Rising Above the Stage Show

'Get out and vote,' we are told; 'Be informed and get active,' and so we who value our freedom and love our country run like a pack of lemmings to a stage show draped in red, white, and blue. 'Hooray for our side,' they yell, 'All of our problems can be neatly packaged in a ten second soundbite and blamed on the other side,' we are repeatedly led to believe.

The inherent problem with our partisan political process is that the very essence of its structure imbibes a false assumption. We are invited to participate, but in order to do so we have to 'choose a side.' Then, having chosen, we are fed the long list of proper beliefs to substantiate why our side is so right and the other is so wrong.

But what if both sides are complicit in the problem, or perhaps less, what if they are both benign in their abilities to do anything about the real problems? What if neither side is totally right or wrong? What if the real problem lies above the stage show?

Freedom is the parent of some strange children, two of which are

1. blaming others, and

2. feeling guilty.

Whenever a problem gets bantered about in our national public discourse, it is usually one or both of these reactions that ensues. This is fueled by the structure of an 'our side against yours' national mindset.

For example, when gasoline prices skyrocketed a few years ago we heard from one side of the red-white-and-blue stage show that it was because Americans were wasteful and driving gas-guzzling SUVs. From the other side of the stage show we heard that those big, bad Chinese people were consuming more and more of OUR oil. There you have it, blame and guilt all wrapped up in the debate. So those feeling guilty run out and buy hybrid vehicles to assuage their pangs while others fight the urge to 'hate' an ethnic group that gets labelled as hyper-productive and stealing our jobs by being willing to work for peanuts (or, um, rice).

Closer scrutiny, however, reveals a different story. While China's growing economy (as well as those of other emergent nations) has increased the demand for oil, it is at best only one of the three main factors in the increase in oil prices, and it might be the least significant. What really occurred was a financial commodities bubble caused by a complicated set of games-playing in the commodities markets by banks operating with secret and unfair federal exemptions to bring investment money into a place it was never supposed to be. 

Picture the commodities trading floor as a closed system in which producers of commodities (oil, wheat, corn, etc. the 'stuff' that everyday people need and can't do without) meet purchasers of commodities (like cereal companies, etc) to buy and sell with each other. A small amount of 'speculators' is allowed in so a 'ready market' is available at all times for both buyers and sellers (who therefore don't have to wait for each other to make a sale or purchase). This small amount of speculators is closely regulated by a federal law established in 1936. But over time six or seven very powerful investment banks obtain secret letters of exemption which allow them government-granted monopoly status to allow 'their investment customers' special access to those markets through their trading desks. This is exactly what happened, and as a result the money invested in commodity indices rose from just $13 billion in 2003 to over $317 billion in 2008 (twenty five times growth in less than five years). This amount of money pumped into a market that can only be 'played long' (meaning, money is made by the investors ONLY when prices go up, unlike securities where money can be made on 'both sides' of the market - going up OR down) had the effect of massively increasing the prices of commodities. Of course, these prices quickly find their way to the end customer, the little guy, who is paying more for everything and can't figure out why. What's really happening is the government has allowed a small number of granted monopoly banks to fleece him without his knowledge or consent.

That's just one of the scams being run.

Another (and thankfully it's getting much more coverage these days) is the willful, intentional, deliberate devaluation of the American dollar. While the government (through the workings of its private partner the FED) pumps trillions of worthless dollars into circulation (through the hands of many of the same banking interests given such special treatment in the commodities scam above) the dollars held by average Americans become worth less and less. So while the 'little guy' is getting creamed in the commodities market and the price of everything he buys is going higher and higher, the dollars he holds to buy those things is capable of purchasing less and less.

We could also dive into the housing bubble that has left millions of Americans 'upside down' in their home mortgages while bankrupting millions of others. That would represent scam #3, and again, it was perpetrated by many of the same characters from scam #1 and scam #2 above, but I won't go into the whole vicious circle of greed and government bailouts to fat-cat bankers with taxpayer money that makes this one so sickening, because this isn't a direct factor in the oil price scandal. 

Only now, after these three revolving cons, can we even begin to discuss the growing Chinese market and its impact on oil prices. And only now can we even begin to consider the car we drive as having an effect on all this.

What has happened is the American public has been hi-jacked by a glitzy distraction called partisan politics in which blame and guilt are manipulated by the media to keep us split in a neat fifty-fifty feud. It doesn't hurt that moral issues are thrown in so that our convictions force us to lump everything together in what appear to be neat packages of "Donkey" or "Elephant." Meanwhile, the whole time we bicker and fight amongst ourselves, a bunch of cronies are robbing us blind.

I wonder what would happen if we rose above the partisan stage-show and united? What if we found common ground on all the things we could agree upon, such as freedom and justice for all, and turned our well-meaining but mis-guided furor upon the real thieves of the American dream? 

 

 

Comments

[Jamie, PEI, Canada]

Chris, I couldn't agree more with this posting. It is time to "make a difference". The "people" need to know and believe that this fight can be won.

God Bless you Chris Brady.
Thank you for all you do.

"The central bank is an institution of the most deadly hostility existing against the Principles and form of our Constitution. I am an Enemy to all banks discounting bills or notes for anything but Coin. If the American People allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the People of all their Property until their Children will wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered." - Jefferson.

[Cathy - Team Rascals]

Chris,

Thank you for this post!! What an amazing expose. In it, you did what Orrin talked about in Columbus, and said, "Not on MY watch!" and showed us the truths behind the noise once more.

And thank you, once again, for being the voice of one who does as you say, and rises above the noise and rhetoric of partisan politics to speak the truths we need to hear. Please keep rising and keep speaking. We are listening and rising, too, and more of us are listening and rising daily.

[Phyllis Hoff]

Chris:

Thank you for making a difference. Our voice through you and this post will be heard, and this is how change occurs.

God Bless.

[TaxidermyWorms]

Chris,

Your constant diligence in exposing the truth behind the "stage show" is inspiring, and I am always impressed by your ability to articulate your points and get past people's (my) walls and defense mechanisms based on the misinformation we've been fed all our lives.

What is unique about you and many of the other Team leaders is that it is evident how much you care about the individuals you speak to. That being obvious to your audience you accomplish something few other people out there educating on economics and politics can; you make your listeners / readers feel like the intelligent adults that they are and engage their desire to learn while waking them up to the fact that we've been duped!

The people of America are smart, they do care about freedom, and they do have the spirit needed to restore our country to it's intended greatness! They just need to be reminded of what they already know in their hearts!

Thank you for being a beacon of light out there in a darkened world.

[Johnson Family]

Chris,

I can't tell you how much I appreciate you revealing to us new information. It is becoming common knowledge that there is much more to the surface level bickering that we hear from the media. My one question is how does one gain access to this information? Where can I hear about this or actually see these atrocities happening?

Thanks and God Bless

[Torence Buss]

Have you ever noticed that there are some institutions that just seem immune to public scrutiny in this supposedly free place we call America? If you HAVE noticed this then you must have also noticed that it is usually these institutions that have the wool most firmly pulled over the eyes of the people. Ask and people will surely tell you why we need this or that institution to keep America running. Bring up conspiracy and treason and people will surely shoot you down and tell you your a quack.

I wonder what what would happen if people actually began a proactive conversation about such things. My guess is that the said cronies in this post would have a lot to worry about. What a different world we would live in if we decided to put the words in this post into action.

I encourage everyone who reads Chris's post to start applying it this week into their lives. Apologize for a hurt feeling you might have caused or lend a listening ear to someone in need of it. Let's all make relationships instead of declaring war on one another. The more united we are the easier it will be to weed the garden of liberty.

[Jayson]

Hey Chris,

Thank you for the incite. The rising gas prices were indeed a concern of mine and it is good to get clarity on the source of it all.

It also occurred to me, and I would love your opinion, looking at how market usually works it would make sense that if the average person had a hybrid vehicle then gas prices would go up further because the Gas companies would not be gaining as much profit. Once gas sales decline because people are getting more for each gallon they will raise prices to compensate, leaving the poor guy in the SUV, or crystal metallic red Corvette ZRI (Can you tell what I want?) that gets 12-17MPG, with a empty wallet after getting a tank of gas. Does this make sense?

[Brett]

Chris,

This isn't the first time you've posted on the devaluation of the American dollar, and I'm starting to become truly scared the bottom is going to drop out in the near future.

Do you have any suggested resources that explain how to protect what little money I do have? I know you've mentioned "owning things", but I'm completely in the dark as to what to own. i.e. Should I try to pay off my home? Or should I purchase gold and leave the mortgage (since it'll be next to nothing anyway if we experience hyper inflation). And if I do buy things, where do I put it so the govt cant get it? I'm not putting you on the spot to give specific financial advice, as I know I am responsible. I just need to be pointed to the right materials.

Maybe you can share with us all. If not, I'd appreciate anything you can message me directly.

Thank you for all you do, and for waking me up.

[Dwight]

Hi Chris, you bring up some very valid points. I believe we still have a saving grace that many people do not understand. Please, if you educate, we cannot be handed over to the FED and their cronies. It is time to stop the flow of funds to a system that doesn't have the power to deliver. This is for a man who is sitting in the belly of the beast as we speak for bringing the realities of the truth to light. May you one day fight like this. http://losthorizons.com/CtCforFree.pdf

[Spartan ab workout]

Nice post. Very informative. I think I should agree with this thoughts. Keep on posting.