Dude

If US cities were poker hands, America's invisible hand would have folded Las Vegas long ago for there is nothing capitalist about gambling.  Aside from being an anti-capitalist theme park (about which, more later), Vegas, as it is affectionately k...
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ZURICH, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Switzerland is set to partially meet a U.S. ultimatum and deliver an estimate of the amount of assets held by U.S. residents in secret accounts at Swiss banks, possibly up to $30 billion, a newspaper reported on Tuesday. Citi...
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Gold Soars.  Stock Markets Tank.  US Debt Downgraded. China Calls for End to Dollar Dominance.  Riots in London.  Devotees of Rapture Theory are likely wondering why they got left behind during the Tribulation.  More worldly, modern perso...
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As the war of public words between the US and China escalates, the old adage- When you owe the bank $1Mil, you owe the bank.  When you owe the bank $10Bil, they owe you - springs to mind, with a nasty twist. Chillingly, both parties are nuclear armed with significant standing armies. Following S&P's downgrade...
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NewPopulationBomb by historian  Jack Goldstone whose Revolution and Rebellion in the Modern World was an enlightening read. Today's post, La Grande Revolution, Encore is quite pertinent for modern America. To wit:  Is there a lesson here for today, ...
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'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.' 'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.' 'The question is,' sa...
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  We don't have a precise read on why this slower pace of growth is persisting. Ben Bernanke Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is confused.  Interest rates are low, liquidity is flowing freely and equity prices are up between 15-20% year-on-year.  Why then...
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rape (v.)     late 14c., "seize prey, take by force," from Anglo-Fr. raper "to seize, abduct," a legal term, probably from L. rapere "seize, carry off by force, abduct" (see rapid). Latin rapere was used for "sexual violation," but only very rarely; the usual Latin word being stuprum, lit. "disgrace."...
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rape (v.)     late 14c., "seize prey, take by force," from Anglo-Fr. raper "to seize, abduct," a legal term, probably from L. rapere "seize, carry off by force, abduct" (see rapid). Latin rapere was used for "sexual violation," but only very rarely; the usual Latin word being stuprum, lit. "disgrace."...
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Admittedly, it took more than a Cesar Millan "tsst" to stop Silver (and Gold and Oil) in its tracks.  Raising the margin requirements (details of which are most ably covered by Jesse at his Café Américain), killing Osam bin Laden, and continuing to promise an end to debt monetization helped,...
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Admittedly, it took more than a Cesar Millan "tsst" to stop Silver (and Gold and Oil) in its tracks.  Raising the margin requirements (details of which are most ably covered by Jesse at his Café Américain), killing Osam bin Laden, and continuing to promise an end to debt monetization helped,...
Read More »

The Libyan War, American Power and the Decline of the Petrodollar System Being a lazy man, I'm always pleased to discover someone else has done the heavy lifting of ideas I should have fleshed out in my own arguments.  The article linked above provid...
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The Libyan War, American Power and the Decline of the Petrodollar System Being a lazy man, I'm always pleased to discover someone else has done the heavy lifting of ideas I should have fleshed out in my own arguments.  The article linked above provid...
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Timing, they say, is everything. Less than a week ago, Leon Panetta was replaced as CIA Director by Gen. Petraeus, and nominated as Secretary of Defense. Today, the world learns of Osama bin Laden's death. What other changes are in the offing?
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Osama bin Laden, according to CNN, has been killed in a firefight with US forces in Pakistan and his body has been recovered. Almost a decade ago, bin Laden, in hopes of, according to some reports, inspiring a jihad and bleeding US financial strength...
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In boom times, credit rating agencies, like S&P, are thought to have the foresight of the Fates- figures of Greek (et al.) Mythology who spun, measured, and cut the threads of life.  As boom turns to bust, these credit rating agencies fall...
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In boom times, credit rating agencies, like S&P, are thought to have the foresight of the Fates- figures of Greek (et al.) Mythology who spun, measured, and cut the threads of life.  As boom turns to bust, these credit rating agencies fall...
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If you think of just the interest rate aspects of Social Security as a swap, those who depend on benefits are receiving fixed at 0% mind you (guaranteed interest income from non-existent bonds) and paying floating (COLA) which is rising.  Oddly eno...
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If you think of just the interest rate aspects of Social Security as a swap, those who depend on benefits are receiving fixed at 0% mind you (guaranteed interest income from non-existent bonds) and paying floating (COLA) which is rising.  Oddly eno...
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Within a decade there will no longer be additional surplus funds to be used to purchase US bonds which will have to then be sold on the open market. Call it peak SS Trust Funds, although peak trust might be even more apt. Captive Bidding at the auc...
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Within a decade there will no longer be additional surplus funds to be used to purchase US bonds which will have to then be sold on the open market. Call it peak SS Trust Funds, although peak trust might be even more apt. Captive Bidding at the auc...
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I have a very esoteric mind....if I could just remember where I put it. A. Burns The problem with esoteric institutions, from the Priests of Ancient Egypt to today's Federal Reserve is the difficulty in retaining the well-hidden secrets these institutions are built upon.  The more successfully esoteric the institution, the greater...
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I have a very esoteric mind....if I could just remember where I put it. A. Burns The problem with esoteric institutions, from the Priests of Ancient Egypt to today's Federal Reserve is the difficulty in retaining the well-hidden secrets these institutions are built upon.  The more successfully esoteric the institution, the greater...
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Trinity (seeing Neo turn to face an Agent): What's he doing? Morpheus: He's beginning to believe. Today's Wall St. Journal reports, JPMorgan will accept Gold as a type of collateral: Gold hasn't reinvented itself as a currency yet. But it is getting closer. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM - News) said it will allow clients...
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Trinity (seeing Neo turn to face an Agent): What's he doing? Morpheus: He's beginning to believe. Today's Wall St. Journal reports, JPMorgan will accept Gold as a type of collateral: Gold hasn't reinvented itself as a currency yet. But it is getting closer. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM - News) said it will allow clients...
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In a recent email debate I wrote the following, which I thought some might find interesting: I remain somewhat puzzled at the notion of an Austrian resurgence as, in my view, Austrianism is dead.  When modern nation-states were emerging in Eu...
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In a recent email debate I wrote the following, which I thought some might find interesting: I remain somewhat puzzled at the notion of an Austrian resurgence as, in my view, Austrianism is dead.  When modern nation-states were emerging in Eu...
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"The love of money" goes the old saying, "is the root of all evil."  I didn't even finish reading the news headline on AOL's purchase of The Huffington Post before the old adage popped into my head. Confused? Allow me to explain. HuffPo's readers can likely recall Ms. Huffington's MoveYourMoney project- an attempt to shift...
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"The love of money" goes the old saying, "is the root of all evil."  I didn't even finish reading the news headline on AOL's purchase of The Huffington Post before the old adage popped into my head. Confused? Allow me to explain. HuffPo's readers can likely recall Ms. Huffington's MoveYourMoney project- an attempt to shift...
Read More »

It should be noted that children at play are not playing about; their games should be seen as their most serious-minded activity.   Michel de Montaigne According to Lewis Straus, one of the original five Atomic Energy Commissioners, when John von Neu...
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