Category: Observations

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How to Start Riots Throughout a Country

You may have read about the multiple riots in Great Britain following the stabbing deaths of three children in Southport.  How did this horrible crime lead to instant countrywide rioting and attacks on mosques, immigrant shelters, minority shops and stores, and ultimately the police?

The Five Minute News is a free daily pod and YouTube broadcast by Anthony Davis, a British journalist who lives in the US.

This episode is a case study of how disinformation is created and then spread by both foreign media (Russian  Today-RT) and domestic extremists.

Disinformation is intentionally designed to spread anger, fear and chaos.  It is false.  The initial creator in this instance is quickly identified and the post taken down in an hour.  But it had already spread throughout the world by social media provocateurs in Britain and elsewhere with this completely made up, totally false, account of the person in custody.

The Role of Musk and X

This broadcast also documents Elon Musk’s role in spreading the false information and augmenting it with other fake documents.  He ultimately adds his prediction of civil war in Britain.  The country’s far right extremists all amply these apocalyptic predictions.

This is the full broadcast, ten minutes rather than five!

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEuJ3V1yzzQ&list=PLGNXhNKeaOmWgTQ3T7oA5ioACZvSB5cRC&index=2)

It should be a mandatory watch for anyone concerned about the state of public discourse and the role of social media in the US and around the world.  And the malicious intentions of Elon Musk.

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Friday Outtakes

Ukrainian refugee professional artists, living in Wales, received a small grant to present this puppet and shadow theater show in England.

(photos by Nadiia Khomaziuk)

A 2026 National American Celebration-How Will Credit Unions Participate?

This historical milestone may be a perfect opportunity for credit unions to celebrate their contribution to the creation of economic democracy in the United States.

The America 250 Celebration’s mission is “To commemorate and celebrate our 250th anniversary with inclusive programs that inspire Americans to renew and strengthen our daring experiment in democracy. The shared experiences of America 250 will have ignited our imaginations, elevated our diverse stories, inspired service in our communities, and demonstrated the lasting durability of the American project.”

The five themes suggested for this commemoration by cities, towns and organizations are: The Unfinished Revolutions, Power Of Place, We The People, American Experiment, and Doing History.

All five are certainly illustrated by the cooperative system’s role in America.

The Skill to Listen in Public Debate

Silence involves listening, for one cannot argue without first listening to one’s opponent. As the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us, “The words of the wise are heard in silence, more than the cry of a prince among fools.”

Thankfully, Solomon has not yet called and asked for his wisdom back.  (Frank Bruni)

An Upside Down View of the Economy

. . .maybe the economy isn’t booming despite higher rates but rather because of them. It’s an idea so radical that in mainstream academic and financial circles, it borders on heresy. But the new converts (along with a handful who confess to being at least curious about the idea) say the economic evidence is becoming impossible to ignore. By some key gauges—GDP, unemployment, corporate profits—the expansion now is as strong or even stronger than it was when the Federal Reserve first began lifting rates. So, with that in mind, here’s how the theory works.  (From Bloomberg)

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Friday’s Outtakes

A history note from a Credit Union Times July 11, 2006 article on pandemic preparations:

WASHINGTON – Lockheed Georgia Employees Federal Credit Union CEO Ed Collins testified, jointly for CUNA and NAFCU, before the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on credit unions’ preparedness for pandemic influenza.

Politics and the Economy

From a July 24, Axios commentary on the election’s possible impact on the economy.

The bottom line: There are untold moving pieces in a $28 trillion economy, so if you think you’re absolutely sure of how a given election outcome will affect any one of them, you might just be letting your politics brain do the thinking for you.

Making Amazon pay

Gas taxes fund most road maintenance, so what can states do when more cars go electric? Minnesota and Colorado are charging a fee for every retail delivery within the state. This Stateline article is about how more states may follow suit to shore up their transportation funding.  (from Marketplace.com)

To raise your spirits: A 2009 video of Marines singing Days of Elijah at Camp Pendleton:

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjZ_IlP9c5A)

 

 

 

 

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The Olympic Games and “Movements”

From the sporting contests in ancient Greece to the current day’s world wide athletic extravaganza, the Olympic movement has evolved.  This trajectory provides an example of how ideas and actions transform over time and political eras.

The games today are not the games of old.  Rather they have undergone multiple iterations in concept and competition. Their evolution may suggest parallels with the cooperative movement.  Or maybe not.  Anyway, the history is fun.

The Idealistic Origins: A Religious Celebration

The Olympic Games began as a religious celebration in ancient Greece, with competitions to honor their gods. But the Olympics declined once the Roman Empire replaced Greek power in the Mediterranean; the final blow came from the Christian Emperor Theodosius I, who saw the Games as a stage for paganism.

At the end of the 19th century, the modern iteration of the Games began – minus religion. This time, they were secular, with flags and patriotism replacing religious worship.  (source: Presbyterian Outlook)

Reinterpreting Sport in the 20th Century

At the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, the perfect brushstroke was just as likely to win a medal as the quickest sprint. That year, Pierre de Coubertin — co-founder of the International Olympic Committee — introduced a series of Olympic events in the fields of painting, literature, music, architecture, and sculpture, with the rule that all creations must be sports-themed.

Though many of the newly eligible competitors lacked the physical prowess of traditional Olympians, some excelled at both the athletic and the artistic. American marksman Walter Winans not only won a silver medal for sharpshooting at the 1912 Games, but he also took home gold for his 20-inch-tall sculpture of a horse-drawn chariot, titled “An American Trotter.”

In future Olympiads, the artistic events focused on even more niche disciplines. By the 1928 Amsterdam Games, architecture was subcategorized into design and town planning, while literature was divided into lyrical, dramatic, and epic works.

After a hiatus during World War II, the arts returned as official Olympic events one final time at the 1948 London Games. It was there that 73-year-old John Copley won a silver medal for his engraving titled “Polo Players,” becoming the oldest Olympic medalist in history.

Unfortunately for these more right-brained Olympians, new IOC president Avery Brundage led a campaign to remove the creative events from the official Olympic program, relegating the arts to exhibition status by the 1952 Games. All 151 artistic Olympic medals that had been awarded between 1912 and 1948 were stricken from the official record books. (Source lost)

Innovation, Money and Relevance in the 21st Century

The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris began last Saturday, with 329 medal events planned for 32 different sports, including the debut of breaking and the return of sport climbing,  skateboarding and surfing. The Paris organizers said they chose these sports because they’re easy for beginners to pick up and popular with young, social media-savvy fans.

Maintaining relevance is crucial for the International Olympic Committee to justify the more than $3 billion it’s charging media companies to broadcast and stream the games. But many of the criteria that the IOC uses to select new events relate to much more practical concerns.

Games organizers dropped polo as an Olympic sport in the ’30s because it was too expensive to host  — each team needs at least 25 polo ponies and matches are played on pitches about nine times bigger than a football field.

The host city of the Games also gets to weigh in on which sports get added, often at the expense of others that are less popular in its country. That helps explain why baseball and softball won’t compete in 2024, but will return for the 2028 Games in Los Angeles. Whether karate returns to future games is less clear.  (Source: Bloomberg)

Movements and Change

While the modern games trace their origin to two thousand years ago, the current edition has the same longevity as the credit union movement in America.

The games have emerged from their idealistic beginnings to be revived with multiple expressions of sporting enthusiasm.  Today they are big business with ever expanding participation supported by billions of dollars of underwriting to celebrate individual, organizational and national triumphs.

Look  familiar?

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A Contemporary Father’s Day Parable

Most  are familiar with the Biblical story of the Prodigal Son.  It is from Luke chapter 15.

In brief: the younger son did not want to wait for his father’s death to claim his inheritance, and instead asked for it immediately.

Verse 13 tells what happens next:  The younger son gathered all he had, traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living.

Broke and hungry living with animals, he traveled home intending to tell his father in verse 19, “ I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”

Instead of the expected reaction of “you made your bed, now lie in it” the father instead, “was filled with compassion and put his arms around him and kissed him.” (verse 20)

The Parable Today

How do you react to this picture? Like the father or the elder son whose response was: “I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back who has devoured all your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him.”  (verses 29-30)

Lost and then found?  Compassion or condemnation?  Like all parables, this modern day event helps us see who we are.

Also a reminder on Fathers’ Day of who we can be.

 

 

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What Credit Unions Can Learn From BND

Recently the Bank of North Dakota (BND) released its 2023 Annual Report of almost 80 pages.

The Report including the bank’s history (see excerpt below) is a creative example of an alternative financial institution thriving in the privately managed financial services marketplace in America.  Its ongoing success is the model for similar startups in other cities and states.

Founded in 1919, the bank is exempt from all state and federal taxes.  It is funded by receipts collected by the state government and its agencies.  There is no FDIC insurance but is backed by the state of North Dakota.

BND’s primarily lending activity is participation loans originated by the other financial institutions throughout the state.  It is a wholesale lender.   In 2011 when NCUA implemented new regulation requiring more member capital and reduced corporate operating and investment authority, the credit unions decided to close their corporate.  One of the factors was the option to receive much of the corporate’s  financing services from BND.

A Very Successful Year

The Dakota Credit Union Association has presented a summary of BND’s 2023 results. The highlights include total assets of $10.1 billion, record earnings of $192.7 million for a return on equity of 18.2%.

From the Association’s summary: The Bank originated and renewed 10,734 loans for more than $2.5 billion, bringing the amount of the total lending portfolio to $5.8 billion, a new record. The total portfolio increased by $394 million from last year. BND delivers both agriculture and commercial loans through 72 different financial institutions and their 218 branch offices. . .

In addition to these portfolios, BND administers more than $1 billion in legislative-directed loan programs, including school construction, state infrastructure, water projects and disaster recovery.
 
“Bank of North Dakota works closely with local lenders to ensure its programs are relevant and impactful,” said members of the Commission in a joint statement. The Commission, consisting of Gov. Doug Burgum as chairman, Attorney General Drew Wrigley, and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring, oversees BND. “This attention to local needs is one of the reasons for the Bank’s success.”

A Bipartisan Embrace

Beyond the current success and its historical longevity, support for the Bank comes from leaders of both parties.  Gov. Doug Burgum is reportedly on Donald Trump’s short list of vice-presidential prospects.  Nowhere do we see opposition to this state-owned and managed financial institution that republicans or bankers in other states might call out as a “socialist enterprise.”  Its track record serving the agricultural, industrial and public financing needs across North Dakota has made it a vital component of state government.

The success of BND has spawned similar startups in other jurisdictions. The Public Bank of East Bay (PBEB) has hired a former Credit Union CFO, Scott Waite, to lead its fund raising and organizational efforts.  There is an attempt to pass state legislation for a city owned bank in Rochester, New York described in this June 3, 2024 article Why a Credit Union Wants the Local Government to Create Its Own Bank.

Both of these organizers cite BND as the model for their more focused local ambitions.

A Lesson for Coops?

BND’s longevity demonstrates the variety and innovative capacity of an open economy.   When NCUA closed down many financial options for corporates, other institutions were available.  Long time relationships and collaborative capacity were lost as the FHLB’s and other secondary market providers stepped up to serve natural person credit unions.

One might view these events as just the normal process of creative destruction that is a hallmark of competitive economies.  Or. it might illustrate that options are available or adaptable when existing institutions fail to fulfill their core purpose.

More History of BND

Page 11 of this year’s Annual Report provides a summary of the Banks founding.  Here is an excerpt:

If you lived in North Dakota in 1919, it is likely that you made your living as a farmer or rancher, or in a profession that supported farmers and ranchers. There wasn’t a great deal of economic diversity at the time.

When you put your grain on the railway to be delivered to an elevator in Minneapolis/St. Paul, you were given the most broken-down of the railcars, causing tons of grain to be lost along the way. You were paid for the grain that arrived in the Twin Cities, not the amount of grain you loaded in North Dakota.

You weren’t present when they tested your grain so you needed to rely on the elevator’s assessment, often thought to be more favorable to the elevator than the farmer. When a loan was needed, it most likely came from a bank in Minneapolis or Chicago, with interest rates in the double digits. It was unaffordable for most agriculture producers, and they barely squeaked by.

This set the stage for the Nonpartisan League to come into power, and as part of its platform, the 1919 North Dakota Legislature created the State Mill and Elevator, Workforce Safety Insurance, and Bank of North Dakota along with the Industrial Commission to oversee them.

North Dakota tax dollars would be used to support North Dakota residents. While it wasn’t the first or only state-owned bank to be created, it is the only one that has survived the test of time.

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Crossing the Bar For Mortal Stakes

This 1889 poem, Crossing the Bar, by Alfred, Lord Tennyson has been quoted on many occasions in life’s passages:  graduations, changing vocations, marriage/divorce, and the obviousreference to life’s end.

I just attended my granddaughter’s college graduation at which a musical setting of the poem was sung.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5FlS76eTVs)
Sunset and evening star,
      And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
      When I put out to sea,
   But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
      Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
      Turns again home.
   Twilight and evening bell,
      And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
      When I embark;
   For tho’ from out our bourne of Time and Place
      The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
      When I have crost the bar.

Student Observations on Crossing the Bar

The poem’s sentiment certainly matched the setting for those leaving the familiar shared college experiences to venture out on individual journeys. The two senior speakers spoke of this challenge when “putting out to sea.”

One asked: How do we locate ourselves in the big picture questions confronting society and hold ourselves accountable?

Another:  As we pursue our individual paths we underestimate the power of community; yet that is how we are able to emerge with the confidence to go forth. 

There was an aspiration in their words best captured in the final stanza of Robert Frost’s poem Two Tramps:

But yield who will to their separation,

My object in living is to unite

My avocation and my vocation

As my two eyes make one in sight.

Only where love and need are one,

And the work is play for mortal stakes,

Is the deed ever really done

For Heaven and the future’s sakes.

All of us will cross several metaphorical bars in our lifetimes. Often this arises from the never ending effort to find in Frost’s phrase work that is play for mortal stakes.
I believe that is why so many enjoy the credit union movement as a profession and doing good works serving members, “where love and need are one.”