WEALTH MISER

IBM got the Tiger by the tail

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 01:03:31 PST

IBM is opening a multi-million dollar lab to develop technologies for China's burgeoning smart grid market.

The $40 million dollar Energy & Utilities Solutions Lab will be located in the IBM China Development Labs in Beijing. The company says it expects the lab, the first for IBM worldwide, to generate $400 million in revenues over the next few years.

"We want to get close to the marketplace so we can work day in and day out with our customers in China," said Matt Wang, vice president of IBM China Development Labs. "China is one of the largest markets for energy and utilities in the world."

State Grid Corp of China, the largest electricity transmission company in the world and the sole power provider for all but five Chinese provinces on the Chinese mainland, has pledged to invest $37 billion in smart grid technologies. Full Story>

Help Wanted Or Pizza and Games?

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 01:03:31 PST

Out of all the economic reports, the monthly Jobs Report is by far the dumbest. This report comes out at 8:30AM EST on the first Friday of each month CNBC calls this report the "Grand Daddy of them all." I rest my case. AT 5 AM doofus interruptus Joe Kernan will start yelling over bad 1980's rock music all about the jobs report… The jobs report comes out and the Dow drops 100 points by 10AM EST. The Yahoo headline "Market tanks due to poor Jobs Report." 3PM Closing bell: the market recovers and turns positive. Bartiroma: "Market rallies on strong Jobs Report." These idiots get away with this shenanigan every month as if the stock elves changed the numbers intraday. duh...

Leading indicators are more important than lagging indicators (like this bogus report of jobs)... How can a number have credibility when it's revised the next month? What if Apple reported earnings one month and then changed it the following month? When a report is revised a month later, it is no wonder why people think the number is "manufactured by the government."

And this time poor weather could affect the report. Look, folks if you're hungry you'll schlep thru 8 feet of snow for a job - I know I did. If you're happy on the dole, you'll sleep til noon, and order a double cheese pizza and go play on your X-Box.

So don't over analyze, play the stocks you planned to play ignore this noise unless it gives you a buy opp in the early hours of trading. If the market is healthy, it will ignore the bad number. If not, we're going to get kicked down the open manhole cover.

Stocks setting up, breakouts working well, market above the 50-day, nice negative sentiment as put buying increases… hey, it sounds like a recipe for higher prices soon!

I need chocolate and champagne.

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 01:03:31 PST

I am posting this because for the life of me, I can't understand what motivates people's behavior these days. My neighbor is having his house interior painted. The painters have been taking their rollers and brushes and rinsing them off with his hose outside on his lawn next to mine. The paint leeched into my lawn and created a lovely white lake. I called his cell phone and home phone and got his answering machines. He and his wife were both home at the time. He never returned the calls.

I finally called the sheriff and the building inspector for the county. I love my state. In a matter of 30 minutes both were at my front door. They spoke to the neighbor. About fifteen minutes later I see the neighbor with his wellies on, and about ten towels and a pail and he is soaking up the mess. A half four later he is out there with his wet vac finishing the job. It pains me to think that in order to be treated fairly, I had to call the authorities. HE never would have done this otherwise. But why would he have let it happen in the first place? –Toxic paint contaminating run-off right under everybody's nose.— If I ever want to plant vegetables there, I can forget about it now. And he has two kids that play in that area! Our garbage service won't even take paint as collection… we have to take it to a special site and everyone in the area knows this.

The good news is that my concerns were dealt with fairly and quickly by the county. If I were still in NYS I could wait til never to get anyone to come out and take care of any problem.

When I got up yesterday I saw a sign on his front lawn. I thought, a for sale sign! Unfortunately it was only the sign for the painters working on the house - I guess he gets a discount for the free advertising. Funny thing is, who would use a painting company that contaminates the neighborhood? And oh by the way, the phone number on the sign doesn't work . I called. I got a psychic network. Go figure.

The real Gold Olympics

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 01:03:31 PST

Edward Meir MF Global on Bloomberg

I took notes off these stories and the BMO metals and mining conference.

One-fifth of copper supply was at risk and now the lights are back on in that region… $3.50 is the HIGH...They buy under $3.15

Newmont Mining

Opportunities: Copper is the 2010 story metal… the market looks terrific - CEO says he sees copper higher... margins are GREAT on copper... Gold jewelry will drive gold prices… his mining in Ghana is a big deal for Newmont

Met Coal and Cliffs Natural Resources

Clifs Nat Resources; CEO says met coal has some supply problems - the world supply is not enough to keep up with China's demand metals figure into a greater part of their GDP than ours... any excess goes to build infrastructure not consumer discretionary like the U.S.

Their iron ore pellets markets are their US based strength and almost all of it is sent to China… their iron business is mainly in large infra plays versus small manufactured products

Gold Corp

The Goldcorp CEO is very bullish on 2010 And this is the worlds second largest gold producer and says its Mexican miner acquisition will supply it with 500,000 ounces of gold a year all of it free because of the other metals mined along with it. He says to buy his company versus the ETF – there is greater upside owning the company because its growth is organic

Royal Gold

The story was very bullish on gold. I own this company. Great team. Acquires companies with lots of fingers in many pots... instant exposure to the top gold reserves in the world that pay year in year out

Obama move over

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

Okay maybe at least a run for governor of New York.

Congratulations again on a great Olympics and hockey game. Wow 14 gold’s... Both countries did great. I love Canada, and it was such an exciting and valiant effort from both sides. Glad they grabbed the gold. There aren't a lot of places that could get me to move. But Canada is definitely one of them… if only it didn't snow so much… and while I am on the subject, it's not a bad idea to park some money into some of those nifty Canadian miners, oil and exploration companies, the tar sands plays, and even a few of their banks.

Let's see if I were in Canada tonight I would toast with a Molson and wash it down with some nice Canadian bacon.

The Bernanke Syllable Show

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

I am sure someone will try to chart some squiggly lines against his every word today but the bottom line is that he is going to say we're going to keep rates low...so chill America… keep intermediate bonds not more than 5 years and statistically these will outperform the S&P 500 - but you must keep your eyes on inflation… rest assured the CPI dipped into neg territory and we have not seen this since 1982 - so where does that leave us ? The Fed is moving off their own theoretical models -we are in uncharted territory here… The MBS mystery -who will start buying that paper? A lot of unknowns.

What happens when they start selling again? A hundred basis points? Who knows?

And that supplemental financing deal? What was that all about?

One guy on CNBC said he was watching Blackstone - debt has not been the place to be..so they are a tell for the rest of the year. Smart guy. Really smart. Nobody got it more wrong than private equity...

FED is form over substance now... He must talk about the banks though... Fed funds rate is not where we want to be… he must make the distinction between a general tightening mode - which we are not in and a " we just want to make banks miserable" yada-yada

Be a willow. Stay limber.

A wealth of health tip of the day...

A technique used by both yoga and Ayurveda to improve flexibility is Nadi Shodhana (Alternate Nostril Breathing). In this pranayama practice, herbs can be used to enhance the cleansing and opening effect upon the nadis (channels of energy), which course through the body's muscles and joints, bringing prana, nourishment, warmth, and moisture for better flexibility with less discomfort. The herbs are also thought to cleanse the muscles and joints of inflammation.

Two common herbs used are turmeric and cinnamon bark. Turmeric has analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties and can help you avoid discomfort associated with strength-building postures by reducing the buildup of free radicals that occurs as your muscle tissues consume oxygen; this also reduces post practice pain and recovery time. Research published in the 1993 Journal of Ethnopharmacology (vol.38) showed turmeric to be a nutrient for connective tissue, stabilizing the collagen fibers and preventing adhesions caused by stress and overstretching.

Who loves cinnamon… and did you know it is considered an aphrodisiac but only when tested with men?

Is Glenn Beck the new Rush Limbaugh?

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

I think he could run for Obama's job and win at this point.

The best Rush can do these days is call Obama “Dumbo” because he has big ears. And poor Rush has gained all that weight back. He looks simply Goodyear Blimp. The man needs to go on the WealthMiser diet – just worry about the market.

Speaking of which here is the list of the great institutional ownership stocks. I am proud to say I own very few!

1. MERCK CO INC (MRK) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 95.83% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): 936 – Accumulated Shares: 1571639808

2. CAREFUSION CORP (CFN) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 92.98% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): 273 – Accumulated Shares: 144441616

3. CITIGROUP INC (C) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 38.31% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -53 – Accumulated Shares: 2681434624

4. E*TRADE Financial Corporation (ETFC) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 21.79% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): 26 – Accumulated Shares: 212750816

5. FORD MOTOR CO (F) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 15.54% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): 33 – Accumulated Shares: 284454016

6. NEW M&I CORPORATION (MI) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 14.24% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -32 – Accumulated Shares: 44258968

7. BOEING CO (BA) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 14.08% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -310 – Accumulated Shares: 73447904

8. FIDELITY NAT INF SVC (FIS) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 11.64% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): 56 – Accumulated Shares: 26298826

9. AVERY DENNISON CP (AVY) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 10.21% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -103 – Accumulated Shares: 9957930

10. Huntington Bancshares Incorpora (HBAN) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 9.38% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -52 – Accumulated Shares: 38880160

11. PFIZER INC (PFE) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 8.8% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): 405 – Accumulated Shares: 462945664

12. GENWORTH FINANCIAL (GNW) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 7.96% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -51 – Accumulated Shares: 34242976

13. PULTE HOMES, INC. (PHM) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 7.77% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -74 – Accumulated Shares: 23089916

14. HONEYWELL INTL INC (HON) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 7.32% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -178 – Accumulated Shares: 44098976

15. TOTAL SYSTEM SVC INC (TSS) – Percentage of Institutional Ownership as a result of recent Accumulation: 5.75% – Net Buyers/(Sellers): -73 – Accumulated Shares: 7227507

Glenn Beck. Rush Limbaugh. Hmmmmmm.

I guess we can't all look like Gary Cooper.

(How could Ayn Rand keep her hands off this man?)

Cheers!

Taking the Tiger by the Tail

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

The Chinese markets are closed this week so now's the time to think about would will happen if we find ourselves in a Rising Inflationary Environment and its Impact on companies:

In a rising inflation environment, you can expect many things on the 'cost' side of the balance sheet to get more expensive. Materials, labor, energy, etc...

Take a company that has a fairly low gross profit margin... Say 8%. Lets say its cost go up by x% due to inflation. The company has two choices:

1) Eating that x% cost increase which will come close to making its new gross-profit margin (8-(x*0.92))%...

2) Try to pass the cost increases to its customers. These companies will, of course, try to do #2 if they can. The problem of course is that if they raise prices, demand for their product could very well drop. Depending on the elasticity of demand for that specific industry, this could cause overall revenues to go down.

Thus for low-margin businesses, the critical component will be their ability to pass on price increases without demand destruction.

A high-margin biz has a much easier problem. Say its gross profit margin is 50% instead of 8%. The formula for its gross-profit margin with a x% cost increase would be quite different at (50-(x*0.50))%. Take an ever higher gross-profit margin business like 80%. The formula for the new gross-profit margin with an x% cost increase would be (80-(x*0.2))%.

Thus a high-margin business has much, much less 'cost increase' as a percentage of its CURRENT price that it needs to 'pass along' to maintain the same margins. Thus it is much easier to do.

I hope this has made some sense or maybe I'm diving deep into economic-madness. That's the reason that I like Chinese companies that fit the bill right now

Glenn Beck is a very funny tea party guy

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

Nial Ferguson was on Glenn Beck the other night. He is a Harvard professor who wrote a great book; The Accent of Money.

I noticed Beck is getting some heavyweights on his show now. Perhaps --Beck's audience numbers are seductive especially if you have a book to hawk...anyway Nial said we either inflate it away or default the debt which are the only two options we have...Ferguson accused Beck of being out in Calif trying to find the next Reagan. Ferguson said America does not want socialism shoved down their throats unlike Europe (sans Calif- the most "euro" state in the US) All the guests all trashed the unions which they blamed for the Europe's troubles...we cannot use Europe as our role model.

The US desire for small government is a lagging indicator i.e. after we see the government we have fail first. We really don't want Europe.

We really don't want big government we have now either. So...Do we lose our rating first and spiral out of control before we see some real change? Is change possible? Would it have changed already if the printing presses broke? Do we need to see a collapse before change happens?

Doherty said every morning 5 billion people wake up with a skill and or product that 5 billion other people need. That is what will save us.

It was an interesting show...

by the way Beck is a very funny man… he does this elite versus the everyday man segment which he does a Charles Laughton kind of takeoff on a pipe smoking tweed type… if he is doing this unscripted - he is very good. In a debate with OB he'd make mincemeat out of Mr. Teleprompter. Regardless of your politics, he was pretty spot on and funny. He is a TV personality for our times, whether we like it or not and Mr Zeitgeist is certainly full of opinions and it is those opinions that are going to make him a very, very wealthy man. Isn't America great?

Michelle Obama of french fries, her diet, and the Chocolate Police

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

Speaking of Glenn Beck featuring heavyweights on his show, perhaps he should have Michelle Obama and her Chocolate Police (read more) ...Who is she to preach about weight? She is on record as saying french fries are her favorite food, looks to be about 30 pounds overweight herself.

Can’t they afford mirrors in the White House - you know the three way kind that you can see your butt in? And honey, those belts do not make you look thinner - they make you look ridiculous.

Yeah I know she's BIG BONED... hahaha... she is hardly the proper spokesperson for telling parents they have fat kids... first of all it looks like she's gained about 20 pounds since taking office... and not from eating WH veggies... it's those Air Force One fat carbon trips to NYC for fancy meals on the taxpayer's dime and those posh 6 course dinners... she listed Hamburger Helper and Cracker Jacks as their favorite snack food... ahem... and she appeared with Paula Deane (the fat queen of butter) where she ate a load of french fries, and never challenged the old greaser. She should hit the treadmill and get her cankles out of our kitchens... is there anything these people DON"T think is their business? What's next - the chocolate cookie dough police?

The Chocolate Confession

Glenn Beck's popularity soars, the Bears slammed on the cheap japanese brakes and threw the market into reverse

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 01:03:31 PST

I knew the plunge yesterday was a joke - there was zero volume ... how deep was this correction you ask?

Here's one take.... The S&P 500 is now nearly as oversold as it was at some of the worst points of the financial crisis. Below is a chart of the S&P 500's trading range using 3 standard deviations above and below the index's 50-day moving average. The index is currently trading right at the bottom of this range, which didn't happen that often during the last bear market. It definitely hasn't been this oversold at any point during the rally. The index is now down 9% from its closing high on January 19th, which is very close to the standard 10% correction.

Market today was like a sheet of glass. You couldn't walk thru it without feeling every inch and making a lot of noise in the process.Materials, Energy, Technology, and Financials are the four sectors down at least 10%. The Consumer Discretionary, Consumer Staples, and Telecom sectors have held up the best throughout this decline.

I did not make any drastic adjustments to my portfolios basically because I did not have a lot of gunpowder..I did manage to add to my CCME, CTRP, and TSTC, because I know one day I will look at these prices and get all nostalgic. I also bought back my FORD, LVS,WYNN and MGM. MY dips included BIDU and GOOG. The xlf bounce was kind of fun.. gave the all clear on the financials... I am long GS again...lol

I am steering clear of gold for awhile and here's why..used to be gold was the default setting for all things non greenback.Yeah, dollar down, gold up...world currencies in freefall, they all used to buy gold. War, pestilence, pay-lin, you bought gold when something made you nervous. But all that seems to be history since gold is now a speculative metal and traded as such..it just isn't all that "stable" anymore...plus when Glenn Beck runs ads for buying gold continuously throughout the hour, you just know it's a whole new ballgame out there for gold...at least that's my take.

I still have gold in my portfolio but not sure for how long. I really prefer the other metals now....

My new positions are PKX (yeah!) PBR, JCI, and CNYD.

My biggest coup of the day however was NOT a stock..I found a gorgeous mahogany Federal style buffet on craigslist and it was just delivered this afternoon while the market recovered. It felt like Xmas times two! I could not believe what I bought it for. I was knee deep in murphy's oil soap, as the truckers held the piece mid air while I scrubbed it down...it was in flawless condition and actually didn't need a bath after all...I was pushing furniture around (amazing what I can move when it has to be moved - I swear I could move a refrigerator if it was driving me crazy ) til I got it in the perfect spot. BTW I bought these "sliders" on QVC that are great -felt on one side plastic on the other... I had the movers slip them under the feet of the buffet so I could push it across the hardwood floor.

I have been checking my new addition every few minutes to make sure I wasn't dreaming the whole thing..the people I bought it from were in the antique furniture auction business which they lost along with their house.Now they run auctions throughout TN for businesses that are going bust like hair salons, and restaurants. Sad really, but in a way I was glad to bring some revenue their way.

My 2009 predictions for 2010

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 01:03:31 PST

The dollar will stabilize - no extreme move one way or another.
Treasuries will go to sleep on the dollar boredom.
Emerging markets will make ours look anemic.
Timmy gets fired. Zeros numbers go down further.
Nancy goes back to picking grapes in NoCal.
There will be one black swan event.
Copper will go thru the roof.
Housing will bottom, but home builders will take off.
GOOGLE will hit 750.
Gold may do the same, but end the year a LOT higher.
Unemployment will drop below 9% because they will lie about the numbers.
Other states will get California-ed.
China will lead the way in alt energy.
CNBC, Cramer and Kudlow et al. will continue to irritate and we will continue to complain.

Cheers and Happy New Year...

Prediction 2010 on the US Dollar

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 01:03:31 PST

The concurrent dumping of our dollars will cause a monetary collapse. A new world currency will foment and be managed by the big banks and central bankster’s. Not next year or even the year after, but the next few.... and by the way... the Chinese are very smart.

The “Cash for Clunkers” program — wasn’t about jump-starting our economy. Ya see, China didn't want any further exposure to our crappy currency and refused to accept dollars as payment for financial credit to the US Government. Better to have steel, copper and platinum as payment. And so our beloved clunkers were crushed and sent to China in exchange for Chinese loans.

I wonder what that steel will be reincarnated and sold back to us as.

Our markets continue to power higher… tis the season to be selling puts... fa la la la la la la la... gold seems to be correcting - lets hope it trades down a bit now and takes a breather as the dollar makes like Donner and Blitzen.

Is it just me or is the idea of sitting out these holiday gyrations gaining appeal?

The Bah Humbugger

And a Merry Holiday Retail Event to You

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 01:03:31 PST

As an adult I am convinced both are now myths. I think they can now arrest you in certain states for saying Merry Christmas anyway. And retail is now a national sporting event with the Chinese in the bleachers cheering us on.
Instead of celebrating the birth of Christ, we now celebrate the birth of GDP numbers on the 26th.
And this year we seem to be totally focused on the economy and if the retail customer will deliver the goods sans reindeer and all that chimney stuff. Mention coal and it's all about your carbon footprint or an invitation to invest in a coal plant in Kentucky. Don't ‘ya know all kids are good now anyway?

So how is this year shaping up?

The NRF seems to think that shoppers are delaying purchases waiting ‘til the last minute to get better deals. The stores stocked for a lower then expected Christmas and will run out of selection. So we'll see flat to higher prices and better than expected margins on the reports in Q1 of 2010. The reports of frenzied buying and out of stock items this coming week because we have almost an entire week the brats are out of school before Christmas arrives.

None of it sounds particularly appealing. I am sitting this one out. The only ones getting coal this year are the shorts.

Tis the season for selling puts... la la la la la la.....

Picture courtesy of "Christmas in Connecticut"

Goldman Sachs just bought Santa Claus

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 01:03:31 PST

If you are wondering what will drive stocks higher over the next two weeks, Santa Claus and the end of year window dressing. If you are curious about what can drive equities higher over the next three months, M&A activity, share buybacks and continued improvement in the economy, including employment.

Commodity related stocks are trending higher for two reasons: Asia and cheap dollars. At some point, the dollar will go up, which will kill the price of gold. However, if growth continues to strengthen, industrial commodities will continue to be bought in size.

Technology stocks have led the way higher, during this recent bull stampede. In total, corporations have approx. $800 billion in cash, which can be used for mergers and acquisitions, dividends, buybacks, etc. and M&A activity will explode into mid 2010, but what worked yesterday may not work tomorrow. Basing your investment philosophy around the dollar is dumb. Granted, it has been a tell, of the last 19 bull markets lasting 9 months or more, 95% of them continued to trade higher over the next 12 months.

Yowza.

How about a nice cup of gold bullion?

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 01:03:31 PST

It's the most wonderful time of the year as we all get ready to part with our plastic and proceed to outdo the neighbors decorations, last year's electric bill, and last but not least our unfulfilled expectations of Christmas’s past. Just as Ebenezer get visited by his ghosts of past transgressions, I think we all get a dose of the Christmas wrath, er I mean wreath.

Who can forget the Christmas you didn't get the Howdy Doody lunch pail you specifically pointed out to your mother, or the hula hoop and poodle skirt with the red rhinestones? Well I say bah humbug this year and break with tradition...now put down that sugar cookie and get yourself a bit of GLD gold on this temporary non fattening dip. Silver is also taking a breather here, so instead of buying some overpriced piece of Indian crap on Gem TV, get yourself on to the SLV train. And after working up a thirst running thru malls and such, order yourself a Keurig coffee maker and enjoy the bliss of the one cup kingdom of joy to the world... And besides I own a boatload of GMCR!

Okay, you can finish that sugar cookie now....and if you buy any of the aforementioned stocks, I will stuff your stocking full of coal that Obama is selling really cheap on eBay... Happy Holidays!

The White House Party Crashers

Sat, 28 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

The latter allegedly occurred trying to escape a domestic squabble over a National Enquirer story concerning "another woman." And America crashed on their couches, spilled gravy on their Snuggies, and slept off an overeating binge of turkey, booze, and bad football.

The Black Friday numbers look terrific - outdoing the hordes from last year. And nobody got trampled!

As for the Salahi’s who pushed their way thru the gates of the White House, I hope they press charges against those two wannabe poseur freeloaders that got face time with Obama - turns out nothing on her Facebook is true… but on the plus side, retail sales of saris should be healthy

And as for Dubai, an Arab country that needed cash decided to pee on our drumsticks?

First they overbuilt a bunch of ugly buildings, then they pick the most capitalist of holidays to explode their debt issues. They pick the one day America celebrates its bounty, the fruits of its labor. The "I made it, I get to enjoy it" day of the year.

Where Christmas is about giving, Thanksgiving is all about taking and extra helpings.

Ayn Rand would approve of such a holiday. She would not however, approve of the Arab's recent behavior toward it. Or their architecture.

A Fred and Ginger tonic

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

One of those days that at 10 am it looked like dusk.(I just loved days like that as it reminded me of so many childhood days along Lake Erie and the gorgeous dramatic lake effect snowfalls.) The city looked like 1930 all over again.

I was between jobs and attending the New School's writing workshop and woke up feeling I needed a boost or a divergence to too many hours of writing with not much to show for it. So I wrapped myself up in my fur coat (a vintage looking sheared beaver I recall) and indulged in a cab ride over to the west side to see "Flying Down to Rio" at the Regency, an old theater on Broadway that still had the old organ an old gal was playing before the movie big dusty red velvet curtains and gilt edged balconies that saw more than their share of mid afternoon trysts I imagine. It's amazing who you see at a matinee for an old Depression era movie on a Wednesday – Mostly much older modestly dressed Eastern European types who live in rent controlled apartments and wear large lapel pins on their cloth coats. And who were probably around to see this movie when it first came out. Also a few artsy type film buffs, a couple of kids playing hooky from Dalton and yours truly.

Seeing Fred and Ginger time stepping to the Latin rhythms and the silly libretto of unrequited love were delicious. And those Busby Berkley numbers on the big screen where they are dancing on the head of the old airplane is I am sure worth at least three hours of intense therapy with the city's best shrinks. I came out of that movie totally enthralled and energized. I even treated myself to a cappuccino and a biscotti at the Cafe des Artistes before hailing the cab home to Murray Hill (yes I went slumming on the west side!) in just enough time to start fixing dinner for my husband.

I thought about all this tonight as I watched it again on Turner this evening. Not only was it just as enjoyable viewing it on a much smaller screen, it was a wonderful whiff of nostalgia laced between the dance numbers that made me appreciate the time I spent in New York and that dark snowy afternoon watching a Depression movie that certainly was anything but.

Cheers!

Putting the thankful back in Thanksgiving...

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

Rather than ruminating on about fried or roasted T-Birds… or Obama, or the economy, or early Christmas bargains, or football, I'd like to thank the following in a random stream thinking...

My husband for being my best friend and my right arm for the past twenty some odd years, and for thinking that even my wildest ideas were always within reach.. my grandmother for my childhood... my father for learning how to be my father before he died... my first grade teacher who wanted to adopt me, to my mother who finished my jumper in high school so I didn't flunk Home Ec… my sisters for not killing me, my first boy friend for TS Eliot, James Joyce and John Donne, to my second boyfriend for getting up at 7 am every morning to drive me to my theory class in 7 feet of snow in Rochester NY... to Buffalo and the Peace Bridge and the old houses on Elmwood and Linwood that I sought refuge in… to New York City for being the best playground a dreamer could imagine in… Bette and Kate for giving up New England and becoming actresses… whoever invented dairy free frozen yogurt… the Rue Jacob where I will build my bunker if the world gets too ugly… Carol Reed for almost losing his mind shooting the Third Man… to Tennessee for being friendly and asking nothing in return… and to my dog Chauncey who taught me how to smile and a special thanks to chocolate, butterscotch and all things hummingbird...

Now about that turkey...

Comsumers flip Walmart the bird

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

Puhleeze! Who shops the week BEFORE Black Friday? We know now that the consumer has been trained Pavlovian... And hell this isn't our first Thanksgiving is it? We know the drill. It's becoming less about the bird and more about the hunt... when the last bite of pumpkin pie is swallowed on Thursday evening, fats ass America loads its collective girth into belching SUVs and heads to the front of the line at the mall waiting for the doors to open. Do these pundits really think we're going to sit out the sporting event of the year? Why sit on the couch watching another boring football game when you ARE ESPN if only for just day? Why it's un-American!
I think this Christmas is going to surprise a lot of people. Shopping is our national pass time- you don't think something like an old job gone bye-bye is going to mean squat do you? (Personally I have found jobs to be way overrated anyway) Besides, we all know grandparents spend up the wazoo for their little darlings and how many of them are employed?

From Pavlov’s Dogs to Their Own Worst Enemies

Here's the drill -the reason there is some much sh$#^%$%^t out there is because the consumer has told the manufacturer based on previous holidays just how much she is willing to spend of said item… He then goes back to the drawing board and thinks, well there's no way I can make this for that price so I will dumb down the product to be able to sell it for that - cheap labor, cheap out the materials, yada-yada… and low and behold, there is agreement - the consumer is happy and so is the manufacturer… they play this little game at retail wherein said manufacturer or store sets the price higher than they know the consumer will spend. Then they start the mark-down sham - it's almost a bid & ask kind of game… I overheard one guy who challenged the 40% off sign was the price on the shirt at 40% off already or could be take an additional 40% off? Consumers have learned how much wiggle room there is in that price and everything is negotiable... If a purchase order is written for 100k the factor makes the money on the 100k but the store will only make money-off the discounted price...maybe 80k if he's lucky. But the lucky factor charges 5% on 100k not the 80k… Not bad for a day's work. And of course all of this raises the cost of goods and merchandising - the factor is just a bank, and the store must raise the price or lower his costs to make a profit. Unfortunately, the consumer has made the former nearly impossible making for a real conundrum. So the bottom line is basically that it sucks to be in retail. Unless you're a factor - who gets a nifty 5% every thirty days - even GS would like that kind of action.

Everybody wants to get something for nothing. Bragging rights. Ego gratification. Feeling smarter than the next guy. But everyone is so shocked to drive by the malls and see out of business signs! You can't have it both ways.

Retail is great. There just isn't enough money these days to sustain it. Just one of the little perks of living in the “me” first world. Rock on.

Obama freezes his butt off in Seoul

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

See - this is where Michelle should have stepped up to the plate and gone in his place - she has a lot more "insulation" around the derriere - I betcha she would hardly feel those sub zero temps whereas he could barely walk down those Air Force One steps… do you know he's taken more trips than any other president to date save the old fart Bush? How big is this guy’s carbon footprint? Remember when Gore flew around the world polluting the air with his private plane pumping his global warming movie? Well this is worse - Mr. Cap & Trade Obama is talking both sides of his wallet here... I am surprised he didn't insist on one of those fancy airbus planes - you know the caddy-lack of planes....
Besides, are all these trips really accomplishing anything except giving him a larger audience to feed his massive narcissism? That and the fact that he gets all these neat state dinner invites for him and the not so little woman... I'd go so far as to say, they probably went to China just for the food. They seem like the type that shows up whenever there's a free meal - holdover from their leaner on the road to riches days.
It's not like he moved the ball any with the Chinese… they at best drew their lines in the sand, or to use another metaphor agreed on which trees they would pee on… Obama wants China to support them with regards to Iran and China want the reciprocal with their deals with Taiwan... Russia has weighed in on North Korea versus China still dancing around that grenade. Getting China to agree to reduce their collective carbon footprints at the expense of the Chinese economy? – Never gonna happen.— China will never agree to anything that would threaten their growth. They would never agree to anything that would isolate them from the rest of the Asian world. They hate being singled out. They want to be looked upon as a player even if it's not true. It's all about appearances ya know. They want respect and acknowledgement. They proved that during the Olympics. The US and China have each other in the cross hairs with regards to the currencies - it's a dead heat standoff so nothing was settled on that score. And to make matters worse, Obam-Mao is anything but a symbol of capitalism and Western thought… the Chinese people view him as more Marxist than some of their leaders! The only question I have is how clever will the Chinese be on the gold hording? Wait til their central bank does an India. Can you say 2 grand an ounce?

What a useless trip. What a waste of time. Obama should have saved some taxpayer money, saved the planet some pollution, and took care of his healthcare mess here at home. Clinton, another freeloader who never turned down a free meal pretty much stayed home his first two years and took care of business. Obama and his ego however, will do anything for a photo op and a free meal. – Ditto, Queen Michelle.— They only seem to be happy when they are out of the White House eating off someone else's dime. What a perfect politician mindset. And from the looks of his approval numbers it looks like the voters can't stomach this kind of behavior either.

The latest CBS News poll shows that Obama only has a 38 percent approval rating.

Has the middle class in NYC fallen down a collective manhole?

Fri, 13 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

I recently read an article that said the city has fallen victim to the recession with massive layoffs in the financial and real estate and tourist businesses. Restaurants are hurting and so are retailers across the boards and no where is that felt more than in the middle class. And now the city is in a financial fiscal crisis and is planning on cutting services across the boards and raising taxes. The Democrats in their state senate are denying there is even a problem and blame the governor for inflating the crisis to cut spending. The rich are fleeing before the taxman comes, and the middle class are struggling daily to stay afloat hoping the economy recovers before they run out of unemployment benefits.

This is from the article — The global financial crisis began in Manhattan, and its effects are being felt far more strongly there than elsewhere. Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the situation is critical. Millions are fighting to keep their jobs. Is what is happening in New York today a harbinger of the fate of the rest of the world?

They still remember how things used to be. That's part of the problem. New York's heroes, the men and women who only yesterday considered themselves the knights and conquerors of Manhattan, remember all too well what New York was like in the 1970s -- the era before seven-figure salaries came to the Big Apple.

They remember -- and they see the signs. That's why they're afraid.

Tom Birchard, the owner of the Veselka diner, says he adopted the New York walk in the 1970s: fast, determined, always scanning two blocks ahead, looking behind you every 10 steps or so, staying more than arms-length away from doorways, and crossing the street or even turning around altogether if two or more black men came towards you.

I had to laugh when I read that last sentence. I used to live in NYC and I remember “the Walk” – it was just something you intuitively did to the rhythm of the city. It was like a dance, Someday you could even hear the music of the city – horns, traffic, construction, voices. One didn’t just cross the street – you danced to the beat of the city’s cacophony. People refer to it as “energy” of the city. Whatever it was, it was fun. I miss that. I felt my “edge” when I lived there. True it wears you down after awhile, but I digress…

Of all the cities I lived in, nowhere do the poor and rich rub elbows as often as they do in NYC… And that’s good and bad. When I was a starving artist, I used to envy the rich as they darted out of their limos on the way to expensive lunches and places like Bergdorf’s. Being a have-not in NYC bordered on the cruel, because so much wealth was literally under your nose. So I can understand why if you lost your job in NYC you’d have to leave as it costs so much just to survive month to month.

I am sure NYC will come back from the dead. It’s just going to do it minus a lot of worker bees who can live a lot better for a lot less with a much less stressed gait to boot.

I know I did, and never looked back. NYC is one of those experiences that you are glad you did it when you did because you sure wouldn’t do it now.

Glenn Beck is a recovering alcoholic

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

They say you never fully recover from alcoholism. You learn how to manage it. In Beck’s case it looks like he’s doing just fine drinking in his millions in royalties… In my case, I am addicted to my past – and I can’t shake it.

I think I know why they call it high school now. It’s the high point of your character development.

Not necessarily the high point of my life however. It’s not like it was downhill from there. Hardly.

It’s that I can’t stop thinking of myself as that kid sitting in Science class tossing pez at my girlfriend in the third row, worrying about the biology midterm I was not prepared for, and wondering what it would be like to kiss Mark Lesniowski. All 75 pounds wrapped in Villager box pleats and oxford.

There must be some unwritten law that reads that no matter what you maintain later on in life, you never get to cross that line if you were not cool in high school. I would say that at best, I was pseudo cool – Left of center cool versus mainstream peer accepted cool – I was where they put all the creative types versus the jock types.

How un-cool was I? I never went to the finals for Junior Varsity cheerleading thinking I didn’t have a chance only to find out later from my gym teacher I would have been selected had I shown up.

My first lesson in not quitting.

In some way I thought I was spared the immense responsibility for a fifteen year old of being expected to be totally cool 24/7. Kids are very unforgiving, and they don’t miss a thing. At least there were days when I could be off my game and get away with it.

I recently got to see pictures of my high school reunion and was amazed at how differently people aged. Some looked like my grandmother! A few of the chosen cool did fall their perch thru the years, and became fat middle aged golfers. But for the most part, the mainstream A list cool kids looked amazing for their age. So maybe there is something to this “you are your destiny at fifteen” theory after all.

If I could go back and do it all over, I’d do it right the second time.

As it were, one guy from my high school emailed me recently after we all posted our pictures and bios on the reunion site . It said, “you probably don’t remember me, but that’s okay. I just wanted to say that after all these years, I think you should have been home coming queen and not Barb Fallis.”

It made my day.

A recovering fifteen year old WealthMiser.

Why wasn't I born in Paris?

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

I was watching "Mon Oncle" last night on TCM and thought about how it would feel to live in a small apartment in Paris perhaps over a bakery run by a kindly Boulanger who used me as her guinea pig, And where everyday I would walk to the market and have pleasant exchanges with the locals, stopping for a café au lait and a brioche while reading Le Figaro. I’d have a small apartment filled with antiques and books and red Czech crystal chandeliers.

Or perhaps I would live across the street from a couterier who would let me play at her feet with yards of muslin

I have always felt a kinship to Europeans even before I made my first trip. I always thought if things got really bad at home, I would just go to Europe and buy a villa as they were very cheap back in the late 1950's. I might have been the only ten year old in Buffalo to regularly check the prices of villas on the Mediterranean. It was my safety net. I just had to figure how I would get there, and fleeing my parents.

It's their fault anyway. I fell in love with Europe after my parents too me to see Lili with Leslie Caron. I ached to go to Europe and begged my mother to send me to the Sorbonne!

As a teenager, when all my friends were gaga over the Beach Boys, I was paying homage to Jean Paul Belmondo with a large black and white poster I hung over my bed. The way that cigarette dangled over his enchantingly swollen lower lip was intoxicating. I studied French in high school and tried desperately not to get a crush on my French teacher. I must have seen the Umbrellas of Cherbourg five times. The lives that came to me via the movies was the fodder of my future life – or at least as I wanted it to be… Polanski’s Knife in the Water, the Italian classic 8½, La Dolce Vita, The Ipcress File, The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner and so many others. I got to see all of these at a small local movie theater I would either drag my poor mother with me to see or my girlfriend who lived across the street and was equally seeking anyplace that wasn’t the suburbs in 1966.

I made my first trip after high school and by the time I got there I felt like I knew the place already. I realize now how those early films had such shaped me for life.

I found it all very familiar in a strange way – perhaps I lived there in another life – or at least that’s what a fortune teller told me once. How else could I explain being on streets in Paris that I knew my way around yet was never there before? I rarely got lost in Paris. (But put me in Los Angeles and I could barely find my way home after 7 years of living - if you want to call it that - there.)

Maybe I am thinking about all this now because of the current zeitgeist of fear and loathing anything American. The ugly American has risen once again. And every page of every newspaper is singing death to America - a nation of various factions of morally bankrupt subsets of corruption.

Losing faith in our ability to carry on as before has set the stage for musing.

I like where I live but it seems these days everything around it is not to be trusted.

I watched a recent episode of Mad Men where Don and his bored wife go to Italy. While there, they play out this fantasy of being lovers and not husband and wife to the amusement of the locals.

I guess that’s my point. There’s Westchester. And then there’s the Via Sistina.

As they say, vive la difference.

Halloween horror under a full moon

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 01:03:31 PST

Anybody else notice the something for nothing-ers were out in incredible force last night? Look, I am all for helping the destitute - I give to charity both in hours and dollars, but this is something different. This is a gimme-gimme scam. I'd say the numbers were easily double that of last year. I turned up my street just as it got dark and the traffic was horrific… every old broken down clunker was ambling up our street (upscale where all the "good" candy is) and dropping off their kids who looked more like characters out of some Dickensian nightmare... (Can you tell I don't like Halloween?) In years past I would set out a spooky table where on the honor system you were asked to take two pieces of candy and be on your merry dental way. I could imagine what that would have been like this year… I also noticed the "kids" this year were a bit older - okay not as old as Gore Vidal - but close! It almost seemed like they just walked off a tea party and came over to our neighborhood!

Halloween is now a victim of our economy... a self - imposed food drive!
As I was turning into the "estate" section of our sub, I was having a hard time maneuvering around the umpteen pickups and SUVs… I drive a large car, and as I passed, someone rolled down their window and yelled something (I assume unpleasant) to me I did not hear... but suddenly this new social order they are talking about literally hit home.

This year, Halloween was not a holiday. It was an imposition for me and a get something for nothing for others.

OTHER BOTG observations...
Walmart candy aisle was empty - not of people - of candy! I actually saw two mothers fighting over the last jumbo bag of Reese’s mini-cups... The veggie aisle was also empty and I caught the produce guy talking to a head of lettuce.

BTW - Walmart is no longer Walmart. This recession has driven the sub middle class out and the middle class in - and hence the prices are higher now in Walmart to reflect the new demographics... the stores have all been revamped. the greeters are forty, and the carts now have a wipe station. It's almost civilized... what's this country coming to when you can't even trust Walmart to undercut their competition and put ma and pa out of business… too bad about ma and pa - they would probably be able to get their old customers back now.

So Walmart gets knocked off the Saturday list.
What's the point of shopping there of you can't go slumming and get a great bargain? One whiff of inflation spooked me silly.

Real Estate - my sources tell me they closed five mortgages this week, and fifteen refi’s - end of month ya know - they said business has been GREAT.

My girlfriend that runs the church consignment store says sales have doubled, but inventory is low.

By the way did you know that Halloween is one of Pizza Huts best holidays for orders? And under a full moon tonight, say mozzarella.

Do you have a depression mentality?

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

My mother has it. I think I inherited it from her… or perhaps imposed upon me by her behavior.

I think it's; kept me out of trouble most of the time. I hate being taken advantage of and I so love a bargain more than anything else. I watched TCM last night all three movies that dealt with that theme and was shocked at how timely they were. My favorite was “Faithless” with Bankhead, and of course the Match King – brilliant movie. Going forward was sweet –I do love Barrymore. And they were all so amazingly spot-on with today's tone. Anyone that says this time is different is quite potty...

Check out what the Misses says about the GD:

Also the Lords of Finance is another great read on the subject… and the author clearly says there is no way we ever see another depression again... whew!

Guess it's safe to get some gold on eBay, but alas the price per gram is not user friendly to this depression-minded shopper...

Calling Glenn Beck on Socialism for the Wealthy

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Let's flip this Obama Joe the Plumber share the wealth idea, shall we?

Look at the banks - they played with the unwashed 's money, lost it, and got bailed out once again with poor joe the plumbers paycheck... so there's your model - just pretend your are Goldman Sachs!

Joe the plumber can't make ends meet because he just lost his job so he stops buying big gas guzzler cars. And with that, the large 1996 mercedes 500 sec coupe on eBay sees a nice haircut in its price and folks like me buy it on sale.

I need some work done around the house... there are so many construction workers out of work I can name my price - four years ago these guys would not even return my phone calls.

More houses go into foreclosure causing price decay... I am looking for a vacation house, and second homes are the first to go from any household looking to cut back. Once again I am in the driver's seat.

A long as Obama does not raise taxes for awhile, it looks like there is something to this silly socialist stuff. Am I exploiting poor Joe? Nope - just doing my share to keep the economy going - a girls' gotta do what a girl's gotta do - now about that gold charm bracelet on eBay...

Cheers

The ugly side of the global marketplace

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Guess they didn't want those Kronas with that side of fries eh?
"Costs had doubled over the past year because of the fall in the Krona currency and high import tariffs on imported goods, Ogmundsson said, making it impossible for the company to raise prices further and remain competitive with competitors that use locally sourced produce.

A Big Mac in Reykjavik already retails for 650 Krona ($5.29). But the 20 percent increase needed to make a decent profit would have pushed that to 780 Krona ($6.36), he said.

That would have made the Icelandic version of the burger the most expensive in the world, a title currently held jointly by Switzerland and Norway where it costs $5.75, according to The Economist magazine's 2009 Big Mac index.

Eh, what's Icelandic for "rip off"?

So it's back to washing down sardines with the Grey Goose instead of a greasy burger.

Fox Wins the War

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

More people watch Fox now than any other channel.... I guess that makes it the most powerful channel in the world... and Obama, the media darling, is not invited to the party... The man who wants to control what you watch and read on the internet has shot himself in the foot.

The republicans wants Ailes, head of Fox, to run for President... this is a good start.... maybe Rupert runs his cabinet!

Poor ex-jockcaster Olberman is talking to himself I guess… so his impediment heavy Chris Matthews… so O’Reilly is numero uno, and Beck boy weighs in at number two. Paddy Chayefsky could not create a more perfect media character. The 25-54 demographic has voted with their remotes - if the election for Obama was re-held today, ya think he'd still win? I don’t.

Like Newt said - it's bad enough he got the Nobel for doing nothing… what's worse, he got elected President on that platform too.

UK conspiracy uncovered

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

My remote accidentally landed on -egads - network station ABC....and I can find no other explanation for the existence of Dancing With The Stars, American Idol, and whatever else made it over here form the pond-scum that passes for entertainment in the UK... Why don't they use their own waste management facilities instead of dumping their garbage onto our visual landfill?

Yeah I know the vox populi loves that stuff - explains why they get away with murder in Washington - everybody is too busy watching Donnie Osmond do the jitterbug to notice.... ha-ha-ha......

Could Glenn Beck Be A Woman

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

I pondered this the other night watching him go toe to toe with the White House. Would a woman be so bold as to take on the entire government and call them a bunch of whiney cry babies?

He does no less than make a mockery of his red phone alert (he has begged them to call him). He even has enlisted carrier pigeons! Clearly he is not afraid to show his emotional side – he has cried on more than one occasion, not that I think that’s more female than male but it’s not everyday a guy cries over healthcare issues.

And given his show’s high ratings, will we see more upswing of emotional reporting and newsfotainment... instead of objective, balanced journalism?

Come to think of it, Glenn Beck makes Ann Coulter look positively butch.

Considering burning your dollars?

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

This British chap seems to think the dollar is just fine - he'll take yours off your hands if you don't think it's worth anything...and he's got a Noble Laureate in his corner to boot...read on mes amies...

By 2030, the two dominant economies in the world will be the U.S. and India, not China. Europe is toast. Forget the Euro as a threat. China's agriculture, technology and medical advances will keep ramping for the next twenty yeas at least. But for now I tend to agree with Pritchard basically because who wants to buy groceries with Euros at Kroger?

Get a little richer idea: save those dollars don't spend ‘em.

Get a little smarter idea: Watch Charlie Rose on Bloomberg.

Get a little thinner: Find an alternative to fast food… now! Or do what Rush Limbaugh did - cut the amount of calories consumed per day - he looks fantastic!

The war between the Hound and the Fox

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Is Obama so thin-skinned he can't tolerate the fox attacks? How can the president wage war against one TV station – isn’t he supposed to be the president of all the people? How myopic! How narcissistic!

The hound being Glenn Beck who keeps sniffing out the neatest garbage on the whole sleazy story.

Yet Obama is willing to bail out the newspapers, turning all newspapers into a version of NPR - a government run control the content enterprise… now that's scary....all at a time when the blog sphere is rife with opinion - even OB can't stop the vox populi... although they are going to try from what I understand...his internet czar is one person to watch...

OB and the wife are glib speaker/ex-lawyers who think they can talk their way thru the pesky parts of their presidency cause they are so much smarter than the room… so I say both are narcissists with a big dollop of money grubbing and celebrity mongering and contempt for anyone who has more than they do.

From an article "Fox Reaches Across Party lines" –
Monday, October 19, 2009 9:59 AM
By: Dick Morris & Eileen McGann

Could it be that the Obama Administration is concerned about Fox News not because it is “an arm of the Republican Party” but because it is so widely seen among Democrats and Independents?

That the two top spokespeople for the administration this Sunday (Emanuel and Axelrod) both chose to attack Fox News – showing how obsessed this thin-skinned president is with his coverage. It is truly amateur hour at the White House from the top down.

The phone survey was taken from a statistically valid national sample of 800 registered voters. Some 36 percent of the respondents said they voted for more Democrats than Republicans while 32 percent said they voted for more Republicans. 24 percent said they voted equally for each party.

Get a little richer today - too late - AAPL earnings already out... is rimm next? hmmmm

Get a little smarter today - watch less TV - and read more - (my past posts!!)

Get a little thinner today… eat a banana. They control hunger...

Nader says

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

The blast from the past thinks he is weak, ineffectual, a wuss to corporate America, and thinks he loses Congress in 2010 if he doesn't change soon.

But the worst offense - Obama has "turned his back on the very people" who voted him into office. They can't get in the front door of the White House , while there's a nonstop revolving door for the hordes of corporate execs, speculators and criminals that have received invitations there."

The media darling however has been rather decisive in one area - he is committed to having lots of parties in the White House (the latest being some kind of Latino Festival where he was photographed dancing the night away with chunky Michelle as she worked off those tacos.. . This was clearly a Nero fiddles while Rome burns moment since on that particular day he made zero head-way on his healthcare mudslide and continued to downplay the Nobel nod... and from Nobel to no belle we have Michelle! Clearly for a woman who dug up all those organic veggies in that photo-opp spread, that Amazon doesn't look like she's been within 20 feet of an organic turnip lately. How many vegetarians do you know that look like a middle linebacker in designer duds?

Could I have a gold bar with that chocolate truffle?

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

The move comes as gold prices have been going through the roof. On Wednesday, they hit another record high of $1,072 an ounce. I guess the Brits are just as nervous as the rest of the world and are ready to spend $462,440 a bar for the pleasure of sharing the wealth.... Who do they know that is THAT special? Quite a gift to find in your stocking... Customers can buy the gold through Harrods financial arm Harrods Bank, which is located in the central London's department store.

And I thought I was splurging when I used to buy champagne truffles in their delightful food halls. So much for passing the wedge of Stilton and a glass of port to celebrate the holidays. The bar -- has been raised!

What are they smoking in Norway besides the salmon?

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

"Some people say — and I understand it — 'Isn't it premature? Too early?' Well, I'd say then that it could be too late to respond three years from now," Thorbjoern Jagland, chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, told the AP. "It is now that we have the opportunity to respond — all of us." I mean come on... they are shaming the guy into not invading Lichtenstein (my personal favorite as I can never spell it.)

Alas, for a glib narcissist ex lawyer, OB is just full of never realized good intentions - add another one to his arsenal of non - accomplishments. Let's see, I wonder if I can get a peace prize for trying to mend fences with my crazy relatives...lol

If Everyday were Saturday

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Saturday is the day you do what you want... when the muse beckons, ESPN is yours for the taking, or you can flex those creative muscles in a thousand different directions. If you are unhappy with your 9-5 life all the other days, look to Saturday for clues as to where you might be happier... for instance I know a lot of people that would trade the stock market full time if they could. They are sure they would be more profitable and yes, a lot richer if given the opportunity. And so they struggle between full time job and the true love of the markets…

The bittersweet taste of what we must to do versus the lure of what we desire… Next time they make Earth, perhaps we should have 100 weeks in a year, 90 minutes to an hour and oh yes, a body clock that needs three hours of sleep!

Me? I am filling up on TCM this weekend starting with Bette Davis in Juarez... how can you beat that?

Get a little richer by getting a little happier? Perhaps... perhaps...

Best get a little richer today idea... Cash in your gold scrap while the going's good.

Best GLR investment idea today - watch Google... it reports this Thursday... Should be quite a ride

If you buy any Google on this note, they will send out your email to a bunch of demented 8 year olds.

Cheers!

The Swine Flu

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Gold's new all-time high territory $1041 an ounce was a shocking morning event - and I ma sure Bernanke was none too pleased and suddenly no one cared about buying masks or getting vaccines as the gold stocks took off and never looked back. Mr. Dollar plummets once again to its paper grave… we can now use the dollar when we run out of Angel Soft. Why that green paper with Ben Franklin on the front won't get you much at the pump soon or on the world gas station (OPEC) Me? I am thinking shelf liners or wall covering... make yourself a little richer... buy a bit of gold… i.e. AUY GLD or nay other gold stock - just throw a damn dart... if you do any of this you will be visited by the gold devil... helter smelter...

An Opinion of Obama

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Moore calls him the future Roosevelt of the 21st century! ...says he's faking right and going left like any decent basketball player does... and the jury is still out... says if he does what he elected him to do, he's willing to give him the benefit of the doubt... when he said we overthrew the democratic government in Iran, he got Moore's vote for being so audacious... blames the spineless Dems in Congress for Obama's ills… and that they are worse than the Repubs... also said if he still is sending troops to Afghanistan in 5 months he will inherit it as Obama's war.

He also admitted he cried the day he voted for Obama he was so relieved to get the chance to finally vote for this guys after so many years of persecution Of course this comes from the guy that got booed off the stage at the Oscars in 2002 for questioning the war he says we invaded illegally and immorally...

But here's the best part of this love fest - guess who is Michael Moore's agent? Why none other than Ari Emanuel! You know who's brother!

Why what a coincidence!

I decided to put in Gary Coopers pic instead of Michael Moore because he looks so much better than the Pillsbury Doughboy on helium look Moore seems to favor these days… uhg... put down the raw cookie dough will ya?

Get a little richer...

GS anointed the banks today… need I say more, compadre?

My best bargain...

ebay has some nifty free shipping offers right now… check em out… oil is going up...

Cheers!

Is Glenn Beck:

Mon, 05 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

Katie Couric in a recent interview asked him what party he was with and he couldn't give her a straight answer because on certain issues he's conservative, but felt he was leaning towards libertarian the more Obama opens his mouth. It got me thinking how useless these labels are becoming.
Labels are so over-simplistically" either/or" especially with what's happening right now ...most of us fall into the gray area of none of the above... Glenn Beck never really did answer but in his case I think it had more to do with not offending any end of his readership as his books are number one on all the lists right now… anyway getting back to the liberal conservative difference - what difference does it make in the end anyway?

We all end up in the same cesspool of unrest… an unregulated market is the road to prosperity versus you need a government controlled fiscal policy to stimulate the economy equals a messed up capitalistic system that will breed a lot of social unrest at a time when the world will have its own fish to fry with the same issues.

Pelligrini is the Money Machine That Never Gave Up

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

His name is Paolo Pellegrini. And here's the story of the guy that "called" the bubble… the guy whose fund returned 590% the year the market crashed... so listen up... this guy can manage my money any day… bet he makes a mean marinara too!

It's Fall Y'all

Get a little richer today...

Investors typically ignore the Dollar, but now is a time to pay attention to it.

Do your DD on UUP.

My windshield report... Got the car washed and used my discount coupons...whoopee, got some great bargains on shelf liners (49 cents) and some dollar wreaths at the local resale shop... and found a great bookshelf on craigslist for 85 dollars...Almost bought a 5 foot crabapple tree on sale for 29 dollars but still not sure about how much sunlight it's going to get in the area I am thinking about.

Saturdays were meant for shopping not schlepping water bottles back and forth!

Money saving water filters are on sale here..

Today's richest website... This weekend's richest TV programming Mad Men. No contest.

Cheers!

The Ego has landed

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

So much for rock cult status and his global appeal. I’d say he flunked that test… and why did he fly in that silly looking yellow dirigible? Oh, that was Michelle? Never mind… While it would have been nice on the job front for the Windy City, I say this is a heads up warning to the US that we are not as loved by the global citizenry as we once were.

Maybe it has to do with all that bad debt we unloaded their way? Maybe they see the writing on the wall as we fall into second place? Whatever OB and Michelle were selling they weren’t buying. And I for one think these two needed a little wakeup call anyway.

Humility is not such a bad thing in a leader. I wonder how much that trip cost the taxpayer for him to pay back his Chicago cronies and how stupid and embarrassing it all looks now. His inexperience is costing us and will cost us plenty until that administration gets its act together. I am not holding my breath.

The one thing you can do today to get a little richer…

Check out the biotech sector…click on the BTK or just go buy 5 shares of Genzyme…

The bargain of the day…Overstock is offering free shipping on any order..go for it..gas is going up and you won’t see these offers soon. They also have some wonderful stuff on sale in their clearance area.

Have a great weekend, but if you buy any BTK or GENZ on my say so, your healthiest plant will drop all its leaves.

How to get a little richer everyday

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 01:03:31 PST

I guess my readership has weighed in judging from all the Google ads suddenly appearing on my site. So I am back to regularly posting albeit with terse, up-to-the-minute highly entertaining and useful information you can use to start building your wealth today - right now. I will be implementing a new feature which will be one wealth-building idea you can start TODAY.

IF you are into the stock market, I would say the one best idea would be to start doing a lot of DD on China and their love of our high end retail... look at Ralph Lauren, LVHS (Vuitton) and Saks…

As for the non stock lovers?

I would shop for anything right now house related and out of season - Now is the time to pick up garden stuff, pool equipment, barbecues, summer toys, golf clubs, and outdoor furniture... Check out Lowes and Home Depot and Dick's Sporting Goods and be sure to shop their end aisles where they hide the good stuff…

Their stocks are looking good too. Now if you buy any of the stocks mentioned or rush out to buy all this end of season stuff, your dog will suddenly start hating you...

Wealthmiser will be en vacation until Labor Day

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:03:31 PST

So many are suffering right now... our hearts and thoughts go out to them and their families.

The real Julia child fondles a fresh chicken

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 01:03:31 PST

On NPT tonight, I am in sheer delight watching this poor bird being abused by that merciless six foot kitchen thug Julia Child… vive la Julia authentique! This is the real deal and while watching her, I realize that the present big summer hit Juli and Julia just shows how hungry our culture is for anything even remotely entertaining. The fact that they are going in such numbers to see this regurgitated bile would suggest that our nation has no taste if this is what passes for "good." It’s like lured in for Guy Savoy and being dished day old Olive Garden... and even worse everyone around thinks its dee-lsih...

Call me a food snob but so sorry Meryl – you just don’t cut it... Just watching the trailer to that ephron bore a thon gave me agita… Is she purposely trying to make women sound pathetic and needy or is this a special talent of hers? –Once again, we get the drill Nora, we’re the weaker sex, only this time sans Meg “I hate my real life” Ryan gets a pass. What is so irritating is that Nora’s female characters all speak in the same” voice” and I don’t mean the vocal gymnastics of Streep…(who longer acts much like DeNiro and Pacino – they are vamping for the money in a sort of sick send-up of their former selves . I mean how do you parody yourself? )

By voices, I mean and this is a classic screenwriting mistake – all that zeitgeist friendly empty chatter that has no soul and leaves me cold and disinterested. Would you want to hang out with one of her self absorbed characters? Didn’t think so… Ephron delivers us ourselves off the front pages of psychology today.
If I wanted to hear myself I’d call myself on my I-phone and save myself the 8 bucks for the movie and bad popcorn. But alas I bore myself regularly.. who needs more of that? Yes. I lost all interest in under five minutes. I love Julia Child and what a dis-service has been done to her legacy at the hands of this hackmeister.

So Streep does a vapid cartoon version of Julia Child which is a shame. Julia was a more complex character than this watered down version. As a kid, I used to watch Julia religiously on channel 13 every Saturday up in Buffalo NY. Her voice was the seduction.

She was cooking in a manner that I had never seen delivered in her unique monologue using a new culinary language a la this and that. And I was taking AP French at the time! So inspired were we, that my girlfriend and I precociously tried to re-create Julia's French onion soup and basically destroyed her kitchen…Boy does gruyere stick to the sides of ovens upon exploding!

Sadly watching Streep, my mind finally went off the film, and I was thinking about all the films I loved her in... It made me want to rent Sophie’s Choice. Ya see, there’s William Styron and then there’s Nora Ephron.

Like Julia Child would say, It’s all in the sauce.

Wealthmiser taps her inner Woodstock hippie of long ago

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 01:03:31 PST

Ah yes, I remember it came around the time of that particular’s summer's end

Watkins Glen and the Lake George area were always a welcome and warm Labor Day destination for us Upstate New Yorkers from the cool overcast days along Lake Erie… it never truly warmed up so close to Canada and those air masses.. anyway in Upstate New York - if you're lucky by the end of August if there is enough cool weather to get some early Macs up that way, you almost don’t mind that all your tomato plants died on the vine along with any hope of leaving that godforsaken corner of the world for a better life elsewhere… the fatalistic just love Buffalo – not sure why but that was the summer I knew I was leaving that life for college and beyond and did not want to chance getting my future plans threatened up in a place like Woodstock so close to Orientation Day. Besides I never smoked a joint or did anything stronger than some Courvoisier taken on the advice by someone who thought it would help my cold symptoms once... It did. I vomited the entire contents of my life for the next three days... lol.

Yes, although I looked like a chick who took chances, I never did. So after much arguing, my boyfriend went to Woodstock with his racing car buddies ( I recall he had an Austin Healy 2000 series) I stayed home and did not regret my decision when I heard about the lack of facilities... I am not into roughing it... But, I did come to envy my boyfriend’s celebrity status as being one of balladeers of stories about Woodstock told as only a frustrated Ferlinghetti could.

As for missing all that great music? Hmmm..try this one... I am sure nothing over those four days came even close...I think even Hendrix would agree...

Hey Joe....

By the way, this is what I looked like back then...ha-ha-ha, and no, the tan did not come by way of Buffalo as this was taken during a graduation get together on Montauk Island. So bleak is Buffalo that suicides over the Horseshoe Falls are practically part of the area's ghoulish things to do… go pack a picnic basket and park yourself overlooking the falls… good chance you’ll see some poor bloke try to off themselves – they rarely do… boats are parked down below to fish them out so common is their occurrence – Usually a mix of unrequited love, financial straits, or both.

Is Dennis Kneale a mob of one?

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 01:03:31 PST

Are these 2 events mutually exclusive?

It seems he is talking to himself... today was the first day I went AWOL - nary a trade -went to Nashville on a shopping spree - went to Whole Foods - the place was a ghost town - the inside restaurant was closed, there were only two cashiers open… it was scary empty, and the produce was on sale and getting old from the lack of interest... then again the CEO Mackey, says they sell junk at his store!

Lots of sidewalk sales from the smaller retailers in the area… then I went to Home Depot - I was the only one in the garden store... I spoke to the manager - I saw five trees I wanted and asked if he would give me a discount on volume... he said no. so much for retail! So I was not surprised by the bad numbers off the retail sector, and the unemployment rate... I posted a help wanted ad in Craigslist yesterday and got over 85 responses!

The recession is far from over from my experience today - the charts say buy (WFMI) my experience says otherwise... by the way, I had to exchange a cheap backup keyboard at Staples - and surprise ! They had some traffic... go figure... My theory? the new underemployed are stocking their new Hoffices... and back to schooler’s... What's the economy look like out your way?

Now I have to retread thru market for the day and see what I missed...I hope APPL didn’t correct.

Cutest dog competition already a winner

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 01:03:31 PST

So far Fox news and NBC are all over this thing. Blowout numbers of dog lovers are swamping the sight - kudos to the marketing genius that came up with this one! (yes I am related… ha ha ha)

So go check it out... www.cutestdogcompetition.com sponsored by All American Pet Products... And the contest has been smashing all the numbers- 22,000 entrants in five days… they have had 2.25 million page views in five days thus far - it's all over twitter and Facebook is talking it up too..

Oh and by the way you don't have to have a dog to vote... one winner a week gets 500 bucks the four semifinalists get 5000k and they get to vie for the million dollars... because of the recession its' been difficult to find advertisers and sponsors for the contest so these page views are crucial to the success of the contest... In tough times, price cuts attract more consumer support than promotions such as sweepstakes and mail-in offers. But most companies can ill afford to cut prices - so the offer of coupons, etc become the preferred incentive, in the worst of times it's the BOGO... buy one get one free mantra.

Windshield report in the Nashville TN area...

The stores were really crowded yesterday… tons of back to school deals... many great sales and we had a no tax day... I got a brand new DVD recorder for 49 bucks at a local electronics discounter. My real coup however was a bagful of books for 5 bucks from a church run retail store that sells donated items... managed to get three William F. Buckley novels, a very neat old Betty Crocker recipe book from the fifties (with pictures!) a very old world atlas (I adore maps) and a very good book on landscaping.... why is it a bargain makes one feel so "wealthy" or is it just me?

I love getting stocks on sale but hate to pay up for a breakout even though the latter has great odds of continuing higher.... old habits hard to break... I love rounded bases... lol

Have a great evening folks... I am off to read some Buckley!!

Take this job and

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:03:31 PST

Larry Kudlow just out-bulled and uber- upped Dennis Kneale - he said we rally into the end of the year - does not see ANY meaningful correction... let's see if Kneale rises to his challenge... he called the end of the recession all the way back to June 25th... and was the butt of the bloggers derision ... then Merril Lynch said the recession was over, then the market perked up and never looked back... sounds like a self fulfilling prophecy to me. maybe that old mantra we are the market is true after all.

The fraidy cats still spew pokey and punk recovery, a jobless recovery, toxic assets, loom large more banks could belly flop.... but, Chrysler and GM are out of bankruptcy, the consumer is back, housing numbers are better than expected, etc etc... any doubters?

How to get your own Obama Beer Summit invite

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

I just called the cops on my neighbor!

He's an old Chinese Professor and I told him if I caught him doing his tai chi in the nude on his patio one more time I was gonna call 911. Butt ugly old coot I tell ya.

Seriously folks is this dumber than dirt?

I call it the White House brew haha. What a phoney photo opp! I mean who drinks crappy domestic beer that's made abroad anyway?

The whole staged event looked more like old Chicago politics with Obama and Biden beer buddie-ing with those two knuckleheads from Beantown -- Yo.... Joey,could you bring a coupla beahs ovah heah?

Yeah, this bud's for you Prez Obama.

Me? I'd rather have a cerveza with a twist of lime. Or just tap a dang keg and I'll have all my neighbors arrested for ya.

Is driving a Prius a punishable offense?

It will sure get the media off your back on this stupid healthcare plan that's burying you anyway.

And if you could whip up some of your fine mexicali chili a la Obama that would be great..

Oh yeah and will we have to take a sobriety test before we drive off the white house lawn?

We promise not to pee in the rose bushes if we can use the white house bathrooms before w leave..it's a 6 hour drive back to Tennesse ya know and I sure hate to use the bathrooms at the Waffle House truck stops. Yuck.

You tube just pissed in yahoo's coffee

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

Will Microsoft Yahoo? And will the joke be on youtube?

Yahoo! (YHOO 15.14, -2.08) made headlines this morning by finally signing a deal to pair parts of its Internet search service with Microsoft (MSFT 23.80, +0.33). Though the announcement didn't have much impact on the broader market, shares of YHOO were among the most actively traded names by volume this session. However, they were also one of the sharpest decliners by percent.

Hey, time to pull this classic youtube Microsoft moment of Ballmer's movie to the lyrics white men can't dance or run seminars...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvsboPUjrGc

Here's a classic moment that must have scared the bejesus out of yahoo. can't say I blame them... would you share a cubicle with this fat sweaty assed jerk?

Speaking of sweaty assed jerks did you know Ballmer roomed with Cramer at Harvard? can you imagine what that room must have smelled like? Yahoooooo...

Recession?

Tue, 28 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

Who lives in our lovely capital Nashville, told Kudlow that the local economies in TN, Alabama, and Georgia are incredibly strong compared to the rest of the country... this on the heels of the Richmond manufacturing numbers... and yes, auto plays a big role in the Richmond area... I wonder if Jimmy Rogers is watching his old hood...

The south certainly isn't the one Tennessee Williams immortalized… the white linen suited southern Baptist wasp living off daddy's trust fund sipping a mint julep and smoking a Cohiba on his white colonial's wrap around, waiting for the south to rise again.

Nashville is the Los Angeles of the south. Armani clad Euro carried Rolex’d closers 24/7 with traffic for its size every bit as bad. That's why I don't live in Nashville ...ha-ha-ha.

Kudlow is such a trip… I can't fault him too much ...he's an alum ...but he just had Ken Fisher on who said to buy lampshades...you're going to need one for the party in December... lol

Boots on the ground... I am so glad I live here east of Nashville, better known as Middle Tennessee where America is moving too… it is dead center of the country!

Tax friendly, weather friendly, and geographically beautiful – Thanks to the TVA we pay the lowest utilities around... the people are so nice they make the rest of the world seem rude.

I am completely spoiled… unless you experience it firsthand it can't be described -southern hospitality -and THAT you cannot put a price on...our economy is sound, (lots of healthcare and automotive), our kids still say sir and ma'am, houses are selling, the weather is great, and the horses rule... the stores are full, the house prices are holding.

When the bubble burst, I thought - I'll sell my house and get a larger one for the same price at a better mortgage rate or so that was the plan. You know what? None of it was real here... It turns out the rate to refinance would have cost me more per month, the house I wanted was not cheap enough to make the numbers work, and strangely, I was looking at much more expensive houses that were not as nice as my house.

I kept coming home thinking am I nuts? This place is GORGEOUS compared to what they just showed me. I hesitated putting in the necessary landscaping when I bought it not sure if I wanted to stay long enough to enjoy it but now I am putting in the trees shrubs, terraces, and walkways as I see house prices beginning to tick up.

Plus my taxes are half that of Murfreesboro and I have much more land in the subdivision I purchased in. Turns out my neighbors are fantastic too - they are putting in pools and ponds, and outdoor fireplaces so I figure it's a good place to nest.

I still want to get a vacation home that I will most likely have to build so I am buying land a wee bit further into the "holler" (lake? riverfront? mountains? historic town? Hmmmm) My friend just restored an 1868 Greek revival in Fayetteville that is fabulous.

But please don't start packing...it's getting too crowded as it is!

Californians, Floridians, and Northeasterners are coming in daily...

Okay here's the article...
In July, the seasonally adjusted manufacturing index — our broadest measure of manufacturing activity — jumped to 14 from June's reading of 6 (see chart above, click to enlarge). Among the index's components, shipments leaped 14 points to 16, new orders rose eight points to finish at 24, and the jobs index edged up one point to end at -5.

Other indicators also suggested mostly stronger activity. The orders backlogs index eased four points to 4, while the measure for delivery times edged up two points to 2. The capacity utilization index doubled, adding seven points to 14, while our gauges for inventories grew at a considerably slower pace. The finished goods inventory index retreated 14 points to 26, and the raw materials inventory index moved down 10 points to 8.

MP: The Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index has increased for five straight months (March-July), the first five-consecutive monthly increase in the index's history (back to 1994). Further, the Manufacturing Index has increased by 69 points from the December 2008 low reading of -55 to 14 points in July, suggesting that the recession has ended in the Richmond Fed region (MD, VA, WV, NC, SC and DC).

As for the market, it wants to break the backs of the shorts. Case chiller 4th month of housing improvement, 13 out of 20 centers are up...existing home sales up for the third month in a row, his UMMM ETF up 40% ytd... 3 to 1 leverage to boot. Seems like a conflict of interest there - but I digress...

Hmm, I wonder what size lampshade I am?

America's Disappearing Millionaires

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

Did you decide not to buy that second home? The boat? Kid going to a state school? Cancelled the vacation?

How tightened has your belt gotten? What's ironic is they say there are more boomer savers than before! Uh... Hello? Didn't they lose money already when the crash hit so what are they saving? Like there is not that much left to save!

Which brings me to - restocking the larder....

How many of you are embarking on money making opportunities?
Going back into your old business or learning how to sell online or linking?

My friends from NY - they are true entrepreneurs - that are launching a healthy pet food product (probiotics for dogs) and are having a heck of a time getting investors due to the recession... (By the way does anyone know of any buyers in the retail Fido world or
Is Wal-Mart’s dog food buyer your second cousin maybe?

Ha-ha-ha...bottom line - timing is everything - a great idea when no one is listening can be pretty discouraging (and they have sold previous ventures for 7 million!)

I noticed articles about the new frugal chic ethic...couples taking bets over which one can not latte longest at SBUX...and even if you work at GS and getting that huge bonus, you're not exactly advertising it in this cheap mantra zeitgeist.

Here's the article.....have a nice, albeit a "tad leaner" weekend...

It hasn't been a good recession for the rich. The late boom was extraordinarily top-heavy, with the overwhelming majority of economic gains seemingly defying gravity and flowing to the top rung of the economic ladder. Now those with the most assets and income have the most to lose. Add together the declining markets, an imploding finance sector, a real estate rot that has eaten its way up from the ground floor to the penthouse, and the predations of Bernie Madoff and Sir Allen Stanford, millionaires who ripped off other millionaires, and, as my Newsweek colleague Robert Samuelson notes, these are tough times for the wealthy.

As if market forces and malevolent actors weren't enough, the rich are now finding themselves targeted by politicians. Strapped for cash, states, cities, and the federal government are seeking to soak the rich—or at least to make them pay taxes at the same marginal rates as they did in the Reagan years, which many on the right regard as an act equivalent to executing landed gentry. Some politicians have even suggested that we fund health care by slapping a surtax on people with annual incomes of more than
$1 million.

Comparative tax havens like Florida, Nevada, and Arizona didn't see an influx of millionaires in 2008. Far from it. In 2008, Las Vegas lost 38 percent of its HNWIs, and Phoenix lost 34 percent. Florida, which has no state income tax and hasn't been talking about one, was a killing field for the rich. The three major metro areas that lost more than 40 percent of millionaires in 2008 were all in no-income-tax Florida—Orlando (42 percent), Miami (42 percent), and Tampa (51 percent). The decline has nothing to do with taxes and everything to do with bursting asset bubbles. Florida, Vegas, and Phoenix are places whose economies were dominated by ultra-bubbly real estate markets and where lots of businesses owned by wealthy people are dependent on construction, tourism, and leisure—sectors that got seriously whacked in 2008.

Of course, there's evidence that some millionaires have moved out of high-tax states. Bernie Madoff, for example, recently left New York to take up residence in North Carolina.

Have a nice evening...

The connection between recession and politics

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

The recession is over – and apparently our first family is first up to bury all that silly stuff about foreclosures and bankruptcy and thrift... Michelle, the getting fatter by the minute off the foix grois you paid for, must be thinking, what’s that all about girlfriend? I got the Jonas brothers coming for dinner and I have a castle to decorate… let them eat angel food – the glorious pure white fluffy stuff of life – just like moi!

I am hugging the Queen in Buckingham Palace and I am treated like royalty in Ghana….

Yes, the recession was found unconscious in Michael Jackson’s bathroom that morning too according to Dennis Kneale…

SO, is that why Michelle is wearing fancier threads and 650 dollar shoes on her recent trips to Europe on your money? Hmm… where pray tell are those cheap wrinkly outfits with the ¾ sweaters and the flat Papagallo type shoes from J Crew – you know the faux Ivy League look she and Obama prefer (he of the Hart Schaffner and Marx about to go bankrupt suits) and the popped collar ? Oy…

I knew so many nouveau rich like them when I lived in DC – they preferred the Martha Stewart lifestyle versus Martha and the Vandella’s… And just as Michael was comfortable showing the world the white side of his personality, so too are the Obama’s… boy what a scam they pulled over on all those poor minority voters… yes, let them eat devil’s food… Goldman Sachs gave more to Obama than any other donators…

Obama - is he Wall Street’s golf partner or… what?

Oh, and those boys in that Broad and Wall hood own the Fed.

It is not the old corrupt Chicago here. It is Long Island Hampton thugs with portfolios of big oil and coal futures fatter than the Barefoot Contessa’s ass.

And where are the Obama’s vacationing this summer? Martha’s Vineyard. Yep, that ghetto.

And the Ru Paul connections? Michelle's arms look exactly like Ru Paul’s. She is, as tall... And have you ever seen the two together at the same time in the same room not using Photoshop? Aha!

I rest my case. Weird.

Dennis Kneale wants to kill

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

Dennis Kneale and the Michael Jackson connection

Latoya thinks someone murdered Michael.

I wrote a response to Dennis Kneale regarding my take on the matter of blog identity Read on… We shall see if he responds to it.

Dear Dennis,

As a fellow "anonymous" writer, I am enjoying your discourse on the blogging issue, and had a few thoughts....

So what does Clark Kent have to do with the recent spate of attacks on bloggers and their anonymity? Allow me...

Clark Kent, as we all know is the mild mannered reporter for the Daily Planet who turns into Superman to avenge evil, save Lois and other heroic deeds against evil but as we all know, that in truth Clark Kent is the mask and Superman is actually the reality – and what about Zorro, the Masked Avenger and Deep Throat?

What is it about blogging and the issue of anonymity? Many bloggers would say that their blog identities are really who they are because they CAN speak freely and that their “analog selves” are the ones that must measure their words in the more "accountable" world of social security numbers and driver’s licenses.

Will the real Dennis Kneale stand up? Or James Cramer? Or Larry Kudlow? Are they the public personae we see every night, or are they really anonymous bloggers who tell it like it is on twitter?

As an ex-journalist would you have divulged your sources at the Washington Post during the Watergate scandal because they were feeding you info anonymously? Is something that is said "anonymously" any less relevant than one that is said publically under a real name?

Were Clark Kent's mild mannered reporter accomplishments more "heroic" than Superman's? Or was he limited by his persona? Did his anonymity allow him to become a hero? Surely it did not negate the accomplishments made in his nifty red tights!

Whistle blowers are no different... sans the leg gear... lol.

Isn't there a plus side to internet anonymity? That is, it frees many to speak the truth without the ensuing wrath in the pursuit of doing a good deed by exposing the bad guys without retribution or job loss?

Why did Clark Kent HAVE to turn into Superman to get the bad guys? Why did Zorro have to wear a mask? The Superman vow; "to use my super-powers to uphold the principles of democracy and the enforcement of the law... never for selfish or evil ends!" Kinda says it all, no? And those were his father's words too.

So why can't a blogger wear the virtual mask of anonymity to the same end? Granted, some use the "mask" to flame their adversaries, but by going after them, you, as an on air journalist, are doing yourself and so many other journalists in! You depend on your "sources" for your stories...and I bet even you would be willing to do jail time to protect those identities and or their first amendment rights. (Judith Miller comes to mind, but let's not go there!)

That said, we need to protect uphold and yes, enjoy the freedom of the press in this country as our other "rights" are being slowly challenged and even taken away... Dennis, I enjoy your show very much and your bullishness has been brave and appreciated - As a fellow contrarian, I think your blog attacks could not have come at a more important time... I just think you should tell both sides of the "double-edged" kryptonite anonymity story when it comes to the duality of identity in the blogosphere.

Tally on...

Is America having a large nose attack tonight?

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

So why is Giada de Laurentiis food ho of food network getting so many hits tonight? Is America having a large nose attack tonight? Or is it jonesing for some truly awful Italian recipes?

You people are FORCING me to put her in my post! Problem is - I can't stand her or her cooking... She scares me - she looks like she needs rabies shots... I don't trust cooks that wear that much makeup... running off at the mouth while cooking with the most inane drivel - I just wanna stuff an overstuffed manicotti into that grand canyon of a mouth of hers... or when she about to have a mouth-gasam as she opens up that big mouth of hers to bite into one of her cheesy greasy gems and closes her eyes in a don't you wish you were me at this second moment? Uh no, shortie - I don't.... but, maybe fatso countess or Contessa from Connecticut wishes she was... after all, you’re not 400 lbs...yet... :)

Beats me... I can tell ‘ya if Michael Jackson cooked along with the Italian midget, he might still be around today tipping the scales a might higher than where he left us at what with all her oily and cream laden ed artery clogging foods... is there anything she does not shave Parmigiano over? Her kid probably gets it in the farina...

By the way, does ‘sista Latoya really think Michael was murdered for his money? What's she smoking these days? It ain’t prosciutto... bwahahahaha… What a freaking family that man had... no wonder he kind’a disappeared from them at the end.

And who else is sick of seeing hothead food network egomaniac borough boy Bobby Flay?

Tonight he is making blueberry pancakes… wow... how complex... how sophisticated… how utterly high brow! He is flying to every city this year throwing down his ego on a plate against these perfectly nice simple cook type local people who pretend they don't know he's coming to challenge them… Unfortunately they act as badly as they cook, so the show is totally boring AND bogus...yum!

No offense Bobby, but I am so sick of seeing your face and your food and listening to your "working it" New Yawk accent - can you smell overkill? I am sure if the foodies at food network who are not gay (if that's possible) really look, they will find some cooks who don't look like they walked off the script of Sex and the City... how about an older TRAINED chef? Wow - what a concept! Retire overexposed Paula, and Rachel, and Bobby, and Ina, and Giada, and Mario, and get some really good cooks in there. Alton Brown gets to stay because he is obviously very smart, has attitude, and has an entertaining educational show that I learn something really cool from whenever I catch it...

And do a show that is non-competitive! Please - no more smack-down throw-down, beat the clock, sweating under the lights in my wet crocs type of "bring it on" show... It's not about WINNING people; it's about the PROCESS of cooking...

A show that doesn't look like a cross between an ESPN athletic event and MTV's Real World... We really don't care HOW you feel, or what personal challenges you face if you don't win, cooks are just supposed to cook, and shut the hell up.

And no, I don't care what the Best Thing You Ever Ate Is - possibly the WORST show on Food Network right now -- get this - the viewer gets to listen to out of shape fatties with a ladle, go orgiastic over some slop they ate 20 years ago… Who the hell cares? This does not a show make...

And if Bobby Flay (the Eddie Haskell of the food network) ever showed up in my kitchen, I'd grab the fire extinguisher pronto and hosed down the little red-hot-headed jerk. Throw down a toilet, borough boy... yeah bring it on...

Bad Food Recipe... This one is for Bobby and Giada...enjoy Mes Amis!

X-rated Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients

2 cups Nutella
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup crème fraiche
2 T brandy or hazelnut liqueur

DirectionsWhip the cream until stiff. In another large bowl, mix Nutella, crème fraiche, and brandy until smooth. Fold whipped cream into chocolate mixture until no streaks of white remain. Chill 20 minutes.

No market talk tonight!

Good evening my food challenged WealthMisers... You won't have to worry about the market tomorrow anyway if you have this for dessert tonight… you'll probably do your last moonwalk before the opening bell... Watch the crude… and I mean the oil not the food network "stars" Nitey night...

Chaplin and the Michael Jackson connection?

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

What was Jermaine thinking? Both Michael and Charlie were accused of a uh, a preference for shall we say, jail bait?

This was taken from “by Mike Jefferson” as per a book written on Charlie Chaplin…

Attenborough doesn't dodge Chaplin's greatest flaw - his obsession with under aged girls. (Apparently Chaplin either had some hillbilly in his blood or was related to Jerry Lee Lewis.) He suggests The Tramp's propensity for jailbait could be traced back to his unrequited love for actress Hetty Kelly, who was 15 when she met Chaplin, then a wizened 19. For Chaplin it was love at first sight. Not so for Kelly, who declined his marriage proposal. Chaplin would later say one of the darkest days of his life was when he found out in 1921 that Hetty had married someone else and died in 1918 during the influenza epidemic that devastated London.

Hmmm. I just thought it was a weird selection of a song that Jermaine decided to sing at his brother’s funeral….

Onto other colorful characters… namely the geniuses over at GS and the Russian who was arrested for taking company secrets with him…read it all here…

Just think... he could end up as Madoff's prison bitch! now that's a hedge fund I'd like to throw a wad at... as it is this dude sounds like he walked off the pages of William Gibson's mind …and this finally from the Financial Times article.

But, at least so far as described in the affidavit, his story doesn’t look so good, since shortly after transferring about 32 megabytes of code to the German web server, he attempted to erase the history of the sequence of commands he had employed to transfer the code from his Goldman computer. “Unbeknownst to him however, Goldman kept a separate backup of each employee’s programming history.

“Double oops! The perils of a network! The 2009 version of Crime and Punishment

Ya’gotta love it…

Michaels Favorite Food was… Mexican 7 Layer Bean Dip

1 can (16 oz) refried beans

1 package (1 oz) taco seasoning mix

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chilies

1 cup Chunky salsa (any variety)

2 cups shredded lettuce

2 cups shredded Cheddar or Mexican cheese blend (8 oz)

1 can (2.25 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained (1/2 cup)

1medium tomato, diced (3/4 cup)

Tortilla chips if desired, while watching Pytka’s masterpiece “Dirty Diana video - caliente!

Michael Jackson was a child.

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

Now onto some incredibly useless drivel I just feel like spouting off on...

Is Fast Money Melissa Lee’s main gig now? why does CNBC continue to run that show? I am the only person that watches it! …And only because I love to trash it.

I don’t get Melissa Lee… not getting personal or anything but does blowfish lips think she’s jenny from the hood or something? - got a midget body with a huge head–

Like that Giada midget hooters wannabe on Food Network - the one with the big teeth and honker… what’s with the large orifice media chicks these days? Melissa talks too fast too - can’t tell ‘ya how much I miss of her over-caffeinated delivery and I am from New York…
She is presently yapping about the “pleasure business” stocks like uh, NetFlix and cablevision as a weanie promo to her special about to air on the very same subject.! ...I wonder how much personal research went into that CNBC special…why doesn’t she go to China and really research her subject hands on?

I thought the other Melissa -the bitchy blond one that is Kudlow’s sock puppet covered the “pleasure” biz in an earlier special or was it marijuana? I forget… either way CNBC must be needing eyeballs with these low ball entries.

Apparently brill-creamed teranova has slid off his chair and now reports a la webcam from what looks like a Dilbert size cubicle… and is talking his book again on -what else - trading crude…zzzzzzzzz

“Take the high beta play on PBR says Seymour …Terranova says it’s low beta, rock boy …sniping at each other like two chihuahuas in heat I tell ‘ya…

Seymour is kind’a greasy looking too, so is Adami now that I think of it… hmmmmm… I think I am going long Vaseline or Duane Reade here.

And where the hell did Ratigan go?

Driving Letterman’s limo? Maybe getting groomed for prime time a la Leno?

Or crying under his mama’s skirt in Upstate NY and getting fat on some Irish food?

waaaaahhhhhhh… what a cruel world it can be when you wanna’be so right it blinds you to your own implosion. Maybe standing too close to food- loving lasagna hips Maria did him in.

Next one I hope gets played out is Cramer… if you can listen to Cramer’s irritating tirades for more than five minutes without wanting to take out your own wisdom teeth, there is something seriously wrong with you or the battery in your hearing aid.

Someone should seriously measure the ptich, timbre, and decibel levels of that man’s vocal chords and replace that troublesome water-boarding issue once and for all with a Cramer tape.

Okay spout’s off.

Back to my incredibly wonderful kind demeanor.

Bye!

Bad Food:

Green beans and tomato basil dressing...

1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed
2 Tb unsalted butter
1 Tb olive oil
3 large shallots, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes in juice
2 Tb thinly sliced fresh basil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cook the green beans in a large pot of boiling water until just crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Drain the beans, then rinse with cold water. Drain again very well and set the beans aside.

Melt the butter and oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and garlic and sauté until tender, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and their juices and cook until heated through, about 3 minutes. Add the beans and cook until the juices evaporate and the beans are almost tender, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Stir in the basil. Serve up.

Steve McNair

Sun, 05 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

I haven’t seen this kind of outpouring of grief since the old OJ/Jack Kemp Days of Buffalo. This guy was idolized in Nashville and apparently had just opened a restaurant downtown. He was even washing the floors yesterday…Nashville was about to welcome him back with open arms…tonight instead of heading down to centennial park to see the fireworks the crowds are all convening outside the condo where they found him. And a female friend…

I was never a big fan of Nashville – it reminds me too much of Los Angeles… no trees, sixties architecture and way too much concrete and not enough green spaces. Traffic is awful with drivers to match but apparently that has not stopped million dollar condos being built in some rather “iffy” neighborhoods.

Thanks but no thanks… I would still take a Sutton Place coop anyway over the glitziest condo in Music city.

What is Deflation as illustrated by Lindsay Lohan

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

What is deflation exactly?

(Deflated Courtney)

Deflation is not a decrease in the general price level of goods and services. Deflation is a decrease of the total amount of currency in the economy. The resulting decrease in prices is a symptom of deflation. The total amount of currency includes debt because debt when one takes it on becomes a credit to some others account. Debt,credit, and cash all spend the same. With layer upon layer of debt on personal, corporate and government balance sheets the inflation has already happened. That is why asset prices including homes, fuel, commodities etc., rose so high so quickly. As all that debt is paid down or DEFAULTED it removes currency from the total economy. As the total system shrinks asset prices fall as have houses, commodities, oil, etc. The FED and Treasury are trying to re-inflate by flooding the system with liquidity, but as more debts are defaulted more and more are drained from the system still. There are many defaults left to come and those that see this are those that believe we will have deflation.

(Inflated Courtney)

Deflation will only be good for those holding cash and equivalents. Many with debts will drown in it as they lose jobs or take cuts in pay but must continue to service the debt on assets that are worth less than what they owe on them. Many are already in this situation as they try to make mortgage payments on homes that have lost 40% or more of their value.

Be very careful what you wish for. deflation can be unbelievably bad. So can being Counrtney Love or Lindsay Lohan these days…

Bad Food Idea for Both…

Pack on those pounds ladies with this!

Chocolate pizza

8 oz baking chocolate;

8 oz Chocolate chips 1/2 c Peanuts-salted

1/2 c Marshmallows-mini

1/2 c Rice crispy cereal

1/2 c Coconut

Whipped Cream

In heavy saucepan or top of double boiler, melt chocolate and the chocolate chips. Stir in peanuts, marshmallows and cereal. Pour onto a greased 10-inch pizza pan or a 10-inch circle of cardboard covered with foil. Spread to even out top. sprinkle with coconut. Melt remaining chocolate; drizzle over pizza. Chill. Top with cream.

Put away the skinny jeans…

Happy Fourth of July!

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

Boy does it feel good to have a whole day of non market activity! I am so out of here… I plan on doing my little house thingies all day tomorrow. I refuse to eat potato salad or a hamburger, or go to a pool party or put up with the neighborhood’s screaming brats. I plan to have a nice quiet evening with a glass of wine perhaps and an old movie that will make me feel quite content and appreciative to be in this fine country of ours.

There is much to be appreciative about…

Cole Porter still resonates as much today as he did fifty years ago.

I don’t have to mow the lawn or do yard work.

It is supposed to rain so staying indoors won’t make me feel guilty…

I also won’t have to hear Billy Mays screaming about some piece of TV garbage anymore…or Cramer or Kudlow!

And there will be bargains galore at the antique show this weekend – at least I hope so!

As for some bad food for the weekend…

Try this!

Fourth of July BBQ'd Cornish Hens

      3 cl Garlic, minced
      1 tb Seasoned salt
    1/2 c Oil
      1 c Fresh lemon juice
     12 ts Italian Salad dressing
    1/2 c Chopped onions
      1    Pepper
      1 ts Crushed thyme
      4    Rock Cornish Hens, giblets removed

Blend garlic, seasoned salt, oil, lemon juice, dressing, onions, pepper, and thyme. Marinate the birds overnight in the refrigerator.

Cut the birds lengthwise.

Cook on outside grill, bone side down 10 minutes, flesh side down 5 minutes, alternating 10 minutes and 5 minutes in this manner for about an hour and basting with marinade frequently (at least every 5 minutes) while barbequing.

Ten Dumbest Things I heard this week

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:03:31 PST

First check this out…They think sad fat women own homes… skinny happy chicks rent… yeah right... it couldn't be that female renters are younger and child free, and women in homes are mommies and older... nah... must be astrological… hahaha!

Ruth Madoff Homeless and No More Foils mit da Goils. Guess it's the Duane Reade hair color aisle for the old bitch. I hope they indict her and her family.

Gwyneth Paltrow: “Spain seems to have a history”

Uh, gee Gwyneth - you really think so? She is so pretentious…

“Dennis - You are a idiot.”…

Dennis Kneale of CNBC calling the recession over.

Food for the Fourth of July…

I lucked out today and got the Waring hot dog grill at my local resale shop for 2.99! It was a real steal, and to celebrate my find, I found this great hot dog sauce I plan on trying out this weekend… of course the hot dog will be made out of tofu, so I better bury it in some good goop.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar
1 large chopped onion
1 large can tomato sauce
1 cup catsup or chili sauce
4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon chili powder1 teaspoon hot sauce

Saute onion, until color changes; add remaining ingredients.
Simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour in 3-quart electric saucepan

Putting food on Ruth Madoff's table

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

That meal ticket is o’vah.

Bernie Madoff has just been sentenced to 150 years in prison for running the biggest Ponzi scheme in history. It was the maximum sentence the judge could have given him.Before sentencing, Madoff addressed the courtroom:"I'm responsible for a great deal of suffering and pain, I understand that," Mr. Madoff told the court. "I live in a tormented state now, knowing all of the pain and suffering that I've created. I've left a legacy of shame, as some of my victims have pointed out, to my family and my grandchildren."Meanwhile the leaders of various Wall Street firms who sold out their employees, toppled a global baking system are allowed to continue their risk taking ways with no one chasing them! Sure put the blame on Madoff while the attention is still on him, they are probably robbing you blind again…hold onto your wallet.Ruth is a real jerk. Her comments about being confused and betrayed as hollow. Her comments make her out to be a victim like all the others. Is she doing this so they get off her case? Uh, guess again...These two I think have stashes of cash and gold all over the world. They have been planning this for years I bet.And grab those kids while you're at it...like they didn't know..yeah right...I just hope they- the Feds- follow her and her kids and stay on their tail just in case they try to get to those hidden pots..I don’t care if Bernie buried them himself in a hill in Afghanistan…Meanwhile Ruth is getting the boot out of her apartment, and can’t find anyone to rent to her.

Well here’s a nice cheap recipe Ruth can try with whatever’s left in her larder – she looks like she could drop a few pounds no problem anyway…

By the way, the market rallied today it will be a short week…Shanda looked tasty as did many of the Chinese stocks…eat well - after all you’re not Ruth!

The Michael Jackson Effect

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

The market rose today because Michael Jackson reminded everybody that even 50 year old skinny guys on some medication can get heart attacks so all these old fat fatheads thought they were on borrowed time and started going long. Suddenly the recession didn’t matter or inflation, or Obama, (another skinny black guy!) or Ben or housing or oil or any of that. It was about their mortality and putting their chips down on the table even though knowing the market will disappoint, slaughter, elate and befuddle.

It is the great casino, where fortunes are made and lost, where men build empires, businesses, careers, or destroys them. “The market is the engine underneath the economy, fueling services and innovation via capital gains taxes and good old fashioned wealth creation.”

It will get it wrong every once in awhile. But, as most of you know by now, scientifically, it cannot lose… and neither will you IF you remain stronger than anything it hands you.

Thriller is the top selling CD on AMZN – looks like the Jackson legacy will mean big bucks to his heirs.

Best Food Choice….

Forget food. It’s too hot… Planter’s Punch time…

PLANTER’S PUNCHIce
2 1/2 ounces light rumJuice of two limes
2 teaspoons powdered sugar
Dash of bitters
1 teaspoon grenadine
3 ounces club soda
Lime wedge for garnish
Preparation: Fill a cooler glass with ice and add rum,
lime juice, powdered sugar, bitters and grenadine and stir.
Add club soda and stir again. Garnish with lime wedge.

When is an artery gonna explode on the Food Network?

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

Picture this : One of those well-paid celebrity engorgers of all things butter has a major coronary taping their show …Paula for instance doing her big spoonful of whatever at the end of her show, swallowing large globs of her deep fried hamburger doughnuts and bam!

She drops her fork, grabs her neck with both hands, and drops to the floor.

Hey I surely hope it doesn’t but at the rate they are going, they are playing russian roulette with their forks or in Guy Fieri’s case, his bare hands that can’t get to the diner food fast enough. With grease dripping from every orifice, he’s a triple bypass away from an emmy.

What acting. What drama. Or our favorite midget with the big teeth, Giada DeL, who looks like she needs a rabies shot when she eats on the air- what Hooters chick wanna be... lol.

The ones that are truly funny are the ones that elevate the experiences of eating their favorite bad food as a religious experience… take this chick Alex Guaraneshelli - she’s the fat brunette ex-chef (mommy was famous ya know) that appears to have had an orgasm eating a cannoli the other day. Or was it the deep fried hot dog? I don’t remember.

Then of course, there’s fatter Rachel in some city with her “wandering” husband on a leash where they order all kinds of deelish food all the while screaming don’t you wish you were us? Uhhh, nooooooo. But I would like your money and endorsement deals.

Truth be told, the food network is for foodies who don’t care about their health or yours. They just love food period. Sends the kind of message their viewers wants anyway. Permission to be bad... lol Monkey see - monkey doo-doo.

America keeps getting fatter and so does the Food Networks bank account. Talk about feasting off each other. I really should do a correlating chart... hmmmm.

The GOOD EATS guy Alton Brown is the only one that is the least bit responsible in the kind of food he features. I love his show – it’s instructive, informational, and highly entertaining. It’s the most non British british humor show on TV today imho.

Our top pick for food network stars most likely to get a heart attack: Paula Deen, and or her doofus sons, Alex Guaranaschelli, greasy Guy Fieri, Ina evil “giggles” Garten who is singlehandedly trying to fatten as many people as she can as the fat Barefoot Contessa, (my God can that poor woman with one shirt she wears over and over even SEE her feet?)

Giada DeL, Rache Ray evo-evil queen with the big Upstate NY blue collar mouth, and froghead Mario with the Crox feet… finally hot head Irish temper run amok Bobby getting chubby Flay…

I feel sorriest for Ina Garten. That poor woman just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Pretty soon she’ll have to buy her denim shirts from tents ‘r’us. Jeffrey? - Mr. Ina Garten? - get those toe nail clippers, dear, giggles needs to find her feet.

The market recovered nicely today from its malaise. Loved the AH action on Palm - up over a dollar... nice! We made the 8420 level so all bears go stuff yourselves on some nice artery clogging BBQ - just call Guy, and eat what he eats. The market will not miss you. For dessert have this... please!

monkey see monkey do recipe number 2...

Bad Food Bananas Foster sans blow torch:

1 stick butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

4 bananas peeled and halved, cut lengthwise

1/4 cup dark rum

Melt butter in a large skillet. Add brown sugar and stir together. Add the bananas and cook until caramelized over medium-high heat. Serve over vanilla ice cream and/or a slice of pound cake. Pour on the rum.

Contact next of kin

Michelle Larcher de Brito or Taylor Swift?

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

I think of Taylor Swift singing with Def Leppard the other night way out of her range, or Michelle making those shrieking noises on the tennis court. Are the both that hungry for media attention or are they just hungry period?

Well I can tell ya I could have out shrieked them both after today’s market action. What a lousy tape. I wanted to punch someone in the mouth. Or take a baseball bat and hit a few of those pundits on CNBC in the teeth.

Wire Larry’s Jaw, and oh yes Cramer’s and Dennis Nealy’s while I am at it, shut.

Stuff giant tubes of ziti in Maria’s big mouth, and stick a huge sock in Melissa’s mouth – she’s Larry’s sock puppet if case you didn’t know.

Dennis Gartman can shut the hell up with his summer of market weakness…he changes his mind more than his underwear I am sure and makes Cramer sound lucid DECISIVE... well, maybe not …

Pelosi and Frank, and O’Reilly and Hannity and Ben and Timmy can put a lid on it this summer too…and oh yeah, Obama, give it a rest will ya? Go swat some fly’s and eat some bad FOOD like your chili and mac and cheese…you’ll feel better…

My suggestion? EAT MORE AMERICA and stop talking… put away your crowbars, and go get some Mars Bars, and snickers and go stuff it in your orifice- the one just below your nose.

It’s just too noisy out there and people really do need to learn to shut up.

There. I feel better. You need more bad food. And here it is…

Bad Food Obama’s chili recipe:

Ingredients

1 Item large onion, chopped
1 Item green pepper, chopped
Several cloves of garlic, chopped
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Pound ground turkey or beef
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground basil
1 Tablespoon chili powder
3 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
Several item tomatoes, depending on size, chopped
1 cup Red Kidney Beans

Preparation:

Sauté onions, green pepper and garlic in olive oil until soft.
Add ground meat and brown.
Combine spices together into a mixture, then add to ground meat.
Add red wine vinegar.
Add tomatoes and let simmer, until tomatoes cook down.
Add kidney beans and cook for a few more minutes.
Serve over white or brown rice.
Garnish with grated cheddar cheese, onions and sour cream.

Lucas Glover trumps part time Jobs

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

It was hot out. The market tanked. We were serotonin deprived!

You’d think a new and improved Steve Jobs returning to Apple would be big news especially on the heels of those great IPHONE numbers…but noooooooo…all the fat cat traders and fund guys had their asses watching the PGA and Glover redeem himself

He won by two over a threesome that included a resurgent David Duval (71), sentimental favorite Phil Mickelson (70) and the suddenly wild 54-hole leader Ricky Barnes, who rallied somewhat after stumbling with a front-nine 40 to card a 76.

Jobs on the other hand i. rebuilt from his former self and is ready to rumble back in the driver’s seat. And I hope he eats a lot of fatty chocolate this time!! Chocolate is your friend…and I have included a recipe to help you along…anyway...

The world loves a comeback story, and both of these feisty survivors deserve all the kudos coming their way.

I love it when it works.

White Chocolate MousseIt's such a simple dish to make, and it's melt-in-your-mouth light. You could use regular chocolate if you prefer.

Ingredients:
1 cup white chocolate chips
1/4 cup water
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla

Preparation: Heat water in saucepan, with sugar, until sugar is dissolved. Add chocolate chips and melt until smooth. Set saucepan in cold water to cool mixture. Place in the fridge until thoroughly chilled. Whisk smooth. Beat cream and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Fold into cold chocolate mixture. Pour into serving

Wash it down with a nice cream sherry – chilled.

Stashu

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

If you were alive today, would I be making your favorite Sunday waffles? The ones you drenched in the maple syrup we bought in Canada so many summers ago? .

Would I set the table with the phlox and impatiens from our beds that you tended to the minute you came home from work?And would I call you at the exact moment of readiness when the waffles, bacon, and coffee converged into the perfect Sunday breakfast?And you, arriving pink and scrubbed from your bath, with the Sunday section of the Times, and smelling of Gillette?

Would we talk about the Buffalo Bills or would it be, depending on your dreams the previous night, your latest installment of Stanley’s life as a young Pole growing up in the Depression along the Niagara? Or would we talk about other Sundays… you sketching me with rollers in my hair, or picking wild strawberries in Fort Erie, eating more than we put in our metal pails… and never enough to make even one decent quart of jam.

Would I understand what you meant when you made me promise that I would never grow up on you. I did not know at the time that they would be your last words to me. So I can tell you now that I did my best to honor your request.

Even though I can no longer feel the rough cup of your hands that smelled of the juniper berries you sold that day. Or your gentle voice every morning when you drove me to school reminding me that 99% of what I worried about would never happen.

Or share our love of Chopin. The nights after dinner, you tapping your foot against the piano bench keeping me in time as I labored thru those Nocturnes you loved so much.

Today, my days are without you.And because of that, there are days when even Chopin has nothing to say to me.

When you died, they gave me your wallet. In it there was only one picture – Me, holding our dog by the mailbox in front of our house.

Fast and Easy Phat chocolate cupcakes:

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

1 Box Devil's Food Cake Mix (recommended: Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe)
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips, divided
2 to 3 cups Cupcake Icing, recipe follows, colored with your favorite color

Preheat to 325..line your tins with those cute little paper liners... In a bowl, using an electric mixer, mix the cake mix, water, oil, and eggs on medium speed until moistened and smooth. Stir in 3/4 cup chocolate chips. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin tins, stirring it occasionally to redistribute the chocolate chips. The batter will nearly fill each liner to the top. Evenly sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips over the tops of the cupcakes. Bake until the cupcakes spring back when lightly touched, or a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Like chocolate cupcakes on Kirstie Alley's dessert tray

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

I am out of this market if Apple does not deliver great numbers of their new iPhone sales... poor RIMM is selling off on good news and it's simply too hot out there to care. I await the news out of Apple.

Hell, I don't even have a cell phone myself. I simply hate the idea of being 24/7 accessible, ya know? I like to control who can get to me at any given time… plus when I had a cell phone, I hated how intrusive it was. I accidentally (hmm maybe not!) left one at the airport in Sarasota a few years ago.. The last one I got rid of the minute I bought my house and had digs. What a luddite! But, I am invested in Apple and have great interest in watching other people surrender their rabidly chronic lives to the I. Crunch on, I say...

Anybody catch the CMA awards the other night? I had to watch for research purposes only but yikes- They should have called it the Taylor Swift Show.

Is that girl like the flavor to savor or what? She opened the show and she closed the show, and she picked up all the sweet sticky awards in the middle like an overstuffed Oreo. I find her stuff a little diabetic but what the hell, I am not 16 and into the whole lovey thing.

Speaking of not being everywhere, what happened to Lindsay Lohan?

She has been no-ass wiped off the mag covers and replaced with fat photos of Alley and Oprah.I am getting I little worried as to the whereabouts of the incredibly shrinking Ms Lohan. I think she was last seen in London hopping around the knight life there.
I heard Kirstie swallowed Lindsay..

Cooking the Easy Books

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

So I went to bed in California and woke up in a bankrupt hedge fund. Note to Alnold.... dude, I need that 401k money. Man I am getting a serious munchy buzz off these hemp cigs... I am talking deep fried twinkie.

Money Hungry dish of the day: Prep Time: 25 minutes Cook Time: 02 minutes
Ingredients:4 twinkies
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon malt vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cup water
Preparation: Chill Your Twinkies Dude. Completely combine other ingredients. Dip Twinkies in batter and fry in hot oil in deep fryer. Only cook until golden brown about 1 or 1-1/2 minutes.

Call EMS ..make out a will...

iPhone-iac's and Crackberry's

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

TechCrunch by Erick Schonfeld on June 1, 2009

When you look at sales of the iPhone or Blackberry as a percentage of total cell phone sales, they are still a tiny smidgen of the one billion phones estimated to be sold this year. But when you look at what really matters—their share of revenues or operating profits—the picture looks a lot different. Deutsche Bank analyst Brian Modoff calculated the share of operating profits going to each major mobile handset manufacturer and came up with the eye-opening chart above. It shows Apple (pink) and RIM (turquoise) increasingly taking a disproportionate share of industry profits, mostly at the expense of Nokia’s diminishing handset operating profits (blue).

In a note, Modoff writes: “Increasingly, the smartphone vendors are claiming more of the industry’s profit dollars even as the pool of profitability stabilizes or shrinks.” Thanks to the success of the highly-profitable iPhone, Apple’s share of industry operating profits went from 3 percent in 2007 to 20 percent in 2008 and will grow again to an estimated 31 percent in 2009. RIM, maker of the Blackberry, is doing even better, increasing its estimated share of industry profits from 8 percent (2007) to 19 percent (2008) to 35 percent (2009). So adding those two together, Apple and RIM are expected to account for an incredible 66 percent of industry profits this year.
SO here's the thinking on why RIMM is NOT to be trifled with!

RIMM the company own the licenses and patents it owns. The blackberry is merely one phone they sell.

RIMM market share potential is ‘ginormous’ along with AAPL: 66% of the market...
between RIMM, and the I phone it's the breadth and beauty of the software application and hosting that has such an ENORMOUS potential.

The majority of companies are still PC based -and RIMM is PC.

Verizon is better than T. GO deal with that reality...

And it is AAPL is catching up to RIMM... Let's face it - AAPL "extorted" money from T because T wanted the deal so badly… and now their customers are paying for it.

$99 I-Phone? Not quite ... The new phones cost 200 bucks and then to upgrade 3g to 3gs is another 200 bucks!

I say - Who in the their right mind?

The $99 iphone? It is T that is taking it on the chin and expects a 2 year customer... that phone will be liberated in a year - those folks would get in line now to get a better carrier… the logic would be to get those subs in 2010 - who will get all this disgruntled business? Hmmmm… now let me see...

RIMM is NOT exclsuive to to T. therefore Rimm is freer than AAPL

We are at a plateau in the tech… soon it will enable you to video on the phone face to face in real time… not a TELI phone any longer but VIDEO phone -changes the language and the way we communicate – pic’s trump words... WE will become a visual language based culture- that's the big deal. Tipping point alert...replacing pic’s with words...

.And oh yes, the most powerful man in the country is a crack-berry-head.

Cheers!

Casino Royale blockbuster summer

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

How many of you were sitting at the wrong blackjack table?

In the book of numbers the Lord said; “Thou shall count
thy steps.”

You know the one that seated you next to Meg Whitney and her wrestler husband flanked on either side by Roubini and Faber, the sadder than Berlin twins… look – the market isn’t about you being right, Obama playing CEO or your neighbor who can’t sell his house.

This market is all about THE TRADE. The guy with the pocket deuces if he is smart is out there everyday bluffing the bloated pig holding the Big Slick under his gold cufflinks especially if the Fed is dealing the cards, Pelosi owns the casino, and Barney is parking cars with the boys.

Or to put it another way, if Peter Schiff wanders by and takes a seat at your table, run, don’t walk…

And if you can’t trade, stay by the pool and play with your senior umbrella drink toy.

The Pelosi Pinto?

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 01:03:31 PST

Welcome to Government Motors...

Me? I’ll stick to my classics…
I don’t care if they are giving these cars away… Sure you may get a deal on it but then you actually have to get in the car and BE SEEN driving it… Ouch!

Meanwhile the market continues to ramp…

MS claims it can pay back the tarp. The BAC balance sheet is still a mess. JPM can payback…MS can payback… There is a race to normalize…All have to pay a divi on the tarp… But the financials stayed above the 200 dma… Now the regionals have to come clean –how much exposure do they have to the commercial space.

America's image clouds this Memorial Day

Mon, 25 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

Go Away in May?

Sun, 24 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

"I see Thunder Bay Drive In!! I see Thunder Bay Drive in!" ...and with that little ditty my sisters and I conferred our summers at the beach in Ontario Canada when I was a kid. We would start the chant as we approached our cottage which was just down the road from this small town's best hamburger stand. We always opened the cottage every Memorial Day - a happy ritual of cleaning the cupboards, sweeping out the garage, and cleaning the floors caked over with a winter's worth of dust and dead bugs...we would make the long trek back to Upstate New York for a final fling at school which let out in June, and then off to the beach, and the cottage and Thunder Bay Drive In, where we were treated to fabulously greasy grilled Canadian beef burgers, French fries which tasted like the kind you get in a fish and chips dinner (Canada was still tethered to the Queen back then - I even recall a her picture hanging in most of the state run liquor stores at that time), and the best ice cream milk shakes an eight year old could ever hope for.

With my Dad telling dumb jokes, and flirting with the waitress for our benefit, I never thought life could get better than this…We'd walk to the drive-in from our house, and in the evening bundled up in sweaters just pinchy enough to remind me of the sunburn I sustained at the beach that day, we'd find four seats together at the counter, and party on while passing the insect spray around. (Those lights attracted a lot of "skeeters" who did NOT take a vacation form May to August I can assure you.)

May had significance back then. It was a marker of things to come— Foreplay to lazy days soaking up the sun and staving off September and the reality of being ten years old. So as I think back to those fine days, I ask myself, what does May symbolize today?

For me, it's just another month.

So what is all this "go away in May" gibberish when it comes to the stock market? When did this stupid ‘stockism’ start and why? Perhaps it was many years ago, when the wall street boys of the tristate took possession of their Hampton digs and so closed shop so they could have their cake, and make sure no one else would eat it too as in make money while they were basking in Hamptonitis for the next three months. So they kind’a took the market with them -they headed East and the market turned south.

But these days, who has time to take the time off? This is a different world today. There are no "vacations" anymore...the ‘crackberry’ made sure of that. We are tethered to the market via technology. I assume the ‘Hamptonites’ take out the boat with the laptop, sit in their yards doing emails all day long, and trade their fool heads off while the hot dogs burn on the outdoor 4000k kitchen grill. I am sure the Art Cashins’ of the world lived a different life way back when go away in May was their clarion call, but to each fossil there is a new stone yet to be turned, and I think we are at that juncture.

We have China nipping at our heels, our car, banking, and yes, retail sectors are all in for some tough slogging ..and Obama is still defining himself with a story yet to be told.

Today, on a Saturday, everyone I know was working. Attending seminars, conference calls and just doing their work like any other day. I took the day off and did my errands and shopping. The stores were virtually empty from Wal-Mart to the upscale malls. Okay so the consumer has not joined the Memorial Day party it is now safe to say. Perhaps they were all home pursuing job leads, or packing for destinations that promised one. I don't know.

All I know is, that, as a concept, the notion of going away in May is deader than a Bernie Madoff handshake. It is loosely translated as snoozing thru the next three months. And most of us cannot afford that luxury.

It looks like it will be a long hot working summer.

Have a wonderful Holiday!

Geritol that ducat. Not!

Wed, 20 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

Wealthmiser is not worried about the dollar’s anemia… and no, table that calves liver... this dollar is okay in my book.

You see, folks, a weak dollar enables U.S. companies to kill off their competition offshore and enjoy humongo profits overseas, like Mickey D’s and coke and wmt... and beef up those commodities also - AG's, coal, steel, metals, energy all enjoy a dollar you can kick sand at...

Or you could go long the big multi-nationals. They will profit mightily from a weak currency. All in all, I'll take my dollars any condition I can get them and for now, I'll take those Bernanke bucks all the way to the bank.

Nightey night…

Wealthmiser to America: please shut up!

Fri, 15 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

What's wrong with you people? Don’t you have a life? Isn’t there anyone in your non-online world that gives you any street cred? Must you posture as a self proclaimed expert in life or love or anything in between to make yourself feel relevant by posting ad nauseum to a bunch of avid readers who have even less of a life than you to waste their time reading your drivel? No wonder our country is going to hell…everyone is blogging away in empty rooms instead of - what did they call that prehistoric activity? Oh yeah, it’s called working for a living …you know as in making something, doing something, offering some skilled service to someone, and getting rewarded for said activity in the form of a currency. So you can pay for dental x-rays you don’t need, pay taxes that Timmy doesn’t, and feed your ungrateful brood of brats who will thank you by ignoring you the day you stop paying their plastic. But I digress – back to blog-festering aplenty…who is making money doing this stuff? Very, very few… here’s why:

Over 12 million American adults currently maintain a blog. More than 147 million Americans use the Internet. Over 57 million Americans read blogs. 1.7 million American adults list making money as one of the reasons they blog. 89% of companies surveyed believe blogs will be more important in the next 5 years. 9% of internet users say they have created blogs . 6% of the entire US adult population has created a blog . Technorati is currently tracking over 70 million blogs . over 120 thousand blogs are created every day . There are over 1.4 million new blog posts every day . 22 of the 100 most popular websites in the world are blogs . 37% of blog readers began reading blogs in 2005 or 2006 . 51% of blog readers shop online . Blog readers average 23 hours online each week.
The blog world is just too damn big no matter how many twelve year olds think how “cool it is.” In actuality, there is zero cool about writing for a blog. As in “unreal life,” it is all smoke and mirrors… everyone hides behind an falseness that makes nothing credible or reliable. Look at Wikipedia hell. Schools won’t even allow kids to use anything from Wikipedia anymore as any internet weirdo can go in and adjust the facts.

The blogogers that are into revenue streams are the worst offenders - they will say anything to get you to visit their site, so that they can steal your identity and buy cheetos with your credit cards.

The more people who log on, the better—and that makes for more laughing blog- meisters getting to bank offthem .Okay, onto stocks:

Bank stocks in general… don’t let the secondary’s scare you away. They are very healthy albeit troublesome out of the gate. The banks are going to print money. In my opinion.

I am long the sector. I am shopping some regionals I think are takeover targets. Do your own DD. I make no recommendations.

Women are Better Investors.

Tue, 12 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

Memo to men: Your household's investment portfolio will be less risky and more diversified if your wife helps manage it. She will share in what comes out of that portfolio down the road; shouldn't she share in what goes into it? Chances are, her ideas and emotions will complement yours, and you will both end up wealthier. At least one of you will end up wiser.

Email: intelligentinvestor@wsj.com

I should listen to myself more.

"I think I should pay for my healthcare by the pound…how long does it take to examine 85 lbs of puslane and tic tocs?"

All the news is now unfit to print.

Sat, 09 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

Ideas about the New Media - we now have a bezillion sources for the news and the value of the content, much of it now for free has been dumbed down across the board - it's all the same noise all the time. And what about the ever-evaporating line between fact s and editorial? Blogs ruminate, newswires regurgitate.

Many VFer’s here repost stories and articles that have no merit beyond an odd curiosity penned by a self proclaimed expert who could not apparently get anyone to pay him any attention in his tragically empty analog world so he seeks validation via clicks. Blame his mother. Obviously a narcissist!

I have a problem with those over-caffeinated wordy jerks passing off their thinly veiled opinions as factually accurate content. I get to the end of the post and find out that the author is part of a weird extremist sect and I grouse about wasted time reading this 8000 character un-spell checked drivel.

The Cable Guys Beyond Jim Cary Scary. Cable TV has to compete and capture market share of online eyeballs as Google and other services go the video route. Border lines drawn – It’s the new black.

The TV news personalities that seem to sell well are attention starved narcissists or BPD types with very bad childhoods they need to work off in front of an audience. (most people in showbiz are in that camp – trust me on this people…) I won’t mention specifics but they tend to be the screamers, or worse, the bloviating blowhards where no one is safe from their vituperative disdain for all things human. And all those sweaty carnival barkers or tarted up verbal cheerleaders with expensive albeit altered cleavage and nasal labial folds are frontrunners for those with the money to have their agendas pushed onto the eager and the doomed.

The advertisers still run the content on TV... or well they used to til they went the way of the tarp…(think GM and all those car ads that went away) The ad agencies are dead and that’s what killed them off. The printed papers are out of biz thanks to the online world of Google, drudge and craigslist. There is no more proprietary content.

Where is the public interest in all this? In the reporting of the story? Local, regional and international? AP has not done its job. I have no faith that the new revenue stream will not be transformed into Wall Street type greed-mongering...

We all grew up on free TV yet we pay 50 bucks for cable now because that's where the content went. Okay you can argue that 99% of that is sports garbage and qvc type shows, but that’s what the viewer is paying for. And cable will die at the hands of the ever growing video downloads ie the latest Netflix iterations.

Okay so back to basics... Freedom of the press - yes… the constitution protects that...But who protects the content? Freedom of the profit motive does not exist and as such money will always decide where the future of the news biz is going. The newspapers are not considered a value even at their cheap prices… Why? Because you can get most of it for free online.

Classified ads are dead thanks to Craig’s List. Pathetic attempts to find an audience for print has gone the way of sensationalism – A voiceless shouting match a la Fox in the form of headlines that would make a writer at the National Enquirer blush. Should newspapers go non-profit... In ten years there will be maybe be 20 papers printed and not one will be a local paper. Online versions will replace them. As for cable, the model has already surfaced. The entertainment reality news type shows will proliferate.

Everyone says all the human food chain should have access to the news but what they fail to address is that the content has been dumbed down to the lowest of the food chain, and as such is basically garbage – Especially what they call mainstream media.

Huffington claims she has the new model for the role of future media. Time will tell. Partisan issues aside – left, right, Neocons, Libertarians, Socialist, Darwinist, Muslim, Catholic… take your pick!

Like they say, if you don't like the way you're getting the news, don't hate the media, hate the players who feed their brain the same way they feed their bodies ... with cheap, nutritionally bankrupt fast food that makes you hips look big. Why is anyone surprised that they are fed the same type of deficient fast food for the brain ? Maybe that explains the Chinese effect of feeling hungry again for more "meat" after only a few hours. In a word, today's media leaves one a tad unsatisfied.

I say let’s blame it all on Gutenberg and those damn monks.

Affectionately, Authoress of "The carbo-loaded dangling participle", soon to be released as a Barnes and Noble remainder…

Will telling all, mean trusting all?

Sat, 09 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

I started buying and adding last night, when the news started filtering thru on the stress tests,.. Good idea overall.

Today the XLF is up 22% - so where do you go from there if you are heavy into the financials? You could sell some out of the money calls to protect... set a trailing stop? It's purple crayon math time.

The jobs report is still troubling... the banks are going to make money but that doesn’t mean we can't correct deeply from here... 5% of all jobs gone bye-bye... recession over when unemployment stops rising… two years before it returns to 6-7% so we’re in for some14 billion 30 year Treasury auction priced much higher - Obama's big problem will be very hard... I am long the TBT. This job is how to fund it without massive inflation... it started to sell off because of the market - the auction did not do well... the stock market is rallying, and the bond market is not partying... So can you anchor yields at low rates...And will they step in and keep the yields low? True, the econ landscape is schitzo- sparking the run-up in treasury yields… hmmm, time to buy Kraft, but in the meantime we are in banks... rising energy prices is a reflationary trade - not based on demand… this is being driven by index buying especially in Natgas... I see Baker Hughes BHI got a mention.

This natgas move is enormous...is this short covering 76% short… dvn up 3 up 6 COP over 3 bucks...You must keep your face glued to the screen…

Financials lead bull market recoveries... lots of hedge funds going out of biz

getting squeezed... banks can raise capital now so that's the end of the tory. They were not going to fail… Timmy said buy banks - we buy banks... BAC sells 10 million shares a day... the "get back in the bank market calls today" were everywhere... BAC, WFC heavy buying... the lynch pin is unemployment… if all of 2009, 8.9% unemployment does not hold, it will be time to get out of the market.

The trade right now is to 950 or 900...

The Obama trade… oil is headed higher… how can he handle it... if you look at oil, he hates oil, he hates speculation - the index buying is driving the prices up... he will release oil if it gets out of hand. Obama gets a full SPR, so he can knock the price down in a heartbeat by releasing the oil and he will…

DISCLOSURE UPDATE… the rules must change… that's next to keep the market healthy... Here's the short story... if you become short 5% of the stock, you should have to report it… it's called disclosure. Sure, you have painted a bulls-eye on your head… after all you are un-American… a traitor to the economy… disclosing that position is like you're shooting yourself... disclosure is the best way to restore trust in the market... and with that, the WealthMiser discloses that she is long stock, and short sleep… nitey night.

Wealthmiser says; I'm Biden my time

Mon, 04 May 2009 01:03:31 PST

The VP is not in the extreme despite the naysayers- the WHO said basically the same thing...I mean would you eat at restaurant in Mexico City right now via a nice re-booked discount flight? Sure what he said will hurt the airlines and tourism, but Obama could not go that far as President but he needed to get that message out. Our economy is at stake here and this damn thing could unglue all his DD so far. Please, one infection at a time, and right now he has his hands full with greed.Besides, only the truly death wish types would fly right now IMO...they don't clean planes between flights, commuter flights don't use those filters anyway, and to hell with everyone who calls this an overdone info-demic...

I say an ounce of prevention is worth it. Remember what happened the last time... What have we learned class? What other impact could this have like the previous SARS and Avian epidemics? Here's your choice - a temporary disruption with hands on efforts, or complacency that lets it turn into a recession-demic. Duh. Sure we didn't need this right now as a pandemic would out- bear the bears on wall street and the stock market would really suffer… one tiny microbe wipes out a sea of bulls bears and everybody in between.

I say embrace your inner Biden and fast. I even forgive him his grammar and fact snafus for having the ‘gulliones’ to tell it like it is. Obama was very smart in hiring him and is using him wisely. A good strategy.

So listen up petrie-dissers - stay out of public places, stay off the planes, out of the hotels, and keep your sniff’ly germy little brats home! Wash those filthy digits 24/7 til they shrivel like a prune. Sneeze into your elbow. Teach your kids proper hygiene in public places. Don't touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. Forego finger food and the mint dish. Wear gloves. Besides, you couldn't buy a mask now even if you wanted one at Home Depot or Lowes – they sold out last week. So who's short the airlines, hotels, and restaurants? Kudos to Obama who this time found the perfect antidote for Biden's foot-in-mouth disease.

Your cautious Germ-a Phobe

The other white meat is toast.

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

Ariana’s lovely website tells us that Egypt has slaughtered all its pigglies. Well they’re not allowed to eat pork anyway so what’s the big deal?

“Walk like an Egyptian”… as the Bangles would say…

Wow, if that doesn’t infer we should all be vegetarians I don’t know what does.

I wish they could slaughter all the pork in Washington.

Some clueless little kid goes playing in a pig style and before you know it, we have a Black Plague weighing in on the market.

NVAX BCRX, etc all moving up and down on the whims of the mm’s… playing them according to their tunes is a sucker’s bet.

I liked the financials today… and tech is really taking off… especially the wireless players… The market may retrace, over the next day or two, in that it can’t go ballistic forever. Buy opps will abound, the dips shall be bought – until evidence of this wall of worry – the economic uptick, is no longer on the PPT train.

Just picked up the Obama-rama Press conference off CNN – what a sham! It’s all scripted - it’s the Obama show pure and simple. He knows all the questions, the newsmen look like cardboard dummies… he reads off a teleprompter – yikes…

Is he afraid someone is going to throw a shoe? I am not saying the man should be wearing a cup to face the media, but this is really too engineered to be credible.

Yep...there goes one of skanky Ann Coulter’s Manolas bopping him right in the nose… Emanuel is beyond a control freak… he is clearly running the show with a very tight fist...or to quote Ali - he dances like a butterfly, and stings like a rabid bee..I could just see him high-fiving Obama after that little over- rehearsed PR event.

You think Emanuel wore a cup under his tu-tu?

I wonder if they serve a lot of pork in the White House kitchen. Michelle I am sure would love to serve barbecue when the four tops are invited to sing on those Wednesday soirfests.

I have an idea. Egypt can send us their dead pigs, and we can send them Pelosi and the all the pork on the hill they can stomach.

Arianna..Beam me up to your site!

My neighbor is sitting out the recession

Sun, 26 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

My neighbor is a pharma salesman – hits the road a lot - or at least did-until recently - I was sure he had lost his job. Suddenly I did not see him rushing off to the airport like he did when I first moved here. He’s home all the time now. Not quite sure what’s up with his job but from the looks of his behavior - if he got the ax, it was with one hell of a package because this guy is partying like its 1999.

No recession for our neighbor “Ed”. He’s got two little girls, a nice brick 2800 sq ft new build with 5k in landscaping and fencing. Two SUVS, and a not so little woman who also works out of the house in some kind of quasi-medical consulting firm for Alzheimer’s patients. One of their daughters goes to private school. The other one is in pre-school. They hire a cleaning service once a week, have a lawn service, and spend every weekend entertaining in their backyard. For the of July he puts on a big light show, and oh yes, he has two speed boats he bought this year which he takes out at least once a week.

Since the recession hit, this man has not changed one thing in his life.

There is no indication from the looks of his life that the economy too a nosedive.

I wonder how prevalent this observation is.

So while the rest of us are watching the dollar drop, the lunatics in Washington running stress tests, bankers going belly up and taking your tax money with them, the stock market and the games they play, and real estate in its world of hurt, there are other folks out there that are completely out of that realm and are getting along in their respective lives very recession free thank you very much.

Yes, I guess it would impact on his summer plans so I guess he decided to tell it go blow. After all there are SUV’s, and boats, and yard toys, and barbecues and birthday parties.

For example, earlier today he took the kids out for some shopping… they all came back with armloads of bags from the mall – And lots of balloons. I am smelling big birthday bash.

I went shopping yesterday and same thing – the stores were all full… I noticed fewer salespeople, but the local furniture store was full of bargain hunters, the car washes were full, Walmart had long lines, and the restaurants were full.

This is the healthiest recession I have ever seen.

I am guessing in some parts of the country we may be already out of it. Or at least been given a brief respite from its clutches.

Party on dudes.

Wealthmiser muses...

Thu, 23 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

Spilling from his sneering lipless lips he utters "profligate" spraying the poor cameraman as he butchers it, but who knew? Speaking on behalf of his clam-digging half wit constituents on the half shell the sophist who brought us the Fannie Mae debacle of the 1990’s delivers unto Obama a new “beast” of failed Bush free market frou-frou – the idiots with the maxed out plastic.

So is capping the interest rate pretty much baked in the cake, or no?

Kudlow bends over for him on his show - imploring him NOT to cap rates a la Carter and DaMato previous debacles. He obligingly assuages Kudlow because Kudlow is not O’Reilly.

The restrictions on the card business turns out to be a thrifty 1400 page document which calls for a more immediate restriction on the rates..however since it appears the average elected nurdling can't concentrate past a 100 character tweet, it looks like nothing is going to happen like tomorrow.

And AXP and V and MA....were the trades today. MA up over 6 bucks…V up, AXP up… but alls is NOT rosy with AXP says WSJ…

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124051776104649423.html?ru=yahoo&mod=yahoo_hs

Disclosure: long MA and V…

A hellacious bond market looms for the next four years...animal spirits are scared shirtless...the big crapshoot is if the Joe’s don't get tired of no returns on their CD's will they go back to the dreaded but alluring equity market, or this time because they are older, will go directly to the fixed income market, at which time you can kiss the equity market goodbye. Who is more incompetent - Lewis or Pandit? Who gets indicted first? Stanford?

Cuomo has a thought… http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124050588176348711.html

Obama in Commode Mode? How much would a commode in the White House fetch ‘ya think? Can't wait ‘til the Oval Office is a publically traded company - put me in on that IPO puleeze!

OB - he may or may not be a great President but as the consummate Sophist, he sure is making one hell of a CEO – tarping thru the Rose Garden with Timmy, PPIPeeing on his crack-berry post Paulson, designing new electric cars, SNF getting lots of frequent flyer miles off Air Force One… thanks to him, increased tea sales boost the bev biz..

And he has his wife giving the fashion industry a shot of steam.

But his greatest product is himself. Boy is he good. Know why? Because he believes in his product…an inspiring, global citizen, charismatic ectomorph with a great set of pec’s he isn’t afraid to expose on mag covers… his publishing empire made him millions so far. Then there’s his growing media empire – the docu film still to be released and he is already on the campaign trail for term 2: http://www.seattlepi.com/tvguide/405480_tvgif23.html

The Market… Here’s what I did today… I am still long in the portfolio… I see gold in my future – which did well today… bought some IVAN and RGLD and almost got a little of the unloved VGZ –nice chart…

Did a little NOV off that overdone selloff, and got some DIG…

And why is NFLX being abused on such good numbers?

Picked up some STAR, and LVLT on the dips as I like the sector now…

Steered clear of financials on the Friday stress-fest…

Wished some BIDU pixie dust would blow my way (under 200) but alas, it is in another galaxy for now… AAPL and GOOG likewise…

The Solar’s: APWR and ANR are still with me… SPWRA was a mess today… FSLR is a hold.

And don’t laugh… I am back in CROX… And since stocks have only retraced 15% on this "we're not worthy" rally so far please shut up already on wanting to see the retrace, the pullback, or the damn bottom. And stick those fibs where the sun don’t shine… Hahaha.

I am enjoying this blind squirrel rally… it feels good.

Wealthmiser asks the bankers...

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

Oh come now girls, that bank of yours... tell me you're not running out of clever ruses to cover up just how insolvent you are.

Please don't tell me we'll have to look to Israel to bomb the shyte out of Iran, or watch another Iceland go bankrupt to get the market to come down. You're the best hope we have for a meltdown!

You know what they say - give them enough rope and they'll... oh never mind.

The banks unravelled the rally today... What's next?

Dow Jane Says:

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

A leaky stress test? what a joke… it’s like the senior class that slept thru the entire year is asked to come up with their own SATS… where are the indictments? Screw this pussy footing pencil pushing... lots of bodies need to be in orange to appease the recently impoverished. Better known as the 99.99999% of the country that aren’t bankers.

Is it my imagination (or the cheap wine) but doesn't Turbo Timmy look like one of the Keebler Elves?

Our Prez and the Art of War

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

Obama extends the olive branch by giving Chavez the old high five?

What's he going to do next? Invite him to a game of hoops in his old Chicago-hood?. Chavez laughs all the way to the bank because Venezuela is an oil exporter. Would he support CO2 or carbon taxes?

Dream on... meanwhile the guys running Chevron and Exxon are the capitalist criminals and need to pay up more taxes. Don't see any high fives coming their way - invitations to the White House Wednesday schmooz-athons? nada.

And so far drill-less America continues to import Venezuelan oil.

Yeah, keep your enemies closer....

CNBC is Twenty years old.

Sun, 19 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

From a book on the subject: Just Substitute “kids” for CNBC!!

And I quote; "We are indeed in a dire state of things when most kids believe that they are special above everyone else, that self-esteem is the most important quality, that loving yourself is more important than loving others, and that to heck with everyone else at the expense of yourself."

A generation of wannabes the downside of which is: narcissism due to what can only be described as too much self-esteem; an unwillingness to take personal responsibility; too much of a focus on money and celebrity.

Woohoo. In that I would like to appear on cnbc someday, I am not going to trash talk it here but the 20^th anniversary festivities were particularly hysterical.

Old bald got it all wrong -- Ron Insana shows up hoping to get hired back? He left to get fat fees off a hedge fund, no? And it ended up going pffft… that’s what you get for coming from Buffalo with too much, "self esteem” ???? hahaha... Saw Joe Kernan making sure he was standing right behind the big goncho ringing the closing bell - poor Joe- his fifteen minutes is the next on the chopping block methinks… Squawk is the worst show on CNBC imo…

Then of course chubby Maria bloviating all day. The original pictures of Sue Herrera were downright scary – she’s HUGE compared to 20 years ago, and most of the men hairlines went the way of the DOW. Hell you could chronicle CNBC just by the plugs, toupees, and mall hairdos thru 20 years of reporting. Ted David – Mr Bubble Hair came back. But no Liz Clayman Mall Hair? Rugless Ron Insana implodes back in but no Dylan?

And how about Dorfman or the Dolans or–eek–Suze?

Hmmmm. Looks like the Gen Me Channel wanted the spotlight all to itself… how typical.

The only tea party I want to attend serves Oolong.

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

I will leave the contingent of the orange pekoe world to the tax reformers - I am long the FXI, and FEED. So the wheels are not coming off the Chinese Economy Oil has retreated Emerging economies from China and India are looking good.The IEA also boosted its projections for supply from outside the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries by about 100,000 barrels a day this year, and next, on an improved outlook for North Sea and U.S. projects. Non-OPEC suppliers will provide 50.1 million barrels a day this year and 50.8 million in 2009. Jimmy Rogers was talking about the Chinese Drought so CNOA, CAGC and SEED are viable.

Hey, if I play my cards right maybe Jimmy invites me for tea one of these days.Sure hope there's enough water there to fill a pot. I'd love to see Shanghai ever since I saw Marlene Deitrich as Shanghai Lily.

Are we being played?

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

Will the government wait till the end of earnings to release “stress test” results?

Seems like there is a bit of "creative writing" from the banks; i.e. suddenly all is sunny and warm in bank-land in just a matter of a few short weeks. Turn a phrase here and there, and voila - a whole new script emerges… the government holds the data release out just far enough so that we rally say 899.98 points, then they will reinforce what the banks said (after all they are after the same agenda - and the banks are now the gov’t’s "bitches" and as such now the mouth pieces...)

So we'll get more upside news from the Feds. More upside! We'll rally some more - maybe another 500 points… then slowly they'll start to leak bits and pieces of the bad news judiciously so as not to wrankle Wall Street or ruin such a pretty little bull rally in the ugly old bear market. C’mon, there's a new puppy in the White House - we can't have a correction now... Obama wants the world to sing in perfect harmony! And what the fed and treasury and the President want they'll get - this market up, up, up... whatever... Lola wants... la, la, la.

Obama and the G20

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

Somehow between rounds of fixing the banks, gold, the world economy, and rubbing elbows with the world's elite, he turned into a soldier of engagement. He became an apologist for everything our country stands for. Instead of apologizing, he should have reminded the folks in Strasbourg that if it weren't for us they'd all be speaking German today. And why apologize for something we never said like being at war with Islam? Hell, even Dub’ya nailed that one.

In Turkey he said; “we're not a Christian nation”.... huh? 75% of our population said it embraced one form of Christianity or another. Did he ever check out the numbers of born-again-ers?

Even his beloved Lincoln said we were Judao-Christian... Uh, “In God We Trust” ring a bell there Obama? Making a liar out of Jefferson are ‘ya little global buddy?

Hey I don't care that as a minority he sides with the discriminated, the down trodden, the unloved. It's when he does it as my president that rankles me.

He said, "We will convey our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith, which has done so much over the centuries to shape the world, including in my own country."

Okay on that I agree... The NYC skyline is missing two buildings and 3000 extra graves fertilize U.S. soil from sea to shining sea. It's kind’a hard to be extending an olive branch when they're still holding a blow torch.

Every time I caught one of his speeches while on this trip, he sounded like the dorky kid running for high school class president trying to get the cool kids to like him.

This trip became less about the G20 and more about Obama and his need for adulation, Being a liberal, he likes the guilty by definition handle., and he so desperately wants to be universally loved, he took this trip as a way to get his story out...he wants the French to love him… he wants to be respected by all those global hipster Europeans I guess because they’re so much more worldly with those cool accents! So he rips the old bad-ass United States so they can relate to what he is saying. It's a wonder he didn't takeover all the Paris Mickey D's and make them serve only omelet’s and beef tartare,

At least Michelle didn't go into Euro-trash mode. Nope. She rep’ed the US mom full throttle what with her chunky athletic legs, over processed hair, and J Crew. Huggy huggy....

My old neighborhood's getting no respect

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 01:03:31 PST

From CNBC... "Massachusetts' top securities regulator sued Fairfield Greenwich Group, which funneled billions of dollars into Bernard Madoff's ponzi scheme, accusing the hedge fund firm of misleading investors."

The G20 meeting...

And while there is blood on the streets from the actor/demonstrators outside Buckingham Palace, Barack and Michelle dine on smoked quail eggs, and Welsh lamb rubbing elbows with the Queen, who they gave an iPod with Broadway show tunes on - too bad nobody checked to see she already had an iPod… oh well... protocol screw-ups again from our side of the world..

Did you notice when the cameras are on, Michelle and Barack eat the people's food of cheesy chili, fries, and chicken wings, when the cameras are off they are dining on fois grois in pearls and cashmere, and driven around in a Caddy... (rim shot)

Obama saw fit to ship 500 people with him to this g20 meeting... OB and wifey got elected I swear to do a Clinton - only for the money - isn't it obvious how hungry they are for the frills of office?

Living large as they say, while he tells his voters to let them eat Twinkies...

The AIG Scam just gets uglier and uglier

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

This comes to us from the folks at
Zero Hedge on Seeking Alpha.

We get the latest iteration that is a real stomach turner...

A good, but chilling read.
Bundle up!

Wealthmiser plays dear prudence

Sat, 28 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

No, not the Beatle song silly, I am playing the role of the prudent angel's advocate this evening. Giddy off the rally this week, I offer up these sobering questions...

Are you cutting back, downsizing, saving more or just coasting? Planning ahead - will this new economy make you work harder or softer? Has the crash made you smarter or just poorer? Do you feel more aggressive now toward your goals or more passive-regressive? Will the individual investor class abandoned the stock market for a simpler life? And is that a good idea?

This notion of self imposed thrift… is it a lifestyle choice or is it merely making the best of a bad situation until we all go back to being crazy overleveraged lunatics again?

So you lost your nest egg, and suddenly profligate living suddenly looks charming?

Is this your thinking?

So Mr. Big Bucks hedge fund manager – you know the ones we all saw on CSPAN - took my money away so I guess I will take what’s left of me and my self – esteem, and acquire a taste for chuck steak and thunderbird. I will bow out of the market, buy a smaller house, and a cheaper car and cut my work hours. I will rediscover my children and my wife, and hope they still remember me… and oh yes, return to my religions and my love of butterflies - all those things I had forsaken in the name of the almighty dollar.

Has the individual investor given up on the markets - not because of losses - but because it has failed them? Are they cutting back because they sense a long period of economic malaise that won't be fixed by increased spending or a new bailout program?

Or do they and YOU believe that the economic quagmire will result in opportunities far off in the future, and want to be in position, with cash on hand, to take advantage?

Read my three "composite" profiles… read them and see if you see yourself :

Peter is a medical malpractice lawyer who made over $500,000 in 2007. He started his own firm in 2007, and projects that his billings will be down. Furthermore, he is looking to downsize. He is going to merge his firm with another, and he is moving from a bigger house to a condo. Even though he lost over 50% of his net worth last year, he knows that he could ride out the storm, but why bother. He can live a lot simpler and never wants to put himself in that position again where his financial well being is controlled by the market so he is pulling back on his spending and his investments not because he has to but wants to.

Karen is a dermatologist with significant and stable investments in rental properties. She really hasn't taken a hit from the practice or her investments. She is cutting back because she has too much on her plate; her balance sheet is leveraged more than she would like especially when she thinks about the present economy. She doesn't have to downsize but wants to improve her cash flow.

Kyle is a successful engineer with a stable salary. In fact, his wife is a professor, so they have two very stable salaries. Yes, they lost in last year's market, but with 20 years of life ahead of them, they are not concerned. While retirement is far away, the current economic mess is viewed as an opportunity to plan for the future. They would like to buy a home abroad. Prior to 2008, this was just a silly notion, but maybe, just maybe, they now think it is possible... this will require savings, which means they will be hunkering down too.

In summary: one is downsizing to simplify living. One is cutting back to beef up his balance sheet. One is squirreling because he want to pounce on the next bubble. They don't have to cut back due to foreclosures, etc., but they want to and so far this dynamic hasn’t been on CNBC or spoken of on Wall Street.

They, the media are still yapping in bailout mode, not focusing on what the net effect of all this distrust and disappointment has wrought on the investor.

Who cares about the details of the bailout at this point? I am bored beyond belief. Enough already! It will get fixed eventually. The real story is about a shift in this country from spenders to savers. That's the real story.

Greta Garbo protected her nest egg by investing in art while living a frugal life in NYC.

This isn’t about the people on the bubble. This is about the you and me’s - somewhat immune to the direct effects of the recession choosing to cut back, putting away the plastic. That’s said, I have always lived below my means, saved more than I should, and having lost a good bit in this market all the more committed to my philosophy. Yes, I am angry. Yes, shareholders have been screwed. Yes, I am disgusted by 99% of all I read and hear, but beyond that, I must take matters into my own hands, because I trust no one. Instead of railing against the system, and shopping real estate offshore, I must make the past year’s bitter painful experience a learning one. My leaner meaner portfolio was my tuition. In time I will make it work in my favor. Yes, all in good time.

California

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

I am predicting right here that the Tent Cities in California are going to explode with people coming to live there… And why not?

For the recently dislocated or the folks sick of the cold nasty winter back east, what better place to pitch a tent and live rent free? And what better way to get your story on Oprah who recently did a show on them. Just think of it… live for free in the most beautiful state in the country… Ever pay rent in Los Angeles? $800 bucks for 200 sq ft if you’re lucky…

I have known employed people reduced to buying an RV and living out of it in the Malibu mountains because the real estate was priced so high and these guys worked in the film industry… even bizillionaire Jim Cramer once lived out of his car in California…

And California is very socialist in that they love their homeless folks… the cops leave them alone all along the beach in Santan Monica and if you’d ever like a free lunch while out there, the homeless get free food in the palisades area every day overlooking the ocean!!! Woohoo… So let’s explore the concept of being not homeless but home free.

The pluses…

The weather is great-who needs a house in a 72 degree constant temperature? And... How far is a geodesic dome from a tent?

People pay thousands to fly to CA and camp-out in the mountains... get to do it for free. The clinics will take their cute little toothless brats anytime - great socialist healthcare out there… If your hand is out in CA plenty of bleeding-heart-libs will fill it. The best place to be home-free in the world. Housing is soooo over-rated... who needs a damn lawn anyway?

Is that really so bad? No mortgage, or high utility bills. The sky is your ceiling... You can grow your own veggies… and the social programs in CA are great i.e. food stamps... hell, they don't call it the People's Republic of Cali for nothing!

Leave it to Ahnnnold the Governor of Californication to put a liberal boohoo spin to this Maybe we’ll even see Maria Shriver working a sushi or taco (forget soup) kitchen like Michelle Obama did recently in Washington DC…

By the way... the homeless in SF are the high water mark - try to give them food and they'll tell you they only eat vegan, while their labradoodle pees on your foot... and oh yes, they will tell you where their part of the 11 trillion lost to the US consumer went…I hear Martha Stewart has some nifty tent friendly towel lines coming out soon.

Hey until the economy recovers, this isn't half bad...

The Masses turn out to be Asses

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

Re: the bailout money is wrong but so is this... does a housekeeper from New Jersey think she is suddenly entitled to keep her house because some rich executive gamed the system better than she? Dissss-connect...once again the blame game ensues (i.e. I am not responsible for being fat and insolvent- McDonalds and AIG are).. yeah right... the extreme left is using the middle class to front their agenda, and once again the middle class plays patsy to a media event... dumber and dumber... I have a lot of sympathy for someone living BELOW their means and not making it and none for those that spent more than they earned and were over-leveraged, no matter how enticing the lure was.

The Underpants Rally

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

Well shock and awe Fed action had the same effect on the shorts as some bad Mexican tap water.

I am going long BVD’s, wipes, and Clorox… the market colonic on the shorts must have stunk up the short boys cubicles. Helicopter Ben saves the day… our new media hero… Super-Fed-man (Spielberg are you listening?) Oil traders, commodities guys… love the weak dollar… mortgage rates plunge… all’s sweet

Obama in CA tonight feeling the love… the crowds and he are acting like he is still running for office… chanting love-fest vox populi directed by Emanuel and starring OB… gotta love… the man KNOWS how to work the media to max effect… and he will not let go of the rhetoric that put him in office as it reminds all of us of his power with prose.

This is 1970’s redux… massive inflation is in the horizon… but no other measure works here… can the Fed take out all this liquidity if the recovery doesn’t happen? First time the FOMC has taken responsibility… kudos for them… $800 billion is a nice round number… Gethner and Summers are jolting the mortgage biz asap… Ben and Laffer agree for once. Laffer isn’t sure Ben can do it.

Guess he’s not a fan of super heroes… perhaps he should rent Watchmen. You can run but you can’t hide from easy monetary policy. Too much money chasing too few ideas. Jimmy Carter 1981 déjà vu… trade protectionism, tax hikes on wealthy. Econ mess, loose money. Long term treasuries are the key – if they keep the funds here, they can get out before inflation hits.

Pit boys say it’s going to take more money to get into these markets. Stay tuned… this is good for stocks - we rally big time on all this.

Jack Welch

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

I don’t know – maybe he started celebrating St. Patty’s Day early, but the guy was barfing nonsense on CNBC today. Seems he thinks shareholder value is the least important concern for any company… it can’t be a goal as much as the net result of doing your job right.

He says, “You have to eat while you dream”… Success in business today relies on making the right long range goals while feeding the troops short term… and to boost our manufacturing base we must change our agenda - our leader in jet engines, power plants all over the world 3 billion to 90 billion -- throws 10 -15 billion in cash flow…UT, Eaton etc… but to win we must end the HB1 nightmare as we watch our brightest leave our shores

What kind of talent does it take

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

Pwhaa! ...and get $165 million in bonuses for your efforts?

Hank's AIG was a $169 billion dollar company trading at $64 bucks a share… now Mr. Sullivan's company is trading at 64 cents.

Woops. I forgot these are the brightest and best of Wall Street... by the way the one’s getting the bonuses are the one’s that wrote all this toxic paper... seems they can't fire them cuz no one else on the planet will be able to decipher these instruments. Maybe the bonuses are bribes to make them stay...lol

Why don't they break up AIG – write off the toxic investments, leave the good ones alone, and stop the bailout insanity.

This issue never went to court so we'd never know whether or not these contracts would have gotten aggregated… heck contracts get torn apart all the time... (look at all the GM/union contracts that got busted up) but they chose instead to pull a sneaky-pete over that weekend deal when no one was looking... Congress passed it in a hurry... probably didn't even read it, okay, maybe an intern fished it out of the wastebasket out of curiosity (or worse if the did read it, it would mean they are incompetent and stupid) and rushed this thru. And there is no precedent here so we'll never know how this would have played out in court.

But what I really want to know is, how come all that AIG tarp money ended up in German and French banks? Who's idea was that? Who are they fronting for? Or is this just another AIG move? Anybody know?

I think we're so busy focusing and being angry on these bonuses, we're not tightening AIG's leash right now…

Meanwhile we are having "tea parties" all over the US but strangely little media coverage... hmmmmm

“Kiss my Irish ass... please”

How good is a fake rally?

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

“New household formation needs 7 million new homes, right now we have 400,000.” So says Larry Summers.

The focus of eco-policy should be recovery not growth. We’ll only start another bubble somewhere if we over stimulate too soon… Steady as she goes.

The Dept of Commerce retail sales figures reported two consecutive months of increases. Ergo the rally for two days since without autos, figures were up 1.6% and 0.7% in the first two months, although down 5.9% and 5.0% yearly.
Obama sang praise over the optimistic numbers.

You cannot say that two month-to-month increases are not positive, but in no way do they come close toa “trend,” but two months of up does not negate balancing the 5.0%+ yoy performances. That's why they're called trends.

I think the rally is short lived… Be careful out there.

Watch oil. Watch the vix…

"So how much does a guy have to screw up before he gets a gig on the Daily Show? Maybe I have to invade Lichtenstein!... my staff can't spell it anyway."

The Clash That Wasn't

Thu, 12 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

The buffoon is dead.... it was the biggest mistake of Cramer's career - Jon said it best - after the so called "clash" he said to the effect, "I hope that was as embarrassing to watch as it was to do." It was.

And it was not as funny as it was riveting.

Exposure, Clarity. Transparency. What a rare refreshing experience as the emperor was finally exposed by an intellect as sharp as Stewart's. Bravo. It deserved an Emmy. This was an historic moment in TV land imo. I have never seen anything like it.

I won't go thru the litany that was covered but in a nutshell Jon won on all counts -- once you get a buffoon and catch him in the act, pin him down, call him on it, and then proceed to watch him unsuccessfully squirm out of it, is TV at its best. Stewart is light years smarter than Cramer - that did not help -as the sacrificial CNBC lamb sent to the Daily Show, Cramer simply "died" tonight on the air.

Who does CNBC answer to? The CEO's and titans that run Wall Street or the 401k holders that fueled their Sherman's March to egregious profits with OUR MONEY.

I love Jon Stewart. If he ran for president, he'd get my vote.

WealthMiser asks...

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

Is this the one? The Jon Stewart I skewered Jim Cramer rally?

Or the Ben Bernanke yapp’n it up this am rally?

The Gartman rally?

The Dick Bove Ken Lewis rally?

Nah… It’s the WealthMiser rally!

It’s turnaround Tuesday and Bernanke just cracked a smile…696 is a key reversal…

We could go as high as 835..Mcclellan signal pilgrims….stay long and strong…woopsy upside!

I’ll take it – bull bear 52% highest

See – miracles do happen… how long it stays around is anyone’s guess 6970 – this puppy moves 1000 points…then I’ll eat my hat…

Yum…

Two Tales

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

Nashville was recently voted the manliest city in the USA. And here I thought it was full of wussy musicians writing soppy love songs. Seems barbecue, NASCAR, hunting and fishing activities are big ticket testosterone builders…

Evidently, this was based on a really in depth survey funded by the folks who make those disgusting cheese filled pretzels. Combos, and as such, used EXTREMELY scientific criteria like, “number of professional major league sports teams, popularity of tools and hardware and frequency of monster truck rallies… the number of U.S.-made cars driven in the city, number of sports bars and BBQ restaurants, number of home improvement stores as well as manly salty snacks consumption.” Because women never eat barbeque or snacks… Of course… Cities also lost points for “the abundance of home furnishing stores, high minivan sales and subscription rates to beauty magazines.” I guess that’s why San Francisco and NYC didn’t make the cut. But don’t tell that to the Village People or the Pacific Heights folks.

The other raccoon meat… another Tale

I found this: Nashville was voted one of the saddest cities in the US…Number 17 saddest tying with LA… hmmmm… So here’s my theory. The 2% of the population who aren’t manly are depressed, and write sad songs about it! And the women are depressed because their men are all out at NASCAR, or hunting and fishing rather than wining and dining, taking out the garbage or paying attention to them.

Or is being manly and the pressure to hold that mantel an overwhelming responsibility few men are comfortable holding?

Dashboard Report

Sun, 08 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

Big ticket items being bought at the local Walmart in the checkout line I was in… DELL computer, two exercise bikes, a steamer griller (outdoor type) and some guy buying this huge St.Elmo doll in purple.

Store was jammed on a beautiful Saturday. The more upscale Sonoma type malls were packed, shopping bags swinging from arms – it’s like the media is saying one thing – we are going to hell depression, but I see anything but today… also a lot of folks are driving around in shiny new cars…

I did notice prices NOT coming down, but stuff continues to fly off the shelves.

Houses continue to grace for sale signs in ever increasing numbers.

Traffic was horrific everywhere. Maybe they aren’t buying but they are out thanks to cheap gas. $1.67.

I mean it looked by 2008 out there…what’s up. America? You’re supposed to be in your bunker buying ammo and bottled water!

There are just too many positive vibes out there. People are happy. This disturbs me greatly…lol

Should Obama replace Geithner?

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

As I contemplate a Black Monday or a rally or something in between...I give you this ...

I don't think this market gets off its duff with this guy. What's with these jerkoff academicians that can't seem to navigate their brains in the real world? Does not say much for the Harvard/MIT/ B School training ground... (Dubya ring a bell?)

Is it just me or does Geithner give you the creeps? I can't put my finger on it - but he reminds me of the shipmate guy in the movie Titanic who is headed straight for the iceberg with this in denial clueless look on his face for most of the movie... lol

I think OB's administration lost Wall Street's confidence because of his selection of Turbo Timmy. (Nothing like stating the obvious... duh!)

And not paying taxes was the least of it... first his currency faux pas statement, then his ineffectual performance thus far… others seem to agree… what is the protocol to getting him fired?

The Childish Sideshows in Washington

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

It’s not like Rush needs it… he has 19 million listeners, but I am sure Rush is laughing all the way to the last standing SOLVENT bank in Fla… thanks to Carville and Emanuel for making him the voice of the repubs… can’t wait to see the Michael Moore documentary –

No matter - the real drama is between Obama and Pelosi…

He is using Pelosi as a camp counselor to pass his budget to the Dems ..meanwhile he plays nice with the repubs (sorry Rush) to appear as a centrist…Nancy got to write the bill and throw in 200 years of earmarks keeping it under a tad trillion…(swine odor manure management earmark??)

And their faux contentious vibe is straight out of central casting (acting coach probably sent by Ari Emanuel…lol)

But I don’t think Michelle has to worry about any deep affection either…ha-ha-ha…

Clinton had a worse deal…His first bill went to hell. He had to get in bed with the dems and the repubs to get anything done… then Lewinsky hit the fan, and for the next 3 years, both parties, the media, and Hillary owned his ass, and basically he became a puppet on a four way string.

So back to Rush the 800 lb gorilla that got poked… not a good idea - just ask that woman in Connecticut. I am sure Rush will return the attack in kind…

Besides Rush is a great entertainer and the big winner here. Michael Steel is the de facto Repub leader anyway.

Americans united for Change funded by Soros and Lewis meanwhile are pumping mega bucks to attack the Fox folks and flame conservatives everywhere… and poor Obama is trying to save a sinking ship better known as America. His big battle, the one that eclipses all others is his battle with Wall Street.

The rally we had today was in part due to his comment about buying stocks now. Wow… After four days worth of down action on his speeches and his minions, that’s the least he owes them…lol

The relative value of gold uncovered

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

This was posted on the SI board…

In 1998, an ounce of gold could be purchased for 7.49 shares of BAC... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 238.61 shares of BAC.

In 1999, an ounce of gold could be purchased for 5.50 shares of JPM... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 41.25 shares of JPM.

…An ounce of gold could be purchased for 6.09 shares of MSFT... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 58.36 shares of MSFT.

…An ounce of gold could be purchased for 3.50 shares of CSCO.... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 69.61 shares of CSCO.

In 2000, an ounce of gold could be purchased for 3.99 shares of INTC... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 73.98 shares of INTC.

…An ounce of gold could be purchased for 4.17 shares of BA... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 29.98 shares of BA.

…An ounce of gold could be purchased for 3.59 shares of GM... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 418.89 shares of GM.

…An ounce of gold could be purchased for 4.45 shares of HD... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 45.12 shares of HD.

…An ounce of gold could be purchased for 5.45 shares of GE... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 110.75 shares of GE.

In 2001, an ounce of gold could be purchased for 6.49 shares of C... today an ounce of Gold will cost you 110.75 shares of C.

And you thought Alan knew what he was doing when history is written, the man will be remembered as the Machiavellian money man.

Wealthmiser says no chance of sleeping thru this recession

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 01:03:31 PST

This may be why...

More than a quarter of 1,000 Americans polled by the National Sleep Foundation, a non-profit organization that promotes a greater understanding of sleep and health, reported that the economy had disturbed their sleep at least a few nights a week.

Money, jobs, and zero healthcare, in a strange twist of irony are keeping us all awake. The percentage of Americans experiencing economy-related insomnia may have worsened since the telephone poll was conducted over a month-long period beginning in late September.

Okay cranky and irritable...how can we make money off this?...easy - buy pills and ammo… that's what the gurus of the market are buying…

According to Forbes, the gurus they cover have been buying Watson Pharmaceuticals and Olin - and while the combo sounds scary ( who wants to run into a sleep-deprived stressed out 225lb guy with what's left of his 401k, high on Paxil packing heat?)

Obama better get cracking on his healthcare bill. Look at where the market went yesterday and how he chose not to address it. Good grief, the man is likely to make a whole lot of folks sicker before he gets his budget act together. He better stop targeting the haves from the have not’s, separating Wall Street from main street.

It’s all the same street OB! - you raise taxes now on wall street and you kill off all the jobs those dudes that voted for you are counting on. Even your spending spree can't hire all the unemployed.

And meanwhile he lives like a pasha on Pennsylvania... Didn't take him long to adjust. I realize the man never ran a company or came from an investment background. But he is smart and a fast learner. Perhaps he can dance around Geithner and get someone in there who instills more confidence the street desperately needs. Our future depends on this. The divisive class warfare he is igniting whether he realizes it or not will be our undoing. Only when we work together is thing going to work. I am praying he can pull it off. But I have a plan B as well.

Good luck out there. And get some sleep!

Fools rush in?

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

If they had to elect a president it would be Mitt Romney... So Rush Limbaugh has become the new voice of the NRP...1994 he was a big hero... the big white hope and now the conservative angry voters have a voice they love again in 2009... the man is powerful and a force that will shape the modern conservative movement his speech was revolution talk... he was unapologetic, and said he HOPES Obama fails. He crossed the line tonight. That's sinister comment for a lot of angry democrats.

Other things he said...Obama is so busy trying to foment anger, and instigating class warfare… the economy will suffer...Obama your plan isn't about HOPE… spending a nation into generational debt is not what will solve this mess. He went on to rousing thunderous applause... I am sure his radio show will have huge ratings increases as more and more get on his bus.

Is Buffet Losing His Shirt?

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Mr. Dairy Queen also says the economy will likely remain a mess beyond this year. In his annual letter Saturday to reassure shareholders has the muscle needed to withstand this mess. This is Buffett's worst year in the 44 years as chairman and CEO.

Buffett said "the economy will be in shambles throughout 2009 — and, for that matter, probably well beyond — but that conclusion does not tell us whether the stock market will rise or fall."

He said while it sucks, it's still not as bad as the two World Wars and the Great Depression. "Though the path has not been smooth, our economic system has worked extraordinarily well over time," Buffett wrote. "It has unleashed human potential as no other system has, and it will continue to do so. America's best days lie ahead."

Berkshire's Class A shares remain the most expensive U.S. stock, but they fell nearly 32 percent in 2008 and have declined 48 percent since setting a high of $151,650 in December 2007. That high came after an exceptionally profitable quarter that was helped by a $2 billion investment gain.

But look on the bright side...The S&P 500 fell 37 percent in 2008.

Warren Obama honeymoon over?

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

But these unthinkable costs are going to have bad effects according to Buffet… this is transfer of payments… the tax cuts 13 dollars per week for 95% of Americans... big deal when you've lost your IRA and pension money to the market.

Steve Forbes also hates the plan... he says the roll back the tax break for 250k’ers will hit the wrong segment… lower the corporate tax rate would be better..

The health care - plan sucks… it's just more govn’t control

The regulators are destroying bank capital as they are forcing to banks to book these book losses not as cash losses… so the bank is cash rich and book poor… zero desire to lend until that changes.

Buffet endorsed Obama for president but so far thinks he's going the wrong way… and Buffet is hurting right now... here's the link http://www.foxnews.com/geraldo/

The Tarp inspector general, Neil Barofsky was on Geraldo tonight... weighing in on the BAC CEO using his jet to answer to Cuomo... sending the wrong message - Geraldo asked if these bastards are going to jail..Neil said that if they lied, lies are crimes, and they will be prosecuted and sent to jail if nothing more than to restore confidence. The future goal is more transparency to get Joe six pack back into the market.

It's hard to find anything to be optimistic about today... but finally, ask yourself this... In a crisis do you surprise yourself at how you are able to rally the troops, your confidence and wonder where all that strength came from? How did you handle 9 -11? Or a personal crisis? Did you ever save a life? Rescue a friend? Extend yourself? Make a sacrifice?

We have become so soft in our comfy daily lives that we are rarely tested… perhaps this is out test… perhaps we are at our best when things are the worst… if so we will all come out of this okay… without losing even a buttons off our shirts...

Barney said...

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Dow Jane's Diary Says;

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Shame on Northern Trust for the bash they threw out in LA at the Beverly Wilshire, and the House of Blues… this after they layoff 400 workers… and took all that bailout money… Sheryl Crow gets paid, but not teller at window 4 who needs to feed her family. Right.

Andy Cuomo the best ankle biter get a hats off for hauling Thane’s ass back in to force him to answer who got what in bonuses at Merrill Lynch in that 11^th hour brouhaha. Hell, Paulson has some splainin to do - every penny of that 700 billions should be accounted for before tarp 2 takes hold.

FruGal Thinks Somebody should --

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

He still talks like he's gunning for votes. Hey maybe he is...but his speech writer should edit his script... stop all the yada-yada about raising capital gains and the dividend tax talk Increased spending and raising taxes are a script for stagflation... don't need to hear that...

Bernanke is learning how to lie to us with great results... OB should learn too...

Sure OB needs to calm the Repub’s re fiscal responsibility…he can talk about raising taxes. EVENTUALLY. He needs to spend first…get this country back on its feet before he can even think about raising taxes. Right now he should be calming Wall Streets fears not the Repubs. And yes, remind the myopic simpleton Santelli’s of the world that he is NOT rewarding bad behavior by bailing out the mortgage mermaids and mermen. And if it's any consolation to the little whiners, think of it this way. We bail them out. They may at best, still be paying off an overpriced cookie cutter that they will never make any decent profit on. Feel better now?

oh!

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Good evening America. I am going to take tonight's speech as my opportunity to remind you that you elected a really smart guy. So, to end this crisis as quickly as possible, I am delivering tonight's speech in Mandarin...

Wealthmiser Explains

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Ya gotta hand it to the guy that I think basically ruined our economy on the heels of 9-11. As you know he got booted out of Washington, he has since joined forces with Bill Gross over at Pimco… hmm of all the gigs he could have picked, he picked old Pimco ruler of all things bond. So is old senile in waiting Alan now pimping for Pimco? Shilling for King Bill?

If that is where he is hanging his skateboard these days – Newport CA - it begs the question.

Look, it’s real easy - the market is htting the 7^th circle of hell. We investors have become the night of the living dead as we have discovered that the past 30 years have virtually been a trompe l’oeil… an aberration…a mirage. The big ruse was sourced by the thugs on wall who now own your ass.

The Bond ghouls rule the world. The bond market is so much bigger than the stock market. What they say goes… they own trillions of our corporate and treasury debt. What is in your house. What you buy. What you eat. And yes, now what you think is financed, manipulated and controlled by them. GM, F, BAC, MS, GS are all fail proof because of the bondholders.

They should do the charitable thing here and discount the bonds in a well placed patriotic move. It would save us from further pain, and certainly solve our present one. But don’t hold your breath.

The reason why we are in this situation is because the growth we have enjoyed, over the last 20 years or so, was built upon a lie. It was financed by vultures, who are now holding the entire tax base hostage.

So as you continue to see your 402k erode into the ozone, and you continue to fight traffic, hold on to your job, and continue to pay off your mortgage, picture Alan and Bill cavorting on the beach in their Speedos, slathering each other ‘s ass with SPF 50.

Karma takes a holiday... Pathetic.

DOW 2800 - Unions controlling businesses?

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Are we going to become Mexico?

Did you catch Glenn Beck's world is ending show last night?

All of that war room chatter ruffle some feathers?

I found it hysterically funny… it amazes me how these tinfoilers let the fear flow like diarrhea after a bad trip to Tijuana.

Fox. Whatever gets eyeballs. They must be running out of subject matter since they are all ignoring Obama these days…

Don’t worry. Ann Coullter is looking out for ya. Ha ha ha.

Why is everybody so angry out there in internet land?

The new wave of financial regulation that’s headed straight for your wallet?

What’s to worry about. Obama’s got you covered.

Hedge funds will be required to buy all unsold girl scout cookies. Hedge fund managers will be required to wear GPS device so old people can sleep nights.

Excessive risk will be state controlled. If your fund returns consistently in excess of 5%, you will be investigated by the new goon squad ( former Merrill Lynch and GS executives)from the SEC.

Okay so maybe things aren’t so rosy… Market will be up this week so don't do anything rash. Like moving to Cuba.

The revolution is over. Time to mend fences and psyches instead.

Peter Schiff

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

He's a perma bear gloom and doomer who was supposedly early on the Armageddon train. He doesn't think the USA has a great future, but its one thing to criticize us and quite another to trash us to a Saudi audience.

Check out this YouTube video where he tells them how to trash our dollar... unreal!

Goonster Rick Santelli on his way to Washington -

Santelli is an idiot - and I surely don't want him representing my interests in Washington - I think we know what those thugs he pals around with on the floor are really objecting to here - quite transparent when you think about it... but if he is specifically referring to his neighbor being foreclosed, he has shot himself in the foot as Santelli's property is now worth less. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington? I think not.

Try to have a restful Sunday!

Financial Treason

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Apparently, Peter Schiff is embarrassed by a www.YouTube.com clip and wants it removed, according to the blogger who posted it. At any rate, before the vid is pulled... head over to YouTube and check it out. Peter Schiff has come under fire recently from a post where he tells the Saudi’s how to crash our monetary system.

Whether or not what he suggests would in fact accomplish this is not the point. What is to me the point is the intention. What possible motive could this man have? Would he like to see our country on its knees? Is he out to cripple our system at the expense of his personal celebrity? Is he playing to a global audience? Is he shopping real estate in Dubai? Is he moving to the Middle East? You can see the background info, and make your own assertion. I think we should boycott this invertebrate and send him packing.

Posted to a website by Lady G:

“Peter is like one of those whistle blowers in a company. The company hates the fact the whistle blower is NOT loyal to the company and everyone outside of the company cheers him as a hero. Peter has NO LOYALTY to America -he doesn’t care if it crashes and burns. His motive is to position himself globally and be the hero to everyone outside of the company/country…that fed, clothed and gave him the life and finances he now betrays.”

Mr. Schiff is president of Euro Pacific Capital and author of "The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets" (Wiley, 2008). His website is europac.net

Disgusting. Really disgusting.

Diners Drive Ins and Dives

Thu, 12 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Mr Fieri, of the barbecued splattered face on the food network… are you out there sir?

If you haven’t scheduled your triple bypass today, you might want to swing by in that American gas guzzler you drive to this dive...1700 Pennsylvania Ave…

Chef Obama is serving up freshly grilled wild caught greenbacks…

Bernanke has his apron on flipping Gen Tso’s Tbills – and Joe Biden is force feeding big chunks of George Washington’s to the pita eaters. I can hear our forefathers belching from their graves. Forget carbo-loading… This is serious Turbo Timmy loading...

Let’s see how big Fieri’s mouth really is… Come and get it…The Stimulus Super Size Me Plan… We certainly have an appetite for it and it’s so sinfully delicious.

Hey, the old wrinkled suited pompous blowhard of a gay meatball might even show up…

Let them eat ganache

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

NYT Published: February 6, 2009

Private school: $32,000 a year per student.Mortgage: $96,000 a year.Co-op maintenance fee: $96,000 a year.Nanny: $45,000 a year. We are already at $269,000, and we haven’t even gotten to taxes yet.

Five hundred thousand dollars — the amount President Obama wants to set as the top pay for banking executives whose firms accept government bailout money — seems like a lot, and it is a lot. To many people in many places, it is a princely sum to live on. But in the neighborhoods of New York City and its suburban enclaves where successful bankers live, half a million a year can go very fast.

“As hard as it is to believe, bankers who are living on the Upper East Side making $2 or $3 million a year have set up a life for themselves in which they are also at zero at the end of the year with credit cards and mortgage bills that are inescapable,” said Holly Peterson, the author of an Upper East Side novel of manners, “The Manny,” and the daughter of Peter G. Peterson, a founder of the equity firm the Blackstone Group. “Five hundred thousand dollars means taking their kids out of private school and selling their home in a fire sale.”

Sure, the solution may seem simple: move to Brooklyn or Hoboken, put the children in public schools and buy a MetroCard. But more than a few of the New York-based financial executives who would have their pay limited are men (and they are almost invariably men) whose identities are entwined with living a certain way in a certain neighborhood west of Third Avenue: a life of private schools, summer houses and charity galas that only a seven-figure income can stretch to cover.

Few are playing sad cellos over the fate of such folk, especially since the collapse of the institutions they run has yielded untold financial pain. But in New York, where a new study from the Center for an Urban Future, a nonprofit research group in Manhattan, estimates it takes $123,322 to enjoy the same middle-class life as someone earning $50,000 in Houston, extricating oneself from steep bills can be difficult. Therefore, even if it is not for sympathy but for sport, consider the numbers. The cold hard math can be cruel. Like those taxes. If a person is married with two children, the weekly deductions on a $500,000 salary are: federal taxes, $2,645; Medicare, $139; state taxes, $682; and city, $372. With an annual Social Security tab of $6,621, the take-home pay is about $293,000 annually, said Martin Cohen, a Manhattan accountant. Now move to living expenses.

And of course Babs weighs in...

Barbara Corcoran, a real estate executive, said that most well-to-do families take at least two vacations a year, a winter trip to the sun and a spring trip to the ski slopes. Total minimum cost: $16,000. A modest three-bedroom apartment, she said, which was purchased for $1.5 million, not the top of the market at all, carries a monthly mortgage of about $8,000 and a co-op maintenance fee of $8,000 a month. Total cost: $192,000. A summer house in Southampton that cost $4 million, again not the top of the market, carries annual mortgage payments of $240,000. Many top executives have cars and drivers. A chauffeur’s pay is between $75,000 and $125,000 a year, the higher end for former police officers who can double as bodyguards, said a limousine driver who spoke anonymously because he does not want to alienate his society customers. Don't TASER me MR. PRESIDENT! “Some of them want their drivers to have guns,” the driver said. “You get a cop and you have a driver.” To garage that car is about $700 a month. A personal trainer at $80 an hour three times a week comes to about $12,000 a year. The work in the gym pays off when one must don a formal gown for a charity gala. “Going to those parties,” said David Patrick Columbia, who is the editor of the New York Social Diary (newyorksocialdiary.com), “a woman can spend $10,000 or $15,000 on a dress. If she goes to three or four of those a year, she’s not going to wear the same dress.” Total cost for three gowns: about $35,000.

Not every bank executive has school-age children, but for those who do, offspring can be expensive. In addition to paying tuition, “You’re not going to get through private school without tutoring a kid,” said Sandy Bass, the editor of Private School Insider, a newsletter that covers private schools in the New York City area. One hour of tutoring once a week is $125. “That’s the low end,” she said. “The higher end is 150, 175.” SAT tutors are about $250 an hour. Total cost for 30 weeks of regular tutoring: $3,750. Two children in private school: $64,000. Nanny: $45,000.

Ms. Bass, whose husband is an accountant with many high-end clients, said she spends about $425 every 10 days on groceries for her family. Annual cost: about $15,000. More? Restaurants. Dry cleaning. Each Brooks Brothers suit costs about $1,000. If you run a bank, you can’t look like a slob.

The total costs here, which do not include a lot of things, like kennels for the dog when the family is away, summer camp, spas and other grooming for the human members of the family, donations to charity, and frozen hot chocolates at Serendipity, are $790,750, which would require about a $1.6-million salary to compensate for taxes. Give or take a few score thousand of dollars. Does this money buy a chief executive stockholders might prize, a well-to-do man with a certain sureness of stride, something that might be lost if the executive were crowding onto the PATH train every morning at Journal Square, his newspaper splayed against the back of a stranger’s head? The man would certainly not feel like himself on that train, said Candace Bushnell, the author of “Sex and the City” and other books chronicling New York social mores.

“People inherently understand that if they are going to get ahead in whatever corporate culture they are involved in, they need to take on the appurtenances of what defines that culture,” she said. “So if you are in a culture where spending a lot of money is a sign of success, it’s like the same thing that goes back to high school peer pressure. It’s about fitting in.” By the way, the frozen hot chocolate costs $8.50. I wonder if it comes with little marshmallows?

A sad day indeed. My Tiffany flag is flying at half staff

Ken Lewis to Maria Bartiroma...

Fri, 06 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Apparently It is no fun anymore being the Fed's b@#*%itch.

BAC Ken Fischer on going forward... (did we all buy BAC this week btw?)

Okay these were my notes as I was listening to the CNBC interview with Barforama...

Wants to get out of TARP hell ASAP and go back to private capital and grow internally. Says he has 130 billion in revenue Maria--she's hitting him with her wettest lasagna noodle concerning the bonuses... She: "4 billion in bonuses - how do you justify? " He says we are in litigation and can't talk about it but Thain and the lawyers are duking it out… no regrets buying MER.

Lewis pays his bonuses in Feb - he is NOT taking a bonus - he also said he supports the financial advisors and will play along like the nice good old boy he is... Moynihan replaced Fleming, and is well-respected...

Going forward, economy will get worse and the second half of the year will be much better… albeit at moderate growth. Finally he says "nobody executes as well as we do" and so far his biz has had nice flows in January...thinks the cram down will have unintended consequences...

He said so far January has seen some sweet high yield deals abound and he says Countrywide is "on fire" and these refi’s free up the consumer to spend more and get economy going… he made a boat-load on his recent share purchase... "I put my money where my mouth is"... Bank of America expects to pay back relief funds in 3 years

By Wallace Witkowski
Last update: 12:19 p.m. EST Feb. 6, 2009
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Bank of America Corp. (BAC) expects to pay back U.S. Treasury relief funds within the next three years, and "categorically" does not need further government funding, Chief Executive Ken Lewis told CNBC's Maria Bartiromo in a televised interview Friday. Bank of America has received up to $45 billion in funds from the Trouble Asset Relief Program. Lewis also told CNBC the bank will not change operations based upon the relief funds, but that he does not feel good about the $500,000 salary cap imposed by President Barack Obama for firms receiving relief funds. Lewis said he knows of no government officials who have talked about nationalizing the bank, that he has no "long-term" regrets about buying Merrill Lynch, and that mortgage refinancing has been "on fire" in January at the bank's recently acquired mortgage vendor Countrywide. There it was... just passing it along...

Onward… so who needs that silly Tarp? not he... Ken Lewis just paid himself a bonus - shares purchased Wed nets him a cool $266k at the close today.

I bought some BAC earlier this week… added to FITB today... FITb up 15% in after hours...

Obama is speaking

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

The old Obama brought up in the streets type lingo- says he's tired of the cable chatter, petty politics, work with me to get there he says - he must have read his numbers...he’s pulling out all the stops - let's face it - he inherited a horrible deal...and only 17 days and folks have already written his next four years off...lol

I hope he can turn this thing around… I see no benefit in not supporting the guy in the name of partisanship...something has to be bigger than that… how about your future -

To the TV pundits, the bloggers , floggers, noisemakers - we don't need to be reminded of what's wrong out there... the ventors on the tube and elsewhere who want nothing more than to be a voice of dissent - certainly their right but nonetheless doesn't buy ‘ya much at the end of the day.

Hey, let them run for office if they care so much...

It's Congress that's playing old style politics - Obama wants a Macro econ package...cooler heads must prevail.... Obama has a good game plan on climate energy and health - he needed to guide Congress better I think - and the public sees this as same old politics...tighten that leash OB - reign in ...only 17 days… too soon to call this game… imo...

No skin in this folks… just blathering out loud...

Jobs report is going to be awful...GAAP down 23% - we have to get things moving - build a business and hire somebody if you really want to make a difference...

The Super Bowl

Sun, 01 Feb 2009 01:03:31 PST

Not!

It is beyond me how much hoopla surrounds this event – big-screen TV purchases for the one Sunday America has a really good reason to gain five more pounds on their couches... In Walmart yesterday the line to the kegs was one long social event for the jock wannabes. And how many pounds of chicken wings were consumed today? And how many plumbers are going to be called on Monday morning? Do the math...

The Game - while our world is measured in dollars and cents, theirs is clearly measured in inches… okay so the game is over - has the economy improved? How much money was spent on gambling? Bets on the coin toss to time outs... Are Super Bowl purchases enough to make any dent in the GDP numbers?

It seemed like it was bigger than Christmas yesterday at Walmart.

Some guy on CNBC asked these some of these players if they had ever heard of Madoff - they said no - but I bet they know every manufacturer of steroids.

The commercials overall were awful - cheap visual gags of slapstick watching people getting hurt... dumb-down beyond reason - no creative juices were spent on these tired clichéd concepts… (the Budweiser with the horse coming back with the larger stick was the only good spot -- imo)

I know why the truly talented people are leaving the ad business - besides the fact that business is in the crapper… Everyone I know is heading out to Hollywood to make movies and TV deals.

It was an exciting game - no doubt about, but let's keep it in context; the economy is still in the crapper along with all those empty pizza boxes, and chicken bones.

We are left without heroes... On Fox News right now they have a photo of Phelps toking on a bong - so much for our heroes... so much for his endorsements!

The powerful are all corrupt… or let's put it another way; to be skillfully corrupt is an essential credential to achieve that level of power… we see it in politics, Burgoevich, sports, business, Wall Street, Manoff’s about to be disclosed, Trubo Timmy, main streeter’s, the bedroom, (even Martin Luther King cheated on his wife, Elliot Spitzer, Clinton's non-sexual White House blow jobs, John Edwards, McCain, Hart, Barney Frank, etc. and those are only the ones big enough for us to see,

There is fertile ground above the law. If I were a kid today, oh never mind...

It was a good game... I hope you all enjoyed your Super Bowl Sunday...

This discriminating investor's heart

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

Speaking of a red market day, I bought WMT which made a new low today, but I like their ad campaign and think it's clover all over for these guys - parking lots get bigger and bigger, and they are re-tooling areas like healthcare. Hell can't wait ‘til they become a GOOD bank for all that Latino money that shops there religiously every week and all their kids and moms that need those walk in clinics and the re-discovery of Walmart to the guys that drive nice cars (parking lot observation - BMW, Jags, all showing up with increased regularity).

Dow Jane’s Friday Gossip report:

Okay enough with the market chatter – now as a bit of whimsical indulgence can we miser-girls talk?

The ladies we love to dump on… Pelosi, Bartiroma, the two S’s – Suze Ormand and Suzanne Somers, and of course Ann stringy hair stuck in that 70’s look Coulter are all getting on my nerves…OB has to slap President Pelosi upside her head soon, Suze Ormand hasn’t had a unique thought or a meaningful piece of advice in years – she keeps regurgitating the same stuff in book after book so in effect she has written only one book… Suzanne Somers just whores for the dollars – jewelry, food, diets, hormones, old age, she sells anything and everything – she just slaps her face on an idea and cajoles her way onto QVC, Oprah, Larry King, but what is her expertise? Oh shameless self-promotion… right! And you’d think with all that moolah she’d buy a better set of hair extensions… they like something you’d find in a Korean discount mall in east LA.

Not enough can be said of Ann Coulter, the most zero personality this side of Madonna. How her book is on the New York Times Best Seller List just proves once again how illiterate our country is… she is full of contradictions and stupid sound bytes and her biggest fan appears to be - Ann Coulter! Haute arrogance packaged as a scrawny fashion victim - A nasty totally unlikeable bottle of vinegar in a pathetic attempt to be alluring.

If I were a guy I’d rather bed a rice cake.

Bartiroma’s boring us silly with those interviews from Davos in bad hair or bad hats.

Four days

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

GS up 9 bucks? That’s a lot of smoke for something OB does not even know the worth of – the bad assets off their books is not a green light to start loaning out money willy-nilly – the bad bank assets bail out will cost the taxpayer anyway - it all ends up in our laps as usual so don’t break out the champagne just yet – this is a market desperate for a reason to rally and the BAD BANK story was the best option. We rally on and off thru April now – I am not buying anything on a four day rally - the old WealthMiser did not earn her mantle for nothing.

Dow Jane flags a fashion faux pas -- Maria and her silly hat

Reporting From Davos

Last year she got a lot of flack for wearing a fur hat so this year she decides to wear something that looks like it was picked off the floor of Marshall’s – did her daddy in law lose a lot of money with Madoff or something – she is all piss and vinegar these days – trouble at home methinks… even Soros had a weird look on his face looking at that hat she is not a hat wearer – some women look great in hats –she in not of that birthright – did you know she was a hatcheck girl at her fathers restaurant back in her Queens days?

More about Madoff for those that care…

Insanity sure is hard to predict.

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

We’ve been in similar crazy times in the past and managed to recover the folly of those that chose to mess things up for us in their quest their own ill-gotten gains.

The only difference being this time we also have an Insolvent bank system, ramping unemployment, global d/recession, growing deflation, $10.5 trillion US deficit, real estate bubble collapse, credit deleveraging, the collapse of the consumer and oh yes, lousy weather.

I'm sure we'll be fine though... as long as you like potato soup as you stare at your hard hat hanging in the corner of the room. And try to remember what it was like to wear a tie to work. Your soup is getting cold and you now wish you hadn’t let the microwave go at the yard sale for 20 bucks, but you needed gas that week.

Earnings Tuesday:
AKS AK Steel Holding Corp Q4 2008 $ 0.01 27-Jan BMO
NUE Nucor Q4 2008 $ 0.12 27-Jan
PTEC Phoenix Technologies Q1 2009 -$ 0.09 27-Jan
SYK Stryker Q4 2008 $ 0.74 27-Jan AMC
JAVA Sun Microsystems Q2 2009 -$ 0.08 27-Jan
X United States Steel Corp. Q4 2008 $ 1.04 27-Jan
VZ Verizon Q4 2008 $ 0.62 27-Jan BMO
YHOO Yahoo, Inc. Q4 2008 $ 0.13 27-Jan AMC

Is the party over for Exxon?

Obama’s economic stimulus plan will take 3 to 4 years, so don't expect any big economic rebound in the next 18 months. Obama is going to double renewable energy in 3 years which is a longer term headwind for XOM. Catalyst's to move shares lower: declining earnings, impossible YOY comparisons, deepwater drilling and tar sands investment impairment write-off, more hostile governments slow down the buyback, oil prices down 50% from the 3rd qtr, the chemicals nosedived, refining margins were not good in Q4 despite the bottoming in oil demand stinks.

Exxon really is a great company - tons of cash – that’s why everyone will short it.

Insanity is a mother.

Wealthmiser looks for a buy signal on the financials

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

Looking back from September, Paulsen will not be looked upon kindly for this complete and utter disaster. The psychological damage was actually worse than the dollar amount.

Going forward, as we wade thru the subprime cesspool… our folly is as follows… You can’t raise capital and encourage lending at the same time… Summers to Congress letter wants to sidestep the banks to get capital into the ma in stream – Only the healthy banks should be lending…

Banks, took back all those points yesterday…

Gregg Hutchins of Silverlake Partners is a good thinker on the financials. Thain and Lewis are two polarities – Thain is Wall Street DNA from the get-go… Lewis is an interloper. Consolidations–to-come but transparency troubles this Foreclosures are a failure – we can’t subsidize these bad toxic papers any longer… it’s plugged up the entire market’s financial plumbing and so far Ben’s Roto Rooter is not working.

It’s far better to get capital flowing… USB and WFC are good to go in this space. And only the healthy banks should be lending. Biggest mistake they made was letting Lehman go that dried up the money… Paulsen didn’t have Tarp money and that’s his excuse? We’d be out of this mess had that not happened. Ha-ha-ha Shumer and Shelby wants to hire 500 FBI agents to go after fraud on Wall Street – regulation legislation - foreign oversight – must be across the boards not piecemeal like in the past…

Geithner looks like he is in with a nod to Obama – most senators will give in to Obama for his Fed Chief to show they are good eggs – and want to start out on the right foot. How can Congress bring back trust to the market? Beefing up the SEC does not seem to help… and shouldn’t the street hold itself to a higher standard? Dream on…

With a wink and a nod to tech…

Big bell weathers will continue to grow just not as much – look for the new leaders to ramp up earnings – bye-bye MSFT Yahoo, Ebay… Google rules the world on those numbers that came out… plus on March 2 the employees that are underwater can trade their shares for the closing mar2 price… that’s bullish for the markets… $825 billion is the final number to bail us out… UK Financial Services industry is one of the largest % our their GDP unlike the US so they are really feeling the weight of this meltdown – the US will recover faster… China is going up 5% not 9% - but you need Emerging Market exposure to take advantage…

Wealthmiser revealed

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

In one of his first press conferences, as a partial explanation as to where his reputation as a pit bull is founded – he came clean and blamed it all on the fact that he is a middle child! That's right folks, he is giving us middle children a bad name here...In a speech to the conference of mayors this am, he said that as a middle child he can do it two ways - war or peace... sheesh… and his father was a pediatrician no less. I bear no resemblance to Emanuel and proudly wear my middle. child birth order proudly without any excuses for my behavior...
or Paul Newman's - another middle child!

I am the smaller cuter one!

I do not know his younger brother but I know people who have worked with his brother Ari, who IS a force to be reckoned with - he is if not THE most powerful agent in Hollywood he is damn near the top... You don't get anywhere… near the hallowed ground without the guys like Ari in your corner... Endeavor is one of the top agent shops in Hollywood… Ari COINCIDENTALLY produced the documentary on the Obama campaign and I would not be surprised that he is also involved in Michelle's TV show. Look out Oprah… middle child and not maladjusted WealthMiser

This is too funny... I posted this on another site and one of my forums “friends” posted this response I responded in kind… Take a look…

Mr. Gee-hee writes…

Middle kids suck. Last born rules... big time. This is confirmed by extensive research – Most of it done decades ago by Mr. Wizard. The only debatable issue is in a family of 4 children who qualifies as a middle child: Number two, number three... or both. The research is mixed on this point. – vf - Gee hee

This is my response;

Yes I am familiar with that research - it was done by a first born. ha ha ha

I take it or certainly hope with that attitude you did not sire any poor middle children. If so, happy Father's Day! Oh no, you didn't marry one did you?

FWIW, Rahm made a huge fortune in the stock market before joining Obama -he's probably worth more than his siblings.

Remember one thing Gee hee, we middle children are Avis -we hate to lose so we slog away and don't give up - we make terrible dilettantes. We fight hard for success and are far hungrier than our number would suggest...

Other Obama Inaugural notes from the margins…

I saw a headline the other day that said the real reason Oprah gained all that weight is her unrequited love for Obama and watching Michelle take the spotlight while Oprah campaigned alongside was just too much for the poor girl seeking solace once again in her Doritos and Twinkies. So much for the hormone defense. Oh wait Steve Jobs already took that one…

Obama and Michelle will be more Hollywood than Ron or Nancy ever were – did you see them dancing last night? Very cute – both were incredibly lame but joyful.

They are going to change our culture in the next four years… I understand she wants to have a kitchen garden in the White House. I fully concur - I am getting tired of worrying about Salmonella and E Coli on my romaine.

Obama Is In

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

If you are a democrat, it’s a good day

If you’re a Libertarian, his speech was good.

If you’re a Republican, you are watching the Ted Kennedy seat heating up… Nothing like a Kennedy to steal Obama’s thunder.

Still the market was not happy. But it’s been down nine times during Inauguration Days even without a difficult environment such as ours.

I am glad it was a fast speech and they were actually headed back to work.

What? The president has been in office one hour and we don’t have a tarp 3 yet?

Seems that’s what the market was thinking…worst day since Dec 1^st.

C divi now a penny a share.... The banks are toast... suffering under the weight of all those bad decisions....déjà vu from September - two year swap spreads were worse then but still the rules have changed - Europe was the canary yesterday...They MUST get rid of all those bad assets ...

Ah… but back to the festivities...

I caught a little of the Inauguration. I so hate crowds… Can’t imagine standing around for hours to hear a fifteen minute “let’s get this over with” type speech… He did not do his magical Messiah shtick. Surprising. He was all business... even sounded angry and resolute- the veil of hype and romantic notions of hope just blew right into the Potomac.

I guess he was resting up for the ten balls he has to go to tonight. I think given the nature of the times, they could have back-peddled the festivities a tad. Millions spent on parties when people are losing their jobs is not in good form.

While he spoke a few more banks were kicked under the tires… he has his work cut out for him... and he and his team seem anxious to hit all targets. Ha! all those IQ points in his group are going to get a real workout in the months ahead.

Go get ‘em tiger...

Wealthmiser is Omniscient

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

If Obama is really as smart as they say he is....

He'll get on his beloved ‘crack-berry’ right now and get the pilot that saved the plane and his family into a box seat at the Inauguration to acknowledge him as a living breathing example of Yes, we can... Broker heroism to counter the recent spate of obamanations (nanny-gate, senate seats, etc.)

Okay Emanuel, I'll take over from here...lol

I guess Sky King was booked already… Remember him?

Well, today we find out that the Pilot has been invited... Golly gee wizz...

Miracle on the Hudson

I am available for PR, Mr. President. Emanuel, you are toast... Hahaha.

Boy what an ugly day!

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

There is a ton of volume on the downside - what they call a 90% day - very uncommon - first of 2009 ...no time to buy stock period as there is too much unknown - blame the Fed - they change the rules every hour -this is 1974 all over again – twenty-something’s are getting spooked by the markets - the boomers will not be able to sell their stocks to this generation ...ugly all around - I don't think the market does anything ‘til Obama now and we get more clarity on his stimulus package ...APOL is showing continued strength, as our the biotech’s all those oily downgrades are not helping us any here... The fear of the unknown ...translation ...300 million down versus 5 million up this is almost unheard of...it's like crash numbers without a crash ...lol ... solar’s are getting nuked too.

Yet the market is holding up - my conspiracy theory is that this is the market making sure that the stimulus package is a biggie so they're ‘gonna’ make the market sick ‘til they hear the details...that and we have to stop printing money… the banks are a train wreck. What's the story on the credit default swaps and C again? And Whitney is going to be on the closing bell on CNBC today... also isn't the Wed before options-ex usually a downer?

I could have used some aloe vera today

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

I got my fingers singed a few times trading in this smoking hole that used to be where the stock market was …the ones that they set fire to today were the banksThey are broke. All that garbage on their balance sheets is toilet paper.

This is from Ben’s speech at the London School of Economics yesterday:

"The abrupt end of the credit boom has had widespread financial and economic ramifications. Financial institutions have seen their capital depleted by losses and write downs and their balance sheets clogged by complex credit products and other illiquid assets of uncertain value. Rising credit risks and intense risk aversion have pushed credit spreads to unprecedented levels, and markets for securitized assets, except for mortgage securities with government guarantees, have shut down. Heightened systemic risks, falling asset values, and tightening credit have in turn taken a heavy toll on business and consumer confidence and precipitated a sharp slowing in global economic activity. The damage, in terms of lost output, lost jobs, and lost wealth, is already substantial."

Loosely translated; We messed up – would have been on our yachts off the coast of Morocco by now but nooooooo, these idiots with toxic mortgages ran out of money before we could get out of Dodge …that blowhard Greenie is all to blame for this, that and Reagonomics and Bush Sr, and Clinton, and Dubya, and my Aunt Louise and my dog Toto …wahhhhhh

Citibank with a side of fries and open pit barbecue sauce.Stick a fork in Citibank.

Alas, I sold some rather ill-timed shares in Citibank for a small loss on the bet that it would be a larger one when they announced they were announcing early. Now I am not so sure –sure it’s worthless paper now but that does not mean that a greater fool may sell me some shares at say a $1.50 soon …okay maybe $3 since the Fed doesn't want another 5000 job losses than we already have …just isn't much left to squeeze out from the fat shorts.

I used to know someone whose living room was right over the Citibank vault on Park Avenue.Not sure that’s relevant, but I just remembered how impressed I was to find that out.But let’s defer to Ben and his fortune cookie ending…

"The global economy will recover, but the timing and strength of the recovery are highly uncertain." Translation: I am lying thru my teeth. He looked like he had just spent two fruitless hours in one of those British unheated bathrooms.

Kicking and screaming into the lower middle Savannah

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

We went from a pima cotton kind of world to synthetic threads and cheap labels that dig into your neck obviously sewn in by a disgruntled 40 cent an hour occidental

And as the jungle decouples and hungry toothless lions roam in search of the next piece of road kill, better known as your portfolio, the leopards among us are losing their spots over dividends

So now everyone is moving from ‘gogo’ growth to ‘divi’ hounds?

Everyone is talking yield since their NAV has been eviscerated by corporate greed a la stock market casino .Growth is suddenly a dirty word in the new world of eight o’clock coffee and all beef hot dogs .

Our NAV is surely in the doghouse. Our portfolios have been used as wee-wee pads from the greed mongers. Add to that the market better known as the casino, an suddenly you get their point.

That said, do a little risk calculation and go for the highest yield with lowest NAV.

For me, I¼ll stick to a mix of both. But I am not going full throttle on the income stocks.

Growth stocks do well in this interest rate environment. Plus they are so cute.

This is incredulous...

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

I am simply outraged that this man gets to stay in the lap of luxury while he continues his shenanigans...what kind of message does this send to the world?

Onward – the market is holding its own –no technical’s breached – we are in a range bound situation – trade cautiously… Some gentle reminders…

Don't kick yourself for not selling earlier. And don't kick yourself later for missing the rebound. You're along for the entire ride. America's economy will grow again, and so will your stocks.

The lessons that cost the most, teach the most. If you didn't allocate some assets to safety so you can sleep at night, you've learned an expensive lesson

Haven’t we all?

Alcoa after the bell will not look pretty IMO…

So Mr. Clean Energy Nuked the Market Today

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

Yep, those economic numbers sure were a face banger... thanks for sharing – and thank heaven I sold my ACAS yesterday. I sure hope some of you picked up some of the FNMpS, etc. I mentioned yesterday.

Kass-andra Crossing?

Mr. Contrarian Indicator on the phone at Fast Money... why do they even bother calling Doug Kass? He must have some deal with CNBC - anyway some bytes and pix...

He says bonds are more risky than stocks here - he is not shorting anything, but not knocking himself out buying the market strength. He is waiting to see the Obama effect... heavy economy-lifting... stock jockeys listen up, this is a great trading market since the fixing will take time. So he is neither a Cassandra nor a Polly-anna be - that leaves Pandora? Oprah?

Bodes well for the SnP to stay around the 850 -1000... nothing happens... nothing to see - Move along people... USD is now only 62% of reserve assets... nothing stands out as a surprise--our domestic economy will recover first so for now stay away from energy and commodities - we are in a holding pattern and I guess bridges will fall, counties will BK, and folks on the dole will be the order of the day til the stimulus package, the hiring of America, and Oprah shedding those unwanted pounds will be the miracles of 2009 we await with bated breath. Until then trade your fool head off, or get drunk on some punch, because our dance card is empty for now.

Next...

Why pay for a pricey room at the Venetian when you can sleep at the show? Okay so while Jobs is washing down filet mignon with his protein shakes, Old Chubby Endomorph shake that booty Balmer does the keynote at CES (let's hope he doesnt do that white men can't dance dance across the stage he did a few years ago) -wherein he will (drum roll) unveil windows 7, and on the heels that wowzer product, Vista, that event should be like a giant dose of tryptophan, zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

By the way... CES attendance down 9%... nothing sexy this year according to Jim Goldman CNBC talking parrot - companies are in survival mode only.. flat panels are hard to digest, and .consumer tasers do not color coordinate in I-phone I - colors... what's up with that, girlfriend?

Silicon Valley, last bastion of American productivity (remember those days? Before we learned stealing does not require a Harvard MBA - although it doesn't hurt - see Skilling ...hehehe) lost 4k jobs... so I guess it's back to the 7.3 million dollar garage based businesses there:)

Yes, Obama is the big unknown ... but 0% interest rate is still good no?... And higher lows point to 1000 on the SnP - right? And the vix IS coming down... so all is not pessimistic. So don't run out and buy one of those new consumer Tasers and blow off your big toe... things could be worse... We could have slid into the Madoff pool of financial sewage...

Investing for Income and the Long term

A dead concept?

John Duran speaks out - the way you get those returns - saving money versus spending... We must go thru these declines which s healthy - By reducing your cost basis, it's wise to find income streams that don't require selling your principle -When market drops - you simply ride it out. Just have those stocks in your portfolio that do not require any selling if you need income...

2008 Volatility Exposed while Kudlow gets a best dressed talking bobble-head nod from the crowd that thinks bespoke is a language software program... :)

The CBOE, about to go IPO's activity grew 25% in 2008 according to head fella Brodsky ....The most popular ruse, er I mean strategy is covered call writing... So he recommends selling calls on those dividend stocks.

Time to sell GLD, buy MYL, MON and Novellus is a buy according to the noisy boyz Ratigan babysits every night on CNBC. Tonight I would have given anything to shove a binkie in Adami :)

Question: what would the market rally harder on - Bernie in the slammer or great numbers on AAPL?

All the news that (the Government thinks) is fit to print?

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

Apparently there is some paranoia out there thinking it will. I found this along the more cautious alleys of investor forums:

“Government ownership of corporations and government-corporate partnerships are actually called Fascism. Until tossing in his lot with his fellow jackbooted thug up north of the Alps, Mussolini was admired as holding the middle ground between free market capitalism and the red communism, for his policies of government ownership and enforced partnership of corporations.

Also, every socialist system eventually become fascist, regardless whether the system starts off as National-Socialist or Marxist-Socialist. Both socialist and fascist systems eventually eat their own, the lemmings being fed into the maw first then members of the elite too, because they are inherently unproductive systems, with the absence of market price signals. With the pie getting smaller, mouths have to be eliminated from the table.

I do think that’s stretching it a wee bit, but nonetheless, shows us that all these bailouts don’t sit well with many investors.

Speaking of newsboys…from Engines of our Ingenuity, Richard Armstrong: The idea of the neighborhood paperboy dates back to the Great Depression. Before then, unkempt urchins hawked papers on street corners. These were ‘newsies,’ revenue.

(Hmmm sounds familiar)

Less money meant fewer resources to push circulation. This made publishers shift to a new strategy for cheap home delivery. Circulation managers drummed up a massive juvenile labor force with a new style and purpose. These were mostly middle-class teenagers, who could represent the paper on the doorstep of every American home. They sold subscriptions, not just individual papers.

The old ‘newsies’ were tough kids, hollering and fighting their way to dominate a street corner. They worked long hours and strayed far from their neighborhoods. But the new paperboys were businessmen, establishing relationships in their own communities and working fixed routes with regular hours. This was all under the guidance of circulation managers, who looked after them — and kept after them. The new management system worked so well in the Depression that it went largely unchanged for half a century.

By WWII, the paperboy was such a common figure in America that the Treasury Department authorized them to sell War Savings Stamps. By war’s end, they’d sold $1.7 billion worth. A few years later, the Post Office issued a commemorative stamp making the paperboy a true American icon: ‘newspaper-boys,’ it read, ‘standard bearers of free enterprise.’

The Final Wall Street 2008 Toll:

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 01:03:31 PST

Wow. Seven trillion is a lot of dough... my guess is that the pain continues in 2009... at least for the 1st Half. This won;t be your usual recession. It's going to take longer to recover. The housing market will never be the same. It's changed forever.

Wall Street's Final '08 Toll: $6.9 Trillion Wiped Out
Racked by Crisis, Markets End Year on Slight Upswing
By Renae Merle Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, January 1, 2009

After months of tortuous trading, Wall Street rang out its worst year since the Great Depression yesterday, leaving shareholders $6.9 trillion the poorer.

It hardly mattered that the market finished the last day of the year with a modest gain.

The losses in 2008 were so broad and deep that every sector in the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index took a double-digit hit, and the financial sector lost more than half of its value. The Dow Jones industrial average, an index of 30 blue-chip stocks, and the S&P, a broader index watched by market professionals, were down 34 percent and 38 percent, respectively, their deepest losses since the 1930s. The tech-heavy NASDAQ composite index was down 41 percent, its worst year since the exchange was created in 1971.

Overseas, the year was just as dismal. In Germany, stocks were down 40 percent, in Japan, 42 percent, in Brazil, 41 percent. Taken together, all of the world's stocks lost 48 percent last year.

Traders endured unprecedented turmoil last year as Lehman Brothers, an icon of the financial industry, teetered then collapsed, while other firms were saved by government intervention or disappeared into the arms of competitors. By the end of 2008, the Dow had set new records for its three largest single-day point gains and two steepest point losses after swinging hundreds of points an hour during some sessions.

Investors now have turned from the wreckage of the past year to focus on the prospects for President-elect Barack Obama's proposed stimulus package to revive the economy, analysts said. The Dow closed yesterday up 1.3 percent, or 108 points, at 8776.39, while the S&P climbed 1.4 percent, or 12.61 points, to close at 903.25. The NASDAQ was up 1.7 percent, or 26.33 points, at 1577.03.

The year ended with relatively positive economic news, though analysts said it will have limited impact. The Labor Department said jobless claims fell by 94,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 492,000, a bigger drop than expected, but unemployment remains historically high. And rates for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage fell to 5.1 percent this week from 5.14 percent the week before -- the lowest since Freddie Mac began tracking that data in 1971. But the housing market remains weak and home values have plummeted.

With the economy expected to sour further during the first half of the year and poor corporate earnings likely to pile up as businesses account for the losses from the financial crisis and housing downturn, a stock market recovery will be bumpy, analysts said.

It has traditionally taken about five years for stocks to recover from a "mega-meltdown," said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist for Standard & Poor's Equity Research. If the S&P does not revisit the low levels it reached in November, it could gain 15 percent in 2009, making a dent in 2008's losses, he said.

But "if we find the recession is deeper and longer than we currently expect, if there are more financial land mines that are unanticipated, there is no guarantee" stocks will not collapse again, Stovall said.

The market's volatility spilled into traditionally stable parts of the economy, increasing demand for government bonds, for example. The yield for one-month Treasury bills started at about 2.6 percent in 2008, but unprecedented demand pushed it into negative territory before it finished at 0.01 percent yesterday. The smaller yields mean that investors were willing to earn little on the bonds, and when the yields plunged into the red, do without any return and pay the Treasury Department to keep their money safe from market turbulence.

Investors' skittishness could also be seen in the market for crude oil. After surging to $147 a barrel in the summer, prices began a precipitous slide as economic concerns spread and demand dropped. The price climbed 14 percent to $44.60 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange yesterday, but has fallen about 70 percent from its peak and finished down about 50 percent for the year.

The fall in crude was faster and deeper than expected, analysts said, and prices could still plummet to $25 a barrel if economic conditions get worse than expected.

"This is a year that people will go back and look back and study for the next 100 years," said Phil Flynn, oil analyst at Alaron Trading in Chicago.

Break Out the Soba!

Wed, 31 Dec 2008 01:03:31 PST

Wear yellow under wear for a year for good luck, or like the Greek, bury a coin in the cake ..whatever way you greet the New Year will be a step up from wherever you are now…

Remember to pull the bottle away from the cork, don’t over chill the bubbly, be it spumonti, champagne, vin sec, cava or sparkling wine.

Don’t overchill, a bucket of ice will suffice….

A few flutes of the bubbly and suddenly the world looks fine... and so does our little Santa Rally today...

Happy New Year!

Wealthmiser…