Charlie McGrath of Wide Awake News gives us the real deal on where our economy was at the height of the bubble in 2006 compared to today:
I want to bring you some statistics that are negative by nature. It’s not because I’m negative or I want to say bad things about my country. It’s that I want people to be, at least if nothing else, mentally prepared for what’s coming our way.
(Video below)
The following are some highlight stats provided by Charlie:
|
2006
|
2010
|
|||
| Unemployment |
4.5%
|
9.5%
|
||
| Food Stamps |
26 million
|
42 million
|
||
| Personal Income |
$51,700
|
$50,200
|
||
| Troubled Banks |
47
|
860 (unofficially 2000)
|
||
| CA Construction |
–
|
Down 77%
|
||
| US Sovereign Debt |
$9 Trillion
|
$14 Trillion
|
It’s clear that we are nowhere near a recovery and that, in fact, things have gotten worse.
The U.S. is now in a Catch 22, with no easy way out. All options lead to more misery.
If the Fed continues to print money to monetize debt, the eventual (and most likely) outcome will be severe inflation, if not all out hyperinflation. The government can continue to spend billions upon trillions, but it is not going to cause our economy to miraculously return to prosperity. The exact opposite effect will occur.
The flip side of the coin is something we mentioned in Here Comes the Sledgehammer. If the government were to implement austerity measures and stop spending money on stimulus, bailouts, unemployment assistance, medical care and cut other social programs, then the little guy on the street will feel it almost immediately.
Yesterday we pointed out that nearly 2 million people across the nation have lost their emergency unemployment benefits. That’s 2 million already struggling to pay the bills and put food on the table with a weekly assistance check. That check is now gone. In addition, we have over 30 million more Americans currently receiving unemployment assistance – but within 99 weeks of today, their benefits will run out too. And because of necessary budget and spending cuts, it is likely they are not going to get any extensions, meaning that by December of 2012, all of those 30 million people currently on unemployment are going to be without any sort of income whatsoever.
For those holdouts who say jobs will return, consider that just today we learned over 100,000 people applied for 1000 Delta Airlines flight attendant jobs. And this is not an isolated incident, as evidenced by the 700 people who applied for a single janitorial position in an Ohio school district. Any jobs that pay a little more than minimum wage are becoming highly competitive. And for those who are now off unemployment insurance, even minimum wage is starting to look like a dream career.
Remember, also, that job losses going forward will not be limited to just the private sector. Analyst Meredith Whitney estimates that at least two million jobs will be eliminated by state and local governments.
The negative feedback loop is in full effect. Job losses lead to less spending, which leads to more job losses. As we shed jobs and wages drop, more people stop paying mortgages, leading to further declines in real estate and other asset classes (in REAL dollar terms). This leads (probably) to even more stimulus spending from our government, leading to even more money printing, which further devalues our dollar, raising the price of all goods relative to incomes.
The end result really is unpredictable, but based on the continuing cycle of economic destruction, we can take an educated guess.
Higher crime rates as people have to rob, steal and pillage to put food on the table. Protests and potentially violent riots as many go hungry. On the government level, we may see meaningful spending cuts, we may not, but the way things are going, we’re looking at even more sovereign debt and long-term liabilities. This, in turn, may lead to foreign creditors pulling out of US Treasuries, leading to a complete collapse of the US dollar, and subsequently, our entire economic system.
The final outcome, as to whether we go into a controlled collapse or a complete, all-out economic Armageddon, will be determined sometime in the next decade.
Prepare yourself mentally, financially, physically and spiritually.
We are entering an economic, social and political climate unlike anything we have ever seen in our lifetimes.
Charlie McGrath:
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Comments….. Very good points he made – yep, just shut up and take it–just like Greece, France and Ireland. It’s unraveling fast isn’t it?
Comments….. “The world will soon wake up to the reality that everyone is broke and can collect nothing from the bankrupt, who are owed unlimited amounts by the insolvent, who are attempting to make late payments on a bank holiday in the wrong country, with an unacceptable currency, against defaulted collateral, of which nobody is sure who holds title.” Author Unknown
Intelligence is measured by one’s ability to learn from one’s mistakes.
Until the American People unite to put an end to the political corruption and corporate greed that has ravaged our society and eroded our Constitution, history will continue to repeat itself. Preparing now will provide you with the means to weather the economic storms to come. Gear up folks. It looks to be a long cold winter ahead,,,, and the wolves will abound.
(Search,,,, 100 items to disappear first,,,)
Foreigners (the Chinese and Japanese particularly) buy U.S. Treasuries with the money they earn by selling products to the U.S.. They cannot simply stop buying U.S. debt. If they did, they would have to take other assets (e.g. real estate properties) in exchange. In this case, their currencies would rise against the U.S. Dollar. So this is not a realistic scenario.
The U.S. Fed has not revealed what their exit strategy is for the overhang in debt due to Quantitative Easing #1 and #2. Until they do, no one will have any idea about the effect on inflation. Hyperinflation is really loss of faith in the currency — that is different from the inflationary pressures caused by QE 1 and 2. The collapse of the U.S. Dollar is unlikely as there is no real alternative to it’s use for commercial settlements on a global basis. If the international community decides to replace the U.S. Dollar as the basis of international commercial exchange, the phase-out process would take years. They would need to smooth the effect of the change, so abrupt value changes and abandonment are extremely unlikely.
Interestingly, the long cold winter – as in “Winter is Coming” by James Goulding (available free from his website – google it) which more applies to the economy, is being coupled with abnormally cold winter weather. Â If you go to http://www.iceagenow.com you will see that some scientists who never bought into the global warming scam have been saying all along that it’s time for another ice age – which nobody who has studied ancient climates argues against being the normal state of affairs on this planet – extensive glaciation punctuated by short “interglacial” periods, such as what we’ve been (mostly) enjoying for the last 10.000 years – I say “mostly” because the “little ice age” really just ended around 1900 (some would say late 1800’s) and our weather has been warmer since then – but now we are moving back into cooling, and according to many scientists, and the web bot predictions, we are going to see a noticeable change toward global cooling, which will effect the northernmost areas of our planet the most harshly as this is were more landmass is and where much of our food supply is grown.
The web bots predicted something like 1.289 billion people dead coming up shortly. Â If you saw the movie “The Day After Tomorrow” you could imagine how the winter weather could take it’s toll on the global population, not to mention the lost areas of food production due to the impinging ice age, which according to the iceagenow.com website’s author, we will all be acknowledging by 2012.
So I suggest for those in extreme Northern areas – MOVE. Â For those in less extreme locations, insulate and build a greenhouse! Â Buy snowshoes… Everyone is going to need to be much more self-sufficient. Â Just having enough food to eat will be enough of a challenge to most people/families and the effect on the global economy will be severe. Â During the little ice age, cannibalism was widespread, and starving people were the norm. Â Starving, malnourished people were more susceptible to disease, as well, which also took it’s toll. Â Say I’m a doom-and-gloomer, but look it up. Â This is in the history books.
Then, there’s the magnetic pole shift, which could really devastate the global population, and these are generally associated with mass extinctions so time to put away the tinfoil hat and swap it out for a lead lined umbrella…
Cheers!! Â Enjoy the upcoming Xmas season, it may be the last one of the Golden Age of Consumerism (GAC). Â Eggnog anyone? Â How about a nice long pour of rum in that? Â Nutmeg? Â Fruitcake? Â Yes, please. Â Whipped cream on mine!!
Comments…..Thank you for helping us all to see whats happening. Being prepared mentaly is only half the battle. When people are hungry they do crazy things. To help with this you can visit:http://survivalready.blogspot.com/ and feed your family for years when stores can’t.
What are snow shoes? How will my navigation system work if the pole flips? This sounds very bad.
my wife had a magnetic pole shift so i can attest to the explosive effects of this phenomenon. if i hadn’t saved a bunch of new crisp ten dollar bills i wouldn’t have survived..
What do people taste like? Is lead umbrella’s legal in California? I’ll put my coat on or put another log on the fire.
I am really befuddled and somewhat bewildered here today folks. Won’t someone please help a poor old ignorant redneck out and explain a few things for me?????
1. If we, as a country, are so f–king broke; then WHY do we continue to send money that we don’t have abroad to help people in other countries? If we can’t help out our fellow US Citizens with domestic aid, then why do we have foreign aid?
2. If we, as a country, are so f–king broke, then WHY do we have a military presence in over 125 different foreign countries?????
3. If we, as a country, are so f–king broke, then WHY are we fighting two wars that everyone knows won’t benefit the United States in any way, shape or form?????
I don’t need no stinking reality TV …….. real life and the world around me is much better than anything on TV.
Mushroom, that’s the only way to survive. I too have experienced such a pole shift. But I too, saved many a single mom in the process. Damn sunspots..
MadMarkie, good questions. It’s all about oil, the world accepting the dollar, controlling it all the way to the end & winning again just like after WWII. Didn’t say I agree with it. Oil is king, power is queen & jack is gold.
Michelle – I live in N. Michigan and I love the snow and the cold. I’ll take this any day over living in some nasty hot spot. Bring it on……..
Plus, there’s hardly anyone around here. So yea! The north sucks. Everyone pack up and leave. Works for me.  It’s a mess no matter where you move or live.Â
Not knowing exactly what we are in for makes mental preparation burdensome at times; I can’t prep for everything that may come my way therefore I am forced to play the odds and prep accordingly. A big part of mental preparation for me this year was attending to my physical needs. It is surprising just how mentally deficient we become when our bodies are not as finely tuned as they should be. Please take the time to get an updated medical physical and dental exam, followed up immediately with any recommendations your doctor or dentist may have. After the healthcare B.S. passed I made it my number one priority to get my physical house in order. It has taken most of this year but it has given me great confidence knowing that whatever is coming I am healthy and able to meet any challenges head on.
Comments…..
please do not accept the idea that everyone in the USA is broke. The government who has determined that private individuals are now too expensive to support with public funds is the same government that has determined that the banks are too big to fail. Look at the income statements of those who control the banks. You will find that they are not broke, but rather are enjoying record bonuses which are the result of our future tax dollars used to cover the losses of bad banking policy. It is our elected leaders who have cut off the populace to support the bankers. Not all in the USA are broke, and this is by design.
Do you ice fish Bill? Always wanted to kill a Jameson with a good Cuban & a $10 bill with some good tales.
Anybody curious what the Ace and Joker are?Â
Tom – Love to drill those ice holes. Walleye, perch and a few northern now and then. Perch are my favorite. That’s good eating. Perch goes best with an ice cold brew though. Jameson is for when your sitting on the ice. Keeps ya warm (er).  It will be a while before I’ll walk on the ice. Every year some idiot gets picked up by the Coast Guard after they get stuck on the ice. Too much Jameson maybe…….
Always wanted to sit in one of those 1 room shacks w a rack where u have to go outside to be polite. But I have seen the Northern lights above the Artic Circle. No time time for fishing. Stay warm.
MadMarkie,
1. To benefit the Anglo-American power elite, a.k.a. the ruling class.
http://spectator.org/archives/2010/07/16/americas-ruling-class-and-the
2. See #1.
3. Also see #1.
Bottom line, it doesn’t seem like there are any differences between the Great Powers:
http://thedailybell.com/1557/Are-There-Still-Differences-Between-the-Great-Powers.html
1.289 billion fewer people?  If that is disproportionately composed of lawyers and politicians we will all be better for it.
good luck
Pete
i agree with all your stats but one: unemployment, in ’06 it was probably around 9%; today it’s nearer 20% – add underemployment and well, it gets even higher…
here is a link to a good article (though dated) on how government unemployment stats are cooked (and have been for years): http://www.tampabay.com/news/article473596.ece
The elites want to cull the herd. Why don’t we live underground where the year round temperature is the same or why don’t we use geothermal for energy? We aren’t allowed underground cause there is someone else there!  Advances in hyper dimensional physics through VBM, Vortex Based Mathematics will set the whole planet free and the coming crisis will bring these changed thoughts into reality. Geometry being taught was what lead to the 14th century renaissance. Until then people thought the world was flat. The toroidal hypersphere will allow folks to see beyond the current 3D reality and also into the atom’s nucleus to grok the 2D –  64 square 8×8 matrix that exists there which we spiral out of into hyperspace. Get fractal or die.
Never have nipples on your shirt pockets.
pls heed! this is just the beginning folks…
-january 2011 , more taxes and more taxes are coming! local state and fed! are all rising! 15,000 new hired IRS agents! 15,000 !!!!! need i say more…
-june 2011 , six months away , alt-a, option-arm loans and commercial realestate loans-HUGE chunk are up and due! meaning your going to see a HUGE surge in defaults and renegotiaton of contracts. causing a huge market drop! potential too crash…
-you all know the score… the rest of america will just continue to get worse… the united states fed’s know the score – cause they are slowly putting the screws tighter on the american public and keepin’ em tighter!Â
THIS IS THE REALITY OF WHAT IS HAPPENING TO AMERICA! THE INTENTIONAL INTERNAL DE-INDUSTRIALIZATON OF AMERICAÂ … OUT SOURCING AMERICAN JOBS OVER SEAS! TURNING MIDDLE CLASS INTO THE POOR CLASS. TRIPLEING THE PRICE OF FOODS AND COMMODITIES! FORCING MILLIONS OF HOME OWNERS FROM THEIR HOMES TO RENTAL UNITS OR TENT CITIES!Â
THIS IS ALL INTENTIONAL!Â
THE END RESULT WILL BE INTERNATIONAL WORLD WARÂ 3 , TOO KILL OFF ALL THE EXTRA USELESS EATERS HERE AND ABROAD!Â
THAT’S THEIR PLAN! THEY HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE!! HOW ELSE ARE THEY GOING TO DEAL; WITH SO MANY HUNGRY HOMELESS UNDER/ UNEMPLOYED YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN; AS TIMES GET WORSE , ECONOMIES WILL GET WORSE , MORE PEOPLE WILL JOIN THE RANKS OF THE UNEMPLOYED AND HOMELESS… EVENTUALLY THESE PEOPLE WILL POSE A THREAT TO NATIONAL INTERNAL AUTHORITY AND THE PRISONS ARE ALREADY FULL!Â
THE POWERS TO BE HAVE NO CHOICE ; BUT INTERNATIONAL WAR TO KILL OFF ALL THE USELESS EATERS!Â
OPEN YOUR EYE’S!Â
ARM UP STOCK UP – PREDATOR OR PREY THE CHOICE IS YOURS! Â Â
And..ppl traveling in motorhomes, or leaving their homes because they can’t make their payments will be hauled out to fema camps or so tightly squeezed together in these huge storage buildings waiting from officials for a plan. What if those storage facilities were huge incinerators? I wouldn’t be traveling if i were you. Stay with family, friends, etc. Buy as much food as you can, share and commit to compassion toward neighbors that haven’t turned into zombies. Come together!
I just bought an ETAP yacht, 2 years supply of freeze dried food, a solar water dehumidifier/purifier, shotgots, a sniper rifle, ammo, and tons of books. Â Should the SHTF and I need to bug out, I’m not sticking around for the formerly domesticated masses to go wild and tear the country apart. Â There is no infrastructure in the first world nations to hold back the people once they rise up….so I’ll be somewhere in the Pacific by then….
if you are serious about survival and protecting your family in the event of a natural or man made disaster you need to watch this guys videos! I would suggest watching them regardless of your current level of preparedness.
http://www.youtube.com/user/AnalyticalSurvival