(2008-06-12) Rushkoff Credit Collapse

Douglas Rushkoff on the cause of the Credit Crisis 2008 and how to deal with it. Financial speculation saved by BigGov Bail-Out. Wealth Inequality. And remember: this whole mortgage fiasco is just a little preview of what happens next year when the Credit Card industry faces the very same self-imposed "crunch."... Over the past few months I've spoken to top strategists at some of the biggest banks in the world, and they share my perception of the scenario. Most of them are "holding cash" as their main investment strategy, spread out over a few of the major currencies. Those making money are doing so by short-selling shares of other companies in the same finance industry that they supposedly work for... Foreign investment trusts may come in and buy our biggest banks and turn us into global citizens through the very World Bank policies we were hoping would turn all of them into US vassals.

Whatever the case, the best thing you can do to protect yourself and your interests is to make friends. The more we are willing to do for each other on our own terms and for compensation that doesn't necessarily involve the until-recently-almighty dollar, the less vulnerable we are to the movements of markets that, quite frankly, have nothing to do with us... Think small (SmallWorld). Buy local. Make friends. Print money (LETS). Grow food. Teach children. Learn nutrition. And if you do have money to invest, put it into whatever lets you and your friends do those things.