The Economic Panic of '08 is On

In 2008, Americans will wake up to the worst economic times that anyone alive has ever seen. And they won't know what hit them - Gerald Celente, December 17th, 2007

(RHINEBECK, N.Y.) - The "Panic of '08" that we had predicted is "ON." Only the blind can't see it, the deaf don't hear it and those in denial won't admit it. America's economy has taken a direct hit. The nation's financial superstructure is collapsing. Those waiting for the "official word" and hesitating to take survival measures will go down with the sinking ship of state.

The Economic 9/11 that experts warned would "topple corporate giants" and "crush the man on the street" hit on Friday. (See: "Economic 9/11," Trend Alert, 12 November 2007; "Economic 9/11" Top Trends 2008, Trends Journal, Winter 2008) While an economic terror strike was long in the making and the devastation long predicted, the financial markets melted down and panic hit the Street on the news that the nation's two largest mortgage finance companies, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, were on the brink of failing.

The dollar resumed its downward slide, gold sharply reversed its three month slump and oil rose to record highs on the threatening economic news and word that Israel was practicing bombing runs over Iraq in preparation to attack Iran. The Dow - before paring some of its losses on a late in the trading day rumor that the Fed would open its discount window to keep feeding Mac and Mae with needed cash to stay afloat - had fallen to a two year low on Friday.

Hours after the markets closed on the East Coast, and with the nation gearing up for another summer weekend, most people were tuned out when IndyMac Bancorp officially went belly up at 3 PM PST. Had the news hit while Wall Street was in session that the second biggest bank failure in US history was under way, calamity would have ensued. Instead, the out-of-touch missed the news and the ever-hopeful believed Uncle Sam would save the day.

Despite calls from the business media and politicians from both parties for government intervention to rescue the failing institutions, there are no bailouts, buyouts, quick fixes or magic remedies that will save America's economy from going under.

The formula is simple and the outcome predictable: The more money the government prints to cover the multi-trillion dollar losses, the weaker the dollar gets. The weaker the dollar gets, the higher inflation goes. The higher the rate of inflation, the more it costs to live. With wages going down and unemployment going up, the poorer the nation becomes.

Americans will be facing the worst economic times in living history, and so too will much of the world.

While Washington may devise some tricky monetary maneuvers to temporarily stop the bleeding, as they did to keep Bear Stearns from going bankrupt this past March, there is nothing that anyone can do that will stop the economic hemorrhaging.

Claims by market analysts, politicians, special interests and the generally interested that media and pundit "hysteria" is "unnecessarily inflaming market fears" are overstating the power of persuasion and understating the causes and effects that have created the current economic climate. More than homegrown pessimism and personal negativity, it took decades of destructive business and government policies and years of greed and corruption to destroy the world's largest economy.

Some $1 billion of uninsured deposits held by 10,000 IndyMac customers are now trapped and federally seized. Since FDIC only insures deposits of up to $100,000, holders of accounts with larger amounts under one social security number (business and/or personal) may consider dispersing funds to safer havens.

We predict a continuing spate of banks, businesses, and brokerages going bust (See "Panic of '08," Top Trends 2008, Trends Journal, Winter 2008). As events continue to spin out of control - and considering draconian measures that have abrogated constitutional rights under the guise of fighting terror - we forecast that the "little people" will be forced to pay for costly government rescue plans to save the "too big to fail." A dollar devaluation, a repatriation of gold coins, bullion, stocks, ETFs, etc, bank withdrawal limitations and other government restrictions will be put in place to prevent the general public from taking steps to secure their liquid assets.

Forewarned is forearmed. For those that proceed into the future unprepared, the outcome could be ruinous.
Source: trendsresearch.com

Salem-News.com Top Stories

2025: Hope for the Best, Prepare for the Worst

Two Wars with No Way Out

No One Owns the Future

The Ugly Origins of Trump's America First Policy

A One-State Solution Could Transform the World

Comments Leave a comment on this story.

All comments and messages are approved by people and self promotional links or unacceptable comments are denied.

Telford July 17, 2008 10:25 am (Pacific time)

Henry, I use the primary source, the congressional voting record, to support my opinion that it is the combined executive and legislative branches that come together to establish national policy, whether it be deregulation or most anything else. The President is afforded considerable power, but again, congress must vote on national policies. For example for the ongoing war in Iraq/Afghanistan, it is congress that provides the funding, which in effect, rubber stamps the executive policy in this matter. As far as any behind the scenes activities to influence voting patterns, well that's politics, and when the final vote comes in, each voter is responsible for that vote. In the final analsis the American voter has the final say, so what has happened to the price of oil/gas since 2007? Compare the price of gas and it's percentage increase say from 2000 to 2007. Now compare the percentage increase fron early 2007 up to the present? Why the huge uptick? If you would like to learn more about basic bidding in the futures market and how we can lower the price of oil/gas via a new national policy passed by congress, then just watch over the next couple months and see how obstructionists' will change their ways, why? Because they will do anything to keep power, regardless of the overall welfare of our nations citizens. Things will improve, in my opinion.

Henry Ruark July 16, 2008 9:13 am (Pacific time)

To all: See Comment re Klein book under Gas Price story, for deeply revealing information affecting your way of life.

Henry Ruark July 15, 2008 11:10 am (Pacific time)

Telford et al: Your key-phrase is: "there has been in the majority of the time unanimous agreement between congress and the executive when addressing deregulation and other national policies, that's how it works folks. To blame it on one party or the other is simply not accurate." That is simple distortion of history via your own pesonal, undocumented or supported interpretation, when historic facts fly in the face of it. IF you can document via public record, do so, sir. If not, withdraw statement or amend it to fit the actual record, which is one of very complex and continuing political maneuver over past fifty years,often with deep corruption via corporate campaign contributions and "plain white envelopes", as I know from personal/professional experience; and other vile, democracy-destroying actions, from both parties, with both leadership and members involved for each, as publicly reported over those years. For documentation of my statements, ID self to Tim for direct contact, since to do so here dominates space open to others for reasonable and rational comment. IF you expect credibility here for such sweeping statement ("unanimous" "majority of time"), bring documentation or establish your own responsibility, accountability and reliability, as some of us have already done. To shoot such stuff from single name and no support is to assume others here are both ignorant and careless, which is why we challenge such as you to make good on what you claim --as we do, daily, with not only Op Ed full detail but also documentation available for every printed word. SO, Tel-friend, let's hear from you in support via some national, authoritative and bipartisan sources, which we use and show via "see with own eyes" and "evaluate with own mind" treatment right here in the public eye. For documentation of this whole picture, for example, "see with own eyes": Current (August) issue of Harper's; "The Wrecking Crew: How a Gang of Right-Wing Con Men Destroyed Washington and Made a Killing"; Thomas Frank, well established economic writer with four books to his credit. His published summary here discredits your statement, to show it up for precisely what it is --simple personal political feeling with no pretense to proof or relation to the realities of history. List your books, if any; otherwise your debate is with him, not with us reporting here from authoritative, named, accessable and checkable sources...Do you have any such ?? This is NOT "gossip column", in case you misunderstood; but open, honest, democratic dialog channel, which is why we request something other than simple b/b-massage from those participating --as we supply ourselves for every statement made, on request. That's what professonal journalistic product requires, and that's what we supply. We report, with "opinion" clearly so-labelled and sources available for reader-check. IF you disagree, we welcome your dissent, but must obviously hold you to accepted standards of public statement accountability, not avoidable by simple use of single-name or "Anon". WHO you are and where you get your stuff must and does count in its and your own credibility, for any rational reader.

Telford July 15, 2008 6:48 am (Pacific time)

Looking back at all the Presidential Administrations since FDR, there has been in the majority of the time unanimous agreement between congress and the executive when addressing deregulation and other national policies, that's how it works folks. To blame it on one party or the other is simply not accurate. It is true Jimmy Carter got things pretty messed up, and those who followed him have not helped, but congress also plays a significant role. For example the current leaders of congress are really messing things up, and even when they are replaced, it will take a generation or more to correct the damages these people have caused. America is quite aware of this fact for they have (congress) the highest disapproval rating in our history. Bottom line, congress is the problem at the present. Lame duck Bush is pretty much rudderless.

Henry Ruark July 14, 2008 8:12 pm (Pacific time)

Remember et al: True re Carter as discussed economic policy and some beginning application. BUT it was heart-and-soul of Reaganomics "supply-side" used relentlessly for political purposes without due regard for known consequences --as with so much else under Reagan and Bush I, including rest the most damaging combination with privatization, "free trade" and globalization. To which as most diabolic tool was added "kill off the right to association" via the death of every possible union, too. Consequences flood national vision and historic record today, as in FMac/FanMay and looming wild bank runs, full collapse of mortgage finance, world crisis on credit, et al, et al, et al --all of which consensus of leading economists internationall now traces directly to Reagan actions along with Iran/Contra as root of Iraq disaster. For documentation ID self to Tim, happy to produce for you.

Remember July 14, 2008 6:30 pm (Pacific time)

Carter and deregulation were no strangers to each other.

Henry Ruark July 14, 2008 1:27 pm (Pacific time)

To all: Forgive me, but my so-called "unconscious" just supplied this: "We not only tell it honest and true to power, but we tell it like it realy is to you, too !" Believe Tim/ Bon will agree that's our mission here, and best possible expression of our professional integrity. What better definition do you have on the journalism now demanded in our beginning 21st Century ?? That is, of course, why we insist on "see with own eyes" and "evaluate with own mind" for all we do, for you to measure, medidate on, and put to use for your citizen responsibilities in any remnant remaining of our once-powerful/potent/promising democracy.

Henry Ruark July 14, 2008 1:04 pm (Pacific time)

To all: Most potent and progressive cause of by far the huge top count of failing situations here cometh directly from the curse of deregulation. That started with Reagan era, further accelerated via Bush I and then Bush II --coupled with terrifying drain on national assets via wasting wars, including preemptive attack on Iraq, and with threatening thir-one on Iran. Most economists now form heavy consensus on these points, checkable via many Internet sources. Forgive if I mention that you may have read about the inescapable, inevitable, impossible to contain trend right here in S-N during past several years. That's an inescapable fact as our record will plainly show. No great credit to us, we simply report from rational, reasonable sources found on Internet through painful learning experiences "in the business". We will continue despite repeated neocon attack and repetitive threats of further denigration via their websites.

[Return to Top]

The Economic Panic of '08 is On

Quick Links

DINING

MUST SEE SALEM

AUCTIONS - APPRAISALS

CONSTRUCTION SERVICES

ONLINE SHOPPING

Advertise with Salem-News