Art historian Bahia Shehab has long been fascinated with the Arabic script for ‘no.’ When revolution swept through Egypt in 2011, she began spraying the image in the streets saying no to dictators, no to military rule and no to violence.
Category Archives: politics
Capitalism Without Failure: In 2005 Raghuram Rajan Told Bernanke, Geithner, Summers, and Greenspan that We Were Headed for Economic Crisis
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2012
In 2005 Raghuram Rajan Told Bernanke, Geithner, Summers, and Greenspan that We Were Headed for Economic Crisis
I am re-watching Charles Ferguson’s Inside Job. It is a fantastic movie, but it is so frustrating to see our failed leaders being rewarded for their incompetence, obstructionism, and failure.
In 2005, Raghuram Rajan, who was then Chief Economist at the IMF, delivered a paper to the central bankers of the world. In attendance were Alan Greenspan, Ben Bernanke, Tim Geithner, and Larry Summers. He concluded that the financial world was becoming riskier. The paper focused on warped incentive structures which created huge short term profits and cash bonuses, but with no penalties for later losses. He argued that this encouraged bankers to take on huge losses that would potentially bankrupt their own firms or even crash the entire financial system.
Summers criticized Rajan and accused Rajan of being a luddite.
So Summers (and Geithner and Greenspan and Bernanke) had terrible judgment. If the story ended there, it would be an unfortunate one. But the story only really becomes tragedy when we see what happened to those failed thinkers following their pathetic intellectual performance; Obama appointed Geithner Treasury Secretary, kept on Ben Bernanke as Fed Chairman, and appointed Summers to be his Chief Economic Advisor.
These people should have been able to see the coming tsunami on their own. After all, they are the most esteemed and highly regarded economic analysts in this country. But in this case, they were actually given a roadmap. The Chief Economist of the IMF stood in front of them and laid out in detail how the warped incentive structures in our political economy were creating a highly unstable and precarious financial sector that could bring the entire system crashing down. And they still did not act. And our system imploded. And they were all promoted.
I have to say it again: Charles Ferguson is an American hero. Watch this movie.
Ask James: 16 Trillion in Debt, Love What You Do, How to Make a Million Dollars, and More Altucher Confidential
The Fiscal Cliff | Peter Schiff on how to spot the ledge
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Martin Feldstein Criticizes The Fed – Business Insider
Americans already detained under NDAA?
Americans already detained under NDAA?
NEWS RSS : TODAY | SEPTEMBER 27, 2012
http://pulse.me/s/dJNAh
The plaintiffs that are suing US President Barack Obama over his insistence on keeping the National Defense Authorization Act … Read more
Ralph Nader: President Obama’s a ‘war criminal’ – Patrick Gavin – POLITICO.com
It’s no surprise that Ralph Nader isn’t a fan of former President George W. Bush. After all, the longtime activist ran against him in both 2000 and 2004. But Nader’s even less a fan of President Barack Obama, if only because he thinks Obama was capable of so much more.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0912/81649.html#ixzz27iJPbBBX
The United States of ALEC: Bill Moyers on the Secretive Corporate-Legislative Body Writing Our Laws
Democracy Now! premieres “The United States of ALEC,” a special report by legendary journalist Bill Moyers on how the secretive American Legislative Exchange Council has helped corporate America propose and even draft legislation for states across the country. ALEC brings together major U.S. corporations and right-wing legislators to craft and vote on “model” bills behind closed doors. It has come under increasing scrutiny for its role in promoting “stand your ground” gun laws, voter suppression bills, union-busting policies and other controversial legislation. Although billing itself as a “nonpartisan public-private partnership,” ALEC is actually a national network of state politicians and powerful corporations principally concerned with increasing corporate profits without public scrutiny. Moyers’ special will air this weekend on Moyers & Company, but first airs on Democracy Now! today. “The United States of ALEC” is a collaboration between Okapi Productions, LLC and the Schumann Media Center. [includes rush transcript]
The United States of ALEC: Bill Moyers on the Secretive Corporate-Legislative Body Writing Our Laws.
Israeli leaders meet Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in NYC – YouTube
Note: This meeting took place in 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/nyregion/15rabbi.html?_r=1
This video is banned for broadcast on News Networks in USA, Israel and Europe. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that Israel and US does not want you to see. Jewish leaders and prominent businessmen Greet Ahmadinejad with Inshallah and Bless him for long life. Jews have lived in Iran for thousands of years. Over 50,000 Jews live in Teheran. Israeli Jews Love Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
via Israeli leaders meet Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in NYC – YouTube.
Paul Craig Roberts: America, The Next Banana Republic – YouTube
Alex also welcomes American economist and Infowars contributing writer Paul Craig Roberts to discuss the impact of Eurpoean austerity measures on world markets amidst ongoing riots.
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