Current account balance of the USA

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Hi folks,

is there anyone here who can comment on the fact that the USA is at the bottom of the rank regarding its current account deficit from an Austrian (Mises etc.) perspective?

Current account balance
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/...

Thanks!

Fabio

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Cuba is in the black by $ 240,000,000 ? And the U.S. is

in the red, presumably for this year, to the tune of an additional $731,200,000,000 ?

Wonder if we could apply for foreign aid from Cuba. :)

_________________________________________
"An economy built on fiat money is a society on its way to ashes."

_________________________________________
"An economy built on fiat money is a society on its way to ashes."

WOW...I am richer than the United States...

Bwaaahahahahah

- 57 trillion

give or take a few hundred million

One word...

BANKRUPT!!!

Maybe

But how comes it`s not "official"? The whole world behaves as if the US was not bankrupt.

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europe4ronpaul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

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Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

It will be "official"

It will be "official" probably only when there are defaults on payments that are due.

...

I think I can help

Read this article, I know its long but bear with it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: .The Bankruptcy of The United States
United States Congressional Record, March 17, 1993 Vol. 33, page H-1303
THIS IS IMPORTANT!!!!
Speaker-Rep. James Traficant, Jr. (Ohio) addressing the House:

"Mr. Speaker, we are here now in chapter 11.. Members of Congress are
official trustees presiding over the greatest reorganization of any Bankrupt
entity in world history, the U.S. Government. We are setting forth
hopefully, a blueprint for our future. There are some who say it is a
coroner's report that will lead to our demise.

It is an established fact that the United States Federal Government has
been dissolved by the Emergency Banking Act, March 9, 1933, 48 Stat. 1,
Public Law 89-719; declared by President Roosevelt, being bankrupt and
insolvent. H.J.R. 192, 73rd Congress m session June 5, 1933 - Joint
Resolution To Suspend The Gold Standard and Abrogate The Gold Clause
dissolved the Sovereign Authority of the United States and the official
capacities of all United States Governmental Offices, Officers, and
Departments and is further evidence that the United States Federal
Government exists today in name only.

The receivers of the United States Bankruptcy are the International
Bankers, via the United Nations, the World Bank and the International
Monetary Fund. All United States Offices, Officials, and Departments are now
operating within a de facto status in name only under Emergency War Powers.
With the Constitutional Republican form of Government now dissolved, the
receivers of the Bankruptcy have adopted a new form of government for the
United States. This new form of government is known as a Democracy, being an
established Socialist/Communist order under a new governor for America. This
act was instituted and established by transferring and/or placing the Office
of the Secretary of Treasury to that of the Governor of the International
Monetary Fund. Public Law 94-564, page 8, Section H.R. 13955 reads in part:
"The U.S. Secretary of Treasury receives no compensation for representing
the United States."

Gold and silver were such a powerful money during the founding of the
united states of America, that the founding fathers declared that only gold
or silver coins can be "money" in America. Since gold and silver coinage
were heavy and inconvenient for a lot of transactions, they were stored in
banks and a claim check was issued as a money substitute. People traded
their coupons as money, or "currency." Currency is not money, but a money
substitute. Redeemable currency must promise to pay a dollar equivalent in
gold or silver money. Federal Reserve Notes (FRNs) make no such promises,
and are not "money." A Federal Reserve Note is a debt obligation of the
federal United States government, not "money?' The federal United States
government and the U.S. Congress were not and have never been authorized by
the Constitution for the united states of America to issue currency of any
kind, but only lawful money, -gold and silver coin.
It is essential that we comprehend the distinction between real money and
paper money substitute. One cannot get rich by accumulating money
substitutes, one can only get deeper into debt. We the People no longer have
any "money." Most Americans have not been paid any "money" for a very long
time, perhaps not in their entire life. Now do you comprehend why you feel
broke? Now, do you understand why you are "bankrupt," along with the rest of
the country?

Federal Reserve Notes (FRNs) are unsigned checks written on a closed
account. FRNs are an inflatable paper system designed to create debt through
inflation (devaluation of currency). when ever there is an increase of the
supply of a money substitute in the economy without a corresponding increase
in the gold and silver backing, inflation occurs.

Inflation is an invisible form of taxation that irresponsible governments
inflict on their citizens. The Federal Reserve Bank who controls the supply
and movement of FRNs has everybody fooled. They have access to an unlimited
supply of FRNs, paying only for the printing costs of what they need. FRNs
are nothing more than promissory notes for U.S. Treasury securities
(T-Bills) - a promise to pay the debt to the Federal Reserve Bank.
There is a fundamental difference between "paying" and "discharging" a
debt. To pay a debt, you must pay with value or substance (i.e. gold,
silver, barter or a commodity). With FRNs, you can only discharge a debt.
You cannot pay a debt with a debt currency system. You cannot service a debt
with a currency that has no backing in value or substance. No contract in
Common law is valid unless it involves an exchange of "good & valuable
consideration." Un-payable debt transfers power and control to the sovereign
power structure that has no interest in money, law, equity or justice
because they have so much wealth already.

Their lust is for power and control. Since the inception of central
banking, they have controlled the fates of nations.

The Federal Reserve System is based on the Canon law and the principles of
sovereignty protected in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. In fact,
the international bankers used a "Canon Law Trust" as their model, adding
stock and naming it a "Joint Stock Trust." The U.S. Congress had passed a
law making it illegal for any legal "person" to duplicate a "Joint Stock
Trust" in 1873. The Federal Reserve Act was legislated post-facto (to 1870),
although post-facto laws are strictly forbidden by the Constitution. [1:9:3]
The Federal Reserve System is a sovereign power structure separate and
distinct from the federal United States government. The Federal Reserve is a
maritime lender, and/or maritime insurance underwriter to the federal United
States operating exclusively under Admiralty/Maritime law. The lender or
underwriter bears the risks, and the Maritime law compelling specific
performance in paying the interest, or premiums are the same.

Assets of the debtor can also be hypothecated (to pledge something as a
security without taking possession of it.) as security by the lender or
underwriter. The Federal Reserve Act stipulated that the interest on the
debt was to be paid in gold. There was no stipulation in the Federal Reserve
Act for ever paying the principle.

Prior to 1913, most Americans owned clear, allodial title to property, free
and clear of any liens or mortgages until the Federal Reserve Act (1913)
"Hypothecated" all property within the federal United States to the Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve, -in which the Trustees (stockholders) held
legal title. The U.S. citizen (tenant, franchisee) was registered as a
"beneficiary" of the trust via his/her birth certificate. In 1933, the
federal United States hypothecated all of the present and future properties,
assets and labor of their "subjects," the 14th Amendment U.S. citizen, to
the Federal Reserve System.

In return, the Federal Reserve System agreed to extend the federal United
States corporation all the credit "money substitute" it needed. Like any
other debtor, the federal United States government had to assign collateral
and security to their creditors as a condition of the loan. Since the
federal United States didn't have any assets, they assigned the private
property of their "economic slaves", the U.S. citizens as collateral against
the un-payable federal debt. They also pledged the unincorporated federal
territories, national parks forests, birth certificates, and nonprofit
organizations, as collateral against the federal debt. All has already been
transferred as payment to the international bankers.

Unwittingly, America has returned to its pre-American Revolution, feudal
roots whereby all land is held by a sovereign and the common people had no
rights to hold allodial title to property. Once again, We the People are the
tenants and sharecroppers renting our own property from a Sovereign in the
guise of the Federal Reserve Bank. We the people have exchanged one master
for another.

This has been going on for over eighty years without the "informed
knowledge" of the American people, without a voice protesting loud enough.
Now it's easy to grasp why America is fundamentally bankrupt.

Why don't more people own their properties outright?

Why are 90% of Americans mortgaged to the hilt and have little or no assets
after all debts and liabilities have been paid? Why does it feel like you
are working harder and harder and getting less and less?

We are reaping what has been sown, and the results of our harvest is a
painful bankruptcy, and a foreclosure on American property, precious
liberties, and a way of life. Few of our elected representatives in
Washington, D.C. have dared to tell the truth. The federal United States is
bankrupt. Our children will inherit this un-payable debt, and the tyranny to
enforce paying it.

America has become completely bankrupt in world leadership, financial
credit and its reputation for courage, vision and human rights. This is an
undeclared economic war, bankruptcy, and economic slavery of the most
corrupt order! Wake up America! Take back
your Country."

"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value:zero." - Voltaire

" Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. " - George Washington

Thank you!

Thank you!

I know most of those facts, but I mean, how do they play out in the real world economy? We are in a Fiat Money WORLD and the US is perhaps "Very bankrupt", but many other countries are "even more bankrupt". What about SPAIN or FRANCE for instance?? They look horrible! And I guess you don`t think that "they" do not control the money-game in Europe as well, do you?
I think there are countries/currencies which look even worse that the US/the US-Dollar.
Or is this "current account deficit" an "irrefutable proof" that the US is really economically the most bankrupt country in the world?

--------------------------------------
europe4ronpaul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

--------------------------------------
bavaria-for-ron-paul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

Traficant

Here was another great patriot of our nation. I found it more than a little convenient that he was found guilty for "tax evasion" when he was one of the biggest opponents of the IRS for most of his career.

Ron Paul was also hesitant to impeach Traficant as he did not believe that he was properly tried or that congress has given it his case the appropriate amount of attention. He cast a "no vote" as he called for a fair and complete trial as there appeared to be irregularities in how the case was handled.

I miss that eccentric but great congressman.

Eccentric ... yes.

A great congressman ... doubtful but possible.

Corrupt ... absolutely.

WAHOR!!
http://www.dailypaul.com/node/48994

Check out information I

Check out information I found over year ago on this topic:

http://www.dailypaul.com/node/5408

From Ron Paul's speech before the House on June 24, 2002 regarding the impeachment of Traficant:

However, the most disturbing accusations concern the possibility that Mr. Traficant was denied basic due process by not being allowed to present all of his witnesses at the trial. This failure raises serious questions whether Mr. Traficant had the opportunity to present an adequate defense. These questions are especially serious since one of the jurors from Mr. Traficant’s criminal trial told the Cleveland Plain Dealer that had he heard the testimony of Richard Detore at Mr. Traficant’s trial, he would have voted "not guilty."

Mr. Speaker, I also question the timing of this resolution and the process by which this resolution is being brought to the floor. Mr. Traficant’s conviction is currently on appeal. Many Americans reasonably wonder whether the case, and the question of Mr. Traficant’s guilt, can be considered settled before the appeals process is completed. I fail to see the harm that would be done to this body if we waited until Mr. Traficant exhausts his right to appeal.

Again.... does this sound like justice to you?

"Corrupt... absolutely" How

"Corrupt... absolutely" How can you be so certain?

Did you actually follow his speeches during the 1990's? He was one of the most vocal opponents of corruption in the government, the IRS, the Federal Reserve... all of the true enemies of our nation.

Perhaps I am blinded by the truth that resided in so many of his speeches, but I highly doubt his conviction... and given the state of our so-called Justice Department, can you really blame me?

Research it for yourself. The case was far from conclusive as they did not allow certain key witnesses to testify. Several jurors said later that if they had heard these missing testimonies, they would have changed their verdict. Does that sound like justice to you?

Big Guns....while we have

Big Guns....while we have been technically bankrupt for years, we are moving into the time-frame of effective bankruptcy...at that point nothing works, even big guns.

http://www.1776solution.blogspot.com

"If I want to be free from any other man's dictation, I must understand that I can have no other man under my control." ~William G. Sumner

http://militantjeffersonian.com

"Men do not willingly read unpalatable truths of themselves. The People like those best who fool them most, by pandering to their vices and flattering their foibles" Raphael Semmes

And...

...how "important" is the current account balance from an austrian economic perspective?
The market doesn`t seem to care that much. US-Treasuries, sold by this "bankrupt" entity, are bought until oblivion by the rest of the world.

--------------------------------------
europe4ronpaul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

--------------------------------------
bavaria-for-ron-paul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

Are you sure you want me to

Are you sure you want me to get into this???

Well, here is a very simplified synopsis:

A negative current account balance is no real problem as long as they can be financed and there is sufficient capital production to retire the debt. The problem comes when no one is willing to finance such a huge deficit of trade imbalances and as consumer demand drops below a certain critical level, along with other fiscal factors such as the potential collapse of the dollar on foreign exchanges, then there is a huge problem.

While the principles of capital and time no longer seem to matter in the Keynesian macroeconomic models, they do matter when talking to an Austrian Economist. The reason for this is that it is only capital and the structure upon which it rests that links the microeconomic reality with the macroeconomic reality. So, while no one in the official economic machine seems to be very worried with the current state of the account balance, the AEs realize that there is a context in which both the production of capital and time-preference relate to the negative account balances. Under a sound monetary system people are much more likely to save because they realize their savings are actual assets that is not the case in a fiat monetary system where money does not represent actual savings and therefore it doesn’t reflect time preferences as would gold.

Naturally, under a fiat regime, there is the necessity of monetary interventionist policy to maintain the entire system. This system eventually has an impact on capital production; indeed, the entire regimented system built up and around the fiat system eventually destroys the productivity of a country because of the mechanics of credit creation and debt saturation. Normally, the market is signaled by interest rates that are regulated by conditions within the market; but under a fiat regime that is no longer the case and the interest rates are so highly manipulated that the market receives mixed and, at times, the wrong signal at the wrong time. As such business are artificially induced to make loans for either capital improvements, expansions or investments however, since the market is not providing the actual proper signal these tend to be counterproductive in the long term. As we are seeing, there was a great deal of mal-investment during this last artificially induced Boom cycle.

If the economy was a normal free market, then there would be certain self-regulating safe-guards, but as it is there are not and we are paying the price for such an artificial economic construct. During normal free-market growth cycles capital production is boosted and there is a natural demand that matches that production. Thus, in a free-market actual productivity increases while demand is stabilized, trade finds a natural equilibrium within the balance of trade between nations. In a highly managed and artificially induced economy such as ours, those natural market forces are not present or if they are present they are distorted to the point that they begin to act as negatives.

Since our domestic production has declined over the years, there is little in the way of domestic satisfaction of demand, therefore we now look to other countries to satisfy that vast consumer demand. This, along with the lack of capital production, market manipulation and artificially induced lower interest rates all contribute to numerous imbalances within the system, not only trade imbalances. Thus, under the current circumstances and our official economic polices, it is the external manufacturing sector within foreign countries that satisfy our excessive domestic demand therefore, we are forced to seek external financing for our consumption of foreign manufactured products.

http://www.1776solution.blogspot.com

"If I want to be free from any other man's dictation, I must understand that I can have no other man under my control." ~William G. Sumner

http://militantjeffersonian.com

"Men do not willingly read unpalatable truths of themselves. The People like those best who fool them most, by pandering to their vices and flattering their foibles" Raphael Semmes

Great Answer!

This is exactly my problem:

"In a highly managed and artificially induced economy such as ours, those natural market forces are not present or if they are present they are distorted to the point that they begin to act as negatives."

Unfortunately, the points you mention apply to MANY countries (in fact...all the countries I can think of). That is why I find it so difficult to answer questions like "is the USD really that much more endangered than the EURO?". The ECB is perhaps only a tiny little bit more sensitive than the FED, but the EURO is still a bastard of uncompatible economies. And what about the YEN?! Or the GB-Pound?!
I mean, where does this lead the world?! Can "they" really fool "the global market" until One World Government?

--------------------------------------
europe4ronpaul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)

--------------------------------------
bavaria-for-ron-paul.blogspot.com
Hasta la libertad, siempre ;-)