January 15, 2008

Dr. Hudson: "Bernanke just raised US living costs 20%"

According to Dr. Michael Hudson, the headlines in the financial press are not reflecting economic reality.

The financial press is not reflecting the impeact of "helicopter" Ben Bernake's finanacial policies.

Instead the headlines should read "Bernanke just raised US living costs 20% " according to Dr. Hudson.


The Fed has let it be known that it may lower the discount rate by an
amazingly high 50 basis points. The dollar naturally plunged, gold prices
soared and oil prices followed suit.

The reason "Helicopter Ben" is flooding the economy with money is to
support stock prices for the wealthiest 1% of Americans -- those to whom
squiggles matter. (Lower-income Americans hold stocks mainly via pension
funds for the long term.)
said Dr. Hudson.

Pointing out that lower interest rates mean a lower dollar, Dr. Hudson suggests what the effect of higher import prices will be be:

lower dollar means higher import prices, for everything from oil to manufactured goods.
This is of concern for US policy makers for they seem unable to grasp the effects of US economic policies. Dr. Hudson asserts:
"Obviously, central banks today don't care about what they pretended so long to care about -- consumer prices, which was their excuse for TIGHTENING credit.
They're all for asset-price inflation, increasing the price of property
and financial claims relative to labor.

It's amazing that politicians pretend that exchange rates should be left to 'technocrats, ' e.g. flaks for High Finance and its short-term speculative gains."
Talk about recession regularly garners headlines and dominates the financial news. But few seem to understand the underlying effects of the Central bank's recent "remedies".

Dr. Hudson has been working on a new tax policy for the United States. and is President of The Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends (ISLET).

He is the Cheif Economic Policy Adviser for Dennis Kucinich who is running for US president in 2008.

His cover article in May's 2006 Harper's magazine presaged the coming of the subprime crisis and coming recession.




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