http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog A LOOK BEHIND THE WIZARD’S CURTAIN Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:50:35 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/anatomy-of-a-con-job-2/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/anatomy-of-a-con-job-2/#comments Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:58:56 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=459 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/anatomy-of-a-con-job-2/feed/ 0 “In searching for the new enemy to unite us, we came up with the idea that pollution, the threat of global warming, water shortages, famine and the like would fit the bill. . . . But in designating them as the enemy, we fall into the trap about which we have already warned, namely mistaking symptoms for cause. All these dangers are caused by human intervention and it is only through changing attitudes and behaviors that they can be overcome. The real enemy, then, is humanity itself.” Sounds like a good plan . . . if you’re Darth Vader. http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/oil-is-not-a-fossil-fuel-2/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/oil-is-not-a-fossil-fuel-2/#comments Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:58:34 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=451 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/oil-is-not-a-fossil-fuel-2/feed/ 1 He said oil doesn’t come from anything biologic, not, as conventional wisdom dictates, from the fossilized remains of dinosaurs and/or ancient plant matter. It comes from very deep in the earth and is created by a biochemical reaction that subjected hydrocarbons (elements having carbon and hydrogen) to extreme heat and intense pressure during the earth’s formation. http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/a-vast-strategic-pr-campaign/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/a-vast-strategic-pr-campaign/#comments Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:58:15 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=439 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/a-vast-strategic-pr-campaign/feed/ 2 According to the Wall Street Journal, “Nearly everyone agrees that there are more polar bears now than when scientists first started counting: Estimates put the population between 20,000 and 25,000, up from several thousand 50 years ago. In Canada, where two-thirds of the world’s bears live, most populations have grown during the past two or three decades. Arctic residents say they are now bumping into bears wherever they turn.” The polar bear “debate” cuts to the heart of the foundation on which the environmental movement rests: global warming. http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/biofuel-craze-destroying-nature/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/biofuel-craze-destroying-nature/#comments Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:57:57 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=442 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/biofuel-craze-destroying-nature/feed/ 2 Biofuels are broadly promoted as a solution to the production of carbon dioxide. But a closer examination reveals that they damage the environment on two fronts: the first is massive planetary deforestation. Tropical forests are the most powerful carbon reservoirs on the planet. In other words, they sequester and store carbon dioxide more effectively than any other resource. http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/an-invention/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/an-invention/#comments Sat, 20 Feb 2010 20:57:29 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=444 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/global-warming/an-invention/feed/ 4 The carbon market is projected to be in the trillions, and will be turned lose in the U.S. the moment the Senate passes a cap-and-trade bill. That bill will have to be reconciled with the House bill and sent to President Obama, who has made this legislation a key policy initiative second only to health care. Everyone is set up and ready to go. The big banks have been investing in carbon friendly enterprises—Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Bank of America and Citigroup are some of the players. Not to be outdone, the World Bank has joined the CCX and now operates a Carbon Fund for Europe that helps countries meet their Kyoto Protocol requirements. http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/the-financial-crisis/why-is-the-current-recession-different-from-past-financial-crises-2/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/the-financial-crisis/why-is-the-current-recession-different-from-past-financial-crises-2/#comments Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:28:47 +0000 admin http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=410 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/the-financial-crisis/why-is-the-current-recession-different-from-past-financial-crises-2/feed/ 0 QUESTION: Why is the current recession different from past financial crises? We have a seismic shift here. This is not an ordinary depression – recession – call it what you will.  This was a created financial catastrophe. The thing that might be difficult for some people to deal with – to confront – is the fact [...] http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/the-financial-crisis/what-can-you-do-about-it/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/the-financial-crisis/what-can-you-do-about-it/#comments Sat, 06 Feb 2010 22:54:31 +0000 admin http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=375 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/the-financial-crisis/what-can-you-do-about-it/feed/ 0 QUESTION: What can we do about this situation? There are a couple things that people can do. One, in the book that accompanies the film there’s a chapter on specifically what people can do relative to their own financial futures.  What do you do when the US budget deficit is one and a half trillion dollars?  [...] http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/how-to-protect-yourself-and-your-assets/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/how-to-protect-yourself-and-your-assets/#comments Thu, 14 Jan 2010 00:16:46 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=303 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/how-to-protect-yourself-and-your-assets/feed/ 2 I was sitting in a restaurant in Toluca Lake, California munching on a field of greens salad with gorganzola cheese, candied pecans and a rasberry vinigrette dressing. My Kobe burger had just been served when my cell phone did its thing. I tried not to glance at the phone because the Kobe burger beckoned. But I [...] http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/banking/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/banking/#comments Thu, 14 Jan 2010 00:16:41 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=329 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/banking/feed/ 2 BANKING An AP wire story issued last month said, “Regulators on Friday shut down two big California banks as well as banks in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Michigan and Illinois, bring to 140 the number of U.S. banks brought down this year by the weak economy and mounting loan defaults.” You don’t have to be a [...] http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/money-market-accounts/ http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/money-market-accounts/#comments Thu, 14 Jan 2010 00:16:06 +0000 Bruce http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/?p=331 http://www.crisisbydesign.com/blog/financial-advice/money-market-accounts/feed/ 1 MONEY MARKET ACCOUNTS Last year, a group of international bankers called The Group of Thirty, met and issued some recommendations about money market accounts. On the surface, The Group of Thirty is just an “informal” group of very senior finance people who make recommendations about global banking and finance. But a close look finds it made [...]