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American Survival Newsletter:
Combining the World of Finance, Health & Politics
2/27/15

American Gold

A weekly newsletter brought to you by
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Edited by Alfred Adask
Friday, February 27th, A.D. 2015
 
MARKETS
 
Between Friday, February 20th A.D. 2015 and 
Friday, February 27th A.D. 2015, the bid prices for:


 

Gold rose 0.7 % from $1,203.90 to $1,212.30

Silver rose 1.6 % from $16.27 to $16.53

Platinum rose 2.1 % from $1,161 to $1,186

Palladium rose 4.8 % from $777 to $814

DJIA rose 0.0 % from 18,140.44 to 18,147.41

NASDAQ rose 0.3 % from 4,955.97 to 4,964.68

NYSE fell 0.3 % from 11,108.70 to 11,071.40

US Dollar Index rose 1.0 % from 94.31 to 95.29

Crude Oil fell 1.3 % from $49.91 to $49.27

 
 

"Only buy something that you'd be perfectly happy to hold
if the market shut down for 10 years." --Warren Buffett 

"If the markets shut down for 10 years, what investment would you dare to hold-- 
other than gold"? --Alfred Adask

Asset-based money vs. debt-based currency

 

by Alfred Adask

 

 

It should come as no surprise to anyone who reads this newsletter to learn that, while I'm a student of economics, I'm not a formally-trained economist.  Without formal training in economics, I sometimes make statements or pose questions about economics that may seem "unsophisticated".  

 

Even so, I like to pretend that my lack of formal training in economics can sometimes be an advantage.  Since I'm not formally trained in what to think in the realm of economics, I sometimes "think outside the box".  After all, without much formal education on the subject of economics, I haven't been formally "conditioned" to know where the "box" is.

 

What follows may be old news to most economists, but I doubt that most ordinary Americans have considered the subject.  What follows might be another illustration of my ignorance-or maybe of a little common sense. 

 

I haven't yet made up my mind.

 

It's my understanding that most of classical economic theory is based on a time when the world relied on gold and silver to serve as its asset-based money.

 

It therefore strikes me as possible that modern economic theory could be opposite from classical economics in some regards.  Why?  Because he fundamental unit of measure of today's economics is a debt-based currency system.

 

Classical economic theory was primarily based on asset-based money.

 

To my way of thinking an asset-based money is like a positive 1 (+1).

 

Modern economic theory is based on theories and formulae discovered in classical economics, but applied today with a debt-based currency.

 

To my way of thinking a debt-based currency is like a minus 1 (-1).

 

Assuming that debt and real assets are two fundamentally-opposed concepts, is it reasonable to suppose that modern economic theory (based on debt) can conform to classical economic theory and formulae there were based on assets?

 

*  In fact, it's hard for me to imagine how modern economic theory could've "accidentally" failed to openly recognize and explain the fundamental difference between itself and classical economics and asset-based money. 

 

Again, I'm not an economist, but I wouldn't be surprised if "modern" economics intentionally refused to explore the difference between classical economics and modern economics for fear of alerting the public to the vast and irreconcilable differences between asset-based money and modern, debt-based, fiat currency.  I suspect that refusal might be intended to deceive us into the confusion that follows when we try to comprehend an economy based on fiat currency in the context of classical economic theories that depend on asset-based money.

 

If my suspicions are roughly correct, of course "modern" economics is hard to understand.  It's like trying to solve mathematical equations that were designed to work only with positive integers by feeding in negative or even imaginary numbers.  The results might not make much sense.

 

Figuratively speaking, modern economics is constantly trying to apply mathematical formula designed to work with the asset-based money of classical economics, to find the square root of minus one.  They can arbitrarily declare the answer to be "i," but I'm not convinced there is a real answer to classical equations based on negative, debt-based numbers.  

 

If there is an answer, I suspect that the answer is just as "imaginary" and irrational as any fiat currencies that can be "spun" out of thin air. 

 

In the end, is it even possible to rationally believe that a man, a nation or the world can achieve prosperity while using a debt-based monetary system?  The more debt you have, the richer you become?  Isn't that idea insane?  Isn't it unsustainable?

 

And yet, that's the fundamental theory that everyone in the world accepts who stores seeks to acquire more paper wealth and store their wealth in the medium of paper and digital debt instruments.

 

I look around and wonder if the whole world isn't crazier than you-know-what-or am I the lunatic?

 

*  I'm not arguing that "modern" economic theory never before recognized any difference between asset-based and debt-based monetary systems.  

 

But I am suggesting that the significance of that distinction may not have been adequately presented to the public. 

 

More, I'm suggesting that that the failure to publicly distinguish between asset-based money (gold; payments) and debt-based fiat currency (paper or digital promises to pay) may be intended to make modern economics virtually incomprehensible to the vast majority of people.  So long as virtually no one can or does really understand modern economics, it's a lot easier for people in positions of authority to exercise unbridled power.

 

Today, we award Nobel Prizes to individuals who come up with new insights into "economics".  But if you read Chapter 47 of Genesis closely, you'll see that Joseph understood economics sufficiently well to single-handedly reduce a whole nation (Egypt) from freedom into bondage without shooting a single arrow.  In fact, Joseph was so successful that he was cheered and applauded by the very people he placed into bondage.  Virtually none of those Egyptian people had a clue.  And that was 3,800 years ago.  (For more information on this topic visit "The Story of Joseph-the World's First Economist".)

 

But the fact remains that, according to the Bible, at least a few people had enough knowledge of economics to place an entire nation into bondage 3,800 years ago.  If so, how much more new knowledge do you think we could've found over the past 38 centuries or could add today?

 

I believe that if you could fully understand the economic principles presented in Chapter 47 of Genesis, you'd know more about economics than 98% of the American population.  You might even know "enough" about economics to understand what's really going on in economics today.

 

I doubt that the "new knowledge" being discovered about today's economics is real (in the sense of being true).  I doubt that the "new knowledge" is really worthy of a Nobel Prize.  I suspect that "new knowledge" may be merely a more sophisticated variety of smoke and mirrors used to deceive the world into believing that a debt-based fiat currency could be mathematically equivalent to an asset-based money and thereby deceive the ignorant into believing that they're still free.

David Stockman -- economic carnage coming soon

 

by Alfred Adask

 

 

David Stockman is a former businessman who served as a Republican U.S. Representative from the state of Michigan and as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Ronald Reagan.  He was recently interviewed on two different programs and made the following comments:

 

"The carnage is coming soon . . . . Our two-decade long grand experiment in financial bailouts, massive money printing by central banks everywhere, and non-stop Keynesian debt stimulus is heading towards the wall.

 

"[I]t's inconceivable that there will be any lasting deal on Greece.  It's almost certain that we're at the threshold which will result in a crackup of the EU and the euro.  That will then catalyze a global crisis of confidence in central banks . . . .  The central banks of the world are on the edge of desperation."

 

Mr. Stockman isn't the first or only commentator to warn of a loss of confidence in central banks-but his warning still strikes me as strange.  Virtually every nation has confidence in its fiat currency but which nations have much awareness of, let alone confidence in, their central banks? 

 

Stockman's not warning that we'll lose confidence in our fiat currency or in our national economy.  He's warning that we'll soon lose confidence in central banks.

 

I'm skeptical.

 

Did the American people ever have much "confidence" in the Federal Reserve?  I don't think so.  How could the American people lose confidence in our "central bank" if we never thought about that institution enough to have confidence in it in the first place?  

*

 "In Europe, Sweden (has now) joined the cavalcade of negative interest rates. . . .  Denmark was already there and is desperately fighting off a massive inflow of capital out of the EU. . . . We saw the calamity a few weeks ago when the Swiss finally had to give up their rather lunatic peg to the euro and the exchange rate soared overnight, creating enormous losses and carnage.  The European Central Bank,is about ready to unload $1.3 trillion of make-believe, printed-out-of-thin-air currency into the European financial and bond markets. 

 

"In Asia, Japan's madness knows no limit. . . . Beijing sees an implosion everywhere in their massively overextended and debt-ridden markets, particularly real estate. 

 

"Brazil and Turkey are in huge trouble.

 

"There are unlimited flashpoints-points of breakdown in the global economy and financial system.  It's only a question of what becomes the catalyst to touch this whole situation off."

 

There's the real point:  The world is awash in a multitude of potential "flashpoints" that may each have the capacity to trigger the collapse the global, debt-based monetary system.  Given this multitude, it seems likely that one of more of those "points" will "flash" in the near future.  If so, may see some sort of global decline or collapse.

*

"We're in the crack-up phase.  Four main factors threaten the world economy and financial markets:

 

  • "Increasing desperation . . .. Central banks from Japan to Sweden have opened their cash spigots

 

  • "Increasing market volatility.  In the last three months, the CBOE Volatility Index has soared as high as 25.2 and dropped as low as 11.53.

 

  • "Investment. . . . will be driving a huge deflation of commodity and industrial prices worldwide."

 

  • "Demand has run smack up against peak debt.  Global debt now totals $200 trillion."

 

I agree that global demand has probably been slowed by "peak debt".  In other words, the world is already so deeply indebted that existing debt can't ever be repaid in full.  Therefore, it's generally unreasonable for creditors to lend to borrowers who can't repay their current debts let alone additional debt.

 

Now is not a good time to lend.  It's a better time to save.

 

I don't understand what Stockman means in "Global debt now totals $200 trillion". Perhaps he meant to say "Official global debt now totals $200 trillion."  Perhaps he was misquoted. 

 

But the Congressional Budget Office has declared that the US National Debt (including unfunded liabilities) is over $200 trillion. Including derivatives, some calculate that the total global debt may be as much as $2 quadrillion.  Thus, Stockman's warning about a "mere" $200 trillion seems misstated.

 

Still, Mr. Stockman is probably right in warning that global demand has run up against the "wall" of total global debt.  The world is so deeply in debt . . . that most nations can't borrow any more currency . . . to buy more stuff . . . to create more demand . . . to provide more corporate business . . . to generate more profits . . . to justify hiring more employees. . . . so they can buy more stuff . . . to create more demand, etc..

 

This excessive debt problem isn't news.  It explains why the Federal Reserve has purchased over $3 trillion in US government bonds and mortgage-backed securities (toxic "assets") over the past six years.  The Fed purchased US government bonds because almost no one else would

 

Q:  Why did most private and foreign creditors stop or restrict lending to the US gov-co?  

 

A:  Because they believed that the US gov-co was already so deeply indebted that it could never repay most of its existing debt and would surely default on most of its new debt.

 

So, the Fed bought more government debt and paid for it with fiat currency.  The Fed could do this because the Fed has a monopoly on printing fiat dollars and could therefore "spin" Monopoly Money out of thin air to pay for government bonds.  That Monopoly Money was supposed to be lent into the US economy to "stimulate" the economy, and allow us all to borrow more currency (Monopoly Money), so we could buy more stuff . . . to create more demand . . . to make more corporate profits, etc. so our economic hamster wheel could keep spinning faster and faster.

 

My point is that the "debt wall" that Mr. Stockman warned against is not simply something in our future.  It's something we'd already encountered five or six years ago when creditors stopped lending freely to the US gov-co.

 

More, if this metaphorical "wall" exists, it isn't hard like a brick wall.  It's soft like a wall of marshmallows.  We "hit" that "wall," several years ago, but we didn't have a real crash.  Our first encounter with the "debt wall" didn't cause a catastrophe, per se.  It was more like landing in a soft, viscous swamp.  We didn't suffer any broken bones, but we did suffer an economic slow-down as we tried to slog through the "marshmallow swamp". 

 

Can we continue to slog through the "swamp" of debt marshmallows until we reach more solid ground?  I doubt it, but it's not impossible.

 

Mr. Stockman, however, seems convinced that all that global debt is reaching a point where many of us won't merely be slowed, but stopped.  Once we're stopped, the hamster-wheel will stop spinning.  What happens then?

 

Stockman's not optimistic.

 

Neither am I.  

Ukraine's "irrational" currency decline?

 

by Alfred Adask

 

 

Ukraine's fiat currency is called the "hryvnia" (pronounced "hur-iv-ni-a").  Reuters recently reported in "Ukraine central bank chief says hryvnia fall 'irrational'," that:

 

"Ukraine's central bank chief and finance minister tried to calm market panic on Wednesday after a collapse of the Ukrainian currency forced the bank to halt most commercial foreign exchange trading, saying the rapid fall was "irrational".

 

"Central bank chief Valeria Gontareva and Finance Minister Natalia Yaresko told a hastily-convened news conference that the economy and currency would be stabilized by donors, including $8 billion from an International Monetary Fund bailout this year, with the first tranche expected within weeks." 

 

$8 billion is about the same amount of currency that the IMF, ECB, etc. are sending to Greece. 

 

It's interesting that the funds for Ukraine are coming from the IMF but there's no mention of funds from the US-which sponsored last year's overthrow of the lawfully-elected, pro-Russian Ukrainian government and replacement by the current, pro-US Ukrainian government. 

 

I'm surprised that the US isn't also being credited with giving money to subsidize the current Ukrainian government.  Are such US subsidies secret?  Or is the US government too broke to continuing to subsidize Ukraine?

 

"Earlier on Wednesday, the central bank halted all currency trading by banks on behalf of their clients for the rest of the week, saying excessive demand for dollars was "unfounded". 

 

Not true. 

 

The hryvnia is losing value (purchasing power) by experiencing "official" inflation of 25% (and "unofficial" food inflation of up to 91%), while the dollar is deflating and becoming more valuable.  Therefore, it only makes sense that Ukrainians seek to preserve their own wealth by escaping their own currency and looking for safe havens like fiat dollars or gold (up 100% in terms of hryvnias in just the first two months of A.D. 2015).

 

"'There are no fundamental reasons for such a severe fall in the hryvnia rate. The central bank sees none, the government sees none, and the IMF sees none,' Gontareva said."

 

See no reason, hear no reason, say no reason, hmm?

 

It might be true that there's no "fundamental reason" for the fall in the value of the hryvnia insofar as "fundamentals" refer to objective economic concepts like the money supply, inflation, GDP, etc.  But the hryvnia is a fiat currency that has little or no tangible reality and whose value is determined primarily by subjective forces like "public confidence".

 

The current, US-supported government of Ukraine seems unable to suppress the rebellion in east Ukraine, unable to sustain the Ukraine economy and has therefore lost the confidence of the people of Ukraine and the world.  Without that confidence, there's plenty of reason for the "severe fall in the hryvnia rate".

 

The hryvnia is falling because nobody has confidence in the current government of Ukraine. Unless that government can do something dramatic to reverse recent Ukraine failures confidence will continue to fall and hyperinflation will continue to rise until (at least) the current government is deposed and replaced by another government that inspires public confidence.

 

"'These irrational movements are linked solely to irrational market instability which is driven more by fear than by an understanding of what is going on in the market,' she said. 'As soon as we start getting real help from our international sponsors . . . we are looking into the future with perfect calm.'" 

 

Bunk.  These currency "movements" are not irrational.  They reflect the failures of the current Ukrainian government and resultant loss of public confidence. 

 

Ukraine is no better off than Greece.  Both nations' survival depends on "international sponsors".  Both nations are "dependents" that can't support themselves, can't repay their debts, must rely on the financial support of outside nations.  Both nations-like all dependents-can look forward to a future marked by poverty and chaos.

 

"Yaresko said the funds expected from the IMF would be 'an anchor that would provide for the stabilization of the economy, including the currency market.'"

 

More bunk.  The $8 billion for Ukraine will provide no more "anchor" than the $8 billion heading for Greece.  These funds are not "anchors" that will provide stability.  They are blood transfusions for desperate nations heading for bankruptcy and collapse.

 

"Yaresko later told reporters that Kiev could begin negotiations with creditors within a week of the IMF decision on previously-announced plans to restructure its external debt."

 

What does "restructure" mean, boys and girls? 

 

It means "write-off "some significant portion of existing debt because Ukraine is too insolvent to pay its debts-just like Greece.

 

"Restructuring" means to repudiate some significant portion of a "sovereign government's" existing debts without having to openly admit that that "sovereign" is bankrupt.  "Restructuring" a politically correct way to view the emperor without having to see or admit that he's butt-nekkid.

 

"Restructuring" means that the sovereign-debtor and creditors alike are conspiring to conceal the fundamental fact of sovereign-bankruptcy. 

 

Why conceal?

 

A: In order to deceive the world into believing that 1) the creditors who were fool enough to lend currency to the sovereign-bankrupt haven't lost billions of their assets; and, 2) deceive the world into believing that world's fiat monetary system is still viable.

Just a Reminder

 

Cyprus crisis: What are capital controls and why does it need them?

By Laurence Knight Business reporter, BBC News

 

Most of us assume the money in our bank account is always available to us

"Neither a borrower, nor a lender be."
 

That was the recommendation given by the rather creepy Polonius to his son Laertes, who was about to head off to the temptations of Paris in the play Hamlet.
 

Sage advice as it may appear, the truth is that each and every one of us is a lender - often without even realising it - and our economy would not function nearly so well if that were not the case.
 

That's because your bank account is a loan, from you to your bank.
 

You may think of it as money - akin to cash, one cash-machine trip away from banknotes - but it is nonetheless a loan.
 

And, as most of us are well aware by now, the bank takes this borrowed money and re-lends it to businesses and homebuyers.
 

Inherent flaw
 

But while you have the right to withdraw your money from the bank at a moment's notice, the bank, of course, does not have the right to demand that mortgage borrowers and companies repay the loans it has made at the drop of a hat.
 

And this makes all banks vulnerable to a sudden collapse. Because if everyone turned up one day and tried to empty their bank account - in other words, asks for their loans to be repaid - the money would not be there to repay them.
 

It is an inherent vulnerability.
 

Even a solvent bank - one that has made sensible loans and investments that will eventually be repaid in full - does not have the cash readily available to pay out even a fraction of its deposits.
 

All banks are inherently vulnerable
 

Fortunately, people don't normally do that. Indeed, a bank's very business is predicated on the fact that only a fairly predictable minority of its many depositors ask to withdraw their money from one day to the next.
 

But occasionally, people do queue up outside the bank - or empty their accounts electronically - if they suddenly become afraid that the money in their bank account is no longer safe. It is what is known as a bank run.
 

If the bank is solvent - which, during a crisis, can be near-impossible to judge - then in most countries, the central bank will throw it a lifeline - an emergency loan that will provide the requisite cash until the depositor panic subsides. That way the cash machines of a healthy bank are guaranteed never to run empty.
 

Precisely such fears over Cyprus' banks have already led them to borrow some 9bn euros of so-called Emergency Liquidity Assistance from their central bank, to replace money withdrawn by more savvy depositors in recent months.
 

Hot potato
 

But what if the bank is not solvent? What, for instance, if it has lent a bunch of money to the Greek government that will never be repaid in full?
 

In that case - as the European Central Bank made clear last week - the bank could no longer rely on largesse from the central bank to keep its doors open.    The central bank has no interest in making a loss on its emergency lending, or in propping up banks that have no future.
 

And that is where capital controls come in.
 

A capital control is when the government tells you that you are no longer allowed to move your money around freely.
 

Normal service will be resumed within "a matter of weeks"
 

In this sense, Cyprus has already had capital controls in place for over a week. Because, for over a week, the government has declared special "bank holidays", during which the country's banks have been shuttered, and there have been strict limits on how much people can withdraw each day from cash machines.
 

The island's two biggest banks - Laiki Bank and Bank of Cyprus - had made such big losses on the loans they made, that they probably no longer had enough money to repay all their depositors - not now, not ever.
 

And somebody would ultimately have to bear those losses.

 

How secure do you believe the stock market is today?  After the housing bubble burst the DOW dropped below 7000.  Now it is over 18,000 with the S&P hitting records and the Nasdaq being pushed to old highs.  Can you honestly believe this growth is attributed to "direct wealth production"?  TRILLIONS of dollars have been BORROWED by the government to stimulate our economy and to what reward?  They imprudently contaminate our economy with debt to which there is no way out.

 

The question...are you going to be dragged down into the abyss designed specifically for financial destruction which will ensue?  Or...will you be smarter than the government thinks you are. 

 

Give us a call to help protect your assets.  1 800 375 4188

 

 


 

Lynch clears committee with three GOP votes


By SEUNG MIN KIM


Loretta Lynch cleared a key vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee Thursday in her bid to become the nation's next attorney general, picking up support from three Republicans on the panel in favor of her confirmation.

 

The vote was 12-8.

 

 The three Republicans who backed her nomination, along with all committee Democrats, were Orrin Hatch of Utah, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Jeff Flake of Arizona.

 

The next battle is on the Senate floor, where the federal prosecutor from Brooklyn is still expected to have enough GOP backing to be confirmed. But the controversy over President Barack Obama's executive actions on immigration have overshadowed her nomination - particularly after her confirmation hearing last month, where she testified that those unilateral moves are legal.

 

Most GOP senators on the committee stressed that they could not support someone to be the nation's chief law enforcement official who believes that the executive actions - which Republicans uniformly oppose and say are unconstitutional - are legal.

 

"Ms. Lynch pledged to support executive amnesty ... but it just doesn't stop at that," said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), citing a range of issues from drone strikes to the Internal Revenue Service. "She has told us her views. Those views are radical. Those views undermine the rule of law."

 

The committee's chairman, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), announced Thursday that he would oppose Lynch because he believes she would not be sufficiently independent from Obama and the administration's policies.

"I remain unconvinced she will lead the [Department of Justice] in a different direction," he said. "Now, I'm confident that if she had demonstrated a little more independence from the president, she would've garnered a lot of support today."

Democrats, meanwhile, have long demanded that the controversy over Obama's executive actions - which could stop deportations for more than 4 million immigrants here illegally and grant them work permits - stay out of the attorney general battle.

 

Those sweeping executive actions have been blocked by a federal judge in Texas. In a letter this week, Lynch told Flake, Hatch and Graham that she would abide by the current injunction on Obama's executive actions "unless and until" they are lifted, Flake said.

 

 

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/02/loretta-lynch-attorney-general-committee-vote-115539.html#ixzz3Ss6gAZRz 


 


 

Republican claims document shows administration preparations for health care law defeat

 

By ALAN FRAM

(AP:WASHINGTON) WASHINGTON (AP) - A leading House Republican claimed Thursday that he's been told of a 100-page document showing the Obama administration is preparing contingency plans in case the Supreme Court invalidates federal subsidies that help millions of Americans afford health care coverage.

 

Rep. Joseph Pitts, R-Pa., provided no details about the paper and did not say if he has actually seen it. At a hearing of a House health subcommittee that he chairs, Pitts said he had received information about it from "a source" in the Health and Human Services Department.Sylvia Burwell, the Health and Human Services Secretary, told Pitts at the hearing that she was unaware of such a document.

 

Congressional Republicans have been angered for weeks as administration officials have not directly answered whether they are planning for a possible loss in the court case. Burwell has said the administration believes it will win the case and that no administrative actions could solve the problems that would result should it lose.

 

Such responses have not helped the GOP-controlled Congress. Should the court nullify the subsidies, many lawmakers will feel pressure to propose a way to help the millions of voters who could suddenly find their health care unaffordable.

 

***the damage is already done....do you think insurance companies will give back premium to those of us who had oue rates increased to pay for those subsidies???  My rates went up $300 a month and I believe as a direct result of this.

 

 

Hard Rock Cafe inside Atlantic City's bankrupt Taj Mahal casino closing in April; 73 jobs lost


ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) - Atlantic City's Hard Rock Cafe is shutting down in April. The restaurant and bar filed a warning notice late Wednesday with the New Jersey Labor Department that it would close on April 22, putting 73 people out of work. The nightspot operates inside the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort, which is trying to emerge from bankruptcy. A manager at the business had no immediate comment Thursday. The Taj Mahal has been struggling to retain customers through the slow winter months, after repeated threats it was closing late last year.

 

Atlantic City will probably have some nice beach front property for sale at pretty cheap prices here in the near future.

  

According to a newly released report from Bankrate, 24 percent of Americans have more credit card debt than emergency savings, and 13 percent are not much better off-they don't have credit card debt but they don't have emergency savings either. Put another way, more than a third of Americans are living at risk of a financial crisis.

"Americans are woefully undersaved for emergencies," said Greg McBride, chief financial analyst at Bankrate. "

Generation X is the group shortest on emergency savings, Bankrate found, largely because they are in an expensive stage of life. Some 32 percent of respondents aged 30 to 49 had more credit card debt than emergency savings.

"They've got the two kids, the dog, the car payments, the mortgage payments, the tuition payments," McBride said. "They are the poster children for stretched budgets."

Millennials are in relatively better shape, with just 21 percent of respondents between 18 and 29 having more credit card debt than emergency savings. Perhaps that is because they have not hit the high-spending years and perhaps, as McBride said, "

Retirees were the most prepared for emergencies, with just 14 percent saying their credit card debt was bigger than their emergency savings.

Bankrate's figures released Monday do show some improvement from a year earlier. Only 58 percent of Americans have more emergency savings than credit card debt, Bankrate found, but a year ago that figure was 51 percent. Respondents in the new survey also feel better about their finances than the respondents a year earlier.

According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute's 2014 Retirement Confidence Survey, 60 percent of workers have less than $25,000 in savings and investments, and 36 percent have less than $1,000-up from 28 percent in 2013.

Millennials actually have a negative 2 percent savings rate, according to Moody's Analytics, possibly because of high student loan debt.

"Americans are still woefully undersaved for emergencies and retirement, and that's not something that's going to change overnight," McBride said.

 

 

(AP:HELSINKI) HELSINKI (AP) - Apple is investing 1.7 billion euros ($1.92 billion) in high-tech data centers in Denmark and Ireland that will be powered by renewable energy, in its largest such project in Europe to date, the company said Monday.

 

The hubs, to begin operations in 2017, will power data for Apple Inc.'s online services, including iTunes Store, App Store, iMessage, Maps and Siri voice services.

 

Apple said it has increased operations in Europe, spending more than 7.8 billion euros on European companies and suppliers last year and supporting some 670,000 jobs in the region. Its own employees grew by 2,000 and number 18,300 people in 19 European countries.

 

The technology giant joins Microsoft, Google and Facebook in building data centers in northern Europe, where the colder climate helps save on equipment cooling costs.Apple CEO Tim Cook described the centers as "some of our most advanced green building designs yet." They will use renewable energy, including wind power.

 

In Ireland, Apple will recover land previously used for growing and harvesting non-native trees and restore native trees to a local forest, providing an outdoor education site for local schools and a walking trail.

 

The Danish center will be located next to one of the country's largest electrical substations, designed to capture excess heat from equipment in the data hub and conduct it into the district heating system to warm homes in the area.

The data centers will be based in central Denmark's Jutland and Athenry, County Galway, in Ireland.

 

But this is not just a case of Apple exceptionalism. It turns out that Apple is hardly the only IT company sitting atop that mountain of riches. Four of the six richest companies (also by market cap) on the planet are Silicon Valley giants. They are, in order, Apple, Microsoft, IBM, and Google. Chevron, that other oil giant, is No. 5, sitting between IBM and Google. Look a little further and you'll notice that Cisco Systems, Intel, and Oracle are among the 20 richest companies.

 

 

US home sales drop 4.9 pct. in January; job growth and low mortgage rates fail to spur buying

 

By JOSH BOAK

(AP:WASHINGTON) WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. home sales struck a snow drift in January, plunging to the slowest pace in nine months.

 

The National Association of Realtors said Monday that sales of existing homes tumbled 4.9 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.82 million.

 

That brings sales down to their lowest level since April 2014.Relatively low mortgage rates and steady job growth have yet to spur more activity from buyers and sellers, raising the possibility of either a spring sales rush or a second straight year of numbness in the real estate market.

 

 Few properties are being listed for sale, would-be buyers are holding off on purchases and snowstorms are cutting into traffic at open houses.Weak sales in 2014 had set up expectations of a strong rebound in 2015, yet signs of that resurgence have yet to appear.

 

The addition of roughly 1 million new jobs over the past three months has failed to make much of a dent in home-buying.

 

Homes did sell at a rate 3.2 percent faster than January 2014, but that increase largely reflects the brutal winter weather at the beginning of last year that depressed home-buying and caused the entire U.S. economy to briefly shrink.

 

The noticeably more robust U.S. economy coming into 2015 was supposed to buoy sales, but the market has barely stirred so far."

The weather hit is nothing like the scale of the damage seen last winter, but we would not now be surprised to see a further decline in activity in February," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. "The underlying trend in sales is more or less flat."

 

Few properties are coming onto the market. Just 4.7 months of supply were listed for sale at the end of December, compared with an average of 5.2 months during 2014, according to the Realtors.

 

Nor have builders ramped up construction. Housing starts slid 2 percent in January, according to a report from the Commerce Department last week.

 

The limited supply of homes can lift prices to higher levels, which may then lead would-be buyers to wait until they have more choices. Weekly mortgage applications fell 13.2 percent, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported last Wednesday.

 

Affordability has become a problem as prices have climbed at a faster clip than incomes. The national median home price rose 6.2 percent over the past 12 months to $199,600. That has priced out many first-time buyers, who represented just 28 percent of sales compared to their historic share of 40 percent.

Mother Nature is also beginning to take its toll. Nasty snowstorms in the Midwest and Northeast likely kept would-be buyers away, further crimping sales heading into March and beginning of the spring buying season.

 

Buyer traffic for newly built homes slowed in February, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo sentiment index.The Realtors said previously in a separate report that the number of signed contracts in December fell 3.7 percent, suggesting that sales will remain under pressure in the coming months.Sales slid in all four major geographical regions last month: dropping 6 percent in the Northeast, 2.7 percent in the Midwest, 4.6 percent in the South and 7.1 percent in the West.Possibly hurting sales further, mortgage rates have crept upward for the past two weeks, ending what has previously been a yearlong slide.Average 30-year fixed rates were 3.76 percent last week, according to the mortgage giant Freddie Mac. The average has risen from 3.59 percent at the start of February.The current levels remain below the 4.33 percent average from a year ago, but the previous lows might keep current homeowners from upgrading since it would mean abandoning their current mortgage for a loan with possibly a higher rate and larger monthly payments.

 

No More Talk - Parking lot time for radical Islam in all its 'names'

 

BY ADMIN, LAURIE ROTH ON FEBRUARY 19TH, 2015

 

We must do more than stand strong against radical Islam - ISIS and its murderous relatives. We must use our Intelligence and combine real efforts with Israel, Egypt, Jordan and Libya to strike ISIS businesses, training camps, arms facilities, leaders and everything related to them and their support...now.   Their burning cages, knives, guns and Mosques need to be turned into parking lots.

As it is now, we don't even have a President who will stand and as the New York Post cover says in loud neon, Obama just doesn't see Islamic terror. Instead we see a President in the face of people being burned alive and Christians getting their heads chopped off, at an Islamic conference - once again insisting on separating Terror from Islam. That is only after he made sure he got several days of golfing in Palm Springs.

Jordan, Libya and Egypt have been bombing ISIS to pieces and flying fighter jets everywhere attacking Islamic terrorists where they find them, but America is AWOL.

If we had a real President who wasn't siding with Islam, funding terror and not corrupt, we would have had an immediate and bold confrontation statement with a swift action plan in response when ISIS ramped up burning dozens of victims alive in cages, then beheading 21 Coptic Christians. As Obama has played, dozens more are continuously kidnapped, children are sitting in a cage ready to be torched and more torture and beheadings are planned. Naturally, it will all be video taped and spread around the world.

ISIS and its Islamic relatives are emboldened and gaining power and strength as the ruthlessly torture and murder more and more 'infidels.'

It is morbidly impeachable that Obama does nothing but barely speak (always too late) with empty words. It is obvious he doesn't have the will, desire or plans to lead or act in time that makes a 'hill of beans' difference. What if the beheadings had been reversed and Christians had done this to 21 Muslims? Rev. Franklin Gramn asked this question as well. The world would have been on fire if this had been a reverse scenario. 9/11's would be in every major city in America over and over.

I demand and call on Congress, our Generals and anyone in leadership, who cares to keep their head on, do something now! Coordinate our awesome intelligence with Israel and Egypt and start wiping ISIS and Boko Haram out for starters. Then make a clear message around the world with the Islamic Caliphate building in full force supported and funded by most Muslim groups that your turn is coming.

Obama has made it most clear whose side he is on and it isn't America, God or freedom. Leaders - House and Senate...demand Obama be made accountable and demand a bold and real response to the growing danger of radical Islam before children are thrown in cages in America and burned alive. I wonder if Obama would stop his golf game for that???

America must lead and stand against this growing evil not watch from afar.

Join me at my new time for my national radio shows 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM PST Mon-Friday. Very soon you will be able to listen live through my web site again at www.therothshow.com or on a talk station near you. Stay tuned.

HEALTH

Medical blunders

 

by Herbalist Wendy Wilson

 

 

National media campaigns spend millions of dollars on the golden child of healthcare - scientific medicine. Reports too numerous to count sing the praises for modern medicine and make bold statements that bacterial infections and disease have been practically eradicated by medical science. If we were to believe all the propaganda on modern medicine we would have the impression that it is a profession that can do no wrong or harm. What most people fail to see is that most scientific medical treatments are an educated guess; a hypothesis. My brother calls it the SWAG method (Scientific Wild-Ass Guess). Some may think the odds of major mistakes happening during treatments are slight compared to the number of procedures carried out each year. Underwriters would disagree as malpractice insurance is one of the most expensive budget items for doctors and hospitals. The risk is calculated and this determines the malpractice premiums.  Let's take a look at what can occur when allopathic medicine makes a mistake.

 

TRUSTED CARE PROVIDERS

Receiving medical treatment today can be as risky as Russian roulette. Just ask the family of 17-year-old Jessica Santillan who underwent a heart and lung transplant but the surgeons at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina installed organs from the wrong donor with had the wrong blood type. Jessica suffered brain damage and died two weeks later. It was determined that a lack of safeguards were to blame. Or how about a couple in NY who sought help from a fertility clinic through an in-vitro procedure using the couples own egg and sperm. There was a mistake when the clinic used someone else's sperm and the wife gave birth to a child with darker skin color then theirs. There was also a 47-year-old veteran who went to the Los Angeles VA Medical Center where it was determined that his testicle pain required surgery recommending removal of left testicle and doctors mistakenly removed the healthy right testicle. There are hundreds if not thousands of people who have had surgery and later found the surgeon left medical instruments inside them. These mistakes cost millions a year causing long-term consequences. How about a 67-year-old female admitted to a hospital for a neurological problem and was treated to cardiac electrophysiology instead. This treatment is a prep for open heart surgery scheduled for the following day.  If you know anything about this procedure they make an incision in the groin, puncture the artery, thread a tube snaking it up into the heart and there is risk of infection, bleeding and heart attack.  She was on the operation table an hour when her attending physician who was looking for her found his patient in the OR. This is a basic mistake of retuning a patient to the wrong floor, the wrong room and the surgeon not reading the patient's chart before surgery puts the patient at risk. These mistakes are not isolated ones.

 

REPEATED MISTAKES

If you live near Rhode Island Hospital be aware they have a history of repeating devastating surgical mistakes. In 2007 a neurosurgeon operated on the wrong side of a patient's brain. Can you image drilling and making a hole in someone's skull in the wrong place? This happens more often than not when operating room staff post x-rays upside down or flipped on the wrong side. This particular hospital had doctors perform brain surgery on the wrong side three times on three different patients. When I worked for neurosurgeons in Charlotte, North Carolina this kind of mistake happened and the patients were lied to. For example, a patient went into surgery for a cervical laminectomy and the x-ray was posted upside down and the surgeon didn't check the records and proceeded to make his incision. He discovered the lumbar vertebrae were perfectly healthy. The surgeon realized the mistake and moved to the cervical end of the spine to make his second incision and operated on the collapsed disc. The patient was told by the surgeon that he thought he saw something on the x-ray and did some exploratory surgery. The risk is entirely the patient's and the cost for extra OR time and anesthesia are also charged to the patient.

 

VALUABLE ORGANS

Many a patient have entered the hospital and lost valuable, "healthy organs". Take for example the patient who was admitted to Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minnesota for a tumor (thought to be cancerous) on his kidney. He had surgery to remove the sick kidney but the next day the pathology department notified the medical staff that the surgeon removed the healthy kidney instead. The patient was left to survive with one sick kidney until he could have a kidney transplant.

 

PHYSICAL & EMOTIONAL TRAUMA

When I was working for anesthesiologists I was educated as to how tricky anesthetics can be. A West Virginia man was admitted to Raleigh General Hospital in Beckley, W. Virginia for abdominal exploratory surgery and the anesthesiologists gave the patient the drugs to prepare him for surgery. These are prep drugs and are not the gas anesthesia that renders a patient unconscious. The gas anesthesia was not administered properly and the patient was unable to move or speak but could feel everything the surgeon was performing. The medical staff reported it as a phenomenon called anesthetic awareness. I call it malpractice.

 

MALPRACTICE IN HOLLYWOOD

Actor Dana Carvey was admitted to the hospital for a life-saving double by-pass heart operation only to discover later that surgeons preformed the by-pass on the wrong artery. Mr. Carvey, then was 45-year-old, was subjected to a second by-pass operation with more risk than before. He sued his doctors for $7.5 million. The media reported that the surgeon stated he made an honest mistake because Carvey had unusual arteries in his heart. Big mistakes result in paying big bucks and this is why the malpractice underwriters rate allopathic medicine as high risk. 

 

MISTAKES & MISDEEDS

The medical science area is so full of error (both unintentional and intentional) that there are scientists that study these misdeeds. We've read the headlines that pharmaceutical compounding companies dispensed contaminated steroids causing fungal meningitis. This is not uncommon and according to the New Scientists Report there are so many lax regulations in the pharmaceutical industry that the safety standards for drugs are shockingly unregulated by the FDA.  The peer-review journals which publish scientific studies are supposed to be reviewed by scientists to check the research of the author but sometimes this isn't the case. According to Retraction Watch, the reviews may be done by the scientists (author) themselves or by their friends. Some journal editors were also put on guard when reviews were submitted in just 24 hours of the article being submitted, which is normally not enough time for a scientist to check the research. In the 1980's when the drug companies were bumping out heart drugs the National Institutes of Health found that the data on 100 published studies had been made up. Harvard researcher, John Darsee, was charged with faking the data in his heart studies. A similar problem happened to Robert Slutsky, a cardiac-radiology specialist, who faked his research too. He apparently was writing new research articles for publication every ten days. He was very persuasive in having more prominent scientists then himself attach their names to his articles. There are hundreds of these fraudulent activities in medical science that have harmed countless patients and the underwriters of malpractice insurance understand this all too well.

 

NO MALPRACTICE INSURANCE NEEDED

There is an area of the healing arts that does not require malpractice insurance and the reason is because the risk of people being harmed is very low or nonexistent. The natural therapy area does not require malpractice insurance because it is a natural approach to helping the body to heal itself. There are no invasive procedures, no toxic treatments that would send off alarms to the underwriters and therefore there is essentially no risk. So, the next time you consider medical treatments ask yourself if it is necessary and if it will make your body stronger and less dependent on medications. Allopathic medicine has its place with regards to trauma but has very little to offer in preventative healthcare. Disease management is their bread-and-butter and therefore will only reduce symptoms and not address the cause of the problem. This the underwriters of allopathic medicine also understand all too well.

 

NO INSURANCE CARD REQUIRED

If you are interested in natural therapies that will strengthen your body and help it to balance and recover from illness, then seek out the information to help you accomplish that. A good place to start is The Power Herbs e-book with 400 pages of natural therapies and herb secrets to cleanse away toxins and boost your immune system. It is just $14.99 online. You will find this book at http://www.thepowerherbs.com. The folks at Apothecary Herbs are experts at organ cleansing and immune boosting products that are certified organic and they can show you how to properly detoxify your system and improve function. Say goodbye to the risks of allopathic medicine and empower yourself! Call Apothecary Herbs for a free product catalog 866-229-3663, International 704-885-0277 or order online at http://www.thepowerherbs.com, where your healthcare options just became endless. Take advantage of their winter BLOWOUT15 coupon and save 15% and FREE ground ship in the US on orders of $70 or more. Cannot be used with other discounts and expires on 3/7/15. (If you experience a problem with the coupon in the shopping cart you can place the order without the coupon but in the memo area paste the BLOWOUT15 coupon and your discount will be applied in-house at processing back to your credit card. Or you can call in your order for the discount. Our IT is working to correct the code problem with the coupon and we apologize for any inconvenience.) Discount coupon codes can also be listed on mail orders but must be post marked before the coupon expiration date. 

 

Sources:

http://www.oddee.com/item_96576.aspx

http://www.wired.com/2013/01/worst-science-misdeeds-2012/

http://discovermagazine.com/2000/oct/featblunders/

 

COMING UP ON HERB TALK LIVE

Herbalist Wendy Wilson on Herb Talk Live

Saturday morning show:

7 am EST on GCN

3/14/15 Dr. Rebecca Carley

Weekday show:

7 pm EST on AVR

3/17/15 Dr. Rebecca Carley

Shortwave show 8 pm EST WWCR 4840

Go to http://www.thepowerherbs.com Herb Talk Live & Radio Archive area for network link access and past shows to download and share. For Android users you can download a FREE app for Herb Talk Live on GCN. See the download link under radio archives at top of page at http://www.thepowerherbs.com.

 

NEW HMO COUPONS at Apothecary Herbs 866-229-3663 www.thepowerherbs.com

Click on the green HMO button on top left on web site. Cut and paste coupons in your cart and save. These coupons expire the end of April 2015.

 

HMO1 Save $10 off with orders of $75 to $125

 

HMO2  10% off orders of $100 to $250

 
HMO3  15% off orders of $250 to %500

 

"NEW" from Apothecary Herbs POWER GREENS FOR PETS - Keeps you away from the vet.  Natural herbs for dogs and cats. Because we want organic pets

Power Greens is a blend of organic plants and natural herbs containing vitamins, minerals and 22 amino acids found naturally in these whole-food plants. Easy to digest with healthy digestion enzymes. You will notice the vibrant color of the greens and other ingredients in Power Greens for Pets because it is made with certified organic herbs grown to Tilth Standards (the highest organic standards in the industry). Compared to Dinovite®, Power Greens for Pets is made with superior grade ingredients and will produce much faster and better results in the health of your pet. No need for large scoops of our Power Greens for Pets to get results. Depending on the size of your pet 1/2 teaspoon to one tablespoon is all you'll need. Your pet will be healthier and you'll save money. For more info call 866-229-3663 http://www.thepowerherbs.com/herb/Natural-Pet-Food.html

 

MORE HERB SECRETS IN THE POWER HERBS e-BOOK. By popular demand The Power Herbs e-book is available with symptom/herb reference guide, information on organ cleansing and how to make your own herbal tinctures plus a whole lot more. Go to http://www.thepowerherbs.com/Books-And-Newsletters/The-Power-Herbs-e-Book-cleansing-immune-boosting.html and click on Books. You must have email to order and receive the e-book a PDF version of The Power Herb book for just $14.99. At this time, we do not offer this title in hard copy.

 

NEW DANDELION ROOT LIQUID

Try Dandelion Root Tincture for inflammation, blood purification, respiratory infections, digestion and cancer protection at http://www.thepowerherbs.com/herb/Dandelion-Inflammation-Blood-Purifier.html

 

HERB KITS EXTEND YOUR FIRST AID KITS

Do you have your Pandemic Kit yet? Here is what folks are saying about the 100% organic Pandemic Kit made by Apothecary Herbs. "I have this kit and recommend everyone have at least one on hand (or more depending on family size) for a pandemic." Rebecca Carley, MD, Hickory, NC and "I have one and glad I do; just in case. I like the long shelf life." Melody Cedarstrom, Port Matilda, PA (more customer feedback at http://www.thepowerherbs.com) or call 866-229-3663 to order your kit today.

 

PURE ZINC ENERGY

Pure energy is organic and instantly absorbed - transporting nutrition to every cell in your body. It is a super food for the body to repair, build and fortify itself. Where do you get it? It's called Body Foundation Food Mix and is at Apothecary Herbs 866-229-3663, International 704-885-0277 http://www.thepowerherbs.com. This pure energy food source is so efficient; you won't feel hungry between meals and can safely lose weight.

 

DETOX PRODUCTS

Apothecary Herbs has released a new product called Liver Detox Tea. You can layer this tea with Milk Thistle Tincture for a gentle yet effective liver cleanse. This is a nice option if you can't do the Liver/Gall Bladder Flush using olive oil. You will find this new product under Herbal Teas at http://www.thepowerherbs.com. Also new is the Liver & Gall Bladder Tincture with dandelion root for more anticancer protection. This formula is available in 1 oz, 2 oz and 4 oz sizes. You will find this item under Organ Body Cleanses at http://www.thepowerherbs.com. You can layer this tincture with the Liver Detox Tea and be well!

 

BE PREPARED

Being prepared is never a waste of time. Get your own organic garden growing and stock as much healthy foodstuffs as you can. You'll also need backup medicine but the over-the-counter and prescription medicines have a limited shelf life of two years or less. However, your organic medicines have a ten year shelf life without side effects. Call the folks at Apothecary Herbs for their Natural Medicine Starter Stock-up Package or make sure you get one of their many herb kits for boosting immune system and protecting you from viruses, bacteria and other pathogens. Call Apothecary Herbs 866-229-3663, International 704-885-0277 online http://www.thepowerherbs.com, where your healthcare options just became endless.

 

ALLERGY RELIEF

If you suffer from allergies (sneezing, itchy watery eyes, stuffy or runny nose, and sinus pressure or sinus infections) try the Echinacea Deluxe formula and Herbal Eyewash both around $20.00 from Apothecary Herbs. Call now toll free 866-229-3663 http://www.thepowerherbs.com.

 

APOTHECARY HERBS VITAMIN VAULT - STOCK UP AND SAVE!

You already know that you can save on the half and full case discounts in the Vitamin Vault area at http://www.thepowerherbs.com. Apothecary Herbs has added a new item called the Natural Medicine Starter Stock-up Package. This package is designed for those preparing for their medical future and contains immune boosting, pain & inflammation, organ cleanses, vitamin, mineral, amino acid and protein products plus a Pandemic Kit and it comes with a savings. Visit http://www.thepowerherbs.com or call toll free to order your Starter Stock-up Package 866-229-3663, International 704-885-0277.  

 

MALE & FEMALE ORGAN CLEANSES KITS - Don't give disease a foothold. You will have the power to cleanse the bowel, urinary, liver, gall bladder and blood system with this cleanse package. For added cleansing, ask about how you can upgrade your order to include the prostate cleanse for men or the Kidney/Bladder cleanse for females.  Go to http://www.thepowerherbs.com or call their 24-hour live customer service line 866-229-3663, International 704-885-0277.

 

STARTER KIT & ONE-YEAR SUPPLY OF HERBAL MEDICNE (shelf life 10 to 15 years)

See Apothecary Herbs One Year Supply of Herbal Medicine at http://www.thepowerherbs.com or call 866-229-3663, 704-885-0277. Call for a customized year supply or to set up installment payment for this package. 

The information contained herein is not designed to diagnosis, treat, prevent or cure disease. Seek medical advice from a lincensed medical physician (if you dare) before using any product or therapy. 
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