Financial Armageddon

[MarkP]

What the world knows ..... from Paris:

Robert Rubin Runs Obama, SP 500 Futures, and Gold
Jesse's Café Américain

....Chris Whalen of the highly respected Institutional Risk Analyst sees Robert Rubin as still pulling the strings in US financial policy and is virtually running the economic policy in the Obama Administration from behind the scenes, through surrogates.....

...The end result of financial reform is inconvenience for the financial services industry and more expense for the taxpayer and the consumer. ...

...For America's creditors and allies, the key question is whether the Democrats around Rubin are willing to embrace fiscal discipline at a time when deflation in the US is accelerating. That roaring sound you hear is the approaching waterfall of the double dip. With the US at the moment eschewing anything remotely like fiscal restraint and the rest of the world going in the opposite direction, to us the next crisis probably involves U.S. interest rates and the dollar......​

 

[az_max]

Accurate assessment .....


Bill O?Reilly: Merkel?s Looking at Obama Like ?Do You Know Anything??

The good news: 7 of 8 world leaders at the G8 Conference figured out that Keynesian economics is a bust.
The bad news: Barack Obama wasn?t one of them.

Bill O?Reilly said this about Obama?s disastrous G20 summit:
Merkel?s Looking at Obama Like ?Do You Know Anything??

<video>

Bill O?Reilly:
?Merkel?s looking at Obama? Did you see Merkel look at Obama?? She?s looking at him like, ?Do you know anything??"​

Well, yes he does - crony capitalism / corruption !

I really laughed out loud when Obama said "America is well on it's way to financial recovery". WTF America does he live in?!?

 

[MarkP]

I really laughed out loud when Obama said "America is well on it's way to financial recovery". WTF America does he live in?!?

Wall Street America.

 

[MarkP]

Plan accordingly .....


Bear Market Being Re-Recognized
Market Ticker

The Russell is now down 24% from it's peak this year, and is in a Bear Market.

The Nasdaq is within 1/3% of being down 20%.

The S&P 500 is within 1/3% of being down 20%.

The Dow and Transports both broke their significant lows, confirming a Dow Theory SELL signal.

We are now officially (back) in a Bear Market.....​

Probably the most important aspect:

....Mark my words on this - when the full depths of the coming collapse in stock prices has run its course, and 30 year Treasuries are going at a 2% coupon, you'll be "offered" to convert your 401k or IRA to them with some of your losses "put back", with one proviso - you can't touch it until you're 65. At 2% you'll be getting screwed but 90% of Americans are too stupid to realize it and will take the deal.

That's the marker on the government's funding model imploding within the next two to three years, and the market will discount that event long before it actually comes to fruition.​

Keep in mind that the CBO's projection of $1.6T/yr in deficit spending was based on 'recovery'. Government spending and revenue are diverging so I would expect desperate moves to close the gap. Your saving and retirement are fair game.

 

[MarkP]

Should get interesting in Kalifornia ....



Appeals Court AFFIRMS Schwarzenegger's Order to Cut Pay

....The ruling comes a day after the governor ordered the pay of nearly 200,000 state employees to be reduced to $7.25 an hour until a budget is passed, but State Controller John Chiang, who issues the paychecks, has said he would not obey the order......​

Just get it over with, file bankruptcy and negate the public sector contracts.

 

[MarkP]

News you won't hear from our LSM.

Once the World Cup Soccer diversion is over ......

Legal noose tightens on Europe's monetary union

Germany?s eurosceptic professors have not abandoned their legal efforts to block the EU rescues for European banks exposed to Greek debt, and since May 7 for banks exposed to debt from Spain, Portugal, and Ireland as well.

Should they succeed, of course, the eurozone risks disintegration within days, and perhaps hours. I am not sure that investors in New York, London, Tokyo, Beijing, or indeed Frankfurt quite understand this.​

UK Gov departments told to plan for 40% cuts

The Treasury has told most government departments to prepare "illustrative plans" to cut spending by 40% - as well as the expected 25% - within the month....​

Merkel raising Health Insurance tax to 15.5% of gross pay


Next up, US Federal deficit spending that is headed towards a $2T/yr+. A 30% to 40% cut in Federal spending would bring budgets back in-line with revenues. That is only 1/2 the problem. The other 1/2 is the fusion of big banks with the current administration and rampant corruption.

 

[MarkP]

Wow. Are these people idiots? Don't answer that.


Illinois: Our very own Greece

...the state plans to turn to the debt markets to fund $3.7 billion in pension obligations in December..... The state already sold $2.4 billion in pension notes in January.....​

$6B+/yr and growing of new debt to fund pensions even as they are giving out 14% raises and have not paid schools, social service agencies and vendors because they are broke?

 

[MarkP]

Remember how we all read that the TARP was 'repaid'? Appears that repayment plan was similar to GM, borrow from the Fed and repay loans with borrowed money, all the while increasing the overall bailout.

Drudge Report headline:

BAILOUT REACHES $3.7 TRILLION
Reuters article

....overall Federal support for the nation's financial system...has actually increased more than 23% over the past year, from approximately $3.0 trillion to $3.7 trillion -- the equivalent of a fully deployed TARP program -- largely without congressional action...​

 

[MarkP]

Clearly the recession is now over ...... :rofl:

.....Let the trade wars begin .......

Rare earth elements
Chicken
Copper Pipe
.....
Next?​

What could go wrong?

 

[MarkP]

If you're comment is not sarcastic, then it's clear you have no idea what's going on.

What's "Going On"


Permanent Open Market Operations (POMO)

Open market operations are the means of implementing monetary policy by which a central bank controls the short term interest rate and the supply of base money in an economy, and thus indirectly the total money supply. This involves meeting the demand of base money at the target rate by buying and selling government securities, or other financial instruments.....​

Financial instruments = equites (stocks)

New York Fed Injects $550 Million To Get Apple, Amazon And Netflix Back To Unchanged

The Fed is propping up the Stock Market with your money.


You have been warned.


What are High Frequency Traders doing? Well they know the Fed is spending Billions to create the false premise of a stable stock market so why not take advantage of it? People have 'stops'. Buy a stock at some price, who cares, 'offer' them for sale at a much lower price and trigger stops. Force others to sell at depressed prices, maybe even the Fed, buy the stocks at a significant discount. Sell them after the prices has recovered. They just gamed the Feds need to keep the market elevated.

Extend and Pretend!

 

[MarkP]

Ready for a $6 Trillion bailout? Come on now, you know we need it!

DC Waking Up to Escalating Foreclosure Train Wreck: Grayson Calls for FSOC to Examine Foreclosure Fraud as Systemic Risk
Naked Capitalism

Wow, someone in DC has connected the dots: that the banks? failure to adhere to contractual and legal requirements in the residential mortgage backed securities market are so extensive and widespread as to constitute systemic risk. Alan Grayson, Congressman from Ground Zero of the foreclosure mess, is calling on the Financial Stability Oversight Council to investigate the escalating foreclosure fraud crisis.

Although the data points we have seen so far could be considered anecdotal, we have evidence that strongly suggests that major RMBS originators, the investment bank packagers, and the bank trustees failed to convey the notes (the borrower IOU, which is critical to having the legal standing to foreclose in 45 states) to the RMBS trusts starting in 2005, perhaps even earlier. And comments from industry insiders suggest this problem is pervasive.

That puts a cloud over the entire US RMBS market, the biggest asset class in the world. ......​

 

[MarkP]

As Obama and Bernanke embark on QEII and a currency war, the question on the table is ..... when does it turn into a shooting war?

Well, someone fired a shot across the bow .... and it wasn't a small terrorist group.

Not Good: Rogue Missile Launch?


Pentagon: 'No Clue'

 

[p m]

That is kind of interesting, isn't it? Especially two days after nearly everyone knew about an impending rocket launch from Vandenburg.

 

[knewsom]

That is kind of interesting, isn't it? Especially two days after nearly everyone knew about an impending rocket launch from Vandenburg.

"everyone knew"? Where is this intel coming from?

 

[noee]

It's going to be an interesting political move for Obama here. He is clearly in the pockets of the bankers, he was squarely behind Bernake's re-confirmation and he's really kept at arm's length when it comes to Bernake's decisions, much like Bush w/Paulson. Now, the political momentum is against Bernake, the global elites have lined up squarely against Bernake and additionally, it appears civil war has broken out amongst the fed governors.

It appears to me that Obama cannot possible survive politically going to bat again and again for Bernake and Geithner to continue to keep the insolvent banks afloat on the backs of our children. Therefore, IMO, Obama will throw Bernake under the bus (Geithner too) and use the leverage to work with the new House leadership to salvage something out of this disaster that he can take credit for.

Or, there really is no one more powerful than the fed chairman and his henchman at Treasury.

Afterall, we have to save the children.

PS. All the conspiracy forums have the missile launch as a warning from China. There's a reason it was launched at rush hour.

 

[knewsom]

It's going to be an interesting political move for Obama here. He is clearly in the pockets of the bankers, he was squarely behind Bernake's re-confirmation and he's really kept at arm's length when it comes to Bernake's decisions, much like Bush w/Paulson. Now, the political momentum is against Bernake, the global elites have lined up squarely against Bernake and additionally, it appears civil war has broken out amongst the fed governors.

It appears to me that Obama cannot possible survive politically going to bat again and again for Bernake and Geithner to continue to keep the insolvent banks afloat on the backs of our children. Therefore, IMO, Obama will throw Bernake under the bus (Geithner too) and use the leverage to work with the new House leadership to salvage something out of this disaster that he can take credit for.

I think this is exactly what is going to happen. As for "in the pocket of the bankers", either everyone from Reagan onward was, or they thought that was they were doing was mutually beneficial for the nation and the banks. Personally, I'd like to see the big banks broken up by the government into smaller banks.

PS. All the conspiracy forums have the missile launch as a warning from China. There's a reason it was launched at rush hour.

If that's what it was, don't you think they'd be reminding us of it?

 

[jhmover]

Al Gore said the missile launch was caused by global warming, then held his hand out for donations.

 

[p m]

"everyone knew"? Where is this intel coming from?

USAF has a habit of announcing launches from Vandenburg AFB, for precisely this reason. Friday launch was announced.

 

[MarkP]

....If that's what it was, don't you think they'd be reminding us of it?

FYI ....

China Downgrades United States Credit

Tuesday, November 09, 2010 10:08:03 AM

(CH) Chinese rating agency Dagong Global Credit downgrades US credit rating due to QE program (update) - Chinese press

- Cut long term US sovereign rating one notch to A+ from AA, with a negative outlook.
- "The serious defects in the U.S. economy will lead to long-term recession and fundamentally lower the national solvency. The credit crisis is far from over in the United States and the U.S. economy will be in a long-term recession." Weaker dollar will hurt US ability to attract dollar capital reflow. "In essence, the U.S. government's move to devalue the dollar indicates its solvency is on the brink of collapse"​

 

[knewsom]

USAF has a habit of announcing launches from Vandenburg AFB, for precisely this reason. Friday launch was announced.

http://satellite.tmcnet.com/aeronau...ts-up-italian-radar-satellite-350th-delta.htm

Vandenburg's launch was the 6th. The missile currently being discussed was yesterday.