The Economic Winds Are Howling...
By Thom Hartmann A...
In 2008, we saw the result of three decades of neoliberalism in the United States and Europe, what we used to call Reaganism and Thatcherism, damage and shake the world financial system. Rather than resolving the problem by repudiating neoliberalism, including its emphasis on more money for rich people and less money for workers, big tax breaks for the wealthy, the deregulation of corporations from pollution to banking, and so-called "free trade," the central banks of the world have been desperately trying to hold things together with bubblegum and bailing wire - also known as low interest rates.Now it has reached the point where one of the largest banks in Denmark is offering negative interest rates on home mortgage loans. What that means is that if you buy a house and take out a mortgage right now with this bank, the amount that you will pay back at the end of 10 years will be less than the amount that you borrowed. The bank is paying you to take out a mortgage. While the bank is charging some fees to cover some of their costs, this is clearly an unsustainable business model, And shows us how the efforts of central banks desperately trying to avoid the world sliding back into the crisis of 2008 are failing. Batten down your hatches.
The economic winds are starting to howl.
-Thom
Thom's Blog Is On the Move
By webmaster
Hello All
Thom's blog in this space and moving to a new home.
Please follow us across to hartmannreport.com - this will be the only place going forward to read Thom's blog posts and articles.
Images of Thom
Mueller's favorite place to pray (written about in "Prophet's Way"), and the roof of the room where the Last Supper is reputed to have happened.
At Mondragon - both the mountain and the cooperative city - in Spain (written about in "Threshold" book)
From Cracking the Code:
"No one communicates more thoughtfully or effectively on the radio airwaves than Thom Hartmann. He gets inside the arguments and helps people to think them through—to understand how to respond when they’re talking about public issues with coworkers, neighbors, and friends. This book explores some of the key perspectives behind his approach, teaching us not just how to find the facts, but to talk about what they mean in a way that people will hear."
From Cracking the Code:
"Thom Hartmann ought to be bronzed. His new book sets off from the same high plane as the last and offers explicit tools and how-to advice that will allow you to see, hear, and feel propaganda when it's directed at you and use the same techniques to refute it. His book would make a deaf-mute a better communicator. I want him on my reading table every day, and if you try one of his books, so will you."
From Screwed:
"I think many of us recognize that for all but the wealthiest, life in America is getting increasingly hard. Screwed explores why, showing how this is no accidental process, but rather the product of conscious political choices, choices we can change with enough courage and commitment. Like all of Thom’s great work, it helps show us the way forward."
