CURRENCY TRADING

(This is the third instalment in a series on the trends that led to the present financial crisis)

1. Currency trading is another non-real contributor to the wealth of the rich countries. The trading again involves non-existent money. Banks would lend as much as 30 times the amount of investors’ money held by the traders. The loan is again made up of bank created money. So also would be the investors’ money if they borrowed from the banks.

2. The huge borrowings by the currency traders enable them to manipulate the market; pushing the value of the currency up or down. When the value of the currency changes the traders make a profit. Since the currency traders control trillions of dollars, their profits would be huge, and so would the dividends paid to the investors.

3. The trade in currency is estimated to be 20 times bigger than total world trade. The earnings per dollar invested would be higher than the dividends from production and trading in goods and provision of services. The investors and traders would therefore earn far more than what they would expect if they were to invest only the money they really have.

Continue reading CURRENCY TRADING

THE BANKING SYSTEM AND THE FALSE ECONOMY











(This is the second instalment in a series on the trends
that led to the present financial crisis)

1. Another contributor towards the
per capita and GDP of the rich countries is the banking business.


2. Banks are apparently allowed to lend more money than they have, sometimes as
much as ten times more. When they lend this money which they do not have, it
became their asset on which interest can be earned.


3. Effectively they are creating money and earning profits from the money they
have created.

Continue reading THE BANKING SYSTEM AND THE FALSE ECONOMY

ECONOMIC INDICES AND THE WEALTH OF NATIONS

(This is the first instalment in a series on the trends that
led to the present financial crisis)

1. We all believe that the great
economically developed countries achieved prosperity through their genius in
economic management and their skills in business. They are also seen to be able
to govern their countries well.


2. They had developed various indices to indicate the level of prosperity they
had achieved. And gleefully they compared these indices, especially per capita
incomes and Gross Domestic Product, with those of the poor countries, to show
how competent they were in the management of their economies. The poor are poor
because they did not learn how to manage their countries. They should be
regarded as failed states.


3. The claim by the rich that they were good in management and governance is
only partly true. They did produce goods, provide services and they traded
domestically and internationally. But their wealth from these activities is not
as big as they made out to be. If the per capita and GDP are based only on
these real businesses they would not be as rich as they claim to be. Certainly
the United States and Britain would actually be nearly bankrupt.

Continue reading ECONOMIC INDICES AND THE WEALTH OF NATIONS

BY-ELECTION

1. I went to Bukit Gantang and Bukit Selambau to campaign for Barisan Nasional. We lost in both places; lost with bigger margins.

2. The papers reported that an independent post mortem will be conducted. I hope the people doing this will question me also.

3. In case they won’t, can I give my opinion via this blog. There were lots of banners and posters in Bukit Gantang. A lot of them showed the portraits of the candidate. But quite a lot showed the picture of the Menteri Besar.

Continue reading BY-ELECTION

DEMONISATION

1. The Western Press launched a concerted effort to demonise the new Prime Minister. From France to Britain to Australia, the articles are identical and carried the same message. The in-coming PM is said to be corrupt and involved in a murder case. The Australian writer says Malaysia is a “pariah” nation. I cannot believe that this demonisation by so many at the same time is a coincidence.

2. Included in the condemnation of the new PM is the allegation that he would bring back “Mahathirism”. By this the Western press seem to imply that the fourth PM was a dictator who detained for no reason, manipulated the judiciary, controlled the Press etc etc.

3. As the person concerned I will leave it to Malaysians to judge and to define “Mahathirism”. They are the constituents which Najib should care about. The foreign press has an agenda of their own. And their friends in Malaysia are feeding them with the anti-Najib stories as they fear Najib would put a stop to their control of the media.

4. Najib can expect to hear more of this kind of demonisation from the foreign press but it is what Malaysians think that counts. It is with them that Najib has to clear his name.

THE NEW CABINET LINE-UP

1. I would like to congratulate the new Ministers and Deputy Ministers chosen by Dato Seri Najib.

2. The exclusion of Khairy Jamaluddin, UMNO Youth head who was found guilty of corruption by the UMNO disciplinary committee but allowed to contest for head of UMNO Youth seem to indicate a desire on the part of the new Prime Minister to rid UMNO of the blatantly corrupt politician.

3. Unfortunately the inclusion of several unsavoury characters who had been accused of being corrupt while in the previous Government, seem to negate this desire.

Continue reading THE NEW CABINET LINE-UP

THE GENERATION GAP

1. When in 1957 we became independent the population was only five million. Even after 1963 when Sabah and Sarawak joined the Peninsula to form Malaysia the population was only slightly more than six million.

2. Today Malaysia’s population is 27 million. Obviously most Malaysians were born after 1957-1963. Meaning to say they had not known anything but being free, being independent, being ruled by their fellow countrymen.

3. History is not a compulsory subject in our schools. If at all history is taught it is sketchy, not really giving a clear picture of what it was like to be ruled by foreigners, by the British, the Japanese and in some cases the Thais.

Continue reading THE GENERATION GAP

KENAPA SAYA MASUK BALIK UMNO (Jawapan)

1. Terima kasih kerana ramai yang bersetuju saya masuk balik UMNO. Ramai juga yang menyoal “flip-flop” saya. Izinkan saya jelaskan sedikit.

2. Does the bruising blow to Barisan Nasional at the recent election show that you cannot hold one MAN entirely responsible for all the ills?

3. I think they still do. A leader plays a big role especially in Malaysia and the quality of his leadership affects the behaviour and performance of his subordinates whether elected or of the permanent service.

Continue reading KENAPA SAYA MASUK BALIK UMNO (Jawapan)

KENAPA SAYA MASUK BALIK UMNO

1. Ramai yang mengalu-alukan penyertaan saya semula dalam UMNO. Tetapi ramai juga yang mengkritik saya kenapa saya menyertai sebuah parti yang saya sendiri menuduh sebagai pengamal rasuah dan pemimpinnya menjadi pemimpin kerana menyogok wang kepada pengundi.

2. Yang pertamanya di waktu saya keluar UMNO pada Mei 2008 saya telah nyatakan saya hanya akan kembali menyertai UMNO apabila Dato Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi tidak lagi jadi Perdana Menteri.

3. Sekarang Tun Abdullah tidak lagi Presiden UMNO atau Perdana Menteri Malaysia dan syarat saya sudah dipenuhi. Justeru itu saya perlu tunaikan janji saya.

Continue reading KENAPA SAYA MASUK BALIK UMNO