If the safety net is dismantled and more people are driven into poverty...

Who the fuck is going to buy all the shit that they need to sell in order to keep making their obscene profits...

That's what I've heard, anyway...

:shrug:

That isn't really expanding markets...

those people they drove into poverty will no longer have TV's or the internet and will probably have very little left so the probability of a violent revolution goes up exponentially.

and will simply move on to new prey.

The banking cartel has moved to China because they are the
new credit card customers. They want to buy "things" and have the
credit to do so.

America is no longer a profitable country for the credit cartel.
China is.

BHN

It almost sounds racist what I envisioned. But I am not. But I do fear a sort of invasion. At least an economic one. But perhaps even an immigration one. We're not a very mature nation. No income verification for zero down loans. Who thought we could get away with that, among other mortgage failures?

Anarchy.

exporting jobs from USA/Western Europe to India and China
whilst selling on credit in the US/Europe

then as economy in the US/Europe fails, the economies of India and China are growing
so sell there, till money runs low, then on credit, whilst exporting jobs back to
someplace where people are destitute and poor and desperate for work
say...USA 5-20 years (Europe might be some after that or earlier, depends on how successful they will be in breaking down the working protections they have) in the future along the track it's going
as the US has an upswing as production happens here whilst destroying environment further
then repeat outsource back to China India again

the cool part..as a rich person one can cash in on ALL the switches!
and the profit increases because people get 'taught' that they deserve less
less pay, less healthcare, less pension, less vacation, less free time, less work security, less working environment safeguards
less democracy...less of everything, and less for you is more for them

perfect robber baron setup

in all business ventures there is risk

and if one can starve people hard enough, and keep them consuming propaganda enough
and hammer them long enough with lessening 'rights' one can control them enough to make a profit

add in owning/controlling a nice modern HIGH priced army that is battle tested with the newestest and bestestest of toys
well hell, c'mon proles..they need to test new weaponry

posse comitatus will do what? considering what has managed to happen to 'torture legislation' 'geneva convention' constitutional rights/tsa and so on

the navy and marine are actually not bound by it, they are blocked by Dept of Defence directive, how long to reverse that?

and then there is

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insurrection_Act

The Insurrection Act of 1807 is the set of laws that govern the US President's ability to deploy troops within the United States to put down lawlessness, _insurrection_ and _rebellion_. The laws are chiefly contained in 10 U.S.C. § 331 - 10 U.S.C. § 335. The general aim is to limit Presidential power as much as possible, relying on state and local governments for initial response in the event of insurrection. Coupled with the Posse Comitatus Act, Presidential powers for law enforcement are limited and delayed.



From: http://www.fbi.gov/albuquerque/priorities
The FBI defines terrorism as “the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof in furtherance of political or social objectives.”

kinda funny how the FBI would have classified all founding fathers as terrorists

Even a hammock made out of dental floss is missing.

Yes, we have some Social Security along with Medicare and Medicaid. A lot of people are on food stamps, (EBT) these days.

However, when you lose everything, there is nothing there to catch you when you fall. So, safety net may not be an appropriate term today.

this is from 2007, still relevant IMO.

We're Swimming In Liquidity, Aren't We?
http://www.contraryinvestor.com/2007archives/mofeb07.htm
Charts at link.

"...But what we don’t know is how households/consumers will react ahead as, very much unlike the financial markets, they are not swimming in liquidity. Not by a long shot. At least not relative to the context of history. It’s probably been a year and a half or more since we’ve touched on this subject. Given our fixation on the residential real estate cycle being an asset class capable of behavior modification when it comes to the US consumer, we need to fully recognize that US household excess liquidity availability has largely been driven by the monetization of asset inflation in both equities late last decade and residential real estate in the current, to say nothing of additional leverage assumption. In literally point blank terms, the following chart documents just how important stock and real estate asset inflation has been to growth in household net worth by the decade over the last half century-plus. As is clear, real estate and equities have never been more meaningful to aggregate household net worth expansion than is the case in the current decade. Hence, incredibly meaningful to consumer behavior.

If indeed we will be seeing a slowing in the growth of household asset inflation ahead, as sure appears to be the case at this point, just where will consumers find their next source of liquidity? Although we sure wish we had an answer to that question, maybe more important is to at least be aware of current circumstances regarding household liquid assets. For if continued household asset inflation is at any point a non-starter anywhere ahead, household liquidity will either be what's on the books of household balance sheets right now, or ever more leverage assumption. It's either one of the two. As you know, God forbid there is any deflation in either household residential real estate holdings or equity values.

We'll make this relatively quick. The pictures tell the story in a big way. Moreover, this is in part a review of data we showed you over a year and one half ago. Trends have just gotten a good bit more extreme.

...Boom, Boom, Out Go The Lights?...So why is all of this discussion about household liquidity important? What does it mean to our investing activities ahead and the broad economy in general? Although this is somewhat of a generic comment, we believe the significance of these trends find their meaning in demographics. In very simple terms, we know that the baby boom generation is moving full speed ahead into retirement years. Point blank, assuming the boomers in aggregate actually do retire, their need for real liquidity will be meaningful. Very meaningful. Remember, we're referring to a baby boom generation who has "learned" to become relatively dependent on asset inflation for a good many years now to generate household "liquidity". Asset inflation that has truly acted to underpin consumption. Unless we can bank on asset inflation continuing, implying that asset inflation will "fund" boomer retirements as it has clearly funded their lifestyles for at least a good decade now, just where will retirement funds/liquidity come from? This is the issue, and it's clearly of longer term importance as opposed to being something influencing the open of trading tomorrow morning. Can the Fed fund boomer retirements by simply printing money and inciting ever greater household asset inflation? Can the boomers "borrow" their retirement lifestyles as they have done up to this point by taking on ever greater household leverage? ..."

China and India, the new middle class that is arising with our jobs that went overseas.

to the conviction by a frayed thread, they will be led to follow where they need to go.

Which is where?

To a responsible future in a properly managed world.

Responsible world?

The people elect mostly fools and frauds. When the politicians make policy that leads this country toward the needed reconstruction of its systems, they can be supported, but when they make bad policy, they must be sabotaged at every turn, from within.

Just wait, til-oh-say-the threat of an asteroid impact (or evil terrorist*) builds in the years ahead. You would see the thinkable sacrifices quickly embraced by the people as we united the planet to establish a massive asteroid deflection system in deep sapce (or continue a forever war on terror*).

Is there an approaching asteroid?

There could be.

from Good Guys by Dean Koontz

(*my adds)