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Guest Post: Save The Virgins!
Submitted by David Galland of Casey's Report
Save The Virgins!
This morning I read an interesting story in Soundings
magazine. It recounted the final voyage of the S.S. Morro
Castle, purportedly one of the safest ships afloat back in 1934
when it regularly transported revelers on junkets between New York and
Havana. Then, on the night of September 8, a series of unfortunate
events occurred that ended with the ship washing up on the New Jersey
shore the next day, close to half of its 300 or so passengers dead.
First, the ship was hit by a storm. Then, while fighting the towering
waves, the veteran captain clutched his chest and fell dead from a
heart attack, moving a less experienced man into command.
Next, a ship’s steward discovered a group of drunken passengers
entertaining themselves by flicking lit cigarettes into a trash can in
one of the salons. About an hour later in that same salon, a fire broke
out.
With the ship still battling through the heavy waves, the crew now
had to turn to putting out the fire – but were shocked to discover that
there was no water pressure, rendering the fire hoses useless.
Making matters decidedly worse, shortly afterwards the fire ignited an
explosion that blew out the salon window, sucking in the air necessary
to turn the blaze into an inferno.
Quickly thereafter, the raging fire burned through critical ship’s
wiring, causing the electricity to short out. That, in turn, resulted
in a failure in the steering, leaving the ship helplessly afloat in the
turbulent seas.
With the blaze rapidly spreading, the replacement captain gave the
command to abandon ship, but as there had been no lifeboat drills, the
scene quickly descended into chaos and death that ended several hours
later with the burned-out hulk washing ashore… turning the floating
party palace into the ruined remains seen in the photo here, in the
proverbial blink of an eye.
The story resonated with me on a number of levels, but first and
foremost as a cautionary tale that even when everyone agrees that
something is “safe,” events can quickly prove otherwise.
For example, in the current economic context, U.S. Treasuries are
considered the safest of harbors for storm-weary investors. But that
assumption contains within it the further expectation that the status
quo will prevail – that, proverbially speaking, no captains will drop
dead, or drunken passengers will set a fire by playing a truly mindless
parlor game. Further, should such unexpected events occur, a widespread
belief holds that the water pressure will be there when needed, and
that the power won’t cut out at the worst possible moment.
That’s a lot of assumptions. And those just named are specific only to a
ship at sea – not the complex system of the U.S. economy, which is, in
turn, but a cog in a globally interconnected market. In other words, a
system that is unimaginably complex.
In the pre-history days of emerging human consciousness, upright apes
viewed the overt expressions of the complex system that is nature –
volcanic explosions, lightning, seasons, drought, pestilence, etc. –
and tried to make sense out of it all by organizing around belief
systems that today would be considered laughable. At the time, however,
dancing around open fires bedecked in certain animal skins or allowing
shamans to sacrifice virgins were seen as effective methods for
controlling the natural chaos of things.
Even though the nature of our belief systems has grown less barbaric,
we modern humans still persist in nonsensical notions and associated
rituals that are viewed in much the same light – rituals that do little
more than pretend to control the chaos intrinsic to life on this small
globe spinning through space.
Most prevalent among the modern belief systems is that shamans of
government and high finance can, by virtue of their Harvard degrees and
clearly advanced intellects, effectively manage large economies. The
fallacy in this notion should be evident to everyone – here in the
U.S., it’s as simple as noting how everyone from the Fed chairman to
almost all of the nation’s political leaders and the best and brightest
on Wall Street failed to anticipate the current crisis. Any way you
slice it, the lot of them were caught as flatfooted as the crew and
passengers on the last voyage of the Morro Castle.
One minute, big party… the next, diving over the side of a ship to an
uncertain future in mountainous, storm-tossed waves.
Forget assuming the power and water will stay on – for the shamans to
have missed the pending crisis is akin to the ship’s captain entirely
dismissing even the idea that a storm at sea were possible.
But a failure of foresight isn’t the worst of it. The worst of it comes
from the idea that, when troubles do arise, the modern shamans can
dissect the entrails and proscribe a regulatory brew that magically
solves the troubles, and solves them for essentially all times.
Case in point, currently the European Union is laying the bricks for a
new round of regulations that limit bankers’ compensation and require
some substantial percentage of any bonuses they receive to remain in
escrow for years, and be payable only if the bank does well. The
eurozone is not alone; similar legislation is in the works in the U.S.
as well.
This, we are told, will somehow prevent any further excessive risk
taking of the sort that laid the world’s economy low. This, of course,
completely ignores the lead role the world’s governments played in
creating the debt bubble at the heart of the crisis – but that’s not a
topic the shamans will be addressing anytime soon.
Even so, I would concur that in the cases where a bank receives
government funds – which it shouldn’t – the government, as
shareholders, could agitate with other stakeholders to vote down
excessive, or excessively risky, compensation schemes. But that’s an
entirely different thing than a heavy-handed new attempt at regulating
out all risk in the banking sector. Should such regulation pass, and it
likely will, all it will actually serve to do is create an exodus of
the more intelligent members of the sector to banks operating in less
restrictive regimes. Money goes where it is treated best, and so do
bankers.
And, again, this is just a speck of dust on a broader body of
legislation and regulation that will get much worse before it is
finally revealed for the virgin burning that it is.
Am I suggesting that any and all regulation should be done away with? I
have to admit I find that idea tempting because it would immediately
create an environment in which people would have to rely on their own
judgment – or on that of those they trust – before making an important
decision.
Think about it. What would happen if the government pulled its deposit
guarantees from the banking system? I can assure you people would pay a
lot more attention to the capital levels and loan policies of
their financial institutions.
That said, I can get my head around the idea that some minimal
operational standards may need to exist. Flipping back to the cruise
ship metaphor, I could see some requirement that the proverbial fire
dousing systems be kept up to code, and that the steering has a backup
system. But even if those standards didn’t exist, I have to believe that
cruise ships would soon learn to compete on safety measures as well as
luxury.
Alternatively, people could risk sailing on a less expensive and
somewhat less secure line… or not take a cruise at all. It’s not a
perfect world, and not everyone is going to enjoy the perfect life, no
matter how much the shamans promote the idea that they can deliver just
that.
Back to the financial matters, it’s increasingly important to view the
steady passage of draconian legislati
on and regulation in much the same
light you’d view the sacrificing of virgins. In almost all cases it
accomplishes nothing and solves nothing. In fact, as often as not, it
is decidedly counterproductive – lulling people into a false sense of
security or causing them to make misguided decisions about their
businesses or finances. Not to mention forcing businesses to spend
money that could otherwise be invested more profitably on nonsense such
as carbon taxes.
Of course, I am but an inconsequential squeak in the night: The current
belief system will remain intact for many years into the future,
probably the rest of our lifetimes.
Thus, the best thing you can do is to become as self-responsible as you
can – trusting no shaman and approaching every important decision with
a clear understanding that if things go wrong, no one – and no entity –
will be there to make it right. Increasingly, as the sovereign states
get noticeably bankrupt, that will be the case.
Viewing the world in that context, it’s hard to consider the unbacked
IOUs of any government a safe investment, no matter how fancy or
elaborate are the shamanic runes decorating the paper.
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I AM AMERICA:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0heL2Czeraw
WHAT MORE CAN BE SAID! BE WISE!! UNTIL THE COCK CROWS AND WE COME UNTO THE PERFECT DAY!!
For well over a thousand years everyone - and I mean everyone - on earth knew, absolutely and for a fact, that the earth was flat and was at the center of the universe. Even in the early stages of the 'scientific enlightenment' those who voiced doubts were tortured and murdered unless they recanted. Because if the earth wasn't flat and wasn't at the center of all creation, then what did that do to the other absolute truth - the nature of God as the almighty, all-powerful, all-knowing and all seeing Father in Heaven. ( And incidentally, to his self-appointed representatives and their grip on power.)
Complex belief systems are always seen as absolutely true by true believers, and are never seen as belief systems much less as wild guesses about the nature of reality, and their truth is always enforced by the most severe sanctions against anyone who threatens by questioning - or even looking faintly doubtful.
Virgins (if there are any still to be found) beware. You may yet be needed once more.
americanspirit
http://europeanhistory.about.com/od/historicalmyths/a/histmyths7.htm
The TruthBy the Middle Ages, there was widespread belief among the educated - at the very least - that the earth was a globe. Columbus did face opposition on his voyage, but not from people who thought he’d drop off the edge of the world. Instead people believed he’d predicted too small a globe and would run out of supplies before he made it round to Asia.
Why the Myth of the Flat Earth?The idea that medieval people thought the earth was flat appears to have spread in the late nineteenth century as a stick with which to beat the medieval Christian church, which is often blamed for restricting intellectual growth in the period. The myth also taps into people’s ideas of “progress” and of the medieval era as a period of savagery without much thought. Professor Jeffrey Russell argues that the Columbus myth originated in a history of Columbus from 1828 by Washington Irving, which claimed that theologians and experts of the period opposed funding the voyages because the earth was flat. This is now known to be false, but anti-Christian thinkers seized upon it. Indeed, in a presentation summarizing his book ‘Inventing the Flat Earth: Columbus and Modern Historians’, Russell states “No one before the 1830s believed that medieval people thought that the earth was flat.” (Cited from the American Scientific Affiliation website.)
+ 500! Thanks for setting this idiot straight.
The Egyptians knew the earth was round and had determined its diameter to within a few percent 3000 years ago. The word "solstice" comes from "standing sun" (somewhat), describing the one day a year when the sun would illuminate the bottom of a water well that sat on the tropic of Capricorn.
The Earth is not flat? There was a memo?
The Bible has never taught that the earth is flat, only the priests did:
21Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?
22It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:
23That bringeth the princes to nothing; he maketh the judges of the earth as vanity.
Isaiah 40
King James Version
A circle is a two-dimensional shape.
Is it relevant whether the bible says the earth is flat but rounded rather than square ?
Which thousand years are you talking about? The Greeks knew the Earth was round(ish) and even worked out its diameter quite accurately. (Duo, just seen your post, you could be right about the Egyptians, I'm doing this from memory!).
I would argue that it was religious dogma maintaining the Earth was flat and at the centre of the Universe, not wise or scientific men (I don't know if there were women scientists then but I think it less likely than now). (Again, just seen another post saying that the Church didn't posit this, so apologies if incorrect).
But then economic and political dogma are what is stopping this current mess being sorted out (or even being seen by all the Economics PhDs), not wise or scientific men and women.
DavidC
DavidC you and Duo are both correct. The geometric proof and an accurate diameter (to within 2% error) were worked out by a brilliant mathematician living in Alexandria Egypt during the Ptolemic (Greek) dynasty. Alexandria at the time was the center of learning in the Greek world. No educated person in the Middle Ages believed the world was flat. All sailors understood it was round because you can see the effect as ships approach on the horizon.
The quote from Isaiah above from the King James version can only slightly be construed to say the earth is round. Since the original Hebrew term used referred to a round PLATE I doubt that it was intended to describe a globe.
Hatred of learning is a bad thing but it promulgates from all dogmatic thought processes not just Christianity but also Islam, Hinduism, Communism, Paganism et cetera ad infinitum.
The wisest approach to rational thinking is to accept that you might be wrong - but of course that is just MY dogmatic thinking.........
What a dogmatic, intellectual dogfight!......the opinion of a P51 fighter pilot in a former life flying with the Black Lightning Squadron over China, circa 1945.
Dude,
Murphy's law : "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong".
https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Insecurity-Alan-W-Watts/dp/0394704681
The Wisdom of InsecurityNice stuff GF.........the art of living on the edge.....and the pain.
Treasuries=S.S. Morro Castle=BP=Black Swan V.07092010
Treasuries(t, x, y. q, ...)=f(S.S. Moro et. al.)
Dude it is a function of time and don't know what. Nay equivalent.
- Ned
Hey Tyler: How can we have this level of complacency? For anyone capable of cocktail napkin math, Treasuries are a screaming short.
The Fed is itching to find new ways to play liquidity games. The Congress is desperate to re-elect not just Democrats but liberal Democrats. Team Obama will never veto any of the crap that leadership comes up with. And the only person with any experience in the White House is Joe Biden who is spending that stimulus money like he's a Super Governor.
Yet yields remain at historic lows. Amazing. Of course readers here know that all the alpha boyz are just itching to trade this on the short side. When that perfect storm hits, its going to make the credit crisis look like flash crash.
colinial:
Probably, well, negats, for a bit. Duration x whatever == nay screaming.
My data=TBT chart.
Perhaps soon, but BB has the ramp.
- Ned
Interesting and thoughtful commentary Gully Foyle. Still, I don't recall seeing a single map from any age before, say, the 15th century that depicted the world as anything but flat. And beyond the edge - there be dragons.
americanspirit
Google it up. The Ancient Greeks, possibly the Chinese and Polynesians all thought the Earth round.
Then there is the Piri Reiss (sp?) map.
Most of our assessment of science is Eurocentric. It was a big world with a handfull of advanced cultures while Europeans were beating each other with sticks and rocks.
Other than China, none of them came anywhere near the sophistication of the Greeks, and nearly all of them imploded long before they could reach that level.
When the letters show up in blue -- that's called a hyperlink. You can click on those for more information.
You're welcome.
But it's unsinkable!
Sure they do Waterwings. 71 of them to be precise. Funny thing though - those Jihadi suicide bombers are never told that they get 71 virgin women - could just as easily be 71 cherry little piglets. Oops.
americanspirit
You want to explain how "Die for your country" and "Go to heaven" are any different?
Mote meet beam.
The difference would be that one party believes that the former assures the latter.
Actually, it might be white raisins...
Interview with the author here: Scholar researches origins of the Qur'an, fears for his life.
The entire book seems to be available via Scribd: SyroAramaic Reading of the Koran - By Christoph Luxenberg.
"americanspirit", the plasticity of your impersonation is awe-inspiring. Be aware, little-man, that judaism has only subsisted throughout the ages as a privileged class of money-changers in Christendom and Islam. Christendom is now as good as dead, and you have managed to really piss off the Muslims through theft and denigration. I think killing the hosts is a bad business model for parasites when there are no hosts or protectors left.
On this cruise Gilligan is the skipper and the millionaire is barking orders. The part of Ginger is played by Pelosi and the professor is helicopter Ben. There are no virgins.
http://exiledonline.com/escape-from-america-the-strange-scary-billionair...
Escape From America: The Strange & Scary Billionaires Behind The Libertarian-Inspired Sea Castles
Ha ha ha Magic Christian II ha ha ha
Hope they enjoy sailing around the Gulf of Mexico and other oil soaked oceans. Now that they have totally screwed up the land based world when the sea is shot to hell where will they go?
Ah, but the ship of Fools was well maintained by Bush/Cheney, well provisioned, watertight and snug as a bug in a rug. Some three-hour cruise this race to the bottom has become.
Barney Frank has my vote for Skipper.
Little Buddy
Virgins? PETA has a better chance at saving a Unicorn !
All decision models should consider probabilities, possibilities and absolutes.
Pick one.
A lot of the problem is that people do not think of dependencies. The idea that a storm would hit, the captain would die, a fire would start, that water pressure would be lost, and that the steering would fail all simultaneously seems so remote as to be impossible.
But in reality, this was not a quadruple point failure. These are not random events. Except for the fire starting, the events were all related here. The probabilities of simultaneous failure goes up immensely.
But it is simpler to think of things in isolation. That is why black swan events can seem so improbable.
As I write this, it seems patently obvious. Almost tautological. But it is often overlooked.
What are the odds that banks would fail, hedge funds lose massive amounts, mortgages default, mortgage values plummet, retail sales fall off a cliff, unemployment rise to levels not seen in decades, money market liquidity dry up simultaneously, and businesses fail from lack of liquidity? If the events are independent, the odds are infinitely low. But as they not only are correlated, but also a chain of events, they are not so improbably or even unpredictable.
Children learn this game. It's called connect the dots. But somewhere between age 6 and 20, the skill seems to be lost
Bartholomew: Corporate society takes care of everything. And all it asks of anyone, all it's ever asked of anyone ever, is not to interfere with management decisions.
i still have yet to go on a cruise. i can see all the massive cruise ships and hear the barge going crowds from my apartment window on the west side of manhattan. cruiselines strip off everything enjoyable in the sea-going experience and offer you the shitty dregs, for an affordable price! when , once in a while , one erupts in flames, it's not really the kind of tragedy i would deploy for analogizing with the potentially sudden demise of the u.s. treasury market.
To make the analogy the other way around:
Proper regulation of the ship would have prevented the damage.
Passengers are not permitted to throw cigarettes into garbage cans.Apparently this would have prevented the fire.
Proper design and safety checks: Safety systems should operate independently from other systems. Important systems need one (or two) backups. Emergencies need to be trained.
Those measures prevent most shit from happening.
Now to Wall Street; for a long time there were safety measures in place; Glass-Steagall separated financial institutions; Wall Street firms run as partnerships had self-interest in limiting risk and so on.
The “free market is best” ideology claimed that regulation is not necessary until the market forces would have killed Wall Street. Then Government subsidies were highly welcome.
When deposits are not guaranteed by the government it makes no sense to keep small amounts of money in the bank, hide it as cash somewhere is safer. That will have a huge impact on the economy; good luck with the outcome.
This article is bullshit without foundation.
Maybe that is Ben's plan to make the recovery of the US economy infinitely improbable that it becomes certain to be saved.
Douglas Adams economics.
Infinite Improbability Drivehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_in_The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_t...
1. Virgins should not be saved.
2. Don't you just love that T Bond at 7 5/8%!? (lovely pic) (I miss 8ths)
The RMS Titanic was also considered to be the safest passenger steamship design ever built - designed by some of the most experienced engineers, and used some of the most advanced technologies available at the time. A more apt analogy to our current monetary policy? Time will tell.
I wonder if that is just plain bullshit. Perhaps those engineers who designed it were some politically or nepotism inspired choices and the "most experienced" never should be equated with the "smartest", as our current system for passing out government favors is based not on the most deserving but the oldest serving.
One bright guy in the design crew might have noticed the obvious problem that if a frontal bulkhead was flooded that a chain of events would occur that would sink her quickly.
Here is another version of the Morro Castle story.
"On September 8, 1934, she was returning to New York City from Havana, Cuba. She ran into a nor'easter storm off the coast of Atlantic City, NJ on the night of September 7, but continued pushing through the 40-plus knot winds and heavy seas towards New York. Just after midnight on September 8, a fire broke out and the heavy winds soon spread the fire to the point where the crew could no longer contain it. The fire destroyed the ship and after several failed attempts to tow the vessel; it eventually drifted ashore at Asbury Park, NJ. Many of the crew deserted the ship in lifeboats and left the passengers to fend for themselves. At dawn, the remaining passengers started jumping off the boat into the storm tossed ocean. Some of them died when they hit the water; the poorly designed hard cork life jackets broke their necks on impact. More than 130 passengers and crew lost their lives in the disaster. The Bogan family's party fishing boat "PARAMOUNT" from Brielle, NJ was one of the vessels that sped to the scene and she rescued 67 passengers.
Like all great tragedies, the "MORRO CASTLE" disaster was shrouded in mystery, intrigue and innuendo. Circumstances surrounding the event included allegations of arson, mutiny, delayed SOS calls, smuggling, negligence by the officers, and misconduct by the crew. Strangely, the captain, Robert R. Wilmott was found dead mysteriously, and the origin of the fire was never determined. Authorities initially suspected that the chief radioman, George Rogers killed the captain, but they couldn't prove it. (Interestingly, a jury convicted the man of several murders in a later crime.) The first officer, William F. Warms and the chief engineer, Eban S. Abbot of the "MORRO CASTLE" were charged and convicted of negligence, but a higher court reversed the decision and the pair never went to jail.
The tragedy spurred the U.S. Congress to pass various maritime laws designed to prevent future disasters and to U.S. acceptance of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) treaty, which is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships.
http://www.mels-place.com/Contents/mmm/morro/morro/morro_0.htm
I guess my point is, as a passenger on this doomed economic cruise, you can't trust the crew.
And furthermore, I've gotta ask, who insured the ship? Some strange things were going on with the Ward Line (owners of the Morro Castle):
The Morro Castle of 1930, one of the two new vessels financed by the government, mysteriously burned at sea in 1934— most likely at the hands of a disgruntled crew member. The Morro Castle fire was the worst disaster ever to befall a merchant vessel registered in the United States. This disaster claimed 134 lives and was compounded by the sinking of the Ward Line chartered steamer Mohawk and the grounding of the Ward liner Havana, which occurred within months of each other on the heels of the tragic fire.
http://www.wardline.com/page/page/4557564.htm
Be your own lifeboat...
More rally next week ?
http://stockmarket618.wordpress.com
http://www.zerohedge.com/forum/latest-market-outlook-1
LEAVE IT TO THE PHDs:
http://williambanzai7.blogspot.com/2010/07/music-for-economists.html
.
Save the virgins? Has Galland confused these bankers with virgins? But, then, it’s hard to relate to a guy whose “upright” ancestors were apes.
What we’re dealing with here ia lawlessness. It was the House of Rothschild that said: “Let us control the money of a country, and we care not who makes the laws.”
Or, as Nathan Mayer Rothschild (1777-1836), specifically put it: "I care not what puppet is placed upon the throne of England to rule the Empire on which the sun never sets. The man who controls Britain's money supply controls the British Empire, and I control the British money supply."
So now that these same people also control the American Empire, Galland’s afraid they might leave? He’s afraid some heavy-handed attempts at regulating the use of our money might be “counterproductive” for these predators, creating “an exodus of the more intelligent members of the sector to banks operating in less restrictive regimes”?
What less restrictive regimes?
“Think about it,” Galland says.
Well, I have, and if a heavy hand will rid us of these people because “Money goes where it is treated best, and so do bankers,” then, I say, let’s give them a hand.
BTW, is this Darwinian game of survival of the fittest played on a two-way street? Is it also no holds barred for the losing side, the victims? Galland?
I bought into the survivalist mode last year, started a garden and for some strange reason EVERYTHING grew, no pests, no animals, or any act of nature to contend with, in fact the spring rains have made one of my zucchini a contender for the Guinness Book of World Records.
There is far more production than our family and the neighbors on either side of us could consume. This survival thing is a piece of gateaux.
I hope I'm not right, but the pests will start arriving next year. Read up on vine borers.
Eh, it's not all that bad. You're right, sometimes if you're in a fresh area the second year will be the start of pests, but after taking a decades old garden off of everything (all chems) and just composting,planting, and weeding a few times a summer of a few summers I've got to say that for the most part everything my parents were using was a waste of money, and if it wasn't it was probably too toxic for foods. Just plant some extras for when you loose rows, learn to dehydrate everything.
Sad part of the boat analogy and the economy....everyone either dies or had a very BAD experience... The Obama Administration (crew) walks away like nothin' happened! Art imitates life!
Good story, Tyler. Thanks for passing it on.
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