Disaster Capitalism for Dummies

We are no longer waiting for The Perfect Storm to come, it is here. The outer bands are sweeping the beaches, the storm surge is lapping at the sea walls and breaches are occurring. But it's not just the economy, stupid. Keep in mind energy prices were the pin that popped the housing bubble. Keep in mind energy prices and environmental disasters drove the costs of food and fertilizer higher. This is a Perfect Storm of converging storms, large and small.

We have energy prices (at current "low" prices, they are still 3 - 4x prices in 2003) driving food, fertilizer, pesticide prices, bio-fuels creating havoc with food production, impacting funding for alternative energies, and slowing the economy.

We have weather disasters driven by Climate Change causing destruction we cannot seem to recover from (Katrina, Galveston) and reducing harvests in a number of areas, notably the US, Australia and Bangladesh.

We have the economic disaster (We *might* be in a recession? Freaking liars and/or idiots.) literally resulting in the nationalization of economies all over the globe. We have sold our nations to the bankers. All of this compounded by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which had already been used as excuse to strip away our rights and freedoms, draining the coffers and dragging on the economy. Our ability to adapt to Climate Change, rebuilding as a sustainable society is deeply impacted. Global Warming is likely unstoppable simply because we will likely not be able to afford the transition.

We are in deep poop, people. The longer this goes without the We the Sheeple standing up and telling our leaders what to do, rather than being led to our own slaughter, the more likely there will be nothing but the ultra wealthy and powerful buying their custom built oases, fully staffed by Blackwater, and the rest of us baking in the sun scratching about for a few weeds to nibble on.

With regard to the Economic Storm, I don't think it can be said any better than this:

Wall Street's 'Disaster Capitalism for Dummies'

14 reasons Main Street loses big while Wall Street sabotages democracy

ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (MarketWatch) -- Yes, we're dummies. You. Me. All 300 million of us. Clueless. We should be ashamed. We're obsessed about the slogans and rituals of "democracy," distracted by the campaign, polls, debates, rhetoric, half-truths and outright lies. McCain? Obama? Sorry to pop your bubble folks, but it no longer matters who's president.

Why? The real "game changer" already happened. Democracy has been replaced by Wall Street's new "disaster capitalism." That's the big game-changer historians will remember about 2008, masterminded by Wall Street's ultimate "Trojan Horse," Hank Paulson. Imagine: Greed, arrogance and incompetence create a massive bubble, cost trillions, and still Wall Street comes out smelling like roses, richer and more powerful!

Yes, we're idiots: While distracted by the "illusion of democracy" in the endless campaign, Congress surrendered the powers we entrusted to it with very little fight. Congress simply handed over voting power and the keys to trillions in the Treasury to Wall Street's new "Disaster Capitalists" who now control "democracy."

Why did this happen? We're in denial, clueless wimps, that's why. We let it happen. In one generation America has been transformed from a democracy into a strange new form of government, "Disaster Capitalism."

Here's how it happened:

• Three decades of influence peddling in Washington has built an army of 42,000 special-interest lobbyists representing corporations and the wealthy. Today these lobbyists manipulate America's 537 elected officials with massive campaign contributions that fund candidates who vote their agenda.
• This historic buildup accelerated under Reaganomics and went into hyperspeed under Bushonomics, both totally committed to a new disaster capitalism run privately by Wall Street and Corporate America. No-bid contracts in wars and hurricanes. A housing-credit bubble -- while secretly planning for a meltdown.
• Finally, the coup de grace: Along came the housing-credit crisis, as planned. Press and public saw a negative, a crisis. Disaster capitalists saw a huge opportunity. Yes, opportunity for big bucks and control of America. Millions of homeowners and marginal banks suffered huge losses. Taxpayers stuck with trillions in debt. But giant banks emerge intact, stronger, with virtual control over government and the power to use taxpayers' funds. They're laughing at us idiots!

Amazing isn't it, Wall Street's Disaster Capitalists screwed up, likely planned or let happen this meltdown and recession. Yet America's clueless taxpayers just reward them by giving the screw-ups massive bailouts, control over more than $2 trillion of tax money, and the power to clean up the mess they made. Oh yes, we are dummies!

This end game was planned for years in secret war rooms on Wall Street, in Corporate America, in Washington and the Forbes 400. Democracy is too cumbersome. It had to be marginalized for Disaster Capitalism to take over. Reagan, Bush and Paulson were Wall Street's "Trojan Horses."

Naomi Klein summarizes the game in "Shock Doctrine: the Rise of Disaster Capitalism." This "new economy" generates enormous profits feeding off other peoples' misery: Wars, terror attacks, natural catastrophes, poverty, trade sanctions, subprime housing meltdowns and all kinds of economic, financial and political disasters. Natural (Katrina) or manmade (Iraq), either way "disaster capitalism" creates fortunes.

So you, me and the other 300 million better get out of denial. America is no longer a democracy. Voting is irrelevant. Best case scenario: We're a plutocracy, a government ruled by the wealthy, the richest 1%, the Forbes 400, the influential wealthy elite, while the other 99% are their "servants." Meanwhile, the inflation-adjusted income of wage-earners has declined for three decades.

Worst case scenario: America's no democracy and as a result of the meltdown and the surrender of our power to Wall Street's new Disaster Capitalism we are morphing into what one WWII dictator called "corporatism," a "merger of state and corporate power," kind of like what's going on now with Goldman Sachs' ex-boss as de facto president.

Wolves in sheep's clothing

Yes, a strong charge. But like a lot of our readers, I don't like what's happening to America. I'm a patriot. I volunteered for the Marines. Served four years. Volunteered for Korea. I don't like how our freedoms, rights and value system are being subverted in the name of greed, arrogance, self-righteous intolerance and other false gods.

We know for the last eight years disaster capitalists ignored obvious warnings of a coming meltdown. They apparently planned it. They road the bull, got very rich. Now they have the ultimate disaster capitalist weapons, trillions in tax money, virtual control of government.

That's why I fear we're on the edge of a dangerous line between Wall Street's version of disaster capitalism and a toxic "merger of state and corporate power." The wolf is in sheep's clothing. Wall Street pretends we're a democracy. Yet America more closely resembles the kind of "corporatism" that Laurence W. Britt wrote about five years ago in Free Inquiry magazine.

We adapted his historical analysis of 14 key traits for today's discussion. Notice how they have a huge impact your investments and retirement:

1. Wall Street rich get first priority

Think "bailout." Wall Street's greedy con game spins out of control globally. Millions of homeowners misled, lose. Who gets hundreds of billions first? Wall Street's con men.

2. National security obsession

Think of the expansion of executive powers in the name of national security: Preemptive wars, wiretapping private citizens, Gitmo, torture; driven by a dark wealthy neocon elite.

3. Superpower with massive military

Think of our $3 trillion Iraq/Afghan War. Disaster capitalists love the thrill of military power. We outspend all nations, over half the federal budget to strut before the world.

4. Extreme nationalism

Signs are everywhere: Flags, lapel pins, "support the troops" slogans, all to get huge military budgets passed. Challenge them and you're un-American and unpatriotic.

5. Rally the masses by scapegoating enemies

Think "axis of evil," mushroom clouds, "Islamofascists," more terrorist attacks on the homeland. Propaganda creates "enemies" in the public's mind and distracts from real issues.

6. Corruption and cronyism

Think earmarks, no-bid defense contracts, paid mercenaries outnumbering military in Iraq, superlobbyist Jack Abramoff, biofuels, bridge to nowhere, millions donated to campaigns.

7. Obsession with crime

Think of prison-building as just another investment opportunity, rather than focusing on reforming our criminal justice system. Stoke irrational fear of criminals and extremists.

8. Labor and low wages

Think corporate earnings versus the wages paid to workers. No "trickling down," leaves more for tricklers: Rich insiders, stockholders. Wages dropping as CEO salaries skyrocket.

9. Contempt for human rights

Think of abuses of habeas corpus, loss of right to trial, bogus charges, plus "demonizing" the victims, all in the name of national defense and homeland security.

10. Mass media manipulation

Think of leaking false information, Joseph Wilson, Valerie Plame, Scooter Libby, Colin Powell's United Nation's testimony, Condoleezza Rice's mushroom clouds, WMDs, all to suppress the truth.

11. Obsession with sexism

Think of paternalism, antigays, antiabortion, subordinate women -- then codify the system as the law of the land reinforcing a male-dominated society, punish violators.

12. Disdain for intellectuals

Think of conservative intellectuals Francis Fukuyama and Bill Buckley. Contrast them to Sarah Palin and Joe Sixpack conservatism, Bush's funding cuts for arts and science education.

13. Religion in government

Think of all the faith-based programs versus antiscience in drug approvals, creationism vs. evolution, Ten Commandments enshrined in public buildings, public money to churches.

14. Fraudulent elections

Think of police and prosecutorial intimidation and threats to voters, challenging minority voters, ballots disappearing, party election officials committing outright fraud.

Yes, officially America is still a democracy. We have enough signs and rituals to support that illusion. But the truth is America has become a plutocracy run by and for the wealthy. And since Wall Street's Disaster Capitalism coup de grace, we are rapidly morphing into a dangerous new government.

For more, read Britt's original article, then add comments here: Was the meltdown planned by Wall Street's Disaster Capitalists?

"America has become a plutocracy run by and for the wealthy."

Indeed.

And you are not invited to partake.

More info on "Shock Doctrine" from Naomi Klein:

The Shock Doctrine, the book.


The Shock Doctrine, Short Video


The Shock Doctrine, Long Video

Famine II

Famine, malnutrition, hunger. I posted in February on problems with world food supplies, prices and possible famine coming as early as this year due to inflationary pressures from oil prices feeding through to costs in food production (97% of the process is petrochemical dependent), not the least of which is the cost of fertilizers, grain and acreage being diverted to biofuels production, and weather-related (Global Warming) reductions in crops produced. All that is still the case. The difference is that the effects were seemingly minor and limited to the very poorest of the poor. That is no longer the case. China, Korea and Japan are all buying up land in other countries to feed their burgeoning populations. Japan has experienced shortages of a few commodities already:

Japan's Hunger

"In the past, Japan was a rich country with a powerful yen that could easily buy cheap imports such as wheat, corn and soybeans," said Mr Shibata, who directs the Marubeni Research Institute in Tokyo. "But with enormous competition from the booming Chinese and Indian economies, that's changed forever. You also need to take into account recent developments, including the damage to crops caused by drought and other disasters in exporting countries like Australia," where the value of wheat exports has tumbled from $3.49 billion to $2.77 billion in the past three years. The situation has been compounded by a surge in demand for bio-fuels such as ethanol, made from maize, encouraging farmers around the world to divert their efforts away from wheat and barley and into maize, further driving up prices.

Arguably Japan's biggest concern, however, is its weakening ability to sustain its population with domestic produce. In 2006 the country's self-sufficiency rate fell to 39%, according to the Agriculture Ministry.

Japan is among the richest nations on Earth. A nation that assumed until recently that it could buy all the food it needed. The rise of China and India has changed that. Food prices are soaring, a wealthier Asia is demanding better food and farmers cannot keep up. In Korea, where they are nearly self-sufficient in rice production, but import 95% of everything else, prices are skyrocketing. Prices went up 3% in Nov. and Dec., 2007, over the previous year. By January, prices were already jumping:

Skyrocketing international prices of oil, gas and grain are making food and household goods more expensive.

"I think I felt better during the 1997 financial crisis," said Yang Young-geun, 53, who has run a Chinese restaurant in southeastern Seoul for 12 years. "It has never felt tougher than today."

As the prices of flour and oil, the main ingredients of jajangmyeon (noodles with black bean paste sauce), have climbed, he said, he no longer makes any profit on the dish.

"The cost of the ingredients to make the noodles has risen from 30 percent to 45 percent of the total cost," Lee said. "After paying salaries to my employees and maintenance costs, I have almost nothing left."

... The 51-year-old owner of a Chinese restaurant in Seocho, southern Seoul, has started selling the noodles at 4,000 won, up 500 won from last year.

"I tried to avoid raising the price by cutting personnel costs, but I could not stand the skyrocketing prices of ingredients anymore," said the female owner, who refused to be named.

"I am afraid to shop these days because the price of everything goes up day by day,"
said Kim Gyeong-soo, a 54-year-old housewife in Jung District, Seoul. "Our family now takes vitamin C instead of eating fruit."

Since then, the things have gone from bad to worse:

The Korean economy is facing a bout of stagflation with lower economic growth at a time of sharply rising prices, a government report said yesterday.

Producer prices rose the fastest in almost 10 years due to increasing costs of crude oil and agricultural products. The announcement came a day after the Bank of Korea said that economic growth will likely be far less than earlier projected.

“Korea’s economy already peaked and is entering a downward phase,” the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said in a report on the overall economy.

Wholesale Prices Make Biggest Jump In Years

Economy goes down, further contraction expected: ministry

Consumer Prices Rose 3.6% Last Month

Around the globe, people are protesting and governments are responding with often counterproductive controls on prices and exports - a new politics of scarcity in which ensuring food supplies is becoming a major challenge for the 21st century.

Damaged by severe weather in producing countries and plundered by a boom in demand from fast-developing nations, global wheat stocks are at 30-year lows. Grain prices have been on the rise for five years, ending decades of inexpensive food.

Drought, a declining dollar, a shift of investment money into commodities and use of farm land to grow biofuel crops have all contributed to food woes. But population growth and the growing wealth of China and other emerging countries are likely to be more enduring factors.

World population is set to hit 9 billion by 2050, and most of the extra 2.5 billion people will live in the developing world. It is in these countries that the population is demanding dairy and meat, which require more land to produce.

"This is an additional setback for the world economy, at a time when we are already going through major turbulence, but the biggest drama is the impact of higher food prices on the poor," Angel Gurría, head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, said.

A Perfect Storm Cometh... bifurcations... tipping points... complex systems...

In Gurría's native Mexico, tens of thousands took to the streets last year over the cost of tortillas...

Global food prices... rose 35 percent in the year to the end of January, markedly accelerating an upturn that began, gently at first, in 2002. Since then, prices have risen 65 percent.

In 2007 alone... dairy prices rose nearly 80 percent and grain 42 percent.

"The recent rise in global food commodity prices is more than just a short-term blip," the British research group Chatham House said in January.

"Society will have to decide the value to be placed on food," it added...

...A number of governments, including Egypt, Argentina, Kazakhstan and China, have imposed restrictions to limit grain exports and keep more of their food at home.

..."If one country after the other adopts a 'starve-your-neighbor' policy, then eventually you trade smaller shares of total world production of agricultural products, and that in turn makes the prices more volatile," said Joachim von Braun, director general of the International Food Policy Research Institute in Washington.

In Argentina, a government tax on grain led to a strike by farmers that disrupted grain exports.

Vietnam and India, both major rice exporters, announced further curbs on overseas sales Friday, sending rice higher on U.S. futures markets.

...Waves of discontent are already starting to be felt. Violent protests hit Cameroon and Burkina Faso in February. Protesters rallied in Indonesia recently and media reported deaths by starvation. In the Philippines, fast-food chains were urged to cut rice portions to counter a surge in prices.

Trade Minister Kamal Nath of India said Monday that the government was looking to cut duties on food items to rein in rising prices.

In short, the world faces a food crisis and in some places it is already boiling over. Geopolitics will increasingly be affected by shortages and competition for a smaller pool of resources. Let us not forget Japan annexed Korea in 1910 in part to use Korea as a rice bowl. A large portion of Korean rice production was shipped to Japan during the period of occupation. What is to prevent old animosities from rising up a people become hungry, malnourished or even face starvation? A nation like Korea which is pinched between two more powerful neighbors must keep such possibilities in mind. (Not to mention what might happen if the DPRK (North Korea) destabilizes or China decides to have a presence there.)

Climate problems persist and will likely worsen over time. While Australia had a bit of a reprieve from their on-going drought, scientists worry the drought conditions are a long-term, essentially permanent feature of Australia's climate. This is obviously problematic if this loss of production isn't made up elsewhere.

Coupled with the problems of Climate Change damaging food production and Peak Oil transferring food production to fuel production, is this problem of population and wealth, i.e. consumption. That is, the dogma of perpetual growth.

Albert Bartlett (link to the left) warns us of the dangers of never-ending growth.