ledeagenda.com

From the NYPost:

New Yorkers are fleeing the state and city in alarming numbers — and costing a fortune in lost tax dollars, a new study shows.

More than 1.5 million state residents left for other parts of the United States from 2000 to 2008, according to the report from the Empire Center for New York State Policy. It was the biggest out-of-state migration in the country.

The vast majority of the migrants, 1.1 million, were former residents of New York City — meaning one out of seven city taxpayers moved out.

“The Empire State is being drained of an invaluable resource — people,” the report said.
What’s worse is that the families fleeing New York are being replaced by lower-income newcomers, who consequently pay less in taxes.

Overall, the ex-New Yorkers earn about 13 percent more than those who moved into the state, the study found.

And it should be no surprise that the city — and Manhattan in particular — suffered the biggest loss in terms of taxable income.

The average Manhattan taxpayer who left the state earned $93,264 a year. The average newcomer to Manhattan earned only $72,726.

That’s a difference of $20,538, the highest for any county in the state. Staten Island was second, with a $20,066 difference.

It all adds up to staggering loss in taxable income. During 2006-2007, the “migration flow” out of New York to other states amounted to a loss of $4.3 billion.

While we are on the subject, don’t forget to take your own John Galt Oath here.

From Gary North, as seen on LewRockwell.com:

Gold does not have intrinsic economic value. No resource in history does. History is the realm of change. In such a world, there is no intrinsic economic value.

There is imputed economic value. There is historic economic value. Neither of these concepts of economic value rests on a theory of the supposed autonomy from free market pricing.

In a free society, final users of any asset have authority over its free market pricing. Owners of gold possess uncommon authority, for gold allows people to invest on the assumption that the larceny in men’s hearts focuses on money, and central banks in turn control the supply of money. Those who do not trust the wisdom, motivation, and tools of central bankers have a way to express their lack of trust. They can buy some gold coins.

This upsets politicians. It also upsets court economists, who are well-paid sycophants of central bankers. The more unreliable the decisions of the central bankers, the more upset the economists are with owners of gold. They do not want the price of gold to rise. Such an increase would signal a voice of protest by a small group of private citizens.

If you would like to protest the extension of centralized government power over your life and society in general, buy a few gold coins. I like protests that can turn a profit. This is such a protest.

From Bloomberg:

Denis M. Hughes, president of the New York State AFL-CIO, has been designated chairman of the New York Federal Reserve Bank’s board of directors for the remainder of 2009, bank spokesman Calvin Mitchell said in a statement.

Hughes, 59, has served as acting chairman since May, when Stephen Friedman resigned from the position to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest over his ties to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

And the president of the labor union doesn’t have conflict of interest?

Consider Denis’s recent statements on the AFL CIO Now blog:

“My job is to do whatever I can to make sure working families are considered when decisions are made.”

As the president of a labor union, yes. As the chairman of the New York Federal Reserve, no. Leading the way to market recovery is going to involve getting business’s back to profitability, something which is attacked by the concept of organized labor.

Or how the re-appointment of Ben Bailout Bernanke:

“While I have had serious differences with the Federal Reserve over the past few years, I think reappointing Chairman Bernanke is probably the right choice,” said Senate Banking Committee chairman Christopher Dodd, who will lead the Senate hearings.

But the announcement was not all positive, coming alongside news that the White House Budget Office is forecasting a cumulative $9 trillion budget deficit from 2010-2019, some $2 trillion more than its previous estimate in May.

Exactly as Ayn Rand warned in her polemic novel, ‘Atlas Shrugged’- when government is placing the looters in charge to run the treasury of government and industry dry. How long will it take for our hero Galt to rise up?

‘Gangster government’, thy name is The Fed.

From Yahoo:

Public opposition to the auto bailouts may translating into consumer buying decisions, with 46% of Americans now saying they are more likely to buy a car from Ford because it did not take government money to stay in business.

… 

At the same time, nearly one-out-of-five Americans (19%) say someone in their family or a friend has chosen not to buy a car from GM or Chrysler because they took bailout money. Fifty-six percent (56%) say family or friends have not steered clear of GM or Chrysler for this reason, but 26% are not sure.

Most Americans (53%) continue to believe that it is at least somewhat likely that the government, now that it has substantial ownership stakes in GM and Chrysler, will pass laws and regulations giving those two automakers an unfair advantage over Ford. Thirty percent (30%) say it’s very likely. This suspicion has lessened slightly since May.

However, one-out-of-three investors (33%) say it is very likely that the government will give an unfair advantage to the bailed-out automakers.

GM’s recent emergence from bankruptcy with government help seems to have done little to change Americans’ minds. Only 17% say they are more likely to buy a GM car now that the company is out of bankruptcy, while 22% say they are less likely to do so. Fifty-nine percent (59%) say the end of GM’s bankruptcy has no impact on their buying decisions.

Just 13% of Americans say someone in their family or one of their friends has bought a car from Ford recently because it did not take a government bailout. For 73%, that’s not the case, and 14% aren’t sure.

…

In June, only 42% of those who currently own a GM car said they were even somewhat likely to buy a GM product for their next car.

Forty-one percent (41%) of Americans expect the quality of GM cars to get worse now that the federal government is the company’s majority owner. Just 19% believe the quality of GM cars will improve.

I am bringing back our old friend the Exploding Money Supply chart today. For those not familiar with this little reminder, the gist of this the graph is the seasonally adjusted change in the monetary base imposed by the private Federal Reserve. More money is being printed and held by Federal Reserve member banks in an effort to induce dramatic economic inflation. This is being done largely to finance the taxpayer bailouts of private industry. The theory goes if inflation can be induced the overall economic effect of the Bailouts, the TARP legislation, the Stimulus spending.. will be smaller.

If if we spend to the full committed amount of the TARP, Stimulus and various other spending plans a little over $20 trillion dollars will be burned through in the name of economic recovery. For the record the Federal Budget for FY2009 is just shy of $4 trillion dollars. 

Believe it my friends. We really are mortgaging our future, our children’s future, our nations very survival, in this game of Russian Roulette with a fiat currency system. Because we will remember what a strong and vibrant economy used to be like; we will not want to pay $7, $8, or $10 for a loaf of bread. Because we will remember what what our economy was like, we will not want to see upwards of $6 or $7 dollars a gallon for gasoline. Because we will remember, we will not want to have to voluntarily commit to the egregious interest rates and taxation that will have to be imposed to “lift” our economy out of this debt.

We asked for a real currency system.

We were told no.

We asked for more oversight of Federal Reserve powers.

We were told the powers would be expanded. A de-facto permanent bailout-agency.

We asked for transparency.

We were told that if we looked there would be, “potential detriment of the conduct of good monetary policy“. (Translation: if you look, we will magnify our efforts to crush the economy).

My friends, again I am writing, begging, pleading for all of you to draw up a plan of readiness to deal with the second phase of this economic firestorm. If you thought the economic collapse brought turmoil, wait until you see the Federal Reserve’s economic re-build.

Pay off your debts.

Build your food reserves.

If you have the means, consider re-locating your company to more economically friendly areas now so you will be able to survive the coming onslaught.

Move your money into tangible or adjustable areas- gold, silver, real estate. Short term notes or CD’s may be appropriate- after all if the Audit The Fed bill gets shut down without a vote, it certainly seems like this Federal Reserve System is not going away.

Re-learn what our parents, grand-parents and great grand-parents knew. Growing your own food. Mending your clothing. Canning and food storage. The basics of homesteading. But most importantly: get ready. The quest for real value has already begun. Those who are smart will begin to commit to long-term lifestyle changes now before the rush drives up entry-level prices.

Our entire political, social and economic system is all part of this great social-contract that was drawn up. To date, we have far, far exceed the enumerated power in it’s guiding document, the Constitution. Until we know the ramifications of these imposed changes it will be wise for us to begin the process of preserving as much personal liberty as possible.

“The LORD will drive you and the king you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your fathers. There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone.”- Deuteronomy 28:36

Let us not forget that warning. 

Related: Preparedness Manual

From WSJ:

Here’s a two-minute drill in soak-the-rich economics:

Maryland couldn’t balance its budget last year, so the state tried to close the shortfall by fleecing the wealthy. Politicians in Annapolis created a millionaire tax bracket, raising the top marginal income-tax rate to 6.25%. And because cities such as Baltimore and Bethesda also impose income taxes, the state-local tax rate can go as high as 9.45%. Governor Martin O’Malley, a dedicated class warrior, declared that these richest 0.3% of filers were “willing and able to pay their fair share.” The Baltimore Sun predicted the rich would “grin and bear it.”

One year later, nobody’s grinning. One-third of the millionaires have disappeared from Maryland tax rolls. In 2008 roughly 3,000 million-dollar income tax returns were filed by the end of April. This year there were 2,000, which the state comptroller’s office concedes is a “substantial decline.” On those missing returns, the government collects 6.25% of nothing. Instead of the state coffers gaining the extra $106 million the politicians predicted, millionaires paid $100 million less in taxes than they did last year — even at higher rates.

No doubt the majority of that loss in millionaire filings results from the recession. However, this is one reason that depending on the rich to finance government is so ill-advised: Progressive tax rates create mountains of cash during good times that vanish during recessions. For evidence, consult California, New York and New Jersey (see here).

The Maryland state revenue office says it’s “way too early” to tell how many millionaires moved out of the state when the tax rates rose. But no one disputes that some rich filers did leave. It’s easier than the redistributionists think. Christopher Summers, president of the Maryland Public Policy Institute, notes: “Marylanders with high incomes typically own second homes in tax friendlier states like Florida, Delaware, South Carolina and Virginia. So it’s easy for them to change their residency.”

All of this means that the burden of paying for bloated government in Annapolis will fall on the middle class. Thanks to the futility of soaking the rich, these working families will now pay Mr. O’Malley’s “fair share.”

These are musings off the top of my head- 10 things that every Patriot should be doing right now

1)   Pay off debt- Sorry BHO/Bush, I reject the spend, spend, spend notion. Debt is not the answer. Encouraging people to live within their means is. Limiting debt in your life reduces one’s exposure to the Federal Reserve’s puppetry.

2)   Build your reserves- be it cash, food, guns, tangibles… we need to be prepared.  For many, this economic crash hit us unprepared. Let us learn our lessons and be better stewards of our homesteads.

3)   Build your library- some would disagree with me on this, but we cannot assume that we will have the comfort of the internet forever. We must assume government will attempt to control this medium as well. Build your library so that you can speak with knowledge to those in your community.  I would suggest the works of our Founding Fathers or books from the CATO or Mises Institute.

4)  Find someone you can rally around- for many areas the local political class is void and barren of any respect for Liberty, Freedom or the Constitution. A great number of tyrants have been allowed to rule simply because Patriots did not work to keep them out. Find a politician who respects Natural Law, the Constitution and puts Freedom and Liberty first and vigorously support him/her. Yes, that means you will have to knock on doors or make phone calls.

5)  Start your own gathering of Patriots- under whatever label you want, connect with like-minded people. Go to, or start, a Campaign For Liberty (or any other entity that advocates Liberty and Freedom) monthly meeting to plan, discuss, socialize and strengthen your cause. Invite said candidate, if they don’t already attend, to join.

6)  Multi-Stream your income- yes I know you already work 60 hours a week, but we must assume that those who seek national control will move to silence those who oppose their agenda. By shoring up our incomes we can help protect ourselves from isolation via the threat of losing our job.

7)  Engage self-sufficiency… despite what certain Republican hacks will tell you, not all environmentalism is bad. In fact, in many ways the idea of self-sufficiency helps protect one from having to turn to government when the going gets tough. If you don’t have a garden, start one. If you have never looked into energy independence, do it. You may have to re-learn and ask questions, but living within your means requires limiting what you need to purchase.

8)  Cut propaganda out of your life- please realize that the greatest tyranny ever foisted on man is television. The puppet masters have unfettered access to your mind with the situational morality and agenda driven programming. Yes, I know that you won’t know who won ‘American Idol’ then. Please realize the biggest supporter of top-down information flow is the main-stream media. Your mind is too precious to waste. Besides, your family wants to spend time with you.

9)   Realize inflation is coming- thank you Federal Reserve. If you have the cash, consider making large purchases now. Much of what we see in the market will not, or will not be allowed to, survive in its current form. Only you know what your family really needs.

10)  Did I mention eliminating debt? Really, debt is slavery. And until we know the outcome of these banker-bailouts and the intentional economic collapse, we really shouldn’t be leaving ourselves without options. Engage any and all means to reduce economic slavery. None of these other points matter if this one isn’t first priority.