Odds ‘n Sods:

Matthew R. found a link to a great video that has brief interviews with some cave dwellers in Idaho.

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The newspaper headlines are sounding like something out of my novel. Randy F. sent us this: Panic engulfs global stock markets. And then Cheryl (our Economic Editor) sent us this mountain of news and commentary: Investors Expect Market Volatility As Global Credit Woes PersistAnalysis: More Banks To Fail Next Year Despite BailoutEuro Crisis Deepens: Officials Vow To Save BanksEuro Unity Collapses: Every Country For Itself$700 Billion Printing Of Bailout Monopoly Money: Hedge Your WealthCredit Chaos Next? The Mother Of All Bank RunsFear Grips Stock Markets As Economies Tip Into RecessionAsia Stocks, US Futures Drop As Europe Forced To Help BanksYen Unbeatable As Credit Seizure Kills Carry TradePanicked Global Markets Reel; Dow Slumps Below 10,000 (“There is all-out panic,” said ING senior strategist Adrian van Tiggelen.”) — Veteran Wall Street Adviser Gives Advice For Surviving CrisisFed Sees States, Companies As Next Crisis PointsHank Paulson Has One Month Left To Get Banks Lending AgainLondon Plunges As Banks Pump Billions Into MarketsEuro And Pound Dive As Banks FalterIceland Sinking As Bank Rescues Evaporate (Trading in Icelandic Banks Halted) — Savers Frozen Out As IceSave Website CollapsesAsian, Euro Markets Dive On Fears Crisis Is SpreadingPrices Of 16 Basic Food Items Rocket In 3QBolling: Nowhere To Run (” …now is not the time to take chances.) — Tent Cities Rising Up Across America‘Hoarding’ Is Out (The Mogambo Guru) — Settlement Day Approaches For DerivativesOvernight Commercial Paper Rates Advance As Bailouts Spread GloballyFed Doubles Cash Sales To $900bn, Plans More Steps To Unlock MarketDeflation Threats Mount As Commodities Tumble By Most In Half-CenturyBush Predicts Restoring Confidence Will ‘Take A While‘ — Bailout Bill Will Do Nothing For The Real EconomyStock Market Investing Safety Over 5yr and 10yr? “) Meanwhile, in addition to the congressionally-funded TARP bailout, the Fed is pumping liquidity like there is no tomorrow, promising $900 billion in TAF lending: U.S. urges global action on credit crisis. And even the perennial bulls are sounding bearish: Jim Cramer: Time to get out of the stock market. Cramer has also declared this a worldwide crash. Lastly, it is quite indicative that spot gold jumped $35+ per ounce. That in itself is not too unusual, but this is happened at the same time that other commodities were dropping, and while the US dollar was gaining against the Euro and British Pound. Here, we can see that gold truly is the island of safety in the economic maelstrom.

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As of October 1st, journalist Glenn Beck reported brisk sales of guns and home gun vaults in the US. Given the recent economic news, I wouldn’t doubt it. Speaking of Glenn Beck, reader F.A.J. said that we should take a look at Beck’s analysis of what caused the liquidity crisis, in a letter to his family members: What happened?

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Frequent contributor Michael Z. Williamson sent us the link to this newspaper article from Atlanta, Georgia: Many stories surround gas shortage. Human nature, in action

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Cheryl also sen us this one, on Monday evening: Germany takes hot seat as Europe falls into the abyss It begins with this ominous tone: “We face extreme danger. Unless there is immediate intervention on every front by all the major powers acting in concert, we risk a disintegration of global finance within days. Nobody will be spared, unless they own gold bars.”