Thoughts on the USA

I am on vacation in the USA for a month or two. I need breaks to keep what is left of my sanity intact.

I was in Central America for 6 months straight. So I come to the U.S. to visit my mom and to do shopping and unwind from stress.

It always trips me out to see how things have changed.

My god, I can not believe the economy here. One of my favorite coffee places closed

So rather than hang around that city I flew to where my mom lives. My very favorite coffee place is still open. I was happy. The owner has been a friend of mine for years.

So I get totally wired on caffeine and we talk. Turns out I saw his band play at the University we both went to. Small world.

I drive around and see all the foreclosures and and businesses that have closed or are going to close. It blows my mind.

More interesting though is the fact that the businesses that cater to the rich are still open and thriving. There might be a clue in that fact for some of you.

Customer service is still a joke. I go to an outdoor adventure store planning to spend a few thousand bucks on things I need.

I was walking around and loading up my cart. Then I go to a glass showcase where the GSP units are. I finally see an employee. She is all chatty with some dude showing him some pair of $30 sunglasses.

I wait patiently for about 15 minutes and she is not even talking about the cheap sunglasses. They are just bullshitting. Finally I get pissed and ask her loudly if she makes commission. She looks startled and confused but finally her brain starts working and she says "yes".

I say "That is to bad" and leave my full shopping cart and walk out of the store.

My next stop is the Bank. I only have one account in the USA now. I am not crazy about that but there are times I need a U.S. bank.

I need to change my account info so I walk into the main office to get things done.

Now I have been in the jungle for 6 months and although I am clean and have a clean shave, I have not had a haircut for about 7 months. So my hair is very long. I also do not dress to impress anyone unless there is a social or business function that requires it I dress however I want.

In this case it is a t shirt and ratty jeans that are comfortable. So I walk into the bank and walk up to someone at the front desk.

He looks up and gives me the "look what the cat drug in" look. For a second it looks like he is thinking about calling security.

He snaps out of it when I tell him I need to change my account details. He enters my account number and then everything changes. Less than I minute after he has my account number the Bank President appears with his army of assistants and gofers. He takes me to is office and the second after I sit down one of the assistants brings me capocheno and asks me if I want him to get me something to eat. I say no.

I find this interesting, when I come in I feel like the security guard has his hands on his gun and is ready to shoot first and then ask questions. Then they find out who I am and they are falling over their ass trying to please me. Giving me Sporting event tickets and dinner invitations.

No wounder most people hate bankers.

This is the third day of my vacation in the U.S. Over the next few days I will post my observations here.

I am off to go shopping.

 

British customer service can be shockingly bad too.We're always told American is much better than ours.And our bankers are officially the biggest tossers in Europe.

Strangely,I don't think we've really seen the recession hit yet.
The problem in England seems to be that we haven't accepted what caused it.

 

It's exactly the same situation here (which isn't surprising because financial speculation between Wall St. and London are co-dependent). People here think economic upheavals are either random, or that the current presidential incumbent (or at best the last one)/the government is entirely to blame. That's as far as they'll go.

And that, of course, gives even more room for the Fed (which isn't even the government) to print more dollars out of thin air, dole them out to banks for nothing in return, and promote more unregulated, debt-based speculation as an excuse for an economy (trickle-down economics).

The whole country hates New York. But they sure love Wall St. (or they think it doesn't affect them. Haha.)---

 

I really think that economics, or the *application* of it to the real world is a charlatan's game.

I actually use economic theories in work.Whatever bullshit one says, another says the opposite.Commentators always talk about this "story, that "story", cos thats all it is.

Our latest bullshit?£1000 to anyone to buy a new, overpriced shitty foreign made car.
I mean WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!??

 

*sigh* Just like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman...

 

Consumer gets consumed.

 

News at 11.

 

I need a new GPS..

 

Yeah. The economy pretty much sucks big hairry monkey balls.

 

I love this story. It's everything that is wrong with America, and all encompassed in just a couple of days! But yeah, dude, bankers are ASSHOLES and it's a riot, because you don't really have to do much to work at a bank. They were trying to hire our asst. manager at the bank in town and she only has a GED.

 

You want to know something strange. There is no reason for the US dollar to be as high as it is.

7 months ago the dollar was worth about 7 Mexican pesos. Now the dollar is worth about 12.5 pesos. That is a hell of a difference. By my calculations the US dollar based on our trade deficit the dollar should be almost worthless.

Actually that movie had it down about kissing the ass of the wealthy.

L.A., Vegas and Seattle have that shit down.

Silly but cute movie. Well the first time I saw it anyway.

 

That is kind of why I posted it. It really bothered me when it happened. But part of that is my fault. I opened an account at and executive bank.

I suppose I should have dressed the part but I really did not feel like it.

I figured that once I swiped my pass to get the door open they would have figured it out.

Perhaps I should get my hair cut.

 

I think its mainly down to the fact that its still a de facto "world currency"/ the traditional reserve currency.Repatriation of dollars on risk aversion.

I went to a forex conference in Ldon yrs ago , and the guy from JP Morgan sounded like a conspiracy theorist in some ways.But he was right.
Foreign countries are ultimately indebted to America,for America's (otherwise unsustainable) spending.

A paper trick, in numerous ways.
---------------------------
After someone sours things for me in a commerical context, I tend to have even less respect for em, when they immediately start sucking up.To me, the way to clear sthg up, is for them to explain themselves first.But thats me..

 

Okay I went out for some errands.

By some strange twist of fate a bum actually approached me and asked for money.

Some of you know that I was homeless for about 4 years of my life and I also have a personal code for people who find me and ask for things.

I asked how much he wanted. My hart sank when he asked for 1 dollar. I gave him the buck and he thanked me and walked away.

I flashed back to the time when it was me on the street.

I sighed and walked into the store. But somehow I lost interest and drove back to my mom's place.

 

Could've been worse.He could've asked for a revolving letter of credit + letter of intent.Transferable to his bankers in Panama City
With 20% of his required sum to be transferred as a deposit.

Christ I remember those guys,when I was starting out...
Its always different things in Europe tho..

I dunno, the homeless somehow strike a chord with me too.I end up chatting and giving em money.Most of my friends wouldn't dream of doing it.
Somehow I think its gonna give em a lift back up..

 

That is against my code to do bank transfers. I must have the cash or credit cards on me at the time they ask. I do not always carry credit cards.

There are other conditions to...but talking about it on a public forum has got me in trouble before. So I am going to shut up about it.

FYI: $300,000 is the most anyone has asked for- they got it. Gifts are different. I am not talking about gifts.

 

<cockpost>

 

Not sure what that means.

 

Curious question, but I'm assuming that my assumption on the answer is true...

you're very wealthy?

Interesting, and funny, observations on your stay in America so far... Keep us updated, it's kinda cool to read about the experience.

 

Yes, I am very well off.

Thanks for your comments.