by J. D. Heyes, Natural News:
The Leviathan, through its various bureaucracies and branches, is continuing to chip away at our Constitution, most recently in the form of a ruling from a federal appeals court claiming that, under the Obama administration’s most recent and most onerous National Defense Authorization Act, American citizens can be held indefinitely.
The ruling by a three-judge motions panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit essentially extended an “emergency” stay of a lower district court judge’s previous order that had struck down the defense bill provision.
Read More @ NaturalNews.com
Today James Turk told King World News, “This is a battle between the sellers of paper-gold and the buyers of physical gold.” Turk also warned, “… we could soon be seeing a massive short squeeze in gold and silver.” Here is what Turk had to say: “Gold and silver are getting very close to an all-important upside breakout, Eric. When gold breaks above $1780 and silver hurdles over $35, both metals will rocket higher. I think we are getting very close to that moment, and I expect that the jump in precious metal prices will be something spectacular.”
James Turk continues @ KingWorldNews.com
The Leviathan, through its various bureaucracies and branches, is continuing to chip away at our Constitution, most recently in the form of a ruling from a federal appeals court claiming that, under the Obama administration’s most recent and most onerous National Defense Authorization Act, American citizens can be held indefinitely.
The ruling by a three-judge motions panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit essentially extended an “emergency” stay of a lower district court judge’s previous order that had struck down the defense bill provision.
Read More @ NaturalNews.com
from KingWorldNews:
Today James Turk told King World News, “This is a battle between the sellers of paper-gold and the buyers of physical gold.” Turk also warned, “… we could soon be seeing a massive short squeeze in gold and silver.” Here is what Turk had to say: “Gold and silver are getting very close to an all-important upside breakout, Eric. When gold breaks above $1780 and silver hurdles over $35, both metals will rocket higher. I think we are getting very close to that moment, and I expect that the jump in precious metal prices will be something spectacular.”
James Turk continues @ KingWorldNews.com
Flashback 2011: Think a One World Bank Isn’t in the Cards? Think the Vatican Isn’t in On it? Think Again
Pope Calls For New Global Central Bank: One Global Bank. And a new Global Tax.
from XxTheTimeIsNOWxX :
Goldman's Cohn On The Fed's One Way Con
While stating the somewhat obvious - that the Fed's actions will cause 'pain' when they (try to) stop QE - when it comes from a high-ranking officer of the establishment elite (as opposed to a tin-foil-hat-wearing, BLS-exposing, HFT-undermining, fringe blog)
such as Goldman Sachs' President Gary Cohn, perhaps more mainstream
will begin to question the one-way path we are on. Cohn's interview on
Bloomberg TV ranged from his reading habits (Greg Smith's tell-all) to
the world's central bank printfest and how "we will have to go through the pains of stopping QE"
and from his views of the election status quo to the global economic
malaise, he does so well on the reality front - until he shovels undying
praise on Mario Draghi's back for his "spectacular job" - though admits he has not solved Europe's real problems.
by Susanne Posel, Occupy Corporatism:
Reading from a prepared statement, Patrick Kennedy, Under Secretary of State for Management, told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that criticism of the US government’s response to US Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens’ death and the attack in Benghazi was the fault of the Obama administration. The mainstream media is calling the attack a “mission in Benghazi would have overpowered even a reinforced security detail.”
Official Eric A. Nordstrom, regional security officer who served in Libya for 6 weeks from September 2011 to July 2012, said to the Committee that “the ferocity and intensity of the attack was nothing that we had seen in Libya, or that I had seen in my time in the Diplomatic Security Service.”
Read More @ OccupyCorporatism.com
Reading from a prepared statement, Patrick Kennedy, Under Secretary of State for Management, told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that criticism of the US government’s response to US Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens’ death and the attack in Benghazi was the fault of the Obama administration. The mainstream media is calling the attack a “mission in Benghazi would have overpowered even a reinforced security detail.”
Official Eric A. Nordstrom, regional security officer who served in Libya for 6 weeks from September 2011 to July 2012, said to the Committee that “the ferocity and intensity of the attack was nothing that we had seen in Libya, or that I had seen in my time in the Diplomatic Security Service.”
Read More @ OccupyCorporatism.com
Do 20% Of Firms Cheat On Earnings?
It
may come as a surprise (until very recently) to many who watch the
flashing red headlines spewed forth by Bloomberg and Reuters terminals
as each and every firm manages to coincidentally report earnings within a
smidge of guidance (and maintain their 'near-perfect' records of
'sustainable' growth) when all around the signals seem to point to an
economy in malaise. However, earnings quality - that ephemeral view of
just how manipulated the end number really is - remains critical (in the
medium-term, if not the short-term thanks to the headline-reading
algos). To wit, Bloomberg notes a recent paper (below) that finds 20% of CFOs will "manage earnings to misrepresent economic performance" with 93.5% admitting it is to influence the stock price. 'Red flag's include EPS inconsistent with cash-flows, unusual accruals, or an industry outlier. Amid pressure to maintain stock prices (and keep a career going), 60% of earnings 'management' is to increase income and of course 66% of CFOs hope for fewer accounting rules going forward.
from Silver Vigilante:
George Mason University has contended that the Congressional Budget
Office, even in the age of supercomputers, just cannot keep up with the
national debt. In other words, the growth of the national debt moves
quicker than does the technology used to measure it. In 2009, US debt
was half of the country’s overall revenue, 10 years ahead of the 2019
prediction made by the CBO in 2007. So, we are in fiscal wonderland
floating about in a dazed fit of economic and exchange oblivion. Only US
debt growth is the drug. According to the CBO, the
national debt is set to increase to 80 percent by 2014. But, it keeps
moving its figures higher year after year. This is five years nearer
than the 2009 projection, and thirteen years ahead of the 2007
projection.
Read More @ Silver Vigilante
George Mason University has contended that the Congressional Budget
Office, even in the age of supercomputers, just cannot keep up with the
national debt. In other words, the growth of the national debt moves
quicker than does the technology used to measure it. In 2009, US debt
was half of the country’s overall revenue, 10 years ahead of the 2019
prediction made by the CBO in 2007. So, we are in fiscal wonderland
floating about in a dazed fit of economic and exchange oblivion. Only US
debt growth is the drug. According to the CBO, the
national debt is set to increase to 80 percent by 2014. But, it keeps
moving its figures higher year after year. This is five years nearer
than the 2009 projection, and thirteen years ahead of the 2007
projection. Read More @ Silver Vigilante
The Fruit Shall Lead The Way
As
Monty Python might have said, apart from AAPL; what has the market
done for you today? S&P 500 cash managed (somehow) to cling to a
green close while the Dow and Nasdaq ended red. Critically - markets went only one way all day - from upper left to lower right as we go out at the lows of the day - back again at the Draghi cliff edge and just below pre-QE levels. AAPL
was a disaster - on heavy volume - as it pushed back down towards it
100DMA (over 3% from its opening highs today!) ending at its lowest in
two months with its biggest slide in 5 months (last 14 days).
Risk-assets in general tracked closely as while AAPL slide from the
open, equity indices manage to hold opening gap gains until Europe
closed and then it went pear-shaped. The USD slid all day but didn't
'help' stocks as JPY weakened more (carry offsetting). Treasury yields
plunged - 30Y now down 12bps on the week. Commodities all gained on the
day - led by Oil (with gold/silver lagging). Meanwhile VIX ignored the
debacle, gapping lower at the open and holding down 0.7vols at 15.6% as
HYG handily outperformed on low volume.from RussiaToday:
Trade Deficit - Recession Risks Increase
The recent trade report does not provide much support for the economic and stock market bulls.
As we have stated many times - the current fundamental and economic
backdrops are not supportive of higher asset prices at current levels.
However, while the market may advance due to the injections of
liquidity into the financial system - it doesn't make it a "healthy" market. The outlook, and ultimately actions taken, by businesses are driven by demand for their products, goods and services. Unfortunately the Fed's bond buying program does not impact these core issues.Fed's "Other Assets" Hit All TIme High Of $205 BIllion
Those looking for info on the Fed's now weely non-sterilized MBS purchases in the weekly H.4.1 update will be disappointed. The reason why the MBS line in the Fed's balance sheet will not move higher for a while is because, unlike TSYs, the settlement period for mortgage debt is usually many weeks and will months for all purchases already completed to appear in the "stock" total. One number, however, which may be of interest is the Fed's "Other Assets" because in the week ended October 10, this number hit an all time high of $205 billion and rising at an exponential phase.
The Forecasting Folly Of Equity Valuations And Earnings Growth
As
we have painstakingly pointed out, rising equity markets in 2012 have
mostly been a function of rising multiples applied to relatively
stagnant earnings. While JPMorgan's CIO Michael Cembalest would have
given odds no better than 1 in 4 of a 17% advance in the S&P this
year, he does note that forecasting annual equity returns is an entirely
treacherous (and we add foolish) exercise as real return variation has
completely swamped industry expectations for the last 60 years. The traditional Graham-Dodd/Shiller valuation model makes equities look expensive currently,
but Cembalest notes, valuations might not be the driving factor at
this point. The debasement of money by the Fed has altered the calculus
of investing for many participants, and not necessarily for the
better. Of course, by driving interest rates down and promising to keep
them there, a 7% nominal equity earnings yield (i.e., a 14 P/E) is transformed into a more compelling investment - but critically (especially for social and political reasons) the 'value'
of this adjusted earnings yield is questionable given the earnings
boom is derived from extraordinarily weak labor compensation and
potentially unsustainable demand from Europe/China.S and P downgrades Spain by two notches/ECB initiates margin calls/South Africa rejects mining offer/ Greece needs another two years to get its house in order as per IMF/
Harvey Organ at Harvey Organ's - The Daily Gold and Silver Report - 22 minutes ago
Good
evening Ladies and Gentlemen:
Gold closed up today by $5.60 to finish the comex session at $1768.80.
Silver finished nicely above 34 dollars at $34.05 although down 2 cents.
The small banking attack against silver today had no effect.
The bankers seem intent on keeping gold below 1775 and silver below the
35.00 dollar level.
James McShirley, a long time GATA supporting describes gold
Will The Real Jobless Benefit Claims Number Please Step Forward?
Dave in Denver at The Golden Truth - 5 hours ago
*There's no B.S. like the b.s. from the BLS * - My name is Dave In Denver
and I approve this blog post
The headline report from all the news services reads: "Jobless Claims
Plunge To New Four-Year Low," among other misleading statements. That is
also the headline report that will be reported to the hoi polloi who watch
their local nightly news rather than stay current with what's going on with
Snooki. That is also the headline that will be read by those who actually
pick up a newspaper tomorrow (the dwindling few in our society who actually
try to keep up with the news).
But,... more »
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On The Private Equity "Don't Bid On My Deals; I Won't Bid On Yours" Collusion
With 'private equity' discussions sliding for one moment off the front pages, NYTimes' DealBook notes that it appears these 'honorable' job-creating entities were allegedly colluding to drive down the prices of more than two dozen takeovers. During the last decade's buyout boom, according to newly released e-mails in a civil lawsuit accusing them of collusion, the two firms appeared to be on much cozier terms."Henry Kravis just called to say congratulations and that they were standing down because he had told me before they would not jump a signed deal of ours,"
"We would much rather work with you guys than against you, together we can be unstoppable but in opposition we can cost each other a lot of money."... "Agreed."
from TheDailyBell.com
To say that regulatory democracy is out of control and doing more damage than good … well, that may be an understatement.
In this editorial I will examine a very disturbing recent situation in which the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has once again arrested, found guilty and executed a publicly traded opportunity – all without laying a single charge or any court appearances. And I ask you to think a bit about how this might feel. Personally speaking, I am all too aware of what this “process” is like and the destructive damage it causes … financially, maritally and socially.
I would like to discuss the SEC and its decision to impose a trading halt (essentially a death sentence) on Liberty Silver Corp. (TSX: LSL, OTCBB: LBSV). This from the LibertySilverCorp.com website sums up what just took place:
Read More @ TheDailyBell.com
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Many are asking what the term CIGA stands for.
The answer is "Comrades in Golden Arms." It is a term that refers to those in our community who are willing to take a stand against the Banksters and manipulators to protect themselves and those close to them.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
The Euro today at 2:08pm.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Gold manipulation explained.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Today this was the gold’s quoted price on CNN. Surprisingly, this is about the price gold would have to trade at to cover all indebtedness and guarantees of the USA.
Crude was not too bad either.
You think the real Big Boss might be giving us a hint? Hey, I only screwed up one gram. Compliments of CIGA Ken
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Just like the many controversial laws created by Presidential Order, and now this, remember they are going to be used.
We sort of smile as big brother gets bigger, and many look at it as a fallout from supposed terrorism.
This is a trend my friends. A trend that is going to a point where the world you live in has none of the freedoms you have become used to. Be aware. This is not joke at all.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Even today China was criticized by a talking head on Bloomberg Financial TV concerning the validity of their official economic figures.
The assumption was the economic statistics of the USA are perfectly honest.
What crock! Where is the rage?
Jack Welch: I Was Right About That Strange Jobs Report
The economy would need to be growing at breakneck speed for unemployment to drop to 7.8% from 8.3% in the course of two months. By JACK WELCH
Imagine a country where challenging the ruling authorities—questioning, say, a piece of data released by central headquarters—would result in mobs of administration sympathizers claiming you should feel "embarrassed" and labeling you a fool, or worse.
Soviet Russia perhaps? Communist China? Nope, that would be the United States right now, when a person (like me, for instance) suggests that a certain government datum (like the September unemployment rate of 7.8%) doesn’t make sense.
Unfortunately for those who would like me to pipe down, the 7.8% unemployment figure released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) last week is downright implausible. And that’s why I made a stink about it.
Before I explain why the number is questionable, though, a few words about where I’m coming from. Contrary to some of the sound-and-fury last week, I do not work for the Mitt Romney campaign. I am definitely not a surrogate. My wife, Suzy, is not associated with the campaign, either. She worked at Bain Consulting (not Bain Capital) right after business school, in 1988 and 1989, and had no contact with Mr. Romney.
The Obama campaign and its supporters, including bigwigs like David Axelrod and Robert Gibbs, along with several cable TV anchors, would like you to believe that BLS data are handled like the gold in Fort Knox, with gun-carrying guards watching their every move, and highly trained, white-gloved super-agents counting and recounting hourly.
More…
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
The pension funds are being fiddled with by fancy off balance sheet accounting. See Eric’s comment today in Jim’s Mailbox.
The most endangered species on the planet is the retiree.
Kodak asks court to end retiree medical benefits
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Eastman Kodak Co. said Wednesday it has asked a bankruptcy court judge to allow it to end retiree medical and some other benefits at the end of the year as part of its restructuring.
The company said it reached an agreement with the court-appointed committee of retirees to pay a total of $650 million in claims and $7.5 million in cash into a fund that could be used for future payments in exchange for eliminating its current $1.2 billion liability for medical, dental, life insurance and survivor income benefits.
A company spokesman said pensions would not be affected.
It said the other benefits cost about $10 million monthly and the change is essential to emerging successfully from Chapter 11 protection. A hearing on the agreement has been scheduled for Oct. 29.
An association that represents about 5,000 Kodak retirees said it was surprised and disappointed by the proposal, which would affect about 56,000 retirees, dependents and survivors.
Art Roberts, spokesman for the association EKRA, said it hasn’t decided what step it might take to attempt to block the change, aside from arguing the official retiree committee named by the court doesn’t fully represent the interests of all retirees.
More…
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Taibbi nails it one more time. Matt, in today’s financial culture that is not fraud. It is the fine you pay as a cost of doing business.
You might then just say Fraud is good, just like greed. In the present election you have a choice between a banker and a socialist.
U.S. Sues Wells Fargo: Yet Another Bailed-Out Bank Accused of Fraud POSTED: October 10, 12:30 PM ET
Earlier this year, Charlie Munger, who is billionaire Warren Buffet’s right hand at Berkshire Hathaway and a sort of self-proclaimed mad oracle of Wall Street, made some interesting comments. He bashed people who buy gold, delivering an all-time amazing quote:
Gold is a great thing to sew onto your garments if you’re a Jewish family in Vienna in 1939 but civilized people don’t buy gold – they invest in productive businesses.
Munger, if you might remember, is the same gazillionaire dickhead who two years ago ripped people experiencing post-crash economic hard times, saying they should "suck it in and cope" and that anyone who wants to complain about the Wall Street bailouts should realize they were "absolutely required to save your civilization" (Munger thinks a lot about "civilization"). He added that even if you didn’t like them, "you shouldn’t be bitching about a little bailout. You should have been thinking it should have been bigger."
Some of those bailouts we shouldn’t have complained about, of course, were directed at one of Munger’s favorite companies – banking giant Wells Fargo, in which Munger and Buffett are heavily invested. Wells Fargo got as much as $36 billion in federal aid after the crash and got a massive push from the government to help it buy up the dying crash-era megabank Wachovia for $12.7 billion, a shotgun wedding that created the second-biggest bank in America. Wells Fargo not only got $25 billion in TARP funds just before it bought Wachovia, it got a special tax break from then-Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, which some reports say was worth as much as $25 billion to WF at that time.
This is all just background for the latest news: Wells Fargo is being sued by the State for vast fraud in the mortgage markets. The U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, yesterday brought a case against WF seeking "hundreds of millions of dollars" in damages for what it says is a decade of fraudulent behavior, in which WF wrongfully certified more than 100,000 mortgages as being eligible for federal mortgage insurance. Basically, Wells Fargo screwed the FHA and HUD by mass-approving loans without regard for whether they were defective or not. From the L.A. Times:
More…
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Court allows misappropriation of funds, indicating the legal culture cannot be far behind our financial devils.
Court allows legislative sweep of mortgage-settlement funds By Mary Jo Pitzl The Republic | azcentral.com Wed Oct 10, 2012 4:10 PM
The Legislature was within its right to take $50 million from a mortgage-settlement fund to help balance the state budget, a judge has ruled.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Brain rejected a challenge from housing advocates, who argued the money should remain in a housing trust fund to pay for efforts to ease the impact of foreclosures in Arizona. The state received $97.8 million from a nationwide settlement reached by 49 state attorneys general. Arizona lawmakers last spring tapped $50 million of it to help balance the budget.
The advocates argued Attoreny General Tom Horne put the settlement monies in a trust that lawmakers couldn’t touch. But Brain wrote he didn’t believe Horne could establish such a trust without legislative involvement, since lawmakers control the money sent to the state.
“(T)he Legislature controls the power of the purse, not the Attorney General,” he wrote.
Attorney Tim Hogan, who represented housing advocates, said an appeal is likely.
He questioned how the judge could rebuff the idea that the money was in a trust fund, since under the terms of the settlement, the money was to go into a “Court Ordered Trust Fund.”
More…
Worth its Weight: Six Reasons to Buy Gold Today
by Axel Merk, Merk Investments
“He who has the gold makes the rules.”
Imagine the surprise of the world’s first circumnavigator, Ferdinand Magellan, when upon arriving on the sandy shores of the present-day Philippines in March 1521 after the first-ever Pacific crossing, he was offered a gold bar and some spices by the native king. Gold – it was a store and show of wealth, even there, even then – in uncharted, uncivilized territory, halfway around the world, half a millennium ago.
Perhaps Magellan shouldn’t have been so surprised. Gold had been “money” for more than 2000 years prior to his time. The first gold coins were struck in about 700 B.C. in modern day Greece. Throughout recorded history, other assets like weapons, spices, art, metals and even food have had their day as leading stores of wealth, but gold has endured as the supreme evidence of wealth across all cultures and time.
Worth
Little has changed today. Gold competes with other assets – stocks, bonds, real estate, and paper currency among others as stores of wealth. But in today’s changing and ever more volatile world, the value of these other assets may fluctuate more than ever. What’s more – paradoxically – in response to volatility, the policies of governments and central banks, in an ef fort to dampen economic downturns and prop up asset prices, may in fact make gold more valuable relative to these other assets. In our opinion, the real purchasing power of gold, over the long term, may rise.
Like most assets, price is determined by demand and supply. Going forward demand for gold may continue to rise, while supply will remain constrained as it has since the beginning of time. With this backdrop, let’s explore some specific reasons investors may consider buying gold at today’s prices.
More…
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
The $1764Angel is also a panic button at headquarters.
The implication of north of $1764 brings in the troops trying to depress the price. It is a key factor in the drama of gold on its way to $3500 and beyond.
Yes, Angels are a Livermore approach to numbers when prices establish new highs above previous bull markets.
Dear Jim,
This pair of charts says it all about the housing "recovery"
CIGA Tim
Housing Recovery in Perspective By Barry Ritholtz – October 11th, 2012, 12:55PM
I loved the way this slide from Rosie’s presentation yesterday contextualized the Housing recovery:
More…
Jim,
Your comment that potential fines of $100m being inconsequential against $5b profits is very true and very relevant. I am reminded of a judge I read about in the WSJ in the early 90′s, Baltimore if I recall correctly. Besides running an 80 hour weekly court schedule to clear the backlog, and denying prosecutors (and defendants) continuations without *very* good cause, he was famous for having very few repeat DUI offenders. Unlike Idi Amin’s solution (DUI was a capital offense), his was simply to require all DUI’s to spend at least one night in jail.
They could apply RICO type laws, which makes the salaries and bonuses the fruits of a criminal enterprise, which become forfeited to the government effective retroactively. Just watch as BMWs, yachts, penthouse condos, and Long Island McMansions get seized.
All board members and executives, as well as attorneys and accountants with any involvement whatsoever should be named as co-defendants, requiring them to show up in court for every hearing and motion with their own lawyers. Just the logistics of appearing in court can ruin your life as much as the anxiety and fines, incarceration, and sanctions.
What’s good enough for a starving kid stealing $50 from a convenience store is good enough for the rich folk. Maybe a little more equal treatment will stave off the horrors of a revolution, which generally is the only solution for gross injustice.
Your faithful reader,
CIGA RSP
Dear RSP,
These actions against the banksters only need to have the RICO statute and it would be all over.
RICO applies but is politely deleted from the criminal complaint. It is sort of a benefit to the Banksters from the legal system.
Regards,
Jim
Good afternoon Jim,
It looks like Gold and the stock market as measured by the Dow are joined at the hip (momentum wise) and have been for a while now. Do you have any comment on this?
CIGA Dave
Dear Dave,
Liquidity floats all boats and that includes equities.
Regards,
Jim
Jim,
Yet again Gold and Silver rallied throughout the Asian and London overnight sessions on strong physical buying. Gold rose back to $1775 where the Cartel has been ‘capping’ the price for three weeks. Silver rose to $34.44, which is ‘danger close’ to the Cartel’s price cap of $35.
SURPRISE (well, only if you are a CFTC career employee) both metals were smacked-down on the COMEX open yet again. You can clearly see the artificially-induced price waterfalls in response to the massive dumping of ‘spoof’ paper, but again only if you are NOT a ‘regulator’ for the CFTC. In the finest "Chicago-way" when it comes to the CME and the CRIMEX: "you don’t SEE nuttin’ – you don’t KNOW nuttin’ – and you don’t SAY nuttin’ – get me? Nice pair of knees youse got there…"
This price-capping activity by the bullion Cartel has not yet been able to push the metals below $1750 and $33.50, so it’s reasonable to expect another major smack-down effort by the ‘shorts’ to shake more longs loose from their positions… especially with an election just ahead. You can also expect the prices of both metals to move up through these phoney Cartel price caps of $1775 and $35 despite the very best efforts of Blythe and her flying monkeys.
Myself, I actually think all this may be a frantic attempt to ‘mask’ a commercial failure on the physical side of the market that is already in progress.
Meanwhile, BNY Mellon is saying Gold will move through $1800 to $2500 by end-of-year and Silver will go to $37-40 by end 4Q. They are NOT the only ones saying this, by the way. If you’re not following Jim Sinclair (Mr. Gold) on these market shenanigans, you will be as blissfully clueless as the commodities regulators seem to be.
For now, the paper bombing raids continue and fastening the chinstraps on your Brody helmets while waiting for the end of the Cartel ‘blitz’ is about all that can be done.
Regards,
CIGA Richard S.
Hi Jim,
The closer we get to the election in the US, the wackier the economic figure fiddling becomes.
Just a quick word to say thanks for all of your help over the years and to show you this article about the jobless claims. The article was posted by CNBC News about an hour ago.
As Dow Jones reported: “A Labor Department economist said one large state didn’t report additional quarterly figures as expected, accounting for a substantial part of the decrease.”
The wording of that statement, along with the accompanying headlines, left the impression that one major state didn’t turn in its figures.
Link to article…
Games States Play with Underfunded Pensions CIGA Eric
The problem of under funded pensions swept under the rug for years through various forms of accounting flexibility will see the light of day after 2015. This means even more taxpayer bailouts, currency devaluation, and pensioners getting the short end of the stick of fiduciary responsibility.
Headline: Games States Play with Underfunded Pensions
Public pension funds across the country are severely underfunded, threatening the retirement security of government workers and the wallets of taxpayers.
State Budget Solutions, a non-partisan fiscal watchdog, says the underfunding is more than $4 trillion.
Moreover, states and local governments are playing lots of monkey shines with their bookkeeping for pension debt, which doesn’t appear on state balance sheets, says Bob Williams, who heads State Budget Solutions.
Williams, a former Washington state legislator, gubernatorial candidate and auditor with the Government Accountability Office, also notes that states use special accounting rules for themselves that are nothing like what the private sector uses, which mask and understate the problem.
He says the states can then use these rules to boast that they have balanced budgets, even though tens of billions of dollars in unfunded pension liabilities are flooding their state houses.
Source: foxbusiness.com
More…
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Compliments of CIGA Vivi in Euroland.
Dear Vivi,
You must admit the manipulators are having a hard time trying to create this two week reaction. The cash market so far has not cooperated with the manipulators. It seems there is a nuisance central bank working there.
Regards,
Jim
Putting the Pedal to Global Metal Prices 10 Oct 2012 03:10 pm
Markets for both precious and base metals are closely following the news on various global economic factors. In the past week, gold prices have been hovering just below $1800 per oz., not too far off the all-time highs reached in September 2011, when the price stopped just shy of $1900 per oz. The surge in gold prices is being driven by investors looking for a hedge against inflation following recent expansionary monetary policy actions by the world’s largest central banks. In the past six weeks, we have seen monetary stimulus in the form of liquidity injections by the U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan, and the People’s Bank of China. This loose monetary policy has pushed up inflation expectations in the markets, driving the price of gold up.
At the same time, physical demand for gold has fallen, in particular for India, the world’s top consumer of gold. Soft demand may slightly dampen the rise of gold, but the primary driver of prices right now is central bank monetary stimulus.
Silver prices are also moving higher, following in the wake of gold. Silver is currently trading down about 30% from the high hit in the spring of 2011, but at around $34 per oz., is still well above the $5.50 per oz. average witnessed from 1984-2005.
More…
Jim,
For those like me living in Far East HK, we are not actually feeling the pain in the Western world. Meanwhile, inflation and assets prices are going through the roof. Life and business become harder and harder every day, but people just are not aware of the coming collapse! There will surely be big shock and panic when the confidence in the US dollar is lost. How bad is it going to be when the end day of the current fiat currency system eventually arrives here? I accumulate gold to protect my family. How can I protect my business and how can I take it through to the new era?
Respectfully,
CIGA Darren
Darren,
The week or two before End Day (defined on JSMineset) will be absolutely miserable in every way conceivable, but at End Day, a New Day dawns.
Jim
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To say that regulatory democracy is out of control and doing more damage than good … well, that may be an understatement.In this editorial I will examine a very disturbing recent situation in which the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has once again arrested, found guilty and executed a publicly traded opportunity – all without laying a single charge or any court appearances. And I ask you to think a bit about how this might feel. Personally speaking, I am all too aware of what this “process” is like and the destructive damage it causes … financially, maritally and socially.
I would like to discuss the SEC and its decision to impose a trading halt (essentially a death sentence) on Liberty Silver Corp. (TSX: LSL, OTCBB: LBSV). This from the LibertySilverCorp.com website sums up what just took place:
Read More @ TheDailyBell.com
from TheRealNews:
Phyllis Bennis: Excluding Iranian banks from the SWIFT system of interbank transfers helped cause a devaluation of Iranian currency and great hardship for ordinary people
Phyllis Bennis: Excluding Iranian banks from the SWIFT system of interbank transfers helped cause a devaluation of Iranian currency and great hardship for ordinary people
by David Schectman, MilesFranklin.com:
There is one area that Bill Holter, Andy Hoffman and Andy Schectman are in total agreement with me. All of us have most of our wealth in physical gold, silver and mining shares.
Of the four of us, Holter is invested more heavily in mining shares. Hoffman is invested almost entirely in gold and Andy Schectman is split 50/50 in gold and silver. I am more diversified, with 10% in platinum, 10% in mining shares and 40/40 in gold and silver.
But all of us are precious metals bulls to the core! We do what we say! What is so interesting to me is the lack of conviction by so many people in our industry. We are in the minority! In my 30 years in the industry I have found most of the people who make a living in it really don’t believe in gold. At the last company I worked for, to my astonishment, only a handful of the nearly 50 sales people owned any gold and silver. Even now, their number one producer, I’m told, owns NO physical gold or silver.
Read More @ MilesFranklin.com
There is one area that Bill Holter, Andy Hoffman and Andy Schectman are in total agreement with me. All of us have most of our wealth in physical gold, silver and mining shares.Of the four of us, Holter is invested more heavily in mining shares. Hoffman is invested almost entirely in gold and Andy Schectman is split 50/50 in gold and silver. I am more diversified, with 10% in platinum, 10% in mining shares and 40/40 in gold and silver.
But all of us are precious metals bulls to the core! We do what we say! What is so interesting to me is the lack of conviction by so many people in our industry. We are in the minority! In my 30 years in the industry I have found most of the people who make a living in it really don’t believe in gold. At the last company I worked for, to my astonishment, only a handful of the nearly 50 sales people owned any gold and silver. Even now, their number one producer, I’m told, owns NO physical gold or silver.
Read More @ MilesFranklin.com
by J. Sparrow, Financial Sense:
We like to pick on Bill Gross every once in a while. He is a billionaire who loves to “talk his book” — i.e. tout Pimco’s trading positions — so he can certainly take it.
An example from last year, “The Bond King Gets Desperate,” is newly relevant given the bond king’s latest commentary.
In last year’s write-up, we took Gross to task for saying America is like Greece. He’s saying it again – that America is comparable to Greece – and it’s still just as silly.
The latest Pimco Investment Outlook (Gross’ monthly commentary vehicle) is called “Damages.”
It is full of quotable soundbites, like ready-to-dip chicken McNuggets, such as stating Uncle Sam is addicted to ‘budgetary crystal meth.”
Read More @ financialsense.com
We like to pick on Bill Gross every once in a while. He is a billionaire who loves to “talk his book” — i.e. tout Pimco’s trading positions — so he can certainly take it.
An example from last year, “The Bond King Gets Desperate,” is newly relevant given the bond king’s latest commentary.
In last year’s write-up, we took Gross to task for saying America is like Greece. He’s saying it again – that America is comparable to Greece – and it’s still just as silly.
The latest Pimco Investment Outlook (Gross’ monthly commentary vehicle) is called “Damages.”
It is full of quotable soundbites, like ready-to-dip chicken McNuggets, such as stating Uncle Sam is addicted to ‘budgetary crystal meth.”
Read More @ financialsense.com
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Many are asking what the term CIGA stands for.
The answer is "Comrades in Golden Arms." It is a term that refers to those in our community who are willing to take a stand against the Banksters and manipulators to protect themselves and those close to them.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
The Euro today at 2:08pm.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Gold manipulation explained.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Today this was the gold’s quoted price on CNN. Surprisingly, this is about the price gold would have to trade at to cover all indebtedness and guarantees of the USA.
Crude was not too bad either.
You think the real Big Boss might be giving us a hint? Hey, I only screwed up one gram. Compliments of CIGA Ken
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Just like the many controversial laws created by Presidential Order, and now this, remember they are going to be used.
We sort of smile as big brother gets bigger, and many look at it as a fallout from supposed terrorism.
This is a trend my friends. A trend that is going to a point where the world you live in has none of the freedoms you have become used to. Be aware. This is not joke at all.
Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Even today China was criticized by a talking head on Bloomberg Financial TV concerning the validity of their official economic figures.
The assumption was the economic statistics of the USA are perfectly honest.
What crock! Where is the rage?
Jack Welch: I Was Right About That Strange Jobs Report
The economy would need to be growing at breakneck speed for unemployment to drop to 7.8% from 8.3% in the course of two months. By JACK WELCH
Imagine a country where challenging the ruling authorities—questioning, say, a piece of data released by central headquarters—would result in mobs of administration sympathizers claiming you should feel "embarrassed" and labeling you a fool, or worse.
Soviet Russia perhaps? Communist China? Nope, that would be the United States right now, when a person (like me, for instance) suggests that a certain government datum (like the September unemployment rate of 7.8%) doesn’t make sense.
Unfortunately for those who would like me to pipe down, the 7.8% unemployment figure released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) last week is downright implausible. And that’s why I made a stink about it.
Before I explain why the number is questionable, though, a few words about where I’m coming from. Contrary to some of the sound-and-fury last week, I do not work for the Mitt Romney campaign. I am definitely not a surrogate. My wife, Suzy, is not associated with the campaign, either. She worked at Bain Consulting (not Bain Capital) right after business school, in 1988 and 1989, and had no contact with Mr. Romney.
The Obama campaign and its supporters, including bigwigs like David Axelrod and Robert Gibbs, along with several cable TV anchors, would like you to believe that BLS data are handled like the gold in Fort Knox, with gun-carrying guards watching their every move, and highly trained, white-gloved super-agents counting and recounting hourly.
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Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
The pension funds are being fiddled with by fancy off balance sheet accounting. See Eric’s comment today in Jim’s Mailbox.
The most endangered species on the planet is the retiree.
Kodak asks court to end retiree medical benefits
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (AP) — Eastman Kodak Co. said Wednesday it has asked a bankruptcy court judge to allow it to end retiree medical and some other benefits at the end of the year as part of its restructuring.
The company said it reached an agreement with the court-appointed committee of retirees to pay a total of $650 million in claims and $7.5 million in cash into a fund that could be used for future payments in exchange for eliminating its current $1.2 billion liability for medical, dental, life insurance and survivor income benefits.
A company spokesman said pensions would not be affected.
It said the other benefits cost about $10 million monthly and the change is essential to emerging successfully from Chapter 11 protection. A hearing on the agreement has been scheduled for Oct. 29.
An association that represents about 5,000 Kodak retirees said it was surprised and disappointed by the proposal, which would affect about 56,000 retirees, dependents and survivors.
Art Roberts, spokesman for the association EKRA, said it hasn’t decided what step it might take to attempt to block the change, aside from arguing the official retiree committee named by the court doesn’t fully represent the interests of all retirees.
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Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Taibbi nails it one more time. Matt, in today’s financial culture that is not fraud. It is the fine you pay as a cost of doing business.
You might then just say Fraud is good, just like greed. In the present election you have a choice between a banker and a socialist.
U.S. Sues Wells Fargo: Yet Another Bailed-Out Bank Accused of Fraud POSTED: October 10, 12:30 PM ET
Earlier this year, Charlie Munger, who is billionaire Warren Buffet’s right hand at Berkshire Hathaway and a sort of self-proclaimed mad oracle of Wall Street, made some interesting comments. He bashed people who buy gold, delivering an all-time amazing quote:
Gold is a great thing to sew onto your garments if you’re a Jewish family in Vienna in 1939 but civilized people don’t buy gold – they invest in productive businesses.
Munger, if you might remember, is the same gazillionaire dickhead who two years ago ripped people experiencing post-crash economic hard times, saying they should "suck it in and cope" and that anyone who wants to complain about the Wall Street bailouts should realize they were "absolutely required to save your civilization" (Munger thinks a lot about "civilization"). He added that even if you didn’t like them, "you shouldn’t be bitching about a little bailout. You should have been thinking it should have been bigger."
Some of those bailouts we shouldn’t have complained about, of course, were directed at one of Munger’s favorite companies – banking giant Wells Fargo, in which Munger and Buffett are heavily invested. Wells Fargo got as much as $36 billion in federal aid after the crash and got a massive push from the government to help it buy up the dying crash-era megabank Wachovia for $12.7 billion, a shotgun wedding that created the second-biggest bank in America. Wells Fargo not only got $25 billion in TARP funds just before it bought Wachovia, it got a special tax break from then-Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, which some reports say was worth as much as $25 billion to WF at that time.
This is all just background for the latest news: Wells Fargo is being sued by the State for vast fraud in the mortgage markets. The U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, yesterday brought a case against WF seeking "hundreds of millions of dollars" in damages for what it says is a decade of fraudulent behavior, in which WF wrongfully certified more than 100,000 mortgages as being eligible for federal mortgage insurance. Basically, Wells Fargo screwed the FHA and HUD by mass-approving loans without regard for whether they were defective or not. From the L.A. Times:
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Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Court allows misappropriation of funds, indicating the legal culture cannot be far behind our financial devils.
Court allows legislative sweep of mortgage-settlement funds By Mary Jo Pitzl The Republic | azcentral.com Wed Oct 10, 2012 4:10 PM
The Legislature was within its right to take $50 million from a mortgage-settlement fund to help balance the state budget, a judge has ruled.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Brain rejected a challenge from housing advocates, who argued the money should remain in a housing trust fund to pay for efforts to ease the impact of foreclosures in Arizona. The state received $97.8 million from a nationwide settlement reached by 49 state attorneys general. Arizona lawmakers last spring tapped $50 million of it to help balance the budget.
The advocates argued Attoreny General Tom Horne put the settlement monies in a trust that lawmakers couldn’t touch. But Brain wrote he didn’t believe Horne could establish such a trust without legislative involvement, since lawmakers control the money sent to the state.
“(T)he Legislature controls the power of the purse, not the Attorney General,” he wrote.
Attorney Tim Hogan, who represented housing advocates, said an appeal is likely.
He questioned how the judge could rebuff the idea that the money was in a trust fund, since under the terms of the settlement, the money was to go into a “Court Ordered Trust Fund.”
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Worth its Weight: Six Reasons to Buy Gold Today
by Axel Merk, Merk Investments
“He who has the gold makes the rules.”
Imagine the surprise of the world’s first circumnavigator, Ferdinand Magellan, when upon arriving on the sandy shores of the present-day Philippines in March 1521 after the first-ever Pacific crossing, he was offered a gold bar and some spices by the native king. Gold – it was a store and show of wealth, even there, even then – in uncharted, uncivilized territory, halfway around the world, half a millennium ago.
Perhaps Magellan shouldn’t have been so surprised. Gold had been “money” for more than 2000 years prior to his time. The first gold coins were struck in about 700 B.C. in modern day Greece. Throughout recorded history, other assets like weapons, spices, art, metals and even food have had their day as leading stores of wealth, but gold has endured as the supreme evidence of wealth across all cultures and time.
Worth
Little has changed today. Gold competes with other assets – stocks, bonds, real estate, and paper currency among others as stores of wealth. But in today’s changing and ever more volatile world, the value of these other assets may fluctuate more than ever. What’s more – paradoxically – in response to volatility, the policies of governments and central banks, in an ef fort to dampen economic downturns and prop up asset prices, may in fact make gold more valuable relative to these other assets. In our opinion, the real purchasing power of gold, over the long term, may rise.
Like most assets, price is determined by demand and supply. Going forward demand for gold may continue to rise, while supply will remain constrained as it has since the beginning of time. With this backdrop, let’s explore some specific reasons investors may consider buying gold at today’s prices.
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Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
The $1764Angel is also a panic button at headquarters.
The implication of north of $1764 brings in the troops trying to depress the price. It is a key factor in the drama of gold on its way to $3500 and beyond.
Yes, Angels are a Livermore approach to numbers when prices establish new highs above previous bull markets.
Dear Jim,
This pair of charts says it all about the housing "recovery"
CIGA Tim
Housing Recovery in Perspective By Barry Ritholtz – October 11th, 2012, 12:55PM
I loved the way this slide from Rosie’s presentation yesterday contextualized the Housing recovery:
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Jim,
Your comment that potential fines of $100m being inconsequential against $5b profits is very true and very relevant. I am reminded of a judge I read about in the WSJ in the early 90′s, Baltimore if I recall correctly. Besides running an 80 hour weekly court schedule to clear the backlog, and denying prosecutors (and defendants) continuations without *very* good cause, he was famous for having very few repeat DUI offenders. Unlike Idi Amin’s solution (DUI was a capital offense), his was simply to require all DUI’s to spend at least one night in jail.
They could apply RICO type laws, which makes the salaries and bonuses the fruits of a criminal enterprise, which become forfeited to the government effective retroactively. Just watch as BMWs, yachts, penthouse condos, and Long Island McMansions get seized.
All board members and executives, as well as attorneys and accountants with any involvement whatsoever should be named as co-defendants, requiring them to show up in court for every hearing and motion with their own lawyers. Just the logistics of appearing in court can ruin your life as much as the anxiety and fines, incarceration, and sanctions.
What’s good enough for a starving kid stealing $50 from a convenience store is good enough for the rich folk. Maybe a little more equal treatment will stave off the horrors of a revolution, which generally is the only solution for gross injustice.
Your faithful reader,
CIGA RSP
Dear RSP,
These actions against the banksters only need to have the RICO statute and it would be all over.
RICO applies but is politely deleted from the criminal complaint. It is sort of a benefit to the Banksters from the legal system.
Regards,
Jim
Good afternoon Jim,
It looks like Gold and the stock market as measured by the Dow are joined at the hip (momentum wise) and have been for a while now. Do you have any comment on this?
CIGA Dave
Dear Dave,
Liquidity floats all boats and that includes equities.
Regards,
Jim
Jim,
Yet again Gold and Silver rallied throughout the Asian and London overnight sessions on strong physical buying. Gold rose back to $1775 where the Cartel has been ‘capping’ the price for three weeks. Silver rose to $34.44, which is ‘danger close’ to the Cartel’s price cap of $35.
SURPRISE (well, only if you are a CFTC career employee) both metals were smacked-down on the COMEX open yet again. You can clearly see the artificially-induced price waterfalls in response to the massive dumping of ‘spoof’ paper, but again only if you are NOT a ‘regulator’ for the CFTC. In the finest "Chicago-way" when it comes to the CME and the CRIMEX: "you don’t SEE nuttin’ – you don’t KNOW nuttin’ – and you don’t SAY nuttin’ – get me? Nice pair of knees youse got there…"
This price-capping activity by the bullion Cartel has not yet been able to push the metals below $1750 and $33.50, so it’s reasonable to expect another major smack-down effort by the ‘shorts’ to shake more longs loose from their positions… especially with an election just ahead. You can also expect the prices of both metals to move up through these phoney Cartel price caps of $1775 and $35 despite the very best efforts of Blythe and her flying monkeys.
Myself, I actually think all this may be a frantic attempt to ‘mask’ a commercial failure on the physical side of the market that is already in progress.
Meanwhile, BNY Mellon is saying Gold will move through $1800 to $2500 by end-of-year and Silver will go to $37-40 by end 4Q. They are NOT the only ones saying this, by the way. If you’re not following Jim Sinclair (Mr. Gold) on these market shenanigans, you will be as blissfully clueless as the commodities regulators seem to be.
For now, the paper bombing raids continue and fastening the chinstraps on your Brody helmets while waiting for the end of the Cartel ‘blitz’ is about all that can be done.
Regards,
CIGA Richard S.
Hi Jim,
The closer we get to the election in the US, the wackier the economic figure fiddling becomes.
Just a quick word to say thanks for all of your help over the years and to show you this article about the jobless claims. The article was posted by CNBC News about an hour ago.
As Dow Jones reported: “A Labor Department economist said one large state didn’t report additional quarterly figures as expected, accounting for a substantial part of the decrease.”
The wording of that statement, along with the accompanying headlines, left the impression that one major state didn’t turn in its figures.
Link to article…
Games States Play with Underfunded Pensions CIGA Eric
The problem of under funded pensions swept under the rug for years through various forms of accounting flexibility will see the light of day after 2015. This means even more taxpayer bailouts, currency devaluation, and pensioners getting the short end of the stick of fiduciary responsibility.
Headline: Games States Play with Underfunded Pensions
Public pension funds across the country are severely underfunded, threatening the retirement security of government workers and the wallets of taxpayers.
State Budget Solutions, a non-partisan fiscal watchdog, says the underfunding is more than $4 trillion.
Moreover, states and local governments are playing lots of monkey shines with their bookkeeping for pension debt, which doesn’t appear on state balance sheets, says Bob Williams, who heads State Budget Solutions.
Williams, a former Washington state legislator, gubernatorial candidate and auditor with the Government Accountability Office, also notes that states use special accounting rules for themselves that are nothing like what the private sector uses, which mask and understate the problem.
He says the states can then use these rules to boast that they have balanced budgets, even though tens of billions of dollars in unfunded pension liabilities are flooding their state houses.
Source: foxbusiness.com
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Jim Sinclair’s Commentary
Compliments of CIGA Vivi in Euroland.
Dear Vivi,
You must admit the manipulators are having a hard time trying to create this two week reaction. The cash market so far has not cooperated with the manipulators. It seems there is a nuisance central bank working there.
Regards,
Jim
Putting the Pedal to Global Metal Prices 10 Oct 2012 03:10 pm
Markets for both precious and base metals are closely following the news on various global economic factors. In the past week, gold prices have been hovering just below $1800 per oz., not too far off the all-time highs reached in September 2011, when the price stopped just shy of $1900 per oz. The surge in gold prices is being driven by investors looking for a hedge against inflation following recent expansionary monetary policy actions by the world’s largest central banks. In the past six weeks, we have seen monetary stimulus in the form of liquidity injections by the U.S. Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan, and the People’s Bank of China. This loose monetary policy has pushed up inflation expectations in the markets, driving the price of gold up.
At the same time, physical demand for gold has fallen, in particular for India, the world’s top consumer of gold. Soft demand may slightly dampen the rise of gold, but the primary driver of prices right now is central bank monetary stimulus.
Silver prices are also moving higher, following in the wake of gold. Silver is currently trading down about 30% from the high hit in the spring of 2011, but at around $34 per oz., is still well above the $5.50 per oz. average witnessed from 1984-2005.
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Jim,
For those like me living in Far East HK, we are not actually feeling the pain in the Western world. Meanwhile, inflation and assets prices are going through the roof. Life and business become harder and harder every day, but people just are not aware of the coming collapse! There will surely be big shock and panic when the confidence in the US dollar is lost. How bad is it going to be when the end day of the current fiat currency system eventually arrives here? I accumulate gold to protect my family. How can I protect my business and how can I take it through to the new era?
Respectfully,
CIGA Darren
Darren,
The week or two before End Day (defined on JSMineset) will be absolutely miserable in every way conceivable, but at End Day, a New Day dawns.
Jim
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