CNBC has a cutting edge slide show - Spying for Profits.
Spying For Profits - The Satellite Image Indicator
A New Leading Indicator
As part of a growing trend among hedge funds and Wall Street firms, Cold War-style satellite surveillance is being used to gather market-moving information.
The surveillance pictures are often provided by private-sector companies like DigitalGlobe in Colorado and GeoEye in Virginia, which build and launch satellites and take pictures for US government intelligence agency clients and private-sector satellite analysis firms.
Looking for an edge, institutional investors such as UBS have begun to use satellite imagery to gauge customer traffic and economic activity, observing everything from parking lots and oil refineries to shipping terminals.
The scope of this spying covers oil refineries, parking lots, shipping ports, and containers. Fascinating stuff.
S&P over 20dma 1200.04.
ReplyDeleteCAD/EUR, GBP still red
CAD/AUD, HKD, JPY green
So, atleast currencies don't believe in China growth story and the European debt issue is still lingering.
Soft commodities are rising on China inflation. Cotton, sugar, wheat look good
I Can
Rally HO!!
ReplyDeleteMorning all!
USDX holding above 80.69
ReplyDeleteGigantic overnight rally. That has to leave a mark on the shorts.
ReplyDeleteProductivity 3Q revised higher, but still not as high as 2009.
ReplyDeleteCyber Monday sales hit all time high.
Private sector job growth highest in three years.
Yesterday the Eurozone was going to hell, today, everything is coming up roses!
Macro-man blog-
ReplyDeleteDepending on how the ECB bails out the PIIGS, Euro stocks, or both stocks and currency(Euro) would benefit.
I Can
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Private-sector employment rose by 93,000 in November, the largest jump in three years, but the gain was too small to lower the unemployment rate, according to an Automatic Data Processing Inc. employment report released Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteWhile November’s report shows an acceleration in employment, larger gains would be needed to lower the unemployment rate of 9.6%, according to Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers, which computes that data using anonymous payroll data collected by ADP.
Any guesses for November UE?
"Rothschild Plays Strongest Suit With Coal Mining Deal". http://noir.bloomberg.com
ReplyDelete"Future 5th Baron Rothschild says he now plans to build one of the largest coal producers...A company like Barrick Gold of coal..".
I am thinking whatever happened to green technology crowds... and Ontario residents paying for huge increases in their power bills for 1700 new jobs..wind turbines.
This is a mad world indeed. On one hand Canada is forcing huge tax increases in people's throats, on the other end - subsidising oil sands and natural resources mining like coal in the west. Where is co-ordinated policy?
Each to their own, I guess.
I Can
@Thor,
ReplyDeleteNow they have the cover to discontinue unemployment benefits, because look at all of those private sector jobs!
2 million to lose jobless benefits
"Forget Christmas presents. What the so-called "99ers" want most of all is what remains elusive in the worst economy in generations: a job.
"I am not searching for a job, I am begging for one," said Felicia Robbins, 30, as she prepared to move out of a homeless shelter in Pensacola, Fla., where she and her five children have been living. She is using the last of her cash reserves, about $500, to move into a small, unfurnished rental home.
Robbins lost her job as a juvenile justice worker in 2009 and her last $235 unemployment check will arrive Dec. 13. Her 10-year-old car isn't running, and she walks each day to the local unemployment office to look for work."
""I apply for at least two jobs a day," said Silvia Lewis, of Nashville, Tenn., who's also drained her 401(k) and most of her other savings. "The constant thing that I hear, and a lot of my friends are in the same boat, is that you're overqualified."
ReplyDeleteJoAnn Sampson of Charlotte hears the same thing. A former cart driver at U.S. Airways, she and her husband are both facing the end of unemployment benefits, and she can't get so much as an entry-level job.
"When you try to apply for retail or fast food, they say 'You're overqualified,' they say 'We don't pay that much money,' they say, 'You don't want this job,'" she said."
@Dss
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry I wasted your time. Judy changed her name and is using her middle name now and a new last name. I forget both. Not enough sleep and age. I'll do a little research and get back to you.
@Thor
I joke about everything except trading. I never never never joke about trading.
@mannwich: I added a little VXX @46.19 on the higher low after the higher high on the 60 minute chart. How's your uup nibble going?
Also, my alert went off, JRCC has hit the point where I will look to short. It seems to be "managed" around the 15-22 range. Even thought KOL is major strength at .08 better than the S&P, maybe the "management" is stronger. Anyway, I'm watching that for a couple of lower highs.
And I'm looking for a pullback on TIF to around 61.50 before adding more there. I'm thinking COH, JWN, TIF, and URBN are going higher to the end of the year.
Morning all! Is our little year-end Santa bounce/rally upon us? After all, it is Dec. 1st.
ReplyDeleteRock - No worries, I know you're style by now buddy ;-)
ReplyDeletePoor, poor shorts. Getting smoked out of their bunkers. I hope there's enough food, water and guns down there.
ReplyDelete@Rock: Still hanging with my UUP nibble, and might pick up some more on this dip but might wait for it to go lower. Just watching for now though.
ReplyDeleteLike I've been saying, this faux-recovery has to be frustrating (and murdering) the short idealogues on the Right just as much as the last one frustrated those Bush & GOP-haters on the left. That's been my premise all along and I'm guessing it will continue until we get another '07-like euphoric top. We're clearly not there yet.
ReplyDeleteI hope WolfStreet picked up SLV. He was thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteI Can
Manny - Agree, hard to see what could bring this market down right now, it seems bullet proof.
ReplyDeleteOf course, now the market will tank :-/
The Sheeple must, MUST "sacrifice" for the "greater good". The elites? Just keep shopping. No sacrifice required for you.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/01/deficit-commission-tax-cuts-for-rich-higher-retirement-age-_n_790308.html
Poor Lou Mish and the ZH nut jobs. This has to be killing many of them.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, thought it was interesting that in the midst of a so-called "recovery" that layoff announcements seem to be picking up. Yesterday it was State Street announcing it was laying off 5% of its workforce. Today it's Yahoo. I know that layoffs happen all the time, but we continue to be in this bizarro world with so many contradictions all over the place.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.zerohedge.com/article/adp-footnote-yahoo-lay-10-20-employees-december-13th
Let's face it, Benny & Co. have been successful at reflating the global idiot bubble. Consumers haven't even really started delevaragin and apparently don't plan to any time soon. Why do that when all the incentives are skewed towards not doing it and simply buying cheap crap you don't need?
ReplyDeleteI was just out doing some holiday shopping for the family that we sponsor through a local charity and was somewhat stunned at just how cheap everything was at Target. Deals are everywhere and human beings (especially Americans) have long shown that they will snap up every perceived "deals" even if they really don't need or even want this crap that badly. Shows you how often I shop that I didn't realize amazing sales that are out there. Certainly didn't seem like prices were rising on any actual discretionary items or clothes. Food and energy are likely a different story, hwoever.
@Mannwich:
ReplyDeleteBack in the day, we used to hand out christmas turkeys. So the time for high tech layoffs is now, before we have to commit to turkey numbers.
@ICan:
I think it was you who was asking about the C move and tripping the breakers? Take a look at the daily on ATML and see if you see a similarity. a 1/4Billion $ buy pushes the market up, then the 1/4 Billion $ sell. I'll bet ATML is headed back under $9. Gimmee a $.05 if I'm right?
Mannwich - Ignor those 5% layoffs, they don't matter any more.
ReplyDelete95,000 people just got hired as Walmart greeters and for the Costco tasting booth for the Christmas Season.
2,000,000 people just got denied extended unemployment benifits, but the stock market is WAY WAY up.
5% layoffs...Dont mean a thing cuz we are recovering Yeaaaaaaa!!!!!
Mutt
@MAnnwich:
ReplyDeleteLeave the shopping to Dss. We drive cars. Here's a friend of my brother's son's car:
http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,18139,18139#msg-18139
Wow Rock. I'm not a huge car person, although I DO appreciate them and plan to have a nice car SOMEDAY, that is pretty damn cool. Quite the transformation!
ReplyDeleteMutt - I keep forgetting it's Christmas! Easy to do here, our trees don't even lose their leaves! Probably a good idea to take all the employment numbers for the next month with a grain of salt. We'll see how many of those employees are kept after the holiday.
ReplyDeleteManny - I'm not either, I was pretty much forced to buy a new car this last weekend. My old one was about to die, hopefully I can make this next one last longer than the 8 years I had my last car. Roads here are so horrible though, LA is horrible on cars. I did buy American though - Ford.
ReplyDelete@Rock,
ReplyDeleteWhat is your opinion on PMs - especially silver. Me, of Indian origin, gold is in my "blood". Everyone I know and their grandmother owns physical gold. The more the batter. Price never ever deter people from buying gold. Rain, or shine people of India origin buy gold. The higher price the better.
Never bought silver, because it never figured in my frame of reference. "Poor" people buy silver. That's not a snobbish comment - just an observation. Rich/poor is all relative where you live.
I Can
^better"
ReplyDeleteThe reason - for Pms thinking - everyone is going to print, print,print. ECB, JCB, FED, and then China and India. Where do you stop?
ReplyDeleteWhere will all that money go?
I Can
@Manny,
ReplyDeleteThere is never enough food, water or guns to satisfy that crowd.
Rock,
ReplyDeleteWhat's that supposed to mean? :-) (Leave the shopping to dss). I bet I do less shopping than most of you folks.
I did venture out to Costco yesterday to refill a prescription and the place was empty! Parking lot, empty. Cash registers, empty.
What was so strange is that I know that they were expecting crowds as they had more than the usual sampling people on every aisle end, and the samples were cold and plentiful. I have never seen Costco so empty.
Denise - I've been wondering if all we've been doing with the Christmas shopping the last few years is move the dates backward. Like maybe the rest of the holiday shopping season will peter out because everyone gets their shopping done so much earlier now.
ReplyDeleteWow Denise. Our Costco here always seems busy. The Super Target I just went to seemed busy enough but it wasn't mobbed by any means. Seemed like a bit more than a normal weekday crowd, although I guess it's hard for me to say since I don't shop much! Didn't seem frenetic at all though, the way it's been portrayed in the media. At least half of the registers were also closed.
ReplyDeleteThat's kind of been my theory as well, Thor. Let's see how the remainder of the holidays play out. Perhaps the next wave are the after holiday sales when people go out and use their gift cards on the deals. Shoppers have been highly trained to wait for the sales and never pay full price for anything now.
ReplyDeleteGM & Ford Sales Up in November
ReplyDeleteFord was up by 20%, GM by 15%. Without incentives from the feds.
Can't remember who it was, but someone made a comment about six months ago that we wouldn't see 1040 again on the S&P this year. I'd set a reminder on my calendar. Good call whoever that was.
ReplyDeleteDSS - I can believe that. There weren't all that many incentives going for Ford over the Holiday. Great lease deals, but only 1500 in other incentives.
ReplyDeleteI shop for very little these days as my kids are older and mostly want cash. :-) What I do shop for is online for the most part, and then food and booze for any entertaining.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if it was an aberration at Costco because I was dreading going there because of the extreme crush of people normally who are there. It was weird.
I don't remember who it was, either. Maybe they will step forward? Might have been LB? Or Manny?
ReplyDeleteRe auto sales-
ReplyDeleteRead somewhere that Truck sales are outpacing cars sales in Canada this year due to incentives. Big incentives on those Ford F150 series.
I Can
Interesting, denise. I honestly think that people are back to charging up the credit card to go out and spend and reflate the bubble. Many self-professed "experts" have said the bubble couldn't reflated but it appears they've done just that or at least have temporarily prevented it from being completely deflated for the time being. I think too many deep thinking peeps on these blogs assume that others think like they do about all of the issues that we think about ad nauseum and will react accordingly (and "rationally") by changing their behaviors. Wrong, wrong, and WRONG. Most don't have the time, energey or inclination to do it and merely want to do what others are doing, namely working their jobs, caring for their kids, shopping, consuming, eating out and being with family and friends enjoying entertainment. Like it or not, that's likely not going to change any time soon and is strangely what keeps these bubbles going for a lot longer than people think they will. It feeds itself. After all, what would happen if the majority of the country sat around and stewed about the issues to the extent that we did? That's when it would all fall apart, me-thinks, so maybe it's better that too many people DON'T think about these things in the end? It may seem dysfunctional and absurd to us but strangely it keeps things from coming completely apart at the seams.
ReplyDeleteIt might have been me, Thor, but I don't think I said it that way. I just said I thought we'd see higher highs into year-end, which we already have....
ReplyDeleteSomeone wants their bonuses for 'job well done'. How is today any different from yesterday?
ReplyDeleteThose trading desks will have near perfect trading record again.
I Can
@Manny,
ReplyDeleteNo one that I talk to is going over board, even my most indebted family members who spend like there is no tomorrow. Folks I know that are more well off are still licking their wounds from the last stock market sell off and are no where near even, and "say" that they continue to scale back. I don't see a lot of evidence that people are going crazy spending.
Even at Costco, mostly it was staples, alcohol and a few flat screens. Now they are selling "fresh" Christmas trees for $33.00, although most of the aisles could have been used for a bowling lane there were so few people there.
But, the restaurants are booked through December, there are new retail stores in my town and a general sense that very slowly things are improving.
ReplyDeleteI'm struck by the amount of construction going on here. Buildings going up all over, no more high rises downtown, but there a few planned for Westwood (where UCLA is). I follow a blog called Curbed LA that lists all the bigger projects coming down the pike. Tons and tons of stuff, especially in Hollywood around Hollywood and Vine and the Kodak Theatre. No clue whether or not they'll be able to fill a lot of these buildings, many are hotels, but many are office buildings and condos so who knows. Financing appears to be back to normal though. . . .
ReplyDeleteI like to take my wife to Costco, we wonder around looking at stuff, sampling thier free food.
ReplyDeleteBy the time we leave we are usually pretty full, so I will ask her if she wants to go out to get something to eat. Normally she says no.
It is always nice to be able to feed my wife for free and not have to clean any dishes either.
Yup I am always on the look out for ways to be a cheap romatic.
Mutt
Damn - 260?
ReplyDeleteTrend day up so far. Usually, if they are still going up in creeper mode they will end the day that way.
ReplyDelete@Mutt,
ReplyDeleteWe go to Costco for free lunch all the time.
"Sinn Fein eyes legal challenge to Irish aid" www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/
ReplyDeleteDaring the Prime Minister, Brian Cowen, ask the Parliament to vote on the deal. Cowen won't do it. Only slim majority.
I Can
I hear you Denise, but then how do we reconcile this with the reports in the MSM that people are going nuts buying crap again? Color me confused.
ReplyDeleteMany new bars and restaurants have recently opened here in the Twin Cities. One thing people still seem to be spending on is going out to eat. That hasn't changed here, although the place I went to downtown last night was empty. It was a Tuesday night though and the neighborhood joints during the week seem to be doing very well from what I can tell. No idea how much people are spending though.
ReplyDeletemanny - I was surprised at the real estate chart from CR yesterday that included Minny, down 30% so far? What's that about? I wouldn't have thought the RE market there had inflated as much as some of the other cities.
ReplyDelete@Thor: Not surprising to me. CRE went absolutely nuts here, especially in the burbs and exurbs. Tons of space in those areas.
ReplyDeleteRetail sales are up, but compared to what?
ReplyDeleteRetail sales peaked in June of 2008 377687 and are still below that peak, Oct 2010 373103.
Census.gov Retail Sales
MSM has a great deal of time to fill every day.
Plus people forget that 90% of people are working and buying shoes, coats, cars, etc.
Personally, we bought new windows, had the bricks tuck pointed, serviced our furnace, bought new clothes for the college kid, not to mention two airline round trips, pigged out during Thanksgiving week, etc. People are spending!
Anyone read this yet?
ReplyDeleteGood stuff!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/business/economy/02fed.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
Even bedrock corporations like Caterpillar, General Electric, Harley Davidson, McDonald’s, Verizon and Toyota depended on a program that supported the market for commercial paper — the short-term i.o.u.’s that corporations use. During the worst moments of the crisis, in the fall of 2008, even creditworthy corporate borrowers found this source of financing had dried up, and had to turn to the Fed.
While most of the Fed’s commercial paper purchase were made in the first few weeks after the program opened on Oct. 27, 2008, the central bank had to buy nearly as much in January 2009 and only slightly less in March 2009. Indeed, the Fed was still supporting the market for commercial paper well into the summer of 2009 — even as the recession officially came to an end.
@Thor,
ReplyDeleteThat is incredible. It is amazing because some of those companies are supposed to be holding a lot of cash. GE is no surprise, but McDonalds is.
@Thor & Denise: Kind of lays waste the myth of "hordes of cash" on these companies' balance sheets. "Hordes of debt" too, it seems.
ReplyDeleteSome prices at Super Target really stuck out but $2.99 for a winter hat? Not the greatest thing in the world quality-wise but seems far better than nothing. How can you go any lower than that?
ReplyDeleteYup yup - gives a whole new dimension to the folks who would like to abolish the FED. Well, probably not, I think that ideology is more political than rational for most of these people.
ReplyDeleteI hate to go throwing terms like that around, but isn't fascism when the state owns and runs business?
ReplyDeleteSo if General Motors, alarge portion of it is owned by fedral goevernment, so it would/could be considered a fascist business correct?
So what about all these other companies that have been pointed out in the above article, would they also be fascist?
On top of that if corporations can give unlimited amounts of money to election campains doesn't that then make the polotician "owned" by the companies that gave the contributions?
So if many corporations are going down the pathway to fascism and they are buying up the poloticians that make the rules that govern us, where does that leave us, the people?
Or am I waaaaayyyyyyy of base on my thinking?
Mangy Mutt
@ICan
ReplyDeleteXME, the metals and mining ETF, is running .08 above the S&P. It's not been this far in front for a long time. It's characteristic is to change very very slowly, so from my perspective, the precious metal mining stocks will be outperforming the S&P for a long time.
Of course, the S&P may drop like a stone, and everything will typically follow the market.
But I think long-term (like through the next quarter at least) you'll see companies like ABX AEM HL (which is awesome, compared to the S&P), outperform. That brings up NEM which has taken a hit because of their future directions at the conference call, but as the GLD price nudges higher, look for them to start returning to the .08 above S&P.
I don't trade Forex, so I don't know about gold there. GLD seems to be tracing out a head-and-shoulders on the daily chart, so I'd look for it to chop a little before heading in the trend direction, that is up. See how it kind of bumped 130 but no lower? If it pulls back to around 132.6, that would be a great entry point to start looking for higher lows.
@Dss
I had to nap, but I think I remember you remarking on the mall traffic (and maybe satellite observation? but that's a little foggy?) and I remarked about the traffic in the bay area as market indicators.
The RTH is not good. The retail sector will be performing on average, about equal to the S&P, but I believe there are standouts, and I believe those to be the high-end stocks like COH, TIF, JWN etc. I'm thinking the Costcos and Targets will not do as well, comparitively. I entered TIF a while ago, and am waiting for a pullback to add. I may be waiting until January, at which time I should be exiting, but we'll see. Hopefully we'll get another down day soon.
@Mangy: Not way off base in my mind. I think what we have here now is "fascism lite".
ReplyDeleteMutt - Nope, I think you're spot on. Agree with Manny, what we have is Fascism lite, hopefully we won't keep going down the same path we've been on. Finding that harder and harder to believe as things progress. We'll end up with some form of either Fascism or Socialism. Once the boomers really start getting up there in age and many of them realize their stock returns won't be coming back anytime soon, they're going to demand (vote) that they be taken care of. Social Security isn't going to cut it for most of them.
ReplyDeleteFascism - The 14 Defining Characteristics of Fascism:
ReplyDeleteThe 14 Defining
Characteristics Of Fascism
You would be surprised at how many fit our country today.
1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
@Thor
ReplyDeleteI saw some pundit on Bloomberg saying that he expects next year to be the year of the big fall in housing prices. He was basing that on the amount of houses in the shadow inventory. I think he's right but for a different reason, and that is time-in-inventory. It's on the average getting longer to sell a house, because there aren't many household starts right now. Mom and dad are offering extra rooms to kids. Nobody's got the cash to go down payment because the savings banks are looking better (remember I said about the HSBC 2.4% CD?)
So many of the jobs we lost were in the housing sector. Those didn't move offshore, they just evaporated. We've got to figure out how to create a bubble of work for these guys. It won't be houses soon. But I hope we find something soon. Like rebuilding rotting bridges. That's what a couple of pundits have been saying, instead of bank bailouts we ought to be investing in infrastructure.
I hope we find something to build jobs soon. Not just Christmas and Target-greeters.
Well, there go, denise. Kind of lays it out, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteRock - Couldn't agree more! I've been saying for awhile that this recession was going to cause some pretty interesting demographic changes, mostly intergenerational housing. Kids who stay home longer, parents who move in with their kids when they retire. Never mind the huge slow down we're already seeing in immigration (both legal and illegal). I agree that there just be a need for as many houses going forward.
ReplyDelete@Rock: I believe you nailed it. Totally agree @4:27 p.m.
ReplyDeleteI remain somewhat stunned that we can't (or should I say WON'T due to political gridlock and stupidity) put many of these people back to work rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, which would create something of real enduring use for the country and likely bring dignity back to unemployed people looking for a purpose and a paycheck for a day's work well done..
ReplyDelete@MAnnwich
ReplyDeleteDon't forget it's cheaper to acquire debt at 2% than it is to repatriate cash that's sitting in your sub-company in China at 20% corporate tax rate.
Now is the time to go get debt. Especially if you think you can pay it off without repatriating your cash hoards.
Manny - why that's Socialism you're talking about ya pinko commie! ;-)
ReplyDelete@Mannwich
ReplyDeleteCorp tax rate may be 50%. I disremember....
Rock . . . . .Wow, that's very insightful, do you think that's what's going on?
ReplyDeleteVery interesting!
@ICan:
ReplyDeleteI have to go to an early meeting this morning, but later on around maybe 8:00 or 9:00 PST I will put up charts on XME, GLD and NEM. Or maybe Thor and Dss might want a post for tomorrow with a discussion about the metals and mining. I could look back and see how Thor set the sizes of the charts so I don't blow up again.....
Great point, Rock. Hadn't thought of that.
ReplyDeleteDenise - I love today's quote! Was that you? Stewart is spot on with that! Poor Asange, thinking he's going to change the world when all he's really doing is telling us all things we already knew or suspected to be true.
ReplyDeleteA for effort though.
Rock - yes, please feel free to take tomorrow's post, I'm at a loss for a decent topic so you'd be doing me a favor. Post it for tonight if you'd like, no need to wait till tomorrow morning.
ReplyDelete@Thor: LOL. I know you're being sarcastic, but I don't care what you call it or how it's done, as long as our crumbling infrastructure gets rebuilt and improved for the betterment of We the Sheeples' every day lives. Everyone complained mightily about waste during "The Big Dig" in Boston during those years it was being built, but I doubt anyone complains about it anymore, namely the end result of improving the city and making peoples' every day lives better. Will there be waste, corruption and graft in such large scale projects? Sure, but isn't there all of the above in the private sector too? Just see our government contracts gravy train to military contractors for proof of that. What's truly appalling is that we're more than willing to accept this kind of graft, corruption and outright fraud when it comes to anything related to military adventures (I hardly EVER hear anyone even bring it up - see Denise's post on the definition of "fascism" above)), but when it comes to the same kinds of happenings that also actually produce lasting things the masses can use every day to make our lives better, all we hear are the usual cries of "socialsm, socialism, socialism". It would be downright hilarious "Saturday Night Live" material if not so downright depressing.
ReplyDeleteManny - I'm definitely not anti socialism, there are some aspects of it I do think are great (Social Security, Medicare, Veteran Benefits, etc). I also strongly think that the long term unemployed should be put to work. Cities and states are cutting back on all sorts of services, street cleaning, park maintenance, etc. It seems like a no brainer all of those lost services might be performed by people who are out of work.
ReplyDeleteI hear you on The Big Dig too. We had something very similar in SF during the 90's after the earthquake. They tore down the freeway that used to sit over the Embarcadero (right along the bay in downtown). The waterfront used to be a horrible place to go, now it's the centerpiece of the city like it always used to be! People bitched about it non stop while it was being torn down though, I loved all the people that said it would destroy all the businesses in the area because there would no longer be a freeway for people to get into downtown from!
@Thor: Yep. Similar things happened here in Minneapolis when they built the light rail. "Nobody will ever use it, blah, blah, blah". Well, guess what, I guess it depends on your definition of "nobody", which they really mean to be a bunch of a NOBODIES WILL use it, which is precisely why the nabobs didn't want it, because THEY didn't think they'd want to mix with the regular folk ("those people") and use it themselves. From what I've heard, similar hues and cries also abounded when Phoenix put up their light rail and now even those most ardent Goldwater-ites like it. Go figure. I believe the plan here in Minneapolis is to expand the light rail into St. Paul, which is a NO-BRAINER if you ask me, but what do I know? The fact that we don't have high speed rail from the Twin Cities through Madison to Chicago and Milwaukee is a national embarrassment if you ask me that as well, so don't ask I guess!
ReplyDelete@Thor: I've been continually amazed at just how much more cosmopolitan and modern (and just downright NICE and LIVABLE) Boston has become since I left, and I attribute the biggest driver of that to be The Big Dig project, which spurred all sorts of other meaningful, life-improving projects throughout the city. Of course, many on the Right want to live in their own walled off enclaves and hate most aspects of the city and mixing with actual, live people that are "different" from them, so I guess I can understand it if I felt that way too, which I don't.
ReplyDeleteBailouts for banks. A giant middle finger for everyone else.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/01/bailouts-foreclosure-unemployment_n_790623.html
Manny - Sooooo different here with light rail! People are clamoring for it! They're building lines all over the place here too and can't get them in fast enough. I have to laugh at these "no one will use them" arguments you hear in a lot of places. If you want to see what your traffic will look like in 10 or 15 years without light rail, come to LA and spend an hour sitting on a freeway going nowhere. No thanks. I would ditch a commute to work in my car in a heart beat if I could.
ReplyDeleteThe line they're building in to Santa Monica will have a stop right across the street from where I work. Sadly it won't be finished for a decade and I hope to be long gone from this part of SoCal by then. I very rarely ever drove when I lived up in SF and I loved it.
What do you guys think of the FED loaning money to foreigh banks - European and Candian-during the credit crisis and now bailing the Euro banks through the IMF again? Printing money to save the rich at the expense of the savers and people on fixed income.
ReplyDeleteI Can
@Thor,
ReplyDeleteI put up the quote. This whole breathless reporting of the wikileaks is so over the top. Big surprise that Saudi Arabia thought Iran was a threat. Yawn. Sure, there are probably something that really should remain classified but it seems to me that too much of it is gossipy ambassadors talking about how this King is out of control, etc. Mostly I think it is embarrassing to those of whom could be identified.
Plus how secret could this stuff have been if some schmuck could just burn a cd and steal it?
ICan - I think it's a travesty. I keep hearing bankers on TV saying that this new move by the EU to make bond holders take a haircut when things go wrong is a bad idea. As if it's somehow now considered normal for the state to step in and bail out banks and investors that are too stupid to do their own research on these bond investments.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I'm sick of the US engaging with the rest of the world. I think we need to back out of everything, let the rest of the world handle itself.
@I Can
ReplyDeleteThe Fed does what it wants, and the bidding of the administration in power and we the sheeple have not say in the matter.
It is always about saving the rich and letting the rest of us pay for it.
@dss, Thor
ReplyDeletere WikiLeaks - businessinsider is having a field day with it.
Did you see the one re Canada - funny I thought.
"According to NYT some diplomat fretted that Canadians 'mistrusted' America and carried a chip on their shoulder". Nothing new here.
Also,
"Shep Smith on Assange warrant: One thing to take down military and State dept., it's another thing to mess with a big bank".
That Joe weisenthal sure has a thick skin. I wonder if he delibertaly writes headlines to intice the bears. Today's wrap," Bulls Drop a Monster Bomb on the Bears: Here's what you need to know".
The comment section is usually full of hate - especially when he says something about gold. I guess he gets paid with more clicks on his site.
I Can
I Can - Hah, yes, poor Joe W really does take a beating doesn't he? VERY thick skin. I don't go over to BI as much as I used to. John Carney used to write for them a lot and I couldn't stand him. Also, agree on the comments section, not as bad as ZH, but close!
ReplyDeleteThat is the whole point of Joe W., to be controversial and drive people to the site. It is the oldest trick in the book.
ReplyDeleteThey have advertisers who pay them for eyeballs and page clicks. Pretty simple formula.
Republicans Block Child Nutrition Bill
ReplyDeleteHave they no shame?
Republicans say the nutrition bill is too costly and an example of government overreach.
"It's not about making our children healthy and active," said Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., the top Republican on the House Education and Labor Committee. "We all want to see our children healthy and active. This is about spending and the role of government and the size of government — a debate about whether we're listening to our constituents or not."
Prince Andrew and WikiLeaks - Prince Andrew in Kyrgyestan on the subject of corruption-
ReplyDelete"All this sounds exactly like the French". And, the French won't have any problems doing business here. Blah, blah. Narcissistic person.
I don't doubt the Kyrgyestan govt. being corrupt, but lecturing the people around you..especially the Americans I don't think take well to Royality.
I Can
I
Gathering information while getting paid, Barry at ritholtz.com has 3 threads, today regarding market direction.
ReplyDelete"Holiday Year End Melt-UP?"
"Dollar Bounces Off Lows".
"Open Thread: Market Rally".
I Can
@Thor
ReplyDeleteYeah, that's it. Let me tell you how it works:
Rock is sitting there in Boulder Colorado (a great Rock spot) where his division is making widigts at 30% profit each. Rock is feeling good, since his bonus is tied to the profits of the division, and when he brings that bonus check home, it will surely be a "Hi Honey" night.
In walks the Managing Director. He says, "Rock, our division in Drogheda Ireland is in trouble. They need money. You know how expensive debt is there, the spreads are so high, and they have to pay for CDS, so we need to transfer some money to them".
"Ok" says Rock, a little puzzled.
"So", says MD, "I want you to buy the 33 ohm chip resistors from them for $50 each."
"What!!??!!!??" says Rock, whipping out his IT provided standard cost listing. "Those resistors cost me $0.002 each! My product cost will skyrocket!". Rock's mind has brought up a vision of that bonus check. It now has Angel wings and a halo.
"Yeah," says MD, "we lose the profit, and the profit is moved to Drogheda. We won't pay taxes, and Drogheda's going to be even, so they won't be penalized for losing their shirts this quarter".
"B..b...b...but my bonus??!!?" stammers Rock, thinking there won't be any "Hi Honey" night in his near future.
"Don't worry", says MD, "We got you covered. Here's your new bonus letter; you're getting 10% more as a result of your cooperation".
"Where do I sign?" says Rock, eagerly standing up and reaching for his desk pen. The vision of the check has lost its wings and halo, and is being folded for placement into Rock's Tumi wallet.
MD whips out the transfer order papers. "Sign here, and I'll carry them over to Purchasing so we don't have to bother your Admin".
Like my Admin would be bothered by a request from MD. No, he wants to make sure the papers get there and get entered into the system.
"Wanna coffee?" asks Rock.
"No, thanks, gotta get the paperwork done" says MD, and off he goes.
Get the picture? the books are cooked. The US loses tax revenue. Money is moved overseas.
Now, do you need another story about why jobs (not Steve) are moved overseas? Or, I think I'll let that one be up to your imaginations.
@Thor
ReplyDeleteOK, I'd like to do a metals and mining, Silver and Gold post for tomorrow. While the systems collect today's data, I have an hour I could sleep, or I could write the post. Well, that's a no brainer, I'll get right on the post.
@Thor:
ReplyDelete"Personally, I'm sick of the US engaging with the rest of the world. I think we need to back out of everything, let the rest of the world handle itself."
Please come and join the Libertarian Party. We're open to you with comments such as the above.
Rock, that was brilliant man! :-) Yes, I understand completely. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI don't really fit into any one political ideology very well. Yes, I'm liberal, I'm a gay man from San Francisco, it's in my blood. Growing up in arguably the most liberal city on Earth though, showed me what happens to a place when you have only one extreme wing of a political party running the show - not my cup of tea.
There are many things I admire a great deal about the libertarians, but there are also many things I disagree with strongly.
In any case, I don't really feel the need to belong to any political party.
ICan - I noticed that too! I've often thought that BR uses his blog for market advice. He's got a lot of VERY smart people who read his blog, many great traders. I doubt he and his team is all that sure which was things are going to break and that's why we're seeing more and more of those kinds of posts.
ReplyDelete@Thor,
ReplyDeleteI think he uses his blog as a proxy for market research. He posts some controversial topic or asks who is bullish or who is bearish and he has his own mini me survey.
@ICan:
ReplyDelete2 things before I put up my post and kill the chart sizes:
1. We have to help the Euro. If the Euro goes in the toilet, the dollar goes up and the market thuds back to 666. Then you and I will be bailing out the pension funds. Do you want that?
2. Did you notice how many Chinese banks got Tarp funds? Can you spell Z-E-R-O?
Thor (11:00) - It is nice to see that men in San Fransisco are happy... Oh wait.... You mean that's not what you meant by "I'm a gay man"? :)
ReplyDeleteLike you I do not consider myself belonging to a political party. I very much am liberatian when it comes to what goes on in our houses holds. As long as it does not harm or adversely effect others - Who's business is it? No ones.
I am socialist on a community scale, the federal government should not EVER pass laws thats blanket how social programs are effect different areas of our nation - Set standards....maybe, but not laws.
I am also a conservative on state level, states and counties should be able business decisions they feel is best for their population.
I hardly ever vote for someone because of party affiliation, but I will vote issues.
And stay HAPPY!!!! Or Gay...
Mangy Mutt
@Mutt:
ReplyDeleteI belong to the political party that can party the hardiest. So during the GOP nat'l convention, I'm completely GOP. And the Dem nat'l convention, I a donkey.
Well, I guess I'm a donkey anyway.
A friend went to one of the conventions as a delegate. I think we're talking better than a frat party....