tagged w/ Federal Reserve
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A comprehensive & innovative proposal for a new system of sustainable economics. These "Digital Coins" can be transferred instantly anywhere in the networked world. This can be done anonymously, without accounting and without any third party involvement, analogous to handing someone a gold coin. You have it. Now they have it. No bookkeeping is required unless desired.
These "unique digital objects" are also analogous to gold coins in that they have inherent value. They are fully redeemable for specific real goods and services.
http://digitalcoin.info/The_Essence_of_Money.htmlA comprehensive & innovative proposal for a new system of sustainable economics.... more
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Elizabeth Warren, Naomi Klein on MSNBC.
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Jenime
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added this
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2 days ago
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Economists and Labor Leaders Call for Fed to be Audited
Urge Rep. Barney Frank and Financial Services Committee to Reject Watt Amendment
Richard Trumka, Andy Stern, Jamie Galbraith, Naomi Klein Say “A vote for the Watt Amendment is a vote for more secret bailouts”
Leading economists, labor leaders. authors and bloggers today released a letter in support of the Paul-Grayson amendment, proposed by Rep. Ron Paul of Texas and Rep. Alan Grayson of Florida, which calls for a complete audit of the Federal Reserve. The say that such transparency is necessary due to the many questions surrounding the Fed’s recent activities, and the “potential cronyism and favoritism in its distribution of many trillions of dollars.”
“The Watt amendment is a last-minute power play by the banks” says Jane Hamsher, founder and publisher of Firedoglake.com, who organized the effort. “It would actually make the Federal Reserve even more secretive, by erecting further barriers to transparency.”
The letter was signed by SEIU President Andy Stern, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, James K. Galbraith (Lloyd M. Bentsen, Jr., Chair at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin), author Naomi Klein, blogger Yves Smith of Naked Capitlaism, William Black (Associate Professor of Economics and Law at the University of Missouri–Kansas City), blogger Tyler Durden of Zero Hedge, Robert Johnson (former Chief Economist of the US Senate Banking Committee), Randall Wray (Professor of Economics and Director of the Center for Full Employment and Price Stability at the University of Missouri–Kansas City), Thomas Ferguson, Professor of Political Science, University of Massachusetts, Boston and Dean Baker, co-founder and co-director of the Center For Economic And Policy Research.
Regarding the Watt Amendment, Ryan Grim of the Huffington Post wrote:
While Watt’s amendment talks a big game about opening up the Fed to a complete audit, all of the new powers granted must be carried out “each case in accordance with subsections (b) and (e).
Those subsections of the current law delineate the many restrictions that an auditor confronts when seeking to audit the Fed. Watt’s measure not only leaves those in place but requires all audits to abide by them.
And in addition to the current restrictions in place, it creates new ones. An auditor could not look at loans or liquidity arrangements the Fed enters into, the terms of those arrangements, or the effect of those loans and other liquidity deals on “reserves, the balance sheet or financial condition of a Federal reserve bank or the Federal Reserve System.”
Firedoglake.com is the nation’s leading progressive blog, with over 2.4 million unique viewers a month.
for Text of the letter:
http://workinprogress.firedoglake.com/2009/11/19/press-release-economists-and-labor-leaders-call-for-fed-to-be-audited/Economists and Labor Leaders Call for Fed to be Audited
Urge Rep. Barney Frank and... more
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I love the Information Age because we can fully cite the lies and misdirection of our so-called representatives ...I love the Information Age because we can fully cite the lies and misdirection of our... more
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The U.S. Federal Reserve stepped up its consumer protection efforts for the second time in less than a week on Monday, proposing to limit the ability of gift card issuers to impose excessive fees. The Fed proposed banning any fees for the first year, and limiting gift card issuers to one fee per month if the card is not used for at least a year. It also requires clear disclosure to the consumer about possible penalties.Last week the central bank banned overdraft fees on automated-teller-machine and debit-card transactions unless consumers have actively selected an overdraft protection service.
(Daly, C. B., 2009, November 16, par.1-2)
“The rules would protect consumers from certain unexpected costs and would require that gift card terms and conditions be clearly stated,” the Fed said in a press release. The rules would also prohibit the cards from expiring before five years have passed from the date the card was issued or five years from the date additional funds were added to the card. Gift cards are essentially an interest free loan to the issuer from the purchaser.
(Daly, C. B., 2009, November 16, par.3-5)
The Fed has come under fire in recent months for not taking an active role in its duty to protect consumers. The Obama administration has proposed creating a separate Consumer Financial Protection Agency that would focus exclusively on consumer issues. Congress still has to approve its creation.
(Daly, C. B., 2009, November 16, par.6-7)
Source links:
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=1332621674&play=1
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wirestory?id=9094804&page=1
http://theretailsector.wordpress.com/2009/11/17/fed-proposes-new-rules-for-gift-cards/The U.S. Federal Reserve stepped up its consumer protection efforts for the second... more
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jmsrmy
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added this
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5 days ago
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11/9/2009 Ron Paul’s Weekly Update on Healthcare, Congress, Government, and the Constitution.
***This article has been chosen as a discussion topic on PFP Movement Radio, http://www.blogtalkradio.com/pfpmovementradio Friday night at 6pm-8pm. Please Call In To The Show, 347-633-9636. COMMENTS will be included in the show so feel free to discuss or ask questions here on current.com as they will be addressed during the show. This article will also air on Freedom Hour Saturday at 9pm-10pm on Movement TV http://www.peacefreedomprosperity.com/?page_id=36***11/9/2009 Ron Paul’s Weekly Update on Healthcare, Congress, Government, and the... more
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"This is not a time for timidity," Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) said Tuesday as he unveiled what he called a "sweeping, bold, comprehensive, long overdue" restructuring of the financial regulatory regime - one that, unlike competing proposals, limits rather than expands the powers of the Federal Reserve.
Specifically, Dodd's bill takes away the Fed's regulatory power in some key areas. "I really want the Federal Reserve to get back to its core enterprises," Dodd said. "We saw over the last number of years when they took on consumer protection responsibilities and the regulation of bank holding companies, it was an abysmal failure. So the idea that we're going to go back and expand those roles and functions at the expense of the vitality of the core functions that they're designed to perform is going in the wrong way."
The bill would also end the practice of allowing banks to select the directors of the regional Federal Reserve banks. That was a last-minute addition that came after the committee's top Republican, Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, told HuffPost he wanted to end the conflict of interest.
Dodd's bill is comprehensive, coming in at over 1,000 pages and tackling topics from derivatives reform to consumer financial protection.
more at link...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/10/dodds-proposed-financial_n_352235.html"This is not a time for timidity," Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd... more
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Financial firms have long lobbied the Federal Reserve, high-minded maker of monetary policy. But the Fed's foray into lending during the financial crisis this year has opened it up to lobbying from niche industries like recreational boat manufacturers, rental car companies, and -- Dunkin' Donuts?
Indeed. Dunkin' Brands, parent company of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, began lobbying the Fed in the second quarter of this year, according to lobbying disclosure reports filed with Congress.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/10/why-does-dunkin-donuts-lo_n_349048.htmlFinancial firms have long lobbied the Federal Reserve, high-minded maker of monetary... more
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Pfizer and Lilly lead a parade of U.S. companies that have paid $7 billion in penalties after promoting drugs for uses not approved by the FDA. This unlawful behavior may not end until prosecutors force a drugmaker into bankruptcy.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=a4yV1nYxCGoA&pos=10Pfizer and Lilly lead a parade of U.S. companies that have paid $7 billion in... more
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This is beyond outrageous.
Wwhile pregnant women and children with respiratory problems are struggling to get access to scarce doses of the H1N1 vaccine, bankers at Goldman Sachs have been given a stockpile of 200 doses of the vaccine. That's the same amount allotted to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York.
With hospitals, schools and community health clinics in desperate need of the H1N1 vaccine, it's unconscionable that Wall Street can just cut in line and secure scarce doses for bankers.
Goldman Sachs received over $1 billion in taxpayer bailouts during the financial meltdown. But that's not all. It was the single-largest recipient of taxpayer money in the AIG bailout, receiving almost $13 billion once AIG's positions were unwound.
And now, analysts predict Goldman Sachs could give its bankers as much as $23 billion in bonuses, while the rest of country struggles through the jobless "recovery."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/05/swine-flu-vaccine-banks-g_n_346907.htmlThis is beyond outrageous.
Wwhile pregnant women and children with respiratory... more
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Commissions are often created to defer tough decisions; to forge a consensus around a hard solution to a genuine problem; and, rarely, actually to delve into underlying facts. The Angelides commission (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/16/business/16inquiry.html?_r=1), officially chartered by Congress this summer as the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, has the chance to be that third kind of commission, gathering the missing empirical data on fundamental questions that can guide future decision-making.
We already know an awful lot more about what happened last year than we did in 1932, when the legendary Pecora commission(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pecora_Commission) was created to investigate the Wall Street crash. We know the fundamental violations of sound banking practice and regulatory failures that brought us to the precipice. Yet there are still critical areas that would benefit from the commission's detailed analysis: four structural issues that have not yet received adequate attention and one particular transaction that is still highly ambiguous.Commissions are often created to defer tough decisions; to forge a consensus around a... more
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We need to know who the Fed deals with, what they buy, how much they spend, and who benefits. As good as any step towards Fed transparency is, anything less than full disclosure at this point is unacceptable.
Let's see this transparency we were promisedWe need to know who the Fed deals with, what they buy, how much they spend, and who... more
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Via National People's Action, here is some footage from the protesters at the ABA conference. From the footage, it's clear there are some strong emotions from the protesters.
At one point a protester grabs a megaphone and says:
"The American Bankers Association has helped loosen the rules that protect us, allowing the unfettered greed that has brought us to the brink of a recession. And for those bankers who are members and support the ABA's war against the working and middle class, shame on you!"
The crowd soon begins chanting "Shame On You!" in unison.
Via Progress Illinois' Twitter feed, here's more video of Sen. Durbin's speech. In this section, he calls for a "showdown" with Wall Street.
According to the Twitter feeds of National People's Action and the SEIU, the protesters are headed to the ABA's "Roaring '20s"-themed cocktail party. (Perhaps the ABA is not aware of the irony of having such an event.)
Sen. Dick Durbin spoke in front of the protesters earlier today. Here's a clip from the video, in which Durbin tells the story of homeowner who was struggling to stay in her home -- and was apparently talked into agreeing to a seemingly atrocious mortgage. The woman's mortgage was riddled with hidden fees and by, "the types of things even a Wall Street lawyer couldn't explain to anyone," Durbin said.
The American Bankers Association's annual convention in Chicago has become the scene for a series of major protests, which are set to continue through Tuesday. Dubbed "the Showdown in Chicago." (http://www.showdowninchicago.org/index.html) (Check back here frequently for updates on the protests.)
Groups like the National People's Action, the Service Employees International Union, Americans For Financial Reform and the AFL-CIO are expected to turn out with thousands of protesters. Sen. Richard Durbin (D - Illinois) is scheduled to address the protesters Sunday evening. Conference speakers include Newt Gingrich, conservative columnist George Will and FDIC chairman Sheila Bair.
Check out these photographs of the "Showdown in Chicago," taken by organizers of the protest.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/25/showdown-in-chicago-prote_n_333245.htmlVia National People's Action, here is some footage from the protesters at the ABA... more
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A senior administration official said on Sunday that after extensive consultations with Treasury Department officials, Representative Barney Frank, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, would introduce legislation as early as this week. The measure would make it easier for the government to seize control of troubled financial institutions, throw out management, wipe out the shareholders and change the terms of existing loans held by the institution.A senior administration official said on Sunday that after extensive consultations... more
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Ron Paul appears on The Tavis Smiley Show to discuss the war in Afghanistan and ending the Federal Reserve.Ron Paul appears on The Tavis Smiley Show to discuss the war in Afghanistan and ending... more
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I'm watching this right now. It looks pretty good so far, and you can watch the full length movie here.
Fall Of The Republic documents how an offshore corporate cartel is bankrupting the US economy by design. Leaders are now declaring that world government has arrived and that the dollar will be replaced by a new global currency.
President Obama has brazenly violated Article 1 Section 9 of the US Constitution by seating himself at the head of United Nations' Security Council, thus becoming the first US president to chair the world body.
A scientific dictatorship is in its final stages of completion, and laws protecting basic human rights are being abolished worldwide; an iron curtain of high-tech tyranny is now descending over the planet.
A worldwide regime controlled by an unelected corporate elite is implementing a planetary carbon tax system that will dominate all human activity and establish a system of neo-feudal slavery.I'm watching this right now. It looks pretty good so far, and you can watch the full... more
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Listen up people, pay attention to these bills. The Federal Reserve is in my opinion the greatest threat to the United States, our freedoms and liberties given to us by the Constitution.
Read "End The Fed" if you want to catch up on all of this.Listen up people, pay attention to these bills. The Federal Reserve is in my opinion... more
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This video is about Plans to collapse the economy of United States and Enslave and eliminate most of the population, but beware this is a plan for the rest of the world, watch and find the truth, if you don't believe it then at least research what is being said before allowing your ignorance to take over.
Some things are just to simple to see.This video is about Plans to collapse the economy of United States and Enslave and... more
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The directors of the Federal Reserve regional banks are selected by the very banks that the Fed is supposed to regulate. It's a bizarre entanglement of interests that helps explain the poor state of regulatory affairs on Wall Street.
And it's something that Richard Shelby -- the highest-ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee -- wants to change.
"It's an obvious conflict of interest. It reaches back to the 1913 act" that created the Fed, Shelby told HuffPost. "It's basically a case where the banks are choosing or having a big voice in choosing their regulator. It's unheard of. That is not widely known to the American people. It will be."
It's the kind of situation, Shelby said, that doesn't withstand public scrutiny. "It's something I'm very interested in changing, and I think the more it is illuminated, when people see what it is, they will see because it goes right back to the failure of the Federal Reserve to be a first-class regulator, and the role they played in the debacle," he said.
Shelby's vote is by far the most important on the GOP side when it comes to banking regulation reform. If a Democratic plan can get his support, it can generally become law. That Shelby is proposing the idea himself gives it a significant chance of passage.
...More...The directors of the Federal Reserve regional banks are selected by the very banks... more
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