Friday, March 7, 2008

The Decline of the American Dollar and Standard of Living

It's what is behind all the economic woes, although the MSM will never come right out and tell you that, readers.

You have to sift through their deceitful lies and shit papers by reading in-between the lines to find the truth
:

"Economic woes lead consumers to discounters"

"Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is reaping a bonanza from a US economy teetering on the brink of a recession.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, said yesterday that sales at stores open at least a year rose 2.6 percent in February, topping its estimate of as much as 2 percent. Sales at Gap Inc., J.C. Penney Co., and Nordstrom Inc. fell.

Wal-Mart and Costco Wholesale Corp. offer a gamut of products from groceries to DVDs at lower prices, attracting consumers contending with layoffs, $3-a-gallon gasoline, and a deteriorating housing market.

"We are seeing the consumer trading down," Fred Crawford, managing director at AlixPartners LLP, a Southfield, Mich.-based consulting firm, said. "You've got a large swing set in Middle America. In good times, they buy up into department store categories, and in tougher times, they buy down into mass categories."

It's called a DECLINING STANDARD of LIVING so GET USED TO IT, shit-chomping 'murkns!!!!!


US warehouse clubs also profited as penny-pinching consumers bought in bulk to save money and limited trips to other stores. Consumers worried about losing their jobs and higher costs for milk and cereal have curbed spending."

I think they are worried about other things than milk and cereal, shitters!!

How about the FORECLOSURES and the ENERGY PRICES?

Pffffftttt!


"Oil prices hit another record as dollar slides"

"Crude oil futures rose to another record close yesterday, boosted once more by the dollar's continuing slide to new lows against the euro.

THAT is
why the $$$ of OIL is UP!!

"
OPEC President Chakib Khelil told reporters the global market is being affected by what he called ‘‘the mismanagement of the U.S. economy,'' and that America's problems were a key factor in the cartel's decision to hold off on any action:

‘‘If the prices are high, definitely they are not due to a lack of crude. They are due to what's happening in the U.S. There is sufficient supply. There's plenty of oil there.''

At the pump, gas prices extended their own advance toward record levels. The national average price of a gallon of gas rose 0.7 cent overnight to $3.185, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. Gas prices are expected to peak this spring, well above last May's record of $3.227 a gallon.

Yesterday brought a mixed slate of economic news.

Data showing record US foreclosures and European central banks' decision to stand pat on interest rates helped push the dollar lower. Analysts believe the steadily weakening dollar is the reason oil prices have jumped to a number of new inflation-adjusted record highs this week. Crude futures offer a hedge against a falling dollar, and oil futures bought and sold in dollars are more attractive to foreign investors when the dollar is falling.

But, but, but... what about SUPPLY and DEMAND?!?!

That's what BUSH TOLD ME the problems were!!!

WTF?!


"This market continues to be based on the dollar," said James Cordier, founder of OptionSellers.com, a Tampa, Fla., trading firm.

Helping push oil prices higher yesterday was an overnight rebel attack on a Colombian oil pipeline that transports 60,000 barrels of oil a day for export markets.

"The attack was in response to the Colombian military's killing of a high ranking member of the rebel group . . . during a raid into Ecuador," said Addison Armstrong, director of exchange Traded Markets at TFS Energy Futures LLC in Stamford, Conn., in a research note."

Pffffftttt!

CUI FUCKING BONO
, readers?!?!

Apparently, that wasn't the last attack by
Colombia, either:

"Uribe refused to rule out more military incursions into Ecuador or Venezuela."

What the fuck does it matter, anyway.

You ain't going to need that car:


"Defaults soar on auto loans in pattern likened to mortgage crisis"

"An increasingly common story as more Americans, under growing economic pressure, are deciding to surrender their rides rather than the roofs over their heads.

With oil prices skyrocketing and the economy in a downturn, consumers are looking to downsize to cheaper, more fuel-efficient models, and reduce their payments.

It's called a DECLINING STANDARD of LIVING so GET USED TO IT, shit-chomping 'murkns!!!!!

And many - even those with good credit and lower interest rates - are finding they can't afford to sell their vehicles because they have more left to pay off than their cars are worth.

What a fucking shell-game shit scam the bankers sold you, 'eh, 'murkn?

How's that shit taste, anyway?


Lenders, meanwhile, are writing off billions of dollars in defaulted loans, and some analysts worry this could escalate to a foreclosure crisis on wheels.

"The suddenness with which we saw repossessions hit the market at the beginning of the year has been unusual and appears to reflect not only the general economic slowdown, but some spillover from the mortgage crisis," said Tom Kontos, chief economist at Adesa Inc., which runs 58 car auctions across North America.

Nationwide, repossessions are up about 15 percent so far this year, Kontos said.

The problems for consumers may not end when their repossessed cars are towed away. They still may owe money if the lender sells the car for less than the balance owed.

Talk about a ROYAL ASS-FUCKING!!!!

America, how much longer are you going to put up with this?

Why are you not in the STREETS?!?!

Shit must taste pretty good, huh?

Mmmmmmmmmmm!!!!!


Since his car was taken away, Chilcot has started walking to work at his new job - as a car salesman at a dealership in Plymouth.

When asked whether he tries to caution people against buying a car they can't afford based on his recent experience, Chilcot chuckled: "Not really. You become pretty shameless pretty quick when the paycheck comes."

Translation: I don't give a fuck if you have the same problem I did!

And it is FUNNY to him!

What a SHIT SCUM this Chilcot guy is, huh?

No wonder Americans hate car salesmen!


Besides, you can use the money for the car payment on the kid's college costs.

You're gonna need it, mom and dad
:

"College loans see subprime fallout"

""The fallout from the subprime mortgage crisis is sending shock waves through the college loan industry in New England, limiting options for some students seeking assistance for the fall semester.

Amid a deepening credit squeeze and cutbacks in federal loan subsidies, New Hampshire's nonprofit student-loan agency said this week that it will no longer offer private loans. The Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority, which lent money to 42,000 college students last year, has so far failed to secure any financing for its loans, as skittish investors shy away from taking on debt.

"The broader dislocation in the capital markets has definitely affected the student loan industry," said Tom Graf, executive director of MEFA, a nonprofit state organization. "Clearly there's a trend where [investors] are hesitant to enter the market, and it's a nationwide phenomenon."

Yeah, but we will fund wars ad infinitum, no problem.

And these aren't even grants, folks, they are LOANS!!

You know, needed to be payed back -- unlike the
War Profiteers!!!

Update
: "Biggest drop in jobs in 5 years"