Flaws in the present economic system?

[pljames]

If people knew what was fixing to happen, why didn't they speak up? The current recession hurts all in one form or another. The system this time didnt fix itself. Economics is the blood of the market. Supply and demand is down. Why was that allowed to happen with all the controls we are supposed to have? Is the business community forgetting we the people pay there salaries? This is there respect for us as well as the government! pljames

[Transcendance]

It's a complicated issue of conflicting interest. Money represents planetary resource credits. Inflation is an example of demand straining the limits of the market, or rather, the limits imposed on the market by the controlling upper eschelons of monatary heirarchy. The interests being protected are obvious, control and leisure. You can't go against the grain without breaking the law.

[Symptom777]

It ain't complex - it's selfishness and self preservation.
Economics is merely a huge game of prisoner's bluff.

[Transcendance]

Would you consider it a simple situation?

[pljames]

Excellent post all thanks. pljames

[Mister Agenda]

The current situation in America is that the Fed kept interest rates artificially low which resulted in inflation and loose credit. As always, this distortion of the market resulted in malinvestment (low interest rate SHOULD indicate plentiful resources, in this case it only indicated plentiful amounts of paper) and a market bubble. The only explanations I can think of for not raising interest rates or at least keeping them where they're at, is to prop up the stock market and finance the war. The longer the Fed can stave off real recession by doing so, the worse it will be when the market inevitably corrects itself. Prices are information. Interest rates are a form of price. High prices tell us something is very valuable or in short supply and the market reacts accordingly. Low prices tell us something is plentiful or cheap and the market reacts accordingly. Meddling with interest rates is meddling with the economy, and isn't a good idea because it distorts prices, (in this case the price of borrowing money) giving wrong information. Garbage in, garbage out. A calculator with a standard formula could do a better job of setting interest rates than the Fed. At least it would be predictable.

[Mister Agenda]

For reasons why the bubble manifested as a housing bubble rather than, say, a dot com bubble, this article may be helpful: http://mises.org/story/2963

The article contains a link to another article with the opposite view.

[Plasma]

If anyone's got 3½ hours to spare:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...19560256183936

[zuozuo]

The economic always bring despair & hope together;The Price higher than ever before;
everything look so scarcity

[pljames]

Can anyone in simple basic English exsplain to me the true reason for the gas and diesel hike? To me diesel should be cheaper than gas because the truckers deliver the products to the stores. But with higher diesel prices they have to up there shpping costs and the stores like wise. With all this layoffs (seven thousand from the airlines) dosen't this sound like inflation and a recession?

Why at this time housing,debt gas not only here in the states but in Europe as well? Strange to me. Thanks pljames

[Mister Agenda]

Diesel is higher because the demand is greater in comparison to the supply than it is for gas. The demand for diesel is less elastic...there's not a lot truckers can do but pay up, gas users can combine trips, drive less, switch to a scooter, buy a hybrid, and so forth. That makes it harder to keep prices up because they respond by using less gas. Truckers and trains don't have those options.

It isn't a recession unless we experience negative economic growth, which can only be assessed after the fact. So far we have experienced a reduction in the rate of growth, but it is still positive. This may be the quarter we officially enter a recession but it isn't clear yet. While the arilines were laying people off, other businesses may have offset those job losses by hiring more.

We have a global economy, when something affects 300 million people economically, it is felt all over the world. Plus, many countries in Europe have had similar economic policies to the US in the area of housing. Gas in Europe is heavily taxed (thanks, Europe, that has had many positive effects).

[jackson33]

Supply and demand. The WORLD consumes about 84 million barrels of oil per day, which gas/diesel/heating oil are refined from. The world extracts (pumps) and ships about 85 m/p/d. Any disruption in the pipe line (infrastructure) from the wells, shipping and refining will cause speculators to raise their bets on some future price for the crude.

The US is learning the hard way, that supply (crude) is in demand by many developing countries, not only India/China which have not decreased in demand as they (US) have.
T. Boone Pickens believes, a prominent 'Oilman' believes we can not drill ourselves out of this crises and along with trouble spots in many producing countries, those speculators are climbing on an inevitable bubble. Its said the US has 3% of the worlds reserves (true) and uses 24% of the produced products (true), but the US also may have 50% of the potential reserves (not explored or tested) and with the largest known 'Oil Sands or Shale, could hold more oil than SA or the middle east in total. Iraq, just now beginning to explore its expected reserves, which some say could equal SA current reserves, will play a big role in the future. In short, I disagree with Mr. Pickens...

On the current 'slow down' in the US economy, I agree with Mister Agenda premise that the FED played a large role in allowing Interest Rates to stay so low for so long. Not only did this result in the 'Housing Bubble' but business itself locked in loans at low rates. This problem is being extended, by the current FED's lowering AGAIN, by way of the US dollar devaluation.

Adding to his correct comments on recession, all US Dow Jones 30 major firms, well over half the 2000 S&P Companies and a good many other publicly owned companies, NOW do half or more of their business overseas, in Canada or Mexico.

Cost of Gas and especially diesel in the US, also reflects refining cost as refineries are asked to produce products to conform with each states law and in some cases, even city requirements, in addition to adding ethanol to the mix. Diesel in 2008 was a Federal Mandate, adding near a dollar alone to the cost to refine...Most Truckers however or the companies, have passed on much of the cost and independents that are not supplemented are far and few between.

[Mister Agenda]

Good point about India and China, Jackson, and you did a better job of answering the specific question about diesel than I did.

There's some hope on the China/India front. Those countries have heavily subsidized their fuel prices to encourage development, they seem to be backing off somewhat from that policy, which means Chinese and Indians will also face higher prices at the pumps and modify their fuel consumption accordingly...this may only mean a slow-down in growth of demand, though, since the main driver of their fuel consumption isn't profligate habits and suburban sprawl, but expanding industry and increasing numbers of people who can afford cars.

[Ca$hback]

The trucks are on strike in india because of rising gas prices already.

[PoseidonsNet]

It ain't complex - it's selfishness and self preservation.

economics is a reflection of psychology

human demand is a psychological issue in the sense of selfishness.
i don't think self-preservation is that important here

because selfishness leads to self destruction (others will eventually take revenge)

less selfishness = better chance of self preservation