Economics and Investing:

From The Daily Bell: David Morgan explains why silver remains the ‘people’s metal’ and why it may be a better investment than gold

Karen H. sent this: Numbers on Welfare See Sharp Increase

DD sent a piece about British ex-pats: Global downturn dashes retirees’ dreams

SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large Michael Z. Williamson sent a link to this lengthy piece: Still Researching Corruption at The Treasury

Items from The Economatrix:

US Says Bonds Seized In Italy Are “Clearly Fake”

Bearer Bonds Saga: Resolution?

Employers Are Undermining The Economic Stimulus Plan “Reports are starting to appear suggesting that laid-off or underemployed Americans, and the long-term unemployed, are losing patience with the Obama administration’s and Congress’ economic stimulus plan, which thus far has not done anything to arrest the growth of unemployment, now at close to 20 percent of the US workforce, at least as unemployment used to honestly be counted in the 1970s and early 1980s.”

Marty Weiss: California Collapsing
“State officials continue to insist that a state default is unthinkable … much like GM executives said their bankruptcy could never happen. In my view, there is a very high probability that California will default. It’s obvious its debt merits a junk bond rating from every Wall Street rating agency. And it’s equally obvious that the ratings agencies are artificially inflating the rating, stalling downgrades, and grossly understating the risk to investors.”

The Recession Tracks The Great Depression

Is American Indebtedness Worse Than Reported?

A Credit Squeeze For Small Business Owners


The Danger of Unemployment

Stocks End Day (Monday) With Worst Losses in Two Months “Dim World Bank forecast for global economy helps sink markets.”

Employers Cutting Back on 401(k) Plans

Mystery Still Surrounds The Ponte Chiasso Affair

The Surreal Life of The US Dollar