Where is the US economy headed?

Does this refer to the history is full of failed experiments post?

I do not think failure is wrong, but, sticking with something that clearly does not work is.

getting back to economics....exactly, which is why it is so disheartening to see after all the proof we have that the current global economy as well as the US economy do not work, we still make zero effort to fix it. We are trying to make a dying system work, and while we might be able to put off death for a bit we would be far more productive if we worked on what will replace it, so that we are ready when the time comes.

As an approach to life there is no better wisdom than "if it does not work then do something else, anything else".

Not true. In short, the U.S. economy does work, if it is allowed to work as designed. It needs some tweaking, that is true, and we need competent leadership in Washington, but to propose to scrap it for something else, that is insanity.

I have noticed you writing similar sentiments like this before, hawk. What is it you want to replace free market economics with anyway? What else would work better, and if you have an answer, please post an example of its success in history?

Reconcile the first part of your statement with the conservative desire for small government. Reconcile the second part with the actions taken by the governors of WI, MI and ME which tend toward the scrapping of the Constitution.

Some of the problems with the economy include:

1.) The size of the world's human population. It was probably at the planetary maximum at the end of the 19th C. No economy will work with this many humans on the globe.

2.) The totally unexpected technological surge of the past three decades. We haven't caught up yet.

3.) The peaking of oil production.

4.) The stagnant wages of 80% of the work force for such an extended period of time.

The government increasing the unemployment rolls through layoffs and reduced hours as they cut spending for needed social services that continues to increase.

Free markets only work when the people using them are moral and and can manage their greed. Once upon a time the deal was to get a fair price for an honest product and treat the workers fairly so that they could raise their families. Now it is take as much wealth as you can, **** the workers, sell cheap crap when possible, and use the accumulated wealth to force deals that put more wealth into your pockets.

You conservatives who have thrown in with the corporate class have sold your souls. So have a fair number of liberals. Barney Frank is as liberal as they come, but he did what the bankers wanted over the years just like most of the rest of Washington.

Which is true. The solution is to make people want to be moral and desirous of controlling their greed. But when production work has low esteem how can that be done except by metaphysics (or religion).

Why should tricky cunning be paid at astronomical multiples of production work? Is "conspicuous consumption" a form of dry rot which looks good until it collapses all at once without warning?

Guilt used to work pretty well...

the current system

1) does not manage risk well

2) does not look at long term best interests

3) does not allocate resources either well or efficiently

4) does a piss poor job of incentizing good behavior and disincentizing the bad behavour

IE, it does not work. It used to work when morality checked the worst impulses of market capitalism, often exercised through government regulation, but that was awhile ago..

This sentence bears repeating. In fact, perhaps, I will letter it onto a tee shirt and send it to okie.

I suggest you read The Theory of the Leisure Class by Thorstein Veblen hawk. It explains the cause pretty well.

But beware, not many people have the nerve for it. It really does get up the nose.

Don't wear it yourself pom. Everybody will laugh at you.

She wants to lone one of her brown shirts to Okie?

What I'm seeing here is that capitalism/consumerism equals corruption and duplicity.

Our esteemed leaders are trying to hawk this very system to the rest of the world that doesn't come under the banner of "free trade" or "democracy".

I don't doubt for one minute why these people don't want a bar of what is on "offer".

There are mixed messages to what we term capitalism in most developed countries, and that's not surprising. As more people lose their jobs and homes, there are others who are enjoying a somewhat job security, and are spending money to buy homes and cars. Some government workers are retiring with pensions that are higher than the salaries of the majority now working. That's the dichotomy of current capitalism which is unhealthy, because those pension costs are eating up the decreasing tax revenues at all levels of government. How much longer this will continue is the 64 thousand dollar question, but most governments are lacking the common sense and will to change this formula. We will continue to see the deterioration of government services at all levels for many years to come, because they do not make the right decisions to correct this problem. Even here in Silicon Valley, the San Jose City Council estimates that the pension cost will rise from the current $140 million to over $400 million in just a few years, and yet they do not take the proper action to remove this threat.

By all estimates, unemployment in the US is over 25 million, and not the numbers provided by the feds. Those numbers represent many young people with families, and their future is dire.

Against all these facts, our government gets involved in a civil war half way across this planet to spend some $2 billion every week - while our country continues to cut teachers for our children.

They will never learn, and all of us are screwed!

So Cicerone Imposter, what are the answers for countries or regimes that simply don't want to join in on the capitalism./consumerism bandwagon?

Regime change, perhaps? Or is there a proviso that we can live and let live?

Obama supports regimes that can't or simply don't want to join in on the capitalism/consumerism
bandwagon and the Obama regime is working hard to destroy capitalism/consumerism in the US.

Thanks. But do you agree with his premise, or are you against this initiative?

Failure has many levels. Financial being the most obvious.

It's when a society fails at the base level of human interaction that the real trouble starts.

Is everybody happy? That is the question that is avoided by politicians everywhere.

Spiritual being the most important..