Fair and Balanced

Of course we need to raise taxes. We need to stop giving rich people tax breaks and make them share the wealth. This is the only reasonable thing to do. America was a great country when we shared the wealth with strong progressive taxes.

That said, it won't change the fact that we are at Peak Oil and that falling EROI is here as well.

Another way to explain it : we need to raise taxes to share the pie, but the pie is getting smaller each year because we won't have enough cheap oil to keep baking it.

and Pining 4 the Fjords leaping past Be Prepared with an outstanding post currently at 67 hat tips, SRSrocco next in sight.

Does Pining 4 the Fjords have it in him for another 60 bagger. . .does SRSrocco have some tricks up his sleeve....

Btw - producing at home is fantastic, to grow something with your bare hands, spend time with family, to make and produce something yourself, to not have to "earn" $1, but only be able to spend $0.65 of it. It's an amazing feeling. Good for the sole, good for family, good for environment, good for your health.

edit: pulling up the rear of leaders are I Run Bartertown and Green Lantern by a hair . . .

Just thinking out loud here; but it occurs to me that all of these TBTF banks have all kinds of skeletons in their closet and when the need for more QE comes out they just pull one out to crash the market down.

As many have pointed out, QE is not about the economy or pumping the stock market but about funding the small, protective, here to help government we have, and they can't get the funding AND keep interest rates down with out Benny running the ink jets.  If the economy improves or the stock market rises well that's just icing on the cake.

Waiting for the economy to roll over and/or Europe to implode is going to take too long, so roll out a catalyst to crash the market and give the FED cover to roll out QE infinity.  JPM will have unlimited back stopping by the FED should they need it. 

June announcement for QE just got real.

we are screwed

Caroline: blah, blah, blah

Me: Shut Up lady, if I wanted to hear an asshole talk, I would have farted.

http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_12/lepard050712.html

"

Dear Mr. Munger:

Recently, you rather arrogantly claimed that civilized people don't buy gold. I am not sure how you define civilized, but the comment struck me as odd since I thought you were a profit maximizing capitalist. You further said that gold does not compare in investment quality to operating businesses. Is this statement just an example of you talking your own book? Or, are you intentionally trying to mislead people? The reason I ask is that I bought gold in 2003 at $320 per ounce. Today it trades at $1,640 per ounce, or 5.1 times my cost basis. This investment has given me a compound annual return of 19.91% over a 9 year time frame. Frankly, I think you would be hard pressed to find another investment which has done so well in this timeframe. Of course, I could have done what you suggested and bought operating businesses. Let's look at how I would have done if I had purchased the DOW, the S&P500 or your stock, Berkshire Hathaway.

Wait a minute. You mean to tell me that over the last nine years the performance of those investors who invested in gold absolutely crushed the returns of stock investors? Yet gold investors are uncivilized? What is up with that? Are you crying foul because you are losing? Sounds like sour grapes to me.

When I saw your comment, two home-spun phrases, that I picked up as a youth in the Midwest, popped into my mind:

• There is no fool like an old fool.
• Better to remain silent and be thought stupid, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

As a wealthy member of our society you can do as you please. But as a Director of a large public company it strikes me that you have an obligation to speak the truth. I have followed you and your partner, Warren, over the years and I know of your antagonism toward sound money and the gold standard. Such a position is not a surprise since your considerable fortunes have been amassed by gaming the fiat money system. Without bailouts of some of your largest portfolio companies Berkshire Hathaway's stock would be worth much less. Or, perhaps, even worthless. Frankly, those of us who have labored honestly in this capitalist system are fed up and disgusted with "crony capitalists" like you and your partner. Sure the system works for you. Let's see how you do in a sound money system. Perhaps that is why you are so hostile to the concept?

Respectfully

Lawrence W. Lepard"

Nothing to see here, move along.  Fed will cover any losses, as many have said/posted.  My .02 - this is bad, as everything else has been bad, for metals.  But I do have a question.  If these dumfucks can't manage their own prop desk, with every possible insider advantage, how in the fuck can they keep silver going down for 10 of the past 11 weeks?   

I just find it interesting that they can flawlessly manipulate metals, for weeks on end, and yet this major screwup once again proves they are imbeciles.  Maybe Jamie will put Blythe in charge of the prop desk?  Or, alternatively, is managing gold and silver just easier than most would think?

Our one hope, IMO, is that they need to start "de-hedging" and hence start covering.  Now THAT would be a rally to behold.   But WTFDIK.

Who knows. Maybe JPM shorted their own stock. Wouldn't surprise me.

Can JPM go the way of MF Global, and if it can then is tonight the end of the world as we know it?

Man this thing is complicated.....

What went wrong, I guess is the question.

All money is debt. #1 - More labour is siphoned off each and every year to give to folk who create no wealth.

Regulations are way too much #2 - Property law and a few more and that ought to be the lot.

Big corporoations (take Monsanato) they care nothing of poisoning folk for profit. This has real costs down the road. Externalities.

The medicated state. They discover a drug and then invent an illness to market it with.

Sense of entitlement for many. Some have forgotten what real hard work is. Everyone wants to be a manager. The real work hunger is gone. Apathy rules - Galt - pining et al. Compare the east and their work ethic.

Education and educated idiots. Spending their lives plugged into bollocks. Mindless brainwashing none product nonesense. Buying shit that serves no purpose.

Too many State/Gov employees. They do not pay tax you see. No - Gov gives more then takes some back. They might as well have given them the right amount to start with.

Scrap min wage.

Reduce the massive ATTACK budget.

Invest in public transport - massive public transport. The amount of WASTE of 30000 trucks and cars going down the same freeway every day every night for hour after hour. 1000's and 1000"s of gallons burnt per hour.

Efficiency - stop borrowing to buy shit you dont need. Stop watching mindless TV. Educate properly. Remove nearly all regulations. Make it easy to hire folk. Or milk your own bloody cow without having and inspector shoot it (and you).

Go back on a Gold standard. Stop immigration unless an individual add a lot to GDP. Stop suing folk for giving you a hot coffee. 

And for Gods sake get that constitution back - indeed put Ron Paul in (yes it will be tough at first).

End the fed. Stop funding education by giving gov student loans. If the students are a good fiscal investment then they ought to be able to convince banks to loan to them. In other words - get government out of the way and give the market a chance. P Schiff style.

Also ----Only half the family worked in 1960. Now twice as many do. Kids no longer get quality time etc. Debt was very very small in 1960 and folk saved and paid for stuff. I for one have only ever borrowed money to buy property. I have never carried a balance over on a credit card. Even though I used to earn good money. I have never owned a new car. 

Oh yes - bring back the rule of law - without that there is no hope.

Crash JPM buy Silver.

Rant over.

Bugzy.

Futures starting to show a little downdraft.  No problem.  The PPT monkeys have been getting a workout lately, but so far, it's just been practice.  Let's see if they can handle some heavy lifting. 

If JPM's prop desk losses have anything to do with PMs, the B-cup Dominatrix  is going to be one hell of a cranky-pants.  Somehow, I have this feeling (hope; dream) that her little promo on CNBS  a month ago plays into this mess.  I'm just not a big fan of coincidence. 

Todays news is out of the blue and hasn't even begun to resonate yet.

He'll be up for promotion to treasury sec. Before Jan 2013.

Metals down. Hulk Smash!

lookout below

this tish is getting real, real quick

somebody has chained cinder blocks to the metals' feet and tossed em in the East River