Get Ready for VAT This tax will destroy any money you have left...It is pure theft...


Schwarzenegger: CA Economy Just Like Greece- Sydney Morning Herald


Spanish Protest Austerity Measures- Sydney Morning Herald


The Hunt for a Successor to US Bonds- MarketWatch


IMF Again Warns Rich Nations to Cut Debt- Financial Post


More Homeowners Choose to Default on Loans- MarketWatch


Smaller Non-Profits Could Lose Tax Exemption- USA Today


Bank Failure Tally Grows to 72 for 2010- Wall Street Journal


Fears Intensify that Euro Crisis Could Snowball


Gold to Hit $2,000 by Year's End: Mining Executive


Arizona Bites Back on San Diego Boycott
San Diego gets a taste of its own medicine after Arizonans cancel plans to visit the city in immigration law dispute



Just as an example, let’s shine the light on the goings-on in Illinois…

“The state is in utter crisis,” said Rep. Suzie Bassi (R-Ill.). “We are next to bankruptcy. We have a $13 billion hole in a $28 billion budget.”“The state has been paying bills with unfunded vouchers since October. A fifth of buses have stopped. Libraries, owed $400 million, are closing one day a week. Schools are owed $725 million. Unable to pay teachers, they are preparing mass lay-offs. ‘It’s a catastrophe,’” said the Schools Superintendent.
Again, the dire nature in the U.S. states is far greater than the Eurozone members.


Euro collapse fears spark panic buying of gold


Mess with the big boys and they will kill you...
CFTC whistleblower believes crash was attempted murder


Abandon All Hope, Ye Who Reads This


EU Joins Currency Race to the Bottom
By Adam Sharp Monday, May 17th, 2010
Business is booming for gold dealers in Euroland. Most coin sellers are completely out of gold, and they're starting to run low on silver, too.
The reason?
This month, the European Central Bank (ECB) made a historic decision — stupid and short-sighted, but historic nonetheless...
They decided to join Bernanke's money-printing orgy, gobbling up bonds and cutting interest rates to near zero.
The ECB's initial claims are that its version of QE will be "sterilized" — meaning that for every euro printed, one would be removed from the system.
But that wouldn't be a very effective way to print money, would it?
We'll see if these so-called "sterilization" measures go into effect.
European finance officials justified their actions as a way to both defend the euro from further decline and fend off evil speculators.
If currency markets are any indication, they're failing in that mission so far. Since the plan was announced, the euro has dropped almost 5% against the dollar.
Doubts about the EU's future persist... and may have gotten even worse.
The Motive
The real force behind this QE wasn't a push to defend the euro; that obviously hasn't worked.
It's really just another bank bailout in disguise.
Banks worldwide — especially large European ones, like Deustche Bank — hold lots of debt from dodgier EU nations. As the value of these bonds plunged, the capital ratios of big banks deteriorated.
And as we know, it would be unfair to "punish" anyone for making bad loans. That would be far too laissez-faire for today's bank-welfare system.
Come on in, the Water's Fine
Europeans are right to be concerned about their shared currency. Healthy economies don't need to resort to quantitative easing, sterilized or not.
That's why Germans are flocking to gold and silver.
The ECB has dipped its toe into the QE pond. And once these things get rolling, they are very hard to stop.
Before you know it, the ECB will be splashing around with Bernanke and Geithner in the QE pool — printing up a billion here, a trillion there.
If the ECB doesn't go the true QE route, Southern Europe is destined for some very hard times ahead...
In either case — inflation or economic apocalypse — precious metals will offer protection.
Strengthening the Case for Precious Metals
Thus, the case for gold is getting stronger every day. With the world engaged in a currency race to the bottom, it's one of the few investments that makes sense.
Some are calling for an end to gold's run...
"Gold is a worthless druid metal," they say.
"How much interest does your gold pay?" they ask sarcastically.
Ignore these pundits — they're clueless.
Gold is not close to done yet. If this were a baseball game, I'd say we're in the third inning.
Just look back at the 70s. In 1971, when Nixon closed the gold window, it traded at $35/ounce. By 1974, it had risen to $195/ounce. In 1980, gold hit $850.
This chart best tells the story:
$35 to $850 — that's a 2300% increase in less than 10 years.
Compare that to the current gold bull market, where we're only up around 300%; it gives you some idea of how high gold prices could go.
Yes, the 1970s were a unique time in currency and precious metal markets... but today's events are arguably even more unprecedented.
We've never had interest rates this low for this long. The Fed has never printed so much money before.
Eventually, the time will come to sell gold. But we're not there yet... not even close, in my opinion.

Until next time,
Adam SharpAnalyst, Wealth Daily