Tag Archives: debt

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Study says U.S. citizens too stupid to compete in Global workplace! Older U.S. workers smarter!

25 October 2013 (15:17 UTC-07 Tango)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

Despite the fact that people in the U.S. have decent access to computers and the internet, they actually score lower in intelligence than even countries who lack access to technology!

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development released the results of their comparison of average workers in a couple dozen countries, including the United States.  U.S. workers lose!

The average U.S. worker earned a “Mean proficiency in literacy” score of 262.  Only France, Spain, Italy and Cyprus scored lower.  Surprisingly German workers scored only 267.1.  The average score is 270. Russian workers scored 275.2.  Not surprisingly, Japanese workers are way ahead of the pack with a high score of 293.6 (but their high technical intelligence still doesn’t make them much money).

Those scores include people in the age range of 16 to 65 years.  When OECD cut the age range to just 16 to 24 years, U.S. workers scored even lower, dropping to 260.9, meaning the older U.S. workers are smarter than the young workers.

This contrasts with most other countries, who saw a jump in their literacy score when the older workers were left out of the equation.   This is not good for the United States, because it suggests that as more older workers retire, or are refused jobs because of their age (like me), the overall global competitiveness of U.S. workers will continue to fall in the coming decades.

When it comes to the “adjusted” math (numeracy) score the U.S. worker does worse.  Only Cyprus and Italy scored lower than the U.S.  And it gets even worse when you throw out the old fogies: U.S. workers aged 16 to 24 suck with the lowest score of 240!  Even the young workers of Cyprus beat the U.S. in math!

The OECD also gave the U.S. poor IT and problem solving scores, but my dumb ‘merican brain couldn’t take it anymore (I is college edumacated, yes I is, Idaho State Uni).  Check it out for yourself: OECD Skills Outlook 2013.

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: U.S. Federal Reserve preps for economic collapse! Get your money now! U.S. Comptroller slips up, says crash is coming!

25 October 2013 (23:41 UTC-07 Tango 24 October 2013)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“…it’s important to demonstrate that both the level and the quality of the capital is there, uh, before the, uh, a crisis emerges.”-Thomas J. Curry, U.S. Comptroller of the Currency, speaking to CNBC’s Nightly Business Report (which airs on PBS)

Yet again, the Federal Reserve Bank is ordering big banks to increase their cash, bonds and assets reserves.  The Federal Reserve ordered an increase in cash reserves back in July.

To give you an idea of what the Federal Reserve is fearing, Too Big to Jail banks are being told they need enough cash on hand to get them through 30 days of “market stress” or “credit drought”!  Small banks now need 21 days of cash reserves.

But don’t blame the Federal Reserve for fear mongering, it was the U.S. Congress and the international Basel Committee on Banking Supervision that ordered the move!

Chairman Ben Bernanke said the reserve levels now being required are more than what’s being required for European banks.  However, at the current European Union summit increasing bank cash reserves there are being discussed.  More signs things are gonna crash.

Regarding the term ‘credit drought’, ironically, ordering banks to hold more cash in reserve will result in even fewer loans to businesses and individuals, which is a major driver of the economy by enabling them to buy stuff.  So wouldn’t this move cause a credit drought?  The credit drought the Federal Reserve is afraid of involves the availability of easy credit for the Too Big to Jail banks, not you and me.

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: EU to sanction U.S. companies! End sanctions against Iran! France & Germany to make joint anti-U.S. statement! EU makes historic deal with Canada!

25 October 2013 (23:01 UTC-07 Tango 24 October 2013)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“We are allies facing challenges together. But such an alliance can only be built on the basis of trust. I repeat that spying among friends is not at all acceptable against anyone and that goes for every citizen in Germany.”-Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany, Merkel used to live in the Stasi police state of East Germany so she knows the U.S. NSA spying ops are evil

“It is inconceivable and unacceptable that there should be acts of espionage of this type.”-Enrico Letta, Premier of Italy

“I cannot imagine to sign an EU-U.S. free trade agreement given that basic privacy rights have been breached.”-Sigmar Gabriel, German Social-Democratic Party

For those who don’t think the U.S. spying on its allies is a big deal, guess what? The U.S. has lost Europe as it’s only major ally!

At least 28 European Union leaders are being spied on by the NSA.   The NSA spied on at least 35 leaders around the World.

At least 70 million French phone calls have been monitored by the NSA.

Germany summons U.S. ambassador, John B Emerson, over NSA spying.

The former head of the DGSE (French intelligence), Alain Juillet, is surprised at the scale of “pillage” conducted by the U.S. NSA.  The rogue actions of the U.S. against its own allies now jeopardizes the U.S. led War on Terror.

French President Francois Hollande, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, are working together writing up a joint anti-U.S. statement. It’s reported they will make demands on the U.S. government concerning what it can and cannot do in Europe!

The European Union (EU) has sanctioned the Terrorist Finance Tracking Program (TFTP) agreement with the United  States.  That’s because the U.S. NSA used it to spy on Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT).   SWIFT supplies secure messaging services to legitimate financial companies.

The EU now says the World’s biggest free trade deal is now in jeopardy because of the United States!  It’s known as TTIP (Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership).  At the current EU summit members of parliament will debate imposing sanctions against the U.S. IT companies involved with helping the NSA.  The TTIP deal could have benefited the U.S. economy by $150-billion USD.

On top of that, the EU delegate to Iran, Hannes Swoboda, stated that EU sanctions against Iran should be ended “…in a step by step manner…”

Canada and the EU have agreed, in principle, to the historic CETA (Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement).  Under the deal the EU will end 100% of its tariffs on Canadian industrial products within seven years!  The EU would also accept certification of Canadian products by Canadian inspectors.  For the Canadian auto industry it could result in a 12 times increase in exports to Europe (the Canadian auto industry is not happy with the U.S. imposed NAFTA).  Canada is supposed to apply the same trade policy to European products.  CETA also affects trade of food and intellectual property.

 

U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Veterans being killed in Tennessee VA hospital?

25 October 2013 (19:56 UTC-07 Tango 24 October 2013)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“Like other hospital systems, VA isn’t immune from fatal human error. But what the department does seem to be immune from is meaningful accountability.”-Jeff Miller, State Representative of the House Committee on Veteran’s Affairs

“The office of the Inspector General released a report on an investigation they performed in May of 2013 on three deaths that occurred in our emergency department over one year ago. The physician involved in the care of two of the patients referenced in the report no longer works at our medical center.”-Christopher Marino, Memphis VA Medical Center Chief of Staffs

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Almost half of foreclosed homes in the U.S. still have families living in them!

25 October 2013 (19:18 UTC-07 Tango 24 October 2013)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

CNNMoney citing RealtyTrac.com, saying 47% of supposed vacant foreclosed homes still have families living in them!   When you break it down by region, the real estate trends tracking company says places like Miami, Florida, and Los Angeles, California, have a 60% foreclosed home occupancy rate.

The conclusion is based on the fact that mail is still being received at many foreclosed homes.

Business/Economics, U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Reverse retirement? Pension plans taking back retirement payments!

25 October 2013 (19:05 UTC-07 Tango 24 October 2013)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

The Pension Rights Center reporting a huge increase in retirement plans (including Union pension plans) claiming they overpaid retired workers, and then forcing those retirees to pay it back!

It’s called Recoupment.

CNNMoney reported how one retired woman had her retirement payment reduced to an effective $25 USD per month, due to an alleged six years of overpayment.  How does a pension company make such a mistake for that long?

South Central Pension Rights Project reports one man was being forced into repaying $120-thousand!  They explained that the pension plan somehow overlooked, for eleven years, that they were overpaying him.

South Central Pension Rights Project reported they’ve been able to stop $9-million in attempted pension recoupment!

The McLaren Bay Region hospital, in Michigan, backed off of trying to rip off 283 retired employees.  The hospital was trying to get them to repay pension overpayments, but instead will deal with the IRS over the issue.  The hospital also admitted they were underpaying some retirees as well!

U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Sandy Hook school being torn down to destroy evidence!

25 October 2013 (18:39 UTC-07 Tango 24 October 2013)/20 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/03 Aban 1391/21 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“The process of demolition is incremental, staged precisely and executed carefully. There is no wrecking ball action; it is rather a piece by piece, section by section removal.”-Pat Llodra, Newtown First Selectman

Associated Press (AP) reporting that Sandy Hook Elementary school is being demolished.  The school was the site of a mass shooting.

The shooter, who supposedly killed himself,  just happened to be the son of an elitist banker being investigated for the LIBOR scandal.  It was also revealed that the shooter was on prescription drugs that cause people to go nuts.

AP said the demolition contractor was told to destroy all building “materials”  in order to protect the victims privacy!  The city of Newton was given $50 million USD by the state of Connecticut to get rid of the old school and build a new school.

U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Senior National Guard NCO targeted federal martial law loving officer?

24 October 2013 (16:33 UTC-07 Tango)/19 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/02 Aban 1391/20 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“It concerns me today, what’s happened all over the world, Washington D.C., that Washington Naval Yard, you never think something like this will happen on your watch, in good ol’ Tennessee here, but it did happen.”-Major General Max Haston, Tennessee National Guard

Tennessee Army National Guard officials have confirmed the National Guard recruiter who was fired was a Sergeant First Class (E7).   He allegedly shot another senior NCO ( a Sergeant Major E9) and an officer (a Major O4).

National Guard NCOs around the country have been unofficially reporting that many commanding officers are pro-federal police state-ists.  I can tell you from my NG experience that most senior officer positions in supposedly state run NG are held by federal Regular Army officers!

U.S.

Exceptional Failed State: Multiple shots fired throughout Memphis, Tennessee! Christians killed!

24 October 2013 (16:24 UTC-07 Tango)/19 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/02 Aban 1391/20 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

In Memphis, Tennessee, multiple shots fired being reported.  Three people shot near the Greater Community Temple Church in North Memphis. One person killed, two wounded.

Five gunshots reported near Central High School in Memphis.  One man arrested in that case.

The shootings come on the same day a fired National Guard recruiter shot fellow guardsman at the Paul R. Summers Armory, near Memphis.  The shootings also come as news reports said investigations into the disappearance of 63 AR-15 semi-auto civilian market rifles (on 14 October) are now focusing on Memphis.