No matter what your opinion on which side is right or wrong in the debate between Israel and the Palestinians, these pictures of the wall and one of the guard towers separating the West Bank (Bethlehem area) and Israel are disconcerting.  I took these pictures last fall from the West Bank side during my first visit to Israel.   History has taught us that walls like this one don't stand forever.  They are eventually destroyed.  Will this wall be torn down peacefully or will it be destroyed by military forces?  I don't pretend to know the answer.

TPM

The Greece financial saga continues.  The Greek GDP has been and continues to shrink while its debt to GDP ratio continues to increase.  Greece is experiencing a full blown economic depression.  There is no way that Greece's economy can recover as part of the Euro currency.  Greece needs to default on its international debt, reestablish its own currency and restart its economy.  The pain of an economic dislocation of this magnitude will be severe, but there is no other path forward that allows the Greek people to reestablish control over their national economy and attempt to move forward.  All more debt will accomplish is extend the pain for much longer period and likely create even more pain in the end.

The European banks that have loaned money to Greece will have to take their losses.  The investors in the banks with Greek loans will need to accept their losses.  The Greek people will have to accept a much reduced standard of living while they rebuild their national economy.   But all of this is necessary if any type of reasonable economic balance is going to be restored in Greece.

Greece isn't the first nation to go bankrupt.  It will not be the last.  The central bankers need to stop printing money in their computers and creating more unrepayable loans.  The time has come for economic truth to be reestablished in Greece, the rest of Europe, the US and the rest of the world.  The debt based economic binge of the past 40 years must come to an end.  Now is the time for it start.  Greece gets to lead off the process.

TPM

Everyone should read Henry Blodget's article from Business Insider, http://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-the-investment-everyone-thinks-is-safe-is-actually-the-riskiest-in-the-world-2012-2?utm_source=twbutton&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bi, WARREN BUFFETT: The Investment You Think Is 'Safe' Is Actually The Riskiest In The World. 

Look at the chart on US Consumer Price Inflation in the middle of the article. Note how inflation got out of control in the early 1970's when the US went off the gold standard.  Read Buffett's statements about how inflation and taxes eat up the perceived value of "low risk" investments.

What is not said is the actions of the Federal Reserve and the US government since the 1970's have created this mess.  Our government spending has been out of control for most of the past 40 years.  We are paying the price for long term mismanagement of the US dollar and our economy.  The economic pain will continue until our fiscal and monetary approach is fundamentally restructured and discipline restored.

TPM

Check out my new article, Life After Apollo, http://www.thepurplemuse.com/id49.html.  Sometimes an unexpected gift creates an opportunity for a review of meaningful events in one's life.

How much do you know about the US Apollo space program?  It is an amazing story.  My new article, Life After Apollo, will lead you to a recent book that is a great source of information about the Apollo program.

TPM