We don't "know" squat, especially you. Spreadsheets still cannot be trusted. Nothing in that respect has changed. There are plenty of examples.
If spread sheets cannot be trusted at all, then why are finance markets no longer in complete lockdown? Why are companies now lending money? Because some spread sheets are trusted enough that the company will not go Bear Stearns tomorrow. And because the government has stepped in to (in some cases) even force liquidity and stability. We almost lost the economy big time. We who deal in reality know that (and profited accordingly on the stock market).
Curious. Everyone is well aware of how vehement I was about a company called GM. It was that obvious even 20 years ago. We know know I was not critical enough. And still extremist where protecting (praising) their scumbag management. What did it finally take to force some reality in GM? Obama finally had to step in and fire Rick Wagoner. The entire corporation (and so many Americans who buy GM products) were that much in denial.
GM is still screwed up. It still refuses to sell off more of America to foreigners - since we have to pay the debts from the past eight years of lying. But that is what a more honest president told us when he entered office. We will be paying for MBA management and overt political lies (including Mission Accomplished) for the next ten years. We know more bad things will happen. The average American income dropped two percent during George Jr’s tenure. It must drop further.
We should expect significant job losses in the next few years. Part of a ten year process of paying back all those tax cuts and other lies. But if GM (and other anti-American companies) does not sell off more capital assets, then the resulting recession will be worse.
How worse? History says if we do not confront reality, then economics takes revenge. Remember stagflation? Another scumbag president - Nixon - in 1968 and 1970 created the reduction of American's living standards in the mid 1970s. He also lied about a war. A problem was corrected only with 20% interest rates and the selling of America wholesale to foreigners. The bills come due four and ten years later. We have lots of lies and MBA manipulated spread sheets still to pay for.
A responsible citizen is preparing themselves for things to get worse. Only one who wants to be hurt still has outstanding credit card debts or car payments. Only short term mentalities (business school graduates) think this year's spread sheets report on the economy this year. Those spread sheets are currently inflated by the $700 billion necessary to unlock an entire American financial system. Something we had to do and now something we have yet to pay for. The most flagrant scumbags who created this problem (ie GM) should be selling themselves off to more responsible companies (Fiat, Toyota, French companies, the Russians, China Inc, etc).
We will be paying for massive irresponsible management (ie tax cuts, Mission Accomplished) for the next ten years. And yes, that includes the massive number of American soldiers having up to five deployments. And that still will get worse now that we must refight the Afgan war - since a wacko president even all but protected bin Laden. We have major debts outstanding AND many more pending thanks to wholesale mismanagment especially after 2001.
Both Democrats and Republicans wanted to double the SEC budget back in 2001. Harvey Pitts refused to take the money because making fraud acceptable was the political agenda. More mistakes we have yet to pay for.
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