Atlas Shrugged endgame arrives in Venezuela
"Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday ordered authorities to seize factories that have stopped production and jail their owners . . . "
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I find it very interesting that the people of Venezuela put up with Maduro. Its a testament to the power of emotional manipulation and lack of thinking I suppose. The opposition leader gets assassinated and Maduro lives on. Amazing.
So how many years do we have here before we reach where Venezuela is at now? Will it be a slow descent into disaster taking 50 years, with each year being worse than the last? Or will it take more like 10 years of slow disaster, or will it happen with one big economic crash ?
Nonetheless, remember Venezuela was one of the most productive countries in South America 25 years ago, with Chile being among the least. Now see how their fortunes have reversed along with their philosophical changes.
I dont like living like this, especially as I get older and less able to recover from a real crash.
On the one hand I want to tie the hands of the establishment a bit to slow down the move to statism (Trump), and on the other hand I wonder if its not best to get it over with and provoke a real economic crash (Sanders).
The problem is the US has deep pockets in the form of wealth than can be stolen to keep things moving. It may take another century to get to the point that we cannot steal anything else. Even Venezuela is still providing loot to the looters. A far smaller economy that was effectively shut down 20 years ago.
How long do we run with our own economy shut down? A lot of variables with that one.
While we have near slave labor in third world countries to make things cheap to buy, the looters can last much longer. We also all become looters to some small capacity, if we want to or not.
While we have the ability to increase taxes in one of a thousand ways we are taxed, they can continue and in most cases hide the additional tax from the general public. This will allow the US to function for a very long time before it fails.
The only way I see a fast closure is if we have a massive economic collapse. This would have to be global in nature to remove the wealth of the US and her citizens. There is Francisco to speed that process along, and it is likely to take centuries, not decades or years, without a major event to make it happen.
Add to this most the younger people do not even realize freedom is largely gone. They accept and even want socialism. This makes the death slower, longer and less painful for those that think they want collectivism in some form.
Ayn Rand was one smart person !! It didnt hit me until I listened to the Orren Boyle discussion on the phone where he said that "Rearden's success will give us the tools to bring him down". I didnt understand how profound that was until I thought about it a bit.
Now I resent paying ANY taxes at all, because I am supporting the very thing that will eventually make it impossible for me to exist.
I have spent the last 15 years in director level positions in the software industry. I would say that my actions have created 200 jobs or so over that time span. It makes me a bit sick that I have likely added around 60 million to the tax coffers between myself and those that have worked for me over the years between federal and local taxes.
I am currently looking at a job that pays about 1/3 what I make working for a state university, one of the reasons for this is that I no longer wish to fund the beast that attempts to make a slave of me.
I will be subsidised by the state, as all workers as the university are) for about the same amount I will pay the state/fed in taxes. Keeping only the part that is funded by people who pay for their education. It will equal no increased tax base from me. It's the closest thing I can see to a strike where I can still take care of me and mine while no longer funding the state or federal systems.
I can see no way forward to resolve the current problem, but I also do not wish to fund it any longer. So I hear what you are saying and agree.
I cant see Trump actually putting huge tariffs on buying from china- too many big companies are buying from china to withstand that. He is grandstanding with china to get them to open THEIR markets to us.
He is proposing a lower corporate tax rate, which will be a good thing, and is saying there shouldnt be a national minimum wage (leave it to the states who will drag their feet no doubt in a race to be competitive businesswise). He does know that if you want business to remain here, we have to be competitive (which we definitely arent now).
I can understand the desire for the quick death, BUT I dont think the death will be quick. There is just too much wealth in the USA to be expropriated by the statists quickly. Also, there are the fools like me who want to invent things that will be successful and keep them in power longer. The only way to bring down statism is NOT to prop it up by working in their system- I understand that now.
Back to my point - how would making foreign products more expensive be helpful to the economy?
The problem is that until the chinese stop accepting our paper dollars, it makes sense to just buy from them and cancel our american jobs. At some point, they would want to sell off their dollars at some discount I suspect to at least get something for them. That could collapse the value of the dollar and instantly raise chinese prices in terms of dollars and make manufacturing here more feasible (at higher consumer prices of course reflecting the inflation that should have happened because of the fed printing money).
To do it slower, I suppose the government could institute tariffs on chinese goods and use the money collected as an offset to federal taxes. This would be hard to do, and politically unpopular of course, so it probably wouldnt work.
I suppose to soften the landing,
How long that will work is problematic. But for the moment the lie to yourself and others standard is far better than faith and credit and fear.
Who loses?
The amount the consumer has to pay EXTRA t get the less expensive vehicle does not go any number of businesses that would have benefited. Instead it goes to government waste. Multiply that by number of tarried or punitive taxed vehicles sold or any other product the total is the same amount that could have gone to other purposes. College educations, charities, paying off debts, buying other products.
It's not rocket science it's Chapter 11 Economics in One lesson Henry Hazlitt.
And it doesn't require a degree or paying tuition for lectures that leave that little fact out. If you didn't get that training or any of the other 24 lessons your Professor and your college or university cheated you.
crash?"
Yes that's it. I thought it would have already
happened! How much longer can they
play the put-off game?
Something will upset the applecart, and the government will put controls on us to prevent us from protecting ourselves I am sure. But WHAT will go wrong and what will they do? That is the question I am struggling with.
Also, they are already changing banking regulations that are putting your ability to move money around difficult. There are regulations in place allowing banks/government to take assets in case of bank failures, etc...
I think we are one strong crash away from major government intervention at our own peril.
I look carefully at Venezuela to see what creative government policies they are using to hide whats happening, as they will probably be used here too. ALL BETS ARE OFF NOW when the government is in protective mode.
The states from the link I posted say inflation rate right now is using the method pre 1980 are actually at around 9%. Unemployment is at around 22%. GDP is at around -1.7% (yep - negative!). And we all know about the debt. We're not doing good.
I read somewhere that if all the government unfunded promises were applied to the total wealth in the country, we would be bankrupt already. Its just that all the unfunded promises done have to be lived up to immediately.
Another factor to consider which has worked to our government's advantage is the shift to buying things from china. This has saved companies (like ours) many dollars so we dont have to raise our prices and further hide the real inflation. Without inflation, we could lower our prices after saving money on purchases from china. The government has cheated us all by depriving us of lower prices. In fact, they hate what they call deflation, even when its caused by buying from china or increased efficiencies that we achieve through our own efforts.
There is actually some relatively good news from Argentina:
http://mobius.blog.franklintempleton....
Hasn't anyone an appreciation for history?
It's a beautiful day, aloha,
iSank
http://affluentinvestor.com/2015/01/n...
Not likely, but ironic, eh?
Al Gore had to invent the Internet first.
Some free food plastic?
All out of Obama phones at the moment.
We have a winner!
Your prize?
I'll annoy someone else now.
I just saw that one via MSN and Edge... and came her to link it! Great find and link.
So, I'll just copy the text I used to post that link to my Facebook page...
"Dear Maduro... It's not Washington or your 'bourgeoisie' that's screwing up your country...
It's the fucking President of your country.
You are a socialist asshole of the highest level, making Bernie Sanders look like a Conservative.
NOTHING you propose to 'fix your problems' will work.
They will only make it worse until your countrymen rise up and depose you and realize that socialism NEVER succeeds in Delivering on its alleged "promises," and other solutions do.
So STFU with your blame game and, if you really want to Help, follow the suggestion John Galt made in Atlas Shrugged: "Get out of [our] way!"
And read the book, too, if you're literate."
“’When I talk about Democratic socialist, I’m not looking at Venezuela. I’m not looking at Cuba. I’m looking at countries like Denmark and Sweden,’ Sanders said.”
“He was pressed anew last week during a debate hosted by Univision, where moderators unearthed a 30-year-old clip showing Sanders praising Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.”(!) (That would have been about 1986, decades after Castro had cemented power in his communist hellhole.)
“The current Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro entered the fray this week, praising Sanders at an event in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, that commemorated ‘Anti-Imperialism Day.’ Sanders ‘is an emerging candidate with a renovating and revolutionary message,’ Maduro said on Wednesday.”
“’People tend to think of the negative examples with socialism,’ said Anna Garcia, 29, a Sanders supporter. ‘I think we have to just teach people the positive.’”
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/cuban-vene...
Besides, go ahead and look at Denmark and Sweden. Dull, gray lives, and probably just one brain drain away from a Venezuela-like collapse.
The sad truth is that there are people everywhere that still believe production and prosperity can come from the point of a gun... that producers will go on doing their best as serfs. History repeats.
Respectfully,
O.A.
True, but usually those in charge are not so blatant about what they're doing. It's almost like Maduro has read Atlas Shrugged and is doing his best to emulate the villains.
I've lost touch with him over the years. I often wonder when I see these headlines how he and his family are doing.
Perhaps there will be a collapse followed by renaissance.
I'm surprised Big O hasn't created an executive order to bail them out.
section of the State Department's latest report...What it really amounts to who knows.
Publications » U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets » Venezuela
U.S. Relations With Venezuela
Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs
Fact Sheet
July 20, 2015
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More information about Venezuela is available on the Venezuela Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet.
U.S.-VENEZUELA RELATIONS
Following Venezuela’s withdrawal in 1830 from its federation with Colombia, the United States established diplomatic relations with Venezuela in 1835, and has maintained a generally close relationship with Venezuela throughout most of its history. However, the U.S.-Venezuelan bilateral relationship has been tense in recent years due to a variety of policy differences.
Venezuela’s recent presidents, the late Hugo Chavez (1999-2013) and Nicolas Maduro (inaugurated April 19, 2013), have largely defined themselves through their opposition to the United States, regularly criticizing the U.S. Government, its policies, and its relations with Latin America. President Maduro has also continued his predecessor’s policies, notably what the Government refers to as "21st Century Socialism," which is characterized by an outsized role for the executive, centralization of state command over the economy and efforts to achieve greater economic and political integration among nations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Both nations continue to maintain diplomatic relations and embassies in one another’s capitals, each headed by Chargés d’ Affaires.
U.S. Assistance to Venezuela
U.S. assistance to Venezuela supports the defense of human rights, the promotion of a vibrant civil society, and the strengthening of democratic institutions. Venezuela is currently subject to certain restrictions on U.S. foreign assistance.
Since 2005, the President has annually determined that Venezuela has “failed demonstrably” to adhere to its obligations under international counter-narcotics agreements and to take certain counter-narcotics measures. The President has waived these restrictions with respect to programs that are vital to the national interests of the United States, such as human rights and civil society programs.
Pursuant to section 40A the Department of State since 2006 has annually determined that Venezuela was “not cooperating fully” with U.S. counterterrorism efforts. Under this provision, defense articles and services may not be sold or licensed for export to Venezuela during the relevant fiscal year.
Bilateral Economic Relations
The United States is Venezuela's largest trading partner. Bilateral trade in goods between both countries reached $41.4 billion in 2014. U.S. goods exports to Venezuela totaled $11.1 billion, while imports from Venezuela totaled $30.2 billion. U.S. exports to Venezuela include oil machinery, organic chemicals, agricultural products, optical and medical instruments, autos and auto parts. Crude oil dominates U.S. imports from Venezuela, which is one of the top five suppliers of foreign oil to the United States. About 500 U.S. companies are represented in Venezuela. U.S. foreign direct investment in Venezuela is concentrated largely in the petroleum and manufacturing sectors.
read the rest at
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3576...
That should answer your question.