The Dollar seems to be reaching a TIPPING POINT.
And the entire economy is feeling like SHADES OF LBJ!
Back in 1968, Johnson's unpopular and unwinnable war was outraging the world, and the cost of his War on Poverty, plus the war in Vietnam put pressure on the dollar.
From 1968 to 1971 the dollar was in constant trouble.
Finally, it was necessary to scrap the old Bretton Woods Dollar-Gold Peg.
And the rest, as they say, is history!
INTEREST RATES WENT TO 20%!
AND OIL SOARED TO LEVELS THAT WE STILL HAVEN'T SEEN YET----IN INFLATION ADJUSTED TERMS!
OIL WOULD HAVE BE ABOUT $80; TO EQUAL THE 70'S OIL SHOCKS!
Of course, the Arab's took the fall for the 70's debacle, so Johnson was off the hook....even though his wild policies were the real cause of the troubles.
NOW, WE ARE RIGHT BACK IN THE SAME SOUP!
DUBYA IS A REPUBLICAN LBJ REALLY!
Consider;
We have an hugely unpopular war, massive deficits that foreigners must finance, and a testy situation in the middle east that could easily spur some kind of retaliation from the Sunni Arabs of Araby!
But in a way, the 70's were better for the US!
....the trade deficit wasn't so high then, and the economy hadn't been "de-industrialized" yet; Alas, that dismal trend started up around 1975, or so.
BUT IN A WAY, THE DOLLAR PLIGHT TODAY IS ALMOST TOO SCARY---IN A SCIENCE FICTION KIND OF WAY! I mean like in the form of a MASSIVE DYSTOPIA!
BECAUSE; THERE SEEM TO BE NO EASY OR EVEN REALISTIC ANSWERS TO THEPROBLEMS! Except of course massive tax hikes on the rich! To recoop some of the money Greenspan printed for them back during the BUBBLNOMICS EXPERIMENT.
Alas, Azimov and Heinlein and Clarke are all dead now!
ONLY THEY COULD PUT WHAT'S COMING INTO WORDS!
So what now? Do we bring the factories back from China? That just
doesn't make any sense.
Or, OK do we decide to "start making" American TVs again; Oh pleaseee.................!
At least when the Plaza Accord was worked out back in the 1980's:
THE US ECONOMY STILL HAD A "CHINAMAN'S CHANCE" OF EXPORTING SOMETHING!
TODAY IT'S DIFFERENT! Way different....the economy has been looted to the bone! Thanks to Bubblenomics and you know who!
All we can do in the US now is sing, dance, make movies, play sports and shake our booties!!
AS A NATION WE SEEM DOOMED TO STAND ON THE GLOBAL STREET CORNER WITH A TIN CUP.......SINGING AND DANCING FOR OUR SUPPER!
Well, maybe I am being just a little too pessimistic.......
We could always become "greeters" at WalMart! Ya think?
Hey, Walmart Blue is my color!
