The DOLLAR Will be the Next Victim of the Bush Presidency

[JCMach1]

Everything has been put in place for the de facto devaluation of the currency. America's huge accounts deficit is placing huge pressure to the downside. The accounts deficit is so embarassingly large that the FED needs to cover it up. Stopping the M3 reports effectively does this http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1068939 . The dollar, once the last refuge of money investors, has been replaced by gold which is consistently reaching new highs http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2256837 .

Republicans have never wanted fair wages for the working people of what was once OUR country. What better way to give everyone a wage-cut (simply destroy the value of the dollar). They (the Bushies) will blame it on everything else. BLAH BLAH BLAH... At the end of the day, it will be their disastrous trade and monetary policies that are the primary cause. The GCC is on the verge of ending their 'dollar' dependency http://gulfnews.com/business/Business_Feature/10036740.html .

What will happen if the dollar loses 15-30% of its value over the next 6 months? We are about to find out!

Just watch while Bush **surprise** does NOTHING!

[mykpart]

1. It's already lost value because of the price of gas.

The only ways the government has to make money is to increase taxes or generate more money (causing inflation). You can't lower taxes during a war. Duh!

[shanti]

2. so, let me get this straight

gas goes up by 50%, and the dollar goes down 30%.....guess that makes us sort of screwed. :(

[izzie]

9. I am retired so live very tight and I see this

One retirement fund is paying me more as it is stocks. First time it has gone up since Clinton's days. I will never make up the income lost from Bush's first 5 years on that fund.I have taken over paying for PC to help the lady that pays the heat bill and rent has stayed the same. Food is up, gas is up and I gave up buying clothing years ago.I pity myself when stuff wears out.No fear I understand that Bush is printing more money,which I am sure he learned about when he got his MBA. Frankly I always figured that the real big money people would stop all this before he can take the country down into a third world eco. Even the rich need some one to buy things so they can stay rich.

[Spider Jerusalem]

3. The dollar's already lost 30% of its value over the last five years....

relative to other major world currencies.

The reasons are similar to those that caused devaluation of the British pound following the Second World War; the US is massively indebted, and our global influence is on the wane. This would have happened with or without Bush, eventually; all his administration's deficit-spending policies are doing is hastening things a little.

[Oversea Visitor]

5. Not neccessary

Much depends on countries in the world.
Someone has to be World Currency to give some stability to the financial market.
So what if US get some advantage.
No big deal here.
But Bush so screw it up

[Oversea Visitor]

4. It is already too late

Bush utterly and completely destroy whatever trust we have in US forever.
The question we always have will be Would another bush happen again.

The US dollars as world currency is based on the trust we hold in US as a country of good values and principles. This all gone.

It is like being a virgin
You cant have it back once you lost it.

[jsamuel]

6. oh, come now... every country has had it's share of ups and downs

good leaders and bad leaders...

Just look at the pound...

... or Germany for that matter... Just years after WWII ended, Germany was doing very well...

[Oversea Visitor]

7. You are right

But you lose the benefits and advantage of being the world currency
No more free pass. :)

[Theduckno2]

8. My pet peeve is with the "free market" optimists who....

...would have us believe that a devalued dollar will lead to increased U.S. competitiveness on the world stage and this would completely negate the ill effects of a devalued dolar.

One needs to look no further than the current world oil markets to realize that such beliefs are pie-in-the-sky.

Every time the dollar is devalued our input costs for imported oil (as well as other raw materials) increases relative to those countries whose currencies appreciate.

Given that the U.S. is by far the world's largest consumer of oil (most of it imported) the belief that a devalued dollar will result in a booming economy is, in my view, tragically optimistic.

Now if we were able to reduce our consumption, through conservation, then things might improve.

We all know how the Bush administration feels about conservation. :eyes:

[enid602]

10. oil

I think what most people don't realize is that there will be a double wammy with regard to oil prices. First, if the worldwide price of oil were to rise say another 30%, this would affect all oil-consuming nations. If, at the same time the Dollar falls (vis-a-vis) other currencies by say 30% during the same period, the cost of imported oil for US consumers will actually rise 60%. Remember, even though OPEC still officially charges for oil in Dollars, they price the oil based on the value of the Dollar in terms of the Euro and other hard currencies.

[Atman]

11. I'm convinced this is the reason for the massive tax cut give-away

to Bush's 1% "base." And the reason Bush won't give any of it back despite the economic trouble we're in. They know and have know the economic disaster their policies have set up. They expected it, it was an obvious result of massive tax cuts and massive spending with nothing to replace the income. Even a C-Student MBA could see that. The idea of the tax cuts wasn't that they expected it "trickle down" on anybody. It was a way of stockpiling lots of cash in preparation for the fall. The "haves" will be fine behind their compound walls while the rest of America goes through major social upheaval. It's coming, folks. Buy a nice big wheelbarrow now while you still can...you'll need it to carry your worthless dollars to the mini market for loaf of bread.

[TexasLawyer]

12. k&r

important stuff

[JCMach1]

13. kick

for the afternoon...

[Lydia Leftcoast]

14. Dollar vs. yen

117 yen to the dollar last week
113 yen to the dollar this week, from 114 on Friday.

The dollar is also falling in relation to the pound.

[enid602]

15. Cdn $

The Cdn $ is now .896c, almost 90c. Incredible; this might be a all-time high for the Cdn $.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

16. No, there was a time during my childhood/teen years when

the Canadian dollar was worth more than the U.S. dollar. This would have been in the 1950s or 1960s. I remember this because my family used to visit Canada nearly every summer when I was growing up.