The Nation's--and World's--Crazy Weather

Across the planet presently...

I. Heat in Western US

Heat to sizzle western US this week

II. Wildfires in California and the Western US

Millions face extreme heat in Western U.S. 

as wildfires continue to blaze

III. Flooding in the Eastern US

East Coast rain forecast: 

Dangerous, life-threatening floods possible

Return of downpours threatens to renew, 

expand flood risk in eastern US

IV. Wildfires across Greece, followed by floods

Greece fires LATEST: Now FLOODS 

destroy businesses and home 

- Thousands flee disaster zone

I'll just leave this here:

Extreme global weather is 

'the face of climate change' says leading scientist

The State of the Nation and World

Kim Jong Un and North Korea are threatening South Korea with attack.

China's economy is in freefall.

The Dow dropped nearly 1000 points the last 2 days.

The Mexican peso--in next door Mexico, of course--just hit a record low against the US dollar.

Wealth inequality in America is getting worse by the year with the already-wealthy getting richer and the middle and lower classes getting poorer.

Greece just nearly avoided a total bankruptcy of the nation.

Our infrastructure is falling apart.

Our Highway Fund needs funding from Congress.

All this and a lot more but Donald Trump and his disconnected, childish, really, musings on America and the world put him, somehow, somehow, "most popular" right now, number one in the polls of Republican candidates for president in next year's election.

This is no way to run a country.

These Are the Days, My Friends

It's actually a pretty incredible time to be alive.

Millions more Americans recently came much closer to having full equality here in their own nation.

Greece just got yet one more cash bailout from it's Eurozone members yesterday.

It was announced today, Tuesday, that a nuclear agreement between Iran and 6 other nations to keep them from getting nuclear weapons was reached, taking off economic sanctions.

And there's a flyby of our satellite near Pluto today.

Big times. These are incredible times, indeed.

We take things so for granted.

Entertainment overnight--beautiful insanity

Quote of the day--on inherited religion

Quote of the day--on the day of rest

More data on the US standard of living vs. the rest of the world

We Americans have been pretty well trained, thought to believe "We're number one!" in all things, I think it's safe to say. Of course, what we're finding out is that it's not really true, especially when you consider things like our mortality rates, the cost of our health care, etc.

Another place where, we find, we really aren't "number one!" is in pay.

Did you know there are plenty of other countries where the minimum wage is higher--in some cases, far higher--than ours?  Check it out (click on picture for easy reading):

Data:

Among OECD nations, every single country that pays a higher minimum wage than the U.S. pays upwards of $9.00 U.S. dollars per hour.

Australia, the nation with the best minimum compensation on the list, has a minimum wage equivalent to $15.75 in U.S. dollars.

Japan, which is the lowest paying country to beat the U.S. pays U.S. $9.16 per hour.

All told, the U.S. falls toward the bottom of the pack near Greece, Spain and Israel.

Nice, huh?

Makes a guy proud.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-united-states-is-very-different-from-its-neighbors-when-it-come-to-minimum-wage-2013-2#ixzz2PiANuHwm

9 Countries With A Higher Minimum Wage Than The U.S.

Cutting taxes? Again? More?

Fareed Zakaria just pointed out on his CNN news program GPS that the George W. Bush tax cuts during his administration, besides being for the wealthy, were the deepest cuts in the history of the nation and the growth during that period was the worst economic growth since the Great Depression.

To politicians--as he said--would you stop, stop pandering to the American public now, with the promises of yet more tax cuts? Could you, would you, please, be statesman/statespeople for the the nation's good, for the love of pete? We're desperate out here.

Please?

Link: http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/

Most Americans have no clue this weekend figures big in their lives

I imagine if most Americans--coast to coast--were interviewed this weekend, they would have no idea an election is going on in Greece this weekend.

Asked, too, if they thought it could or would have much impact on them or their lives in any way, I'd think most would give a resounding "no."

Quite the opposite is true.

Greece is voting Sunday (imagine that--voting on a weekend) on their leaders. The outcome will likely be huge for Greece, of course, but for all of Europe and European Union... and even for the US.

One government would have them stick with austerity so they can get the money they need from Germany, Angela Merkel and the rest of the EU.

The other would have them do away with what they see as the crushing austerity, walk away from the money and likely walk away from the EU itself.

Let there be no mistake, this weekend is huge for what takes place internationally for the next several months, if not years.

The thing is, though, too, no one can really predict the outcome of the vote, for sure, but of whatever happens, either. No one can really say, with any real authority, what "best path" there is for Greece, let alone the EU and the world.

It's been said--by more than once source, too--that if this doesn't go well, it will make the 2008 financial collapse pale by comparison.

Once again, Margo Channing's quote from "All About Eve" becomes all too relevant:

"Fasten your seatbelts, it's going to be a bumpy night!

Link: http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daniel-gross/sunday-greece-elections-prove-lehman-brothers-moment-maybe-172918499.html

Annual OP Greek Festival starts today at 5 pm!

Friday, June 8th - 5:00pm to 10:00pm
Saturday, June 9th - 11:00am to 10:00pm
Sunday, June 10th - 11:00am to 8:00pm

DANCE PERFORMANCES:
Friday 6:00pm, 8:00pm
Saturday 11:30am, 2:00pm, 4:30pm, 6:30pm, 8:00pm
Sunday 12:30pm, 2:30pm, 5:30pm

For more information, check out their festival website at http://www.stdionysios.org/festival/index.php

Opa!

Have a great weekend, everyone.

Quote of the day--for Sunday

And isn't this what matters? All that matters, in, really, all cases? All our cases?

The situation in the EU

I came across what I thought is a very good, if simple, description of the European financial system and its problems right now: "Underfunded banks buys underfunded government bonds and underfunded governments guarantees underfunded banks.? It's one of those things that, again, is simple and that seems true but you certainly hope is not. Links: http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2012/02/capital-flight-from-italy-greece.html; http://www.marketwatch.com/story/10-myths-about-the-european-quagmire-2012-02-27?link=MW_story_popular; http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/27/opinion/krugman-what-ails-europe.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

Big, big questions for 2012

They are big, indeed, the questions we can pose now, for this coming new year. So many people are predicting collapses of different kinds. So here goes, some of my questions for 2012: 1) Will Greece's economy collapse? 2) Will Italy follow suit? 3) Spain? 4) Portugal? 5) Will the Euro collapse, in full or part? 6) Will the US financial system face the same or very similar collapse as we did in 2008, yet again? 7) Seriously, many people I've spoken to--friends--have predicted and are predicting--gulp--the collapse of the US. Nice thought, huh? Understand, I'm not predicting any of the above. I've just seen many people predicting these things. Consider it just food for thought. Think happy thoughts, y'all. And happy new year.

If the Euro and Eurozone fail...

This out today in the news: US bank warns of eurozone breakup 'pandemonium' Citigroup economist and former central banker Willem Buiter warned Thursday that a fully blown breakup of the eurozone could spell a global depression with unemployment of 20 percent and economic pandemonium. Sketching a stark picture of the stakes facing European leaders as they gather in Brussels to discuss how to save the single currency, Buiter said a breakup would unlikely be planned, orderly or gradual. Buiter, a former Bank of England policy maker, predicted in a research note that a breakup would be "disruptive, destructive and without any winners." Basically, I think this is what he has in mind: Wish us all luck, ladies and gentlemen.

Quote of the day

"Italy's government debt is five times the size of Greece's and concerns about Italy's ability to meet its obligations could grow if Greece defaults." --Landon Thomas, Jr., The New York Times. Link to original story: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/business/global/as-greece-struggles-the-world-imagines-a-default.html.

Something to keep in mind as the economy seems to get worse

Riots in Greece and across Europe. Can it happen here? Food for thought: "If inequality continues to increase relentlessly, it seems likely that major social disruptions are inevitable. What people should keep in mind is that the U.S. has the weakest social safety net of any advanced country." --"Martin Ford, Founder, Silicon Valley-based software development firm. Links: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/martin-ford/could-we-have-civil-unres_b_906478.html; http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/07/raging-inequality-may-cause-unrest-and-violence/

Quote of the day

"...could the full force of a depression be delayed with a combination of yet more debt and spending? Governments around the world are betting that it can. But they are also hedging their bets by preparing and implementing austerity measures as it must be obvious, even to them, that the historically unprecedented expansion of state spending and debt cannot go on for ever if capitalism is to survive. Keynes himself famously ignored this problem. 'In the long run, we’re all dead,' he said. Over the next decade, we’ll discover what happens in the ‘long run’. The probability is that previously taken-for-granted entitlements (to education, jobs, retirement, health care, an income during periods of illness, joblessness or disability, and so on) and standards of living will end. There will be continuing struggles both within the capitalist class and between the capitalist and working classes over who is to bear the brunt of the losses. The hegemony of the United States may be challenged in the not too distant future, with potentially catastrophic consequences: bear in mind that it took a world war to completely end the last truly major depression. And the depression, if not rescued by a major war, could be deeply exacerbated by the falling off of cheap and easy oil and energy supplies and the possibility of ecological catastrophe." --Stuart Wilkins; Link: http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/jul11/is_the_crisis_over.html#top

Good business news today

Some headlines that sound promising this afternoon: --Euro continues to recover after Greece austerity deal; --Wall Street reverses sharp sell-off after Greek deal: --No China hard landing -- for now: Sure, there's plenty of bad news out there but here's some good, bigger news. Enjoy the beautiful evening, y'all. Links: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/23/us-markets-forex-idUSTRE74U02L20110623; http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/23/us-markets-stocks-idUSTRE75512M20110623; http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/23/us-china-economy-growth-idUSTRE75M1AO20110623

It doesn't look pretty out there

And no, I'm not talking about the weather.

I ran across a few websites this afternoon--one of them absolutely alarmist--that tell of the biggest of the world's problems right now, economically and otherwise.

There was one, though, with the following article that seemed both not alarmist or overly-emotional but calm, rational and correct.  You can check it out here:

10 Tipping Points Which Could Plunge The World Into An Economic Nightmare

The two things that strike me from this article are first, that so much of the warring and conflict problems do seem to be centered in the oil-producing Middle East and Northern Africa, which is horribly problematic for oil distribution and so, the world's economic engines to keep running.

The second thing that strikes me is that of the debt across the world--mostly nation-state--but also personal, household debt that is coming down on so many of us right now and slowing, if not stopping our economies.

Some possibly scary stuff, for sure.

Stay tuned.

Me?  I'm sitting here crossing my fingers.

Here's hoping, y'all.

Roller coaster ride ahead?

If this guy knows what he's talking about, we could be in for one wild, financial roller coaster ride:

May 23 2011: Right. Italy. Serious.