Roubini: US Banks Already Toast

By Dan Weil
Moneynews.com

NYU economist Nouriel Roubini, widely credited for predicting the current crisis, says government aid to banks isn’t enough to hide the fact that they’ve failed.

“Even with the $2 trillion of government support, most of these financial institutions are insolvent,” he writes on Forbes.com.

“Delinquency and charge-off rates are now rising at a rate – given the macro outlook – that means expected losses for U.S. financial firms will peak at $3.6 trillion.”
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Stand and Deliver, Business Geniuses

For years Space Coast businesses and taxpayers have poured millions of dollars into the Economic Development Commission and four Chambers of Commerce, largely on the assumption that these organizations can attract new businesses, create new jobs and raise the prosperity of our community. Now it’s time for these organizations to deliver on that promise.

Our current recession, painful as it is, is just an annoyance compared to the jarring economic dislocation we will suffer if we have no replacements for the jobs and business activity that will disappear with the Space Shuttle. Today we’re suffering with only about 8% unemployment. Titusville is facing the prospect of 50% unemployment, and the rest of the county is facing unbearable declines in employment, home values, business revenues, tax revenues and everything else that depends upon a sustained strong economy.
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Brevard foreclosures continue at record pace

The numbers may change by a few as we get finals next month, but not much. 864 and rising. I still believe the defaults are racing ahead of the filings and the bank’s legal staffs are trying to catch up.Numerous foreclosures are running better than 12 months from filing to sale, so the urge to default may be getting stronger when one can scrap the payments on a house $100,000 or so upside down and live rent-free for 12 to 18 months while the legal wheels slowly grind.
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Pain of Recession Foretells Agony of Green Economy

Washington, D.C.–For the first time in 25 years, global demand for oil is expected to decline two years in a row. The decline is an effect of the global economic recession, which has dramatically reduced production and trade worldwide.
 
“This recession, with all its grim news of job loss and economic hardship, should be seen as a cautionary tale against coercive energy and climate policies,” said Keith Lockitch, fellow of the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights.
 
“Energy is the motive power that fuels production and trade. When economic activity slows, so does energy demand. But it goes the other way too. Imposing restrictions on the use of energy–as would occur under a system of carbon regulation–would choke off the economy’s fuel and shut down productive activity. The economic pain we’re all feeling in this recession is nothing compared to the pain we would feel if we adopt green policies that cut off fossil fuel consumption.
 
“For one thing, a recession is a temporary downturn; we can expect that once the economy picks up again, producers will increase their demand for energy toward renewed growth and prosperity. Also, nobody sets out to cause a recession. But if we voluntarily adopt green policies that force cutbacks in energy, the result would be a self-inflicted depression that would cause economic pain for as long as the policies are in place.
 
“Those who claim that we could avoid economic hardship by running a green economy on windmills and solar cells are seriously out of touch with reality. None of the so-called alternative energies that are supposedly going to power the ‘green energy revolution’ have proven themselves to be practical sources of energy. And this despite decades of research and billions of dollars in subsidies.

“Whatever you think about global warming–and there is ample evidence to reject the hysterical claim that we are facing any sort of planetary emergency–the reality is that a drastic reduction in carbon emissions means a reduction in the use of energy far greater than anything we are seeing right now, and the corresponding economic decline would make this recession seem like a party.”

Brevard “State of the County” Update

During my campaign for the District 1 County Commission seat I compiled some data to show the fiscal challenges Brevard County would be facing in the years to come. As you can see from the charts and graphs below, the data for November indicates the recession is quickening in Brevard County.

The information presented here should be a concern for all who live and work here in Brevard – this is especially true for small business owners who are dealing with an incredible slowdown in retail sales and government officials who are facing a significant reduction in property values. Read more