Why not just rob the banks?

[SEE3772]

Originally Posted by IIFFOFRDB

Coming soon to the USA...fuckers

Already has... Inflation etc

[Texas Contrarian]

The Cyprus story just gets more and more bizarre.

After the Cypriot parliament nixed key elements of the seizure plan, it was rumored that the finance minister tried to resign. A very short time later, he was said to be on the way to Moscow to meet with the Russians (including representatives from Gazprom), who want access to Cypriot natural gas fields.

It may turn out that the Russians will end up bailing out the island haven in return for a big energy payoff. Who knows? There are a lot of moving parts right now. But if there's even a shred of good news from any of this, it's that it is now abundantly clear (as if it shouldn't have already been obvious enough!) that if you try to seize a percentage of the savings of ordinary people, you're going to soon find that you've grabbed a tiger by the tail.

And then there's this from the former head of the Central Bank of Cyprus:

http://www.businessinsider.com/forme...s-dying-2013-3

He says that the European Project is "dying," and it sure looks like he may be right.

[Texas Contrarian]

This:

Originally Posted by IIFFOFRDB

Coming soon to the USA...fuckers

Was answered by this:

Originally Posted by SEE3772

Already has... Inflation etc

That hits upon a point that has (mostly) been ignored by the media, although a number of people in finance have noted it.

With enduring ZIRP and QE (as well as other actions), policymakers have suppressed interest rates across the entire yield curve. Normally, such actions are considered "emergency" measures, but they've been left in place for years -- and with no end in sight. The fear is that the markets and the economy would quickly begin sinking again without continuing the unprecedented levels of monetary policy accommodation.

This is very bad for savers and retirees who can barely earn more than zero on bank deposit interest and CDs. In "normal" times, interest income more or less keeps up with inflation for people who aren't in high tax brackets. But ultra-easy monetary policy is great for the biggest of the big players, who can still speculate with almost free money. It's also good for the largest corporations that do a lot of exporting and offshoring. For smaller U.S. businesses, not so much. (For one thing, they can't get credit on similar terms.)

Big players are still free to play "heads we win, tails stockholders (or ultimately, in some cases, taxpayers) lose games with other people's money. Just look at what happened recently to JPM. Google "Boaz Weinstein" if you'd like to read some interesting stuff. For instance:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/bu...anted=all&_r=0

If you think the Dodd-Frank financial "reform" legislation did much to reduce this sort of activity, or the risks associated with TBTF, you'd better look again. It's little more than just another "crony capitalism shuffle."

Many forms of what we refer to as "financial repression" really act as just a type of stealth tax.

[I B Hankering]

Historically, banks and bankers have been against inflation and preferred deflation. Presently, however, the Fed and the politicians have made inflation profitable for banks and bankers, and they, in turn, back the politicians who do their bidding.