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Bernanke’s Scared… And He Should Be As He Gets More Politically Toxic By the Day
A few months ago, I stated that Ben Bernanke was going to come under increased scrutiny and possibly even face legal trouble based on the fact that someone was going to take the fall for the bailout madness/ theft/ fraud that occurred from 2007-onward.
At the time I wrote:
First off, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein has hired a criminal defense attorney… and not just any attorney, but Reid Weingarten… If Blankfein is under investigation and hiring someone of Weingarten’s caliber, a massive legal storm is about to begin on Wall Street. These lawsuits will involve the US Federal Reserve. And when push comes to shove, Blankfein (and other Wall Street executives who broke the law) will be blaming Bernanke and the Fed.
After all, the easiest defense is for Blankfein and his kind to simply say that they were pressured into defrauding investors and the public by Bernanke and the Fed when the financial system imploded in 2008.
Since I wrote this, things have indeed gotten hot for Bernanke. He’s now a verbal punching bag for virtually every GOP Presidential Candidate. And recent revelations by Bloomberg have shown that the Fed made secret bailouts to Wall Street to the tune of several TRILION Dollars.
As a result of this, Bernanke has gone into full-blown damage control mode, staging town-hall meetings and granting the press Q&A session (an unprecedented move), in a clear attempt to make himself appear more accessible and likeable to the public.
Indeed, things have gotten so heated that Bernanke even wrote a letter to policymakers defending the Fed and stating that the media’s [Bloomberg] recent reporting of the Fed’s actions contained “egregious errors.”
The significance of this CANNOT be overstated. This is a man who just a year or two ago was so arrogant of his power that he committed blatant perjury in front of Congress (the famed “debt monetization” lie)… NOW writing a letter to politicians whining about how unfair the media has been regarding his monetary actions.
This is a massive and I mean MASSIVE shift for Bernanke… and it underscores just how much the political environment has changed. Bernanke is politically toxic and he knows it. So expect him and his cronies to be much MUCH more attentive to how their moves appear to the public.
Which makes it all the more UN-likely that he’ll be able to unveil any major new policies/ QE 3 without some kind of systemic issue (a major bank going under, etc) happening first.
Consider the latest Fed move to lower the cost of borrowing US Dollars. First of all, the Fed acted with other central banks to implement this… so it was not the Fed acting alone. Secondly this move didn’t involve throwing the usual hundreds of billions of dollars around. Instead, all it did was lower the cost of borrowing Dollars.
This is a very reactive, more politically palatable move compared to the more aggressive actions of QE 1, QE lite, and QE 2. Indeed, even a brief overview of the Fed’s moves in 2011 show them to be largely symbolic or verbal in nature, especially compared to the Fed’s actions in 2010.
Which brings me back to one of my core themes for the future: that the Fed will NOT be able to act aggressively (if at all) without some systemic issue occurring first. Which means that the market and the bulls are completely misguided in believing the Fed’s about to unveil QE 3 or some major new policy any time soon… if at all.
So if you believe the Fed is coming to save the day for the EU… or the financial system in general… you’re in for a rude surprise.
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i thought/predicted Benny would be gone by now ...it being patently obvious to everyone QE1 was a failure, QE Lite was a flop and QE2 was another fuck load of counterfeit money pissed away on the futile
But no Benny is still here. Nobody has sacked him for 3 colossal failures (public sector is good at retaining losers) and Benny hasn't fallen on his sword (pubic employees are all fuking crap but they'd never admit it)
Merry Christmas Ben ...hope Santa brings you a rope (take a hint loser)
That bald head of his would make a great bullseye.
"Which makes it all the more UN-likely that he’ll be able to unveil any major new policies/ QE 3 without some kind of systemic issue (a major bank going under, etc) happening first."
He's already been running QE 3 since June without telling anyone. All he's doing is looking for an excuse to justify his past action. He'll just wait until the next crisis and then announce that QE 3 has been started to fix the crisis.
Once he hits the political "sweetspot" he'll go back to his imperious intellectual ways. What is the political "sweetspot"? When the race is Obama versus Gingrich. That will mean he's protected and will flourish regardless of who wins the election.
...to borrow from Bix Weir's theory, the only way to kill the bankster cabal is to kill the dollar, ...we may owe the Bernank and Greenie a great deal of gratitude. Too early to tell and we dont know until the last card of the house has fallen. Wouldnt a tazer and plastic bag over their fat little heads be easier? ...metaphorically of course.
I get the idea a lot of the ZH community will miss Wall St; ...we need markets, we don't necessarily need Wall St - make sense?
Even a cornered rabbit can be dangerous.
Don't forget Ben represents the Powers That Be. He works for the partnership of the Elites/Federal Reserve System/US Government. When this creature gets "cornered", they have more weapons available to them than just teeth.
As soon as I see someone say Bernanke or the banksters are scared, I know that person has no clue. These fuckers print money for gosh sakes. Would you be scared if you could print money and buy anything you like?
People who rule the world are only scared by rampaging mobs. And even then they won't be scared because nobody has access to them.
Well, if the water gets too hot for Ben, they will probably start a war in Iran. Problem solved, right?
Two problems here ... two problems for Mr Bernanke: he's a failure and peak oil.
Failure is failure. If Bernanke was a coach in the NFL he would have been fired a long time ago.
- His pet programs have not worked. Yeh, yeh yeh there was a 'Depression that we missed' b/c of Bennie but without the bailouts the situation would likely be similar/identical to the situation we face today.
- Fed is constrained by fuel costs that right now approach $110/barrel. Bennie has to be surprised by this because he believes a) our consumption economy is somehow productive -- which it can't be by definition, and b) he doesn't believe in peak oil theory and therefore does not understand its effects on the economy he is supposed to run.
Understanding peak oil is best left to defense agencies around the world which have no problems w/ it:
http://www.energybulletin.net/sites/default/files/Peak%20Oil_Study%20EN.pdf
Read section 3.2 in particular ...
Bottom line is the junk we hoard that makes us feel good about ourselves by way of the dude telling us so on television ... really represents dead losses we have to cover by other activities. These other activities are also non-productive so the system of activities is breaking down.
Ipso facto, bitchez!
good read,... thankyou "PCR"
Highly recommmend "Crisis by Design"
John Truman Wolf
The debt mongers have refined risk management and damage control to a fine art. As a last resort, they instigate and finance wars, to distract attention away from themselves.
http://georgesblogforum.wordpress.com/2011/11/02/the-daily-climb-2/
Haha. Bernie's not worried; they're getting ready to lock everyone up in slave labor camps:
http://www.infowars.com/exclusive-government-activating-fema-camps-acros...
Benny you better have REAL tight private security when you finally return to Princeton because there are nearly 50 million people on Food Stamps and many many millions made homeless and destitute by your criminal behavior and they know that you will never be made to pay for what you have done by any court. I have no idea how many of those millions of people you have trashed are armed, but Princeton is a small town and you shouldn't be that hard to find. Chrome dome, silly beard, arrogant attitude - standout qualities. So Benny boyo, enjoy the thick glass in your official limo for now - payback is coming from multiple directions. You know it is. ( Not a threat, at least from me - just a prediction.)
Oh, and there are a few other monsters (Jon, Lloyd, Jamie, Blythe, etc) who the public now knows all about and although the towers they live in are probably a little more secure than a two story brick house in Princeton, it's going to be awfully hard to escape retribution when it starts for real.
Bad boyz, bad boys - whatcha gonna do when they come for you?
I don't care if the fat little prick is scared or not, he needs to go. Period. He's a criminal sociopath.
Mothers, don't let your babies grow up to be banksters, take your rope and hang them high
Let us not quibble about who is a treasonous criminal, and to what degree. The fact is there are thousands of grand felons walking free on Wall St and in DC. The US is being declared a war zone, and in desperate times the crime of treason carries but one penalty. There must be a reckoning, and justice done; for the Fed, for Bernanke, for Blanfein, for all of the cruminals.
Profit by the collapse? No, I think not. Survive, perhaps, but that's not likely either. Now I am become death, destroyer of worlds.
Never use the word "egregious" Ben, Jeezus. People don't take that kind of shit sitting down.
Because of the banking crisis there is now a choke hold on the world starving most countries of dollars.........therefore starving them of precious resources including food as commodities all trade globally in US dollars.
Accessible? likable? My asx, this idiot is incompetent, stupid, fraudulent and criminal. Bring on our justice.
Thanks, Phoenix! I am glad someone is holding the Fed accountable.
Oh, and Congress won't play its role in our Financial Kabuki? Enter Boner/PieHoleSki stage left!
Another problem for the Bernanke, and Geithnerfor that matter, is that these two fucktards are probably the most unsocial policy makers on the face of the planet. I feel more comfortable watching a snuff film rather than see these guys talk....but yet again, they spew white lies more than a husband being asked to comment on his wife's wardrobe before they go out to dinner.
THAT'S why the masses are (finally) starting to suspect the Fed for what they are - a instrument of big financial corporations who subversely are finger-banging our wallets through monetary policy. And the fact they, unlike politicans (who also avoid critizism), can't have THEIR feet TRUELY held to the fire, or the fact they simply don't want to, is the reason why one day their empire will topple. No matter if they like it, or not.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AcpznV4RGY
Why is NO ONE in congress continuing to press Bernanke on who is getting Fed support (a.k.a. taxpayer dollars), at what interest rate, and how much money they are getting? Notice how all the GOP and democratic candidates around the country won't mention this. It should be the biggest "tell" in the world as to whether or not your representitive really gives a shit about your concerns.
Ron Paul does, incessantly
And what does he get for his loyalty to America? Idiotic snickers from pole smoking sellouts, NO media coverage whatsoever, and labeled a "crackpot"...
YOUR representitives hard at work...ensuring THIER future
Remember Brewsters millions?
VOTE NONE OF THE ABOVE
Unless of course you vote for RON PAUL
Another Tell that a bureau is in trouble. When the we want to know of the internet-sites that have a good, bad, neutral opinons about us. When someone is doing that they aren't worried about doing a good job, they are worried about their appearances.
He should be replaced by Axel Weber.
Ever notice that these "financial Taliban" all have the facial hair to match?
Conclusion: Don't trust any financial guy with a beard.
I would hardly compare the fussily-pruned, quasi-metrosexual, facial topiary of someone like Bernanke with the masculine, full-fledged, unchecked facial pelt of a Taliban radical. Bernanke's beard is as wimpy as his quavering, lispy, little-girl voice (but Bill Gross and James Turk do give him a run for his money in that regard).
I trust William K. Black. http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/black.htm Although I could see he might not qualify as a financial guy.
Benny could have done many things to help the consumer along the way-- but why would he? He doesn't work for them...he works for the cartel. Stop bashing the bankers because when they are making money, they are making money.
http://www.thenakedemperor.com/oligarch/ben-bernanke
Slapsy Maxie promotes gallows...I would be in favour of the stocks (as in the one you throw eggs and tomatoes at, not the kind Bennie is in favour of.)
You can't remove the guy from office, except for major corruption charges. He is in effect immune although he shouldn't be.
He should be scared of the mob, because I am rather certain if he wandered the streets alone he would be torn to pieces
the public can't tell a QE from a Q-tip. and the Fed has so many shades of nuance, they could QE a few trillion before anyone noticed, although the partisan rancor would evenutally get to him. Bernanke has always resented the baggage laid at his door, he has fought the good fight for an independent Fed, saying once in public testimony "The dollar is not my problem.." {that's his view of it anyway}
remember the Fed can open the books of any of the charter banks, and demand more reserves. it will not be difficult to throw somebody under the bus (thinking BOA right now) and justify QE for the survivors. we have to think that as a gift for helping Obama to four more years that the Fed will get direct guarantee of UST taxpayer funds, and the promise that no one will interfere. meanwhile the term 'independent Fed' is all over their boilerplate, what a laugh.
The public can certainly tell the difference between bread at $3 a loaf and $6 loaf, or gas at $3.50 and gas at $4.75.
it only takes bernanke 15 mintues to curb inflation, that leaves 23 hours and 45 minutes for the rest of the day. and seriously they (fed and their friends) do some heavy lifting to see that those higher commodity prices are not passed through to consumers, and they're quite good at it. the only thing they can't control is falling personal income, and money velocity, which are both working against them. as income falls and prices remain steady, then you have inflation by another avenue.
Good article! Bernanke and the Fed is truly under the spotlight from all directions. The informed US populace is increasingly aware of what the Fed is doing and they are highly pissed! Ditto that for the politicians. If Bernanke even comes up with the notion of a QE3, one can imagine tha absolutely horrific roar that will come from both the politicians and the populace.
The USD swap was a clever little exercise, but even we can see it for what it is and many are asking, WTF are we doing bailing out the European banks? Liquidity be damned!
Right on, STP. The general population is slowly awakening and the affects are already being felt. The House is reveiwing a bill right now that would stop the ability of Congress to trade on inside information (like everyone else). This is only because they are being called out on it.
I see the Tea Party and the OWS crowd as opposite sides of the same coin...both the left and the right are FED UP with this. Unfortunately, the Tea Party let themselves be hi-jacked (or maybe they were sponsored from the beginning) by the GOP, but they had a big effect on the last elections. Now, OWS has embedded the "99%" concept in the brains of mainstream America, and it is really easy to 'get it'. As George Carlin said, "it's a big club, and you ain't in it." We are waking up that fact, but also to the fact that we are paying the dues for those that are members.
If some simple concepts get picked up -- like "bring back Glass-Stegal", and "corporations are NOTpeople", we could really shake things up in a non-violent way and force meaningful change. If every politician were grilled at every town hall meeting and stump speech on those 2 issues, it would be huge. The media would be forced to cover the subjects, and I would love to see any candidate defend either of those in public.
I would prefer to see the federal government stripped of all but ceremonial power and the power it has ursurped returned to the people and the states. .
The credibility of every last element of this government (playing fast and loose with that term) is absolutely shot to pieces.
I just got the ok to release this...fwiw.
R.I. Senator Moura Complaint To The Department of Treasury RE: Wells Fargo
I anxiously await the Treasury's response as well as Wells Fargo's. I'm not holding my breath...
Where are the rest of the Senators? Will they help her? Probably not.
I know where they are - bobbin' for apples under the pigmen desks.
Great letter with just right blend of sarcasm and balls. I wish the OCC has a pair.
BRB with a new link. Gotta redact the good Senator's cell number...lol (broken Hamlet link alert)
EDIT
Tyler refuses to let me embed flash or I would do so here. Maybe for Christmas. Link goes to Foreclosure Hamlet - no pay per-click - advertising strictly forbidden. It is a blog. If you hate blogs don't click.
R.I. Senator Moura Complaint To The Department of Treasury RE: Wells Fargo
Lowering the cost of borrowing freshly digitized dollars is not QE? Are we a bunch of fools? I suppose we are.
The Bernank is not scared. He is probably confused by some of the reactions amongst 'the great unwashed', but he is not scared.
He, like many in power. live in a semi-isolated echo chamber. He has realized that he needs to do a better job of 'talking to the masses' about how he is going about saving the world - he is frustrated that he now needs to do this, vexed that this should even need to be done, but fear is not an emotion he is feeling
Of course, in the dark of night, I think he has terrible bouts of anxiety about his game plan....
Studies in psychology show that people who feel powerful are more prone to self deception than those who do not feel powerful. It is a safe bet that most of TPTB (world leaders, banksters, etc) have huge blind spots and will make huge errors when it comes to policy & dealing with reality.
Bernank can read public opinion polls just as well as anyone else, and QE tops the list as most hated by the public who view it as handing free money to the ultra rich..and theyre right...damn straight Bernank is scared or else he wouldnt be running around saying 'Hey guys, Im really a real nice guy! Why dont you love me!' After 4 years of spitting in everyones face, except his few ultra rich friends.
His days of delivering tractor trailers full of free money to Wall St and banks is over, and he's looking ahead to charges being filed.
"After 4 years of spitting in everyones face, except his few ultra rich friends."..........and don't forget the years before, when he was essentially WRONG about virtually everything to come. Yes, he is arrogant, but he is not stupid, so perhaps he is getting very nervous about the potential legal proceedings to come. For sure, a jury trial would be a nightmare for any of these criminals. If it comes to it, I sure wish the jury pool could be drawn from my neck of the woods, where unemployment is among the highest in the country....and billionaries are extemely rare creatures.
This is a main reason the promises of QE are out there for market pumping purposes, but will not be delivered on as the public hates QE's, and identifies bailouts with handing free money to the rich. And theyre right.
There wont be any QE unless there are MAJOR market plunges...not a couple hundred points either, Im talking about revisiting the lows, banks going under, false flag attacks on US soil...it will all have to be BIG because yes Bernank and his throwing free money around is VERY toxic and hated right now.
Bernanke is legally untouchable. That is a fact you pay for again and again.
I expect the defense (justice abortion) of MF Global to be "cleansed" by the Fed, too.
Why would one go all-in with other people's money on insider information that Europe will be saved? That posturing alone gives away how incestuous the relationship is between the Fed and their incorporated minions of ill repute. Some entity was feeding the insider trade of the century ignored by the media, who was it??
Dirty money entering the Fed ALWAYS comes out clean.
Running a fraud organization for the mafia in daylight is tough!
Install Bernanke in a community college where he belongs, and do away with all the other fuckup Fed governors working on fraud's behalf only.
Well a lot of kings and Queens were 'untouchable' as well yet ended up in a guillotine.
If Bernanke goes down, then so does the Fed. Its only logical. The Fed is not only The Bernank; therefore, they all live happily ever after.
Bernanke can be 'suicided' just like anyone else.