Has capitalism failed us?

How is it possible that the most dynamic, best capitalized, most high-tech economy in world history could not add a single dollar to the real wealth of the average working man over a 40 year period?

?Americans think we are stupid,? said a European diplomat at a dinner party in Washington. ?But we?re not stupid. We?re just working out the problems involved in forming what you might call ?a more perfect union.??

Skip to next paragraph Bill Bonner

Bill has written two New York Times best-selling books, Financial Reckoning Day and Empire of Debt. With political journalist Lila Rajiva, he wrote his third New York Times best-selling book, Mobs, Messiahs and Markets, which offers concrete advice on how to avoid the public spectacle of modern finance. Since 1999, Bill has been a daily contributor and the driving force behind The Daily Reckoning (dailyreckoning.com).

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?Well, you can unify all you want?it won?t make your debts go away,? we replied. We always try to be a cheery presence at dinner parties?especially in Washington.

?No?but it will make it easier for us to manage them, just as you do here. And by the way, the US has about the same amount of debt as Europe. The latest figures show the average of all OECD countries is about 100% of government debt to GDP. The US is right in the center?right at the average.?

?Oh, don?t think I?m holding the US up as a superior example. Not at all. To the contrary, I?m just pointing out that if Europe follows the US model, it will go broke just like the US.?

?Actually, there is some very intelligent and sophisticated thinking going on in Europe. I think you?d approve of it. We don?t talk about it publicly, of course. Most people wouldn?t understand. But we know that something very important has changed?and we are not at all sure how to respond to it.

?No country has ever been able to work its way out of such high levels of debt without exceptionally strong rates of growth?and an exceptionally good set of circumstances that make it possible ? such as very agreeable creditors who essentially forgive debt, as the US did after WWI and WWII.

?And I don?t see either of those things happening. The creditors can?t forgive the debt?because they owe money too. They?d be broke too. And growth levels seem to have come down to negligible levels. If this continues, all our planning and all our efforts to ?build a more perfect union? will probably be for nothing.?

?I?m glad to see you thinking along those lines. But you?re aware that this is not a problem that just appeared in the credit crisis of ?08??

?Yes?we know it has been a long time coming. Ever since the end of the ?30 glorious years? following WWII, real growth has been hard to get.?

?Exactly. In the US, the average man of working age earns about 20% less, in real terms, than he did in 1972. If he only went to high school and not college, he earns nearly 50% less.?

?In Europe, outside of Germany, the figures are similar?though not as bad, I believe.?

?Yes, it was possible for the US to reduce its WWII debt because it ran very high rates of real growth up until the ?70s. Same thing in Europe. Since then, most of the improvement in living standards has been smoke and mirrors. In America, women went to work. More people working more hours. They were able to increase household income?while the quality of life at home generally went to Hell. Then, when they couldn?t work any more hours, they began borrowing money. Then, their balance sheets went to Hell. That is the reason, and the only reason, for the boom of the Clinton?and later, Bush?years. It was a phony, unsustainable boom?with phony, unsustainable growth.?

?In Europe, it was a little different. People didn?t want to work more. They wanted to work less. So they emphasized high wages?.but fewer people had jobs. We learned to live with high unemployment. And governments borrowed to boost living standards for everyone ? including those who didn?t work.?

?But those days are over. Nobody ? household or government ? can continue to borrow to raise living standards. And without more real demand?and real spending?and real wealth?it?s not possible to work your way out of so much debt.?

?Yes, this time capitalism really does seem to have failed us,? our diplomat friend concluded.

?Well, it looks that way. You have to ask? How is it possible that the most dynamic, best capitalized, most high-tech economy in world history could not add a single dollar to the real wealth of the average working man over a 40 year period??

More to come?

Regards,

Bill Bonner,
?for The Daily Reckoning

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Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/B8axPXuSpwo/Has-capitalism-failed-us

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Iowa AD: Coach's chair slamming crossed the line (AP)

IOWA CITY, Iowa ? Iowa's athletic director says basketball coach Fran McCaffery went too far when he slammed a chair to the court during last week's blowout loss at Michigan State.

Gary Barta said in a statement Monday he completely supports McCaffery, who was hired to rebuild the program after some of the worst seasons in school history.

Barta did acknowledge he heard criticism from the Big Ten Conference after McCaffery's outburst against Michigan State and had discussed the matter with the coach.

"I love his passion, his style of play, his recruiting, his work ethic, and his love for his guys," Barta said. But he added, "It's important his passion doesn't cross a line that distracts from our greater goals. That's what happened last week and that was the focus of our conversation."

Barta's statement came a day after USA Today reported that Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delaney said the conference "did communicate its concern regarding certain conduct during the Iowa-MSU game" to Barta. The statement said the conference did not expect an apology from McCaffery but "does not expect similar conduct in the future."

Barta said he had productive conversations with the conference and McCaffery and "from all three perspectives, last week's incident is done. It's behind us."

Big Ten spokesman Scott Chipman said the conference had no additional comment.

The outburst started when McCaffery was whistled for a technical foul while Iowa was losing 69-41 in the second half. During the break, he picked up a folding chair and slammed it to the court while yelling at his players. Iowa lost the game 95-61. Video of the incident spread online, with one clip being viewed more than 110,000 times.

The Hawkeyes responded Saturday with perhaps their best outing of the season, easily defeating No. 13 Michigan 75-59 at home to improve to 11-8, 3-3 Big Ten.

At a press conference last week, McCaffery said he had no regrets or apologies for his behavior, and he would not change his style. He also said he did not receive any communication from the Big Ten and, "nor should I have."

"If anybody thinks I'm going to sit there with my hands crossed when we're down by 40, they got the wrong guy, OK. I was brought in here to change the culture. I'm going to coach with passion, and my players know that. They also know I'm going to fight for them," he said.

"I'm going to continue to coach the same way, and we're going to keep working, improving, and battling, and fighting until we're up by 40."

McCaffery said he was upset with his players for failing to adjust to a game that referees were calling loose. He said his players should have recognized that and become more physical.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120116/ap_on_sp_co_ne/bkc_iowa_chair_slam

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New Hampshire Wiseguy Prank Calls C-Span

In the aftermath of the New Hampshire primary this week, in which Mitt Romney placed first and Ron Paul second, plenty of serious political analysis occurred.

Just not here.

The true hazards of running live broadcasts including viewer participation were on full display on C-SPAN, when a Granite State resident called to offer his two cents.

Really, he just wanted to know one thing ...

C-Span Prank Call

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/new-hampshire-wiseguy-prank-calls-c-span/

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Gingrich pulls back on Romney attacks in SC (AP)

COLUMBIA, S.C. ? Under pressure from some in his own party, Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich pulled back his public attacks on front-runner Mitt Romney ? at least for now.

Gingrich stuck to a largely subdued stump speech during two events Thursday in South Carolina's capital, focusing instead on his plans for saving Social Security, creating jobs and boosting domestic energy production.

The often-combative Gingrich made no references to Romney, nor did he repeat his criticism of the former Massachusetts governor's record as a venture capitalist. A pro-Gingrich political action committee also has railed against Romney's tenure at the helm of Bain Capital with the release this week of a 28-minute film assailing Romney for "reaping massive rewards" as head of the private equity firm.

That line of attack has some Republicans worried that Gingrich is trying to save his faltering campaign at the party's expense. Gingrich is grasping for a campaign lifeline in South Carolina, which holds its primary Jan. 21, after a pair of disappointing fourth-place finishes in the contests in Iowa and New Hampshire.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce entered the debate Thursday, saying it was "foolish" for Republicans to bash Romney for his work as a venture capitalist. A top South Carolina support of GOP contender Rick Perry, who had taken to calling Romney a "vulture capitalist," said Thursday he was joining Romney's camp out of irritation over Perry's attacks.

Gingrich acknowledged drawing the ire of some conservatives. But he insisted their anger was over his calls for auditing the federal bailout of the financial industry to see who got the money and why.

"When you have crony-capitalism and politicians taking care of their friends that's not free-enterprise. That's back-door socialism," Gingrich said during remarks to older voters at a senior citizen's expo.

During a morning TV interview, Gingrich said his questions about Romney were "not the centerpiece" of his campaign in South Carolina. Still, he said it was important to question Romney's record because the former Massachusetts governor has based his campaign on the argument that he has the necessary business experience to restore the economy.

The former House speaker predicted that a win in the first-in-the-South primary would pave a path to the presidency.

"If I win South Carolina, I think I will become the Republican nominee," he said.

Last month, Gingrich made a similarly bold declaration about winning the nomination. At the time he was ahead in the polls and Romney's allies had not yet blooded Gingrich with a barrage of negative attack ads in Iowa.

South Carolina has a decades-long streak of voting for the eventual GOP nominee.

From South Carolina, Gingrich was headed to Florida to raise money and open a campaign headquarters.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120113/ap_on_el_ge/us_gingrich

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South Africa President criticizes UN over Libya (AP)

UNITED NATIONS ? South African President Jacob Zuma told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday that it "completely ignored" the African Union when it allowed NATO's bombing campaign to oust Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

Zuma made his comments to the 15-member council during a debate on a resolution seeking to improve relations between U.N. and the A.U.

"A problem which was confined to one country, Libya, has now grown to be a regional problem. The lesson we should draw from the Libyan experience is that greater political coherence and a common vision between the A.U. and the U.N. are critical in the resolution of African conflicts," Zuma said.

Zuma also said that the ignored African plan would have helped resolve the conflict. He added that the resolution was important not because Africa did not want outside help, but that those who provide help must take into account African concerns.

"It is important that an international organization like the United Nations take into account the realities on the local level when it takes a decision," Zuma said.

South Africa, which holds the rotating Security Council presidency for the month of January, has recently been critical of the NATO bombing campaign saying that when it voted for the U.N. resolution approving a no-fly zone to protect civilians it had not intended to authorize regime change.

Mark Kornblau, spokesman for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations disputed Zuma's characterization of the campaign.

"The international action in Libya saved tens of thousands of innocent civilians from slaughter, and the subsequent overthrow by the Libyan people of a brutal dictator has inspired people across the region and the world to pursue their own universal human rights and freedoms," Kornblau said in a statement.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/un/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120112/ap_on_re_us/un_un_south_african_president

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Experts: Some Barbour pardons lack key info

On his last days in office, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour confused many of his constituents when, without explanation, he granted pardons or early releases to more than 200 convicts. NBC's Mark Potter reports.

By Miranda Leitsinger, msnbc.com

Many of the more than 200 pardons by Haley Barbour during his last day as Mississippi's governor seemed to have been done in haste, with information missing from the clemency warrants -- which did not?have the ?look of full technical and procedural regularity,? experts say.

Sentencing information for many of those pardoned, given clemency?or granted early release?in one of Barbour's final acts as governor was not included on many of the clemency warrants. And, one of the documents even had a semicolon instead of the date the person was discharged on, said P.S. Ruckman Jr., an associate professor of political science at Rock Valley College in Rockford, Ill., who reviewed each of the executive orders.

A typical presidential pardon, said Ruckman, would include standard information, such as offense committed and when the crime occurred.

"So I went to those warrants expecting to find that kind of standard information and ...?most of them had maybe, I would say, half of that information. The rest of them were missing some date, one way or another, or some piece of information, like not telling you what the sentence was,? he said.

"When you don?t know how severe the punishment was, then you know, I guess you could be of such a mind to say, well, he was hiding that information so a standard person ... couldn?t kind of see how egregious some of these offenses were," he added.

But Ruckman said he didn't think that was the case. "I think it was just a matter of they were in a rush and they were pumping these things out fast, and so they just didn?t bother to fine track down that information and, or, to write it in the clemency warrant."

Former Mississippi governor Gov. Haley Barbour's pardons may have violated the state constitution. NBC's Mark Potter reports.

Barbour: I followed Parole Board recommendations
Following a public outcry over his action, Barbour issued a statement Wednesday evening saying 189 of those pardoned were already out of prison and 13 of the 26 inmates released had cost the state?a lot of money because of medical expenses.

Of the 214 cases, 198 received full, complete and unconditional pardons, while the rest was a mix of medical and conditional suspensions of sentences plus a conditional clemency.

"My decision about clemency was based upon the recommendation of the Parole Board in more than 90 percent of the cases," said the statement, reported by WTVA of Tupelo.

Mississippi Circuit Judge Tomie Green has temporarily blocked the release of 21 inmates over questions about whether a law had been followed that requires the publication -- 30 days in advance -- of legal notice of plans to pardon, The Associated Press reported.

?Bill Clinton?s clemency warrants had that kind of look toward the very end when he pardoned all those people," Ruckman said. "Those warrants are just a big mess, and it took a while for scholars to go through them ? because they failed to kind of follow the normal procedures and so, actually for some people, there weren?t ... any warrants at all to be found.

"It wasn?t because they were hiding anything ? it was just being done at the last minute,? he added.

What made Barbour's actions different were the number of "wholesale pardons of people guilty of violent crimes? and that he had issued less than a dozen pardons during his eight-year term -- and people were only expecting up to 10 more?as he left office, said Matt Steffey, a professor of criminal and constitutional law at Mississippi College in Jackson.

Tiffany Brewer, whose sister was killed by one of the those pardoned, shares her reaction to a Mississippi judge granting a temporary block of the release of 21 inmates, who were among the 200 either pardoned or given medical release by Republican Gov. Haley Barbour before he left office Tuesday.

Some of the crimes prisoners received pardons for included murder, manslaughter, robbery, kidnapping and rape.

?This appears to be concluded and issued in haste,? Steffey said of the clemency action, noting his first reaction to the pardons and warrants "was that it did not have the look of full technical and procedural regularity that you usually see. It just didn?t.?

"I think that this left everybody on the outside scrambling and wondering what exactly was the process inside the governor's office,? he added. "Normally, we hear out of Gov. Barbour a call to law and order ... and it seems like less than a full measure of accountability is in place here.?

A telephone call placed to the Parole Board on the pardons' process was not immediately returned.

Why did Barbour wait?
Ruckman noted that though last-minute pardons are fairly common, recommendations from a parole board don't show up overnight.

"This is a power he just completely ignored all but, and then right before he leaves office ... 200, so that looks kind of egregious," he said. "There?s one guy in the pool whose offense was committed 51 years ago ? is it really plausible to say that guy never deserved clemency until Barbour?s last day in office? I just don?t buy that."

Some in Mississippi have speculated that Barbour, a popular governor, had decided the pardons were in the public interest, Steffey said.

But others, including relatives of some victims, have expressed outrage.

Slaying victim's sister to Barbour: 'I want answers'

"Barbour essentially told the public, 'Well, people just misunderstand what?s going on,'" Steffey said. "Perhaps they misunderstand because the governor didn?t explain to the public what he was doing and why ? how would the public know that many of these people are not in prison or have served their time or are deceased, because no statement accompanied these acts of clemency."

In the end, Barbour's actions "cast a shadow" over what should be celebratory days for those receiving the pardons, Ruckman said.

?This is the shame of it all. I have no doubt that many, if not most, of the people in there ? were well deserving," he said. "The way this was done at the last second ? kind of makes it look shady and suspicious, and there?s no need for that."?

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News:

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Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/12/10141682-experts-barbour-pardons-appear-done-in-haste-lack-key-information

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Video: Thermador Freedom Cooktop ? The Techie Chef?s Dream

The Freedom Cooktop uses 48 induction heating elements to heat your food. Each is equipped with sensors. This means you can move pots around and the cooktop will detect the movement and adjust its heating accordingly.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/Xs-N8QUjy7o/

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