hi all. some of the more astute among you may have noticed that I have a bazillion links on the left of my blog. finally, my links runneth over. I tried to add a new one tonite, and then it wouldnt add. I presume this is because I have too many links. of course salon wouldnt be so kind as to tell me what the max limit is, or that there is a limit, or have an easy way to reorganize links or whatever. what, me complain? hey, you get what you pay for.

the big section that is spiralling out of control is "economic warfare". why I call it "economic warfare" is a long story that would be understood only by hard core conspiracy theorists. however, its ripe for "refactoring" as they say in the software biz. it looks like the big section to extract is on the federal reserve. so, here we go. an interesting way to build an essay-- one link at a time, until they spill over....

the federal reserve was basically installed in 1913 by an "act of congress". how well the fed has managed the economy is mostly a matter of political perspective. my perspective, mostly libertarian, is that the fed is a massively parasitical institution, possibly at least as much as the other great ones such as the military industrial complex (aka pentagon), that has defied oversight and accountability and transparency for decades. its very origination is as one of the most undemocratic, secretive institutions that has ever existed in the history of mankind.

so obama wonder-boy ran under a platform of Transparency, and I see he's managed to make a few feeble gestures in that direction. but how "strong" is obama? is he anything akin to an irresistible force? so far, his will, despite strong populist support, is far from irresistible, quite to the contrary he is often looking like he is spinally-challenged. but, I do like to think that the drive for transparency in government is an irresistible force that transcends obama's own feeble meanderings in that direciton...

if obama was an irresistible force, we could find out what happens when an irrestible force meets an immovable object. that immovable object is the Federal Reserve that in its history, easily defies presidents that attempt to touch it. so far, the federal reserve is clearly much more an immovable object than obama is an irresistible force.

you might think the federal reserve is a deadly boring topic. of course it is. thats exactly what  the elites want you to believe and feel. but-- do you care how much money is in your wallet? do you care how much groceries cost? do you care if you have a job? do you care if your home is being foreclosed?

there may not seem to be a connection, but the normally docile, compliant, even-at-times politically-comatose americans are starting to see the connection. it takes the worst recession of maybe half a century to figure it out, but even Joe Sixpack can eventually smell a rat.

as they say in sports, "dont take your eye off the ball." the public is easily distracted by the scandal-or-decoy-du-jour and fails to notice the federal reserve. the bottom line however is that the Fed controls the US bottom line. if it is mismanaged, then we all suffer, possibly catastrophically. we are now the economic laughingstock of the entire world, and the federal reserve management has a lot to do with that. recessions come and go, but bad management and corruption are transcendant human conditions....

* * *

a good introduction to the fed & its influence, or rather tentacle-like control over the money system can be found in ellen browns book & her online articles.[1] maybe you'd just like the trailer version. as one article title goes, "the federal reserve: instigating crisis since 1913".[26] and thats a more favorable review. try [39] that calls it "the dark hole of democracy". to say the least.

the worst conclusions are that its basically an out-of-control parasitical monster. it doesnt help that even its head Bernanke can remember or divulge where a half-trillion dollars went to .. although it was foreign banks...[38] but that little factoid was well concealed from the public. who said in response, "what else is on tv?"

75% of americans support an audit of the fed.[2] so then, why should it happen? of course, just because the public is overwhelmingly in favor of something [in this case provably quite sensible and rational], has never caused congress to act on "the will of the people". in fact some of the washington elites sometimes take great pride in their disdain of popular opinion....

the hero in this story is Ron Paul who was pushing for greater fed transparency and accountability long before it was fashionable by the latest massive economic disaster. he's got excellent books out and authored the house bill on the subject. at this point, it hasnt yet passed the house but there is strong support there. however, it seems likely the bill would get highly watered down in the senate. [3-11]

ron paul himself says, "audit the fed, then end it" [10]. and other experts suggest or assert that a thorough audit would make a shutdown inevitable [12]. I say, I secretly sympathize, but they are jumping the gun. just getting a REAL FULL AUDIT of the fed would be the event of an entire century. the fed has NEVER BEEN AUDITED IN ITS ENTIRE CENTURY-LONG LIFETIME. one thing at a time. those who say that the fed should be ended can easily be branded as extremists by the reactionaires.

* * *

and look at the list of reactionaries, its so convenient. they all signed a petition that said the fed has to be private and unauditable or the sky will cave in.[28]  either that or their bonuses might be affected... this is just the least of the fed's tricks. we are talking about an entrenched, parasitical institution that has escaped extraction, and even largely mere confrontation, for an entire century.

the fed has lots of tricks up its sleeve to "push back"--HARD. they can reject public review.[24]  thats easy. they can hire an expensive, sophisticated PR wizard to stealth-lobby in its favor.[27] they can BUY favorable articles in economics journals, to the degree one writer argues they "bought the entire economics profession"!![25] they can threaten congress with the destruction of the economy!![29,30,31]  and the designated govt patsy/pushover/stooge Geithner [who used to work at goldman sachs, didnt he?] reliably parrots the propaganda.[32] maybe the federal reserve should have that little color-coded threat level monitoring device that the DHS invented years ago. is congress in session??? yikes, RED LEVEL THREAT!!!

there was a brief feint by the fed, PROPOSED BY OBAMA, that the fed would INCREASE its oversight power.[33-35]  that thankfully last I heard has been quietly tabled or maybe [hopefully] REJECTED by congress. but how could obama be so utterly stupid as to propose that?? he's basically a lawyer, right? I guess he didnt take any of those economics classes while he was at harvard.

there was a brief moment when obama had tremendous leverage, in the reconfirmation of bernanke. the moment passed as obama interrupted his hawaii vacation to reappoint bernanke. talk about kissing the ring on the finger. the senate also had a chance to delay the confirmation and discuss the ISSUES at stake. anyway, I guess we know who's boss around here.[13-14] even obama and the congress, including the senate, are obviously totally mind-controlled by the propaganda.

here is where I end the play-by-play. Ive been collecting links for nearly a year, and its been a dynamic story. as they say in the news biz, "developing". I dont know whats gonna happen next. will the bill be watered down with p*ss in the senate? seems quite likely to me unless the dynamics change. I may add a new section & links here as new stuff happens.

I must admit Ive been mildly entertained to see it escalate to this level. Ive been studying the fed semi-seriously for about a decade, and the events of the last year are totally unprecedented and would have been inconceivable just over a year ago. but the cynic in me says, "this is as far as its gonna go". the public is just too uneducated and apathetic, the politicians too shortsighed, smallminded and self-serving, etcetera... as they say, "you get the government you deserve"....

* * *

[1]
Web of Debt, The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free, by Ellen Hodgson
http://www.webofdebt.com/

[2]
Fed Audit Supported By 75% Of Americans: Survey
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/30/fed-audit-supported-by-75_n_247765.html

[3]
Audit the Fed -- transpartisan coalition for greater transparency
http://www.auditthefed.com/

[4]
Federal Reserve -- Anything Less Than Full Disclosure is Unacceptable, by Ron Paul
http://www.infowars.com/anything-less-than-full-disclosure-is-unacceptable/

[5]
Grayson calls on American public to ‘Unmask the Fed’
http://www.infowars.com/grayson-calls-on-american-public-to-unmask-the-fed/

[6]
End the Fed, Save the Dollar: Ron Paul
http://www.cnbc.com/id/32881898

[7]
A Review of "End the Fed" by Ron Paul
http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/reviews/books/1860-a-review-of-end-the-fed-by-ron-paul

[8]
Make Ron Paul a Super-Hero! Pow! Splat!
http://conspiracycards.com/Ron_Paul_Action.htm

[9]
Fed Up Ron Paul Audit the Federal Reserve.
http://www.forbes.com/2009/05/15/audit-the-fed-opinions-contributors-ron-paul.html

[10]
Audit the Fed, Then End It! [by Ron Paul on HR1207 bill]
http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul529.html

[11]
Exclusive Conversation With Ron Paul: The Future Of The Federal Reserve
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/capital-commerce/2009/06/24/exclusive-conversation-with-ron-paul-the-future-of-the-federal-reserve.html

[12]
Fed Would Be Shut Down If It Were Audited, Expert Says
http://www.cnbc.com/id/31204170

[13]
Ron Paul, Alan Grayson: Senate Should Not Confirm Bernanke Until Fed Opens Its Books
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/07/ron-paul-alan-grayson-ask_n_313055.html

[14]
Re-Appointed Fed Chief Ben Bernanke Didn't Get Us Out of the Economic Crisis, He Helped Cause It
http://www.alternet.org/workplace/142257/re-appointed_fed_chief_ben_bernanke_didn%27t_get_us_out_of_the_economic_crisis%2C_he_helped_cause_it/

[15]
U.S. Senator Slams Washington Post Defense Of Fed Secrecy
http://www.infowars.com/u-s-senator-slams-washington-post-defense-of-fed-secrecy/

[16]
Senate Update on Audit the Fed legislation
http://www.infowars.com/senate-update-on-audit-the-fed-legislation/

[17]
Congress Pushing for Federal Reserve Audit
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/06/30-12

[18]
Hill wants reins on Fed
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0609/23911.html

[19]
House Pushes For Sweeping Audit Of The Fed 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/25/house-pushes-for-sweeping_n_299972.html

[20]
House of Representatives to Hold Audit the Fed Hearings
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS247683+09-Sep-2009+BW20090909

[21]
Frank: Bill Mandating "Complete Audit" Of The Fed [Probably] Will Pass House In Fall
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/28/frank-bill-mandating-comp_n_271384.html

[22]
Bernanke Stutters, Stammers And Shakes His Way Through Questions On Audit The Fed Bill 
http://www.infowars.com/bernanke-stutters-stammers-and-shakes-his-way-through-questions-on-audit-the-fed-bill/

[23]
Call for Fed Transparency Grows Louder
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/07/15-5

[24]
Federal Reserve rejects request for public review 
http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/09/fed-rejects-geithner-request-for-public-review/

[25]
Priceless: How The Federal Reserve Bought The Economics Profession 
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/07/priceless-how-the-federal_n_278805.html

[26]
The Federal Reserve: Instigating Crisis Since 1913
http://www.minyanville.com/articles/fed-bernanke-bubble/index/a/24208

[27]
Fed to Hire PR Wizard to Fight Against HR 1207
http://www.infowars.com/fed-to-hire-pr-wizard-to-fight-against-hr-1207/

[28]
These Are The People Who Do Not Want The Fed’s Veil Lifted
http://www.infowars.com/these-are-the-people-who-do-not-want-the-feds-veil-lifted/

[29]
Federal Reserve Threatens Congress Over HR 1207
http://www.infowars.com/federal-reserve-threatens-congress-over-hr-1207/

[30]
Bernanke fearmongers that Fed audit would be ‘takeover’ by Congress, trigger economic collapse
http://www.infowars.com/bernanke-congress-audit-would-be-takeover-pressure-on-fed-monetary-policy-would-trigger-economic-collapse/

[31]
Racketeering 101: Bailed Out Banks Threaten Systemic Collapse If Fed Discloses Information
http://www.infowars.com/racketeering-101-bailed-out-banks-threaten-systemic-collapse-if-fed-discloses-information/

[32]
Geithner: Auditing the Fed is a “line that we don’t want to cross”
http://www.infowars.com/geithner-auditing-the-fed-is-a-line-that-we-dont-want-to-cross/

[33]
Don't Get Fooled Again -- The Fed botched banking regulation once already. So why does Obama want to give it more power? 
http://www.slate.com/id/2221898/

[34]
Some Lawmakers Question Expanded Reach for the Fed 
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/18/business/18regulate.html?_r=1

[35]
Federal Reserve To Be Given Sweeping New Powers
http://www.infowars.com/federal-reserve-to-be-given-sweeping-new-powers/

[36]
Opposing view: Fed needs more oversight -- Bernanke’s abysmal management raises risk of hyperinflation. By Ron Paul 
http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2009/08/opposing-view-fed-needs-more-oversight.html#more

[37]
What doesn't the Fed want you to know? MSNBC's Dylan Ratigan, Rolling Stone's Toure and former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer discuss.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/32124060#32124060

[38]
Bernanke: “I Don’t Know” Which Foreign Banks Were Given Half a Trillion
http://www.infowars.com/bernanke-i-don%E2%80%99t-know-which-foreign-banks-were-given-half-a-trillion/

[39]
A Dark Hole of Democracy: How the Fed Prints Money Out of Thin Air
http://www.alternet.org/politics/141373/a_dark_hole_of_democracy%3A_how_the_fed_prints_money_out_of_thin_air/

[40]
The Fed Under Fire: Holding One of DC's Most Secretive Institutions Accountable [8m video]
http://www.alternet.org/blogs/video/141233/the_fed_under_fire%3A_holding_one_of_dc%27s_most_secretive_institutions_accountable/