Recently a friend of mine went to a wedding where he saw an old friend who works in a major bank. The friend has been with the bank for over thirty years and handles investments for the more conservative customers of the bank. These customers’ goals include capital preservation with a modest return on investment… simple and without risk. This used to be a no-brainer job. 5% CD’s and high quality bonds with a few blue chip dividend paying stocks would be the standard answer. Today the investing environment is different. She stated that she hated to go to work. She was tired of clients calling her up asking her advise in what to invest in. She had no idea! CD’s pay nothing, bonds pay nothing and have an inherent risk of loss if interest rates rise (and they will), and blue chip stocks are subject to a precipitous drop in the economy. She claims that the problem is “The Economy is built on a lie”.
What I find interesting is that banks invest peoples’ money by committee. This is to protect the bank from a rogue officer exposing the bank to unnecessary litigation by unhappy customers. The bank choses the conservative approach thus when this bank officer makes a statement of this nature, you can be sure that this reflects the committee’s view. The chief economist of the bank generally provides a monthly or quarterly direction of the economy to position the bank to either be in an expansion mode or a defensive posture to minimize risks. Clearly, banks are in the defensive posture and this lady’s remark confirms it.
The private sector is shrinking and the government sector is taking up the slack but adds sovereign debt which in turn exacerbates the problem even further. The economic fundamentals have changed and the multi-decade assumptions are no longer valid. Retiree pensions are at risk and those people who worked 30 and 40 years with one entity are now faced with uncertainty of their future. How many greeters does Walmart need? See: http://articles.cnn.com/2011-07-21/us/rhode.island.pensioners_1_retirees-pensions-social-security-benefits?_s=PM:US
The President and Congress are arguing about the debt ceiling as of this writing. The same group of people who created the problem are now trying to come up with a solution. When a lie is initiated, another lie must be created to cover the first lie, and so on. Before long, the liar has lied so often that he begins believing his own lie and lives a life of illusion. Often, the only solution is to crash and burn, become bankrupt, hit rock bottom. We have seen several examples of politicians telling lies then later acting as though they never did. Media archives are full of examples. It is sad but true that the American public no longer requires the truth to be told. Just give them 150 cable channels, a six-pack of beer and they are happy. The truth has been diluted down to the point where lies are used to sway public opinion without any repercussion in the short run. The government reflects the heart of the people.
The Day of Reconciliation appears to be around the corner. Our Heavenly Father will “reconcile” the books and evoke righteous judgment on the land. Men and women will cry out and ask “Why?” They will be reminded of their past actions (or lack of) and they will suffer through the judgment necessary to cleanse the land of unrighteousness. Truth will sweep away the refuge of lies!