Finally the candidates talk about the bank collapses and poor economy:

Today: AIG bailed out by the fed, and the NYSE closes down another 450 some points...

When might we begin to hear some talk about what what the candidates will do if or when we hit depression status? Is there some reason nobody seems to be planning ahead right now? How much food (wheat, cheese, dry goods) is on stock for example? What about emergency shelter as people begin to (they already have been...we already are seeing tent cities and people who had homes living in their cars) get thrown out in significantly larger numbers? How about jobs programs, massive infrastructure improvement programs so that rather than lucrative contracts going to off shore contracting firms like Cheney's Haliburton (now headquartered in Dubai to avoid taxes on the profits dirived from non-competitive propped up US contracts), we keep the dollars here and put people into jobs making the homeland stronger.

We hear nothing about contingency plans. All we hear is them telling us what we already know. Yes we need regulation, yes we know the policies of the past 8 years including deregulation of finance and insurance have not worked, but what if it gets to the point where the economy doesn't even function anymore? Is FEMA equiped and able to take care of us? Will the help we will need differ among the two?

Will we get to stay in our homes, or is it a detention / work camp for many?

sfx.: crickets....



[edit on 17-9-2008 by skyshow]

[edit on 17-9-2008 by skyshow]

If anybody believe the crap that comes out of the two political parties candidates are as naive as they can be.

The financial situation backed by the Fed with tax payer money is one that neither of the two puppets running for president will be able to fix without some major structuring and taxes on the already exausted middle class in this nation.

People seems to be blind to the realities in our government the fed and corporate America.

I can not wait to see what the next president is going to do when he find itself with a government and nation that is bankrupt and indebted to the neck.

Let them keep lying to the America people after all is election year and they want your votes.

After one of them is in the white House they will gladly give us the finger.

reply to post by marg6043


I only know of one candidate who actually rolled up his sleeves and worked for many years at the community level in the neighborhoods of the poor. To me that speaks volumes about where someone's intentions lie.

Moreover one candidate wants the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy to be permanent while the other plans to increase taxes on the rich, while decreasing them on the middle class and the poor.

Yes of course both are receiving funding from many of the same corporations (who like to hedge their bets) but their economic policies couldn't be further apart. McCain will give us more of the top down same while telling us he is taking on the big boys, Obama on the other hand offers a bottom up approach with plans to increase regulation and oversight...

I don't know how anyone can ignore the differences on critical issues and vote "personality". It's not American Idol. We are selecting someone who will be managing the largest (and now horribly sick) economy on earth with a military budget of 650 billion + (that's what we know of/ in the sunshine), in a very sophisticated technologically advanced society and so we need to look very hard at their backgrounds and their plans...

One candidate spent his younger years drinking and partying and carrying on and finished 5the from the bottom of his class, another spent his younger years working with the poor in the poor inner city neighborhoods and goes to law school at an Ivy league institution on student loans in order to do more and graduates first in his class at harvard, then goes on two work more for the community and in constitutional law before going on to state and federal govn't office...I heard on the radio today that when he (Barack Obama) toured the White House and was in the Lincoln bedroom he commented on the flat screen tv he saw in there and wondered aloud that he would have thought there would have been books shelves full of books in there...now what does that tell you?

The decision is a no brainer for me. I see the issues, and try hard to look at the facts. Now, in terms of American Idol facts don't matter as much; it's more of a "feel" thing; that's where I pick the one based on emotional appeal and attraction (I happened to like Brook White and David Archualetta the most even though most of the top 10 were really good singers)...but the leader of America is a completely different thing. It's really scary that the people seem to be taken away with "personality" showing and all but ignoring the issues.

Maybe now with all the bank closures and govn't. bailouts making headlines along with plummeting stock markets the sheeple will wake up out of their hypnotic stupor and sober up some? I'm not so sure though....might take another 4 years and complete utter chaos before it will happen in amounts to really bring us the change we need? I mean how many more years of this does it take before people start to see through the illusion?







[edit on 17-9-2008 by skyshow]

OK, listen very carefully:

YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN!

Dont wait for the govt to save your ass, (just ask the people of new orleans). IMMEDIATELY do the following.
1. Try to put together an emergency food supply. Nonperishable food, ie rice beans, anything that does not need refrigeration. Try to get at least 3 months worth. Research the net on the most effective way to do this. Go to Walmart and get a propane burner and you will be able to boil/ heat food.
2. make a list of anything you are going to need for being as close to self sufficiency as possible. Battery free radios, flashlights, fishing and camping equipment, propane, candles, seeds, hunting equipment, medicines, first aid supplies, etc. Books, fiction and anything with usefull information ( I stocked my survival library 6 months ago)
3. Withdraw cash so you have a cash supply if there is a bank interuption. Dont take all your money out, just enough for a few days.
Pay all your utilities NOW. This will keep you up and running for at least one month if your bank goes belly up and for whatever reason your assets are not accessable.
4. If possible, be set up so you can hold up at your home for a period of months if possible, so if there is social unrest you wont have to be out in it.
5. Contact your family and friends and try to get them to do the same.

I know this may sound extreme, buts best to be safe.
DONT PANIC, use your head.
Take care and God bless.

reply to post by Anonymous ATS


Excellent advice. I already have most of that, but a trip to the warehouse store for extra canned goods and a few bags of beans and rice (even thought I don't generally cook bagged rice or beans)...hopefully it won't get so bad that the juice get's uninterupted and I have natural gas for heat so that's a bit of insurance. Honestly I think what could happen is a disruption for a few days while the national guard / FEMA / local relief people begin to organize and get the food distribution points set up...for those of us who plan ahead we probably won't have to wait in long lines. Also another thought might be to put some of that currency into metals like gold or silver but I'm not sure I would want to keep very much of it in my house, but then I don't trust the safety deposit boxes for all of it either...guess it depends how much you have and what you can afford to lose...I'd also suggest if you can stock up on enough for your neighbors too if you can, because they may need your help for supplies, and you never know when you might need the favor returning in some way...

Hopefully it won't get this bad, but I dont' have a lot of faith in this govn't or business leaders at the moment. I hope the church folks pray for forgiveness because it was a lot of them who put a lot of these politicians we have now in power who deregulated so much of this stuff causing this mess...

Over 800 billion dollars lost today, it said on the news tonight. Of course much of that is on paper...I hope they get a handle on this thing quick!

Democrats and Republicans offer no real change, as both of their Policys are based on the same economic model, plus both party's seem very similar to me these days in terms of ideas. What needs happen is to get rid of the fed and let all these companies fail instead of bailing them out.

reply to post by Anonymous ATS


I, and my mate, wil be in the UK in just a few weeks.

So, by your advice, you'd expect we'd stay put, and ride it out, here in Northern America???????

Nah!!!!!

I'd rather be in the UK, or Australia....or in Sweden, if the proverbial 'cr%p hits the fan, herein the USA.

Perhaps it's a cop-out, to coin a phrase....but we are leaving the USA just after the "Election"....I jusy hope we have a 'Republic' to return to.....

Folks, Meet the Republican Party! The Mask is Finally Off!

Think about what has happened. The so-called Anti-Socialist Party (the repubs) has now socialized the debt of a massive economic corporate bailout to the American Taxpayer while privatizing the wealth. This is the same administration that also wants to hold YOU, the average American, accountable for your financial misfortunes, for your inability to pay your mortgage, while at the same time bailing out their corporate cronies, who apparently should not be burdened in the same way.

Think about this. If you got an Interest-Only loan for $450,000 that has adjusted, and you can no longer afford your payment, Bush and the repubs believe you should own your mistakes and lose your home. But now that the CEO's of Bear Stearns, AIG, Indymac, Countrywide, etc, have run their companies into the ground, YOU, the same person that needed help with your 450K loan, now have to own part of a massive Trillion Dollar Bailout debt of these mis-run and corrupt enterprises.

And for those of you that saw Fox News Sunday today (9/21/2008) with Sec. Paulson, he said when asked if this bailout for WALL STREET will also include assistance for MAINSTREET (e.g. the average home-owner that is getting screwed by bad loan terms), he admitted that the administration has no intention on bailing out the American consumer.

Only Wallstreet...

Only the wealthy...

Only those that deliberately fabricated this mess, knowing full-well that this corrupt administration would just bail them out.

Talking Point: These institutions are "too big to fail." So, your convenience store, garage, clothing store, or computer business is just the right size to fail. Chew on that.

This is one of the biggest scams in American History... A total meltdown of the US financial system, with no PROACTIVE action by the US government to mitigate the risk? Only reactive action after the fact, when there is money to be made?

Whether you're a Dem, a Repub, or an Independent, it is everyone's duty as Americans to reject the policies and the corruption that has caused this and, therefore, throw the Republicans out on their butts. If it was the Dems in power having caused this, the same should be said about them.

Remember we demolished Iraq so that our companies could go in there, make billions of dollars as they rebuilt it.

Remember that Louisiana looks today much the same way it did right after the Katrina.

Remember that oil companies have broken records in profit while we all pay crazy amounts for gas.

Remember that there are less new jobs created year over year now than there were 10 years ago.

Remember that we are now in the worst US economy since the great depression.

Remember that your kids (or maybe even you) are paying outrageous amounts of money for a basic US education.

Remember that most people cannot afford, and do not have, health care.

Regardless of who you are for this election, you cannot reward the incumbent party with another 4 years. You screw up, your out! That HAS TO be our philosophy as Americans!


[edit on 21-9-2008 by tommy_boy]

reply to post by tommy_boy


Star! I completely agree. Randi Rhodes just called it the biggest bank hiest in American history and the history of the world!. She also is saying that it is analagous to having been raped, then taken to the hospital for a rape kit and then being asked to pay for the kit...I can't think of a better way to describe what's going on either.

Now that we own these banks and are responsible business owners when do we get to set the pay for the CEO's who make 144 times more than the lowest paid workers? Yeah that'll happen! What a racket.

How many more times can we the people be screwed? This is incredible, and the big head scratcher is why the same 30% or so still think the Bush/Cheney Republicans are doing a good job, and this same group along with another 10 to 20% buy into the stage show that the McCain/Palin Republicans are somehow just like Democrats with plans to put forward strict oversight, transparency and regulation...They're running as Democrats!!!

[edit on 22-9-2008 by skyshow]

reply to post by skyshow


skyshow, I don't want this THREAD to languish.

It is appalling, what is allowed to happen!

Thanks for speaking up....but, what can WE do?

I love this. Can I get a bailout? It will only cost the taxpayers about 200,000 dollars to bail me out! And I'm not even a billionaire!

So right now about this. The people being bailed out HAVE THE MONEY they just don't want to spend it. Can you imagine that? If you went out and bout 6-10 million+ mansions, two private jets, 10million dollar cars, a 4million dollar yacht, and have billions squared away in a bank over in Sweden, you can just go to the Republicans and ask for BILLIONS more while the little man gets the shaft.

I say the Government needs to reposses their mansions, Ferraris, Yachts, and their billions stashed away before spending MY money to "bail" out Billionaires.

Oh, and anyone read how the Republican bill would give the Treasury guy Absolute Power to spend the money as he saw fit with no oversight and no one, not even Congress or the President, being allowed to stop him? Thankfully Dodd put in another bill that has two main differences. One, some money would go to the little man, and no one would have absolute power over the money.

reply to post by weedwhacker


Here's what we can do:

1. Hold our representatives accountable for what they say and do. I mean REALLY hold them accountable. Implement and consistently visit websites that chronical online what our reps promise. Then, if they do not deliver on those promises, vote them out. No exceptions! No more lifetime congressional terms! Once they understand that this is the new "fad" among the American voters, we will all see a drastic reduction in the lies.
   
2. Act like CEO's. Executives don't know everything there is to know about their companies. They set strong goals and hold their people accountable for those goals. That's what the American people need to do. Example: "I am voting YOU, Mr. California Governor" in so that you can reduce education costs in California. Now get to it." Then, when he doesn't get it done, but rather goes the other way, we vote him the heck out and give someone else a try. Additionally, we hold his party accountable and vote them all out. These criminals will start to get the point.
   
3. Be Smarter. Manage our money better. Stay out of debt. Don't get into "too good to be true" mortgages. Have personal accountability so that these companies are forced to pull these toxic financial products from their portfolios. At the end of the day, bad mortgages were in demand. If they weren't, these companies wouldn't have pushed them.
   

We need to start here and act like we, the people, own this country.

[edit on 23-9-2008 by tommy_boy]

[edit on 23-9-2008 by tommy_boy]

[edit on 23-9-2008 by tommy_boy]