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March
23
2023

Are They Actually Trying To Crash The Economy On Purpose?
Michael Snyder

They actually did it.  The Federal Reserve just raised interest rates by another 25 basis points right in the middle of a major banking crisis.  I honestly do not understand what Fed officials are thinking.  They had already blown a 620 billion dollar black hole in the balance sheets of U.S. banks by raising rates so aggressively, and that resulted in the second and third largest bank failures in U.S. history earlier this month.  Apparently they are not yet satisfied with the carnage that they have caused, and so they have decided to make things even worse.  What we are witnessing is either extreme incompetence of epic proportions, or they are trying to crash the economy on purpose.  I am sitting here trying to think of a third alternative, but so far I am coming up blank.

Fed officials can see exactly what their reckless rate hikes are doing to the system, but they are pressing forward anyway.  Wednesday’s rate hike was “the ninth consecutive rate increase”…

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a point, forging ahead with its fight against stubborn inflation despite a spate of bank failures and a growing crisis within the financial sector.

The unanimous decision puts the key benchmark federal funds rate at a range of 4.75% to 5%, the highest since 2007, from near zero just one year ago. It marks the ninth consecutive rate increase aimed at combating high inflation.

The fact that it was a “unanimous decision” should greatly alarm all of us.

Isn’t there a single voice of reason left at the Fed?

The last time the Fed raised rates like this was just before the financial crisis of 2008.

And we all remember what that did to our banking system.

But the Fed insists that this time is different.  In fact, we were just told that our banking system “is sound and resilient”…

“The U.S. banking system is sound and resilient,” the Fed said. “Recent developments are likely to result in tighter credit conditions for households and businesses and to weigh on economic activity, hiring, and inflation. The extent of these effects is uncertain. The Committee remains highly attentive to inflation risks.”

Of course banks don’t tighten the flow of credit when things are good.

They tighten the flow of credit when they get into trouble.

And it appears that another major U.S. bank is now exhibiting signs of distress…

Shares of regional bank PacWest Bancorp dropped Wednesday after the company disclosed it had shed more than $6 billion in deposits during the recent squeeze on midsized banks, though PacWest said it did not plan to raise more capital.

The bank said in a press release Wednesday that it had $27.1 billion in deposits as of March 20, which is down from $33.9 billion at the end of December and from $33.2 billion on March 9. The change appears to have largely come from venture banking deposits, which accounted for a third of PacWest’s deposits at the end of December and now stand at just 24%.

There are more than 4,000 banks in the United States today, and hundreds of them could end up failing before this crisis is over.

That would mean fewer mortgages for potential homeowners.

That would also mean fewer auto loans, credit cards and debit cards.

Unfortunately, the flow of credit is the lifeblood of our economy, and so we need our banks to be healthy.

But if the Federal Reserve continues to go down this road, bank after bank will be absolutely crushed.

Needless to say, the Fed’s insane policies are also bursting the housing bubble.  At this point, U.S. home prices are down 12.3 percent just since last June…

The national median existing-home price fell 0.2% in February from a year earlier to $363,000, the first year-over-year decline since February 2012, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday. Median prices are down 12.3% from their record $413,800 in June.

U.S. homeowners have already lost trillions of dollars of home equity, and now the Fed has just poured more fuel on the fire.

It is madness.

It is literally insane for the Federal Reserve to aggressively hike rates as we are plunging into a major economic downturn, but that is precisely what they are doing.

Look, if the long-term economic outlook was positive do you think that Walmart would be closing even more stores?…

Walmart has announced plans to close stores in Hawaii and Minnesota, which join a handful of other stores closing in several states this year.

The retail giant said the decision was made after a review process that determined the impacted stores failed to meet financial expectations, the company told USA TODAY.

Ten stores in Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington D.C., and Wisconsin will close by the end of the year, along with two experimental “pickup” locations in Illinois and Arkansas.

Walmart exists to make money.

If there was a chance that those stores could be turned around, Walmart would not be permanently shutting them down.

Sadly, other major retailers are also closing locations all over the nation.

They can see what is coming.

Higher interest rates are already crushing economic activity from coast to coast, and they are battening down the hatches.

The “experts” at the Fed are assuring all of us that they know exactly what they are doing, but the truth is that they have lost control.

As you read this article, wealthy individuals and large companies are pulling uninsured money out of small and mid-size banks all over America.

Many of those small and mid-size banks will soon be in very serious jeopardy, and that will significantly reduce the flow of credit into our economy.

Is this what they want?

Do they really want to see the U.S. economy implode?

Our leaders continue to make mind-numbingly bad decisions, and we are on a course that leads to national suicide.

When will the American people finally wake up?

Sadly, most Americans are still blindly trusting the “experts”, and the “experts” have us on a highway to extreme misery.

***It is finally here! Michael’s new book entitled “End Times” is now available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.***

My name is Michael Snyder and my brand new book entitled “7 Year Apocalypse” is now available on Amazon.com.  During this season, I would like to encourage you to send digital copies of my new book to your family and friends as gifts.  That will help to support the work that I am doing, and it will help to multiply the impact of the book.  In addition to my new book I have written five other books that are available on Amazon.com including  “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, “Get Prepared Now”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”. (#CommissionsEarned)  By purchasing the books you help to support the work that my wife and I are doing, and by giving it to others you help to multiply the impact that we are having on people all over the globe.  I have published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe.  I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but I also ask that they include this “About the Author” section with each article.  The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions.  I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.  During these very challenging times, people will need hope more than ever before, and it is our goal to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with as many people as we possibly can.

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