Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

It came after Texas University rejected his law school application and following the unfortunate contretemps when he went AWOL from the Texas Air National Guard and the elder George was doing his best to keep his wayward son away from booze, knocking over garbage cans while driving, and challenging him to a fight while inebriated.

Like Arnold Schwarzenegger did while interviewed by Diane Sawyer, Bush displayed an ignorance of the economic ripple effect.  I personally know of individuals who are now strapped as a result of unfortunate home loan mortgage decisions during a period when they were told that they could obtain ready cash and need not worry about the future since the nation's economic picture would remain rosy.

Some of these individuals are now seeking to sell their homes in a state of panic at a time when the market has discernibly cooled.  Maybe B econ student George W. can tell us what the impact now that individuals in suddenly troubling to dire economic straits have been compelled to radically alter their spending patterns.

There is also another troubling problem that the propagandists at Fox News as well as Good News George would like the citizenry to miss.  There is that disconcerting U.S. debt, which is by far the astronomical leader in the history of the planet. This debt is so vast that it exceeds the debts of all the other nations of the world combined.  

I checked the figure at the U.S. Debt Clock website and learned that, as of September 24, 2007 at 9:45 GMT, the amount stood at $8,995,379,638,372.10.  Soon the $9 trillion mark will be reached.  The dramatic $10 trillion threshold stands in the near future.  Just listen to Fox and George W.  Listen Good News George and his rosy words while asking no questions.  All is well!

So Matt Krantz at U.S. Today broke news far removed  from the activities of O.J. as well as the personal lives of Britney Spears, Brad and Angelina, for which we can be grateful, to provide concerned citizens with current factual reality about the U.S. economy and where it stands in the global picture.

Krantz's story is headlined:  U.S. EXCHANGES LOSE THEIR CACHET OVERSEAS.  

Foreign companies are seeking in rapidly expanding numbers to delist on the New York Stock Exchange.  Leading the list of corporate giants leaving are Bayer, British Airways, BASF, Ducati and Royal Ahold.  As Krantz states, they "are bidding adieu to U.S. markets and their American depository receipts."

"There are companies lining up to exit U.S. capital markets," James Angel, professor of finance at Georgetown University, stated.

The reasons cited by Krantz on why these companies are delisting from both the New York Stock Exchange as well as Nasdaq include the following:

1. Easier to leave;
   
2. Lackluster interest;
   
3. Improved exchanges elsewhere;
   
4. Increased regulatory and other costs.

Right wing Republicans used to warn Americans in the direst tones of the severe consequences of Democrats running the economy.  Remember how vociferously they warned us that they were the vigilant custodians and that "tax and spend liberals" would saddle us with a massive debt and destroy the value of our dollar?

The current evidence on the state of the American debt has already been stated.  Now how about the dollar?  I recall traveling in England when the dollar was almost equal to the pound and was in Europe at one point when parity was reached briefly in the eighties.  

Now there is a better than 2 to 1 disparity between the dollar and pound.

I was also in Europe when there was virtual parity between the dollar and the Euro.  The current status of the Euro as of today vis-à-vis the dollar stands as high as $1.4130.

A story by Matt Moore of Associated Press fresh off the wires contains the headline:

NEW WEEK, NEW LOW FOR DOLLAR

Moore leads off his story with the following information:

"The dollar failed to rally Monday, dropping to a new record low against the euro and a 15-year low against five other major currencies as investors continued to act on last week's larger-than-expected interest rate cut and economic data on August consumer spending and home sales expected this week."

Good News George and his loyal followers will do their best to isolate themselves from reality as rigidly as when they all insisted that those weapons of mass destruction really existed.  Meanwhile turn on Fox and watch the latest in O.J. Simpson's latest legal saga. Do the Robot Republicans harbor a death wish for the United States of America?