Reader Mark A. wrote us to mention that he had found this web site [1] that houses “more information then in one spot then I have seen anywhere else. The site is maintained to provide Third World countries information on farming and sustainability. All their information is free to download. Note, however that their ZIP files are very, very large. There are 4,000 titles, totaling 13 gigabytes.”
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In a recent e-mail, The Chartist Gnome [2] mentioned two things about the precious metals market that confirm my observations: 1.) The COMEX [3] spot prices now have no correlation with “real world” prices of bullion coins and small, serialized bars. “The ‘real world’ price for silver is more than twice the COMEX price, that is IF you can find any coins for sale, James.”. 2.) The recent slump in precious metals prices looks worse from your American perspective. “Your viewpoint is askew because the US Dollar is gaining so rapidly against so many other currencies, which are becoming Toilettenpapier. (The US dollar has no inherent strength–just perceived relative strength, in a time of crisis. It will eventually be toilet paper, too.) Take a look at the charts at BullionVault.com [4]. The one year Gold in USD chart looks gloomy, but the Gold in Pounds Sterling chart doesn’t look bad at all. Hang in there with your metals holdings, and even acquire more, on dips. When the Dollar charges into double digit inflation, you’ll be joyous that you did.” OBTW, as further confirmation that inflation is indeed ahead, see this piece by Steve Saville: Inflation Watch [5].
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David V. flagged this Bloomberg article: Greenspan Slept as Off-Balance-Sheet Toxic Debt Evaded Scrutiny [6]
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Another batch of cheer from our Economic Editor: “Harsh Storm” Threatens Global Economy As US GDP Shrinks [7] — Will Gold And Silver Futures Default? [8] — Goldman Sachs Ready To Hand Out 7 Billion Pound Salary and Bonus Package After Its 6 Billion Pound Bailout [9] — Russian Stock Market Up 18% On The Day [10] — AMEX To Chop 7,000 Jobs [11] — The Quoted Spot Price of Gold is ‘A Lie’ [12] — Loans? Did We Say We’d Do Loans? [13] — Trade Suffers As Banks Curtail Loans [14] — Gold Coins Now Getting a 50% Premium [15] — Fed Interest Rate Cut May End Up Making Matters Worse [16] — House of Credit Cards About to Crash [17] — Next Bailout Battle Rages In DC [18]