Archive for March, 2009

Banks Walk Away from Foreclosures

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

photo credit: Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com With over 19 million, yes 19 million vacant homes in the US, many suburbs are looking even more like a war zone than usual. The New York Times reports that: City officials and housing advocates here and in cities as varied as Buffalo, Kansas City, Mo., and Jacksonville, Fla., say [...]

The Geithner Plan = 40% of income for a right to a piece of land on which to stand.

Wednesday, March 25th, 2009

photo credit: country_boy_shane At least Timothy Geithner is showing a little spunk with his new shared equity plan. The government puts in effectively 93%, and the lucky bankers chosen put in just 7%. How does it work? Both the government and the bankers put in 7% equity, then the government lends the other 86%. When [...]

1970′s recession also caused by land boom

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

photo credit: zachstern Thanks to the many links within Steve Spadijer’s well researched article on a Betterment Levy, we bring to your attention this insightful piece from Time Magazine 1973, The New American Land Rush: On Maine’s Moosehead Lake—frigid in winter, plagued by black flies in summer—300 ft. of water frontage is selling for $30,000, [...]

Land Tax Can’t be passed on to tenants

Monday, March 23rd, 2009

photo credit: Roger Lynn The Age today ramps up the property lobby’s annual war against contributing to society in Land tax hike to hit tenants Knight Frank managing director Paul Burns said landlords had been complaining about their 2009 land tax bills, and agreed that tenants on net leases would be the first to cop [...]

The Real AIG Conspiracy

Thursday, March 19th, 2009

photo credit: Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com Michael Hudson It may seem odd, but the public outrage against $135 million in AIG bonuses is a godsend to Wall Street, AID scoundrels included. How can the media be so preoccupied with the discovery that there is self-serving greed to be found in the financial sector? Every TV channel [...]

Perfect storm threatens housing speculators

Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

photo credit: eb0la Will the FHOG save the housing market? A new report raises fresh doubts: THE Australian housing market is facing the prospect of a “perfect storm” of financial pressures, including high mortgage debt, overvalued homes and rising unemployment, which could see prices eventually fall by as much as 30 per cent, investors have [...]

TALF to prime derivatives market

Tuesday, March 17th, 2009

photo credit: The Joy Of The Mundane Perhaps the recent US stock market rally is in expectation of the new free lunch Helicopter Ben is preparing. The derivatives market is now in the Quadrillions. Apparently that is worth $199,000 for every human being on the entire planet. Staggering. Keeping up with the backroom moves are [...]

Money Supply Privilege and Reform

Monday, March 16th, 2009

Money supply and tax reform

Harrison answers 22,000 viewers and growing

Thursday, March 12th, 2009

Fred Harrison answers the questions flowing from last week’s mammoth viral episode with Michael Hudson, of which over 22,000 viewers have seen the clip so far in just over a week.

Breaking in on the Rent Seekers

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

photo credit: h.koppdelaney Bryan Kavanagh (LVRG) 11 March 09 As published in the Age today (Business Opinion page) “Put to the vote: as many are of the opinion that a public tax upon the land ought to be raised to defray the public charge, say ‘yea’… ” “… Carried in the affirmative, none dissenting.” – [...]