Stratfor Email Leak Reveals Insider Views On Obama, Emanuel & Romney

Earlier today, Wikileaks made its latest startling release on Twitter, telling the media world to standby for a 'major announcement'. Alas, in keeping with the recent tradition from Wikileaks, the "release" was a dud and is merely the collected dump of all the emails previously hacked from Stratfor by Anonymous, as was noted here previously. Alas a quick perusal through the emails so far reveals absolutely nothing exciting, except for the communiques of a paid intelligence provider, which may at times have had a few delusions of grandure and a mistaken and rather overblown sense of self-importance (hardly unique). Yet one exchange that is rather interesting is the following email thread from 2009 which goes from discussing how the billionaires behind ACORN have lost all respect for Obama and Biden ("The billionaire (who also funds ACORN) is greatly disappointed over Obama's "weakness and wimpyness" towards China... She believes Biden is weasel and Obama is a pussy... The liberal factions in DC think Obama is being a pussy."), views on Rahm Emanuel ("I don't disagree that Biden is a weasel. I think Emanuel is emasculating Obama by selling him on clever Clintonesque tactics"), views on how Obama may get back into the thick of things: ("Obama needs to get in a fight and do something really mean and unfair to the right."), on Obama and the banks: ("he could also tell the banks to go screw themselves.") and from there going to analyzing the GOP field: ("The GOP folks I talk to are pushing Jeb Bush. I think that is a mistake. Who else is out there?") and culminating with the GOP frontrunning Mitt Romney - "Romney can't make it. Mormons are viewed as Voo Doo." Much more in the full email thread inside.

Leaked Email Shows Stratfor CEO George Friedman Resigned Two Hours Ago Over Latest Breach

It is only somewhat appropriate that the announcement of the resignation of Stratfor's CEO would come in the form of a leaked email that once again was intercepted by Anonymous.

Guest Post: Extend And Pretend Coming To An End

The real world revolves around cash flow. Families across the land understand this basic concept. Cash flows in from wages, investments and these days from the government. Cash flows out for food, gasoline, utilities, cable, cell phones, real estate taxes, income taxes, payroll taxes, clothing, mortgage payments, car payments, insurance payments, medical bills, auto repairs, home repairs, appliances, electronic gadgets, education, alcohol (necessary in this economy) and a countless other everyday expenses. If the outflow exceeds the inflow a family may be able to fund the deficit with credit cards for awhile, but ultimately running a cash flow deficit will result in debt default and loss of your home and assets. Ask the millions of Americans that have experienced this exact outcome since 2008 if you believe this is only a theoretical exercise. The Federal government, Federal Reserve, Wall Street banks, regulatory agencies and commercial real estate debtors have colluded since 2008 to pretend cash flow doesn’t matter. Their plan has been to “extend and pretend”, praying for an economic recovery that would save them from their greedy and foolish risk taking during the 2003 – 2007 Caligula-like debauchery.
Debt default means huge losses for the Wall Street criminal banks. Of course the banksters will just demand another taxpayer bailout from the puppet politicians. This repeat scenario gives new meaning to the term shop until you drop. Extending and pretending can work for awhile as accounting obfuscation, rolling over bad debts, and praying for a revival of the glory days can put off the day of reckoning for a couple years. Ultimately it comes down to cash flow, whether you’re a household, retailer, developer, bank or government. America is running on empty and extending and pretending is coming to an end.

 

Warren Buffett Buys US Precious Metals Business from Cookson Group

 

 

 

John Bolton Dodges Question; Insults Anti-War Veteran

 

Grant Williams On The Simplicity Of Owning Gold

As we enter a week in which the expectations are high for yet another large expansion of central bank balance sheets, and ever more extreme monetary policy (thanks to the LTRO 2), we thought it appropos to listen to Grant Williams, of the famous "Things That Make You Go Hhhhm" newsletter, explain in its simplest terms, why it is still a good time to own gold. In two excellent and succinct presentations, Williams discusses the 'simplicity' of investing through the last four decades but ends by focusing specifically on the rotation to Gold at the start of the last decade (2000) and why the reason for rotating out of the precious metal has not occurred yet. Seeing the world of Gold as a battle between Too Much and Not Enough (and drawing on global supply, demand, and holdings flow) Williams lays out the reasons for owning gold, and how to know when to cover - as he narrows the five reasons to reconsider Buffett-and-Roubini's Barbarous Relic down to one simple rule - Central Bank Monetary Policy Changes.

In The News Today

February 26, 2012, at 12:37 pm
by Jim Sinclair 

Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

Arab Spring is still being moped as a victory for democracy?

Egypt lawyers demand jail for U.S. democracy activists By Marwa Awad
CAIRO | Sun Feb 26, 2012 11:59am GMT
(Reuters) – The trial of dozens of democracy activists including 16 Americans began on Sunday in a politically charged case which is threatening ties between Cairo and Washington and $1.3 billion (818.7 million pound) in annual U.S. military aid.
Forty-three foreign and Egyptian non-profit workers – including the son of the U.S. transportation secretary – are accused of receiving illegal funds from abroad and carrying out political activities unrelated to their civil society work.
In a crowded courtroom on the outskirts of Cairo, lawyers who said they were volunteering in the case against the activists, demanded the defendants be imprisoned and accused them of "espionage."
"These organisations are accused of espionage and going against the law. Most of them are in contact with the CIA. These organisations gathered information and reports on Egypt and sent them to the U.S. State Department," Khaled Suleiman, a lawyer acting against the organisations, said.
Those accused in the case were banned from leaving Egypt pending the trial and some of the U.S. citizens targeted in the probe have taken refuge at the American embassy.
More…





Jim Sinclair’s Commentary

This is a useless closing of the gate after the horse has already left a quadrillion times.

However, as awful as they are , it does note the risk of swaps but does not list swaps on debt specifically.

Regulators Adopt New Derivatives Rules
By BEN PROTESS
The big banks and traders that dominate the $600 trillion derivatives industry will face new oversight under a plan approved by regulators on Thursday.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission voted 3 to 2 on Thursday to adopt new rules for the biggest players in the derivatives world.
The final rules, originally proposed in late 2010, spell out numerous requirements to bolster internal business standards. Firms must, for example, manage the risks posed by derivatives trading, prevent conflicts of interest and empower a chief compliance officer to prepare an annual report detailing a firm’s internal controls.
“It will lower the risk that swap dealers pose to the rest of the economy,” Gary Gensler, the agency’s chairman, said at a meeting in Washington on Thursday.
The rules apply to swap dealers – big banks, brokerages and large energy-trading firms that create derivatives contracts. The agency’s plan also affects hedge funds and other traders that have large positions in swaps, the derivative contracts tied to the value of commodities, interest rates and mortgage securities.
More…

 

 

Jim’s Mailbox

February 26, 2012, at 12:37 pm
by Jim Sinclair in the category Jim's Mailbox |  Print This Post |  Email This Post

Jim,

I thought this story falls in line with your earlier comments concerning China and other emerging economies contributing to QE to infinity.
CIGA BJS

First IMF reform, then help to EU, Brazil says
Brazil’s finance minister says emerging economies will increase assistance to crisis-hit Europe in return for more power in the IMF and a stronger “firewall” by eurozone economies.
"The emerging markets will only help once two conditions are met,” Guido Mantega insisted after meeting with his counterparts from the BRICS, which gathers Brazil, Russia, China, India, and South Africa, on Saturday on the sidelines of the G20 meeting.
“Firstly that they reinforce the firewall, which means doing more than what they’re doing with the European fund of stability… and on top of that, that they carry out the reform of the International Monetary Fund," he stated.
More…




Dear Jim,

"QE to infinity" as you have long maintained.
CIGA Ro

G20 moves to line up huge rescue deal for April Sun, Feb 26 21:41 PM IST
By Dave Graham and Tetsushi Kajimoto
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The world’s leading economies worked on Sunday to line up a deal in April on a second global rescue package worth nearly $2 trillion to stop the euro-zone sovereign debt crisis from spreading and putting at risk the tentative recovery.
Germany said it would make a decision some time in March on strengthening Europe’s bailout fund, a move other Group of 20 countries say is essential to clear the way for throwing extra funds into the International Monetary Fund.
The twin proposals would build up massive international resources by the end of April – when the G20 group next meets – and convince financial markets they can stem the euro-zone’s deep problems.
It would mark their boldest effort since 2008, when the G20 mustered $1 trillion to help rescue the world economy.
British finance minister George Osborne said there would be no additional resources committed to the IMF until euro zone countries bolstered their own efforts to stop contagion.
More…




Dear Jim,
What is your take on the recent article on gold with the title "The
13 Year curse?"
Regards,
CIGA Arlen

Dear Arlen,
If all you need to be able to do is to count from one to thirteen in order to be a master gold trader all my dogs would have trading accounts and would take care of me.

Sheeplez  love simple, and that article was as simple as you can get.

Regards,
Jim

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