The Wake Up Call

Worldwide Descent Into Depression - 05/14/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:00:44 +0000

Let’s see: I talk about Greece, Spain, Europe in general, California, China, The Mythical Land Of Us, the BRIC countries… all slowing down economically, all suffering from a surfeit of debt. Unfortunately, there are no solutions. It is a worldwide meltdown. California’s budget problems markedly worse than projected by the Governor in January. More cuts, more layoffs, higher taxes, a stampede out of California… very grim. China’s economy is now slumping. A telecommunications provider which shields its customers from surveillance. Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, head of the Sinaloa drug cartel in Mexico, thanks the U.S. for making sure that drugs remain illegal. How the banks are gaming the system to stabilize housing prices (keeping them off the market). Ridiculous insurance/hospital billing scenarios.

Europe In Dire Straits - 05/11/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:00:26 +0000

The European Union is beyond crisis. It is on life-support. Germany has admitted that it accepted Italy into the Union on false pretenses. The problems of transferring from the euro to domestic currencies. A comment on the elections in France and Greece. More on unemployment and the destiny of those less fortunate than their relatives from previous generations. A comparison between how one is received at a South American consulate abroad and a U.S. consulate abroad.

The Evils Of Central Banking - 05/07/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 07 May 2012 15:00:40 +0000

Why do we allow these toxic institutions? They destroy economies, support their friends in commercial banking to the detriment of everyone else and create inflation and debased currencies. Two previous central banks in the U.S. lost their charters. How long will it be before the Federal Reserve loses its? The demographics of unemployment. The impossibility of sustaining the nation’s elderly with the youth of today. It cannot be done. The financial burden is simply too great. Nobody seems to address this. Why deflation is in our future. How this will affect gold. A look at why the recession will get worse. What will happen when the deficits are curtailed? Nobody talks about that, either. The economic fallout is unthinkable. Yet it has to happen at some point. Ron Paul’s bill to ‘End the Fed’.

The American Dream Destroyed - 05/04/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:00:59 +0000

Debt has completely undermined the fabric of American life. The bedrock of success, housing, has died. It will never come back. The backbone of middle class wealth since WWII has been irretrievably broken. Please welcome Lauren Lyster into your lives on RT (Russian Television) and her show, Capital Account. Listen to a few of her words on the clip here. She is brilliant and destined for much success, though probably not in the main stream media. The unemployment statistics are out and not encouraging. European unemployment is at a record high. They are grinding out yet more debt in a panic. This will end badly. Total global debt is now $190 trillion. We have reached the point of implosion. The future is beyond unthinkable. Americans are beginning to leave the U.S. in droves. Millennials are particularly badly hit right now. Australia is now in terrible shape and officially in recession. Retailers are going under. Home prices are collapsing. An account of gratuitous police violence at a N.Y. Occupy event against a non-violent, experienced activist. Stay away!

Raining On Polyanna’s Parade – Again - 04/30/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:00:33 +0000

A comparative assessment of economic figures over the last century. 2012 is at the bottom of the pile. The current, dire economic situation has spiralled out of control and shows no sign of abating. An assessment of yesterday’s Meet-Up Group in New Brunswick. 25% of Americans state they will need to delay retirement to age 80, two years after they are expected to die! Europe’s governments are collapsing, one-by-one. An explanation of why the U.S. government should have resisted the temptation to interfere with the economy, leaving it alone to implode undisturbed. Having let the bankrupt businesses get out of the way, we’d be in recovery by now. With all the recent restrictions and curtailments of freedom and militarization of the forces of law and order within the country, America is following in the early domestic footsteps of Nazi Germany. With sixteen intelligence agencies (none of whom could stop 9/11, events in Egypt, Libya and Iran and mistakenly thought Saddam had WMD) they want to add yet another agency. They’re tightening the net. Yet again, you have been warned.

Frontline Has Well-And-Truly Joined The Mainstream - 04/27/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 15:00:10 +0000

A puff piece on the recent history of the economy and efforts to save it. Good for the info, bad for the (non-existent) analysis. More on the scandal surrounding the TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program). The funds never went where Congress had been informed they were going to go. Unemployed or disabled? The line may be blurred. Americans are not getting reliable information and they are angry. This will render the future very ugly.

The California Experience Is Coming To A State Near You - 04/23/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 15:00:48 +0000

An in-depth look at the horrors of economic life in California. A shopping list of debt, crime, poverty, government overreach, corruption, illegal immigration, education-gone-berserk… More about the unfair rap dealt out to speculators. A quick overview of the general decline internationally as we progress within the international depression. Deflation as evidenced by falling commodity prices. Waco was a squandered opportunity for the people to rise up against the dangers of unwarranted federal interference in people’s lives.

Derivatives Revisited - 04/20/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 15:00:42 +0000

Lehman was the dress rehearsal for the wreckage that will soon be wrought by the derivatives market, uncontrolled, unregulated and unknown in size. Truly an accident waiting to happen. Charles Biderman talking about misguided nonsense from the financial media. Bill Bonner’s take on emigrating from the United States. Nigel Farage talking about the euro. George Carlin talking about the planet.

A Little Bit Of History - 04/16/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:00:51 +0000

The hideous heritage of Reagan lives on today: The rise of the big corporation. The expansion of big government. “Free trade”(!) Super profits to multinational corporations. Thanks for nothing, Ronnie! A new commentator gets to be aired here on the Wake-Up Call (Charlie McGrath). More on unemployment and decreased pay and the nightmare of debt. Americans still bullish on the housing market! The history of taxes – all predicated on the needs of war. 2000-2012: nothing has changed… Medical care in Massachusetts. Michael Pettis’s take on China and why its imminent collapse will bring on worldwide deflation.

Friday The 13th: A Bad Omen Just Like Every Other day Of The Year! - 04/13/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:00:24 +0000

Some fun tax facts (if tax matters can be called ‘fun’). Comparisons between the 2008 crisis and the crisis about to hit in Europe. The housing debacle is the exact equivalent of the sovereign country collapse currently in-the-making. And the governments are making exactly the same mistakes as the U.S. made in response to its own crisis, using the dictum, “Do more of what has failed spectacularly”. Elements contributing to the collapse of the American way of life. Government now fears the people, as evidenced by the extraordinary powers that the Department of Homeland Security is arrogating to itself. Gun shops are packed with people preparing for a massive outbreak of crime and civil unrest. Anecdotal stories of attacks in broad daylight are increasing and criminals are becoming ever more brazen.

We Are Not ‘At The End’ Of Anything (Housing Decline Included) - 04/09/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 15:00:59 +0000

Quantitative Easing explained. Plenty of statistics show that the housing market’s collapse has a great deal further to run, not least on account of the tsunami of foreclosures slated to hit this year. Deconstructing an absurd view of an ‘American Manufacturing Renaissance’. Homeland Security beefing up its purchases of ammunition. No prizes for guessing why or against whom it is intended… Update on the economic situation in Spain. A comparison between the sinking of the Titanic (100-year anniversary on Friday) and the sinking economy. Americans are saving less and returning to old bad habits, having been brainwashed by the propaganda machine into believing that things are returning to normal. Why oil prices are so high. Not what you may be thinking…

China - 04/06/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 15:00:38 +0000

The U.S. is ramping up its military relationships in Asia, clearly intended to confront China. There seems little doubt that a major military confrontation will happen at some point between the U.S. and China. The Chinese are keenly aware of what is going on as per the comments from a senior, influential Chinese professor at Peking University. Australia has virtually rubber-stamped its statement of alliance with the U.S. against China. A recent study by a team of scientists at MIT has predicted that “global economic collapse and precipitous population decline could occur by 2030”. The entire system of consumption of resources, including debt, is, in their opinion, unsustainable.

Brainwashed! - 04/02/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 15:00:27 +0000

Not only are the debt figures staggeringly awful, Americans are being encouraged to think they are quite normal and manageable. They are uploading so much debt to their children and grandchildren that they have become numb to the horror. Consumer spending is taking off again in earnest. Savings are down. Credit card usage is back up. A tiny upturn in the real estate market is encouraging people to buy-to-rent as an investment. These people are in for a terrible surprise when the market turns back down again. An account of the security nightmare experienced at Miami International Airport. A warning to check your sources carefully before believing all the emotionally-charged stories of scandal you hear. Remember, money is really only a medium of exchange. In a healthy society it has to be earned before being spent. Yes, that applies to you, too!

An Appraisal Of International Events & The History Of Health Care - 03/30/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 15:00:33 +0000

The depression will be world-wide. Nobody can escape the coming downturn. It is the quality of the ensuing recovery that will vary. The U.S. will be hit particularly hard as it has the furthest to fall. A report from Susan on the Meet-Up Group’s activities last Sunday. A detailed account of the (failed) history of repeated attempts to get a national program of health care started in the U.S. Foiled at every turn by the A.M.A. Very sad. Bernanke’s frantic efforts to avert a depression which already exists! An account of the fraudulent and secret loans the Fed made to the big banks. How housing affordability can decline even as house prices decline themselves. The U.K. is already in a worse depression than that of the 1930s. The storied life of the average German worker – very sobering…

The Ignorance, Apathy, Stupidity Of The People Is Beyond Breathtaking - 03/26/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:00:28 +0000

The housing market is in for years of depression. An in-depth look at why this is so and why this is an irreversible process. There is apparently little or no awareness of this among the general populace. Just about every decision taken to alleviate the situation by the powers-that-be is the wrong one and destined to aggravate it. Updating the European crisis. The views and predictions of Michael Pettis, expert analyst who lives in China. Doug Casey’s exhortation to leave the U.S. for better opportunities elsewhere.

Car Sales, A Major Prop Of The ‘Economic Recovery’, Are A Sham - 03/23/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 15:00:39 +0000

An in-depth look into why this is so. Most of these sales are to sub-prime borrowers and they will bring the car industry to its knees as the borrowers default en masse. Yes, we’ve seen it before. We’ll see it again. New car sales plus soaring gas prices are responsible for the impressive retail sales figures. Why the stock market is destined to collapse. Feeding the homeless is being banned all over America. A new study shows that 63% of Americans feel that the American economic model is broken and no longer works for most Americans.

Overextension Of Credit Still Not Being Addressed - 03/16/12

progressiveradionetwork — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 15:00:45 +0000

Incredibly, after all that we’ve seen and experienced, virtually no deleveraging has taken place. Money has taken on a surreal quality since it no longer represents value but a prop for banks to destroy people’s lives. Government credit is simply non-productive. Governments have destroyed the relationship between man and money through absurdly unrealistic monetary policies. Payback time is at hand… and it is going to hurt. Another clip from Nigel Farage. A new book recommendation: Why Nations Fail: The Origins Of Power, Prosperity And Poverty, by Daron Acemoglu, whose contention is that it is man-made policies that underlie economic success – or lack thereof. 40 embarrassing things at which America is best in the world.

Find the People You Trust And Stick With Them - 03/12/12

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 16:00:36 +0000

Avoid the nonsense talked about Greece. They DEFAULTED. (They didn’t “restructure”). They’re getting ready to default AGAIN. (They’re not out-of-the-woods). The Greek government enforced the deal “at gun-point”. (It was not a voluntary bond swap, as they tell you). People are too incompetent to be entrusted to the task of grading the competence of those they elect to power. So they inevitably elect the “wrong” people to power. So much for “democracy”! More on the non-recovery recovery. Don’t listen to the soothsayers. They will hurt you. The CRIC cycle: Crisis, Response, Improvement, Repeat. The 2 happiest states in the U.S. (Listen to the archive to find out which they are!) Some facts about the quality of education in the U.S.

The Inexcusable Errors Of Judgment - 03/09/11

progressiveradionetwork — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 15:04:03 +0000

Over-investment in expansion by retailers, outrageous loans by banks to those who could ill-afford them, a Federal Reserve shamelessly goosing the money supply to protect the banks, credit cards and student loans doled out to those who don’t have a prayer of a hope of paying them back. We all know about the sub-prime mortgages. The derivative tsunami has yet to hit. And in return for allowing the manufacturing industry to “slip away” to Asia, the government throws money and “transfer payments” at people by borrowing 44 cents out of every dollar. The end will be bitter and tragic.