Celente on money junkies, the real mafia, The Presidential Reality Show , the Wall Street casino, Angela Merkel, and the need for a third party - here and here.
Posting mega doom predictor Gerald Celente rather blindly yesterday got me thinking. I posted his apocalyptic predictions because:
A. There is a certain sick fun in doom and gloom.
and
B. Sociologically "end times" thinking fascinates me. The name of this blog is a small tribute to my interest. I believe in narratives as motivators. We make decisions based on stories we've bought into. "America is an exception" is a particularly strong narrative point that in some ways I buy into. But not all.
Most of us never hear the larger narrative or express much interest in it.
The end times narrative in Western Christian Culture is deeply rooted. This world we know will end. Either God will smote the bad people and save a few good ones or mankind, unable to control its greed and envy, will destroy us all.
As with the whole sale dismissal of all "conspiracy" - end times thought is dismissed at our peril. The loons and the sane both have end times stories churning out there now. The loons inform us about their lunacy - and therefore ourselves. (UFO sightings are worldwide - but "alien abduction" is overwhelmingly an American phenomenon. There is a real sociological goldmine in that little tid bit. )
The smarter ones who see grim tidings everywhere should be given at least some of our attention.
I find people like Celente fascinating. Peter Schiff too- he is largely saying the same thing about the economy. As I've said before the saner Peak Oilers have an imperfect - but pretty good record. Housing collapse, Financial downturn, the long term foolishness of suburbia, and the dangers of an overstretched food delivery system are all prescient.
On a subconscious level the "end times narrative" is playing out in reality. We ARE pushing the envelope. Creating money out of thin air. Spending like drunken sailors in a casino. Polluting with abandon. We have, in essence, ditched our children by the side of the road. Gun sales are through the roof and that financial wiz kid down the road may be a secret survivalist. We really are near the breaking point. The "end time" of something - if not exactly everything.
Here are some of the points he made that he says prove Celente wrong.
Just last November Tynan openly mocked this Celente prediction:
"It's going to be very bleak. Very sad. And there is going to be a lot of homeless, the likes of which we have never seen before. Tent cities are already sprouting up around the country and we're going to see many more.”
Two days ago the Governor of California opened up state land to a burgeoning "Tent city". People are losing homes at rates not seen since the 30s.
More Tynan mocking of Celente who predicted that in the 21st century:
Voluntary simplicity, once merely a counterculture ideal, will finally become a reality in the twenty-first century. Moderation, self-discipline, and spiritual growth will be the personal goals of the future, not material accumulation.
It seems like Celente is correct here - not foolish. Millions are cutting back. Simplifying. I am. Everyone I know well is.
Celente predicts and Tynan mocks this:
The trend to convert lawns into gardens will have a significant impact not only on the way we eat but also on how we live and feel. Billions of dollars formerly spent on lawn care will either be saved or re-deployed into producing fresh food.
Michelle Obama recently converted a part of the White House grounds into a vegetable garden. Regardless of her motivation - this trend is REAL. And will pick up. The localization movement is expanding everywhere.
How about this:
The public is going to demand that the government break up powerful corporate monopolies.
Nothing about that sentence rings false or off base. The move to "never allow a company to become to big to fail" again is a slightly revised version of Celente's statement.
There are minor predictions as well. None of much interest to me. The fashion industry is doomed. (God willing), Latin influence on pop culture will increase...demographics say yes...
The thing about Celente that is most disturbing is that his predictions make sense. Common sense. To believe we are not on a runaway financial train at this point is to believe in the tooth fairy. There will be consequences. As dire as Celente says? Who knows. But we have not seen the end of this financial mess - by a long, long, shot
His thoughts certainly make more sense than printing a few trillion dollars and hoping inflation doesn't take hold. Which, though I am not an economist, seems completely nonsensical.
Does the world end on December 21st, 2012? (I do wish the Mayans had given us a specific time so I could schedule my Christmas haircut.)
No.
Will X number of believers be whisked off into the sky to be with Jesus...
Uh no.
(And WOW are they in for a surprise when they're handed a sandbag or a hoe and told to stop whining and get to work. )
But fundamental narratives that many assumed would last forever are being challenged. This will feel like the "end times" for many.
So I think I'll start the weekend with some miserable predictions from Gerald Celente. Nice, eh? Listen to the string of horrors he has on tap for us. 25% unemployment, civil unrest, food riots. And Ghost Malls. A phrase I find vaguely enticing - entire malls floating around the ether...with obnoxious ghost teens, and ghost early morning jog/walkers - and, of course, ghost Hot Dog on a Stick girls....Plus, as a bonus, Celente calls for the total collapse to occur in 2012. Which, as we know, the Mayans already have dibs on. It dovetails nicely with many a History channel apocalypse special. In a few grimmer moments last year I referred to Chicago Slim as not only the next American President - but the last American President. I'm in a much better mood now...but hey...I accept that the internets are forever - so I am stuck with my doom...
Celente is purported to have called previous crisis correctly. I don't know. I do know that his predictions makes more sense than the massive printing of dollars...at least from out here.
Conversely, things seem a wee bit better now then they were even a few weeks ago. (I judge the economy based on the availability of parking on Larchmont, a little, pricey, ma and pa boutique street in LA good for a bagel and a flirt. If I can park easily things are bad. I had a little trouble Tuesday...)
Also, I keep seeing "Most economics predict that we will come out of recession in late 2009." Based on recent experience "most economists" should not be trusted.
The miserable have no other medicine but only hope.
W. Shakespeare from Measure For Measure
No Bull Reading and Watching For Friday: 1.Truth is Gold - We're Surrounded...That Simplifies Our Problem. 2.Paglia Pummels: I've always admired Paglia for going after the "gender studies" crowd and still retaining her liberal identity. Her thinking is clear and consistent, unlike many of her contemporaries on the feminist Left. "Every penny Rush has earned was the result of his rapport with a vast audience who felt shut out and silenced by the liberal monopoly of major media." 3.Two from the Christian Science Monitor. A. Unreal Estate - Treasury Dept plans 1 trillion dollar bailout for Malls. No this is not from the Onion. I kid you not. Unreal. Another trillion that simply does not exist for the American institution least likely the survive. THE MALL. This is a delusion, rapped in a fantasy, covered with hallucinations... B. Post Christian? The coming evangelical collapse. Actually, I think this writer is wrong and having a "Happy, Earnest Young Christan" (We all know the type from high school) delusion about the fledgling "home church" movement. A smaller, more community based Christianity is set for a big comeback, because a smaller, more community based everything is set for a big comeback. Depressions being what they are... P.S. - as a "born just once - thank you very much - deeds actually matter more than a momentary spasm of accepting a Technicolor, 70 millimeter Jesus as my lord and savior Christian - of the Anglo-Catholic, go to confession, ash on the forehead, occasionally vespers attending, organ music variety I want to say: I find the happy, earnest, let's pal around together, version of Jesus almost unbearable. Not sure why I wanted to say that - but I did. I am wary of them in the same way I am of bears in the woods, or 80s TV stars on Melrose. 4. From the Right: I agree with Will on BHO's budget and his handling of the economy. He says Obama is not being "clear or plausible" - I called the budget blueprint ridiculous and absurd. Will says: The first president whose campaign was his qualification for office continues to campaign. 5. From the Bronx: Celente predictingfood riots in the U.S. this year. Like that nutty Russian, this American ( sub species found just north of Manhattan: Homo Inyourface-culus ) also thinks America may break apart. But, happily, he says: Without art we are doomed. And recommends sending kids to art school. 6. Agree with him or not, he's important.Stewart matters. Like his destruction of Crossfire - he pulled CNBCs cover with mocking humor. In both cases pointing out the debasing of information for the purpose of ratings and entertainment. Mr. Chayefski pointed out the dangers to a democracy of "scream journalism" way back when with this movie. Music: From the 80s. Fine Young Cannibals cover a cover by Elvis -beautifully in my book. Roland Gift's voice is sexy and unique enough to revisit The King without inviting disappointment.
