13 December 2013 Still just a buck‌
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Harper Texas Weekly Volume 1 Issue 3
www.HarperTexasWeekly.com
Way to go Harper...
Park Board Application Continued from page: 5
So you think you have utility bills? In all of my travels, one thing that has been consistent is people complaining about their utility bills, or complaining about how high their taxes are. My apologies to the Harper School District, but the largest employer here in Harper is the Harper School District, and they are also the largest user of utilities in Harper. So I’m going to use them as an example. After all, I believe we all want to teach our kids all that we can so that they can build a better life for themselves than we had. And this means that we need a great school with great teachers who can show our kids how to think, and why it is necessary for them to question things rather than blindly follow a bunch of lemmings over a cliff. This takes money.
Public Utility Commission of Texas
Lots of money. But even then, I don’t believe most people realize how much which is why I decided to write a article showing what the utilities alone cost. It looks like they are doing a pretty good at conserving energy except for water and we all realize that is probably out of their hands, don’t we? How are they doing dollar wise? Personally I think we should congratulate them on doing their part to conserve energy and we should write to the public utilities commission to complain about our water bills. One thing I did find interesting was that the water usage was going up, yet the water cost seems to have leveled off.
Harper Texas Weekly A weekly newspaper serving Harper
1701 N. Congress Avenue
288 E. Kroll, Harper, TX 78631
PO Box 13326
(830) 377-5729
Austin, TX 78711-3326
editor@HarperTexasWeekly.com
(888) 782-8477
Editor and Publisher - Virgil Bierschwale Advertising Director - Position is open Sales - Position is open
Three Laws:
Reporter - Position is open
Being a former software developer, there is a guy named Ralph Gomory that used to work for IBM that I follow. Recently he came out with a article that listed these three laws and I thought I would share them with you: 1.
It is almost impossible by rational argument to persuade people to believe what they do not want to believe.
2.
Almost any argument, no matter how feeble, will convince people of what they do want to believe.
3.
If you think your opponent’s position doesn’t make sense, or that he or she is stupid or uninformed or irrational, think again. Almost certainly, YOU are the one who does not understand.
He goes on to say “The meaning of the Third Law is this: Your opponent may look stupid or irrational to you, but in fact he or she is probably doing something that does make sense. Most likely you simply don’t know enough about your opponent’s real motivation; if you understood more, you would see that he is anything but stupid.
-- Community Organizations -How many organizations do we have out in the woods that do important work that people may or may not know about? That is a question that came to me this morning as I’m changing the paper from 12 pages to 8 pages (It’s a long story, but there is a big difference in pricing between the two and if I wanted to bring you another paper, I have to trim the amount of pages, unless of course, more people subscribe, at which point I will bring even more pages into play that focus on our community). Do you have a organization like the food bank, or some other such organization that you
would like to list in each issue of the paper? How about any kids organizations?
Sports Editor - Position is open Harper Texas Weekly is published weekly by Virgil Bierschwale at 288 E. Kroll, Harper, TX 78631.
Application Pending Periodicals Postage Paid at Harper, Texas USPS
Postmaster: Send address changes to Harper Texas Weekly, 288 E. Kroll, Harper, Texas 78631 Annual Subscription Rate: $35.00 Any erroneous reflection upon the character or standing of any person or firm appearing in these columns will be gladly and promptly corrected upon calling the attention of the management to the article in question. The publishers liability for errors or omissions in connection with an advertisement is strictly limited to publication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue or the refund of any monies paid for the advertisement.
Did you ever hear the one about the guy that started a business and refused to advertise so that people would know about his business? No? Probably because nobody knew about him...
Any church organizations? I ask these questions because many of us grow complacent over time and we assume that everybody knows about our organization. However if you really sit down and study the picture you soon realize that people are moving in, and moving away from our community all the time.
When I first moved back to Harper a wise person gave me this advice: “Believe none of what you hear and only about half of what you see.” After ten years of researching the global economy I can guarantee you that this advice was very good. All I can say is: Trust, but Verify...
Bottom line, your organization needs to be here if you want people to know about it
It’s time to renew your favorite community organization membership dues. If it’s not, consider giving them a extra buck or two to help them out
Help us to grow by subscribing, advertising and telling your friends and neighbors about us, and if you are the type that is interested in such, by writing for us and helping us to sell subscriptions and advertisements.
Have you mailed your subscription yet?
Gillespie Livestock Company Market Report CWT is priced per
December 4, 2013
If sold by head will note HD after
Cattle: 1273 HD Cows & Bulls
1 Higher
Cows
60.00-83.00 CWT
Bulls
85.00-95.00 CWT
Steers
2 - 3 Lower
Heifers
2 - 3 Lower
Bred Cows
1200.00 - 1500.00 HD
Cow & Calf Pairs
1400.00 - 1850.00 HD
Medium to Large Frame #1 Steers
Heifers
200 - 300 LB
200.00 - 260.00
190.00 - 230.00 CWT
300 - 400 LB
190.00 - 250.00
170.00 - 210.00 CWT
400 - 500 LB
175.00 - 225.00
155.00 - 190.00 CWT
500 - 600 LB
160.00 - 190.00
145.00 - 187.50 CWT
600 - 700 LB
140.00 - 171.00
135.00 - 155.00 CWT
700 - 800 LB
135.00 - 162.00
130.00 - 150.00 CWT
Lower Quality Steers
75.00 - 120.00 CWT
Lower Quality Heifers
70.00 - 110.00 CWT
Sheep & Goats: 2887 HD Lambs 5 Higher and Kids 5 #1 Wool Lambs 40-60 LB
150.00 - 210.00 CWT
#1 Wool Lambs 60-80 LB
150.00 - 210.00 CWT
Packer Ewes
30.00 - 85.00 CWT
SP/BOEX Kids (20 - 40 LB)
200.00 - 320.00 CWT
SP/BOEX Kids (40 - 60 LB)
170.00 - 261.00 CWT
SP/BOEX Kids (60 - 80 LB)
170.00 - 240.00 CWT
Packer SP/BOEX Nannies
80.00 - 130.00 CWT
Stocker SP/BOEX Nannies
100.00 - 150.00 CWT
BBD Lambs (40 - 60 LB)
150.00 - 210.00 CWT
DORPX Lambs (40 - 60 LB)
180.00 - 250.00 CWT
DORPX Lambs (60 - 80 LB)
175.00 - 225.00 CWT
SP/BOEX Muttons
150.00 - 180.00 CWT
Angora Nannies
60.00 - 100.00 CWT
Angora Kids (Shorn)
160.00 - 185.00 CWT
BOEX Billies
110.00 - 160.00 CWT
Slaughter Lambs ( 100-150
125.00 - 155.00 CWT
Light Slaughter Lambs (45-
180.00 - 250.00 CWT
Representative Sales 1 BLK STR
410#
225.00 CWT
1 BLK STR
510#
187.50 CWT
3 BLK STR
609#
171.00 CWT
1 BLK HFR
385#
187.50 CWT
1 BLK HFR
620#
172.50 CWT
1 CH HFR
415#
187.50 CWT
(830) 997-4394
For More Information
Instead of being paid interest on their bank deposits,
policy of supporting the “banks too big to fail” at the expense of the economy and American people. For his service to the handful of gigantic banks, whose existence attests to the fact that the AntiTrust Act is a dead-letter law, Geithner has been appointed president and managing director of the private equity firm, Warburg Pincus and is on his way to his fortune. A Warburg in-law financed Woodrow Wilson’s presidential campaign. Part of the reward was Wilson’s appointment of Paul Warburg to the first Federal Reserve Board. The symbiotic relationship between presidents and bankers has continued ever since. The same small clique continues to wield financial power. Geithner’s career is illustrative. In the 1980s, Geithner worked for Kissinger Associates. In the mid to late 1990s, Geithner served as a deputy assistant Treasury secretary. Under Rubin and Summers he moved up to undersecretary of the Treasury. From the Treasury he went to the Council on Foreign Relations and from there to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). From there he was appointed president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, where he worked to make banks more profitable by allowing higher ratios of debt to capital, thus contributing to the financial crisis. Geithner arranged the sale of the failed Wall Street firm of Bear Stearns, helped with the taxpayer bailout of AIG, and rejected saving Lehman Brothers from bankruptcy in order to create the crisis atmosphere needed to more fully subordinate US economic policy to the needs of the few large banks. Rubin, a 26-year veteran of Goldman Sachs, was rewarded by Citibank for his service to the banks while Treasury Secretary with a $50 million
Realtors Corner For the most part, we have two Multiple Listing Services that service this area. One is located in Gillespie County and the other is located in Kerr County. When I ran a “Historical Active Report” from 1 Nov 2013 to 9 Dec 2013, I find the following statistics in the Gillespie County System.
70 - Total Count
336 - Average Days on Market
$477,916.00 - Average List Price
$178,388.00 - Median List Price
Basically this means that we have 70 properties for sale in the Harper area and they have been on the market for an average of 336 days. Are you a licensed realtor? Are you interested in building your business in the Harper Area? If so, I am making this space available for all realtors that would like to share their knowledge of the real estate market in this portion of Gillespie County.
HVFD AUXILIARY Our mission is to provide volunteer support to the Harper Volunteer Fire Department UPCOMING MEETING DATES January 27th 2014 February 24th 2014 March 24th 2014
HARPER VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT AND EMS FIRE OR MEDICAL EMERGENCY - DIAL 911 EMERGENCY LINE - (830) 864-4444 NON-EMERGENCY LINE (830) 864-4253
FIRE DEPARTMENT MONTHLY CALL LOG FOR 2013 JAN - 4, FEB - 5, MAR - 6, APR - 2, MAY - 6, JUN - 4 JUL - 3, AUG - 12, SEP - 3 YEARLY CALL LOG 2008 - 74, 2009 - 58, 2010 - 72, 2011 - 91, 2012 - 67
EMS MONTHLY CALL LOG FOR 2013 JAN - 7, FEB - 10, MAR - 11, APR - 13, MAY - 19, JUN 9 JUL - 11, AUG - 20, SEP - 14, OCT - 19 YEARLY CALL LOG 2009 - 132, 2010 - 125, 2011 - 141, 2012 - 145
Continued on page 7
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people should be penalized for keeping their money in banks instead of spending it. This will be our first guest editorial.
====================
Dr. Roberts was associate When I first started reeditor and columnist for searching the economic The Wall Street Journal numbers in 2007 I couldn’t and columnist for Busibelieve my eyes. ness Week and the Scripps Howard News And I wondered why the Service. He was a nationmedia wasn’t telling each ally syndicated columnist and every one of us about for Creators Syndicate in it. Los Angeles. In 1992 he Slowly I began to realize received the Warren that the media was owned Brookes Award for Excelby six corporations and lence in Journalism. In they were focused only on 1993 the Forbes Media their bottom line. Guide ranked him as one of the top seven journalists So I began to research the in the United States. editors that used to control what we read in our President Reagan appointnewspapers. ed Dr. Roberts Assistant Secretary of the Treasury You’ve already seen what I for Economic Policy and wrote about R.C. Hoiles in he was confirmed in office the first issue. by the U.S. Senate. From If you haven’t, let me know 1975 to 1978, Dr. Roberts and I will get you a copy of served on the congresit. sional staff where he drafted the Kemp-Roth bill and I’m a big fan of the Wall played a leading role in Street Journal, or I used to developing bipartisan supbe. port for a supply-side ecoLet me introduce you to nomic policy. After leaving somebody that used to be the Treasury, he served as the editor of the Wall a consultant to the U.S. Street Journal when I beDepartment of Defense lieved what they wrote. and the U.S. Department
of Commerce.
State: ____________________________________________________________________________
Zip Code: ________________________________________________________________________
===================== As you can tell, he has an interesting background, but that is not why I follow his articles. When I was doing my own research, every avenue led me back to what he had written. Every single one… So I began to trust his research. That doesn’t mean that I agree with everything that he writes. But, I can guarantee you that after ten years of research, I can vouch for what he is saying in this particular article titled “The Money Changers Serenade: A new Plot Hatches” by Paul Craig Roberts === Article Follows = Former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, a protege of Treasury Secretaries Rubin and Summers, has received his reward for continuing the Rubin-Summers-Paulson
Continued in next column
Rates: Mail To:
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Virgil Bierschwale 288 E. Kroll Harper, TX 78631
6 months for $18.00 1 year for $35.00 3 years for $102.00
Advertising Prices Our PO’ Boy ad is a 2 inch by 2 inch ad that will cost you $10.00 each time that you want to put it in the paper. Our Working Man ad is a business card ad that will cost you $20.00 each time that you put in the paper, or you can save money by agreeing to place the ad for a minimum of four issues which will cost you $12.50 each time that you put it in the paper. You can pay for it all at once, or you can pay $12.50 before each issue comes out ( by Wednesday ). Our Businessman ad is a quarter page ad that will cost you $170.63 each time that you put in the paper, or you can save money by agreeing to place the ad for a minimum of four issues which will cost you $50.00 each time that you put it in the paper. You can pay for it all at once, or you can pay $50.00 before each issue comes out ( by Wednesday ). Our Big Spender ad is a half page ad that will cost you $341.25 each time that you put it in the paper, or you can save money by agreeing to place the ad for a minimum of four issues which will cost you $100.00 each time that you put it in the paper. You can pay for it all at once, or you can pay $100.00 before each issue comes out ( by Wednesday ). Our MR. BIG SPENDER ad is a full page ad with a cost of $682.50 for one time or $200.00 per issue for four issues using the above terms.
You can help support the Community Park by joining -and yes, I myself, will be doing the same
Harper Community Park News Great News!
targeted by vandals, includ- zations, or just relax and ening the water truck, trash joy the beauty of a quiet The Internal Revenue Serbarrels, and the BBQ hut and neighborhood with a picnic. vice has approved the 501(c) pits. (3) application for the Harper As the Harper Community Community Park! Damage has been reported itself has grown and to the Sheriff's Department changed over the years, so The Harper Community Park and information regarding has the Harper Community is now able to accept tax the damages would be great- Park. deductible donations! ly appreciated. In order to meet the continuThe Park is actively seeking Please contact the Gillespie ing & changing needs of the enthusiastic volunteers who County Sheriff's Departcommunity that we strive to are ready, willing, and able ment or a park board memserve, the Harper Communito help with all aspects of the ber if you have any inforty Park Association, Inc. Park, but specifically in mation that would be helpful Park Board, encourages the those areas that interest in stopping this continued use of the park & its facilities them most! vandalism. for charitable, religious, and From Community Events and educational activities by The Park is here for everyFundraising, to Basic Park providing free use of Park one to enjoy and it must be Maintenance and Clerical Facilities to approved charivalued and taken care of by help, all Volunteer help is table organizations and nonthe Community if it is to congreatly appreciated. profits organizations alike. tinue to be an asset to our If interested in helping with town. These groups include the any events or helping with a Harper Independent School History Committee, please contact District, 501 (c)(3) groups us at member"The Harper Community such as the Harper Commuship@harpercommunitypark Park was established in nity Library, Harper Parent .org or by contacting either 1946 and has been serving Teacher Organization, HarPark President, Damon Clark the Harper community for per Chamber of Commerce, (830) 739-1328 or Park Sec- about 67 years. area Churches, as well as retary, Diane Earhart (830) the Historical Society & PioOur organization was found895-5422. neer Museum who would not ed with the intention to serve otherwise have access to the the community and provide a necessary venue that the NOTICE: space that the town and area Park provides to help aid There is a $1000 reward be- ranchers could meet for spethem in their fundraising ing offered for information on cial events, take part in speneeds. the vandalism in the park. cific pastimes, raise money for special needs or organiAlso, the Park fosters nationPreviously the Park has been
al and international amateur sports competitions by providing a venue for youth horse riding clubs, rodeos, & other groups in our rural area that would not otherwise have access to the much needed facilities that the Harper Community Park offers.
hands-on, out of the classroom educational opportunities that abound in our natural setting with the Hill Country native plant & animal habitats and pond to explore!
maintenance of, public buildings, monuments or works, and the Harper Community Park Association Board's need to lessen the burdens of government by combating community deterioration, it The erection and mainteshould be noted that without nance of public buildings the ability to seek large and historical sites, in addigrants and individual donors tion to the Community Park as a 501 (c)(3), the Harper Just as in its early days, the itself, is also of vital imCommunity Park is in jeopPark Board continues to en- portance to the Harper Comardy of becoming neglected courage the use of the munity Park Association, Inc. and obsolete unless steps grounds & facilities for those Board. are taken to help the Park groups advocating for relief Many do not realize that continue to help the Commuof the poor, the distressed, there is NO government sup- nity that created it and who it the underprivileged, as well port of the facilities and the serves. as a venue for groups helpstructures maintained by the ing with the advancement of Please visit us in Harper, Park. religion, education & sciencTX and see why we LOVE Both our funding and labor es. our Community, our Park, & are generously donated by our Heritage! Help us continThe Annual Brush Arbor Day community volunteers and ue to help others..." is a great example of an friends of the park. Event that brings multiple 2013 Park Board Members: While the amount we are pre- Interim Park Board: groups together to foster a spirit of Community and Fel- viously generated as a 501 Damon Clark - President (c)(4) is not great, it IS greatlowship in our rural locale. ly appreciated because Jimmy Leinneweber - Vice From an educational perthose structures now serving President spective, the Park is always the Park would deteriorate Pam Fogle - Treasurer available for the school to without the support of the use both for fundraising Harper Community Park As- Diane Earhart - Secretary needs such as the Harper sociation, Inc., and the finanMike Weaver PTO's Annual 5K Run that cial support of the communidraws in both local and out Mark Del Toro ty which it serves. of town participants alike to Bill Meeks Of particular interest in resupport our HISD students and teachers, as well as the gards to the erection of, or Bud Wright.
Community Hall Rental Information: Rental fee: $300.00 per event day plus a $200.00 refundable cleaning deposit. Extra days for decorating are $75.00 per day. Booking Calendar located at Dauna's. Building includes large walk-in cooler, deep freeze, under bar cooler, commercial sink, kitchen area, 10 rows of 18 ft. tables and chairs, stage area, water coolers, large wood dance floor. The building is approximately 100' x 100'. Water must be turned on to hall. Valves are located on east side of building. Walk-in Cooler: Clean out after use an do not leave food in it. Deep Freeze: ICE ONLY! Do not put food in it. Window Coolers: Water must be turned on before use and turned off when done. Wood Dance Floor: Do not put anything on this floor that will damage it. No chairs or tables without rubber "feet". No liquids can be placed on floor. Tables and chairs: If moved these MUST be put back when done. Cleaning: Remove personal items, or items you plan to keep when done. Take down any decorations. The person that cleans after functions cannot move heavy tables and chairs back into place or climb up and take down your decorations from the walls or ceiling. The money collected on rents is used for maintenance and upkeep on the Park, it also pays for the cleaning of the Hall, mowing, paper goods for restrooms, utilities and taxes for the Park. from labor arbitrage across national borders (jobs offshoring), to rising homelessness, to cuts in the social safety net, to the transformation of their full time jobs to part time jobs (employers’ response to Obamacare), has been to reduce their savings rate. Indeed, few have any savings at all. The US personal saving rate is currently 2 percentage points, about 30%, below the long term average. Retired people, unable to earn any interest on their savings from the
Fed’s zero interest rate policy, are being forced to draw down their savings in order to pay their bills. Moreover, it is unclear whether the savings rate is an accurate measure or merely a residual of other calculations. With so many people having to draw down their savings, I wouldn’t be surprised if an accurate measure showed the personal savings rate to be negative.
But for Summers the plight of the consumer is not the problem. The problem is the profits of the banks. Summers has the solution, and the establishment, including Paul Krugman, is applauding it. Once the economy officially turns down again, watch out.
Yep, this is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard of. Hopefully it will NEVER be voted on by our Government. But I would not be doing my duty to protect your interests if I did not let you know that there are some fools advocating things like this that have the ear of our politicians...
How much do you care about your children or your grand children's future? I’m betting that is everything that the unemployment numto most of you which is how it bers are going down as should be. shown by the U3 and U6 numbers in the chart below. Which is why I want to show you some things that you And we all know that our need to understand are hap- government does not lie. pening. The chart on the right hand I’m not going to go into who side is produced by the is right or who is wrong as I same government organizarealize that you believe, or tion that prepares the unemwant to believe whoever you ployment numbers. are getting your news from. Funny thing about this chart I just am going to show you a is it shows that there are few questions that you fewer and fewer people should be asking them rather working. than blindly following them Anybody remember Mr. over a cliff like a herd of catDunn? tle in a stampede. He taught me that every acMost of you believe that tion has a equal and opposite there are plenty of jobs out reaction. there and those that are not Which makes me wonder. working now do not want to work. If unemployment is going down, how can there be fewAfter all, any fool can see
er people working?
a participation rate of 61.8%
Seems to me that if fewer people are working, unemployment would be going higher?
And if we multiply the population by the participation rate, we come up with 134,745,731 people that were working.
And last time I looked, people were still looking to make Once we have these numbabies, weren't they? bers, it is a simple thing to produce the chart at the top Which means at the same of the next page on the left. time, our population is increasing, so this should be As you can see, the populaeasy to prove or disprove. tion continues to grow. After all, we have the popula- And the people that are emtion numbers for each year ployed has been pretty flat from 1976 - 2012. since about 2006. And thanks to the Dept of Labor, we have the employee participation numbers. So let’s do some simple math. In 1976 we had a population of 218,035,164. In 1976 in December we had
After all, every television journalist out there will tell you that things were great from 1976 - 1996, won’t they?
As you can see, doing it this way we had an average unemployment number from 1976 - 1990 of less than 5 million people.
Interesting chart, isn’t it? (top right of next page)
Since 1991 it has steadily gone up, hasn’t it?
Don’t forget, it includes women, children, retired, students, etc.
Do you reckon sending our jobs offshore via free trade agreements or as in my case importing H-1B’s has anything to do with these numbers rising so much?
Which means we need an average to figure out how many of them we should deduct from the totals, doesn’t it?
Better yet, do you think that if we have forced so many people out of work via free See how from 1976 till 1996 Now if I were a betting man, I trade agreements and imit pretty well stayed steady would think that if I subtractporting visa holders, that this at around 80 million people? ed the employed from the might have created the so population, this would give That is our baseline, or the called sub prime mortgage me a pretty good idea how number that we want to work crisis that we are living many really are unemployed with. through now? and unable to find work if I And it will give you the chart After all, people without jobs compare to those years from at the top of the next page. can’t make mortgage pay1976 - 1996. ments, can they?
Remember in the 70’s when we had several places to buy groceries and our own butcher, trash dump, drugstore and other stores? Is this not what happens when we do not buy local? This makes me wonder why we are buying our items from other towns and countries.
Think about that the next time you buy something... St. James Lutheran Church
Community Churches
P.O. Box 191
Wild Ride Ministries 23809 W. Hwy 290
23932 West Hwy 290
Harper United Methodist Church
(830) 864-4193
US 290
stjames1@windstream.net
Harper, TX 78631
Sunday School Classes
(830) 864-4533
Harper, TX 78631 (830) 864-5577 wildride@windstream.net Sunday
Kinder - 7th grades / 9:30 am / 1st & 3rd Sunday
Adult Sunday School / 9:30 am
Adult Bible Study / 9:30 am
Children’s Sunday School / 9:30 am
Worship Service / 10:30 am
Main Service / 10:30 AM
Upcoming Special Events
Holy Communion / 1st & 3rd Sunday Praise & Worship / 4th & 5th Sundays
Tuesday Mid-Week Service / 7:00 pm
A walk thru grief / 2nd Monday
Communion and Fellowship Meal / 1st Sunday
Men’s Breakfast / 1st Monday / 6:30 am
Men’s Breakfast and Fellowship / 3rd Saturday
Sarah’s Circle / 3rd Wednesday / 2 pm
Women’s Prayer and Share / 3rd Thursday
Oops I gathered all of the church information off of the internet and for some reason the Methodist Church did not show up. If your information is not accurate, please let me know so that I can fix it as people are wanting information about your church Harper Presbyterian Church
St. Anthony’s Catholic Church
147 Oak Road
163 N. 3rd Street
Harper, TX 78631
Harper, TX 78631
(830) 864-5042
(830) 864-4026
First Baptist Church
Lighthouse Fellowship Chapel
23038 U.S. HWY 290
2nd & Roberts Street
Harper, TX 78631
Harper, TX 78631
(830) 864-4241
(830) 864-5293
Please notify me if anything needs updating
compensation package in 2008 and $126,000,000 between 1999 and 2009. When a person becomes a Treasury official it is made clear that the choice is between serving the banks and becoming rich or trying to serve the public and becoming poor. Few make the latter choice. As MIchael Hudson has informed us, the goal of the financial sector has always been to convert all income, from corporate profits to government tax revenues, to the service of debt. From the bankers standpoint, the more debt the richer the bankers. Rubin, Summers, Paulson, Geithner, and now banker Treasury Secretary Jack Lew faithfully serve this goal. The Federal Reserve describes its policy of Quantitative Easing — the creation of
new money with which the Fed purchases Treasury debt and mortgage backed securities — as a low interest rate policy in order to stimulate employment and economic growth. Economists and the financial media have parroted this cover story. In contrast, I have exposed QE as a scheme for pumping profits into the banks and boosting their balance sheets. The real purpose of QE is to drive up the prices of the debt -related derivatives on the banks’ books, thus keeping the banks with solvent balance sheets. Writing in the Wall Street Journal (“Confessions of a Quantitative Easer,” November 11, 2013), Andrew Huszar confirms my explanation to be the correct one. Huszar is the Federal Reserve official who implemented the policy of QE. He resigned when he realized
that the real purposes of QE was to drive up the prices of the banks’ holdings of debt instruments, to provide the banks with trillions of dollars at zero cost with which to lend and speculate, and to provide the banks with “fat commissions from brokering most of the Fed’s QE transactions.” (See: www.paulcraigroberts.org )
in banks instead of spending it.
Summers notes that despite a zero real rate of interest, To sell this new rip-off there is still substantial unemscheme, Summers has conployment. In other words, not jured up an explanation based even a zero rate of interest on the crude and discredited can reduce saving to the level Keynesianism of the 1940s of investment, thus frustrating that explained the Great Dea full employment recovery. pression as a problem caused Summers concludes that the by too much savings. Instead natural rate of interest has of spending their money, peo- become negative and is stuck ple hoarded it, thus causing below zero. This vast con game remains aggregate demand and emunrecognized by Congress ployment to fall. How to fix this? The way to fix and the public. At the IMF Reit, Summers says, is to charge search Conference on NoSummers says that today the people for saving money. To vember 8, 2013, former Treas- problem of too much saving avoid the charges, people ury Secretary Larry Summers has reappeared. The centerwould spend the money, thus presented a plan to expand piece of his argument is “the reducing savings to the level the con game. natural interest rate,” defined of investment and restoring as the interest rate at which full employment. Summers says that it is not full employment is established enough merely to give the by the equality of saving with Summers acknowledges that banks interest free money. investment. If people save the problem with his solution More should be done for the more than investors invest, is that people would take their banks. Instead of being paid the saved money will not find money out of banks and hoard interest on their bank depos- its way back into the econoit in cash holdings. In other its, people should be penalmy, and output and employwords, the cash form of monized for keeping their money ment will fall. ey provides consumers with a
freedom to save that holds down consumption and prevents full employment. Summers has a fix for this: eliminate the freedom by imposing a cashless society where the only money is electronic. As electronic money cannot be hoarded except in bank deposits, penalties can be imposed that force unproductive savings into consumption. Summers’ scheme, of course, is a harebrained one. With governments running huge deficits, who would purchase bonds at negative interest rates? How would pension and retirement funds operate? Would they also be subject to an annual percentage confiscation? We know that the response of consumers to the long term decline in real median family income, to the loss of jobs
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The girls simply ran their best race of the season when it counted the most. God blessed us with a great when it counted the most. day, we give Him all the I am so proud of them and honor and glory! how they competed, they The girls simply ran their responded to the chalbest race of the season lenge and got after it, it was
special, I can not say it enough of how blessed I am, they gave it their all and it paid off for them, they did a great job of representing Harper.
Harper Longhorn Cross Country: UIL State Meet Results Micah Middleton was the lone qualifier for Harper in the 1A boy's division and finished 58th out of 108 runners posting a time of 18:43 for the 3.1 mile course. Micah did a great job and ran his best time ever at the State meet which he has qualified for every year he has been in high school.
Harper Ladyhorn Cross Country: UIL State Meet Results Team Standings: 1. Harper - 78 - 1A Girls State Champions 2. San Saba - 86 3. Sundown - 115 4. Gruver - 117 5. Goldthwaite - 129 6. Ozona - 131 7. Mason - 185
Harper results: 116 girls competed Sydney Collins - 29th - 12:41 Payton Reid - 31st - 12:47 Hope Dillon - 34th - 12:51 Taylor Reid - 45th - 13:01 Rachel Maner - 47th - 13:03 Kayla Inmon - 48th - 13:03 Rebekah Lester - 60th - 13:18
8. Garden City - 187 9. Brackett - 217 10. Frost - 225 11. Cushing - 238 12. Shelbyville - 302
Way to go Harper!
You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life. Winston Churchill