Reclaim Our History Sep. 16-30
Special “Bubble” Issue!
Sep. 16, 1992: Black Wednesday, UK: Conservative government forced to withdraw pound from European Exchange Mechanism, costing taxpayers 30 billion pounds in cash and reserves. George Soros makes $1 billion (US) selling the pound short. 2008: Failures of large US financial institutions, due to subprime loans and credit default swaps, rapidly devolves into bank failures and stock crashes worldwide. George W. Bush signs Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, creating the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to purchase failing bank assets and prop up Wall Street–with your money.
Sep. 18, 1873: Jay Cooke and Co., bank for the Northern Pacific Railroad, fails, touching off the Panic of 1873. 5,183 businesses fail in a depression that lasts until 1877.
Sep. 20, 1873: New York Stock Exchange closes its doors for 10 days in response to the financial chaos engendered by the Panic of 1873.
Sep. 23, 2008: Government officials announce the FBI is looking into fraud by mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers, and insurer AIG. Guess how many indictments have been issued?
Sep. 24, 1869: Black Friday, another fiscal crisis, precipitated by scumbag Jay Gould and “Jubilee Jim” Fisk. Thousands of businessmen ruined in Wall Street panic after the two financiers attempt to corner gold market.
Sep. 26, 1786: Shay’s Rebellion begins, Massachusetts. European war investors were demanding payment in gold, and wealthy urban businessmen were squeezing assets out of rural farmers. Since the farmers had no gold, their property was confiscated; army veterans were losing their homes and being sent to debtor’s prisons. Daniel Shay led seven hundred armed farmers to Springfield. Governor Bowdoin suspended habeus corpus, and formed a militia financed by Boston merchants to continue confiscations and arrest rebels. Over 1000 were detained. Shay, thinking reinforcements were coming, approached the armory in Springfield. Bowdoin’s militia fired into the rebels, killing four and wounding 20. The remaining farmers fled north; many were captured and sentenced to prison or death. Two were executed. The rest, including Shay, were pardoned in 1788.
Sep. 30, 1720: Mississippi Bubble bursts. John Law, a Scottish economist, established the private Banque Generale in France, backed by Louis XV. His exaggerated account of the wealth of Louisiana led to wild speculation on shares of his Mississippi Company. When the bank stopped payment on its paper the economy crashed. Law fled to Venice, dressed as a woman. 1720: A similar event occurs in England. Called the South Sea Bubble, a spurious marketing campaign claimed great riches were to be had in South America (inconveniently under Spanish rule at the time). Speculation caused stock to rise ten to one in 1719 and again five to one through May of 1720. Everyone from kings to cobblers sold whatever they could to buy stock. When it crashed, only those in the know got out in time. Sir Isaac Newton was asked about the frenzy. He responded, “I can calculate the movement of stars, but not the madness of men;” yet he himself lost twenty thousand pounds.