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Wednesday February 27th, 2013
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'Widespread Pain' of the Sequester Not So Draconian
posted 02/27/2013, 2:02 AM (The Independent Institute)
[Category: Economy]
Recently, The New York Times ran an alarmist editorial about the “widespread pain” that would be inflicted on the American government and people by the budget “sequester.” If no legislative action is taken, the sequester will make across the board budget cuts (some exceptions exist, such as Social Security and pay for enlisted military personnel) of $85 billion during the last seven months of this fiscal year. Some have called such cuts “draconian,” but they are hardly so—for example, defense pr... (more) |
DHS releasing illegal immigrants before sequester
posted 02/27/2013, 2:02 AM (Associated Press)
[Category: Economy]
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A week before mandatory budget cuts go into effect across the government, the Department of Homeland Security has started releasing illegal immigrants being held in immigration jails across the country, Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Tuesday.
Gillian Christensen, an ICE spokeswoman, said ICE has reviewed "several hundred cases" of immigrants being held in jails around the country and released them in the last week. They have been "placed on an appropri... (more) Sounds like they're off to a good start, of course, they're only doing this to scare conservatives rather than out of some moral sense it's wrong to imprison people for minor (non)crimes. - Chris |
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Tuesday February 26th, 2013
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Top Alternatives to Paper Money
posted 02/26/2013, 12:03 AM (Jeffrey Tucker)
[Category: Economy]
I’ve just left the Liberty Forum in New Hampshire, a three-day gathering of hundreds of people who are trying to find ways of living freer lives in times of despotic control. Among many things, this might be the world center for exhibiting monies of the future.... (more) |
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Monday February 25th, 2013
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Marc Faber Warns: 'Market Has Peaked Out'
posted 02/25/2013, 12:11 AM (CNBC)
[Category: Economy]
The stock market has "peaked out" and bonds may be on their way to a rebound, Marc Faber, publisher of the Gloom, Boom & Doom Report, said Thursday on CNBC.
"I think we have made an intermediate top, and it could be a longer-term top," he said on "Fast Money."
"I don't think the market is as overbought as it was in '87, so I don't expect a crash. But I think for the time b... (more) |
Gold Bets Cut by Most Since '07
posted 02/25/2013, 12:11 AM (Bloomberg)
[Category: Economy]
 Hedge funds cut bets on a rally in gold by the most since 2007 and became the most bearish ever on sugar and coffee as concern that the Federal Reserve will slow U.S. stimulus programs drove prices for raw materials to the biggest loss this year.
Money managers and other large speculators reduced their net-long position in gold futures and options by 40 percent in the week ended Feb. 19 to 42,318, the biggest drop since July 31, 2007, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data... (more) This is a good contrarian indicator for gold. |
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Friday February 22nd, 2013
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Bernanke: "There Is No Bubble"
posted 02/22/2013, 2:41 PM (Zero Hedge)
[Category: Economy]
It was only two weeks ago that Fed governor Jerremy Stein delivered a speech titled "Overheating in Credit Markets" in which he observed the obvious and warned that a new credit bubble was forming (not to mention housing, tech, student loan, GM channel stuffing and much more). And it was only yesterday that we learned that Bernanke, after a 6 year hiatus, just had his latest "everything is contained" moment. ... (more) |
Bitcoin Price Hits Over $31 A Coin!
posted 02/22/2013, 11:12 AM (InformationLiberation)
[Category: Economy]
It seemed like just a short while ago Bitcoins were down and out at some 7$ or so per coin. Today the price per coin hit a whopping $31.3, almost matching the previous all time high in June 2011 of $31.9!
What do you think, are Bitcoins the wave of the future, or will they come crashing down again like they did last time?
All I can think of is how Seth King of ... (more) |
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Thursday February 21st, 2013
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How Patent Trolls Kill Innovation
posted 02/21/2013, 4:27 PM (YouTube)
[Category: Economy]
"My statement to someone that is the victim of a patent troll lawsuit is that you are completely screwed," says Austin Meyer, who is himself the target of a so-called "patent troll" lawsuit.
Meyer is a software developer and aviation enthusiast. His two passions intersected in the '90s when he created a flight simulator called X-Plane, which quickly grew in popularity, outlasting even t... (more) |
Peter Schiff on Gold's Pullback
posted 02/21/2013, 4:19 PM (YouTube)
[Category: Economy]
Reports of the death of the gold bull market have been greatly exaggerated. In the global currency war the biggest loser wins. However, the real winner will be gold. The race to debase means no fiat currency is safe. Savers are assured of being collateral damage unless they protect their purchasing power with a monetary asset central banks cannot print. |
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Wednesday February 20th, 2013
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The Pound Gets Pounded
posted 02/20/2013, 4:25 PM (Peter Schiff)
[Category: Economy]
As the global currency war intensifies, the majority of attention has been paid to the 17% fall of the Japanese yen against the U.S. dollar over the past few months. The implosion has given cover to the sad performance of another once mighty currency: the British pound sterling. But in many ways the travails of the pound is far more instructive to those pondering the fate of the U.S. currency.
Japan has a unique economic and demographic profile which makes it a poor s... (more) |
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Tuesday February 19th, 2013
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Marc Faber: The Fed Party Is Over, Invest Overseas
posted 02/19/2013, 1:15 PM (YouTube)
[Category: Economy]
For four years the FOMC has been printing money to keep interest rates low in order to stimulate the economy. For just as long investors have been hand-wringing over the long-term dire implications of such quantitative easing. The basic idea is that the Fed will eventually stop printing and all assets would tumble, priced as they are relative to risk-free money. With the Bank of Japan, Europe, China an... (more) |
America's Food-for-Votes Program
posted 02/19/2013, 1:13 PM (Wendy McElroy)
[Category: Economy]
During his 2012 bid to become the Republican nominee for President, Newt Gingrich repeatedly called Barack Obama “the food-stamp President.” From the time Obama assumed office in January 2009 through October 2012, the number of people on food stamps spiked from 31.9 million to 47.5, according to the U.S. government’s own data. That is a rise of nearly 50 percent to a peak of 1 in 7 Americans and 1 in 4 children participating. The program... (more) |
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Monday February 18th, 2013
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Don’t Blink, or You’ll Miss Another Bailout
posted 02/18/2013, 4:13 PM (New York Times)
[Category: Economy]
Here’s the skinny: Late last Wednesday, the New York Fed said in a court filing that in July it had released Bank of America from all legal claims arising from losses in some mortgage-backed securities the Fed received when the government bailed out the American International Group in 2008. One surprise in the filing, which was part of a case brought by A.I.G., was that the New York Fed let Bank of America off the hook even as A.I.G. was seeking to recover $7 billion in losses on those very mort... (more) |
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Saturday February 16th, 2013
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Is Today's Argentina Tomorrow's America?
posted 02/16/2013, 1:13 PM (Michael Tennant)
[Category: Economy]
Americans wondering what to expect as their government piles on more debt and refuses to cut spending do not need to look any further than Argentina. A nation once among the most prosperous in the world is now deeply in debt, hemorrhaging cash, and trying to inflate its way out of the mess it has created. This inflation, naturally, has caused prices to rise sharply, and so the government is doing what all governments do in such a situation: instituting price controls.... (more) |
The Basement Beneath the Wage Floor
posted 02/16/2013, 1:13 PM (Jeffrey Tucker)
[Category: Economy]
There are certain sounds that tend to make people crazy. Think of nails on a chalkboard. An infant screaming nonstop on a long flight. A piercing whistle that won’t go away.
Now we need to add another: a U.S. president who thinks he can legislate high wages into law. For anyone who knows the basics of economics — not distorted by a bogus central-planning mentality — hearing this is like torture. It’s painful. It makes you crazier and crazier until you finally want to yell, “Make i... (more) |
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Friday February 15th, 2013
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The Misplaced Fear of "Monopoly"
posted 02/15/2013, 9:05 AM (Thomas E. Woods Jr.)
[Category: Economy]
Those of us who get drawn, often against our better judgment, into Internet debates soon discover that the case against the market economy in the popular mind boils down to a few major claims. Here I intend to dissect one of them: under the unhampered market we'd be at the mercy of vicious monopolists.
This fear can be attributed in part, no doubt, to the cartoon history of the 19th century virtually all of us were exposed to in school. There we learned that rapacious "robber baro... (more) |
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Thursday February 14th, 2013
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Wednesday February 13th, 2013
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Tuesday February 12th, 2013
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Gold Sellers in Houston Must Submit to Fingerprints and Mugshots
posted 02/12/2013, 5:20 AM (Infowars)
[Category: Economy]
Instead of reducing crime, the new law will instead put a damper on the sale of gold, silver and other precious metals
Last week the Houston City Council passed an ordinance requiring people who sell precious metals to be fingerprinted and photographed.
According to KTRK-TV, the ordinance is "meant to help track down criminals who try to resell stolen valuables. Gold-buying... (more) |
Put the Postal Service Out Of Its Misery
posted 02/12/2013, 5:18 AM (Jacob G. Hornberger)
[Category: Economy]
In the latest episode in its periodic throes of pain and misery, the Postal Service has announced that it intends to cancel Saturday delivery of mail in order to save money. I’ve got a better idea: Get the government totally out of the business of delivering mail, by closing down the Postal Service and repealing the government’s legal monopoly on the delivery of first-class mail.... (more) |
Medicare Is Doomed
posted 02/12/2013, 5:18 AM (Sheldon Richman)
[Category: Economy]
When Democrats accuse Republicans of wanting to “end Medicare as we know it,” they are right. Of course ending Medicare as we know it is not the same as ending Medicare. What Democrats fail to point out is that “Medicare as we know it” is no longer an option for anyone. They too will end “Medicare as we know it.” If no changes are made in the program, it will simply collapse.... (more) |
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Monday February 11th, 2013
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Days After Freezing Prices, Argentina Bans All Advertising
posted 02/11/2013, 5:55 AM (Zero Hedge)
[Category: Economy]
A week after Argentina resorted to every failing authoritarian government's last ditch measure to (briefly) control inflation before runaway prices flood the nation and result in political and social upheaval, namely freezing retail prices - a decision which never has a happy ending, the country is pressing on through the rabbit hole and in the latest stunner of a government decree (which like Venezuela yesterday is merely a harbinger of what is coming everywhere else), has banned advertising in... (more) |
Putin Turns Black Gold to Bullion as Russia Outbuys World
posted 02/11/2013, 5:55 AM (Bloomberg)
[Category: Economy]
When Vladimir Putin says the U.S. is endangering the global economy by abusing its dollar monopoly, he’s not just talking. He’s betting on it.
Not only has Putin made Russia the world’s largest oil producer, he’s also made it the biggest gold buyer. His central bank has added 570 metric tons of the metal in the past decade, a quarter more than runner-up China, according to IMF data compiled by Bloomberg. The added gold is also almost triple the weight of the Statue of Liberty.
... (more) |
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Saturday February 9th, 2013
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Messing with the Bull
posted 02/09/2013, 4:08 AM (Peter Schiff)
[Category: Economy]
With the announcement this week of its massive $5 billion lawsuit against ratings agency Standard & Poor's, the Federal Government took a bold step to squelch any remaining independence of thought or action in the financial services industry. Given the circumstances and timing of the suit, can there be little doubt that S&P is paying the price for the August 2011 removal of its AAA rating on U.S. Treasury debt? In retaliation for the unpardonable sin of questioning the U.S. Treasury's credit wor... (more) |
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Friday February 8th, 2013
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Short US Government Bonds "Right Now": Jim Rogers
posted 02/08/2013, 3:49 AM (CNBC)
[Category: Economy]
With the Federal Reserve and now Bank of Japan printing massive amounts of money, billionaire investor Jim Rogers told CNBC's "Closing Bell," he is shorting U.S. government debt.
"It's all artificial what's going on right now," Rogers said. "The Federal Reserve is printing money as fast as they can. The Bank of Japan said 'we're going to print unlimited money.'"
He... (more) |
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Thursday February 7th, 2013
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The philosophy of economics with Stefan Molyneux
posted 02/07/2013, 5:56 AM (YouTube)
[Category: Economy]
GoldMoney's Andy Duncan talks to philosopher Stefan Molyneux, the host of FreeDomainRadio.com, about his recent video on why the western world's economy is failing to recover. They also discuss the possibility of a Japanese-style long-term depression caused by government economic interference, and the chances of moving towards a true free market to clear out the malinvestments of the past. Along the wa... (more) |
Student Loans Going the Way of Housing
posted 02/07/2013, 5:55 AM (Douglas French)
[Category: Economy]
Colleges are good at getting people enrolled. They get kids lined up with education loans. The money goes to pay exorbitant prices on textbooks. It pays for meal cards. Tuition is crazy high. Parents go along and shell out until their bank accounts are barren.
What colleges are not good at is getting the kids degrees. And those without those degrees have a hard time getting a good job to pay back a student loan. Instead, they fall into delinquency, starting off life saddled with a... (more) |
Jim Rogers Joins Bill Gross Warning on Treasuries
posted 02/07/2013, 5:55 AM (Bloomberg)
[Category: Economy]
Investor Jim Rogers joined Bill Gross, who runs the world’s biggest bond fund, in warning that a rout that sent Treasuries to their biggest loss last month in almost a year probably isn’t over.
The list of bond bears is growing after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Wells Capital Management Inc. also voiced concern. While unemployment rose January, Labor Department revisions showed job gains at the end of last year were higher than previously reported, increasing speculation the Feder... (more) |
Hip Hop: A Free-Market History
posted 02/07/2013, 5:51 AM (The Freeman)
[Category: Economy]
Hip hop is not just music. It’s a culture. It includes dance, apparel, perfumes, jewelry, cinema, radio, television, books, magazines, and even beverages. That is, there are very few trades that hip hop hasn’t touched. And while hip hop’s lifeblood may be the complex grouping of rhythms, beats, vocals, tones, and lyrics, it was abetted at every stage by the free market.... (more) |
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Wednesday February 6th, 2013
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The Bernanke Shock
posted 02/06/2013, 4:32 AM (Peter Schiff)
[Category: Economy]
The financial world was shocked this month by a demand from Germany's Bundesbank to repatriate a large portion of its gold reserves held abroad. By 2020, Germany wants 50% of its total gold reserves back in Frankfurt – including 300 tons from the Federal Reserve. The Bundesbank's announcement comes just three months after the Fed refused to submit to an audit of its holdings on Germany's behalf. One cannot help but wonder if the refusal triggered the demand.
Either w... (more) |
Sneaker tax? Illinois considers a 25-cent charge
posted 02/06/2013, 4:17 AM (STLToday)
[Category: Economy]
SPRINGFIELD— The cost of a new pair of basketball shoes could jump by 25 cents under a proposal floated this week by an Illinois lawmaker.
State Rep. Will Davis, D-Hazel Crest, wants to create a new tax that would generate an estimated $3 million annually for a youth job preparation program. He said the added cost would likely go unnoticed by most consumers, while helping finance a program for kids during tight budget times.
“Everywhere, funding is challenged,”Davis... (more) |
When Will the Rest of Us Get Google Fiber?
posted 02/06/2013, 4:09 AM (MIT Technology Review)
[Category: Economy]
The cable distribution giants like Time Warner Cable and Comcast are already making a 97 percent margin on their “almost comically profitable” Internet services, according to Craig Moffet, an analyst at the Wall Street firm Bernstein Research. As Levin points out, “If you are making that kind of margin, it’s hard to improve it.” And most Americans have no choice but to deal with their local cable company.... (more) |
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Tuesday February 5th, 2013
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Krugman turns to his babysitter again
posted 02/05/2013, 4:13 AM (The Circle Bastiat)
[Category: Economy]
In today’s column on “Money, Wealth, and Models,” Paul Krugman lashes out “the Austrianish horde” for being critical of his view “that you can create real wealth by printing more pieces of paper." He is addressing Hans Hoppe’s critique of Krugman that as a society you cannot turn pieces of paper into wealth, but not by name. Krugman defends himself by resorting once again to the model of a babysitter coop that... (more) |
Argentina Freezes Supermarket Prices To Halt Soaring Inflation; Chaos To Follow
posted 02/05/2013, 4:13 AM (Zero Hedge)
[Category: Economy]
Up until now, Argentina's descent into a hyperinflationary basket case, with a crashing currency and loss of outside funding was relatively moderate and controlled. All this is about to change. Today, in a futile attempt to halt inflation, the government of Cristina Kirchner announced a two-month price freeze on supermarket products. ... (more) This will lead to empty store shelves Zimbabwe-style, additionally it will create a massive black market in food, criminalizing almost everyone, and raising the price of food due to the increased risk of "trafficking" in it. Of course, the government says call them to report any "criminal" grocers trying to skirt the law. - Chris |
"Hurry Up and Die"ť: The Inescapable Outcome of Socialized Medicine
posted 02/05/2013, 4:12 AM (Michael Tennant)
[Category: Economy]
Japan’s “universal” health-care system, like all such systems the world over, is in trouble, with costs rising and the population aging. Nearly 25 percent of Japanese are over the age of 60, a proportion expected to increase to 40 percent over the next 50 years. Since the old generally require more — and more expensive — medical treatment than the young, the increasingly aged population is putting a severe strain on Tokyo’s health-care budget. End-of-life care, which can last for months at great... (more) |
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Monday February 4th, 2013
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It's Coming: The Government Wants to "Help Manage" Retirement Accounts
posted 02/04/2013, 2:46 AM (Liberty Blitzkrieg)
[Category: Economy]
From Bloomberg:
The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is weighing whether it should take on a role in helping Americans manage the $19.4 trillion they have put into retirement savings, a move that would be the agency’s first foray into consumer investments.
“That’s one of the things we’ve been exploring and are interested in in terms of whether and what authority we have,” bureau director Richard Cordray said in an interview. He didn’t provide additional det... (more) |
How to Keep Milk Prices Low by Raising Them
posted 02/04/2013, 2:45 AM (Michael Tennant)
[Category: Economy]
Suppose you’re a bureaucrat charged with regulating the price of milk so that the people of your state — the ones who are forced to pay your salary — can enjoy a glass of moo juice without having to take out a loan. Now suppose you find out that a supermarket in your state is selling a gallon of milk for more than a dollar less than competing stores. What do you do?
If you’re Louisiana Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain, you force the market selling the cheap milk t... (more) |
Proposed agreement squashes US, Mexico tomato war
posted 02/04/2013, 2:45 AM (Associated Press)
[Category: Economy]
WASHINGTON (AP) — A proposed agreement on fresh tomatoes imported from Mexico would strengthen anti-dumping enforcement and reset minimum wholesale prices, the Commerce Department said.
The agreement with Mexico's tomato industry would suspend an investigation initiated after Florida tomato growers complained that Mexican producers were selling fresh tomatoes for less than the production cost.
The proposal would replace a pact that's been in place for 16 years. The ... (more) Note, consumers will get screwed by this "agreement" because they'll be denied cheap tomatoes. - Chris |
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Thursday January 31st, 2013
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Peter Schiff & Doug Casey On Gold, Investor Cluelessness, And The "Escape From America" Plan
posted 01/31/2013, 4:44 AM (Zero Hedge)
[Category: Economy]
In just under 30 minutes, Peter Schiff and Doug Casey muse on many facets of the crumbling edifice of the status quo that is our current world.
From Gold's relatively imminent rise to $5,000 and beyond, to investor ignorance of reality, Casey & Schiff swing from discussions of the US as political entity going forward to 'escape from America' plans for personal and wealth assets, and the realization that the biggest casualty (of US indebtedness), aside from individual liberty, is t... (more) |
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The Century of the Self: The Untold History of Controlling the Masses Through the Manipulation of Unconscious Desires
Operation Gladio: The Hidden History of U.S. Sponsored False Flag Terrorism in Europe
The New American Century: The Untold History of The Project for the New American Century
Cop Who Karate Chopped NY Judge In Throat Gets Off Scot-Free
Florida Cop Smashes Compliant Woman's Face Into Car -- "Maybe Now You Can Understand Simple Instructions"
VIDEO: Lapel Cam Reveals A Day In The Life Of A U.S. Police Officer (Tasing, Beating, Breaking & Entering, Stomping On Heads... and Laughing About It)
Caught On Tape: Officer Sucker Punches Inmate In Face, Files Report Claiming 'Self Defense'
Insult Person On Twitter, Go To Jail
SWAT Team Brings TV Crew To Film Raid Against Threatening Internet Critic -- Raids Innocent Grandma Instead
Cop Karate Chops NY Judge In The Throat
When the Right to Resist Becomes the "Duty to Submit"
The Missing Lesson From Norway: Never Trust a Man in Uniform
"They're Only Out To Make Cold Hard American Cash"; Park Police Crack Down on Bicycle Cabs in DC