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Kunstler: Full Speed Ahead for Murphy’s Law
You might not know it, given all the ambient noise of the moment, but beyond the torments of news and propaganda there is still something called the nation. It’s more than just a political compact. Until not long ago it was also a culture, an agreed-upon set of values, practices, and customs that amounted to an identity: I’m an American. If you canvassed the crowd in Yankee Stadium one summer afternoon in 1947, I imagine each person would answer that way rather than saying I’m a wounded war veteran, I’m a WASP, I’m an oppressed housewife, I’m a negro, I’m Italian, I’m a Jew, I’m a union member, I’m a communist, I’m queer, I’m a rape victim….
These days, the hardships of history are shattering the nation and our response politically has been to take refuge in a matrix of rackets. Most of these rackets are economic, because it’s the essence of racketeering to extract the greatest benefit possible from the object of your racket at the least cost to the racketeer. In plain English, it’s an organized way of getting something for nothing. The identity politics of our time is another form of racketeering — extracting current maximum benefits on claims of mistreatment, often bygone, specious, or only imagined.
And so one of the truly existential questions of the moment is whether we’ll continue to be a nation, even geographically, and a lot of sentient observers aren’t too sure. Apparently we’re not too sure we even want to be. This is why the campaign slogan of Hillary Clinton, “Stronger Together,” rang so false when the Democratic Party worked so diligently in 2016 to construct separate identity fortifications and then declared culture war on the dwindling majority outside the ramparts. And you’re surprised that Donald Trump won the election?
Trump won by making promises that he’ll never be able to keep under the current circumstances. The main promise was to restore the standard of living enjoyed in bygone decades by former industrial workers and clerks. His promise was based on a misunderstanding of history: the notion that the industrial organization of daily life was a permanent part of the human condition. You could detect by the early 21st century that this was not so anymore. That was exactly why we tried to replace it with an economy of rackets. When there’s nothing left, a lot of people are going to try to get something for nothing, because there’s nothing else to do.
Hence, the financialization of the economy. In the 1950s, finance made up about five percent of the economy. It’s mission then was pretty simple and straightforward: to manage the accumulated wealth of the nation (capital) and then allocate it to those who proposed to generate greater wealth via new productive activities, mostly industrial, ad infinitum. It turned out that ad infinitum doesn’t work in a world of finite resources — but the ride had been so intoxicating that we couldn’t bring ourselves to believe it, and still can’t.
With industry expiring, or moving elsewhere (also temporarily), we inflated finance to nearly 40 percent of the economy. The new financialization was, in effect, setting a matrix of rackets in motion. What had worked as capital management before was allowed to mutate into various forms of swindling and fraud — such as the bundling of dishonestly acquired mortgages into giant bonds and then selling them to pension funds desperate for “yield,” or the orgy of merger and acquisition in health care that turned hospitals into cash registers, or the revenue streams on derivative “plays” that amounted to bets with no possibility of ever being paid off, or the three-card-monte games of interest rate arbitrage played by central banks and their “primary dealer” concubines.
Some of what I’ve listed above may be incomprehensible to the blog reader, and that is because these rackets were crafted to be opaque and recondite. The rackets continue without regulation or prosecution because there is an unstated appreciation in government, and in the corporate board rooms, that it’s all we’ve got left. What remains of the accustomed standard of living in America is supported by wishing and fakery and all that is now coming to a climax as we steam full speed ahead into Murphy’s law: if something can go wrong, it will.
When all of America comes to realize that President Trump doesn’t know what he’s doing, it will make last November’s national nervous breakdown look like a momentary case of the vapors. What can wrong awaits in markets, banks, currencies, and the immense dark pools of counterparty obligations that amount to black holes where notions of value are sucked out of the universe. There is so much that can go wrong. And then it will. And then maybe that will prompt us back to consider being a nation again.
65 Comments on "Kunstler: Full Speed Ahead for Murphy’s Law"
makati1 on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 7:37 am
Cloggie, Davy is a lost cause. His Amerocentric mindset is not going to entertain anything that may question it or his 1% upbringing. The world is shoving the U$ aside and it is on its way out as the major power. The sooner the better.
Cloggie on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 8:45 am
I don’t buy mainstream history of WWII. We know there was more to it but you are off the deep end in the other direction.
But you are never going to stick your neck out and present your personal views, provided you have a view of your own, somewhere between mainstream history and “my rants”.
You will never be a new Empire you want to be.
Never used the word “empire”, instead a “identitarian European culture circle” a la Samuel Huntington, with voluntary members only.
secretly you guys can’t stand each other and this is worse than the race culture divide in the US.
That does not explain the existence of the EU and euro and soon an EU army. The rise of China and Islam will provide the outside threat to keep the EU in place.
Join the friggen human race and see we are all sliding off the cliff now and together.
Count me out.
Cloggie on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 9:22 am
secretly you guys can’t stand each other and this is worse than the race culture divide in the US.
These 1914/1939 days are over. Instead we have Turkish president Endorgan literally threatening Europeans with war and violence:
http://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2017/03/22/erdogan-warns-europeans-will-not-walk-safely/
The timing is perfect. In Holland merely 6% is Muslim (3% Turk and 3% Moroccan). Endorgan is destroying multicult much better than Wilders ever could.
Davy on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 9:23 am
Geeze, makati, that was a copy and paste. You could at least quit being totally redundant. I know it hurts being in the worst possible place for survival and you hate me for that. I am in the middle of a rural location full of food. You are setting on your lazy ass above 20Mil in a small country of 100Mil. I am so glad I am not 75 and with no family in a 3rd world shit hole.
Davy on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 9:25 am
Clog, you are lost in your fabricated history based upon the now over 20th century. I no longer am concerned about the 20th century. We are in a new reality that has raced past your understanding.
Cloggie on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 9:45 am
Clog, you are lost in your fabricated history based upon the now over 20th century. I no longer am concerned about the 20th century.
I was so hoping to be enlightened by you about what really happened in the 20th century, enabling me to upgrade my simpleton “rants”.
No such luck.
GregT on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 10:06 am
In a perfect world, the Kagans and all of their minions would be tried in an international court for crimes against humanity. The sentences would be carried out inhumanely. There would be a lot of empty seats to fill in congress, and the US MIC would cease to exist.
GregT on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 10:58 am
“We could have won the war Clog but that would have meant destroying the entire country.”
For starters, Vietnam was an occupation. Allowing the Vietnamese the right to self determination would not be tolerated by the US imperial establishment. Despite the brutal slaughter of millions of Vietnamese, and some 60 thousand American servicemen, after the US withdrew (surrendered), Vietnam went on to embrace communism. Which continues on to this day.
Cloggie on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 12:08 pm
Terrorist attack with SUV near London parliament. 2 dead, several wounded.
I tip it was a Canadian, must be. Or a Fin. One of both.
GregT on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 12:37 pm
More likely a planted ‘radical islamist’. Nothing works better than fear and division. The NWOs ECB must be held together, at any cost.
Cloggie on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 12:38 pm
Picture of the culprit:
https://twitter.com/DailyMailUK/status/844590240413159424
Probably Paki.
GregT on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 2:27 pm
Cloggie,
If, as you say, Islam is planning on taking over the EU, how do you propose that these acts of terrorism are advancing their cause? Or do you feel that they just want more western interference in their plans to create an Islamic caliphate throughout the Middle East?
Unless there is an alternate hidden motive, this makes zero sense.
DerHundistlos on Wed, 22nd Mar 2017 9:10 pm
“Paul Craig Roberts Exposes “The Conspiracy Against President Trump”
The first three words of this quotation says everything- opinionated bullshit. Now corroborate this by the drugster, Rush or Dredge and you might have something-not.
Cloggie on Thu, 23rd Mar 2017 3:26 am
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ap_0v5sVzsk
Here a rare defender of Britain, Tommy Robinson, reporting instantaneously from near the London bridge where it all happened.
Cloggie on Thu, 23rd Mar 2017 4:34 am
If, as you say, Islam is planning on taking over the EU, how do you propose that these acts of terrorism are advancing their cause? Or do you feel that they just want more western interference in their plans to create an Islamic caliphate throughout the Middle East?
Unless there is an alternate hidden motive, this makes zero sense.
The big picture: on this planet there are two religions that have the intent to “take over the world”: Judaism and Islam. Both religions are still very much alive, in contrast to Christianity, the religion of the white race, that is almost completely dead, at least in Europe (Americans and Russians are traditionally a little slower). Unfortunately on an emotional level, Christianity, the religion of love and compassion, is still very much alive, especially in Europe. If this doesn’t change, we are toast, but I digress.
Judaism: objective is to create a single global power structure (NWO) with the Hebrews on top. For this purpose, since 1900, Christianity has been gradually replaced by Marxism: Bolshevik variety in Russia 1917-1991 and Political Correctness variety (“cultural Marxism”) in the western (US-lead) empire between 1933-today. WW2 was in essence the victory of the Judaics over the white race, thanks to the good services of the Americans and Russians, who were both conquered by Judaism by 1933 and allied between 1933-1945. Between 1938-1953 the Soviets, thanks to Stalin, became gradually anti-Semitic and after 1953 the Jews were kicked out of the USSR and the 1933 closet alliance USA-USSR broke apart and was replaced by the Cold War. Core element in achieving the Marxist victory were the media, in the US owned by the Hebrews (including the media for the boobs aka Hollywood). Judaism cares about one thing only: political bureaucratic power. Core elements to achieve that NWO aim are high verbal IQ, dialectics, media, finance, law, academics, government, deception (FED, Nuremberg, Holo-tale, JFK, 9/11), American military power, “kill the best gentile” strategy (Hitler-1945, Patton-1945, Stalin-1953, JFK-1963, Verwoerd-1966, Saddam-2003, Gadaffi-2011 and boy would they love to kill Putin, Trump and Assad).
Islam: objective is to create a global Caliphate or “Dar al-Islam” (House of Islam). Their strategy to achieve their aim is by sheer numbers (Islamic womb) to compensate for low-IQ. True religious Christians and Jews can be tolerated in the House of Islam as second rate citizens, like perfectly illustrated in Islamic al-Andaluz (Spain) until 1492. The Infidel need to be killed.
Against this background your question can be answered. These acts of terrorism are carried out by lone wolfs and although supported deep in their hearts by “regular Islam” (Erdogan, KSA, etc.) and the Islamic masses, these acts are officially condemned. Because these acts come too early and are carried out by fanatics who can’t wait and in essence are counter-productive because they could alert the Christian masses and do NOT advance the Islamic cause. But these Muslims are too stupid to hide their true intentions. Little Muslim kids in Holland and elsewhere can be heard saying that “we are going to take over”, reflecting what their parents say at home. Even a furious Erdogan said earlier this week that Muslims in Europe should have 5 kids to increase Muslim influence in Europe and hours before the attack in London, that “Europeans will not walk safely in their streets”.