Police State at the Space Center

Security check at the entrance to space center Houston.  As I'm leading my three year old niece to the entrance. "Do you have any weapons, pepper spray or mace?"

Metal detectors at the tram ride with armed security goons.

Inspirational sales pitch at the Kraft mission control center by some junior space man in shorts.
"And yes it cost a lot of money but that doesn't really exist so I don't count that."
"Why because we just decided to do it."

Even had an inspirational speach set to music from GA bush at the fallen astronaut grove of trees.

The Saturn 5 rocket was awesome but I'll try not to go back.  My understanding is you can go back to the rocket park and see the Saturn 5 without paying or going through any police state hassles aside from telling the gate guard where you're going.

It's painful out there.

Kyle Bass on BBC

Another interview where the interviewer is beaten up by the logical answers to their own condescending questions. Kyle Bass talks about Greece, Europe, Japan, Credit Default Swaps. He come across as credible and sensible in the face of the establishment MSM stooge. MSM is going to have to stop having sensible people on their programs. The obviously credibility gaps between the government and banker shills vs. people like Ron Paul and Kyle Bass is hurting the MSM and their owners, governments, corporations and banks... Enjoy.

Texas Duck Hunt

Shot ten ducks between the three of us at the #5 blind at blockers. Had a great time with Dylan and Beaumont.

Ron Paul Owns Schieffer on Face the Nation

In an obvious hit interview Bob Schieffer, (establishment stooge) gets more than he bargained for and cut the interview short by 10 minutes. Dr. Paul has become more skilled in defending himself, going on the offense and stating his message.  People no longer believe the MSM mouthpieces and as they wake up to the world they're looking for cogent answers.  The MSM silence on Ron Paul's candidacy and message are deafening and judging by Schieffer's beating, they may be even more reluctant to have him on their show.  Give them hell! Here is the link in case the embed isn't working.

The Issue with Liars

They're annoying because they think that they're getting away with it.  In most cases the liar and the person being lied to are complicit because someone has to choose to believe the lie.  When someone lies to us we know something is not right.  Either it is evident at the time or shortly thereafter we realize that everyone just doesn't connect.  We want to believe that people are telling us the truth.

Pamela Meyer from Liespotting.com gives us a few tools based on her analysis of well know liars. http://liespotting.com/2010/08/pamela-meyer-on-the-huffington-post/

There are television liars then there are people in our normal lives and course of business that we work with every day that may be less than truthful.  My concern is for people who's real feelings and intentions don't match their words or intentions particularly when those intentions are malicious but the words are deflecting or comforting.

Gladwell's 2002 article in the New Yorker http://www.gladwell.com/2002/2002_08_05_a_face.htm describes researcher Paul Ekman's studies of the human face and expressions.  We all read faces but we listen to the words first.  This article suggests that the real information comes from the faces.  Believe what you see, not what you hear.  You have to trust your first instinct, not your logical rationalization or thought around the words.

When you're running in the woods for hours at a time your mind wanders but somehow you're able to avoid the roots and rocks and keep your balance.  You're not consciously thinking about placing your feet or keeping yourself upright but your visual input and some place in your mind keeps you moving and safe.  When you catch that hint of movement across the trail somehow deep in your reptile brain a danger flag pops, you get a jolt of adrenaline and manage to jump over or around the snake.  If you pay attention that flag will pop up when people are lying to you.  You just have to watch for it.

Bankers Explained

This is fun and puts the current situation in historical perspective. Enjoy!

New York's Finest

New York City cops are on the banksters payroll so it's no big surprise.  Not looking good out there.

99% Houston Demonstration

Occupy Wall Street protesters were out in a force of about 100, maybe 120 people on Allen Parkway for the Friday commute.  There were five mounted police on horseback side to side to the East presumable blocking the protesters from going downtown.  It looked like a lot of Moms and some kids as well as a younger crowd.  What I didn't understand was if the protesters were marching down Allen Parkway or had specifically picked that spot.  The irony of it all is that 200 yards West is the Houston Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank.

Houston Brand of the Fed,
Source -Wikipediea

Source - World Architecture News

There were no police blocking the protesters to the West and indeed no police in front of the building during the protest.   It's not entirely clear what their message is aside from we're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore. This over-sized, imposing, in your face building is the perfect metaphor.  You aren't allowed in, this place cost a fortune of your money to build so what! Protest this!

US Injects Billions Into Foreign Central Bank

Who got the TARP money?

US Dollar Democracy

This from Doug Casey should not be missed.  Those with the most votes (dollars) make the rules.

Democracy is just mob rule, dressed up in a coat and tie. It is too bad people confuse democracy, which is mob rule, with liberty and freedom. Democracy in most of the world is everybody voting for the person that promises him or her the most stolen goods from other people. Democracy is a political system, and all political systems rest on institutionalized coercion. Whether it is a king, a president, a congress, or a mob of chimpanzees, they dictate having to pay 50% of my income over to them so they can fund wars, welfare programs, the police state, oligarchic corporations, or whatever. That is what democracy is today. Regrettably, the average person has been programmed to think democracy is a high moral good, much as his ancestors were programmed to believe that monarchy was the way. The only kind of democracy that can be supported is the democracy of the free market. Vote with the dollars. Anything that wanted or needed can be gained by production and trade. The democracy we currently know is a fraud and a delusion."




The rest at the Daily Bell

Rogue Trader!

Whenever a big bank or large trading operation loses a large chunk of change we immediately hear about the lone wolf, the young gun caught up in a glamorous trade, biting his nails, considering suicide, waiting for his position to come back.  He's the ROGUE TRADER!  Like dawn of the dead when they find out you're not one of them you're a rogue trader!  Typically this drama plays out as a convenient smoke screen for much larger risk management issues that senior management at the negligent company would rather not come to light.

Why don't we hear about the rogue trader who makes a lot of money abandoning risk management guidelines, skirting compliance issues, management turning a blind eye.  Does this guy ever get fired or outed by his community as a pariah trader?

UBS has fired their CEO and rightly so, over their latest incident with big losses brought about by over-sized positions and risk taking.  This is rare.  Normally the young guy caught in the wrong position,  flapping in the breeze is rolled under the bus and ground up by the media machine and the corporate pr protection gang.  He's thrown to the wolves, fired, degraded, often jailed or barred from their profession for life, tattooed Rogue Trader on the forehead.

Never mentioned in the whole affair is the company's risk management framework, position limits, risk monitoring, mark to market P&L reporting system.  Is this guy reporting his positions in a spreadsheet?  Doesn't the risk manager check in with his broker every day, confirm his trades monitor his position limits and delegation of authority?

If not then the the CEO deserves to get fired.  Typically these traders do well for a time and are rewarded with more and more DOA or daily VAR.  What management of traders often fail to realize is that if a trader breaks his profit target and DOA to the upside there is every chance in the world that they will experience a similar event to the downside.  Typically the downside events are worse in proportion to the gains and managed less effectively because the trader doesn't want to admit the loss and take it.  They ride the loss and even double down thinking that is will get better, that it will come back, that they can hide it for a few days.  They've been successful in the past and an enormous portion of their professional ego is tied up in being right, being successful.  After all how can you be a successful trader if you're not right most of the time?  (quite a few ways actually but that's another post).

Often, these positions are sanctioned by someone higher up because they also don't want to take the loss and have to report it to their bosses.  If the company is managing positions on a spreadsheet, fails to confirm daily trading activity and mark to market  P&L daily, who is responsible for that decision?  What is $10 million dollars spent  on your risk management system when you're daily VAR is $50 million and some dude right out of business school with a spreadsheet, three girlfriends, credit and broker can take you down $2 billion?  It's not that guy's fault.

More Evidence of the Big Lie

Can you believe your own eyes?  How does the woman stand in the entry hole in WTC if it is hot enough to melt steel?

This is a great video logically explaining how things are not as we were told.

Think for Yourself

This article on the daily capitalist features this article from William Edelen, a Christian minister, an intellectual, a thinker, and very definitely an iconoclast. He wrote the following piece right after 9-11 on one of his favorite themes. 

The Torpid, Mindless Mass

By William Edelen
October 7, 2001

The question for today is at the heart of the problem we face as a nation. It is exactly the same question that was requested for my lectures at the University of Alabama Conference Center several years ago. I was asked to explore Carl Jung’s question: “Why are so many millions willing and eager to turn their lives over to outside authorities?”

Why are so many today, without thinking, willing to turn their mind/brain, soul/spirit, over to outside individuals, institutions, authorities and ideologies? Whether it be to Osama bin Laden or whether it be to Christian, Muslim and Jewish authorities of dogma, or whether it be to Republican or Democratic dogma, or whatever the outside authority or institution might be that is telling you what to think, what to believe and how to live your life.  Read More...

The more we depend on outside authorities for direction, the more is our own growth and creative unimplemented arrested. And yet, how many still yearn for an outside religious authority to pat us on the head and tell us we have been good, or to slap our little hands and tell us we have been bad, ensuring that we stay forever emotionally stunted and dwarfed spiritually.

Teal Opener Sept 10th

Had a great morning in Bay City today out in the duck blind.  We had a nice group of hunters and knocked down 16 between 7 of us.  Brought a limit of 4 home and discovered a nice band on one of them.

Plugged the band number into the interior department website and came up with the following.


INFORMATION YOU ENTERED:
 
About your Band/Bird
   Band number: 1045-20057 Kind of Bird: Blue-winged Teal
   How Obtained: Shot
   Status of Band: Removed from Bird
   Status of Bird: Dead
 About Date
 Date of Recovery: 09/10/2011    Hunting Season: current
 About Location
Duck Unlimited Hunting Blind, 3 miles W of Town of Markham,  County is:  Wharton in Texas


Information from Files
Band Number: 1045-20057
 Species: BLUE-WINGED TEAL
 Date banded: 09/04/2008
 Banding Location: 7  E OF KILLDEER, DUNN COUNTY, NORTH DAKOTA, USA
 Age: HATCHED IN 2008
 Sex: FEMALE


That bird had a lot of miles on it.  We have the option to go again in the morning but it's 3:15 am wake up.


Sept. 17th had another great hunt with the guys from Third Coast.  Met at the Bay City Whataburger at 5am then out to the field.  The teal were flying everywhere but were not decoying well.  Most of the buzzed us and flew on but the unlucky ones came in and didn't go out.  


Near the end a group of 40 teal came in and the 6 of us dropped 6 teal and the 3 dogs retrieved them.  Great outing.

Texas Wildfire

Texas is experiencing an historic drought and as a consequence many wildfires have cropped up and are burning out of control.  On our way back from San Antonio on Labor Day weekend we spotted this one near Columbus.  We could see it from a long way away and when we approached it looked to be a few miles from I-10.  There was another fire burning near Highway 6 but it was quite small.   On Wednesday this week we woke up to a thick smokey fog and the car was covered in ash.  We need the rain dance.

Zombies Are Here to Protect You From... Other Zombies???

The warm and fuzzy Napolitano and her warm and caring state security henchmen.  Nope sorry my mistake, that's a salvation army guy not a pornoscanning airport crotch grabber. Sure looks scary though.  Which one would you associate these two with?

This Gal?

or this guy?

Take a close look.

Bank Robbers, Bankers Robbing

You and I are now constantly being ripped off by bankers and their government sponsors.  Bankers have captured the US system of government and have re-directed its resources into their own pockets.  Heads we win tails you lose you middle class host to the parasitic oligarchs.  Check out this from Nassim Taleb and Mark Spitznagel.

The great bank robbery

By Nassim Nicholas Taleb and Mark Spitznagel, Project Syndicate


For the American economy – and for many other developed economies – the elephant in the room is the amount of money paid to bankers over the last five years. In the United States, the sum stands at an astounding $2.2 trillion. Extrapolating over the coming decade, the numbers would approach $5 trillion, an amount vastly larger than what both President Barack Obama’s administration and his Republican opponents seem willing to cut from further government deficits.


That $5 trillion dollars is not money invested in building roads, schools and other long-term projects, but is directly transferred from the American economy to the personal accounts of bank executives and employees. Such transfers represent as cunning a tax on everyone else as one can imagine. It feels quite iniquitous that bankers, having helped cause today’s financial and economic troubles, are the only class that is not suffering from them – and in many cases are actually benefiting.

The Great Dove Hunt 2011

The Great Dove Hunt 2011

We made it out to San Antonio on Labor Day weekend for the great dove hunt 2011 with the boys from the 4J Ranch.  Shot our limit both days and had a great time around the camp.  Can't beat San Antonio, TX in the US for dove hunting.

Preparedness

Couldn't resist this one.


For those of you looking for the Calgary post, my most searched for post, they don't have these in Calgary but if you come to Texas we can get out to the range.

Facts from the MSM - Denied then Reported as Fact

This from the End of the American Dream blog.  These are all stories formerly denied by MSM and dear leaders but now more widely accepted.  Some of these items require changing our personal behavior to protect ourselves and our families.  Some are just to be aware of so we recognize when we're being lied to.  Take a look, think, take action.

#1 Fukushima Uninhabitable

#2 U.S. Military Attack On Libya

#3 Widespread Use Of RFID Chips In Humans

#4 $2000 Gold

#5 Obama Wants To Impose Backdoor Amnesty

#6 U.S. Government Provides Weapons For Mexican Drug Cartels

#7 Fluoride Is Harmful

#8 The Federal Reserve Favors The Big Banks

#9 Cell Phones Linked To Cancer

#10 The Credit Rating Agencies Are Corrupt

#11 Prescription Drugs Kill A Lot Of Americans

#12 Bisphenol-A Is Linked To Infertility

#13 The "Super Congress" Is In The Pocket Of Wall Street Interests

#14 The Targeting Of Christian Groups

Rick Gardasil Perry

Even living in Texas I don't know much about Governor Rick Perry.  My filter for state news disregards most  events but now and then there is an action, legislation or a lobbying effort that catches my ear. One of those items was regarding Rick Perry and his statewide mandate that girls as young as 11 be ordered to receive a three course vaccination at $120 per of the HPV virus vaccine developed by Merck.

My first thoughts of course were to my own 7 year old daughter and all the other daughters in the state. My second thoughts were to the tyrannical nature of the order.  The intrusiveness of this order was even one level deeper than Obama's mandate that all his subjects purchase health insurance because it specified invasive medical procedures and mandated specific drug consumption.  Put aside the danger and untested effectiveness of this vaccine, you're ordering me to inject my daughter with Merck's vaccine?  What is wrong with this picture?

At the federal level the corporate puppets are already mandating strip searches and feel-ups, insurance purchases and any number of other intrusive procedures and demands.  Chances are a presidential decree, sorry executive order, is much harder to dispute than the governor's decree.

Now Rick has apologized and said it was a bad idea (so sorry) but he's established a precedent for bad judgement, corporate influence, centralized planning and royal decrees.  We hear from these presidential candidates, then the MSM filters the real arguments and the public largely picks a presidential candidate based on their tailored pitch and how they look.  Past behavior and actions are much stronger predictors of future behavior.  Do we really want someone like Rick Perry with that kind of power?  Sometimes there are defining events in a politician's career. That was Rick's.

Can't Believe Your Own Eyes?

If you came down from outer space with no pre-conceived ideas what would this look like to you?
 
The problem is if you change your mind it raises a whole new set of questions.



Do you want the Red Pill or the Blue Pill?

This is a good video from the Architects and Engineers for 911 Truth.

TSA Frisks Spiderman

Is Superman next?
Not sure how to take the kids to the airport?

Fukushima Still Happening

This video from the national government broadcaster of Japan is incredibly sad. It describes the damages, uncertainties decisions and deception in the months after the melt-down at Fukushima. Many lives, many ways of life are changed forever and will continue to be affected by the disaster for many years to come.

Near the end a man giving up his lively hood after over 100 years in the race horse business spoke about his feelings. "I am confused at the unfairness of having to give up my assets my land, everything. Not only that, they say I may never be able to return. Why did this have to happen. I want someone to tell me." Not only looking for a new job but a new way of life.

Everything looks fine on the surface but the land is poisoned and you have to leave. Scientists in this video found people living in contaminated zones that were hotter than the Chernobyl exclusion zones.

The media has forgotten about Fukushima. If it had happened in the U.S. it would have been the event of the century. Let's hope it doesn't.

Ron Paul Gun Control Repeal Act

CNS News reports, “H.R. 2613, the Citizens Protection Act of 2011, would repeal the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 and remove all federally created criminal safety zones.”

Mixed feelings on this one. If you were a student or administrator at Columbine or VA Tech during the murderous rampages on those campuses you would like to think you could pull out your Colt .45 1911A1 and put an immediate stop to the maniac plans of those disturbed shooters. There are probably many gun owners out there who feel the same way.

Does anyone believe that a "Gun Free Zone" sign in front of a school keeps their children safe from criminals with homicidal intentions? Does anyone believe that the sign is even a mild deterrent? Do homicidal maniacs stop to read those signs? Do they purchase their guns legally or obtain them illegally? Do laws serve as a deterrent in these situations or serve primarily as a means of revenge or justice after the fact?

No barriers including signs, laws, morals or even common sense can serve as a deterrent to a determined homicidal maniac. Force is the equalizing deterrent of last resort. Which parties should have the right and responsibility to respond with force?

People that think the police are there to protect them probably feel like common citizens shouldn't possess or carry firearms because it might be dangerous. As they say, "When seconds count the Police are only minutes away!" When faced with an immediate threat the police just aren't going to be there. First, it's impossible to be at all places at all times. Second, even when the police arrive on scene they have to assess the threat, organize the resources, plan an approach, in short, unless you have very brave officers who can immediately understand, identify and aggressively mitigate the threat, you are out of luck! Is the default really to surrender and wait for help?

Do barriers to gun ownership limit criminal ownership of guns? Do determined criminals have trouble sourcing a firearm? When facing a determined and armed criminal do we want to wait three minutes for police response?

There is an inherent discomfort with thinking that everyone you encounter could be armed. Let's draw some parallels to another deadly tool that most people in the U.S. over the age of 15 utilize in their daily lives to answer the question do we really want average citizens to carry a gun? Do you really want my 16 year old to drive a car at night on the interstate? Are you comfortable that because he has been certified by the government, after all he has a license, that he will be a safe driver? At what age would he be eligible to become a "safe driver". My 14 year old could be a lot safer driver than your 16 year old! The insurance industry thinks its age 25. There is ambiguity and uncertainty when you think about dangerous tools in the hands of your untrained neighbors. I don't want my neighbor or my neighbor's kid to drive a car or carry a gun. I would just as soon have the highways and the ammo to myself but since I don't want him or the government to decide if I can have those rights I have to be willing accept that everyone else has those rights. Obviously the government can't guarantee safety or limit the criminal access to tools that are capable of producing deadly force.

Government licensing doesn't filter out novices or irresponsible people and criminals will circumvent the process, so what is the benefit of the restrictions and who do you want to make that decision? Certification and deterrents serve as weak security blankets for the victims of criminal theft by tax and authoritarian regulation and control. Remember, the criminals aren't going to pay unless they get caught. You pay all the time in cash and in the loss of rights.

• Police and certification don't protect people or serve as much deterrent to determined criminals
• Your government and your neighbor are not better judges of basic skills and fitness than you are
• Rules and signs don't protect you or your family in life or death situations
• Freedom, rights and responsibilities are uncomfortable but it beats the alternative

There isn't a blanket solution to the danger of homicidal maniacs in schools or other "gun free" zones. If it were my family or yours, I'd rather you be armed than wait for a government committee to respond.

For more information see this post on The New American

Driving vs. Flying - 12 Tips to for the Long Haul

Again we chose to pile into the miniature van drive 1200 miles one way for our family vacation this past week. Both coming and going from Houston to Myrtle Beach, SC we left at 9pm and arrived close to dinner time the next day.

It was so nice to have the car, to be able to come and go as we please without the pressure of getting to the airport early for ritual abuse. On the downside we had several close calls, one large truck tire in the middle of the road, one roof carrier in the road, one constructions zone deceleration challenge, 70mph to 0 mph in a screech and more than one 45mph driver in a 70mph traffic stream. There is literally nobody on the road after midnight in rural Alabama and Mississippi so the real challenge is to take enough breaks, stay awake and keep the speed reasonable. Twenty hours is a long time to drive straight through and there are a few tips for those of you who are considering taking up the challenge.

• Drink a lot of water - a hydrated brain is a sharp brain and you need to stay awake and alert to make it to your destination safely and filling your bladder will remind you to take a break every two hours to stretch your legs and change your visual focus.
• Minimize sugar - sugar makes you high for a few minute but it leads to a crash in your energy level. A smooth steady energy level is what you need to drive safely for a long period of time.
• Coffee - lighten up on the coffee, see "Sugar" above. Caffeine is similar to sugar in the boost that you get but it is a spike and crash boost that you can't afford.
• Don't stop to sit and eat - bring your own sandwiches or run in and run out and remember keep the sugar to a minimum. Driving is like exercise, once you get the moving a short break helps re-focus but a longer break make you want to quit! Keep it to 10 minutes and you won't blow the schedule.
• Engage your co-pilot - if you're like me you don't like to give up control try taking a nap while your spouse drives. Even a few hours of a long trip offline allows you to power through long distances.
• Stop at the rest areas - if you don't need gas most of the rest stops are conveniently set up in a pit stop configuration, drive in, drive out, usually they're clean, well lit and you don't have to get onto the surface roads and fight the traffic lights and locals for road space.
• Keep the gas tank half full - remember, less stress is better. Driving through Kansas on empty at midnight with 10 miles between exits is stressful! Stopping every couple hundred miles to refill the tank is a great excuse for a break.
• Gas stops - most rural gas stations are slow and quite in the middle of the night but be aware of your surroundings and keep your drive team in sight. I've been approached several times for cash at gas stations in the big city and it can be disconcerting. If things look strange, dimly lit or closed then try to find a truck stop. Truck stops are always open and provide consistent quality, semi-clean restrooms, snacks and gas at all hours
• Entertainment - bring along entertainment for the kids, it's a long trip. Ipod Touch, DVD player, etc. keep harmony in the cargo area.
• Don't speed - most of the speed limits are 70 mph on the interstates, 75 is more than enough, and you want to stay safe, save some cash and keep that stress level to a minimum, the blue light special is too stressful.
• Stay alert - look out as far ahead as possible because at highway speeds danger comes up fast and you may not be as awake as you need to be. With slower reaction times you need a bigger time cushion for margin of error.
• Big Cities - plan to pass through before or after peak traffic hours for example if you're trying to get through Washington, DC don't get there between 4 and 7pm.

Two trips for four people and a lap dog saved $4000 so far this year. No airport police state, robocop, radiation pornoscanner, feel your groin, jam yourself in a 12 inch seat abuse and no worse for wear. Feel and be FREE to eat what you please, stand up and stretch, go to the bathroom, turn up the radio, make inappropriate jokes all you want. If you still want to take your shoes off and pull your pants down go ahead! Just remember, driving is more dangerous than flying. Keep your wits about you! Take your time, pay attention, take breaks, get your family there safely, maintain your dignity and save a bundle.

Fukushima

Check out this video from Potrblog on the radioactive rain in St. Louis from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Let's put this together. We've created an energy source that was supposed to be inexpensive in dollars terms. One downside is that the energy source produces toxic waste that lasts for human purposes forever. Another downside is that if the energy source gets into the atmosphere the toxic effects can spread widely. Plutonium toxicity effects the genetic makeup of the victims so future generations as well the current population. Plutonium has a half life of 24,000 years, basically forever.

Nuclear plants as we've seen are complex systems. The space shuttle, a fighter jet, deep water oil wells and nuclear plants are examples of complex systems. Even my xbox is a complicated system but the relative consequences of failure of each one of these systems are at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Think about the consequences of nuclear failure, potential eternal poisoning of the land, generational sickness, basically eternal damnation of some land mass and it's population. Should we reconsider the cost benefit analysis of these complex systems? If the odds of failure are a million-to-one but the consequences are so grave then is it worth the risk? As we've seen, the odds of failure increase as the complexity of the system rises. It is virtually impossible for governments and corporations to measure the current economic benefit of these complex systems in comparison with the potentially catastrophic generational devastation caused by failure.

Controlled Demolition

Walked by the old YMCA in downtown Houston this morning. It's coming down to make room for something big and modern certainly. The 10 story building was dwarfed by the old Enron buildings and the Continental Tower across the street.

As the backhoes and sledge hammers chipped away at the building I couldn't help wonder why they didn't utilize the newest in controlled demolition techniques. Just pour some diesel fuel or kerosene on a big steel I-beam in the middle of the building, light it up and after a day or so it will collapse into it's own footprint in the basement no mess no fuss.

Ridiculous right?

Silver Bull Revisited

The CME pulled the plug on the silver bull raising margin requirements five times in order to slow the great rise in prices. Silver having dropped 20-25% in 5 days looks to have stabilized for the short term though certainly we should expect increased volatility and potential downside in the near future.

Curiously nothing has changed in the fundamental picture. Bernanke will still be printing up money and purchasing treasury debt next year. Deficits and debt are on the rise, the "debt ceiling" will be lifted shortly and the value of everyone's dollar will continue to be diluted. Where to put the hard earned savings so that they can't be stolen and melted into the public till? Better spread it around because it's getting more volatile by the day. When oil drops $10 in a day? Stay safe.

OBL Changed Our Way of Life

Reading Martin Armstrong this Sunday morning in my easy chair. His latest article on how Osama Bin Laden changed America hits a sore spot. It's not so much that OBL changed America as American power changed and was looking for an excuse to enact that change in its totalitarian form on the people as a means of control and profit. OBL was most probably a CIA asset.

Armstrong relates that loss of privacy and freedom today to the events that set off the American Revolution drawing specific parallels and reminding us of our history. He has suffered first hand the loss of many of the personal liberties that he has described, been in the American Gulag and come out the other side.

Armstrong is an economist, a trader/money manager, historian, computer scientist. Read and learn.

Silver Bull

Silver is printing 47.75 and Eagles are offered at $51.05 on Nucleo. I'm not sure how long this move is going to continue. For certain there will be a pullback but every time you hedge or trade against this type of market you're going to be wrong. Silver is up $1.00 per day. Sprott talks about physical shortages. The big four or five short positions must be getting killed adding to the squeeze. Fundamentals and monetary events are in support but at what point does the hot money blink and get out? Seems there is a lot of cash on the sidelines waiting for a pullback. Sure it's anecdotal internet chatter but for certain a lot of traders haven't jumped on the bus yet.

When does gold kick in to high gear? I think that's entirely dependent on how the fed handles QE3. When QE2 ends they will have to keep purchasing treasuries to keep rates from going up. All this stress in the commodity market is pointing to a big dislocating event in which case correlations go out the window. Let me know what you think and good luck!

Real Housewives of Wall Street

The Real Housewives of Wall Street

Why is the Federal Reserve forking over $220 million in bailout money to the wives of two Morgan Stanley bigwigs?

Rolling Stone

Interesting that this story has just died. I'm pretty busy at work and don't watch mainstream media but I haven't heard any of this in casual conversation. This type of off-the-chart fraud and deception against the taxpayers makes you wonder what you're working for. Anyone trying to get by with $4.00 gas prices and 50% food inflation has to begin to wonder why doesn't the fed give some of that money back to the taxpayers.

The scope and breadth of the fraud and criminality is overwhelming. The fact that nobody has been prosecuted underlines the incestuous relationship between government and corporations. Commercial prisons are filled to the brim with petty criminals but print up a few trillion dollars and hand it out to your corporate buddies, hey that's saving the economy.

Considering Posting Again

I haven't posted here in a long time but have started another family blog. This one is like trying to reconnect with an old friend. You might be a little embarrassed that you haven't called in so long but once you connect it's like no time has passed. Fortunately this is a one way street and it's all up to me! I spend so much time reading great blogs but am usually too busy to get too cranked up about it like I used too. My concerns remain largely the same but have grown sharper and more focused over time. A lot has happened in the world since 2008. Each headline event seems to be more outrageous than the next. Each theft more bold. Each loss of liberty more troubling. Each natural disaster more terrible. It's easy to become numb to it and tune it out, stick your head in the sand. The reality of daily life hardly changes. Prices rise, pay does not. Debt is issued, the dollar declines. Mainstream media has lost almost the last shred of credibility. I can't listen to NPR, Fox, CNN, NBC, anything really without a critical ear to the slant and motivation of the propaganda. Mainstream is Pravda. Real news is Russia Today! That has changed. People are waking up slowly. More are getting the general understanding that they are being robbed but without a specific understand of how it is happening. Blame falls on this group or that group. My team will fix it. Haven't we seen enought to know that it's all one team against the people? The implied differences in the last two administrations have just not come to pass. The next one keeps the same agenda only the face changes. Justice is beyond imagination. I'm interested in protecting the family, securing some future, breaking the myth. Help out where you can, join the conversation.