folks,

Lately I have been following several people on youtube. The primary individual has been a man by the name of Mike with his channel called FeverIAm. I originally came across this channel from a mention by TheModernMystic who I have been also following.

I will be using this blog to follow the events of the world through the eyes of myself, him, and a host of other sources around the globe to get a handle on what exactly we are witnessing.

The wake up call is upon us so there seems to be no choice except to forge onward with our EyesOnNow, hence the name.

The most recent video by FeverIam


After covering Google's Street Views entry into the UK and the crazy things being caught on the cameras he moves into the Barack video message to Iran.




This message appears as a new era in relations with Iran. Why is this happening? This is a gesture that needs to be examined very closely.

FeverIam's Youtube page:


TheModernMystic's page:


I will be expanding this blog as I go along. I did want to get the foundation out there so when I can structure it better the groundwork is here.

Thank you for your time and attention.