A Prophecy For America
A Prophecy for America.
It is the tiny things that matter most. For scientists, it's the health of bugs and bacteria. There's a lot more of them than moose or whales. So, when the bugs go missing, so go we all. Not that moose and whales aren't important, they are, but deep down, where no one can see, are the little things.
Likewise, in the American economy there are the tiny things that are almost invisible to the eye, like interest rates. Interest rates are the bugs of the financial macro-world. They help to create big buildings, small ones, too. They cause the rain of money that waters the financial landscape and keeps ships of state afloat. Without low-interest rates, we'd be in big trouble. So, as go interest-rates, so goes America—and pretty much the rest of the world, as well. That is the present reality.
“How do interest rates work?” You ask. “Do they just magically adjust as needed?” Nope. Well, they used to, but not anymore, and here's why. Arrogance. Once again, mankind hath disrupted the forces of nature, leaving the natural world mighty pissed and ready to attack. No worries, though, cause “The Fed” has come to the rescue. Just when you thought “Boy, could I use some cash!” “The Fed” appears, using white magic and similar chicanery in an effort to get the ball rolling. And thus, the cash begins to flow. First a trickle, then a flood. And, before you know it, everyone is awash in money, dollars are the currency of choice and malls everywhere grow fat and happy. But, it was not always so.
"So, how was it, then--in the days of old, before magic changed the world and things were rotten, but basically still sane?"
Well, in the days of yore, a-fore The Fed got deeply involved in America's financial shit, people worked and saved actual money. They would sock the stuff away like socks being stuffed in an old drawer. Mostly, though, they put their money in banks. The banks were run by austere men who looked askance at freeloaders because serious men (and sometimes, even women) knew that money didn't grow on trees. As such, they cared for it, caressed it, and most importantly, they saved it. When their stock of money grew large enough, they would safely lend some of it out to people with good credit and a modest record of common sense. If their supply of money grew larger, yet again, they lowered interests rates a bit, because the supply of money equaled or exceeded the demand. The demand of rational, normal people, that is.
Of course, this demand was based on the notion that only people with jobs, a good credit history and a bit of seasoning were qualified to borrow. Eliminate those basic qualifications, however, and you've got people clawing to get their hands on as much filthy lucre as possible. “Pay it back? Pay what back?” Let's face it, if you ain’t earned it, you likely won't appreciate it. Why? Because you didn't earn it (you dumb ba*st#rd!) Not so long ago, this was commonly understood. But no more.
Then, one day, politicians got deeply involved in the picture. They said “Hey, how about you guys at “The Fed” work to keep the economy going, you know, intervene when things get slow. No more of this saving money business, we can just print money, I mean, we got machines that will do that.” And then they laughed out loud “Ho, ho, he, he, rich as hell will we all be.” But, only in front of their own kind, lest the intended prey catch the scent and bolt for higher ground.
Prior to that “”The Fed” was sort of like “Star Trek” observe, but don't get involved, at least as little as possible. It was understood that a more advanced culture could influence a less advanced culture and distort their evolution.
This is what your grandparents used to call “Earning what you got.” Or, maybe “If you don't have it, don't spend it.” There were other sayings, such as “Get an education, work hard and save for a rainy day.” “Oh, and one more thing, don't piss your money away on fast cars and loose women.”
This was hard-earned wisdom, for the people who earned it, at least. But, for youthful observers, who just wanted their stuff, it was old-school bullshit, as was everything else that didn't give the kids what they wanted. "Kids" in this instance, being anyone under thirty. That was the mantra in 1960's and early seventies when youth cultural went full-bore insane. It was a monstrously big generation of post-war Baby boomers who were booming, but generally oblivious to any fact that didn't include “Gimme.” “Me.” “Mine.” “I want.” “More, more more.” “Just hand it over.” “Tune in, turn on and drop out.” Imagine kids in a sandbox, only they're 25 not 5. That's the picture.
So, “The Fed” ignored their Star Trekian mandate and got more involved, printing money, expanding the credit supply to radical proportions. Credit cards, which were once fairly rare back in the day suddenly grew as common dirt. But that wasn't all, credit to buy houses and cars, boats, personal rocket-ships, tennis rackets, closets full of clothes, choice seats at the football games, a live Cobra, whatever people wanted, that became the new norm. Consumer culture for, all, had finally arrived, and nobody would be excluded. The old paradigm of good credit was laughed at by the once wizened old men, who'd been turned into fools by the power of “The Fed.” And the debts grew and grew, but so did the write-offs and bankruptcies. It was a war of the wizards, with “The Fed” on one side, allied with the most nefarious of groups, “Attorneys of Law” who wrangled legal statutes like bronco bustin' shaman. Between the two, nothing was impossible, with one exception, nature--and, it was nature that inevitably killed the beast.
You see, the world will not be messed with. Eventually, after a long pause, nature will turn on you, just as a lion or other wild beasts will, when the opportunity arises. Why? Because, that's what nature does. It rights all wrongs and balances the sheets of even the slickest banker or politician, to say nothing of hungry lions devouring clueless lambs. Not even “The Fed” has such power. So here's what you can expect.
Once the flow of manufactured money and credit has expanded too far, a bubble will form that hovers like a death-star above our heads. And then, it will burst, just like an overextended balloon (or a death-star, even.) You might be able to patch it once, possibly twice, but, eventually, it will no longer hold air, it will no longer float, it will fall back to earth and disintegrate into tiny pieces. That's because it was just filled with hot air, pumped full by politicians who gave the people what they wanted, in exchange for the right to rule, in perpetuity.
That is the future, my friends. It's as sure as hell. Especially, for those who ignore the ways of righteousness. The wheat, then, will be separated from the chaff, the bull from the goat, the hamster from the woodchuck, the sun will set, the water will boil then cool—and it will all begin anew.
Hopefully, the next time the wizened old men and women are asked by the young, “Tell us, what should we do to prosper?” They will answer, as their parents once did, “Shut the hell up and get a job, you lazy bastards.” Then, it will be up to the youthful ones. Will they listen? Probably not. Most likely they'll respond with a hearty “Blow it out your ass!” At that point, the youth will do what they've always done and start setting the world on fire once again, aided and abetted, of course, by their parents. But here's hoping anyway.
Mark Magula
It is the tiny things that matter most. For scientists, it's the health of bugs and bacteria. There's a lot more of them than moose or whales. So, when the bugs go missing, so go we all. Not that moose and whales aren't important, they are, but deep down, where no one can see, are the little things.
Likewise, in the American economy there are the tiny things that are almost invisible to the eye, like interest rates. Interest rates are the bugs of the financial macro-world. They help to create big buildings, small ones, too. They cause the rain of money that waters the financial landscape and keeps ships of state afloat. Without low-interest rates, we'd be in big trouble. So, as go interest-rates, so goes America—and pretty much the rest of the world, as well. That is the present reality.
“How do interest rates work?” You ask. “Do they just magically adjust as needed?” Nope. Well, they used to, but not anymore, and here's why. Arrogance. Once again, mankind hath disrupted the forces of nature, leaving the natural world mighty pissed and ready to attack. No worries, though, cause “The Fed” has come to the rescue. Just when you thought “Boy, could I use some cash!” “The Fed” appears, using white magic and similar chicanery in an effort to get the ball rolling. And thus, the cash begins to flow. First a trickle, then a flood. And, before you know it, everyone is awash in money, dollars are the currency of choice and malls everywhere grow fat and happy. But, it was not always so.
"So, how was it, then--in the days of old, before magic changed the world and things were rotten, but basically still sane?"
Well, in the days of yore, a-fore The Fed got deeply involved in America's financial shit, people worked and saved actual money. They would sock the stuff away like socks being stuffed in an old drawer. Mostly, though, they put their money in banks. The banks were run by austere men who looked askance at freeloaders because serious men (and sometimes, even women) knew that money didn't grow on trees. As such, they cared for it, caressed it, and most importantly, they saved it. When their stock of money grew large enough, they would safely lend some of it out to people with good credit and a modest record of common sense. If their supply of money grew larger, yet again, they lowered interests rates a bit, because the supply of money equaled or exceeded the demand. The demand of rational, normal people, that is.
Of course, this demand was based on the notion that only people with jobs, a good credit history and a bit of seasoning were qualified to borrow. Eliminate those basic qualifications, however, and you've got people clawing to get their hands on as much filthy lucre as possible. “Pay it back? Pay what back?” Let's face it, if you ain’t earned it, you likely won't appreciate it. Why? Because you didn't earn it (you dumb ba*st#rd!) Not so long ago, this was commonly understood. But no more.
Then, one day, politicians got deeply involved in the picture. They said “Hey, how about you guys at “The Fed” work to keep the economy going, you know, intervene when things get slow. No more of this saving money business, we can just print money, I mean, we got machines that will do that.” And then they laughed out loud “Ho, ho, he, he, rich as hell will we all be.” But, only in front of their own kind, lest the intended prey catch the scent and bolt for higher ground.
Prior to that “”The Fed” was sort of like “Star Trek” observe, but don't get involved, at least as little as possible. It was understood that a more advanced culture could influence a less advanced culture and distort their evolution.
This is what your grandparents used to call “Earning what you got.” Or, maybe “If you don't have it, don't spend it.” There were other sayings, such as “Get an education, work hard and save for a rainy day.” “Oh, and one more thing, don't piss your money away on fast cars and loose women.”
This was hard-earned wisdom, for the people who earned it, at least. But, for youthful observers, who just wanted their stuff, it was old-school bullshit, as was everything else that didn't give the kids what they wanted. "Kids" in this instance, being anyone under thirty. That was the mantra in 1960's and early seventies when youth cultural went full-bore insane. It was a monstrously big generation of post-war Baby boomers who were booming, but generally oblivious to any fact that didn't include “Gimme.” “Me.” “Mine.” “I want.” “More, more more.” “Just hand it over.” “Tune in, turn on and drop out.” Imagine kids in a sandbox, only they're 25 not 5. That's the picture.
So, “The Fed” ignored their Star Trekian mandate and got more involved, printing money, expanding the credit supply to radical proportions. Credit cards, which were once fairly rare back in the day suddenly grew as common dirt. But that wasn't all, credit to buy houses and cars, boats, personal rocket-ships, tennis rackets, closets full of clothes, choice seats at the football games, a live Cobra, whatever people wanted, that became the new norm. Consumer culture for, all, had finally arrived, and nobody would be excluded. The old paradigm of good credit was laughed at by the once wizened old men, who'd been turned into fools by the power of “The Fed.” And the debts grew and grew, but so did the write-offs and bankruptcies. It was a war of the wizards, with “The Fed” on one side, allied with the most nefarious of groups, “Attorneys of Law” who wrangled legal statutes like bronco bustin' shaman. Between the two, nothing was impossible, with one exception, nature--and, it was nature that inevitably killed the beast.
You see, the world will not be messed with. Eventually, after a long pause, nature will turn on you, just as a lion or other wild beasts will, when the opportunity arises. Why? Because, that's what nature does. It rights all wrongs and balances the sheets of even the slickest banker or politician, to say nothing of hungry lions devouring clueless lambs. Not even “The Fed” has such power. So here's what you can expect.
Once the flow of manufactured money and credit has expanded too far, a bubble will form that hovers like a death-star above our heads. And then, it will burst, just like an overextended balloon (or a death-star, even.) You might be able to patch it once, possibly twice, but, eventually, it will no longer hold air, it will no longer float, it will fall back to earth and disintegrate into tiny pieces. That's because it was just filled with hot air, pumped full by politicians who gave the people what they wanted, in exchange for the right to rule, in perpetuity.
That is the future, my friends. It's as sure as hell. Especially, for those who ignore the ways of righteousness. The wheat, then, will be separated from the chaff, the bull from the goat, the hamster from the woodchuck, the sun will set, the water will boil then cool—and it will all begin anew.
Hopefully, the next time the wizened old men and women are asked by the young, “Tell us, what should we do to prosper?” They will answer, as their parents once did, “Shut the hell up and get a job, you lazy bastards.” Then, it will be up to the youthful ones. Will they listen? Probably not. Most likely they'll respond with a hearty “Blow it out your ass!” At that point, the youth will do what they've always done and start setting the world on fire once again, aided and abetted, of course, by their parents. But here's hoping anyway.
Mark Magula