Our Mini Documentary Is Complete

Dear Infowarriors, our latest mini documentary is complete, and no sooner than it was posted to Youtube it was silenced and banned. Thanks to this kind of censorship the video now appears on our servers, and is available for you to view outside the draconian control of the "Tube Mafia.". Enjoy it. (Double Click Video For Full Screen)

Glenn Beck Vs. Richard Blumenthal

Blumenthal, our beloved Attorney General and Hamden's own Glenn Beck go head to head in the video below. The subject AIG bonuses, CT Senator Chris Dodd (who wrote the AIG bonus loophole)and the logic of the fiasco. This is a very heated and opinionated debate that promises the invocation of passionate and yet serious issues stemming from CT.

Chris Dodd Offers An Alternative Solution To Banking Crisis

Chairman Christopher Dodd of the Senate Banking Committee offered an alternative Monday to the financial rescue plan of the administration of President George W. Bush aimed at giving the U.S. Treasury an equity stake when it helps companies burdened by debt.

Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, was circulating a draft of his bill as Congress sought to deal with a financial crisis that has been called the worst for the United States since the Great Depression.

The Bush administration is proposing a $700 billion plan to buy devalued assets from investment firms to keep the financial system from coming to a halt.

Democrats have pledged to act quickly on the measure, even as they seek to create an oversight structure, limit the compensation of executives at the companies benefiting from the rescue and provide mortgage relief for struggling borrowers.

"We cannot just turn over $700 billion in taxpayer money and not insist that that taxpayer is going to be protected in this," Dodd told reporters Sunday.

"We need this to be clean and quick, and we need to get it in place," Paulson said Sunday in an interview with ABC News.

The legislation would require Treasury to take an equity stake equal to the purchase price of the assets being bought. If the company is not publicly traded, the government would take senior debt instead, placing it in the front of the line of debt holders for repayment in the event of a bankruptcy.

Dodd's proposal also would create a five-member oversight board to supervise the Treasury secretary's purchase and sale of distressed mortgage debt.

It would consist of the chairmen of the Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Securities and Exchange Commission as well as two members from the financial industry designated by congressional leaders.

The board would be authorized to set up a so-called credit review company consisting of Treasury employees to study the soundness of the purchases. Under the plan, the government would be required to obtain an equity stake equal to the value of the debt that is purchased from the companies, including those whose shares are not publicly traded. The Treasury secretary would also be required to issue weekly public reports on the amount of assets bought and sold by the U.S.

Dodd is proposing to penalize executives who take "inappropriate or excessive" risks. The executive compensation and severance packages could be reduced if that is "in the public interest," the proposal says. It would also force executives to give back profits they earned that were based on company accounting measures that are later found to be inaccurate.

The Republican presidential candidate, Senator John McCain, who has supported giving shareholders a bigger say in executive compensation in the past, said Monday that taxpayers should not pay for "golden parachutes" for officers of companies that have crumbled in upheaval on Wall Street.

"The senior executives of any firm that is bailed out by Treasury should not be making more than the highest paid government official," McCain said at a campaign event in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

The president is the highest paid federal official, with a salary of $400,000 a year.

(This Story Is a NYT Reprint)

Economy Gives Mixed Signals

Connecticut resident, Glenn Beck often expresses great concern over the national economy. While many view Beck as a "Drama Queen" or an alarmist, that group is becoming the minority.

There is nothing more difficult, for any political official running for office, than to have to constantly address the negative elements of our great country. Our nation has always been the envy of the world with massive wealth, the worlds largest banks, and the highest standard of living.

Today our Federal government is now reaping the comeuppance of over 30 years of bad decisions. The punishment, unfortunately is not only theirs to bear but ours as well. How does main street affect your street? Well it is not hard to see, all you have to do is ask your neighbor what is going on with their stocks, 401K's, the value of their home, and the purchasing power of their dollars. We could then also pose the question has your income kept up with inflation? The answers are almost always somber and sobering, yet our citizens are correct when they say these problems are now so great they are beyond what our local or state leaders can repair.

Former governor Ventura on a GCN radio show told his listening audience that in his opinion and in the opinion of the economists he spoke to the only way we could begin to rectify our economy is to restore faith in the U.S. Dollar. This can occur by first addressing our national debt now estimated at 9.6 trillion dollars, ending our costly wars, and next (in my opinion) raising interest rates to attract foreign investors who have dollar wealth.

The weakening dollar has been blamed for the high cost of everything, while our Federal Leaders in Congress are blaming speculators on Wall Street for driving up energy prices, the reality is that this is only part of the problem. The weak U.S. dollar now fetching a record low of 1.60 Euro is as responsible for its loss of purchasing power as the Wall Street speculators.

America has now sadly reached a point where manufacturing has shrunk to less than 10% of all jobs, our banks are failing or are in serious trouble, Americans finding it difficult to afford their homes, health care is all but affordable, a nursing crisis exists, we import 70% of our Oil creating a disturbing transfer of wealth to foreigners and our capitol is paralyzed by global corporations who has a vested interest in eliminating our national sovereignty in favor of global trade agreements.

Television, and our American news reporters are nothing more than the spawn of "puppet masters" who report trite that fails to connect with the true nature and gravity of our nations peril. While the media calms the public, and often outright mocks our national issues with hundreds of channels of game shows, soap opera's, music video's, reality shows, and slanted feudalistic opinion shows we are in a state of our greatest national crisis since 1930.

There was a time when our national prosperity was so great that we, as a society became victims of our own complacency, we made a public oath never to discuss religion or politics... absolute lunacy for anyone who knows that the founders of America built our country with the moral foundations of religion and every citizen was either a minuteman or a freedom fighter vying to break the death grip of British occupation.

Today we have a population that polls 70% against the war in Iraq and yet one of the top Republican contenders John McCain vowed to keep us in Iraq for 100 years if necessary . Things are strange, and reality is often stranger than fiction. The future is posing challenges that have been all but forgotten but thoughts of preparedness, and survival are increasingly on peoples minds.

What you decide to do for yourself and family are entirely up to you, but during these hard and unpredictable times we can take nothing for granted. We need to be proactive and preemptive in our future plans for our families. Not being prepared for an economic anomaly can severely impede our quality of life.

Jim Rogers Warns Of Fed. Induced Dollar Disaster.

This has been a topic that refuses to go away, every time I check the financial markets, turn on CNBC, listen to Glenn Beck, David Walker (GAO) or Lou Dobbs the message is always alarming. The most upbeat and positive commentators are now beginning to have a hard time with this issue, even after they paint the best economic picture they can to keep our hope alive in America the continual burden of "in your face" problems and bad news is widespread.

Jim Rogers is the latest hard hitter and brilliant economist to step forward and say "enough is enough" let the banks "fail." The Fed in his opinion has not only removed any and all consequences of their banking friends egregious criminal actions but has gone further and sweetened the deal with taxpayer printed money totalling in the hundreds of billions. This not only saved the big banks, but entitled the top brass at those institutions to keep their multi-million dollar bonuses, lucrative personal empires and guaranteed their future employment in the next generation of investing, banking and lending.

Rogers has called for the Federal Reserve to be abolished, and said that Bernanke was not elected by anyone but has taken matters upon himself to spend billions of taxpayer money... your money without your consent. Well how is it your money their taking? After all there is no one at your house or in your bank accounts right? Wrong! You are paying at the gas pump, you are paying through your property taxes, you are paying at the supermarket, and you are paying in your retirement accounts. Essentially they are stealing the value of your money by printing more of it as fast as they possibly can making it worth less under the basic principle of supply and demand.

Watch the video today it is yet another dire warning from a notable market expert and American investor concerned for the only thing left holding the middle class together in America... "The Almighty Dollar."

Dollar Plunging Faster Than Thought Possible

The U.S. Dollar is plunging faster than I imagined. The downward spiral has got even Mexican migrant workers upset as they send their money home only to find out it is worth less and less.

Experts are indicating today on the GCN network, or the "Freedom Radio" link on the main page of this site, that anyone with large deposits of dollar based assets need to begin their diversification of their assets into hard assets, such as Gold, Silver, Real Estate, or things of value that the Federal Reserve cannot create out of thin air.

Some time ago I have written that Real Estate is one of the best safeguards a person can have at the moment, anyone with large debt should consider refinancing at lower interest rates and fixing those rates for as long as possible. If you are able to pay your debt my position has been to not worry so much about fixed interest debt in lieu of accelerated inflation. As the dollar becomes worth less it is my bet that debt will become cheaper and more devalued. On the other hand, fixed assets in real estate will eventually grow as construction costs skyrocket. This scenario, in my opinion will come back to benefit everyone who avoids foreclosure. It may take several years for the market to equalize and get the economy back on track but when it does you hopefully will be happy you held on to your home.

One major concern at the moment for me is energy and food inflation, both of which are married. As energy goes up so does food prices, money may not keep up with inflation. As an American Italian one thing I learned is the importance of storing food during hard times. Should the U.S. Dollar drop another 20% it may be a good idea to get a jump on food prices and pack a pantry for yourself and family.

On a final note, I am not a financial advisor, always consult your personal expert when making major financial decisions. My situation may be unique and may not directly apply to you. This is my opinion only.

David Walker Quits GAO 5 Years Early!

Recently I learned that David Walker of the GAO has quit. This is significant since he was and still is the head of the GAO making him America's chief accountant. While Walker has not left under a flare of protest, he did mention that he attained all of his goals except for one.

The goal he has not attained, was one aimed at Congress to limit spending and take its accounting seriously. He was so frustrated with Congress and their avoidance of the spending issue that he took his message to the public. In his own words, and after many speaking engagements Walker has said that Americans are hungry for "two things, the truth and leadership."

One point worth mentioning here is that Walkers economic calculations show a dismal economic future for America some 20 years from now. They do not specifically take into consideration the market malaise of today. With these factors added it is my belief, that grossly irresponsible monetary policy, wars, and a brutal business climate, sadly could hasten Walkers reality 5 to 10 years early. Jobs, Gold and the value of the Dollar all need to be watched in addition to deficit spending if we are to get a true thumbnail picture of what lies ahead.

One other point to add is that Walkers debt figures are Federal only, these do not include our state debt mired at 14.7 Billion and local debt in our towns and municipalities. When these figures are added together the picture of America's economic future crosses the line into an insurmountable problem that can only be solved through courageous leadership and drastic reform. It will take a special breed of politician, and a very informed public who must be willing to accept that only hard choices will be available. Some doubt that Americans will make the financial concessions, and consequentially will only elect politicians that have no way of delivering on their public spending promises.

While I am very disappointed by Walkers exodus into a public venture, Walker has said he will fight to get Congress, and our next President, to get serious about Americas financial future. The below video was shot over six months ago and it encapsulates his message most eloquently. Although the video is old the message is still new and the same. Enjoy it, and share it freely.

Retiring Overseas Soon To Be Esoteric

As a young kid I grew up in Perugia Italy, a little town located in the province of Umbria. Umbria is a place made famous for food wine and Etruscan architecture. It was also the place that my father and brother chose to study veterinary medicine. Today both are doctors each with their own practice and my sister and I have gained a wealth of memories.

My mother was born in Sicily in a little town called San Fratello. The town was ancient when I visited there in the late seventies as It had no running water and an agrarian population that subsided by raising farm animals and growing food crops. My personal favorites, were grapes, figs, olives, prosciutto, and lots of wine.

This life was very unique, especially when compared to the grandiose lifestyle back in the United States. America being relatively new had large streets, and great big skyscrapers in every city. Italy was tight, and catered to the ancient Roman lifestyle of horse drawn carriages. Today the eco-friendly population has adapted modern day automotive technology to cater to the tight cobblestone streets that are the signature of the Roman antiquity. The photo below is of a 500 the car we used as a family back in the late 70's.

My mother and father had grown very fond of Italy as a result of their wonderful experiences, and today, have thought about retiring there. They are both already in their retirement years and have found themselves struggling to reallocate their assets in order to achieve their retirement objectives.

Like countless others they have had difficulty selling their business real-estate, have lost substantial sums of money in the market post 9/11 and today were once again reminded that America's falling dollar is making my mothers birthplace more unattainable. The reality is, that only those people who are capable of incurring such staggering losses, like the super rich, will have access to an overseas retirement.

All too many people and businesses have already fled the country, some businesses like Pfizer in Groton Ct. cannot flee fast enough as they have recently accelerated the closing of their plant. America has fallen upon hard times for reasons that few people understand or really know, but put simply our country has borrowed more than it could afford to pay and is now suffering the dire consequences.

As our nation continues its march toward a recession, or possibly a recession or worse, we all pay. We pay for our leaders mistakes at the gas pump, when we travel to other countries, when we sell our home, when we buy food, when we go to collect our social security, when we buy a car, pay our Dr's bill, or collect our 401K's and IRA's.

The most horrible position a nation can be in is where we are headed now, "Stagflation" a condition where a stagnating economy and inflation co-exist. This is the hardest condition for our leaders to cure because adjusting interest rates, and manipulating the money supply no longer work after a certain point. To put this into perspective imagine a see-saw where you fix one end of the problem and the other end gets worse and vice versa.

The next six months will determine what we as individuals will need to do to realign our lives for the new America. Should the economy continue to deteriorate then we will need to compensate in advance to prepare for a prolonged period of harder times. I will comment more on this as the new CPI or inflation figures emerge.

Rethinking Wall Street, The Federal Reserve Vs. "Laissez Fare" Economics.

John Maynard Keynes, Milton Friedman and Murray Rothbard, started this ongoing debate many years ago. Each argued the the merits and misery of two competing economic philosophies. "Laissez Fare" Economics is viewed as Libertarian in principle, because it begs the government to leave its hand out of the economy and trust business to flourish on its own.

The principle of "Laissez Fare" is an economic system that economically challenges people who are unwilling to work, are lazy or lack the basic self respect and pride needed in the furtherance of their life. It does not, however, allow for the rise of Fascist Oligarchs and Monopolies. In principle it leaves the running of our commerce to ourselves in a manner that ensures free and open trade with all nations.

Our current economic system as seen by the Federal Reserves intervention today was a display of unparalleled meddling, a desperate move to stop the volatile market decline on Wall Street. This interventionist policy takes the free choice out of the hands of people like you and I who have our own principles and ideas on commerce.

The Fed Funds Rate cut of .75% was amazing in calming the U.S. market, but was troubling for the U.S. dollar as those international nations who trade with us begged us not to cut the rate. Many nations already are burdened with dollars that become worth less every day, dollars some nations in Opec are refusing to accept.

There is an illusion going on that only a handful of people see, an illusion that magically keeps an appearance that our stock market losses are low. It does this with inflated dollars that are worth less. To put this into a simple perspective imagine you purchased a new car for $10,000.00 and after driving it for ten years you sell it for $12,000.00. You are under the illusion that you just made 20% on the sale of your car. What would you then do if you found out that $12,000.00 today only could purchase what $3,000.00 purchased ten years ago?

The math is simple, Inflation robbed you of $9,000.00 or 90% of the original purchase price. The real horror about inflation is that many Americans are becoming savvy of the Federal Reserves tricks. The Fed concerned about letting their inflation scam out of the bag, found a way not to include food and energy as part of their reported inflation figure. This is probably due to the negative and embarassing image image to the Fed that these wrecklessly inflated items represent. Thes Items, used most often by us, have artificially surged 10%-20% in price over the last year. You confusion over these "cooked books" is deliberate and amounts to nothing more than the science of aggregate Federal Grand Larceny of us the people.

To make things look even rosier our leaders enter America into treaties like NAFTA and GAFTA and Export our jobs and manufacturing to countries that have no labor unions, few human rights laws, and extreme poverty. We in turn are calmed into believing that these cheap toxic slave products is the true purchasing power of the dollar. Meanwhile inflation gets reported at an unbelievable 4.1% (Something to remember next time you buy a gallon of gas and milk.)

History always shows that in the end, the Federal Reserve Systems policy of creating money out of thin air fails, and fails hard. We have seen this in Germany with the Deuchmark and every other place on Earth where a policy of printing money for debt was ever undertaken.

Today's market volatility, is not over only delayed a while. Our country has made more debt and empty promises than it can afford to pay for. America is becoming a nation up for sale at the bargain price of desperation and failed economic policy. If we can recover from the horrific mistake of excessive debt, greed, broken promises, and our systematic attack on our right to exist as a nation, it will be several years of hardship gone by.

I personally believe that the Federal Reserve System has failed in its function and now is the time to press for a return to a "Laissez Fare" Economy with a sound monetary sytem.

Dow Plunges Again! Somebody Please Turn off My TV!

The stock market plunged again, this time over 300 points. Recession talk on Wall Street intensifies as a new breed of investors start looking to profit from the market going down.

Real Estate still remains weak, and inflation is "sky high." The local news today reminds us again that our city and schools are having a hard time keeping everyone happy. The state news is that a big LNG that no one wants is making progress, while in my mail my outrageous electric bill arrives.

On T.V. the Presidential primaries are anything but organized, with a different candidate winning in each state. Michigan, of course did not count as all the Democrats (except for Hillary) boycotted the ballot, and NH is still being recounted because the computers appeared as if they could not add properly. I was hoping to find a picture of a leaking dam with all of us running for cover but had no luck.

Suppose the right thing to do for our sanity is go about our lives, and make the best of things when we have a bad day.

To end my post today I will quote my 95 year old Italian Grandmother who said (Laughing) "Rocco stop thinking so hard if I was able to live through Hitler and WWII I am certain we can make it through this!."

Thank you grandma for that small bit of wisdom today.

Fed's Confiscate Private Bullion in Indiana.

Liberty Dollar Company Announcement
Thursday, November 15, 2007

Dear Liberty Dollar Supporters:

I sincerely regret to inform you that about 8 this morning a dozen FBI and Secret Service agents raided the Liberty Dollar office in Evansville, Indiana.

For approximately six hours they took all the gold, all the silver, all the platinum, and almost two tons of Ron Paul Dollars that were just delivered last Friday. They also took all the files and computers and froze our bank accounts.

We have no money. We have no products. We have no records to even know what was ordered or what you are owed. We have nothing but the will to push forward and overcome this massive assault on our liberty and our right to have real money as defined by the U.S. Constitution.

We should not be defrauded by the fake government money.

But to make matters worse, all the gold and silver that backs up the paper certificates and digital currency held in the vault at Sunshine Mint has also been confiscated. Even the dies for minting the gold and silver Libertys have been taken.

All this has happened even though Edmond C. Moy, the director of the U.S. Mint, acknowledged in a letter to a U.S. senator that the paper certificates did not violate Section 486 and were not illegal.

But the FBI and Secret Service took all the paper currency too.

The possibility of such action was the reason the Liberty Dollar was designed -- so that the vast majority of the money was in specie form and in the people's hands. Of the $20 million Liberty Dollars, only about a million is in paper or digital form.

I regret that if you are due an order, it may be some time until it will be filled, if ever. It now all depends on our actions.

Everyone who has an unfulfilled order or has digital or paper currency should band together for a class-action suit and demand redemption. We cannot allow the government to steal our money.

Please don't let this happen.

Many of you read the articles quoting the government and Federal Reserve officials saying the Liberty Dollar was legal. You did nothing wrong. You are legally entitled to your property. Let us use this terrible act to band together and further our goal -- to return America to a value-based currency.

Please forward this important alert so everyone who possesses or uses the Liberty Dollar is aware of the situation.

Please go here to sign up for the class action lawsuit and get your property back:

http://www.libertydollar.org/classaction/index.php

Thanks again for your support at this darkest time as the damn government and its dollar sinks to a new low.

Bernard von NotHaus, Monetary Architect
Liberty Dollar
Evansville, Indiana

For Some time now I have adopted the position that CT should issue its own currency as a safety net against the dollar. This video below is yet one more example on how well it would work. This again has also been legally done in New Hampshire, but not insofar as actually being backed by something other than an "Empty Promise" from our Federal Government who insists on oppressing the value of our money through inflation.

This video explains what Liberty Dollar stood for.

Milford's Home Values Holding or not?

Today the National Association of Realtors announced sluggish home sales due to the Credit and Lending markets being in turmoil. The National report indicated the average U.S. home price to be down to $211,700 for Q3 2007. at the end of 2004 the median home price in the U.S. was $221,000. This is apx. a 5% decline over the last 5 years.

These numbers are deceptive however, because they do not factor in what the U.S. dollar is worth in this global economy. When we factor in the value of the dollar five years ago we can clearly see the dollar declined in value against other major currencies. A decline in excess of 55% in real world Global economic value. When we consider this figure it is simple to see that the average U.S. home plunged to the equivalent of $95,265.00. While this may seem irrelevant to you, it is a real attractive deal for anyone buying a U.S. home in Euros. This is the true economic and masked deception the global economy uses to fool us into believing our markets are "Holding on."

One may wonder how did this happen? The answer is simple, it boils down to U.S. monetary policy, and the reliance on the Federal Reserve to print money out of "thin air" to pay our bills. America is the largest debtor nation on the planet now owing in excess of 9 Trillion, and some believe that we can no longer continue without debasing and counterfeiting money to pay bills. Greenspan, Walker of the GAO, and the IMF, have all indicated that the dollar is in trouble. There is even talk of America using a north American currency called the "Amero" to solve these problems.

Meanwhile, if you are a globalist America has just robbed the Global value of your home by debasing our currency on world markets. This practice, is not expected to end soon because our Political leaders at all levels of government continue to spend like "Drunken Sailors." The debased currency is fueling a cycle of inflation that is making every leader in America scramble for new and innovative ways to grab your last few bucks in new taxes. In short this is one part of Real Estate Globalism our leaders would prefer you not focus on.

Now lets talk a bit about our home values in Milford right here in town. The National Association of Realtors has listed the average home in Milford to be up 1.5% over the last five years. This I suppose is good news because the entire North East is down 10% comparatively. While we have seen the values of our homes go up and and down over the last few years we are now settled at $297,000. In 2008 The average homeowner will pay $4,653.00 in property tax. This also translates to a per capita tax of apx. $2,550 or your personal share of the city tax burden.

According to CRC a city profile research company the debt obligation per citizen in Milford was $1,888.00 in 1999. When we look at the debt growth due to State and national monetary challenges we soon realize that our personal tax obligations increased at apx 4.25% per year compounded. As compared to the CPI(Consumer Price Index) a figure used to asses normal economic inflationary cycles, this figure outpaces normal inflation for the Northeast by an estimated 1%. This would indicate to me that the city has adjusted its annual budget to meet the obligations of the existing services. The city has not cut back, and cannot cut back without eliminating jobs and or departments and services to alleviate tax burdens. Our Mayor Richitelli has held the line, but has not shrunk the size of the local government of which may be a bad idea since Milford is the largest employer in Town.

With these figures it is my opinion that any Mayoral candidate who states it is possible to cut taxes without compromising services, or city jobs is simply deceiving, not telling the truth, or has no understanding of the CPI relative to the City's tax needs.

Part of my campaign has been to promote and expand the ailing tax base. I believe that the best way we can rid ourselves of this Real Estate Tax Rut is to expand local commerce and encourage commercial development. The city also needs to audit frequently non contract labor, while ensuring new contracts are really beneficial and cost prudent. Lastly, we need to demand our Federal Income Tax dollars be apportioned back to us as the law requires. Not one cent of our Federal Income Tax helps a Milford resident with their personal tax burden. To learn more about this tax fraud read the Reagan era report issued by the "Grace Commission." Nothing has changed since then, other than we now have U.S. Congressman Ron Paul telling us the IRS is still not acting legally and should be eliminated.

On the state level I think CT should adopt a position of states rights, including distancing ourselves from the ailing "greenback." I believe that CT should issue its own statewide currency in the same manner that the "Berkshare Note" was issued in New Hampshire. With the constant and continued dire warnings of a debased dollar, CT has been more than warned. Creating an aggregate currency might be a good security measure for CT, so long as that new currency is not backed by the Dollar itself. It should also serve the purpose of hedging against the now struggling dollar. CT has last printed its own currency in the late 1800's in New London. If New Hampshire is able to have its own currency than I believe CT should be able to as well.

U.S. Dollar Decline "Red Alert."

The news on the U.S. Dollar today is daunting, Israel our largest Mideast ally demanded its loan payments be paid to them in Euro's. This marks yet another nation now added to the scores of nations joining the list. Nations that are losing faith in the U.S. Dollar.

This announcement has arrived shortly after the U.S. "Greenback" hit new record lows breaking a record of a $1.43 gainst the the Euro. Many central banks world wide have already and continue to diversify from the U.S. dollar.

The news today that triggered a "Red Alert" is a a dire warning from Rodrigo Rato, head of the International Monetary Fund who told the board of governors that the Dollar may suffer a rapid fall. This is due to the lack of assets backing up the dollar. Over the last five years the dollar has declined by over 50% in value.

The following video depicts a recent violent protest in washington against the IMF. While Fox is quick to discredit the protesters, keep in mind the points mentioned here.

What does this mean to you? This is my thought, as many of us know that most of the cheap products we enjoy are manufactured overseas. These products are expected to rise sharply in value creating inflation. This is is of serious concern because many Americans will be struggling with additional increases in Food and energy. This will make it more expensive to feed your family and keep warm this winter. To make this statement even more sad and frustrating "Bush" just massively cut the energy assistance program this winter leaving more American poor families children and elderly in the cold.

The dollar trap, will lead many people in town to begin overextending their credit to pay these increases. We always hope that our customers and employers will adjust prices and salaries to compensate for this inflation. Many employers will not be able to keep up and this will further expand our personal debt bubbles.

It is very important that in the coming year that we all not fall into the Debt trap. If that means taking more modest vacations, eating out less, and putting off the purchase of a more expensive home, renovation, or reduce utility usage, than do so.

Most big banks anticipating this coming dilemma have formed a superfund to share in the losses and many big banks are offering people struggling with debt a second chance.

Today I spoke with Countrywide officials who publicly announced that the have set aside money to finance a program to help people with Adjustable Rate Mortgages switch to fixed mortgages. They also have a Hope program for those who are already a few months behind on their home payments. They are eager to work with anyone who is at risk of losing their home.

This is particularly good news and I encourage anyone and everyone who can to take advantage of Countrywide's offer. There is one catch, however, if you have a fixed rate mortgage, or a high prepayment penalty, they will not be able to help you. The help they offer is generous but only able to help people partially. If you need to act act quickly.