- Fed Cuts Interest Rate:
In an effort to shore up the global market slide, the Federal Reserve and six other major banks worldwid cut interest rates. The Fed downgraded from 2 percent to 1.5 percent. Banks in the UK, China, and Canada followed suit after five days of tumbling stocks. The Fed's action will reduce borrowing costs immediately to US borrowers whose home-equity loans are tied to the prime interest rate. - Judge Orders 17 Freed From Gitmo:
A federal judge ordered the Bush administration to free 17 Guantanamo Bay detainees by the end of the week, the first such order in seven years of disputes over the detentions. The 17 men have been held since 2002 and are members of a western Chinese minority. The judge says, “I think the moment has arrived for the court to shine the light of constitutionality on the reasons for detention." - Russia Begins Georgia Pull-Out:
Russia says its troops are leaving the so-called "buffer zone" around South Ossetia and five of the six checkpoints have been dismantled. Under a ceasefire deal, Moscow has to pull troops out of other areas around South Ossetia by Friday, though they will keep 8,000 troops in areas they've recognized as independent states. The move is part of the deal brokered by French President Nicolas Sarkozy in August.
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Don't they have to be released in the US because China will torture them?
How in the world could we hold people for 6 years only to realize that we didn't have enough reason to hold them in the first place?? 6 years!!
If they weren't terrorists before, after 6 years of imprisonment, I am sure they will be now.
1Thanks, Bush.
Jillness, agreed. It makes me sick it my stomach, if the federal govt. has adequate proof to detain men that's one thing but the govt's proof in this case was deemed inadequate in 2006. I applaud the judge and the courts for continuing to challenge the executive branch in their power grab.
"He (Judge Urbina) rejected Justice Department arguments as assertions of executive power to detain people indefinitely without court review. He said that “is not in keeping with our system of government.” "
2I think in some decades we will look back on Gitmo in similar lights as the Japanese camps after Pearl Harbor - it brings nothing but shame on the nation.
Since 2002! What an embarrassment for a country that prides itself on innocent until guilty, due process, and justice.
3
4Yep, when this began, Bush tried for 6 years to get a procedure together to try these people, who weren't necessarily citizens, but was blocked along party lines. Now we blame the administration for holding them while we wouldn't let him do anything with them.
Cutting interest rates isn't the reason we fell into a credit bubble in the first place. It's only logical to cut them again and again.
5Interest rates cut again. Great. Watch the dollar freefall...
Look it's going....going...
6"Yep, when this began, Bush tried for 6 years to get a procedure together to try these people, who weren't necessarily citizens, but was blocked along party lines."
Once again, that's simply not true. Not at all. You cannot blame anyone but Bush and his administration for this.
7Why are they cutting the interest rates again? Haven't they learned anything?! This is such a disaster.
8In a failing/flailing(take your pick) economy, you have to cut interest rates. We're in a credit crunch. When interest rates are increase, it's a sure sign that the economy is recovering. Keep a lookout for that.
9Indie, that doesn't even make sense. Cutting interest rates is a huge part of what started this whole mess.
10So, NOTHING in my statement makes sense, huh? You obviously have no idea how a country's economy works. Maybe I should just take my Foreign Exchange Market experience and hit the road then.
11Indie, if you were simply describing how the Fed functions, your statement makes sense. However, the entire premise is illogical. The Fed is the reason we're in this mess, so how can we expect them to heal our economy? Or trust them to tell us when it's healthy again?
Obviously you understand that cutting interest rates will decrease the value of the dollar, so how can you defend the move?
12Gitmo is a disgrace.
Indie, I've always respected your economic training, so
it makes sense to me.
13Pumping liquidity into a market is a great idea, unless the market is running inefficiently and failing on those very terms.
14It's also a great idea to lower interest rates when the credit bubble has finally burst, so that we may reinflate it with other malinvestment before allowing prices to adjust downward.
15In a recession, is anyone going to apply for the credit they may need if the interest rates are high? Lower interest rates help encourage economic activity. It's as simple as that.
Don't try to spin this into me condoning the diminishment of the US dollar. When our markets go bad, so do the rest of the world's economies. Why do you think England is now rushing to start their own bailout plan? Good idea or bad, everyone's trying their hardest to get us back on track.
Blaming Bush, rightfully so even, is getting us nowhere. It's just a distraction. Let's fix the problem and fix it ASAP.
16"Lower interest rates help encourage economic activity. It's as simple as that. " Lower interest rates encourage bad investments, it's a simple as that.
I'm not trying to "spin" anything, I would just like to know why, if you're aware this will devalue the dollar, are you still okay with it?
17Clearly, someone who believes in lower-than-market interest rates, believes inflation is fine. The mechanism by which the fed is able to loan out so much money (at such an absurdly low rate) is by printing it. Since we're seeing inflation as high as 20% in the last two years, I think there may be a problem bigger than a recession.
18Look, I'm not going to go through this revolving door with you on this.
I said it before, and I quote:
"Lower interest rates help encourage economic activity."
We are in a recession, whether you would want to admit it or not. Lower interest rates = more economic activity = recovering economy, which then leads to an increase of interest rate when business are booming and not in a bust like we are in now. Right now we're waiting to see if the bailout plan will have any effect on our economy. We're playing a waiting game here. If it doesn't work out, what next? I can't answer that one for you.
And I'm done.
19Wow. Looks like someone understands the basic theory of having a central bank. Too bad the mechanism is flawed.
20I know that lowering interest rates will produce an increase in 'economic activity', however the rise will be artificial. This 'economic activity' you're talking about will only encourage people to continue making bad investments, which caused this crisis in the first place. If we don't let the market correct itself, our troubles will only be worse when the bubble inevitably bursts again.
21The only 'bad investments' I see happening are the ones made out of desperation. That is never good. In this economic climate we are in, it is hardly implausible to understand why the Fed has yet again cut interest rates. Flawed, it may be to you, but it's the only choice at the moment.
money.cnn.com/2008/10/08/markets/thebuzz/index.htm?postversion=2008100812
I don't get how the markets will just magically correct itself. If you have the key to success here, why don't you share it with us? Just like McCain should tell us how to get Osama Bin Laden because he OBVIOUSLY knows how to do so.
22"Maybe I should just take my Foreign Exchange Market experience and hit the road then."
"I don't get how the markets will just magically correct itself."
Hahaha. Is that how you think exchange markets work? On magic? Me too.
23Indie, so people buying houses they couldn't afford because interest rates were low weren't bad investments? I can't believe you don't see any bad investments. Why do you think all the banks are going under?
There's nothing magic about the way the free market works. If the Fed stops interfering, then prices (and credit prices) can return to what they are actually worth, rather than remaining at their current artificial levels.
24"Hahaha. Is that how you think exchange markets work? On magic? Me too."
There goes that old 'bait and switch' again.
Real clever.
25Look, indie. I don't think that the market can regulate itself either.
That's why we need the government to do it. Correct?
26Final comments on this topic: Absolute deregulation is not the answer when it comes to economic markets. More than enough manipulations have happened which include naked short selling for one. I think it was a mistake that the ban on that was so very temporary. The people on Main Street, as they like to call it, need government who is genuinely on their side and not catering to corporations(the people who run them) that are driven by greed.
27Oh and, thanks Jude.
Shake those pom-poms, girl!
28Who said anything about absolute deregulation? There have to be a few regulations in place to protect people, but that's not even close to the same thing as having a centralized government agency that manipulates the markets and money supply at will.
29Consider that statement my thesis. Sums up my ideas/opinions as a whole. As stated, they were my final comments on that topic. Just take it at face value, it was not a retort based on anything anyone in this thread said.
As I have observed, there is no point even attempting to get you or organic to understand what I have been saying. It's like beating a dead horse.
The entire discussion was fun while it lasted though.
30I think I understand what you're saying pretty well. I just don't agree.
31We'll agree to disagree.
Hasta.
32"More than enough manipulations have happened which include naked short selling for one. I think it was a mistake that the ban on that was so very temporary."
Naked short selling has been, and continues to be, illegal since Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Not sure if you're familiar with it.
33Read the financial news lately? I was talking manipulations, I never said it was legal.
Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids.
abcnews.go.com/Business/MarketTalk/wireStory?id=5477235
money.cnn.com/2008/09/17/news/companies/sec_short_selling/index.htm
34Indie, don't pretend you knew what that meant.
"More than enough manipulations have happened which include naked short selling for one. I think it was a mistake that the ban on that was so very temporary."
So you think there was a temporary ban on naked short selling? But you knew it was illegal, and had been illegal since 1934? That doesn't add up.
35Yeah, I'm just making this stuff up. I admit it. Richard Jacobsen and David Ellis work for different new corporations but are the same person: me.
Darn it, I have to make up some new aliases now. Next time I'll come up with some way cooler names, I went too generic last time.
36What IS naked short selling, Michelin? Please enlighten me.
QUICK....WIKI IT!
37The articles got it wrong, I can see why that would confuse you. Like Organic said, naked short selling has been illegal for a long time. There was a temporary ban on regular short selling.
38For certain stocks, of course.
39You don't actually want me to tell you what naked short selling is. Don't be condescending just because you got called out.
40You didn't call me out, darling. Don't be mad that I schooled ya and your lil boytoy.
41How dare I be condescending? OH MY GOSH. WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TO?
Spare me the self-righteousness.
42Sometimes, when I get proven wrong, I act really silly for a few comments.
43I'm really glad that you realize that about yourself and can admit to it. Did ya just eat a slice of humble pie?
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