Economics and Investing:

Worst Case Scenario = 73% Down From Here o o o How Mainstream Economic Theories Regularly Miss The Mark o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: Professor Preponomics’ Reading Recommendation Available on Amazon: Basic Economics: A Common Sense Guide to the Economy (5th Edition) by Thomas Sowell US News $10 Mil to End “Diaper Disparity” After Free Diaper Laws Fail Twice in Congress (Judicial Watch) Excerpt: “To get the ball rolling, the administration announced this month that it plans to spend $10 million to “test effective ways to get diapers to families in need and document the health improvements that …




Economics and Investing:

71,777,758 Enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP; Up 14,478,342 Since Obamacare Exchanges Opened; 1 for Every 2 Americans With a Job – B.B. o o o Price Controls May Be On the Way o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News California Audit Reveals Pension Debt Grew by 2,000% (Breitbart) Excerpt: “With the addition of the GASB’s required balance sheet adjustments, each of California’s approximately 12.7 million households now is on the hook for about $31,904 in pension obligations.” Study: Big Banks Don’t Have Enough Capital Cushion (Washington Examiner) Excerpt: “In other words, big banks such as Bank of America, …




Economics and Investing:

SILVER vs. GOLD: 2 Must See Charts o o o 23 Percent Of Americans In Their Prime Working Years Are Unemployed – Sent in by B.B. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Junk Territory: US Corporate Debt Ratings Near 15 Year Low (CNN Money) Excerpt: “In the past four years, S&P has assigned a single-B rating to 75% of companies accessing the debt markets for the first time. That rating is just one notch up from triple-C, a rating given to companies with a high probability of default.” School of Debt: How to Bankrupt Public Education, Chicago-Style …




Lessons Learned at a Prepper Auction, by LCA in WNY

Last weekend, my spouse and I attended a very interesting auction. The auction was advertised as “Apocalypse Prepper Estate Auction.” It listed a large gun collection, large quantity of ammo, tools, household items, and four vehicles. The advertisement caught my eye, so off we went. We arrived in time to preview some of the items. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I stood there thinking it seemed as if he had used SurvivalBlog.com as a checklist. He had purchased every item ever mentioned in this blog. Then, I had to chuckle as I spotted a table with a dozen …




Economics and Investing:

Opinion: Negative interest rates put the global economy on a razor’s edge o o o Is A Gas War Between The U.S. And Canada About To Start? o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Americans Just Had $176 Million in Wages Garnished by the Government Due to Unpaid Student Loans (Market Watch) Excerpt: “Hicks said he’s particularly concerned that it appears that tens of thousands of borrowers are entering default for the second time each quarter the Department measured.” Uncontrollable – Pentagon and Corporate Contractors Too Big to Audit (Taxpayers for Common Sense) Excerpt: “All $585 billion and …




Economics and Investing:

Items from Mr. Econocobas: Peter Schiff- Two Down Two to Go. Video: Stockman CNBC Interview: Dead Cat Bounce Over, Bury The Cat! Items from Professor Preponomics: US News CCAGW Commends Chairman Hatch for Launching Investigation into Green Energy Grants (Citizens Against Government Waste) Excerpt: “A significant number of the recipients were either demonstrably financially unstable, and therefore too high-risk to receive taxpayer money, or already adequately well-funded by private capital and undeserving of taxpayer largesse.” This story is also being developed by the Wall Street Journal. The following report was posted to Market Watch: Senator Probes $25 Billion in Federal …




Economics and Investing:

Obama’s Final Budget Calls for $2.1 Trillion Tax Hike – B.B. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Low Oil Prices End 21st Century Gold Rush (USA Today) Excerpt: “Oil and gas companies worldwide have publicly announced plans to cut more than 319,000 jobs since late 2014…. Among them are large companies such as Baker Hughes, Halliburton and Weatherford International that supply services and equipment to drillers.” Houston’s Energy Companies Majorly Downgraded by Moody’s (Houston Business Journal) Excerpt: “The negative outlook reflects the potential for a greater than expected deterioration in credit metrics if the demand for the …




Economics and Investing:

Stuck in the Monetary Mud. All the Fed can do is hope, says Peter Schiff. Sent in by H.L. o o o Fiscal and Monetary Madness. Excerpt: “A world of fiat currencies “managed” by central banks descends into the trap of exponentially increasing debt that leads, slowly or rapidly, toward monetary madness and … Train wreck ahead!” o o o How Oil Can Be Used To Defeat ISIS o o o Youtube: The Central Bankers And Corporations Are Running The Country: John Titus. – Sent in by RBS o o o If your country’s broke, don’t hold all of your …




Economics and Investing:

Reader DSV suggested this: Bagfuls of Pocket Change… Handfuls of Heritage – Shanghai Metals Market. o o o Japan Goes Full Krugman: Plans Un-Depositable, Non-Cash “Gift-Certificate” Money Drop To Young People – G.G. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: Professor Preponomics’ Reading Recommendation Going for Broke: Deficits, Debt and the Entitlement Crisis by Michael D. Tanner US News Commentary: The GOP and Social Security (Cato) Excerpt: “…Social Security’s unfunded liabilities approach $26 trillion. That’s not because of waste or administrative glitches; it’s because of shifting demographics.” Southern Tennessee Medical Center, LLC to Pay $2.48 Million to Settle False Claims …




Economics and Investing:

Uh oh! The growing economic case for ‘helicopter money’ – P.S. o o o Record Breaking Silver Factors In 2015 Can Make 2016 Quite Interesting o o o ‘Rich Dad’ author says the 2016 market collapse he foresaw in 2002 is coming – G.G. o o o It’s Official: Canadian Bank Depositors Are Now At Risk Of Bail-Ins – G.G. Excerpt: “Earlier today, Canada’s new Liberal government unveiled a stimulus budget meant to revive slumping growth with a surge in infrastructure spending and said it would run a deficit nearly three times larger than promised during last year’s election.” o …




Economics and Investing:

Study Finds Public Pension Promises Exceed Ability to Pay – G.G. o o o Reader T.A. submitted this article from Zero Hedge: A Glimpse of Things to Come: Canadian Oil Company Liquidates Hours After Bank Demands Repayment o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Puerto Rico’s Financial Crisis Has Been Brewing for 75 Years (Business Insider) Excerpt: “If Puerto Rico and its bondholders are to receive a bailout, it should at least be accompanied by the long overdue privatization of its New Deal structures.” Puerto Rico’s Slide (Bloomberg QuickTake) Excerpt: “It’s a tale of financial mismanagement, Wall Street …




Economics and Investing:

Silver – a Long-Term Perspective o o o Forbes Yanks a Negative Article on JPMorgan While the Bank Pays for Content – P.M. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News To Oppose Free Trade is to Embrace Violence (Mises) Excerpt: “To oppose free trade, on the other hand, is to engage in the imposition of fines, prison terms, and other sanctions on people for engaging in non-violent exchange.” Bernanke: Negative Interest Rates Could Be “Reasonable” (Washington Examiner) Excerpt: “…in a scenario in which the economy weakened and the Fed had already cut short-term interest rates to zero, a …




Economics and Investing:

DOW JONES vs SILVER: Trading Volume Says It All o o o Central banks are already doing the unthinkable – you just don’t know it – G.G. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Including the Ocean Floor, the Feds Own Much More Land than You Think (Mises) Excerpt: “Is US land ownership heavily socialized? Let’s begin answering this question by considering the states with the largest percentages of government-owned lands.” The next post is a commentary from Judge Andrew Napolitano from 2014. It’s an older post, but it’s well worth reading in the context of the broad …




Economics and Investing:

Social Security Administration Beneficiaries Top 60,000,000 – B.B. o o o Subprime Auto Delinquencies Soar Past Crisis Levels, Now Highest In 20 Years – G.G. o o o Items from Professor Preponomics: US News We Need the Pain that Comes with More Saving (Mises) Jacques: When Will the Sky Fall for Detroit Public Schools? (Detroit News) Excerpt: “The district’s latest emergency manager, former bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes, is trying to strike fear into lawmakers this week about the impending cash flow woes, in the hopes that the April 8 deadline will force the Legislature to pass bills to send an …




Economics and Investing:

Greek Banks Admit To Charging Customers To Exchange Big Bills For Smaller Ones – G.G. o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: Bernanke: Monetary Policy ‘Reaching Its Limits’ – Isn’t this what Japan said right before going negative. “We are not considering negative rates”… Silver Soars Post-Fed As Gold Ratio Tumbles Most In 5 Months Items from Professor Preponomics: US News Obamacare Enrollment to Cap at Estimated 14.7 Million Americans (Washington Free Beacon) Excerpt: “Absent a substantial boost in outreach or changes to the subsides to make insurance more affordable, substantial increases in marketplace enrollment are unlikely.” CCAGW Releases 2015 …