Hi y'all - I wonder if you are going to engage in discussion or just keep on posting your philosophy?
On Dec 22, 12:50 pm, Morpheal <[email protected]> wrote: > The PRIME RATE GAMBLING CASINO: > > A national bank offering a fixed low prime rate, for instance 4 > percent, is a better option than fluctuation. We must end the bank > being a prime rate gambling casino. Of that, for example, 4% a nation > should take at least 1 percent to fund good works, social and > government programs, leaving a modest something for its other stake > holders. This tithe upon borrowing would provide tax relief for the > largest portion of the public. The National prime rate would be > absolutely unchanging at all times. Regulation upon borrowing, and > audit of the practices and securities required from borrowers would > need to become more stringent. In fact there is no rational reason, no > real necessity, other than bad habits, for using the prime rate to > control inflation and deflation trends in the economy. There are ample > potential means for doing that, without jerking the prime rate around > and turning borrowing into a national and international form of high > stakes gambling. Steady, reliable, economic activity, inclusive of any > growth in that activity, is a far better goal than the vagaries and > deeply conflicted struggles that predominate when the prime rate is > made victim to gamblers exerting collusive, essentially nefarious > pressures, near to black mail and extortion, in continued attempts to > deliberately manipulate the prime rate. That near to criminality would > essentially cease, ending the forcing down to the floorboards of the > prime by a gang of unethical business toughs, who have no decent sense > of business morality and ethics left in any of them, and no remaining > social conscience. > > As to the remaining balance of the money lending industry, the future > ought to be one that is a future not only of strict regulation and > audit by government bank inspectors, but also a future of a solid tax > on profits. That tithe too for the sake of good works, to fund social > and government programs, and in conjunction with a maximum cap on the > rates being charged, would help in regulating the better function of > the entire economic system. > > THE CREDIT GAME HAS BECOME A COSTLY “FREE FOR ALL” CHAOS > > The credit game has long become a costly “free for all”, jungle of > rules where there are few if any real rules, in the ultimate analysis, > to govern practices in any consistent and rational manner. In part > this has come about because there is no clear set of rules applicable > to all lenders, and there needs to be such a set of enforced rules. > > In addition, and far worse, there is no common to all, data base, with > a maximum line of available credit, for all borrowers, where all debt > is monitored for each participant in the economic system. The rules > need to determine how that data base functions and how lenders must > respond to its data. The maze of multiple cards, with multiple > limits, from multiple sources, each with their own peculiarities as to > the agreement being made between lender and borrower, provides no real > limits or controls in regard to the difficulties that anyone might > deliberately or accidentally slip into. > > They are a legal and economic nightmare, fraught with unlimited > species of peril, often extremely predatory, and often victimizing. > All of that needs to change. Not to mention that the system as it > exists opens the door to multiple forms of fraud by borrowers, as well > as considerable and dangerous abuses by the lenders. Neither side are > angels in the devilish game of credit. > > We might recognize that there are exceptional instances of need to > borrow exceptional funds, such as in business start up situations, and > other types of entrepreneurial ventures, but that type of activity > should not and must not fall under the same umbrella as consumer > credit. It must be dealt with on its own merits, outside of that > consumer credit system. Other factors need to be taken into account. > > Oddly enough that is the way it once was, but more and more ventures > have gotten caught up in the mess that an undiscerning and excessively > complex, chaos of credit, a fiscal jungle full of unscrupulous and > paranoid predators, tends to make. Not only that but the more > unscrupulous choose their victims on the basis of whom they feel is > more able to finance a legal battle, and who is not. The predators > know whom to hit with unscrupulous practices in a system where legal > costs aid is not available for what are civil litigations between > borrower and lender, outside of the criminal justice system. That is > another reason why one set of common rules is a necessity. More > matters that involve predatory and wrongful practices become a > criminal justice issue and remove the necessity from hard pressed > individuals as to funding costly civil litigative battles that they > really cannot typically risk or afford.. > > One of the results has become the forcing of business ventures to use > a credit system that is excessively usurious in its rates, far more > than such ventures had to do similarly in the past. The system has > pushed smaller businesses to borrow in ways that it typically did not > do, and would not do, but now is doing with increasing regularity. > > For real and consistent, long term, economic stimulus that entire > system needs to be scrapped and rebuilt, from the ground up. It is no > longer functional. It is no longer just, fair or right, in any way > whatsoever, and it must be changed. > > Of course all of that requires the fundamental realization that > society cannot and ought not “spend its way out” of economic > difficulties. That fundamental fallacy must be abandoned entirely > where that spending is understood as being consumer spending. Public > works, infrastructure, basic science and the wisdom of increased R&D, > are a different matter. Nevertheless, consumer spending, driven to > panic by government, to spend more, to try to save themselves from > economic disaster, is worse than bad policy. It is a criminal act by > government, failing to care for the real needs of those they are > responsible to and for. > > AUTO INDUSTRY NEEDS LESSONS FROM HENRY FORD > > We can see that it is true, that people fail to learn from history. > They repeat its mistakes, but in fact they also fail to learn its more > positive lessons. The latter even more often than the repeating of the > mistakes. A peculiar but noteworthy fact about human kind. They should > become more open to learning what is positive and of value from > history, rather than only striving to make the same mistakes again and > again. > > The car industry is its own demon with no one to blame but itself. Its > finger pointing at banks, governments, the marketplace, suppliers, > labor unions, and anything else that its long finger points at, is > simply wrong. It should point that finger only at itself. > > The car industry followed the American way too closely. It caused a > massive chain reaction pile up for which it is wholly to blame. It > failed to manage its own course properly. To truly and permanently > remedy this problem we must learn from history. The answer is there. > We only need to look for it. Each manufacturer will necessarily have > to reduce its number of models and rationalize model options, > concentrating on safety and utility, rather than useless glamour. Gone > are the days of pandering to infinite choice. Gone are the days of a > dozen colors and as many interiors for every model. Gone are the days > of a multitude of body stylings, some of which have extremely negative > practical implications as to utility and longevity of the product. > Gone is the new model every year. Gone would be the use of substandard > materials, and the wrong materials, designed in for the purpose of > faster obsolescence. > > We have availability of materials and engineering innovations today > that would extend the life of a vehicle substantially above what it > commonly is today. It would reduce the massive scrap piles and lead to > changed values. It would change the structure of financing to make > vehicles more affordable, because financing the price would be > extendable over a longer period of time with smaller payments. The > life expectancy of specific parts can be measured with reasonable > reliability and their exchange planned into maintenance to extend the > life span of the average vehicle. Wear sensors can be employed to > register critical changes. The technologies that can be employed are > not really new, but the culture of automobile obsolescence and the > limitations imposed on the life expectancy of vehicles have led to > ignoring those progressive advances. > > The changes necessary are necessary for a changed economics, and for > the sake of the environment. We cannot delay the changes that are > necessitated. > > Therein is the actual and long term solution. We what we must do is to > return to the days of Henry Ford's dream of affordable utilitarian > quality. This will greatly reduce costs and control pricing. It will > help to conserve, and save, the environment. It will ease the burden > on the average pocket when it comes to the annual, long term, costs of > transportation. Gone would be the era of impulse and emotional > selling. Gone would be the days of glamour and glitz, hype and hoopla, > of new models every year, in every category. Gone would be all the > errors of automotive history. What that change would provide is the > best possible safety and efficiency, with lasting value and long term > quality in mind. It would, however, end the era that was based on ever > changing style, on fashion trends, on high pressure sales, on gimmicks > and special deals, and all the wasteful inadequacies and > inefficiencies that the industry has become. It would end what the > world can no longer afford. It would change the world, but it would > change the world in an entirely progressive and positive way. It > would be, in fact, Henry Ford’s original dream come true. > > Robert Morpheal > > This article may be copied, reproduced, distributed, in any form, by > any means, anywhere, by anyone and in fact anyone is encouraged to do > so. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Memphis Freethought Alliance" group. 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