Alasdair Macleod: Will governments confiscate gold and silver?

 

Why MIT Is Not Willing To Unleash Real-Time, Dynamic-Purchasing Inventory Control Systems; Or The "Real" Reason For The Culling Of MIT's Billion Prices Project

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/24/2011 14:05 -0400

"We now have real time, lightning fast, pricing information. This will be the greatest thing since the invention of the world wide web. If MIT does the right thing and announces their discovery to the world, they can still make a lot of money and also be responsible for one of the greatest improvements in productivity in history. Imagine what a single graduate student can do. This is why I am always optimistic about mankind's future. However, if MIT continues to lie about why they are no longer making the data available, then this will be used to decrease competition and allow frontrunning by financiers as they alone are able to watch in real time pricing trends for specific industry, or even a specific business located in a small town near you."... And since there are two sides to every story, here is reader Dave Narby following up with an MIT teammember, and getting direct feedback in the aftermath of our post from Friday disclosing the effective culling of the MIT Billion Price Project. The response may stun some people as to why MIT canceled any relevant public disclosure from the Billion Price Project. 

Japan To Censor, Take Down "Irresponsible" Fukushima Information And Reporting

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/24/2011 14:55 -0400

While we have yet to independently verify the following piece of news which originally appeared in the April 18 edition of the Asia Pacific Journal, we can see how this could be very true. If so, it has very disturbing implications about the "real" truth behind the Fukushima devastation, because outright censorship, Cease and Desist notices, and preemptive takedowns are always the purvey of the "last resort" crew. To wit: "The project team has begun to send “letters of request” to such organizations as telephone companies, internet providers, cable television stations, and others, demanding that they “take adequate measures based on the guidelines in response to illegal information. ”The measures include erasing any information from internet sites that the authorities deem harmful to public order and morality." Of course, if this directive had been in place from the very beginning, nobody would know any of the truth behind the dire catastrophe (which started at sub-3 Mile Island severity and is now equal if not worse than Chernobyl), which has seen enough coverup and lies to make Stalin look like Wikileaks. 

Here's the "Gold/Silver Ratio" graph...showing a new low.

Click here to enlarge.

Fleeing the Dollar Flood: The world tries to protect itself from U.S. monetary policy

Members of the International Monetary Fund emerged from their huddle in Washington last weekend resolved to keep every option open to slow the flood of dollars pouring into their countries, including capital controls. That's a dangerous game, given the need for investment to drive economic development. But it's also increasingly typical of the world's reaction to America's mismanagement of the dollar and its eroding financial leadership.

The link to this worthwhile story is here.

Putin: U.S. Monetary Policy Is ‘Hooliganism’

“Look at their trade balance, their debt, and budget. They turn on the printing press and flood the entire dollar zone — in other words, the whole world — with government bonds. There is no way we will act this way anytime soon. We don’t have the luxury of such hooliganism,” Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said.

the link is here.

Ben Bernanke's life gets tougher as America is sent to the debt doghouse

On Monday, the US experienced the economic equivalent of being told to join Alcoholics Anonymous. The ratings agency Standard & Poor's informed Washington that it must get its fiscal house in order within two years or lose its status as a top borrower. It was a public consigning to a debt doghouse that countries, including Britain, Greece and Portugal, were all sent to over the last couple of years and are all now trying to escape.

This is another story from The Telegraph...and the link is here.

Guest Post: Crude Oil & Gasoline Seasonal Tendencies

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/24/2011 16:49 -0400

As we start this new year, a number of events are likely to occur along with the normal changes in the weather. January gasoline is typically the lowest in any year and, despite the common mythology, gasoline consumption does not normally fall steeply after Labor Day and then recover miraculously after Memorial Day. We do see an element of driving disappear after Labor Day, as drivers in the 16 to 25 year-old age bracket tend to drive less, or at least more predictably. Family vacations are also over by that point, as a general rule. But, there are pockets of demand during foliage sighting season and Thanksgiving Weekend is always the best four-day driving period in any year in which July 4th does not fall on a Tuesday or Thursday. There is usually good driving through the month of December into New Year’s Eve, but it traditionally falls off a cliff right after the champagne glasses touch to ring in a new year. People park their cars and drive to work and school and to appointments. But it is not until March or April that more discretionary driving normally returns. Refineries know this and they typically plan maintenance turnarounds from January through April or early May. During this period, there is a definite tendency for gasoline inventories to be drawn down; even though demand starts the year at its lowest levels, the maintenance usually goes on long after demand has started to mount a comeback. 

 

 

 

 

In The News Today

Posted: Apr 24 2011     By: Jim Sinclair      Post Edited: April 24, 2011 at 4:18 pm
Filed under: In The News

 

 

Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

Consider for a moment what things would have looked like if QE did not exist in the US as well as other major Western financial systems. What would this so called recovery look like?
Now think how things will look if the Fed, pressured politically, ceases QE. Then think how fast and big the next program (with a new name for QE) will be to manufacture money before all legislators, Democrats and Republicans, get sent home along with the Administration in 2012.
Be realistic. Before our beloved politicians give up their power forever the master of the financial universe will burn down the dollar barn.
Gold is locked and loaded for $1650 and higher.

Stimulus by Fed Is Disappointing, Economists Say By BINYAMIN APPELBAUM
Published: April 24, 2011
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve’s experimental effort to spur a recovery by purchasing vast quantities of federal debt has pumped up the stock market, reduced the cost of American exports and allowed companies to borrow money at lower interest rates.
But most Americans are not feeling the difference, in part because those benefits have been surprisingly small. The latest estimates from economists, in fact, suggest that the pace of recovery from the global financial crisis has flagged since November, when the Fed started buying $600 billion in Treasury securities to push private dollars into investments that create jobs.
As the Fed’s policy-making board prepares to meet Tuesday and Wednesday — after which the Fed chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, will hold a news conference for the first time to explain its decisions to the public — a broad range of economists say that the disappointing results show the limits of the central bank’s ability to lift the nation from its economic malaise.
“It’s good for stopping the fall, but for actually turning things around and driving the recovery, I just don’t think monetary policy has that power,” said Mark Thoma, a professor of economics at the University of Oregon, referring specifically to the bond-buying program.
Mr. Bernanke and his supporters say that the purchases have improved economic conditions, all but erasing fears of deflation, a pattern of falling prices that can delay purchases and stall growth. Inflation, which is beneficial in moderation, has climbed closer to healthy levels since the Fed started buying bonds.
More…




Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

Gold’s increased value reflects the weakness of debt, not only at the Federal levels but everywhere in the Western world economies. It found its birth amongst the still smug OTC derivative manufacturers and distributors. The flushing of Lehman pulled the cork out of the financial debacle’s bottle. FASB sold their souls when they conspired with Wall Street to hide the damage. QE put the sheeple to sleep. Now it is all coming home.

US Default Could Be Disastrous Choice for Economy Published: Saturday, 23 Apr 2011 | 6:12 PM ET
The United States has never defaulted on its debt and Democrats and Republicans say they don’t want it to happen now. But with partisan acrimony running at fever pitch, and Democrats and Republicans so far apart on how to tame the deficit, the unthinkable is suddenly being pondered.
The government now borrows about 42 cents of every dollar it spends. Imagine that one day soon, the borrowing slams up against the current debt limit ceiling of $14.3 trillion and Congress fails to raise it. The damage would ripple across the entire economy, eventually affecting nearly every American, and rocking global markets in the process.
A default would come if the government actually failed to fulfill a financial obligation, including repaying a loan or interest on that loan.
The government borrows mostly by selling bonds to individuals and governments, with a promise to pay back the amount of the bond in a certain time period and agreeing to pay regular interest on that bond in the meantime.
Among the first directly affected would likely be money-market funds holding government securities, banks that buy bonds directly from the Federal Reserve and resell them to consumers, including pension and mutual funds; and the foreign investor community, which holds nearly half of all Treasury securities.
More…




Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

No, gold is not rising only because the US is broke. It is rising because the debt of the entire Western world is BROKEN.

Is gold rising because America is broke? – Gold Matters By Jijo Jacob | April 24, 2011 5:15 AM EDT
Gold prices shot up to a new record of $1,512.50 an ounce in New York late on Friday, posting a record weekly gain and maintaining a six-week winning streak.
While a lot of gold investors are laughing all the way to bank the world over, gold’s super cycle rally could have ominous meanings for the Us economy.
Analysts have pointed out that gold’s advance into what is termed as a super cycle does not bode well for the US economy.
A sustained gold and oil boom indicates that the dollar is slipping into grave danger and the economy closer to collapse, according to Daily Markets analyst Michael Snyder.
"… when these commodities go up in price it is a sign that the U.S. dollar is dying and that our country is getting closer to economic collapse," Snyder wrote recently.
More…

Richard Russell – The Great Gold Tsunami Lies Ahead

Posted: Apr 24 2011     By: Eric King      Post Edited: April 24, 2011 at 3:58 pm
Filed under: King World News

Dear CIGAs,

With gold and silver continuing on their historic run, the Godfather of newsletter writers Richard Russell had this to say in his latest commentary, “Gold — The desperate battle to keep gold below 1500 continues. I watched the erratic action of gold near yesterday’s close. I’m fascinated to see whether June gold can close above 1500 or whether the anti-gold contingent can manage to knock gold down (again) below 1500.
The action is now so blatant that it literally screams of manipulation. At its high yesterday, June gold sold at 1506.50. At yesterday’s close, June gold was trading at 1498.10. It’s almost embarrassing to watch the action. What we’re seeing is the anti-gold crowd and the manipulators vs. the great primary trend of gold.”
Russell continues:
“I’ve tried to emphasize this, but the key here is PURCHASING POWER. When the dollar price of a loaf of bread rises from $1.90 to $2.10 that means something to the average American. But when the Dollar Index drops from 75 to 73.97 the average American doesn’t understand it and isn’t the least bit interested.
Why the battle to keep gold below 1500? Markets tend to stop at big even numbers. Many of us old timers remember the battle of "Dow one thousand." We remember how the Dow fought month after month to close decisively above 1,000. Then, once above 1,000 the Dow was on its way to 2,000, 3,000, 4,000 and finally 5,000. From there the Dow battled to move above 5,000 — on its way to 10,000.
The battle about gold closing above 1500 is that once above 1500, technically gold will be on its way to 2,000. And from there 5,000 will be the target. So 1500 is a psychological barrier that, from the bull’s standpoint, must be bettered. But from the anti-gold crowd’s standpoint, gold must be held (on a closing basis) below 1500.
The answer: As I see it, the primary trend of gold remains bullish. In due time, gold will gather the strength to close above 1500. The gold-bears will be defeated. It’s only a matter of time.
The Coming Gold Tsunami — We’re moving nearer and nearer to the edge of the hurricane. I can feel it in my bones. Every newspaper now carries an ad for gold.
Is there a gold bubble? Are you kidding me? Here’s an ad that somebody paid for suggesting that people should turn in their gold (!!) for Federal Reserve Notes. They’re not telling you to buy gold during one of the greatest bull markets in history — hardly, they’re asking you to throw parties in which the object is to get ignorant people to SELL their gold.
I can feel them caressing my face — the early breezes. They are blowing gently and hinting of the forthcoming gold hurricane that will sweep across the US and the planet with all the force and power that was seen when gold was first discovered at Sutter’s Creek during the California gold rush of 1849. The gold rush of the 2000s is in the wings. The old phrase is ringing in my ears again (I haven’t heard it since the late ’70s), "There’s no fever like gold fever."
More…