tickerguy from 08/04/2009
http://market-ticker.denninger.net/
And So It Begins....
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The sheriff in Alabama's most populous county may call for the National Guard to help maintain order, a spokesman said Tuesday, after a judge cleared the way for cuts in the sheriff's budget and hopes dimmed for a quick end to a budget crisis.
Eek.
Jefferson County is the county in Alabama that contains Birmingham; it appears that the Sheriff's Department is going to get hammered now.
The county's economic problems stem from a number of bad bets made with..... guess what.... exotic financial instruments sold to the county by.... you guessed it.... big banks.
May I make a suggestion? Send The Guard up to NY and arrest the bankers responsible for peddling this trash to the county, then bring 'em back and hold a citizens court.
Naw, we couldn't do that. It would look too much like Salem, right?
If you've ever had the illusion that these "exotic products" were good for people in general (instead of the bankers peddling them), including the folks who were sold them, this nasty series of events should permanently disabuse you of that notion - especially when there are armed National Guard troops attempting to maintain civil order.
grz-
A quiet and easy way to usurp... oops, I mean usher in FEDERAL marshal law... take operating capital/money away from county sheriffs.
County sheriffs have some clout against the Feds in most states... taking their funding away eliminates this little glitch/problem that stands in the way of... fill in the blank.
Could be the plan behind giving states unfunded mandates that require compliance in order to get the federal handouts... I mean stimulus moneys.
I know most folks have no idea the state conditions/requirements that are in place in order to get the stimulus money... and the money, being attractive in times of budget deficits, have state legislators willing to bend over and take it all the way for it... d@mning the people they are supposed to represent all to he!!
I knew all this was coming... I want it to just happen NOW and be done with so we can all get on with things... I wish they would quit playing the shell game and just go insolvent already... everyone knows the country is broke.