Debt Slavery

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-day ... same old, same old. Redundancy is certainly an obvious trait of poverty. The empire's puppet politicians have resurrected the Wall Street bailout in record time. We could be a complete Fascist state as early as Wednesday evening. Sadly, I am almost certain that the bailout proposal will pass this time around. The defeat of the previous version was mere showmanship, more "good cop, bad cop" histrionics. The crooks will not stop until we give them the money.

The sad state of affairs, of course, is being disguised as an attempt to "free up" credit markets. What it really means is that the ruling elite (i.e., moneychangers and powers-that-be) want to insure debt slavery for the rank-and-file peons. The latter peons have already been indoctrinated with the basic concepts of debt slavery. That's why we see such a fixation with FICO scores. In lieu of a real living wage, we are given the option to secure credit and take on massive loans to realize a higher standard-of-living. We are then inundated with the usual "American Dream" baloney in order to create extreme anxiety and feelings of inadequacy.

I am also very suspicious of the alleged bank failures that have been occurring in increasing frequency. I am inclined to believe that there is some kind of sinister machination involved, the objective of which is a major consolidation of the commercial banking "system." I would not doubt that the plan involves the the destruction of smaller banks and credit unions in order to create large banking oligopolies who will further rape and pillage the rank-and-file peons.

The propaganda will continue ... the bailout will save "America" ... it will save jobs ... it will save 401(k) plans and pensions ... blah, blah, blah. What exactly is there to save? The whole "system" from consumers to corporations runs solely on leverage (read: debt). It's all about saving the debt slavery "system." Mind you, once Social Security and Medicare are "privatized" or eliminated, the deal will be done. My suggestion is that rank-and-file peons should immediately remove all investments in stock mutual funds. All 410(k) plans should be revised to more conservative (i.e., non-stock) choices. Overall, we must stop purchasing on credit and reduce our loan portfolios to zero. That's the only way out of this mess.

Critical Mass

Moms and I made the rounds at Koko Marina this morning. Moms shopped at Price Busters and Foodland. We then procured local-style plate lunches at Loco Moco. Later, moms served Foremost® coffee ice cream for dessert. I also helped moms bring in the laundry.

I kept moms company until 1pm. After that, I spent 1.5 hours in Koko Head Park, although the experience was far from enjoyable. Battling the thousands of flies was not conducive to relaxation. I drove to Koko Marina and was able to find shaded parking. I walked to the gym and did my usual cardio workout. Subsequently, I shopped at Foodland before returning to Slob Manor (read: rental housing). My own laundry was awaiting my attention when I arrived.

Our slide into Fascism has been postponed until Thursday at the earliest. Although the "revised" bailout plan was rejected by the House today, there is little doubt that it will keep coming back like a bad sitcom. The stock market fell predictably, the highest single-day loss in history. However, word on the "street" indicated that the Asian stock market was already in decline even before the bailout vote. Thus, Wall Street's losses were part of a cascading effect.

Mind you, I really don't care if the empire's economy collapses, as long as the pain and suffering is shared by everyone including the so-called "upper class." A major correction is long overdue. And, really, it's time to stop calling it the "subprime crisis." How can a small group of impoverished homeowners cause a global financial collapse? Obviously, the loans were packaged and sold many times over (i.e., "securitized"). Each time a package was sold, exorbitant fees were extracted. In addition, each package must have been used to "create" additional money, much like the "fractional reserve" banking principle. There is no other way that such a small set of home loans could eventually balloon into a trillion-dollar crisis. If that's the case, then the bailout package becomes suspect. It is too little to effect any cure. However, it is enough for the ruling elite (i.e., moneychangers and powers-that-be) to make a final wealth transfer before the "system" collapses.

We have a few more days before the Fascists take full possession of the empire. There is speculation that Shrub may declare a form of martial law if the economy were to tank within the next few days. There is also speculation that the Fed has been actively engaging in activity to bring about a contrived financial meltdown. In any case, we must be prepared for the inevitable. There will be a huge transfer of wealth upward to the ruling elite whether the latter is caused by lost jobs, hyperinflation, termination of "safety net" programs, or outright theft by means of vanished assets. Greed knows no bounds, and it is now at critical mass.

Fascist's Holiday

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-Sunday ... exactly the same as Sunday last week. Are details necessary? Only one item is worthy of mention, that is, I received the monthly "condotel" statement. Once again, the "condotel" did not break even. I estimated the shortage to be about $350 or so. Money is just flowing out of the ol' lavahead's investment accounts. Is he deriving any pleasure from the financial siphoning? Obviously not. Fortunately, the government bailout plan has not been passed by the empire's puppets as yet. We have a one-day reprieve before being catapulted into a Fascist state.

Well, I finally got the lowdown on how to reboot Linux when the Gnome® desktop is frozen. I already knew that a hard reset was a terrible option. The solution is to use the Alt-SysReq key combination. While holding both keys down, I must input R-E-I-S-U-B (in that order). Then, the system will safely reboot.

Fascist Coup

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-day ... the itinerary was exactly the same as detailed in the "blog" of Tuesday. We can expect that, short of any unforeseen event, the itinerary of Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday will be pretty much identical. No need for me to repeat myself. The evenings are also redundant. Can you say, "Ubuntu Linux"?

I have yet to get a good night's rest. I am still experiencing a variety of strange dreams. Thus, I am extremely fatigued during my waking hours. Add to that my apprehension about the fraudulent bailout plan developed by the scheming Ben Bernanke and Hank Paulson. Even with all of the public outrage (which surprised me, frankly), the empire's puppet politicians are planning to have the bailout package ready before Monday. If the bailout package does come to fruition, be aware that we (read: the empire and its slaves) have crossed the threshold to a Fascist state.

Fascism is defined as a system of government marked by centralization of authority under a dictator, stringent socioeconomic controls, suppression of the opposition through terror and censorship, and typically a policy of belligerent nationalism and racism. Other elements of Fascism include:

• Powerful idea of nationalism
• Powerful executive control in government
• Lower human rights outlook
• Military reigns supreme
• Corporations wield great power
• Idea that National Security is at great risk to some threat
• Identifying of enemies/scapegoats that unifies citizens in patriotism
• Mass media controlled by state and corporations
• Fixed elections
• Rampant corruption
• Unlimited power held by police force

Learn about the Fascist coup that will take place tomorrow.

Morbid Boredom

I was on my way to Kahala in my Nissan® Frontier truck at 7:30am this morning. I ended up parking in the Kahala Mall parking lot and walking across the street to the dentist office. I had my teeth cleaned and examined. Along with a minimal amount of X-rays taken, the cost came to $189 and some change. I have three small cavities which will be dealt with in a future appointment. The estimated cost will be either $380 and $480 depending on the type of filling that I choose. Parting with that kind of dough is difficult, especially since I have scrimped excessively in order to survive. However, I have not been to the dentist for over three years. That, in itself, was a foolish move.

I drove to Hawai'i Kai after my appointment. Moms was home when I arrived. Moms and I ended up in Koko Marina. We ate local-style plate lunches at Zippy's. Then, moms shopped for groceries at Foodland. Later, moms served Foremost® coffee ice cream for dessert. I chatted with moms until 12:40pm.

I spent about 1.5 hours in Koko Head Park. The sky was overcast, but it did not detract from the scenery. Essentially, I had the whole park to myself again. No amount of riches could substitute for such an experience. I am finding that a healthy dose of natural surroundings is mandatory to maintain sanity in an insane world. Reluctantly, I drove to Koko Marina at 2pm. I found shaded parking easily. I walked to the gym and performed my usual workout. Were it not for the fact that the gym is my health insurance, I would seriously consider terminating my membership. I shopped for my own groceries at Foodland before returning to Slob Manor (read: rental housing) to endure another evening of morbid boredom.

So far, the "good cop, bad cop" theatrics have held off passage of the fraudulent bailout. However, we cannot underestimate the power of the moneychangers and powers-that-be. Behind closed doors, the empire's puppets will come together and facilitate another major fraud on the unsuspecting masses. I am not conflicted by my own position about the bailout plan. Yes, I could really benefit by the re-inflating of the so-called "housing bubble." Yes, I could benefit by another real estate sucker purchasing the "condotel" unit at or above my purchase price. However, I know that I am the "low man on the totem pole." I am not in the elite class. I am a member of the rank-and-file scum. Knowing my "place" allows me to acknowledge that I cannot benefit by any ruling class initiative, especially in the long run. My only goal is to stay ahead of the game until the exodus makes itself manifest. Nothing more, nothing less.

Bailout Bamboozlement

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-day ... cloned!Read the first paragraph of the "blog" of Tuesday. Same ol' shit. The idiotic bailout plan has made me weary. Currently, there are some "good cop, bad cop" histrionics going on in the empire's capitol. To add to the theatrics, Federal regulators closed down failing Wamu after the rallying stock market closed for the day. If the cheesy script hadn't seem so plainly obvious, I might have mistaken the whole charade for a made-for-the-tube movie. There have been myriad articles, op-ed pieces, and "blogs" about the bailout, all redundant with little in the way of information that we need. I finally read a piece by Michael Hudson titled, "The Insanity of the $700 Billion Giveaway," on the Counterpunch site. An excerpt:

This is not what the magic of compound interest promised. But it is where it had to end up, with mathematical inevitability. It was an advertising come-on for Wall Street money managers and promoters of "pension-fund capitalism" (or "peoples' capitalism" as it was called in Chile by the Chicago Boys working for General Pinochet's murderous regime, and Margaret Thatcher's Conservatives in England). The promise is that if people consign these funds to individuals who make much, much more than they do but have the survival-of-the-fittest advantage of being much, much more greedy, they will receive a perpetual doubling of interest. That is how retirements for American workers are still supposed to be paid – by magic, not by direct investment. Prospective retirees are supposed to ensure a good life by investing savings in loans to corporate raiders who fire, lay off, downsize and outsource these very workers. The trick is to persuade employees to hand retirement funding over to financial managers whose idea was to make money off the economy by extracting interest and dividends off workers, homeowners and companies being bought on debt leverage. In the final analysis it is debt leverage by itself that is supposed to fuel capital gains.

This has led to madness. The maddest solution of all would be for the government to give the extractive financial sector even more money – funds that no private lenders have been willing to provide, not even vulture funds. No private firm has been able to discover what Mr. Paulson and the unfortunate Mr. Bernanke are sanctimoniously promising: that a viable deal, even an almost money-making one, can be made by buying junk now and waiting for "the economy" to make it good.

Hudson also puts an end to the myth about the "lack of liquidity" in the markets. Heck, there's a lot of liquidity. The Fed has been injecting money into the "system" continuously for months. Where did the money go? Can you guess? Here's the crux of the bailout according to Hudson:

What it can do is provide a one-time transfer of wealth to insiders who already have been playing the debt-credit system and siphoning off its predatory financial proceeds to themselves. The Wall Street bankers, brokers and fund managers to whom I've been speaking for many decades all know this. That is why they pay themselves such large annual bonuses and large salaries each year. The idea is to take as much as you can. As the saying goes: "You only have to make a fortune once in a lifetime." They have been salting away their fortunes year after year, mainly in hard assets: real estate (free of mortgages), fine furniture, boats and trophy art. One last $700 billion heist and they can make their getaway.

In my own off-beat analyses, I have come up with the same conclusion. I urge all two readers of the "blog" to read the aforementioned article and to make future plans accordingly.

Gnome® Disappointment

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-Wednesday was overtaken by a coup just like the empire's economy. I was on my way to Aina Haina at 9:15pm. I first stopped at Foodland in the Aina Haina Shopping Center. Then, I spent two hours in the library. I read seemingly endless diatribe about the financial bailout coup that is currently unfolding as we speak. I became even more fatigued and lethargic. I returned to Slob Manor (read: rental housing) at noon.

After packing my gym bag, I drove to Hawai'i Kai in my Nissan® Frontier truck. I spent a little over an hour in Koko Head Park. Only a young hottie and I were in the entire main park area. Reluctantly, I drove to Koko Marina. I found shaded parking easily. Then, I walked to the gym. I performed my usual workout. Then, as per my Wednesday ritual, I ate dinner at Taco Bell®. Three Cheesy Bean and Rice Burritos. Yum! Afterward, I shopped for groceries at Foodland before returning to Slob Manor at 4:30pm.

The bailout of Wall Street has been the hot topic of the alternative media and the "blogosphere," so there really is no need for a marginal "blog" such as this one to wax philosophic. My own belief is that we are in the midst of a major coup. Nothing is going to stop it. We are at the doorstep of the secular Apocalypse.

Well, I have discovered one disappointing aspect of Ubuntu Linux, specifically the Gnome® desktop. The Totem media player is the culprit that is causing the entire desktop (except for the mouse cursor) to freeze. Unfortunately, none of the Ctrl-Alt key combinations work once the desktop freezes. Thus, I must invoke a hard reset. In searching the Ubuntu Forums, I discovered several threads about the Gnome desktop freezing either while Web browsing or using a multimedia application. No solutions have been found.

No Bank Left Behind

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-day slithered by very slowly. I was extremely fatigued. I did not sleep well at all last night. Thus, my disposition was dismal and apathetic all day. I found little reason to be alive. I spent 3.5 hours in the inner courtyard of the library, most of which was self-engaged in a comatose stupor. I also perused another Linux book, although I have no idea why I am wasting the time doing so. I gain some knowledge of Linux, but the latter knowledge is frivolous. I must return to more essential reading. I did my usual workout at the gym. Again, I had little enthusiasm for what I was doing. I rode the bus back to Slob Manor (read: rental housing), arriving before 5pm.

Well, there's been a lot of discussion in both the alternative and so-called "mainstream" media about the big bailout plan proposed by Ben Bernanke and Hank Paulson. However, I suspect that the bailout plan will be approved within a week giving Paulson dictatorial powers over the financial sector. Make no mistake, there will be no help for the distressed rank-and-file homeowner.

One would think that, as the descriptor "subprime crisis" implies, that an adjunctive solution to the problem would be some kind of assistance for the millions of homeowners who will soon be homeless. Then, I was enlightened when I recalled the old adage, "There's a sucker born every minute." Paulson and Bernanke know the adage well. Suckers are what make so-called "bubbles" function. Taxpayers will eventually absorb all of the losses of the bad "paper" that will be collected under the auspices of the Treasury. The banks will receive "free" money to recapitalize, while simultaneously foreclosing and evicting defaulting homeowners.

Here is where the myriad suckers come in. The defaulted property will be repackaged and offered to a whole new generation of suckers who are waiting in line to become homeowners. They will be fooled into believing that they are buying in at the bottom of the market. Then, the housing "bubble" will re-inflate.

Yes, there will be another bursting of the "bubble" yet again. However, the precedent will have already been set. Another bailout would ensue. In the meantime, we can expect a radical change in other aspects of society. Social services from the New Deal era will be eradicated. In the ramp-up to feed the voracious appetite of greed, no one will really notice. Yesterday's victims will be long forgotten, a powerless mass of homeless and destitute derelicts. Greed, delusions of "exceptionalism," and hubris will preclude any kind of revolution. We are a society of fools who will be consumed by the empire until we have no worth, except to literally become the fertilizer for the next breed of fools.

Lolo Monday

Moms and I made the usual rounds in Hawai'i Kai this morning ... Longs® in Kuapa Kai and Foodland in Koko Marina. For lunch, moms served lamp-baked chicken and Ahi Poke courtesy Foodland, fresh vegetables, and rice. After lunch, moms wanted me to listen to her testimony about the incident with the House of Lolo's rabid dog. Moms has an appointment tomorrow with my sister-in-law's employer who is an attorney. The attorney has been dealing with the House of Lolo's insurance company. So far, moms has received $1,000 for medical expenses. I assume that the attorney is also seeking punitive damages. Last I heard, the latter was to be about $10,000 (split between moms and my bro).

I departed at 2pm. I spent a short amount of time at Koko Head Park. I was not able to fully enjoy the scenery. For some reason, I felt agitated and fidgety. I drove my Nissan® Frontier truck to Koko Marina and found shaded parking. I walked to the gym and did my usual cardio workout. Afterward, I shopped for a few grocery items at Foodland before heading back to Slob Manor (read: rental housing). When I set foot in my squalid room, I immediately initiated the dreaded laundry chores. The rest of the day will follow the same ol' shit.

I made an appointment with my dentist for this coming Friday morning. I will going in for a cleaning and a check-up, although I already know that I have at least one tooth that is giving me grief. I will be paying for service out of my own pocket. Obviously, I am not too happy about all that. I am getting a taste of how the poor and the destitute are living. I am learning what it's like to live in fear of losing everything and not being able to afford anything. I may be two or three steps ahead of the general populace of the empire, which may or may not be an advantage. I will say that, when more and more fools are sucked into the vortex of poverty and despair, we will see desperation wield its ugly head. I want to be long gone to a safe haven before that happens.

Bailout Blues

Another urban nomad kind-of-a-Sunday has been neutered. Upon checking my mail, I discovered nothing but mailings from the AARP®. I left he unsolicited stuff in my PO Box. I am maintaining the ruse that I only receive junk mail in order to defend why the jury questionnaire was "lost." Frankly, the jury crap is the last thing that I need to worry about right now. I performed my usual workout at the gym. Sadly, no hottie gym trainer. Then, I ended up riding three different crowded buses to return to Slob Manor (read: rental housing). I had to make a stop at Foodland in the Aina Haina Shopping Center. I had to purchase a few necessities. For a snack, I had my eyes set on ice cream. However, a few weeks ago, I had discarded the plastic spoon that was in my gym bag. I reluctantly settled for a bag of acrylamide-laced Wavy Lays® potato chips. I almost finished the entire bag of chips before the bus arrived. I was back in my squalid room by 5pm.

As I suspected, there was a huge run on money market fund deposits. Over $190 billion fled the previous investment safe haven. No telling what will happen this coming week. Another major run will probably shut down more funds including the ones that hold all of my savings. The state of affairs looks grim. According to the AARP® Bulletin:

Undermining our natural strengths are a viral combination of a record national debt now approaching $10 trillion; a federal budget deficit projected this year at $492 billion, but likely closer to $700 billion; a staggering foreign trade deficit; and exhausted savings accounts. The average American household is now buried under mortgage debt of $84,911, car and tuition loans of $14,414, home equity loans of $10,062 and credit card debt of $8,565 — in sum, outstanding debt totaling $117,952. According to other Federal Reserve statistics, average household savings this year are a mere $392.

Something big is goin' down. I am wondering how close we are to finding ourselves under martial law. Is the secular Apocalypse finally upon us?

Well, I will spend another evening with Ubuntu Linux on my Toshiba® Satellite notebook computer. I have unleashed the power of Compiz Fusion on the Gnome® desktop. I won't use many of the features since I am not concerned about "eye candy." However, the power of Linux can no longer be underestimated.