The Great Subprime Credit Fakeout

[lucas]

Bad for the US:

1. $800bn trade deficit
2. $9tn federal debt
3. Dollar approaching all-time low
4. Extremely high levels of consumer debt
5. Negative savings rate
6. Inaccurate inflation reporting
7. Less available statistics on money supply (M3)
8. Fiat money supported mostly by us being the world reserve, which is unlikely to remain true for much longer
9. Profligate government spending
10. Tens of trillions in unfunded obligations (SS, medicare, etc)
11. Lack of manufacturing base due to decades of continuous outsourcing and company relocation abroad
12. Elderly population bubble due to baby boomers that will be needing retirement, healthcare, etc
13. Two-party political system that might as well be one party
14. Government that is willing to ignore the constitution on matters as crucial as declaring war
15. A trend of giving up liberty in exchange for security (I think a founding father said something about that...)
16. Political apathy
17. Consumerist culture based on instant gratification
18. People in power who intend to use bad times as an excuse to convince people to give government more control over their lives in order to "fix things"
19. Woefully antiquated education system that promotes financial illiteracy
20. Declining respect and reverence from international allies

How's that for starters?

Now I'm not all doom and gloom... the truth is, a smart investor knows how to profit in both an up market AND a down market.

But I still think you should be aware of what's going on around you. And what's going on, in my opinion, is that there are forces at work in this country that have been at work for decades (possibly as far back as the 1910s) with the objective of stripping this country bare. They have almost completed their project... another 10 years or so (give or take, who can nail these things down with so many conflicting forces at work) and America will no longer be the dominating world power. Another 50 years or so and America will be known as a "poor" country. Mark my words.

 

[TheGreatBear]

http://www.forbes.com/2007/10/10/so...d-cx_mts_1010sosnoff.html?feed=rss_popstories
Interesting points raised. I knew some of them beforehand, like how corporate America has been cutting down on debt etc etc.
So, let's list here things we think are good for the US economy and things we think are bad for the US economy. It'll be useful for us to view the issue in a more "fair and balanced" manner, instead of watching prominent economists list numbers that support their point of view(or hedged bets leaving us in the fog).
List general stuff, economic facts please, short skirts, home runs and other social phenomenon may be interesting but may be more folklore than reality.

 

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[Bilgefisher]

While I agree with the beginning of your list and they have some fact behind them, you may want to cut the rest from your post. This forum isn't the place for politics.

 

[nomadjanet]

Bad for the US:

17. Consumerist culture based on instant gratification

You can make money from it or be ground under it.

 

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[TheGreatBear]

Good for the US:
1)Deflationary forces from imported goods
2)Largest and most liquid capital markets in the world
3)Most powerful military and superpower status
4)One of the best regulated capital markets(yea there's Enron and etc but there are more egregious abuses in other countries, no names)
5)Most advanced in theoretical and applied tech(Japan might have a share in applied tech.. the gadgets)
6)World reserve currency
7)Institutions already set in place that regulate and facilitate trade commerce and business
8)Lower national debt/GDP than many European countries
9)Powerful MNCs that are benefiting big time from globalization
Bad for the US
1)Geopolitical issues likely to need large amounts of funding to deal with for an uncertain period of time(I won't mention them in case of controversy, everyone who pays some attention to the world knows what I'm talking about)
2)Housing "bubble"
3)Weak USD(this may or may not be bad)
4)Infrastructure that needs to be upgraded(this will cost hundreds of billions, from water pipes to others and it's not mentioned often)
5)Higher commodity prices due to global demand