Our recent article about the rising global riots threat as follow up to millions of lost jobs and mass poverty led to an impressive storm of discussions in blogs, forums and other parts of the world wide web. Now we repeat our forecast: Europe and the United States will have to invest very much more in their social systems - otherwise the situation on the streets will get out of control. We therefore publish this story again - and hope you will give us a direct feedback this time: Do you think western countries will manage the crisis without social revolution? by Vlad Georgescu and Marita Vollborn
The global financial crisis could lead to an economic meltdown - and to instable democratic structures in the western world. Because governments spend more billions than they possess, the outcome will probably be a massive inflation connected with millions of lost jobs - or even the total collapse. That's why President Barack Obama needed an astronomic 3B-stimulus. But the Big Bailout will probably end as Big Bang: With no changes on the more-growth-more-capital-more financial market power mentality there will be no escape from the crisis. A global monetary reform seems to be the last exit from chaos and before social unrests will inevitably start. Are the US awaiting the next revolution?
Since the existence of America's economy, private consumers have been the backbone of economics. More growth, more money to expend. Quiet simple, for decades. But America's greedy financial system led to a global crisis, threatening democracies in Europe - and maybe even in the US. Governments falling in Island may be unimportant for the rest of the world, while millions of people protesting and burning barricades in France are alarming signs of the democratic erosion.
Barack Obama now starts the fight against the great depression - but many of the crucial statistics the President's men own are to old to be used. The US Census Bureau intends to survey the nation's spending habits, by this delivering fresh data to the President. In January 2009, U.S. Census Bureau field representatives started collecting information about how much Americans spend for groceries, clothing, transportation, housing, health care and other items from a sample of households across the country.
The Consumer Expenditure (CE) Survey program consists of two parts:
* The Interview Survey - Throughout the year, about 43,000 households will be interviewed once every three months over five calendar quarters to obtain data on relatively large expenditures and also for those expenditures that occur on a regular basis (such as rent and utilities).
* The Diary Survey - During the year, another 9,200 households will keep two consecutive one-week diaries of smaller, more frequent purchases that may be difficult for respondents to recall later (such as a fast-food purchase at a drive-through window, a soda or candy bar from a vending machine, or a carton of eggs from the supermarket).
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics then calculates and publishes integrated data from the two surveys — providing a snapshot of our nation's economy and spending habits. Government economists use the survey results to update a “market basket” of goods and services for the Consumer Price Index, our nation's most widely used measure of inflation.
Before the CE interviews begin, households will receive a letter from the Census Bureau director informing them of their selection to participate in the survey. Census Bureau field representatives will visit these households to conduct the interview. The field representative must display an official photo identification before proceeding with the interview. Federal law ensures survey respondents' personal information and answers are kept confidential.
The average annual amount spend for housing for the United States is $16,684, which means a percentage of total expenditures as high as 33.9.
Unfortunatelly, this is not everything the President has to know. "As of February 5, 2009, the total U.S. federal debt was $10.71 trillion, or about $37,703 per capita", explains WIKIPEDIA. The October 2008 bailout bill (H.R.1424) raised the U.S. debt ceiling (i.e. limit on how much money may be borrowed at one time) from $10 trillion to $11.3 trillion. Of this amount, debt held by the public was roughly $6.4 trillion. In 2007, the public debt was 36.8 percent of GDP, with a total debt of 65.5 percent of GDP. And even the CIA Factbook ranked the total percentage as 23rd in the world. In other words: Sooner or later, the United States are going to follow Argentina: A monetary reform would cut the national debt, but also the assets.
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