Nick Hanauer on consumers:

I can say with confidence that rich people don’t create jobs, nor do businesses, large or small. What does lead to more employment is a “circle of life” like feedback loop between customers and businesses. And only consumers can set in motion this virtuous cycle of increasing demand and hiring. In this sense, an ordinary middle-class consumer is far more of a job creator than a capitalist like me.

So when businesspeople take credit for creating jobs, it’s a little like squirrels taking credit for creating evolution. In fact, it’s the other way around.

Anyone who’s ever run a business knows that hiring more people is a capitalists course of last resort, something we do only when increasing customer demand requires it. In this sense, calling ourselves job creators isn’t just inaccurate, it’s disingenuous.

That’s why our current policies are so upside down. When you have a tax system in which most of the exemptions and the lowest rates benefit the richest, all in the name of job creation, all that happens is that the rich get richer.

Mosler Squad Win Much Interrupted BEC Snetterton Race

By James Broomhead

gfc & mmt daily

Is Norway Preparing for a European Bond Disaster?

By John Carney

Student Loans Continue to Drive Consumer Credit in March 2012

By Steven Hansen

Mosler Leads Ferrari in BEC Donington Qualifying

By James Broomhead

April 21 (Bloomberg) — In qualifying for the second race of the Britcar MSA British Endurance Championship Javier Morcillo took pole position by a little over half a second from the 45-minute session qualifying session.

Morcillo and the Neil Garner Motorsport/Strata 21 he shares with Manuel Cintrano and Paul White Mosler MT900 came to the fore in the second half of the session, Morcillo taking pole position, then extending his advantage in three successive laps of 1:06.903, 1:06.275 and finally 1:05.318 with thirteen minutes remaining.

Jumping from the bottom of the top five to pole position Morcillo initially led a tightly packed lead quartet. The Ian Heward/Mike Millard Rapier SR2 was second, the orange works Ginetta third and the Paul Bailey and Andy Schulz Ferrari fourth fastest all covered by a little over two tenths.

“I was almost dead flat downhill through the Craner Curves,” Morcillo said. “I’m not very proud of not making it totally flat for once but apart from that I’m very happy. I didn’t think we would get pole position. Andy did a fantastic time – I do not think there are many Ferrari’s faster than that around Donington, it’s not a place for the Ferrari. I wasn’t expecting it to be the Ferrari, I was expecting the Ginetta to be really fast – that’s a fantastic car.”

Morcillo’s rapid improvement cleaved a gulf in the top four. His full advantage remaining intact until the no.17 Optimum Motorsport Ginetta G55 improved to 1:06.395. Also late improvers were the works Ginetta, slotting into fourth to form an all Ginetta second row. Andy Schulz moved the black SB Race Engineering Ferrari into second on the final lap, just a half second off the pace of the Mosler.

Mike’s Latest Bloomberg Hit: “US Budget Deficit is a Virtue”

Mosler Squad Outlast Rivals For Season Opener Win – BRITCAR – The Checkered Flag

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>   My daughter is starting early, deficit bunny…
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>   Olivia Camacho:
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Not causal but progress!

MMT: A family tree

PDF:

UMKC conference

Total nonsense.
The do have their own currency, last I checked.

Sweden Should Sell More Bonds to Tap Foreign Demand, SEB Says

Jan 19 (Bloomberg) — Sweden should borrow more to take advantage of demand and increase investments in the largest Nordic economy, SEB AB Chief Economist Robert Bergqvist said.

The Nordic region has emerged as a haven as European leaders struggle to contain a sovereign debt crisis now in its third year. Swedish 10-year bonds are trading at a yield of 14 basis points less than benchmark German debt as of 10:56 a.m. in Stockholm.

“If you look at other countries in Europe that now must save money, cut budget deficits and bring down government debt, in Sweden we can make investments for the future, so I hope the government is using this very nice situation to borrow money to make investments in infrastructure, education,” Bergqvist said in an Jan. 17 interview Stockholm. “This would strengthen the Swedish position in the long term.”

Some foreign investors are concerned about the level of liquidity in the market, he said. “They want to see more government debt.”

*DJ Fed’s Bullard: Best To Leave Economic Stimulus To Fed
*DJ Bullard: Fed Can Stimulate Even When Rates Are At Zero Percent
*DJ Bullard: Fed Potency Negates Need For Government Stimulus
*DJ Bullard: Monetary Policy Has Been Appropriate

That means he’s pleased with the outcome of the last three year’s policies???

He’s satisfied with current conditions???

The initial rate on the 3 year LTRO was reported to be ‘fixed’ at 1%, but turns out it adjusts with the policy rate and will be an average of the policy rate over the three year term.

So it doesn’t fix rates for the banks, it just ensures funding at the policy rate. Which makes sense, as the bank’s cost of funds is the policy instrument of the ECB.

Also interesting is how in the case of bank defaults the member nations guarantee the bank deposits. But those member nations get their funding from bond sales. And with the weaker ones that means bond sales to the ECB. So in that sense, the ECB is backing bank deposits. Which means when it provides liquidity and takes collateral, should the bank subsequently realize losses, causing the ECB to realize losses on the funds provided to the bank for liquidity, the member nation would then sell bonds to the ECB to get the funds to pay for the loans it got from the ECB.

Again, it all comes down to the ECB writing the check. And it all works from a solvency point of view when the ECB writes the check. And the ECB writing the check introduces a serious moral hazard issue. Hence the (over) emphasis on austerity.

“Give a man a fish, feed him for a day,
teach a man to fish,
and he spends the rest of his life on a boat drinking beer”

Fish 24:7