Module 6 Discussion
csht
Reply.docxTuesday16 Jun at 15:38
"Four Horsemen" describes the ways in which our world is slowly folding on itself. It categorizes the four horsemen as a wrongful banking system, escalating violence, an abundance of poverty, and deletion of the world's resources. All these topics are the signs that we have truly doomed ourselves as a nation and as a planet. The underlying kingpin here is money. Everyone, including the government, lives, and works to earn and spend money. There are a variety of different paths to obtain that currency and the banks are at the heart, banks that create this money out of thin air. The film starts by speaking of empires and power. Nations want to be in positions to be on top as a means of security and credibility. Top nations control our world and those who are not, strive to become one. From historic times to now, people and groups want to become the most powerful, and when they do, they obtain all the resources they can do benefit their empires and the leaders become wealthy and untouchable. There is usually one common factor within one's rise to power, and that is money. It earns resources and credibility which makes others become submissive to you. We are supposed to be living within a free market system where everyone has a fair piece of the pie, but that is rarely true today. The way the banks function and government spending only amasses debt that will in turn be paid by the American people. Some of these people live in poverty, meaning they cannot even live anymore. People are expected to pay more for items as the price level rises while many incomes are not following suit. This system leaves those who are poor behind making it nearly impossible for them to catch up. As stated before, government spending can leave a budget deficit that needs to be repaid. Most of these expenditures, however, are on war and violence. International affairs, terrorism, and national crime are all credible threats, and a lot of money goes into limiting it. The resources used to support these organization makes them more powerful and it has transitioned peacekeeping into utter force and violence. Here at home and abroad, war rages daily. From small to large scale conflict is being solved in horrific ways and many innocent people are dying along the way. At the root of all of it, is money and power. A lot of this is also politically inclined. We live in a society in which people are paid just to influence politicians to pass acts that will in turn create more money for people who already have a lot of it. Wealth drives our nation, without it, one is just swept under the carpet. People have worked way too hard to obtain wealth while those in control can create it like none other. This exponential growth has depleted Earth's resources and we are running out fast. With no resources, what is there to gain anymore. The Four Horsemen are the warning signs that our systems are heavily flawed and need to be changed soon or else we can be doomed.
3. Our textbook may not talk about the money of the examples in the film but it is the topics and principles that are at the root. Obviously, money runs the economy. How it is created and used has blown money things our of proportion leading to misuse and depletion of resources. When we have learned about GDP we know it matters both on consumer and government spending and investment. Most government spending being towards the military has escalated violence in our world and only requires more and more resources. The debt that has accumulated falls on us to pay it which decreases disposable income. We strive for full employment and full potential output but our money is losing its purchasing power. This all stems back to our flawed banking system as they benefit while we reap the downfalls. The banks' control of the money seems to almost render fiscal policy useless. The government seems to want to help but needs the banks' cooperation to do so. We are a top nation but internationally, many see us as unstable as we slowly bury ourselves in debt and burden all in the pursuit of power.
4. This relates to the US economy for the fact that this is the truth. We live in a life where we earn and spending money but never think twice about it. The sad truth is we are hidden from the facts in order to feel that everything is under control. It may be under control in the bank and government view, but it is slyly hurting citizens. Our expenditures, savings, and income all make its way back to the banks and government and the vicious cycle starts over again. In my own life, I feel there is not much I can do. These factors of doom are here but I need to survive. I have wants and needs to satisfy and have to work to do so. It also ties into the fact that I want to save money in smart ways. I feel to just have money sitting around is just a waste of wealth. To invest and save with interest is essential to staying afloat of rising inflation but I also need disposable and liquid money every moment of my life.
5. Coronavirus fits into these problems because it shows who is truly in control of our "free enterprise market". Many people lost their streams of income due to shutdowns and had little say in the matter. Some were even crushed by the lack of revenue. This comes to show how some are just not cut out or prepared for when issues like this happen. The economy slow has been great for the environment, however, and also most likely helped resource allocation. Once we fully reopen though, the races for profits and resources will be back on and potentially even greater as people fight to gain their lives back.
6. The film surprised me most by showing how the banks and large corporations do really own our nation. It is well aware that politicians are backed by money and will fight for those who gave it to them. It was interesting to see that a lot of history continues to repeat itself with no end in sight. Nations become power and that power, in turn, collapses on that nation. I disliked the film for the facts that were presented. It is sad to see how a nation that promotes so much wellbeing has so many secrets as it crumbles. Do we really matter or is it just a ploy for money and power. As the last set of videos, this film was rather dark and unsettling. I understand and accept the facts they give but it really has not truly translated to real life for me. I just do not see it yet but I am worried it might.
7. Short term implications would be that there is no end to the march of the powerful. Those in control will continue to do whatever it takes to stay in that position. The poor will continue to hurt and resources will only decline. Long term is really just a hope. A hope the monetary system can be fixed and controlled by the government so we can no longer be a nation ran on fake money and debt. If I was in charge, I think a starting spot would be an overall reform of the national budget. Violence is never a good thing and military spending only seems to promote it which needs to be limited. I do not think the wealthy should be targeted to pay off debt either, but I do think those in poverty need a better chance. A system of a nonexistent top line is what I Imagine while bringing up those at the bottom to a liveable standard. A huge factor for the standard of living is GDP and GNI (gross national income) per capita, but it is rather unfair. It is a start but some people are making 100s of times less or more than that. Such as the average national income in America is about $60,000 which is liveable for sure, but many do not achieve that. We need to see our national holistically while also going for what is true and attainable. Helping the bottom line is a top priority for me but it starts by subtracting the power from corporations and the banks.
Amadeo, Kimberly. “Where's the Best Standard of Living? Depends Who You Ask.” The Balance, The Balance, 15 June 2020, www.thebalance.com/standard-of-living-3305758.
2:3418 Jun at 2:34
This video touched on a few different topics. The major one obviously being how banks just simply make money whenever they want. I honestly did not realize that banks are able to just print money when they need too, that is something I never learned in high school. I definitely do not agree with it, it should not be allowed. Another topic in the video was about people being in debt that was difficult for them to get out of. It mentioned how people who are poor also have different morals, and that they were paying off debt that they could not really afford to pay off. This video also talks about terrorist, and how we send money, and resources to other countries. I think my favorite part of this whole video was the very end when the narrator said we need to look with our eyes wide open.
This video very much so relates to our economy. We are very much in debt, and we continue to dig ourselves deeper into debt. We have people signing up for credit cards, and digging themselves so deep into debt that they cannot get themselves out. Banks create these credit cards, and let people have them knowing that they are not going to be able to pay back what they have borrowed, let alone pay the interest on these cards. Banks are setting people up for failure. It is sad to see how corrupt they are, and the fact that so many people do not even know what is going on is just scary. I think away that this affects all of us in this class is debt when it comes to school. Of course some of us are suffering with debt more than others, but I guarantee that almost all of us have some type of school debt at the moment.
The U.S. has already been in debt for a long time. It seems like we are just digging ourselves deeper, and deeper. The coronavirus has made things even worse. With all of the shutdowns, a lot of companies are hurting very bad financially. Not only are they struggling to keep their business, some have been forced to go out of business. I think the saddest part is for the people who were running their small businesses, putting their life savings into it, just to have this pandemic happen, and them lose everything. It is devastating for the country as a whole. The thing with the banks just printing money when they need to makes me wonder if that is where the money for our stimulus checks came from. This pandemic has caused us to lose a lot of money, and it has hurt our economy.
I did enjoy this video. It was very informative, and I learned a lot of information that I did not know. I had no idea that banks had the authority to just print money whenever they need too. Like what is the point of money being worth anything is banks are able to just print it like it's nothing? That was the most surprising thing to me. I liked how the video said we need to look with our eyes wide open. I feel like so many of us, including myself fail to educate ourselves on what is going on in the world. By doing this we are really hurting ourselves. I also didn't realize how much money we send to other countries to help them. I know in the video they mentioned that they thought this was a bad thing, but I disagree. I think we should all be more willing to help each other. I think it would be very beneficial and would solve a lot of issues.
Banks printing money whenever they need to allows them to temporarily fix a problem, but it is just creating a bigger problem in the long run. Banks really should not be allowed to do this. It is taking away the value of the money, and making it completely worthless. In the end it is causing more harm to our economy than it is good. I think we need to find a different solution to fix these problems, and that we need to work together in order to do so. I think we need to create a government that doesn't set its citizens up for failure.
