thelerner

Not really. Trickle down economics was done by Reagan and followed by a few other Republicans. It was about lowering the top tax rates and creating other tax breaks for the wealthy and hoping there new found wealth would in end up trickling down to the whole economy. Wasn't that wild an idea when top tax rates were over 94%, but these days with a shrinking middle class and wider disparities it makes no sense, imo. I'd also say, don't kid yourself, everyone is greedy. The rich have no monopoly on it. In his first term Obama dropped 100's of billions into the economy with make shift jobs programs. Didn't seem to accomplish a whole lot but got money on the street and into peoples pockets, it never had as much kick starting effect as it could have. Perspective: Keep in mind $3 for each citizen is a billion dollars ish. $30 each is $10 billion, $300 each = $100 billion. Giving each person a million dollars would cost 320 million million or 320,000,000,000,000,000, 320 quadrillion? doesn't matter, it'd create Zimbabwean wall paper. Quantitative Easing 1,2 and 3 (which has ended) bought up Government bonds. Which had the effect of pumping money into the system, probably inflated some commodity prices for a short while, pumped up stock prices too (in truth I don't fully understand it). Made money cheaper for banks. Its helped a bit but like adding paper to start a fire its a short term kind of approach. It generates heat, but you can end up with choking ash. Economists were amazed that Obama's acts didn't trigger more inflation, but much of that is due to timing, ie the lower velocity of money I mentioned above. Timing is everything. Five or six years ago we could have been heading for Greek style monetary apocalypse (& in truth our money debacle triggered a world wide recesion). Instead of austerity we went Keynsian, expanded the money supply and launched 100's of billions of dollars into the economy. Its worked out okay, not great but a whole lot better then many countries.

Course that would devalue money, making it lose value. Dump that much money on people and it'd be rapidly worth nothing. Its done in a slower more roundabout fashion. And its done when the velocity of money is decreasing. What that means is when a bank loans someone money it has the same action as magically increasing the money supply. You borrow a $100,000 from a bank to make a mortgage and you've sort of created that much of that money, poof!, ie the bank has $100,000 and loans that same 100k to a dozen people. Money is created out of nothing. In a recession that loan effect phenomena is greatly reduced. The money supply shrinks so the government is freer to pump new money into the system. When people are borrowing again they can't. In a recession you can hand out money, I think Bush did it that way, not millions but a few thousand and it didn't create mad inflation cause it was done during a recession.

Shaking. Getting your whole body to vibrate, especially if you can position yourself so your heels slightly bounce repeatedly off the floor. It good to start with shaking the hands, getting the wrists and elbows in on it, then bigger til it includes the knees and becomes a bit apelike. In Ki-Aikido kept it at the hand level w/ small movement. In KAP they liked it whole body, big shake. Yes, this isn't meant as a joke, slapping up and down your arms, torso, down your legs is practiced as a warm up in a couple of Qi Gong regimens. Wakes you up and is said to drive the chi into the bones.

Numbers: The financial position of the United States includes assets of at least $269.6 trillion (1576% of GDP) and debts of $145.8 trillion (852% of GDP) to produce a net worth of at least $123.8 trillion (723% of GDP,) [a] as of Q1 2014 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_position_of_the_United_States). Note GDP is about 17.71 Trillion up from 16.77 Trillion in 2013. (*note I'm all numbers here are contestible but found on internet) How much does the US earn/tax a year? (http://www.usgovernmentrevenue.com/total) Total Government Revenue in the United States 1yr Fiscal Year 2015 Federal Direct Revenue $3.2 trillion State Direct Revenue $1.6 trillion Local Direct Reveue $1.2 trillion Total Revenue $6.0 trillion Speaking of debt and perspective, here are 2 charts from Heritage Foundation a very conservative organization What If a Typical Family Spent Money Like the Federal Government? If a median-income family spent and borrowed like the federal government does, it would spend $61,000 despite earning only $52,000. It would pile $9,000 on top of an already massive debt of more than $311,000 like having a mortgage, only without the house. Sonofabitch, the charts won't show up. What they show is in 2013 If a Typical Family Spent Money Like the Federal Government Median Income Spent Like Govmnt On Credit Card Total Debt 2013 $52,000 64,000 12,000 $ 312,000 http://www.heritage.org/multimedia/infographic/2013/08/federalspendingbynumbers2013/page-10-chart-2 2014 $52,000 61,000 9,000 $ 311,000 http://www.heritage.org/federalbudget/typical-family-spent-like-government What's interesting is from 2013 to 2014 debt should be up to 324,000, right. Another $12,000 added on due to overspending. But its not, its lower, by a $1,000 to $311,000. Not great but improvement, and 2015 should be better still, I assume. Why? Because things change. Sometimes they get better. Hard to believe, particularly if one has political bias's. The chart implies federal spending is down from 64k to 61k, about a 5% reduction. It doesn't show it but more people are employed thus paying into the pot. This is shaky math and the metaphor breaks down a bit but if the US has 269 trillion in net assets divided by 340 million people then each person has about $790,000 thus each family has a million or 3 in asset or the Gov family does. Still, is a family with millions in assets, making $52,000 (probably more now) spending $61,000 (not good) with $9,000 of credit card debt and owing another $311,000 in a horrible position? Its not great or even good but its not terrible. Especially the fact the total debt is going down. If they can get the income up, they'll be in good shape. Also let remember inevitable inflation makes long term debt cheaper. Thus $311,000 paid over 30 years is really 200ish thousand because it'll be paid in dollars worth 60 or 70 cents of what our current dollar is.

I'd put it a different, less psychological way. The road to hell (& financial ruin) is built on good intentions. ie 'it was the regulators who relaxed these standards--at the behest of community groups and "progressive" political forces.… For years, rising house prices hid the default problems since quick refinances were possible. But now that house prices have stopped rising, we can clearly see the damage done by relaxed loan standards.. spreading of these looser standards to the prime loan market that vastly increased the availability of credit for mortgages..' <Yup> It seemed win/win at the time. Easier loans to maginalized groups, giving more money (thru refinance) and home ownership to more people, what could go wrong?? answer: A bubble. Once it started growing, easy money spigots should have been turned off, but weren't. A housing bubble formed, a nasty one, since it allowed huge margins on assets in long term loans. Real Estate is one of the legs of the economy and once thats kicked out the whole damn thing collapses. When the bubble broke it effected nearly everyone and devasted the economy for years.

Invented by John Lloyd Wright in 1916, whose father, Frank, designed the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, one of the large buildings that escaped the great Tokyo earthquake. In way or another, everything is connected. In the art of carpentry fewer screws and nail was always a mark of superior craftsmanship. Intricate connective joints were always the mark of superior design. A nature park nearby has life size Lincoln Logs and its great to see the kids cooperate to lift and build with them. .

In Stillness-Movement when sitting in meditation the hands are placed resting against the dan tien, touching the body, palms facing just under the belly button. That simple difference of moving the hands closer to the body seems to have a good effect LDT.

Just wondering if there were any practices you guys thought every should do, or at least be exposed to. I think everyone should have some sort of chanting practice, whether its sanskrit vowels or opera in the shower. There's something about making noise, finding the right vibration, easier in the shower, links the physical and the spiritual, like breathing exercising. I'd also recommend a listening to and finding a favorite Yoga Nidra audio. There are many of them available for free. They're an old practice that taps into quite a few modern theories. An excellent way to get deeply relaxed, into the body asleep, mind awake phenomena. Here's a link to a few downloads http://www.yoganidranetwork.org/downloads

An economist once described the U.S like a very rich family that overspent its income. We have amazing wealth and pretty good productivity. Greece (unfortunately) is like a poor family, mortgaged to the hilt, has pissed off its creditors and has negative income. By most metrics the U.S. economy has been steadily improving for the past 5 or 6 years. The arguments used to predict a crash (ie huge deficits etc.,) were much more persuasive years ago, since then we've been on a consistent uptick, by and large. The crash of 2008-09 was terrible but the economy by most measurements (not all) has come a long way. Personally I don't see recession coming in the near term, not in the next couple years. Wouldn't be surprised by a market correction which is quite over due and would create better buying opportunities. on the third hand, one never knows.

Hi Daniel, Thank you for taking time out to share your insights with our forum. What is your practice schedule like? ie what practices do you do daily and for how long What kind of 'practice' schedule would you recommend for a beginner? Here's a an Americanized question- What technique have you found gives the best bang for the buck? Thank again.

Welcome. A book I found very helpful on relations was Hugh Pranthers 'A Book For Couples' http://www.amazon.com/Book-Couples-Hugh-Prather/dp/1567314252/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8 I found it sensitive, practical and insightful. Seeing that Amazon has 160 copies on sale for 0.01 cents, perhaps others find it .. less valuable.

Thought this might fit in here. General thoughts on breakfast as well as recipes. I'm usually not too hungry at breakfast. I usually eat light and I'll have a cup of coffee w/ a little milk and pumpkin spices in it. From what I've heard its probably better to wait a while after getting up to drink coffee. Lately I've been exploring savory oatmeal w/ fried egg. I'll put about a half cup of water, teaspoon of ghee and savory spice mix (Florence mix), maybe some garlic powder into bowl and nuke it for 45 secondsish. Then add some old fashion toasted oatmeal, nuke it another minute or minute and a half. While doing that fry up an egg in some 1/2 teaspoon of ghee, put some salt and pepper on it and tilt the pan so it doesn't spread too much. Then slide the sunny side up egg over the savory oatmeal. Done in 4 or 5 minutes. The creamy yolk adding nicely to the oats. Two secrets- one a small portion of oats, two- just before the egg is done, putting on some high heat for a few seconds to caramelize the bottom of the egg. Putting the oats into hot water/ghee/spice keeps there integrity better, they don't end up as mushy.

Cool, but I must admit entities (whatever they are) scare me. I have a policy to leave things that go bump in the night alone. Why summon an entity? In your opinion- what are the benefits? What are the risks? Thanks.

I want to be reborn an Aussie. Even as a kangaroo, cause they're tough as hell down there and know how to party < or maybe a bird, like the Australian Eastern Egret... nah, that'd be silly. I want to live with no egrets.

Hmm, is the 'unlimited Love' sarcasm or passive aggressiveness? Actually I don't care but if you were somehow serious, you need to work on your whole 'love' concept cause I'm not feelin it. Perhaps some xx's and oo's would help. My message was when you're in someone else's house, act with respect. If that's too repressive, then don't enter. Its a simple rule, I suppose in extreme cases it breaks down thus exceptions, but in general, it gets down to the Golden Rule stuff. If we're secure enough we don't have to show what special individuals we are every minute. In truth there are times it takes a conscious shrinking of ones ego. But its allowed me to be friends with liberals, conservatives, bikers, businessmen, children and elders. To learn from them and enjoy there company. Most of the time being respectful or kind costs nothing. Its the lubrication of civilization. I don't think I understood that as well when I was younger and my head was full of abstract philosophies, but the older I've gotten the higher and higher virtue I see in simple kindness and respect.

Didn't Michael Winn have a qi gong form that involved the 4 directions as well as the healing sounds? I know he has a video of 5 animal frolics that includes sounds (I think), but I also thought he had a single qi gong sequence which linked sound to direction. Anyone more knowledgeable about Healing Dao here know?

I always thought Daoism was way older then such notables as LZ. Seems to me the origins are shamanic.

I developed a slightly unorthodox (and unappreciated) style of Aikido known as Penquin style. It generally consisted of techniques and throws which required keeping your elbows close to you at all times, though hands and forearms could be out for deflection and throwing. Footwork was minimal, mostly turning and small quick little steps. I fear the art will die with me. AaaRk Sensei also studied Aikido at Hombu Dojo and was a favorite uke for a number of teachers and served as deshi during O'Sensei's famous expedition to the South Pole

Here's what I like: Its Kaballic, not from a traditional Jewish source, but from Hermetic magician Rawn Clark. The Middle part, Ribbono Shel Olam, was a famous mantra/chant from Kabbalist Rabbi Nachman. Rawn Clark considers it more a canticle then mantra and has practices that involve magical possibilities, including some healing modalities.

These days I'm willing to spend $3.50 to 4.50 on good eggs. Ones that are free range-ish and have higher omega profiles. Even in the $4 dollar range its still about 30 cents an egg, quite a bargain for such a nutritional motherload.

When entering someones home,school, dojo, zendo, place of learning/worship- you do well to respect and play by there rules. You don't need to make them permanent, but its important if you want to learn from them or simply live around them. And if they're psychopaths of cannibals, you probably either shouldn't go there in the first place and/or acting along is not a bad survival strategy.

Cool, I can imagine astrologers watching the gradual cosmic combining of Jupiter- great ruling power and Venus- symbol of Love, and assuming a great portent. <add on Tomorrow night, Wednesday, in the Midwest the moon is rising at 8:00pm, the sun setting at 8:31pm, so it should be a beautiful moonrise over Lake Michigan. Probably a beautiful sunrise too, but I doubt I'll be up at 5:19 to watch it, but you never know. At the moment its a beautiful , spooky full moon, but so cloudy here I can't see a single star or planet. also Camera zooms are becoming so powerful they're like telescopes: Jun 30, 2015; 10:15 AM ET The new Nikon P900 shows just how detailed the new record-breaking 83x optical zoom lens are. This footage shows the moon and the detail of the craters. http://videowall.accuweather.com/detail/videos/trending-now/video/4330259854001/amazing:-nikon-coolpix-p900-shows-close-up-of-moon-with-craters?autoStart=true&linkBaseURL=http%3A%2F%2Fvideowall.accuweather.com%2Fdetail%2Fvideos%2Ftrending-now%2Fvideo%2F4330259854001%2Famazing%3A-nikon-coolpix-p900-shows-close-up-of-moon-with-craters%3FautoStart%3Dtrue

Two things, one the sunrise today was unusually colorful and the sun appeared much redder because of (unfortunately) forest fires in Canada. Tonight The years finest conjunction of Venus and Jupiter. They're come as close as a third of a degree apart in North America. To the eye they should look like a double star and be amazingly bright.

I can't offer much advice beyond slow down the practice, try a position where you don't feel 'zapped'. Years ago I was in the habit of doing standing meditation zhan zhuang in the afternoon facing the sun. I also got that zapped feeling, energy moving up and down, too fast, frying me. My heart hurt. I backed away from it. Now I can stand without any ill effects, but I think it was wise to slow it down. I may have been taken down a few levels, but thats probably better then a game over kinda situation.