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2386 [lbo-talk] The criminalization of the poor -- rank: 1000

On Aug 11, 2011, at 9:46 AM, Andy wrote: > On Thu, Aug 11, 2011 at 2:14 AM, <123hop at comcast.net> wrote: >> A good article by B.Ehrenreich >> >> http://counterpunch.org/ehrenreich08092011.html > > I was surprised that she didn't mention that case of the woman whose > young child got killed by a hit-and-run, and she got nailed for > jaywalking. Also: a dude got arrested in Florida for popping zits at a McDonalds: http://gawker.com/5829842/man-arrested-aft ...

Document Size:	5405
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Thu Aug 11 06:53:46 PDT 2011

2387 [lbo-talk] Stock Markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 10, 2011, at 4:17 PM, c b wrote: > Didn't the Rockefeller folks go from oil to banking ? ExxonMobil and Chevron are not insubstantial firms. Doug

Document Size:	4754
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Wed Aug 10 13:22:05 PDT 2011

2388 [lbo-talk] Number One Problem Economy in Europe -- rank: 1000

On Aug 10, 2011, at 1:32 PM, Wojtek S wrote: > [WS:] You missed my point. I said that according to the author's > claim, about 5% of the German lf is paid low wages, which does not > seem to be much by developed country standards (I could have used > France instead of the US as a referent, but I do not live in France.) > To say that it is indeed a big deal, you need to make a different > argument - for example that this percent increased quite substantially > during the pas ...

Document Size:	5424
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Wed Aug 10 10:39:06 PDT 2011

2389 [lbo-talk] Number One Problem Economy in Europe -- rank: 1000

I'd really like to see the OECD data - what's the author talking about? On Aug 10, 2011, at 12:20 PM, Wojtek S wrote: > [WS:] So basically less than 5% of their labor force makes shitty > wages (5 euro/hr.) What is so sensational about it. In the US, about > 20% of households lives on $18k or less, which is basically comparable > to the earnings of 5 euro per hour that the article mentions. > > Wojtek > > > On Tue, Aug 9, 2011 at 10:00 AM, Angelus Novus > <fuer ...

Document Size:	6717
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Wed Aug 10 09:26:17 PDT 2011

2390 [lbo-talk] The stock markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 10, 2011, at 11:55 AM, Carrol Cox wrote: > Ridiculous. It is not parasitic at all but essential to the workings of corporate capitalism. You can't tear aspects of capitalism apart like that. Minor point: it's parasitic in the sense that capitalism is parasitic. But you're right that it's absolutely central to the workings of modern capitalism. It's one of the central institutions of class formation. Doug

Document Size:	5062
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Wed Aug 10 09:02:57 PDT 2011

2391 [lbo-talk] Stock Markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 9, 2011, at 5:30 PM, Carrol Cox wrote: > A invests in "fiance" -- by buying some kind of aper from somebody (B). Now B has the monmey. She does something with it, which puts it in the hands of C. C (bank, individual, corp, whatever) then does something with it. > > Can someone suggest stopping points in the sort of pointless circle? Or make it intelligible to a non-economist? If the money gets deposited in a bank, it could get lent to any number of real-world entities. ...

Document Size:	6087
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Tue Aug 9 14:40:52 PDT 2011

2392 [lbo-talk] U.S. Treasury yields and safe havens -- rank: 1000

On Aug 9, 2011, at 5:20 PM, ken hanly wrote: > Why is it that when the U.S. dollar is downgraded US treasury bond yields decline. Why does not the yield go up and borrowing become more expensive when the risk increases? Japan's been downgraded several times in the last 10-15 years, and its 10-year rate is 1.1%, half that of the U.S. The ratings are meaningless. Doug

Document Size:	5051
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Tue Aug 9 14:27:18 PDT 2011

2393 [lbo-talk] Stock Markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 9, 2011, at 8:53 AM, Chuck Grimes wrote: >> If retailers issue their own credit cards, they're capturing profits that used to go to their bankers. And they've been doing that for a long time. >> >> Doug > > Sure, but the main point was that manufacturing giants can shift billions from the making-something division low profit to the finance division higher profit... As Sam Gindin always points out, this sort of analysis misses the revolution in manufacturing over th ...

Document Size:	5392
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Tue Aug 9 08:41:27 PDT 2011

2394 [lbo-talk] Stock Markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 8, 2011, at 11:50 PM, Chuck Grimes wrote: > Hey, let's give credit where credit is due. I made this argument, and Carrol, > went along with the idea. And yes, big old time retail giants issued their > own credit cards, like Sears. Safeway has their discount card just like Costco. Life on the installment plan as Celine called it... If retailers issue their own credit cards, they're capturing profits that used to go to their bankers. And they've been doing that for a long time. Dou ...

Document Size:	5128
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Tue Aug 9 04:50:06 PDT 2011

2395 [lbo-talk] Stock Markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 8, 2011, at 5:57 PM, michael perelman wrote: > When few good prospects for real investment exist, people look for > financial opportunities. But different people do real investment and financial investment. Real sector managers are not the same as portfolio managers. Pension funds do not finance the purchase of machine tools or retail inventory. Doug

Document Size:	4981
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Mon Aug 8 15:03:54 PDT 2011

2396 [lbo-talk] The stock markets vs the Real Economy -- rank: 1000

On Aug 8, 2011, at 3:05 PM, Fernando Cassia wrote: > I remember reading a quite good rebuttal about the lack of > significante of the stock marketsī ups and downs vs the real economy. > I think it was at LBO. But of course, now that I need it, I canīt find > it. Day-to-day moves are meaningless. This one is prompted by Wall Street's reconsideration of the state of the economy. It's dawning on them that it's not so good. Doug

Document Size:	5138
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Mon Aug 8 12:23:51 PDT 2011

2397 [lbo-talk] Inflation a cure, not a disease? -- rank: 1000

On Aug 8, 2011, at 2:29 PM, Wojtek S wrote: > Pardon my naivete, but how exactly is inflation going to > accomplish the transfer from creditors to debtor in the era of > adjustable interest rates? If the inflation goes up, so will interest > rates, so the creditors will get their inflation adjusted money > anyway, no? Inflation will erode the value of principal. Doug

Document Size:	5075
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Mon Aug 8 11:33:15 PDT 2011

2398 [lbo-talk] Money -- rank: 1000

On Aug 7, 2011, at 12:24 AM, Mike Beggs wrote: > http://scandalum.wordpress.com/2009/06/01/mitchell-strikes-back/ At which you say: > I think the whole Mitchell system appeals to a certain kind of person, who is rightly sickened by a permanent pool of unemployment, sees policymakers as irrational, and thinks the whole thing could be put right, with no losers and no conflict, with a single Big Idea. As such, it risks being a Douglas Credit for the 21st century. I would rather see the energy ...

Document Size:	5294
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Sun Aug 7 15:02:49 PDT 2011

2399 [lbo-talk] Money -- rank: 1000

On Aug 7, 2011, at 12:21 AM, Mike Beggs wrote: > I haven't followed QE 1 and 2 all that closely, but I wouldn't say > it's been a failure. It's at least helped to make banks liquid enough > to lend should they want to... I'm in a hurry now, but I just want to say: But they don't want to! QE stoked inflation expectations among money managers, who pumped megawads into commodities. That's about the only real-world effect. Doug

Document Size:	4791
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Sun Aug 7 12:24:19 PDT 2011

2400 [lbo-talk] "The debt crisis will end only when they have accepted the inevitable sacrifices" -- rank: 1000

On Aug 7, 2011, at 2:12 PM, SA wrote: > How large is the induced growth in GDP from higher imports? The retail price is often more than twice the wholesale price paid by the importer. The local value added to imports could thus easily equal their value. This implies that an increase in imports of consumer goods equivalent to 10% of GDP could generate an increase in measured GDP of about 10% as well. What happened to the deduction of imports from GDP (Y = C + I + G + X - M)?

Document Size:	5626
Author:	Doug Henwood
Date:	Sun Aug 7 12:07:36 PDT 2011