Peter Schiff on Bloomberg

Here are two videos from Peter Schiff's recent appearance on Bloomberg. If you're not familiar with Peter Schiff, he is the owner of Euro Pacific Capital. He essentially predicted this economic crisis back in 2006, almost down to the time period. He believes that the dollar system is on the verge of collapse, due to the feverish pace in which the Federal Reserve is basically printing money, which will lead to a period of massive hyperinflation. He is a strong believer in the investment of gold.

President-elect urged to take up obesity law

http://www.gulfnews.com/world/U.S.A/10263668.html

With the list of unconstitutional bans growing in number by the day, it appears that some are wanting to push the envelope even further. The "think tank" Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) is pushing for President-Elect Obama to institute obesity laws, including increasing taxes on unhealthy food, a ban on advertising of unhealthy food in schools, and even funding to create a garden at every school. Best of all, they recommend the President enact this legislation in the most democratic way possible: the Executive Order (note my sarcasm).

What's the problem with trying to tackle the problem of obesity, you might ask? Nothing at all. I am all for taking steps to prevent obesity, it is obviously a huge problem. But the Federal government is not, and will never be, the answer to such a problem. Not only is it unconstitutional, it defies all logic. Do you want the Federal government in your refrigerator? Do you want nanny government to have even more influence at your children's school? I sure don't. Beyond that, when is the last time a Federal program actually solved (or avoided making worse) a problem within this country? The answer is never.

Soon, you may have to think twice before splurging on that Twinkie. Let's hope President Obama has enough foresight, and enough respect for the Constitution, to know that laws such as this trample on the Constitution and do a blatant disservice to individual freedom.

A Primer on our Money System

There are some serious misconceptions about how our money system works in the United States. If you were to ask the ordinary person about the money system their entire lives depend on, most have no idea what actually goes on, as proven by End the Fed's recent protest at Federal Reserve banks across the nation.

For this reason, I've compiled a list of my favorite, and well known, videos about how our financial system works, who controls it, and why it is cheating you ever step of the way. Hopefully this will serve to educate those who are still in the dark.

• The Creature from Jekyll Island - Probably the definitive video explaining the Federal Reserve System.
• The Money Masters - A look at how the International banking community has seized control of the United States.
• Zeitgeist: Part 1 of 5 - A portion of the Zeitgeist movie dealing with the Federal Reserve. The other parts of the movie provide an equally shocking account of many troubling things within this country.
• Money, Banking, and the Federal Reserve - Another video dealing with how the Fed works.
• Money Out of Nothing - An account of the Federal Reserve that is quite old, yet just as relevant in today's society. As narrated by G. Edward Griffin.
• America: Freedom to Facism - A shocking account of what really goes on in this country, as narrated and documented by Aaron Russo.

I will continue to add to this list as I discover relevant videos.

The Bailout Surge

By Ron Paul
November 24, 2008

This week the bailout of the Big Three automakers was under heavy consideration in Congress’s lame duck session. I have always opposed government bailouts of private organizations. Back in 1979 Congress had hearings about bailing out Chrysler and I was on record pointing out that these types of policies are foolish and very damaging to the long term economic health of our country. They still are.

There was also renewed pressure this week to bailout homeowners and send another round of stimulus checks to “Main Street” to balance out all the handouts to big business. It seems that eventually the entire economy is going to be blanketed over with Federal Reserve notes. Most in Washington are completely oblivious as to why this model of money creation and spending is so dangerous.

We must remember that governments do not produce anything. Their only resources come from producers in the economy through such means as inflation and taxation. The government has an obligation to be good stewards of these resources. In bailing out failing companies, they are confiscating money from productive members of the economy and giving it to failing ones. By sustaining companies with obsolete or unsustainable business models, the government prevents their resources from being liquidated and made available to other companies that can put them to better, more productive use. An essential element of a healthy free market, is that both success and failure must be permitted to happen when they are earned. But instead with a bailout, the rewards are reversed – the proceeds from successful entities are given to failing ones. How this is supposed to be good for our economy is beyond me.

With each bailout we hear rhetoric that this is the mother of all bailouts. This will fix the problem once and for all, and that this is absolutely necessary to avert disaster. This sense of panic squeezes astonishing amounts of dollars out of reluctant but hopeful legislators, who hate the position they are being put in, but are relieved that it will be the last time. It is never the last time, and again and again we are faced with the same scenarios and the same fears. We are already in the bailout business for such a staggering amount that admitting it was wrong in the first place would be too embarrassing. So the commitment to this course of action is only irrationally escalated, in the hopes that somehow, someway eventually it will work and those in power won’t have to admit they were wrong.

It won’t work. It can’t work. We need to cut our losses and get back on course. There is too much at stake for too many people to continue down this road. The bailouts thus far to AIG, Bear Stearns, Fannie and Freddie, and TARP funds amount to around $1.5 trillion. Considering our GDP is $14 trillion, and our Federal budget is already $3 trillion, this additional amount will significantly eat into our future lifestyles. That amounts to an extra $5,000 that every person in the country needs to somehow produce just to keep up. It is obvious to most Americans that we need to reject corporate cronyism, and allow the natural regulations and incentives of the free market to pick the winners and losers in our economy, not the whims of bureaucrats and politicians.