"What is not covered here is the fact that the selling of more bonds means that other countries now own more of the US than the US."

But those bonds aren't secured by territory or resources--they're secured by FIAT.

So why worry? If things ever get bad, we can just revolt and replace the government, then claim the previous contract isn't binding because the signatories are no longer extant.

Once the US has completely collapsed, it will be FAR better for the citizenry to go through with the civil war than make good on those debts.

What is not covered here is the fact that the selling of more bonds means that other countries now own more of the US than the US.

They, US Government; now has a total debt of $60 Trillion, not $1.3 Trillion, (That was for one month).

China now owns 50% of our debt, Japan owns 23%, Dubai & Singapore own the balance?

So selling more bonds means that we are closer to collapse.

PLW, PhD

Miami

Walter, you're probably the first person here to point out that the Fed is a private institutions (though I'd add the caveat semi-private). Ergo, Fed monies are not public monies. So there's the answer to your question.

(As it happens, they've given it to banks and other financial institutions based on some pretty shaky collateral...there's not really much mystery there. Poor management, maybe, but no mystery.)

RE:

The Federal Reserve has transferred trillions of dollars since last September, and nobody but the Fed knows what it did.

by Glenn Greenwald

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/05/07/oversight/index.html

I ask you again: Why can't the public be told what the Fed has done with $12,000,000,000,000.00 in public monies? Why shouldn't we expect that it was simply stolen?

As I've said, and as Greenwald has said, the explanations given by the banksters don't hold up to close inspection. You yourself haven't even bothered to come up with a lame lie.

Please don't pretend that there are "independent auditors":

The Corporate Scandal Sheet

http://www.forbes.com/2002/07/25/accountingtracker_print.html

It's common knowledge there's no such thing - just as it's common knowledge there's no such thing as "independent credit rating agencies". We know they're not. We know they're just part of the larger scam and are there just to make it look good.

AAA ratings for trillions in toxic debt. And you expect to be taken seriously. Sheesh.

Actually, if you read it you will see that it is an independent audit, as mandated by a bill Congress passed in 1978.

Not possible, since there are no independent audit agencies, as we saw in the financial scandals from the last meltdown. Arthur Andersen is no longer with us because of the sheer scope of their crimes. Remember Enron? They're all in bed with the corporations they "audit".

http://www.cato.org/pubs/policy_report/v25n1/corporate-scandals.pdf

By the way. You avoided my question, which was perfectly valid. 'Nuff said.

Not to mention $12,000,000,000,000.00 in Fed-supplied handouts, er, bailouts.

Why can't the public be told where all this money is going, starting with the $700,000,000,000.00 in TARP bailouts? The explanations given don't hold up to close inspection.

How much do elite propaganists charge elite banksters for elite propaganda and elite obfuscation, anyway?

$12T in handouts are paid with checks cut by the U.S. Treasury, for which it is issuing bonds to cover as per Mr. Leonard's article. So a Fed audit will reveal exactly nothing regarding these transactions. Unless of course the Fed audit uncovers how it secretly controls all the spending in the U.S. budget. Now that's a conspiracy!

A not-particularly-clever deception. Who, pray tell, owns the listed corporations? They're fronts for those who prefer anonymity. Corporate shell games are as old as corporations and are in fact the reason why corporations are formed in the first place.

Shareholders own corporations. So the conspiracy includes all the shareholders of almost all the banks in the US? I see. Remind me why you aren't a shareholder in these publicly owned banks? Evidently you think you stand to make a pile of money. I'll put my money elsewhere, thank you very much.

A self-audit, carefully constructed to conceal inconvenient facts, like all corporate audits, and fully expected to be self-serving and intentionally deceptive.

A bill to require an independent audit overseen by congress is making its way through the House. What odds do you give of its passage? Zero? A whelk's chance in a supernova?

Actually, if you read it you will see that it is an independent audit, as mandated by a bill Congress passed in 1978. How many Fed auditing bills do you want to pass before you are satisfied? Won't they all be sham audits?

That's what so entertaining about conspiracy theories. What makes some people believe, is the total lack of any evidence. How powerful our overlords must actually be that they have the ability to completely control all information. How could it not be true.

Supposedly, the interest we pay goes directly into the pockets of these secret elite bankers.

Not to mention $12,000,000,000,000.00 in Fed-supplied handouts, er, bailouts.

Why can't the public be told where all this money is going, starting with the $700,000,000,000.00 in TARP bailouts? The explanations given don't hold up to close inspection.

How much do elite propaganists charge elite banksters for elite propaganda and elite obfuscation, anyway?

The Fed doesn't list its owners? Try here. There's a similar page for each district.

http://www.frbsf.org/banking/institutions/index.html

A not-particularly-clever deception. Who, pray tell, owns the listed corporations? They're fronts for those who prefer anonymity. Corporate shell games are as old as corporations and are in fact the reason why corporations are formed in the first place.

The Fed isn't subject to audit? Then what is this document supplied by the Federal Reserve?

A self-audit, carefully constructed to conceal inconvenient facts, like all corporate audits, and fully expected to be self-serving and intentionally deceptive.

A bill to require an independent audit overseen by congress is making its way through the House. What odds do you give of its passage? Zero? A whelk's chance in a supernova?

And no private corporation has to sell stock to the public.

That's right. They don't have to publish financial records, either.