4th and 15, Where We Are, Where We've Been

In "The Last Call For Alcohol", I tried to provide a historical perspective via "bar parable" on the Super Size Me Era and the beginning of the contraction that begin in 1999.  James Quinn from "The Burning Platform" has assembled an incredibly detailed historical summary from 1980 with much data to support.  Some excerpts:

"Americans are slowly coming to the realization that unbridled greed is not the same as capitalism. Excessively low interest rates punish savers and senior citizens, while benefitting borrowers, risk takers and Wall Street. Savings leads to investment, while borrowing leads to impoverishment. The actions taken thus far by politicians, government bureaucrats, and the Federal Reserve are the exact opposite of what was required. The next leg down in this Greater Depression will thoroughly discredit those who have promoted a money culture over those virtues that will benefit society in the long run. The current Crisis will require personal sacrifice, renewed community spirit, public consensus, and truth. Failure could prove fatal for our nation. The best of human nature must win out over greed, ignorance, and love of power. Our future hangs in the balance."

"The United States has experienced a three decade long “expenditure cascade”. An expenditure cascade occurs when the rapid income growth of top earners fuels additional spending by the lower earners. The cascade begins among top earners, which encourages the middle class to spend more which, in turn, encourages the lower class to spend more. Ultimately, these expenditure cascades reduce the amount that each family saves, as there is less money available to save due to extra spending. Expenditure cascades are triggered by consumption. The consumption of the wealthy triggers increased spending in the class directly below them and the chain continues down to the bottom. This is a dangerous reaction for those at the bottom who have little disposable income originally and even less after they attempt to keep up with others spending habits. The personal savings rate was 12% in the early 1980s and declined to negative 1% by 2005. The expenditure cascade couldn’t have occurred without easy access to debt. The question that must be asked is, who benefits from debt and who pays?"

"The delusion of the American populace cannot be underestimated. Their worshipping at the altar of materialism and adoration of Hollywood created pop culture was crucial to the societal delusion. Without the corporate consumerism marketing machine, an unlimited amount of credit provided by bankers, and ultra-low interest rates supplied by the Federal Reserve, the delusions of grandeur could not have been realized."

"We have taken the acquisition of material belongings so seriously that it became what we worked for. Material possessions defined who we are. When we lose these possessions we no longer have the identity that we have blindly created by collecting “things”. My God, what have we done?"

I highly recommend that everyone read this entire article.  Long, but full of important details defining where we've been and where we are.
http://theburningplatform.com/blog/2010/06/13/two-decades-of-greed-the-unraveling-featured-article/#comments

I Need More....Suck It Up

Straight in, suck up and go,
Cool it, swallow, swallow
Breathe deep, take it all It comes cheap
Push it through the doors
Because in between the lines
I'm gonna pack more lines
So I can get in
Ooh traffic jam got more cars
Than a beach got sand
Suck it up, suck it up, suck it up,
Fill it up until no more
I'm no crazy creep,
I've got it coming
To me because I'm not satisfied
The hunger keeps on growing
I eat too much
I drink too much
I want too much
Too much
I've got to get it somewhere I mean,
you never know,
maybe you're dreaming
Who do you think you're watching
Who do you think you need
Play for me,
play more,
Ten times in the same day I need more,
I'm going
Over my borders
I'm going to take more,
more From you,
letter by letter
I eat too much
I drink too much
I want too much
Too much
I told, God, I'm coming
To your country
I'm going to eat up your cities,
Your homes, you know
I've got a stomach full it's not
A chip on my shoulder
I've got this growl in my tummy
And I'm gonna stop it today
I eat too much I drink too much
I want too much
Too much
Suck it up...
"Too Much" - The Dave Matthews Band

As we get swept up into this crazy gluttonous season called "retailers Christmas", lets digest Dave's words.

My Email to Billy Boy and The Factor

It's painful to watch, but I have to admit that, on occasion, I watch the O'Reilly Factor. I find the man to be angry and spiteful. In October, 2007 after he called my musical hero, Bruce Springsteen, unpatriotic, I had to send him an email. Here it is.....

Billy-Boy,
I’ve watched your show for years and felt compelled so many times to send you a note, but your assault on Bruce motivated me to finally write. I should state that I claim no political party. All media channels appear to have bias, so one must watch several to get a balanced perspective. So a mix of Fox news, the NY Times, CNN, and NPR make an interesting blend. Your totally arrogant stating that individuals have to appear on YOUR show. When did you become the TV-god? Stating that you will donate $25,000 to Habitat for Humanity is such a farce. Bruce appearing on your show would provide Fox the opportunity to sell commercials at Super Bowl rates. $25,000 donation……give me a break. Your ratings would skyrocket even more! No one reports to you. Bruce for forty years has consistently written and sung about what he feels in his heart and ponders in his mind. He’s always had the courage to release music that was not what the mainstream wanted to hear. Whether it was the darkness on Nebraska, the pain in Streets of Philadelphia, the reality of American Skin or Dead Man Walkin’, or his perception of our country on Magic. You state that he is misleading the younger voters.
He has the right to his opinion just as you do. If people don’t like it, they don’t buy his CD or attend his concert. His business is about direct feedback. Your problem is that people are buying his “spin”. His problem is that people are buying your “spin”. You see, that’s the beauty of a free country.
Billy-Boy, you continue to mislead the evangelical/Republican babyboomers. You spit venom and spread hatred.

In the “up” cycle (1982-2000), you media mongers sold “greed”. Remember the euphoric ending (aka DotCom). Now in the early stages of the “down” cycle, you sell “fear”. Fear of muslims. Fear of Mexicans. Fear that our house value will drop in half. Xenophobia is a powerful force in the down cycle and you are fueling it as much as anybody. Why didn’t you care about illegal Mexicans in 1995? If you believe that the U.S. is in the business of removing evil dictators than why aren’t we in Iran, N. Korea, and Venezuela. If we are good Samaritans, why aren’t we in Darfur/Sudan, Ethiopia, and Uganda.

The interesting point regarding mass social mood is that two years into the “up” cycle (1984) Bruce released the album, Born in the USA. The title song ironically was misconstrued to be a national anthem when it really was a song about how poorly our Vietnam veterans were treated. Wikipedia states the following “Yet more notably, the widely-read, bow-tied conservative columnist George Will, after attending a show, published on September 13, 1984 a piece entitled "A Yankee Doodle Springsteen" in which he praised Springsteen as an exemplar of classic American values. He wrote: ‘I have not got a clue about Springsteen's politics, if any, but flags get waved at his concerts while he sings songs about hard times. He is no whiner, and the recitation of closed factories and other problems always seems punctuated by a grand, cheerful affirmation: 'Born in the U.S.A.!'.”
You see, in the “up” cycle we see the bright side of things. Now in the “down” cycle MAGIC is construed to be anti-American and unpatriotic. A very interesting psychology experiment.

Billy-Boy, on another note, Iraq and global warming are about the same thing, overconsumption. No one wants to talk about that because then we all are guilty. Al Gore in his many houses is guilty. Bill O’Reilly is guilty. I am guilty. As you know, we’re in Iraq for strategic reasons…..to control the oil output from the Middle East. Afghanistan provided a great landing base. Iraq provides great oil reserves and proximity to Iran. Please be honest. Yes, it was about WMD’s, but those of another kind: weapons of mass depletion. As a country that represents 5% of the world’s population, we consume 25% of its resources. That’s just irresponsible. Why don’t you spend a week focusing on US consumption. Have Jared Diamond as a guest (author of Guns, Germs, and Steel; Collapse). Or maybe have Richard Heinberg (The Party’s Over; Peak Everything).
Historically, conflict between cultures is sourced in resources or religion. The current and coming years provide an alignment of both. Stay tuned. You’ll have a lot more interesting topics to talk about than assaulting iconic rock stars.

Mr. O’Neill, you are subject to external forces much greater than yourself. Your selling what the mobs currently seek and feel…….FEAR.

I’ve purposely made this response long so that you can selectively edit and combine to make your point seem valid.
Enjoy!