"The political order, once a decentralized set of several dozen states with a weak spinal cord, has become a centralized executive establishment which has taken up into itself many powers previously scattered. The military order, once a slim establishment in a context of distrust fed by state militia, has become the largest and most expensive feature of government.
A society that is merely expedient does not produce men of conscience. A society that narrows the meaning of ‘success’ to the big money and in its terms condemns failure as the chief vice, raising money to the plane of absolute value, will produce the sharp operator and the shady deal. Blessed are the cynical, for only they have what it takes to succeed."
C. Wright Mills, The Power Elite, 1956
"What I see here is a toxic relationship between deregulation, underpriced risk, and exorbitant, inefficient pay scales that contribute to the growth of inequality, not to mention the shampoo economy: bubble, bust, repeat."
Jared Bernstein, A Generation of Economists Helped Get Us Into This Mess, September 13, 2019
“Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can even do much to help it. And what is this liberty which must lie in the hearts of men and women? It is not the ruthless, the unbridled will; it is not freedom to do as one likes. That is the denial of liberty, and leads straight to its overthrow. A society in which men recognize no check upon their freedom soon becomes a society where freedom is the possession of only a savage few, as we have learned to our sorrow."
Judge Learned Hand, The Spirit of Liberty, 21 May 1944
"Thus did a handful of rapacious citizens come to control all that was worth controlling in America. Thus was the savage and stupid and entirely inappropriate and unnecessary and humorless American class system created. Honest, industrious, peaceful citizens were classed as bloodsuckers, if they asked to be paid a living wage. Thus the American dream turned belly up, turned green, bobbed to the scummy surface of cupidity unlimited, filled with gas, went bang in the noonday sun."
Kurt Vonnegut, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, April 5, 1965
"Injustice must be exposed, with all the tension its exposure creates, to the light of human conscience and the air of national opinion before it can be cured."
Martin Luther King, Letter From a Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963
"For these are a rebellious people, deceitful children. They say to their seers,‘Do not see!’ and to the prophets,‘Say nothing of what is right! Tell us only things that please us, prophesy illusions."
Isaiah 30:8-10
The markets will be watching for the Non-Farm Payrolls report tomorrow morning.
The volumes on the market, barring something unforeseen, will be increasingly subdued as Wall Street slides into a three day, holiday weekend.
Markets will be closed on Friday in observance of July 4th.
Bitcoin is hovering near its all time high.
Stocks managed to squeeze out another rally.
Gold and silver rebounded.
VIX is submissive to complacency.
The Dollar looks to be comfortable on the 96 handle.
It is hard to believe how badly things have turned out, as the masks of deceit continue to fall away.
Have a pleasant evening.
