Okay they said we have to have the bailout but stuff keeps sliding down hill. I am sleepy now but just had a thought. Is all this stuff just just a symptom of a larger problem, and maybe a simple one?? That our economy and society as we have it today is just not sustainable . Mainly mass production which means mass consumption. A consumer society http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081027/ts_nm/us_markets_global
What is going on??
1 - 12 of 12 Posts
Joined
·
204 Posts
Joined
·
784 Posts
dont worry we only have till december 21, 2012 according to the Myans. and there was a reason why that date was given on a show on the history channel
Joined
·
28 Posts
We've had it too good for too long and times are changing.
BINGO!
Industrial civilization is about to come to an end. It can survive, but only if it does so on a much smaller scale.
Joined
·
73 Posts
Yes, this run-away train of consuming beyond our means is quickly approaching the end of its track. However, using the analogy of a run-away train has other implications.
If the train's occupants get off, does the train continue running down the tracks? Is getting off a moving train easily accomplished? I understand it may hurt somewhat. What about the people that set the train (read: economy) in motion along its course towards destruction? Is there any reason to believe that destruction has always been the goal? Are there passenger cars attached to the locomotive - what about the people who don't get off?
Just some thoughts - these questions are rhetorical for the sake of the example. I find the comparison to a train attractive because of all the other factors that may mirror so called 'real world economics' - which, as we are seeing, are nothing more than illusion.
If the train's occupants get off, does the train continue running down the tracks? Is getting off a moving train easily accomplished? I understand it may hurt somewhat. What about the people that set the train (read: economy) in motion along its course towards destruction? Is there any reason to believe that destruction has always been the goal? Are there passenger cars attached to the locomotive - what about the people who don't get off?
Just some thoughts - these questions are rhetorical for the sake of the example. I find the comparison to a train attractive because of all the other factors that may mirror so called 'real world economics' - which, as we are seeing, are nothing more than illusion.
HMM
I followed up to the point, "real world economics" which is all an illusion. How so, are you speaking to the fact that this is all man made?
Our economy seems to be like a reactor heading towards critical mass but the resivoir of water ie
tax payer dollars ) is lowering faster than it can be replenished....
Thus hastening the end but drawing out the outcome which is death to the greatest economic engine the world has ever known, we'll be back to the dark ages if were lucky perhaps worse if were not. December 21, 2012 may be a blessing..........
tax payer dollars ) is lowering faster than it can be replenished....Thus hastening the end but drawing out the outcome which is death to the greatest economic engine the world has ever known, we'll be back to the dark ages if were lucky perhaps worse if were not. December 21, 2012 may be a blessing..........
Joined
·
2,357 Posts
The big problem is that we have a very small manufacturing base which means we have very few products to sell and grow the economy.
Joined
·
228 Posts
As for whats going on I think this may have some merit. This is a Wiki quote from the US dollar
"The U.S. dollar was originally created and defined by the Coinage Act of 1792. It specified a "dollar" to be between 371 and 416 grains (27.0 g) of silver (depending on purity) and an 'eagle" to be between 247 and 270 grains (17 g) of gold (again depending on purity). It set the value of an eagle at 10 dollars, and the dollar at 1/10th eagle. It called for 90% silver alloy coins in denominations of 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/10, and 1/20; it called for 90% gold alloy coins in denominations of 1, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/10. The value of gold or silver contained in the dollar was then converted into relative value in the economy for the buying and selling of goods. This allowed the value of things to remain fairly constant over time, except for the influx and outflux of gold and silver in the nation's economy."
In short the dollar today is backed by nothing but the governments promise that it's all good. This was a bad thing, but to make things worse the world began to operate more and more on credit. Today the very idea of fiscally conservative business decisions are considered stogy. There are actually companies that make money borrowing in countries where the interest rate is low then investing in high yield (read RISKY) stocks in countries where the value of the currency is worth more but the trade actually yields a return due to the low interest rate.
What I am getting at here is this we are failing in the same way the Roman empire did consumption overload. We produce almost nothing compared to what we consume. Now to hear it told our standard of living is much higher and in a purely physical sense I would say that is accurate. However we live in a society that can not (EVEN on a global scale) survive. The only question is not how far will we fall but how fast. Change scares people into doing dumb crap they would otherwise never consider. I would advise everyone honestly look at what you are willing to do to survive that way when you are faced with the decisions they are preordained... Don't take to long given the current conditions.
"The U.S. dollar was originally created and defined by the Coinage Act of 1792. It specified a "dollar" to be between 371 and 416 grains (27.0 g) of silver (depending on purity) and an 'eagle" to be between 247 and 270 grains (17 g) of gold (again depending on purity). It set the value of an eagle at 10 dollars, and the dollar at 1/10th eagle. It called for 90% silver alloy coins in denominations of 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/10, and 1/20; it called for 90% gold alloy coins in denominations of 1, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/10. The value of gold or silver contained in the dollar was then converted into relative value in the economy for the buying and selling of goods. This allowed the value of things to remain fairly constant over time, except for the influx and outflux of gold and silver in the nation's economy."
In short the dollar today is backed by nothing but the governments promise that it's all good. This was a bad thing, but to make things worse the world began to operate more and more on credit. Today the very idea of fiscally conservative business decisions are considered stogy. There are actually companies that make money borrowing in countries where the interest rate is low then investing in high yield (read RISKY) stocks in countries where the value of the currency is worth more but the trade actually yields a return due to the low interest rate.
What I am getting at here is this we are failing in the same way the Roman empire did consumption overload. We produce almost nothing compared to what we consume. Now to hear it told our standard of living is much higher and in a purely physical sense I would say that is accurate. However we live in a society that can not (EVEN on a global scale) survive. The only question is not how far will we fall but how fast. Change scares people into doing dumb crap they would otherwise never consider. I would advise everyone honestly look at what you are willing to do to survive that way when you are faced with the decisions they are preordained... Don't take to long given the current conditions.
1 - 12 of 12 Posts
Join the discussion
Join now to ask and comment!