and I read somewhere that Bat Boy says it's probably a good time to buy land.

They sold you stock for $100 and bought it back for $10.

I've been reading an article in Sunday's NYT Magazine on foreclosures, specifically in Cleveland. Apparently there are buyers for foreclosed houses in that area where the houses can be bought for very little, $1,500 - $3,000 +. The problem is buyers are purchasing sight unseen, one guy via EBay, and the houses are stripped clean (no copper pipes, sinks, tubs, heating units, etc.). The house the EBay bidder purchased was condemned. Apparently the city, county, state won't buy a lot of the homes because the homes are worth less than the $8,000 fee to tear them down.

The con is backfiring in Cleveland, and other areas around the country.

I too think some of this mess may be manufactured. However, the TC is experiencing some unexpected consequences.

In short, yes.

I think that the Dow and the S&P and the stock markets in general are being gamed.

A few contributing factors:

1. Retirees. There's a lot of them. Many people who put big money into management and are now moving to a more conservative, short-term strategy. Remember, the boomers turn 65 next year.

2. Economic realities. The ascendency of China and India (especially in manufacturing, but also in IT), the continuing US dependence on foreign oil (which, by the way, has gotten WAAAAAY cheaper), commodities prices in general have dropped, and the cheapening of information in the internet age have caused the value of everything to drop. Truth is, the real estate bubble has been enormously problematic - your house isn't worth what it used to be, and we haven't seen values of much of anything else going up.

3. The "screw you" factor. The haves are engaging in class warfare against the have nots, and they're winning. You've got a lot of people taking their toys and going home.

Warren Buffett: It's class warfare, and my class is winning
(link...)

"The rich rule the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender." - Proverbs 22:7

Does anyone else get the feeling that our financial crisis is in large part manufactured and that we are being manipulated by the Invisible Hand of the Masters of the Universe?

I get that feeling, but then I think about all those multi-millionaires who got cheated by Madoff.

I also think you'd be giving the Masters of the Universe credit for a level of intelligence that is beyond their means.

Want to know what really happened?

See if you can find John Kenneth Galbraith's short book that he wrote for Whittle Communications titled A Short History of Financial Euphoria: Financial Genius is Before the Fall.

The subtitle pretty much explains what happened.

Of course, a conspiracy would be a lot easier to clean up instead of the mess that's been made by the people who are about half as smart as they think they are, like Rick Santelli and his co-horts.

The story in the NYT that got to me examined AIG and how it is hemmoraging money. We knoew that and yeat we bailed them out. Why not just let them fail and tell investors : "too bad you didn't do due diligence on your insurance company"

AIG is the hose through which money is being siphoned out of the taxpayers pocket and into the "masters of the universe" or trilateral commission or whatever you want to call them.

BTW, I drove by their clubhouse , Bohemian Grove, on my last vacation in California. Talk about wierd... HUGE Iron gates and a fence that was 10' tall. I guess those guys have a reason to be paranoid.

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"Whoever corrects a mocker invites insult; whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse."

"Globalization", "The World is Flat", a "Global New Deal" - what is all that if not a new world order*?

I'm not sure the question of "does it exist?" is even still valid. Talking heads are on the mainstream 24/7 discussing it. I believe the question should be, does the implementation of this ideal involve anything illegal? And more important, is there anyone with the power to prosecute?

Globalization may be the greatest thing in the world. I think as a sovereign nation, we as a society should be about finding out.

But your right, AIG is the finance department. The Council on Foreign Relations is the sales department. Still unclear of executive structure. So are some of the executives. (link...)

I would use "Masters of the Universe" also, but that's the name of an old admired cartoon. I don't want to sully one of my old favorite cartoons with the name of another.

Why not just let them fail and tell investors

Probably because it's got so much more of an international presence and linkages.