I’ve heard (and learned) that Economics is politics in disguise. A graduate student TA once said that teaching economics was like teaching Druidisum, you don’t necessarily have to believe or practice it to teach it (or speak it).

The Chicago School of Economics (Greenspan, supply side, ‘free-trade’)certainly has played a key role in the impending global economic catastrophe, but mostly its just boils down to the seven deadly sins - particularly greed, averice, prife and lust (lust for power, lust for money) that has brought us to this crossroads. (Okay so maybe the crosswoods was when we finally abandoned the Bretton Woods - thank Nixon).

It is not communist or socialist to say that Democracy does not equate Capitialism, Capitialism is not democracy, and the two can be mutually exclusive. There is no such thing as a “free market”, it is an ideal (just like true democracy, socialism, communisum, and Plato’s perfect mirror world).
All markets are regulated (controled) in some manner. Certainly governments not only control markets but also create markets; ometimes by trade associations, consortiums, agreements. Sometimes markets can even be controled by individuals. We heard from Adam Smith’s “Hidden Hand” in the form of the energy traders of Enron boasting about “stealing grandma Millies social security check”.

Checks and balances? The founding fathers knew that power cannot be trusted to imperfect man, that it collects and corrupts. As Jon Stewart recently commented on the Gonsalas “Hearings” and response to Alberto’s statements on the role of congress: The Congress has official been shaved and newtered”.

Just how deep is the rabbit hole? $8 BILLION + “missing” from Iraq and no US agency is even looking? Judging by the way gold is moving it’s being well “washed”. LaRouche certainly has some valid points about economics and empire.