Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

[don]

The Dying Dollar

Federal Reserve and Wall Street Assassinate US Dollar

Since 2006, the US dollar has experienced a one-quarter to one-third drop in value to the Chinese yuan, depending on the choice of base.

Now China is going to let the dollar decline further in value. China also says it is considering undermining the petrodollar by pricing oil futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange in yuan. This on top of the growing avoidance of the dollar to settle trade imbalances means that the dollar's role as reserve currency is coming to an end, which means the termination of the US as financial bully and financial imperialist. This blow to the dollar in addition to the blows delivered by jobs offshoring and the uncovered bets in the gambling casino created by financial deregulation means that the US economy as we knew it is coming to an end.

The US economy is already in shambles, with bond and stock markets propped up by massive and historically unprecedented Fed money printing pouring liquidity into financial asset prices. This month at the IMF annual conference, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers said that to achieve full employment in the US economy would require negative real interest rates. Negative real interest rates could only be achieved by eliminating cash, moving to digital money that can only be kept in banks, and penalizing people for saving.

The future is developing precisely as I have been predicting.

As the dollar enters its death throes, the lawless Federal Reserve and the Wall Street criminals will increase their shorting of gold in the paper futures market, thereby driving the remnants of the West’s gold into Asian hands.

[RebbePete]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

The Dying Dollar

Federal Reserve and Wall Street Assassinate US Dollar

Since 2006, the US dollar has experienced a one-quarter to one-third drop in value to the Chinese yuan, depending on the choice of base.

Now China is going to let the dollar decline further in value. China also says it is considering undermining the petrodollar by pricing oil futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange in yuan. This on top of the growing avoidance of the dollar to settle trade imbalances means that the dollar's role as reserve currency is coming to an end, which means the termination of the US as financial bully and financial imperialist. This blow to the dollar in addition to the blows delivered by jobs offshoring and the uncovered bets in the gambling casino created by financial deregulation means that the US economy as we knew it is coming to an end.

The US economy is already in shambles, with bond and stock markets propped up by massive and historically unprecedented Fed money printing pouring liquidity into financial asset prices. This month at the IMF annual conference, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers said that to achieve full employment in the US economy would require negative real interest rates. Negative real interest rates could only be achieved by eliminating cash, moving to digital money that can only be kept in banks, and penalizing people for saving.

The future is developing precisely as I have been predicting.

As the dollar enters its death throes, the lawless Federal Reserve and the Wall Street criminals will increase their shorting of gold in the paper futures market, thereby driving the remnants of the West’s gold into Asian hands.

I believe there is more to the US deal with Iran than meets the eye. China may price oil futures in yuan all they want, but until they get an oil exporter to take payment in yuan, it's just a fantasy. Iran was moving closer to China, but now has powerful incentives to side with the Anglo-American sphere.

[DRumsfeld2000]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Maybe Saudi Arabia will price their oil in Yuan as apparently they are furious from what I have read.

[don]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Maybe Saudi Arabia will price their oil in Yuan as apparently they are furious from what I have read.

SA may be too susceptible to fragmentation to seriously consider that ploy. (See Iraq, Libya, West Point's redrawing the ME, etc.)

[coolhand]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

I believe there is more to the US deal with Iran than meets the eye. China may price oil futures in yuan all they want, but until they get an oil exporter to take payment in yuan, it's just a fantasy. Iran was moving closer to China, but now has powerful incentives to side with the Anglo-American sphere.

China already prices physical gold in yuan. If they price oil in yuan as well, I would expect to see the LBMA & COMEX exchanges run into serious trouble within months.

Why would any oil exporter take dollars if they could take yuan & immediately redeploy the funds into physical gold at a price that TPTB know is artificially low?

IMO, this is the reason China's been buying so much gold. "Settle oil in yuan, turn your yuan into physical gold bullion at a price artificially depressed by the American financial establishment."

I know what people on iTulip will say: "But the US military will step in to stop that from happening!" To which I would say "Like in Syria?"

[Verrocchio]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Quo bono? Setting aside the possible end of the world as we know it, a stronger or weaker buck results in winners and losers. Many powerful players in the US would like to see a weaker dollar, and a weaker dollar doesn't necessarily mean the end of the dollar's reserve currency status.

[Woodsman]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Maybe Saudi Arabia will price their oil in Yuan as apparently they are furious from what I have read.

Sure, and then all of a sudden the odd proclivities of certain princes start to make the newspapers. Unfortunate accidents and diseases befall others. Pesky demands from formerly placid opponents begin to prop up. Friction seems to increase all around and in time and seemingly out of nowhere, an insurgency props up and there are a million little fires to put out.

[don]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

then there's this little nugget found in the Iran nuclear agreement . . .

Some curbs on gold trading also will be removed. While Iran will be allowed to buy and sell precious metals, including gold, it will be barred from accepting them as payment for oil or any other sanctioned transaction, according to the officials. Iran sits on the world’s fourth-largest proven oil reserves.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-1...lear-work.html

[RebbePete]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

then there's this little nugget found in the Iran nuclear agreement . . .

Some curbs on gold trading also will be removed. While Iran will be allowed to buy and sell precious metals, including gold, it will be barred from accepting them as payment for oil or any other sanctioned transaction, according to the officials. Iran sits on the world’s fourth-largest proven oil reserves.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-1...lear-work.html

Ahh, the old "bury the real reason deep in the document" trick. No (Chinese) gold accepted here, thank you very much. The USD - not "good as gold for oil," but "instead of gold for oil," since they aren't allowed to accept gold!

[Southernguy]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Excellent find, Don. So they are giving their bomb away for that sh...t?
Either they are desperate or fool.
Another question: why is Israel so angry at the agreement?
I think there are a couple things ordinary mortals do not know in all this mess.

then there's this little nugget found in the Iran nuclear agreement . . .

Some curbs on gold trading also will be removed. While Iran will be allowed to buy and sell precious metals, including gold, it will be barred from accepting them as payment for oil or any other sanctioned transaction, according to the officials. Iran sits on the world’s fourth-largest proven oil reserves.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-1...lear-work.html

[vt]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

I remember the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 well. All of a sudden there was an imminent threat of Russia being able to drop a nuke on Washington, D.C. with 10 minutes warning. We were prepared to go to nuclear war to prevent the missiles becoming operational.

Iran has supposedly agreed to stop it's nuclear weapon program but not nuclear enrichment (which you don't need for nuclear energy). Iran has also said they want to destroy Israel. What would happen if Iran did in fact nuke Israel. would the west really nuke Iran? If we did the mullahs wouldn't care because they believe it would bring about the 12th Iman or something like that.

Don't you think that Israel feels threatened like the United States did in 1962, and that they just might feel angry about an agreement that leaves them threatened with total destruction by a terrorist nation they cannot trust?

[don]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Excellent find, Don. So they are giving their bomb away for that sh...t?
Either they are desperate or fool.
Another question: why is Israel so angry at the agreement?
I think there are a couple things ordinary mortals do not know in all this mess.

It seems the sanctions, and the threat of war, are jeopardizing the ruling elite in Iran. On the other hand, nothing would unite the Iranians like a US-led military action.

As far as the Israels are concerns, this is their chief competitor for regional dominance, now that Iraq has been neutralized. Why shouldn't they be pissed off.

Ditto the Saudis, though their game is a bit more opaque, at least to me.

[Woodsman]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

I remember the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 well.

Your memory is a bit rusty, friend. It's not at all like the Cuban Missile Crisis, but for the sake of argument, who do you see playing the part of Russia/Cuba and who plays the part of the US?

Because in the real world we have Iran, a country our own CIA says is not producing nuclear weapons. They confirm that Iran does not have a single nuclear weapon in their arsenal and shows no sign of building one.

And Iran is the one surrounded by nuclear powers with ten minutes warning. It faces Russia to the north and Israel to the south. Then there's India, Pakistan and China. Even France has the ability to strike Iran should it feel the need. Each of these nations have operational nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them. Iran has none; not a single bomb.

And beyond these fixed sites there are at any moment several Israeli, British, French and US submarines and surface ships in the Med, the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea on patrol carrying every manner of nuclear warhead at the ready. Beyond that there are at least 20 operational B2 bombers that can reach any point on Earth within several hours and travel entirely undetected en route. And then there's our strategic forces hunkered down in the Dakotas and Nebraska. So who exactly is supposed to be feeling the imminent threat here in your Cuban Missile Crisis analogy?

Iran is a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty and has no weapons. Our own intelligence agencies say so. It has agreed to stop its uranium enrichment efforts and eliminate its stockpiles of uranium. It has agreed to on site inspections. This is good news and hopeful.

Israel is teeming with nukes in the ground, in the air and under the sea. It denies this, refuses inspections, and along with North Korea refuses to sign on to the global non proliferation regime. It has threatened to take the whole world down with it.

But Israel is the one under threat by Iran. Iran has no bomb, is surrounded by nuclear armed states, but it is the existential threat to humanity.

How does that work, exactly?

[bagginz]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

us_military_bases_surrounding_iran.jpg


A picture paints a thousand words...

[Chomsky]

Re: Paul Craig Roberts on the death of the dollar

Your memory is a bit rusty, friend. It's not at all like the Cuban Missile Crisis, but for the sake of argument, who do you see playing the part of Russia/Cuba and who plays the part of the US?

Because in the real world we have Iran, a country our own CIA says is not producing nuclear weapons. They confirm that Iran does not have a single nuclear weapon in their arsenal and shows no sign of building one.

And Iran is the one surrounded by nuclear powers with ten minutes warning. It faces Russia to the north and Israel to the south. Then there's India, Pakistan and China. Even France has the ability to strike Iran should it feel the need. Each of these nations have operational nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them. Iran has none; not a single bomb.

And beyond these fixed sites there are at any moment several Israeli, British, French and US submarines and surface ships in the Med, the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea on patrol carrying every manner of nuclear warhead at the ready. Beyond that there are at least 20 operational B2 bombers that can reach any point on Earth within several hours and travel entirely undetected en route. And then there's our strategic forces hunkered down in the Dakotas and Nebraska. So who exactly is supposed to be feeling the imminent threat here in your Cuban Missile Crisis analogy?

Iran is a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty and has no weapons. Our own intelligence agencies say so. It has agreed to stop its uranium enrichment efforts and eliminate its stockpiles of uranium. It has agreed to on site inspections. This is good news and hopeful.

Israel is teeming with nukes in the ground, in the air and under the sea. It denies this, refuses inspections, and along with North Korea refuses to sign on to the global non proliferation regime. It has threatened to take the whole world down with it.

But Israel is the one under threat by Iran. Iran has no bomb, is surrounded by nuclear armed states, but it is the existential threat to humanity.

How does that work, exactly?

Tsk tsk, letting facts get in the way of a good story, again!