I know so many people here are from all over the world. I also know that America is in the spot light as far as the ceiling and budget are concerned.

I was told by a friend of mine who majors in economy that the world is looking to the USA to help pull the world issues up and out of the massive freefall we are in.

At the same time, America is at the point of a crisis with either side not able to come to an agreement.

My question is this...

Those of us in the USA are watching this very closely. Many things count on our leaders being able to pass a house resolution for goverment to continue, but what effect do you think might happen to those who live abroad if our economy collapses?

I know this isn't script talk but it is important to America and the world.

Any input???

I know a lot of people in Sweden like to see us fail...

Is there a particular reason?

Yeah...America and Americans are not as popular around the world as a lot of Americans seem to think.

Popular or necessary?

Doesnt it seem that we might not be at the top of the christmas list but the first called when global assistance is needed?

And in that, fianancial aid?

Quoted from Nesterchung Doesnt it seem that we might not be at the top of the christmas list but the first called when global assistance is needed? And in that, fianancial aid?

Spending money doesn't necessarily make you popular.

My point exactly.

But it does make us necessary. Right?

So even though we might not be loved, are other countries looking to us right now to turn this tide?

I think YES!

Do you like a bookie?

Do you like a loan shark?

How many people really like the police?

Were asked to be the brokers of the world, the police of the world and yet, are despised.

Is our economy tied to the worlds? If not, then why the attempt to garner favor? Why not withdraw and save our own then live to fight others wars another day?

Here's some really basic, simple economics:
Just like with an individual's credit rating, the more debt you aquire the lower your credit score goes.
Likewise, the more debt the US stacks on the lower our credit rating goes - and the lower the value the USDollar (USD) is in relationship to other global currencies.
USD value decreases = the relative value of the Euro increases.

Great.
So what.

When rest of world (ROW) currencies increase in relative value their businesses can now purchase materials of production, commodities (crude oil, met coal, iron ore), at a lower price.
It's the same as increasing their credit limit.
Now ROW can spend less to buy materials, manufacture, transport and retail finished goods.

The US stock market is commodities based.
When ROW starts buying up commodities they become increasingly scarce and their value increases making the stock market increase.

SIMULTANEOUSLY with the USD decreasing in value and ROW currencies increasing in value, now US exports are relatively inexpensive (this is good for US manufacturing and jobs!) and ROW imports are also more expensive (also good for US jobs).
But don't get too d@mn giddy. I don't think the US has ever NOT had a trade deficit, which means Americans have ALWAYS bought more ROW cr@p than ROW ever bought from us.

Americans are energy and materials consuming pigs, vermin, a GD pestilence upon the planet.



So here's the deal, some of you may be familar with the acronym BRIC: Brazil, Russia, India and China.
Four EMERGING MARKETS, meaning they currently have relative cr@p but are rapidly running up or are attempting to run up to the current US/UK/JPY/AUS standard of gluttonous consumption of energy and materials resources, joining the rest of the industrialized nations are going to put a preposterous strain on global energy and materials resources.

So, tell me this: do you wanna live like kings for a day or like paupers for a year?

Yes/No: is there a benefit to absolutely destroying the global economy?

Mmmm.... Yes.



If the US ccredit rating is downgraded from AAA to Aaa the US stock market will crash not because of willy-nilly lack of faith.
Um, no.
That's how kindergardeners think.

The stock market will nose-dive because the relative value of the USD will NOT be adversely impacted due to higher debt = ROW currencies drop in value = they can't buy commodities AS CHEAPLY = their costs of production increase = commodities inventories have decreased pressure = the commodities based US stock market drops.

Now, not only have a monster amount of paper profits have been lost, there's going to be a mad scramble to liquidate stocks FIRST before everyone stupid enough to buy what's being made available for fire-sale runs out of cash.

Anyone leveraged out the wazoo is going to lose big.



Frankly, I was born to be a hunter gatherer.
I can live without airconditioning just fine.
Clean water and immunizations I'll miss.
When the world goes to h3ll in a hand basket - stock up on anti-diarrhea medicine!

FWIW, bullets will be a more practical currency than gold coins, which only stupid people will be trying to peddle about.
Silver coins in small denominations will be much more practical.

GL and GB

Ray  

You're not immunized Ray??  

In Az, we definitely need A/C!!!!!!!!!  Hunting, fishing, gathering won't change that.

All I know is that when the economy took a shit, I bought a house with a mortgage at 5.5%.  A year later, when it took an even bigger shit, I refinanced at 4%, the lowest rates since the Eisenhower administration.

I still have a job (two, actually) and there isn't any talk of layoffs at either place.

If the stock market crashes, my 401k may get screwed up, but it's not a ton of money.  Social Security may die, but I don't really count on that being around at my retirement age anyway.

This impending doom scenario spooks me about as much as Y2K, which is to say I don't have a preponderance of duct tape in my house.

Quoted from Grandma Bear You're not immunized Ray??

I am, but my my two smallest children are not old enough to have completed their full regimen.

And I'm talking for real post-apocalyptic no modern conveniences hunter gathering.

As in your grand children and great grand children may die of dysentary, necessitating the need for large families because of the sky high infant mortality rate.

Of course this is painting the worse possible outcome that likely isn't going to happen, I'm just saying there's a clear advantage to destroying the global economy that I don't think the average "sane" person considers on a daily basis.
We tend to just humpty-dump along, tra-la-la-la-la.

300M Americans sucking up every bit of oil and eating all the red meat we can.
+ 500M EU consumers
+ 100M Japanese consumers
+ 22M Australian consumers

to be joined by...
1,300M Chineese  consumers
+ 1,200M Indian consumers
+ 190M Brazilian consumers
+ 140M Russina consumers

All at the same/similar consumption rate of energy and materials.

Sustainable?

Um... No.

It's not Sparta. It's madness.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_population#Largest_populations_by_country

Quoted from Dreamscale In Az, we definitely need A/C!!!!!!!!!  Hunting, fishing, gathering won't change that.

Dude, you're gonna have to migrate like all the other hunter gatherers.

Ray, I was joking.

btw, how many people have food stored up? Just curious? Some people have 2 years worth of MREs. Now that's people with a pessimistic view.

Quoted from Grandma Bear btw, how many people have food stored up? Just curious? Some people have 2 years worth of MREs. Now that's people with a pessimistic view.

No food, but I have plenty of rocks to throw through grocery store windows.  It's the apocalypse, I tell ya!

Quoted from Grandma Bear Ray, I was joking. btw, how many people have food stored up? Just curious? Some people have 2 years worth of MREs. Now that's people with a pessimistic view.

I'm not.

Find out who those people are with 2yrs of storable food and when economic armagedon comes bring a truck and guns and take it.

Watch society fall apart.
It'll be fun!  

Quoted from Shelton No food, but I have plenty of rocks to throw through grocery store windows.  It's the apocalypse, I tell ya!

When everyone else is pillaging the stores where's the best place to be?
Not at the store!

Forced entry robbery of their homes.