STOCK MARKET WATCH, Thursday November 4

[ozymandius]

Source: du

STOCK MARKET WATCH, Thursday November 4, 2010

AT THE CLOSING BELL ON November 3, 2010

Dow 11,215.13 +26.41 (+0.24%)
Nasdaq 2,540.27 +6.75 (+0.27%)
S&P 500 1,197.96 +4.39 (+0.37%)
10-Yr Bond... 2.58 -0.01 (-0.50%)
30-Year Bond 4.05 +0.12 (+3.00%)

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Market Conditions During Trading Hours

Euro, Yen, Loonie, Silver and Gold

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    William Black: This Economic Disaster    Bill Moyers with Kevin Drum and David Corn

Bush Administration Officials Convicted = 2
Names: David Safavian, James Fondren

Bush Administration Officials Charged = 1
Name(s): Richard Lopez Razo

Financial Sector Officials Convicted since 1/20/09 = 11

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This thread contains opinions and observations. Individuals may post their experiences, inferences and opinions on this thread. However, it should not be construed as advice. It is unethical (and probably illegal) for financial recommendations to be given here.

Read more: du

[ozymandius]

1. Today's Reports

08:30 Initial Claims 10/30
Briefing.com 450K
Consensus 445K
Prior 434K

08:30 Continuing Claims 10/23
Briefing.com 4400K
Consensus 4386K
Prior 4356K

08:30 Productivity-Prel Q3
Briefing.com 1.0%
Consensus 0.9%
Prior -1.8%

08:30 Unit Labor Costs Q3
Briefing.com 0.7%
Consensus 1.0%
Prior 1.1%

http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicCalendar.htm

[ozymandius]

2. Something to consider: Productivity vs. GDP

I stumbled upon a basic economic concept that I had not thought about in awhile called Okun's Law (or Okun's "rule of thumb"). As GDP remains above productivity then unemployment rates will remain elevated. At the last glance: GDP = 1.7% and projected Productivity = 1%. Unemployment rates will not change under these conditions. Even low levels of productivity can realize growth in GDP. This statistic will quiet any calls more hiring.

[Roland99]

31. Speaking of which. Productivity up 1.9% (jobless claims up 20k, too)

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/third-quarter-us-productivity-climbs-19-2010-11-04

[tclambert]

40. Initial claims 457K. Continuing claims 4.34M (down from 4.382M)

http://www.briefing.com/Investor/Public/Calendars/EconomicReleases/claims.htm

Key Factors

•The lack of a sustained downward trend leaves little hope for a substantial positive surprise in tomorrow's employment report.
•According to the DOL, the continuing claims level was not adversely impacted by poor seasonal adjustments. Unfortunately, that does not mean the drop in claims is the result of increased hiring. Instead, it is most likely due to an acceleration of claimants running out of jobless benefits.
•Separately, emergency benefit levels remain in a seesaw trend as claims increased by 198,579 for the week ending Oct. 16 after declining by 260,318 for the week ending Oct. 9.

Big Picture

•New claims have dropped below 500,000, but they are still well above the typical levels found during the last recession. As major companies finish their labor restructuring, many of the newly unemployed are coming from smaller businesses. This tends to cause more hardship on Main Street as many of these workers are unprepared for their job loss.
_____________________________________________________________

The decrease in continuing claims "is most likely due to an acceleration of claimants running out of jobless benefits." Think the new majority in Congress will extend unemployment benefits? You know they think the unemployed are just lazy. And they won't want to reward laziness with any more benefits. They wouldn't want to run up the deficit helping lazy people. No, they want to run up the deficit giving tax breaks to the wealthy.

[OnlinePoker]

63. "The decrease in continuing claims..."

As I pointed out last week, continuing claims for at least the 2 months that I've been noticing, have been revised upwards by 30-50k the following week. This week is no exception (though only up by 24k). Expect the revised figures next week to be around 4370k or so. Continually juggling the books to make a dismal report a little more palatable.

[ozymandius]

3. Some things are going to be more expensive.

Oil rises to near $86 after Fed bond buying move

BANGKOK – Oil jumped to near $86 a barrel in Asia on Thursday as the dollar weakened moderately after the Federal Reserve's announcement it will buy $600 billion dollars of Treasurys to stimulate the U.S. economy.

The announcement wasn't a surprise for markets but it underlined expectations that the dollar could weaken further and push up prices for commodities including oil. Since crude is priced in dollars, a weaker dollar makes it more attractive to buyers using foreign currencies.

Speculation about what the Fed would do has captivated energy traders for weeks. Now that it has been announced, the focus may shift to such basics as supply and demand. Oil and gas supplies are ample and demand is weak.

But don't worry. As long as price increases only affect things like paperclips, and not inconsequential things like energy and food, then inflation will be quite subdued.

[KoKo]

29. Ozy, Dr. Phool and the Rest might enjoy this: I can't recommend enough...

The interview with Barry Ritholtz of the Big Picture and Chris Whalen are ******


http://www.dylanratigan.com/radio-free-dylan/

About Radio Free Dylan

Little known fact: when Dylan’s television show goes off the air at 5PM, he just keeps talking. Sometimes, to himself. We at DylanRatigan.com decided to harness this extra energy and put it towards something productive — out of that, the idea for Radio Free Dylan was born. Broadcasting from an abandoned radio studio deep in the basement of 30 Rock, this free-wheeling show digs in on covering the biggest political, economic and financial issues facing our country with unique guests and experts of his choosing.

Show Archive

http://www.dylanratigan.com/radio-free-dylan/

[Dr.Phool]

67. Thanks, listening to the Ritholtz interview now.

[KoKo]

72. Thanks for listening...

:hug:

[Po_d Mainiac]

81. have u noticed how thin paper clips are these days? n/t

[ozymandius]

4. Fed will spend $600B in latest bid to help economy

WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve will sink $600 billion into government bonds in a bold plan that it hopes will drive interest rates even lower than they already are and start the chain reaction that finally creates jobs and invigorates the economy.

The Fed said Wednesday that it would buy the bonds at a rate of about $75 billion a month through the middle of next year. The idea is to encourage people to spend more money and stimulate hiring, both ways of accelerating economic growth.

The announcement helped push stocks, which have been rising for weeks in anticipation of such a move, to their highest close of the year. But the program was immediately met with worries that it would not help enough and could backfire by causing inflation, creating asset bubbles and further weakening the dollar.

more

That line, in bold, comes from an Econ 101 textbook. Odd how some people forget what they should have learned in high school.

[ozymandius]

5. How Fed's plan to buy more gov't bonds will work (or won't)

THE MECHANICS:

• To buy Treasury debt, the Fed in effect prints money. It does so by expanding its balance sheet, which now stands at $2.3 trillion. The balance sheet has nearly tripled since the end of 2007. That's when the economy slid into recession and the Fed embarked on programs to loosen credit.

THE ECONOMIC MISSON:

• As the Fed snaps up Treasury bonds, the rates on those bonds will fall. Rates on mortgages, corporate debt and other loans pegged to the Treasury securities will drop, too. It involves supply and demand: Higher demand for bonds lowers their rates, or yields. And it drives up their prices.

• The Fed's goal is for those cheaper loans to entice Americans to spend more. Stronger sales could make businesses borrow and spend and hire more employees. Those forces could generate more business activity and strengthen the economy.

more

If commodities such as oil and natural gas rise when the dollar falls (which is what The Fed is really doing) then doesn't it make sense that discretionary purchases would be cut?

Since this plan is focused on credit markets, how are the banks enticed to change their tight-fisted ways?

[florida08]

8. he has lost his mind

QE to infinity and beyond. Investors will dump that TT. Purposely driving inflation is insane. Bubbles on the way

Already there is evidence of this: American investment in overseas stock funds, which was running at about $4 billion a month over the summer, has surged since Ben S. Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, suggested the possibility of another round of quantitative easing at the end of August. About $19 billion has flowed into these funds since Aug. 1, according to TrimTabs, a funds researcher.

In recent weeks, central banks around the globe, including those of the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Israel, Taiwan, Brazil and Japan, have intervened furiously in foreign exchange markets in hopes of weakening their own currencies. But currency speculators, moving just as fast, so far seem to be largely undermining those efforts by selling their dollars and betting that the American currency will continue its decline.

In the Chicago futures markets, one of the principal arenas where traders can take positions against the currency, positions betting on a depreciation of the dollar totaled $32.6 billion in the latest week, close to a record, according to the investment firm Nomura

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/21/business/global/21dollar.html

[Dr.Phool]

17. But, everyone else just prints their own money too, don't they?

We have an unlimited supply, and we're not bothered in the least when prices rise.

:sarcasm:

[Tansy_Gold]

20. The Fed's "balance sheet"

I've never taken an economics course, not in high school and not in college. But I do have a 2-year degree in accounting.

A balance sheet, for those lurkers who don't know, presents a snapshot of an entity's financial status. I was going to say "health," but I would rather keep this non-judgmental if I can.

The "balance" part refers to a simple equation: A = L + E, where

A = Assets
L = Liabilities
E = Equity


If you buy a house worth $100,000 with $10,000 cash down and you have a $90,000 mortgage, your balance sheet thus looks like:

$100,000 (the value of the asset) = $90,000 (the liability you still owe) + $10,000 (the equity you have in the house from your down payment)


So could someone explain to me how all these Fed shenanigans affect the Fed's balance sheet? And, conversely, the Treasury's balance sheet? Does the Fed have anything other than printing presses to back up its purchase of. . . . of paper money?

Is all of this just insanity, or am I missing something?


Tansy Gold, who really needs to get with the program

[Demeter]

33. Well, Let's See

A= Asset. They aren't buying any assets, so that is zero. (Worthless paper is not an asset, nor is paper that will shortly be worthless. Unless you tax, tax, tax, and we know President Palin will not stand for that)

And therefore, there is no equity, so E= zero.

So I come up with 0 = Infinity + 0

Makes perfect sense to me (If you are doing microwave boundary problems, where things REALLY get weird).

But I can see that this might stop accounting dead in its tracks.

[Po_d Mainiac]

62. The FED prints

and we (taxpayers/consumers) make up the difference with higher prices on imports or anything 'price sensitive' to imported commodities.

Think expensive oil, tractor fuel, corn, wheat, grains, red meats, poultry, pork, etc.

'class dismissed'

And what Demeter said!

[Po_d Mainiac]

59. And thus the foundation

is built for a recessionary/inflationary spiral set of stairs.

The stock market indexes may be able to absorb some of the inflation short term, but in the long run it will only be some individual stocks, and not the indexes as a whole.

Durable goods should be hitting the wall as discretionary spending gets hammered by rising food and fuel. These businesses are already seeing margins narrowed as their cost of raw materials continue to rise, but their sales/unit price holds or falls as the attempt is made to capture market share.

Food and fuel groups are less likely to suffer short term as they have been able to raise prices or resort to 'phantom' packaging. That trend may be able to continue :shrug:

RE and CRE will continue to fall.

Financials may continue to stumble along as long as they are able to mark to myth, but the bond repurchases will eventually force accounting for the cash drain.

What we are seeing is what should have been expected by the FED. So obviously they are willing to continue to trash seniors savings and the lower end wage earners in a losing effort to save RE/CRE and the associated banks that issued the toxic bonds.

Laugh at PM's at your own peril. The metals themselves, should pace with with the food/fuel sectors. The mining stocks may well outperform all the other sectors combined
ymmv

[DemReadingDU]

6. Bernanke: What the Fed did and why: supporting the recovery and sustaining price stability

11/4/10 What the Fed did and why: supporting the recovery and sustaining price stability
By Ben S. Bernanke

a few snippets

Notwithstanding the progress that has been made, when the Fed's monetary policymaking committee - the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) - met this week to review the economic situation, we could hardly be satisfied. The Federal Reserve's objectives - its dual mandate, set by Congress - are to promote a high level of employment and low, stable inflation. Unfortunately, the job market remains quite weak; the national unemployment rate is nearly 10 percent, a large number of people can find only part-time work, and a substantial fraction of the unemployed have been out of work six months or longer. The heavy costs of unemployment include intense strains on family finances, more foreclosures and the loss of job skills.

Today, most measures of underlying inflation are running somewhat below 2 percent, or a bit lower than the rate most Fed policymakers see as being most consistent with healthy economic growth in the long run. Although low inflation is generally good, inflation that is too low can pose risks to the economy - especially when the economy is struggling. In the most extreme case, very low inflation can morph into deflation (falling prices and wages), which can contribute to long periods of economic stagnation.

Even absent such risks, low and falling inflation indicate that the economy has considerable spare capacity, implying that there is scope for monetary policy to support further gains in employment without risking economic overheating. The FOMC decided this week that, with unemployment high and inflation very low, further support to the economy is needed. With short-term interest rates already about as low as they can go, the FOMC agreed to deliver that support by purchasing additional longer-term securities, as it did in 2008 and 2009. The FOMC intends to buy an additional $600 billion of longer-term Treasury securities by mid-2011 and will continue to reinvest repayments of principal on its holdings of securities, as it has been doing since August.

more...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/03/AR2010110307372.html?hpid=topnews


Response by Karl Denninger
Bernanke is a liar, and these are the reasons...
http://market-ticker.org/akcs-www?post=171176

[DemReadingDU]

25. Karl Denninger: Ben "I'm A Liar" Bernanke, Part II

11/4/10 Ben "I'm A Liar" Bernanke, Part II by Karl Denninger

...now we got another problem. See, The Government doing this for a long period of time leads to what happened in Greece. Bond rates back up and suddenly you can't pay the interest. The nation has happen exactly what happened over there - the interest demanded becomes impossible to cover, and the economy and government collapse.

So now, instead of recognizing what we've been doing (which involves being honest about the above numbers) Ben "I lie like a snake" Bernanke has chosen instead to lie again

So what did Ben Bernanke do?

He inflated the money supply by more than 100%. After saying he wouldn't. And now he's doing it again - this time, he's just announced that he intends to monetize $600 billion - approximately exactly what the Treasury will issue over the next six months.


Without jobs you cannot have any sort of durable economic recovery. Yet there are no jobs being created.

The reason there are no jobs being created is that margins are being trashed. There is no wage pressure available to inflate wages as manufacturing is all offshore in China - a direct consequence of our economic and trade policies. Therefore, the American Worker has no ability to demand higher compensation.


What The Fed is doing, basically, is imposing a huge tax increase of $600 billion over the next six months on the economy.

Tax increase?

Yep.

It's just hidden.

The Government is selling their debt to The Fed. The Fed is in turn debasing the currency. This causes the dollar to go down in value, which in turn causes all commodities denominated in dollars to go up in price.

But wages are not rising (unit labor costs) which means you are forced to absorb the increase in commodity prices without any increase in your earnings.

That's a tax increase.


click link for rest of article and commodity charts...
http://market-ticker.org/cgi-ticker/akcs-www?post=171216

[Dr.Phool]

64. Holy shit! Did you see the video at the end?

And he's urging Bernanke to do it on National teevee.

[DemReadingDU]

65. the Dwyer video

I doubt Bernanke would do that. Though, I do wonder why a deranged person hasn't already done something similar to him or other banksters.

[Tansy_Gold]

69. Without jobs you cannot have any sort of durable economic recovery.

[Roland99]

7. According to some DUers in the thread on this here in LBN it's very good to devalue the dollar.

:banghead:

[Dr.Phool]

18. Never forget, Bush was a cheerleader too.

Whatever happened to critical thinking in this country.

And they wonder why the repukes took over again? Nobody in this country knows how to think anymore.

[DemReadingDU]

24. Nobody in this country knows how to think anymore.

These people listen to RW talk radio & TV, they don't have to think. They are told what to do.
:puke:

[Ghost Dog]

41. I posted my first thoughts on this in this thread:

(Editorials & Other Articles - which could do with a kick <wink>): "It would surely be more intelligent to begin to rein in, draw down and cut back on military expenditure now and dedicate the returns to a planned infrastructure rebuild in the USA rather than face economic and cultural annihilation in the near future."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x567952

Planned infrastructure rebuild for the resource-constrained 21st Century and beyond would direct true Keynesian stimulus spending towards new jobs in (both old &) new industries which would over the mid- to long-term become highly productive because addressing society's most vital upcoming needs: education, energy, food, transport, shelter, health & retirement security, peace. ...

In marked contrast to the current very dangerous course of financial finessing, flim-flam and fundamental fraud which can only, as far as I can see, lead to disaster.

[Roland99]

58. I don't tend to believe that the Federal gov't can directly help job growth BUT....

in times like deep economic downturns, it's all but required. And, yeah, take 10% off the military and throw it to fixing our roads, bridges, tunnels, better timing of traffic lights in urban areas, etc. would put nearly $100 billion directly into the economy.

It's better for money to flow from the bottom-up than to trickle-down. Trickle-down has been proven after 30 years to be an EPIC FAIL.

[Po_d Mainiac]

80. consider it kicked

[Demeter]

10. Ozy, I Never Saw Economics Before College

Had a really good teacher there, and retained a lot of the basics.

But even the basics won't cover new-fangled derivatives, ARMs, etc. There's been too much fraud innovation since Adam Smith and Robert Samuelson.

What freaked me out yesterday was realizing that a board member only months younger than I was so totally ignorant about banks in general.

And Michigan is so red it bleeds. House, senate, governor, Sec of State, Atty General, Supreme Court....there will be hell in heaven.

I expect a lot of the teabaggers will do a Palin when the going gets rough. One has to find hope somewhere.

And if a Democrat had to be spared, why did it have to be Hairy Reed?

[tclambert]

12. But D! Rick Snyder says he wants to re-invent our state.

He wants to cut taxes and regulations for businesses. Pretty soon, corporations in Michigan will be able to legally sacrifice infants to the god Mammon. How can businesses in other states compete with that?

[Demeter]

13. The only thing left in this state is some magnificent shoreline and forest

and fertile flatlands. Ill wager he's gonna sell it all off to our new lords and masters. I'm growing a forelock, to tug. Not sure if women can, but these days it couldn't hurt....much.

[tclambert]

15. You know, California has long lusted for our water.

In the past, we have resisted their offers to build a pipeline from the Great Lakes to the arid West. Maybe Snyder will sell them Lake Michigan.

What could go wrong with that? (See Aral Sea: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aral_Sea. It only took 20 years to wreck a whole sea!)

[Demeter]

32. We STILL Have an InternationalTreaty to Protect the Water

Until President Palin fixes that. I think the West will go under long before then, though. At least, that is my hope.

[Ghost Dog]

43. Looks like it wouldn't take long to drain significantly:

Average depth 279 ft (85 m)
Max. depth 923 ft (281 m)<1>
Water volume 1,180 cu mi (4,900 km3)
Residence time 99 years

You'd want to set a very high price, including a huge down-payment and annual royalties, increasing over time on an inflation-adjusted sliding scale... And budget for vast environmental-damage lawsuits over the long term.

[Demeter]

73. The Great Lakes Are Only a Reservoir for annual snow and rain

NOT spring-fed lakes. They have no capacity to be "diverted" anywhere.

[DemReadingDU]

19. All red in Ohio

And these Buckeyes believe Republicans are going to create jobs? Republicans are for tax cuts for the wealthy and move jobs offshore. The economy is not going to get better with Republicans.

[Dr.Phool]

21. You're lucky. We got Rick Scott!

He says our already exorbitant insurance, extortion rates are too low.

More foreclosures coming from Florida.

[tclambert]

9. To StarburstClock and Spotbird, a little more on yesterday's discussion.

I apologize for my frivolous responses. (No, not really. I love frivolity.)

But with regard to the red print, StarburstClock, I have always disagreed with the last sentence. It is not illegal to give recommendations, nor is it unethical. If you give opinions, you implicitly give advice and recommendations. I have always felt the red print was Ozymandius worrying about civil liabilities if someone gives bad advice and someone else loses money on it. I translate the red print as "Please don't anybody sue anybody over what you read here."

However, Ozy "owns" this thread, and I try to respect his wishes by not violating them too blatantly. I occasionally walk the line when giving opinions or talking about my own investment experiences (successes and failures), getting close to recommendations, but I try to weasel word them a little, and soften them with humor (like when I suggested investing in fraud . . . or politicians (perhaps I repeat myself)).

And, Spotbird, I never really tried to answer your original question, which wasn't asking us for advice, but asking who you should ask for advice. The honest answer to that one is, I don't completely trust anyone (not even Demeter or TheWatcher). I sometimes read articles on The Motley Fool website. And my brokerage account gives me access to reports from Standard & Poor's, Reuters Research, and Second Opinion Weekly. I find I frequently disagree with all of them. I guess that makes me a contrarian, kinda like Warren Buffett. Some people watch Warren Buffett's moves and try to follow him. But I find I disagree with him, too. One of his recent investments I think was a definite mistake, one he made because his status as a mult-billionaire limits his choices. If he were a multi-thousandaire like me, he would have the freedom to invest in smaller cap stocks. But when you're looking at how to invest $50 billion, it could get wearisome looking at companies worth just a few hundred million. (It must be such a problem for him.)

There now, I danced a polka around the red print, and if Spotbird managed to take any advice from that last paragraph, then she clearly misinterpreted me.

[Dr.Phool]

22. I'd invest in a good mattress if I had any money to put in it.

But, then again, a lousy mattress would do the same thing, wouldn't it?

[Demeter]

37. You Sleep Better on a Good Mattress

and for a while it has a lot more resale value.

[spotbird]

30. Exactly,

But must be that my request wasn't clear, because it wasn't intended to be for specific advice. Perhaps if I'd used the words references, or sites, or sources for information, it wouldn't have upset the other member so.

There isn't anyone who I could trust completely either, I want to weigh the views of those with similar outlooks, that's all. I'll respond more completely in a while, I've got to take care of some stuff now.

[Ghost Dog]

44. I've started looking more closely at small-caps.

You need to drill down and become well-informed about particular segments of the market - in consumer software, for example, or intelligent grid applications, rare earth mines or whatever.

Micro-oriented, you're still going to get buffeted within the macro-picture.

[StarburstClock]

52. There are some advantages to that

Smaller public companies are less susceptible to manipulation as it'd be blatantly obvious on their charts if they were manipulated and private companies don't have to answer to speculator/investors every quarter. The disadvantage is smaller public stock prices can swing wildly and private companies usually require a boatload of money to "invest" in. A key decision maker for me has always been finding companies that have a conscience, that don't wantonly rip people off, hire mercenaries, cook their books, invent clever new ways to kill people, poison millions or destroy entire ecosystems. That's actually very hard to do.

[rfranklin]

11. Nobel Economist says we must prosecute banksters...

As economists such as William Black and James Galbraith have repeatedly said, we cannot solve the economic crisis unless we throw the criminals who committed fraud in jail.


And Nobel prize winning economist George Akerlof has demonstrated that failure to punish white collar criminals - and instead bailing them out- creates incentives for more economic crimes and further destruction of the economy in the future. See this, this and this.

Nobel prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz just agreed. As Stiglitz told Yahoo's Daily Finance on October 20th:



This is a really important point to understand from the point of view of our society. The legal system is supposed to be the codification of our norms and beliefs, things that we need to make our system work. If the legal system is seen as exploitative, then confidence in our whole system starts eroding. And that's really the problem that's going on.

***

As economists such as William Black and James Galbraith have repeatedly said, we cannot solve the economic crisis unless we throw the criminals who committed fraud in jail.


And Nobel prize winning economist George Akerlof has demonstrated that failure to punish white collar criminals - and instead bailing them out- creates incentives for more economic crimes and further destruction of the economy in the future. See this, this and this.

Nobel prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz just agreed. As Stiglitz told Yahoo's Daily Finance on October 20th:



This is a really important point to understand from the point of view of our society. The legal system is supposed to be the codification of our norms and beliefs, things that we need to make our system work. If the legal system is seen as exploitative, then confidence in our whole system starts eroding. And that's really the problem that's going on.

***

http://www.washingtonsblog.com/

[tclambert]

14. But in a lot of these cases, it was corporations that committed fraud.

"No body to incarcerate, and no soul to save." The corporate executives who made the actual decisions? Oh, no, they are shielded by the whole concept of corporations, which is to avoid liability, accountability, and responsibility.

Seriously, prosecutors often have great difficulties penetrating the "corporate veil" to find out who made the criminal decisions and how. That "veil" is made of corporate lawyers, who will use every ounce of their ingenuity to hide and obscure the facts of the case.

[Loge23]

16. But they are "persons" for campaign donations!

Are you all getting the feeling that we are hopelessly screwed?

[Demeter]

34. Then the Corporation Must Die

Lehman died, Wachovia died, Countrywide died, Enron died.

The Corporation must die.

[snot]

38. and the guilty Sr. management move to another corp.

[Demeter]

39. Maybe, maybe not.

[Hawkowl]

45. The one area which Obama may do something

Now that Congress is completely paralyzed, the Justice Department may be the only avenue Obama has to effect any type of progress on the economy. Prosecuting the banksters for fraud and breaking up monopolies (like Teddy Roosevelt) and vigorously enforcing consumer protections of all types could help right the economy. It would also paint Obama as a friend of the people. I'm not holding my breath.

[Tansy_Gold]

46. I'm glad I read through to your last sentence.

Of course, he could have done this beginning on 1/21/09 if he'd really wanted to. . . .

Tansy Gold, who should be getting less angry as time goes on but only seems to be getting more so

[Roland99]

23. Oh happy daaaayyyy....

S&P 500 1,206.60 9.30 0.78%
DOW 11,256 79.00 0.71%
NASDAQ 2,182 18.00 0.83%
Euro /$1US 1.4256 +0.0119
$1US / Yen 80.6300 -0.5100
Pound / $1US 1.6267 +0.0162
Aud / $1US 1.0139 +0.0081
10yr T-note 2.52 -0.06
2yr T-note 0.32 -0.02

[DemReadingDU]

27. +122

to the moon!

[Roland99]

28. Jobless claims up, dollar tanking. But, exports will go up so global conglomos stock prices go up!!!

wheeeeeeeeeee!



this is a good thing.


Perhaps someone can just wish me into a cornfield, though?

[hamerfan]

35. +185

To infinity and beyond!

[Roland99]

47. +200

[Roland99]

56. +214. Highest level since Sept. 2008 (pre-Lehman)

[fasttense]

26. Our uber wealthy oligarchy were mildly amused yesterday. n/t

[tclambert]

42. Looks like their amusement continues today.

"Jeeves, it's feeling a tad chilly. Do throw another 457,000 poor people on the fire."

[florida08]

36. Bernanke's version of Burning down the House

David Rosenberg On QEII, The Long-Bond Collapse, And The Next Leg Of The Dollar Breakdown
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/david-rosenberg-on-qe2-2010-11#ixzz14KYh1dSJ

Food Sellers Grit Teeth Raise Prices
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704506404575592313664715360.html

[Dr.Phool]

48. Better version.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNnAvTTaJjM

[florida08]

53. I so like that song

[StarburstClock]

49. Every single stock in my portfolio is up today

Looks like I make all the right decisions, or else stocks are so manipulated that when 1 goes up they all go up and vice-versa. Could it be that corruption is at play here? Nahhhhh, it couldn't be, everyone is as honest as Abe Lincoln. No conspiracies, no manipulation, just good ole honest capitalism. There doesn't need to be any regulation, these people are so good at what they do that if we tried to regulate them, there would be chaos!

What a life, Bristol Palin is still on Dancing With The Stars, all the good people that are supposed to make it in life do and, our pure and clean markets just keep going up. Now, with the GOP house, we can totally ditch the heretic science that rules from the netherworld too! I can't wait to start burning books, banning the internet, setting up more torture camps, closing the borders and counting more of my money.

[TalkingDog]

51. I like the cut of your jib.

You'll do well here.

Give us about 10 more days and let us know how that portfolio is doing. I like keeping track of successful investors. I might learn a thing or two along the way.

Welcome to DU

[Roland99]

55. Wonder why the Fed waited until after Election Day to announce the $600 billion party?

[DemReadingDU]

66. so when it collapses

the people will tell the Repubs that they should have voted Dem

[TalkingDog]

50. Tomorrow's SMW cartoon: Today!

[Dr.Phool]

54. That picture is a fake.

Everybody knows Santa Ben drives a helo.

[florida08]

61. hell he broke that thing last year

[Po_d Mainiac]

71. AP mechanics can keep anything airborne...for a price

[florida08]

75. Love the graphic

True on earth. But we're in a wormhole heading for a black one. Event Horizon

[Po_d Mainiac]

70. +100

:rofl: :spray :rofl:

[Roland99]

57. 3:44pm - People Get Ready. There's a (bull) Train a Comin'

Dow 11,430 +215 +1.92%
Nasdaq 2,574 +33 +1.32%
S&P 500 1,220 +22 +1.82%
GlobalDow 2,084 +47 +2.30%
Gold 1,385 +47 +3.52%
Oil 86.66 +1.97 +2.33%


(glad I filled up last night...not that it will matter much in 2 weeks)

[TheWatcher]

60. Indeed there is.

As I said in a post last week, (or maybe the week before, it all runs together these days) there have been projections as high as 16,000 on The Dow if Quantitative Easing 2.0 goes fully as planned.

However, what this will do is doom the dollar, destroy personal purchasing power, and be very inflationary. Already today, all of a sudden you are seeing Loving, Trendy, Helpful, Chirping Headlines of "Oh, we have just got to get used to rising Food and Energy Prices, it's the new normal, and we should embrace the new prosperity that our Lords and Masters have created for us."

I find it hilarious that none of the "Better Informed Minds" have slung any mud from under the bridge today, with the Market up so absurdly.

Maybe some of them have actually bothered to LOOK at a Chart of The Dollar, and are somehow figuring out the game.

I seriously doubt it though.

Dollar devaluation is a conspiracy, does not exist, and is right up there with Big Foot and The Lochness Monster, and anyone who speaks of it hates Obama, needs to be on Meds, is a terrorist harboring a closet full of Printer Cartridges, and should be immediately deported and stripped of citizenship.

I hope the Recovery bullies will remember yesterday and today, because it marked the beginning of the end of the current Bubble.

Yes, you might get to have a rising Market for awhile, and you can watch everyday with glee as your Electronic Poker Chips light up the scoreboard with promises of Fiat Utopian Nirvana

Enjoy the party, rubes. get out there and do some foaming-at-the mouth speculation in the World's Largest Casino while you can. Put everything you've got into it, and continue to giggle and snicker, bully, and chastise others while your shiny fiat is quietly devalued and destroyed by TPTB who are laughing their asses off at your infinite gullibility to be mindless Borg, and do as you're told.

Keep believing that the market is going up because of confidence in the fed and the economy, and not because The Market Is Appreciating Assets According To Float Of Dollars. (Inflation Of Asset Values.)

On Edit: As well as artificial manipulation from HFT Alog-Robo's and the usual suspects. (Hey, have to sneak in that kooky meme stuff, otherwise the True Believers might actually LISTEN for once, and that would break my fucking heart) :sarcasm:



Keep ignoring the rising Unemployment, inflation in Food and Energy, Falling Wages, loss of purchasing power, and all the other signs of rot and erosion that become more and more obvious every day.

Keep preaching that hyperinflation is a good thing.

You've got about 24 months at the most before the Train Comes off the Track Again, and a hallelujah Chorus of "No One Could Have Foreseen....."

But NO COMPLAINTS when it happens.

This is what you wanted, asked for, demanded and rolled over and licked boots for.

After all, you're the smartest rubes in the room.

Congratulations America.

You Got Exactly What You Asked For.

[Po_d Mainiac]

68. I was sitting through a chemo session this morning

with a laptop watching the inverse chart reactions of commodities and the DX.

Needless to say I was drawing mental comparisons to the two cancers, and the toxic treatments thereof..:rofl:

The sad part is, although my disease is chronic (but very controllable) the same will not be said about our economy once QE part deux starts dripping. I also have virtually no adverse reaction to what the treatment center staff euphemistically refer to as 'medication' (while I remind them it is poison). The same cannot be said about the future purchasing power of the U$D.

So Watcher, how does your math compare with mine?

Dow 16000 = S&P 1700 = $4.50/gal gasoline = $5/gal diesel = $8.20/gal milk = $3/lb cukes = $1800/oz Au = $36/oz Ag

:popcorn:

[TheWatcher]

74. Your Math seems just about right to me, my dear Maniac.

It's hard to believe Milk could get that high, but who knows what may happen in the United States Of Weimar.

I think Gold sees $2500 and Silver may get to the magic number of $50 before it's all said and done, but again, being in uncharted territory, who knows?

Maybe the "Better Informed Minds" can talk us down with a Bailout Milkshake and some Happy Talk.

On a side note, my Best Wishes to you in your ongoing treatment, my friend.

We need people like you to remain with us.

:hug:

[Po_d Mainiac]

78. Thanks!....Here are some interesting silver numbers

snip

Due to the fact that silver’s industrial applications result in destroying the stuff, there is currently a total of only 1,234,590,000 “investable” ounces of silver in above ground supplies. At $21 per ounce, the total value of above ground silver comes to only about $26 billion.

By contrast, because pretty much every ounce of gold ever mined still exists, there are a total of 4,585,620,000 “investable” ounces of gold in above ground stocks. At $1,330 per ounce, that comes to $6 trillion worth.

Thus, the silver/gold ratio is currently about 63:1, yet the total value of all the investable gold on the planet is about 235 times that of silver.

For the record, the ratio of silver to gold in the earth’s crust is 17:1. That’s in the ballpark of the 15:1 average silver/gold price ratio that has held sway over the centuries.

Kicking off his presentation at our recent Gold & Resource Summit, Bob Quartermain, the powerhouse behind Silver Standard (SSO), stated that if the audience took nothing else away from his talk, it should be that the demand for silver well exceeds new mine supply, and has for some time.

For instance, in 2009 total silver demand topped 889 million ounces, outstripping new mine supplies of 710 million ounces. The difference was made up by scrap recycling.

more at link
http://www.caseyresearch.com/editorial/3812?ppref=ZHB192ED1110A

If the historical 15:1 is restored, if Au stays put Ag would hit $90...the best thing about Ag is you can kinda get it for nothing, if you know what you're doing

[florida08]

76. Po..didn't know that

You're responding to treatment I take it?

[Po_d Mainiac]

77. Yup...

Very slow metastasizing lymphoma. I'll likely drown fishing a frozen river or whack my other foot with a chain saw and bleed out, before the cancer gets me. :evilgrin:

I do a nice waltz with the IV tree when taking a trip to the head

[Tansy_Gold]

79. .

:hug:

[Po_d Mainiac]

82. geez, I feel worse after a dozen long necks than after chemo.

Mdme Gold..Since you're here...I entertained some of the other chemical junkies by buildin a few of your flies at the puzzle table. There the day was far from a total loss!!...Although you did almost end up with a new design "tube fly" as in IV tube fly..oops!
It didn't quit look like these

[Tansy_Gold]

83. How Cool Is That?!

Now since you've posted pix you have to tell us what they're made of!


(If you need some, I can send a handful or 20 of long black dog hair. . . . . )





TG, who really has frittered today away and needs to get to work. . .

[Po_d Mainiac]

84. had a bag of black horse mane and tail hair dropped off at one of

the clinics I did at the Farmers Market...I'm good, on long black hair.

I do the clinics Au Gratis for kids, so the vendors heap bags of poultry, duck and goose plumage upon my table as "pay"

Usually find a couple dozen eggs and a block of cheese or ham on the truck seat at the end of the morning. <grin>

If you can post up the image in your email...go for it. They are my doing.....the image up top of the tube flies, ain't my work.

[Tansy_Gold]

85. flies

[DemReadingDU]

86. Nice barter! Fresh eggs are awesome.

My mom always did well with chemo for her lymphoma. That's how we got her to use a computer. Otherwise, she was calling everyone and spending hours on the phone telling everyone the same details. With email, she could send out one note to everyone on her list.
Take care, enjoy reading your postings.

[Po_d Mainiac]

87. That ain't barter

The 1,280 cubic feet of stove-wood that morphs into crates of frozen Black Angus and pork/ham/bacon for the freezer, that's barter!