Just over a year after economic calamity brought promises of reform to Washington, many now say that the recession is nearing an end. But is it business as usual for Wall Street, and have future financial crises been averted? Former International Monetary Fund chief economist Simon Johnson and US Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) join Bill Moyers for a report card on the bailouts, an update on the state of the U.S. economy, and to find out whether efforts of reform have been derailed.

Click here or on the image below to view the video clip

Click here for the full transcript.

Source: PBS, October 9, 2009.

Did you enjoy this post? If so, click here to subscribe to updates to Investment Postcards from Cape Town by e-mail.

Alex’s Notes: Very interesting to note that banks are having a hard time finding the actual mortgage documents.

***

Facing Foreclosure ? Don’t Leave. Squat Amy Goodman February 4, 2009 The San Francisco Chronicle

Marcy Kaptur of Ohio is the longest-serving Democratic congresswoman in U.S. history. Her district, stretching along the shore of Lake Erie from west of Cleveland to Toledo, faces an epidemic of home foreclosures and 11.5 percent unemployment. That heartland region, the Rust Belt, had its heart torn out by the North American Free Trade Agreement, with shuttered factories and struggling family farms. Kaptur led the fight in Congress against NAFTA. Now, she is recommending a radical foreclosure solution from the floor of the U.S. Congress: “So I say to the American people, you be squatters in your own homes. Don’t you leave.”

She criticizes the bailout’s failure to protect homeowners facing foreclosure. Her advice to “squat” cleverly exploits a legal

As you know (if you've been reading the issues), I'm watching the US dollar closely. Let's look at the daily chart again ...Nothing is certain, but I do expect the US dollar to go lower from here.Meanwhile, I did an interview with Phil at HoweStreet.com yesterday. You can listen to that here: http://tinyurl.com/4pudt4.And my MoneyandMarkets.com column is up. It's about the Wall Street bail out ... and go-o-o-o-old...Government Debt Rescue a Boon for Gold!by Sean BrodrickWednesday, September 24, 2008 7:30 AMTreasury Secretary Paulson and Congress are hammering out details of the government's rescue plan for financial institutions, and we don't know what final impact it will have on the debt crisis ... [More...]Finally, if it's not clear that I'm not in favor of the Wall Street bailout as it is proposed