Market Addicts

Obama SSN Story: Google back to their old tricks

admin — Sat, 15 May 2010 16:19:05 +0000

Ah, so well I remember this site being sandbagged within hours of my asking pesky questions about the health of a few of the banks being bailed out.

Now, when I justdid a search for “Obama’s Social Security Number”, an attempt to click through on a link from this search:

http://img293.imageshack.us/im.....tynumb.png

“Obama social security number: He has one too many… Entertainment and Showbiz! ”

sends me to this place:

http://dealparty.com/ac/deals......amp;src=7s

Earlier, an attempt to click through on a story on the ParcBench blogsite, took me here:

http://www.emergency24.com/sec.....ferral.htm

WTF??

The Google search said there were 230 stories on the subject, ( http://img20.imageshack.us/img.....tynumb.png ) but when I clicked through on the “240″ link, to view a few of those, Google would only display 3:

http://img682.imageshack.us/im.....owsint.png

It is no coincidence that the site Google chooses to place at the top of every search is condescending ‘flowchart’ provided by Taco News Network (always a reliable source, lol)

Flowchart to Determine if Barack Obama is a U.S. Citizen

Before It’s News - ‎13 hours ago‎

Unfortunately, nobody can provide hard evidence to support their claim, because it’s really hard to track down the President’s real Social Security Number. …

However, even an attempt to click through again to that Obama-suppoting site, leads to this instead:

http://shopcompareus.com/ac/se.....amp;src=7s

I would like to make up my mind for myself, and read all the relevant stories, blogs and articles associated with this search, however apparently Google has decided which stories I should be reading (Elena Kagan, Financial Reform, and LA Times and Washington Post stories mocking any attempt to find out more about this social security number queston).

Fuck you Google. Go ahead, block my site again, I have my own network of people I communicate directly to, and use this site now to expose exactly this kind of blatant censorship going on with our supposedly “good” search-engine monopoly. But I guess the ends always justifies the means, especially when important social-reengineering and ‘change’ is at stake

Bite me. I’m too old to be re-educated

BOTTOM LINE:

STOP GOOGLE NOW! We do not need a search engine monopoly, unless we wish to be Communist China

On2 dissidents outflank Google

kujo — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 18:27:12 +0000

On2 dissidents outflank Google

# On2 dissidents are an example to all at FT.com(Sun 5:35am)

By John Dizard

Published: January 23 2010 02:00 | Last updated: January 23 2010 02:00

Back in November we cast a wary eye on Google’s first attempted takeover of a public company - then a $106m bid for On2 Technologies. The issue, as we saw it, was whether On2 management had been sufficiently vigorous in its defence of shareholders’ interests.

The suggestion had been made by some small shareholders that the On2 managers’ prospective future employment contracts with Google had led to their interests not being perfectly aligned with those of the shareholders. Neither I nor the Financial Times take a position on the validity of this concern. Still, the managers’ relatively small collective stake in the company (less than 3.5 per cent of the stock), compared with their rather generous, fully disclosed, offers of future employment with Google, seemed to have created the appearance, if not the reality, of such a misalignment.

There were a couple of reasons why this small deal was of general interest. First, On2’s proprietary “codec” technology, which is highly efficient software for the compression and decompression of video image data, is a way of loosening the bandwidth constraints on mobile devices. Using efficient codecs, people create fewer system delays when exchanging YouTube clips over phone networks. Anecdotally, such bandwidth limits had at times constrained the sales of 3G phones in dense centres such as New York. On2’s codec is said to be 40 per cent more efficient at using bandwidth than its main competitor.

Second, Google has been so often rumoured to be a prospective buyer for technology and media companies, that its conduct in the On2 deal was of interest to prospective target companies and their shareholders.

In the past two months the On2 dissidents have shown how a group of small shareholders can organise an effective response at low cost. The dissidents’ case is that the company’s codec technology is worth more than Google’s offer, and that management should have shopped the company to other strategic-buyer prospects.

The leaders, who could be characterised as tech-savvy but modest investors, worked to block the initial offer from going through in late December. Then, at the beginning of this month, On2 holders got an offer of an additional $26m-odd in cash from Google.

The dissidents did this without the usual armies of lawyers and bankers that surround the Carl Icahns of this world. They say they have spent less than $100,000 so far in their fight for better terms.

The core On2 activist shareholders are not the blog-first-ask-questions-later screamers found on many investor message boards. As Cornish Hitchcock, a Washington shareholders’ rights lawyer, says: “The disadvantage of the chatboards is all the usual ranting and raving about how management is just a bunch of crooks.” In the course of a shareholder activist campaign, he says, “it is materially false and misleading to make unproven allegations of criminal behaviour. This is a fairly regulated environment,” something not appreciated by the mad bloggers.

The On2 activists used public message boards to start organising, but also set up private, invitation-only sites to exchange information, devise strategy and organise agreed responses. William Pollock, one of the dissidents, says: “It is a more professional environment. Also, people on the public message boards are more likely to misrepresent [the] size of their positions.”

The On2 activists looked over public filings to identify arbitrageurs, the natural allies of those looking for better offers. One of those, Patrick Birnbaum, an investment director of London’s Centaurus Capital, says: “They found us by going through a list of the top 20 shareholders of the company. They were professional in how they conducted themselves, and had a good strategy.”

At present, Mr Birnbaum seems inclined to accept Google’s sweetened offer. To do even better, he believes: “You would have to have Apple Computer or the Chinese pre-empting Google. But no-one came.”

Mr Pollock says: “We made contact with the heads of mergers and acquisitions at firms such as Apple, Cisco, or Adobe that were logical competitors [for Google]. Obviously, we would have wanted them to come in and make a counter-offer. We are not in a position to do anything officially other than making sure the [prospective competing bidders] are aware of the opportunity.”

Mr Pollock and the other dissidents didn’t bother to hire an investment banker, but as he says: “You do need a lawyer to advise you and do things properly.” They also used Moxy Vote, a low-cost, online proxy vote site used mostly by political and union activists.

For its part, the SEC has been working on what is called “proxy plumbing” to make corporate governance more consistent with online documentation and organising. The dissidents are still holding out for a higher offer before the shareholder vote on February 17. Even if that doesn’t come, they’ve given a good example of how a well organised civil group can achieve low-cost, effective, kitchen-table investment banking.

johndizard@hotmail.com

Contrarian Investor Sees Economic Crash in China

kujo — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 09:11:28 +0000

By DAVID BARBOZA
Published: January 7, 2010

SHANGHAI — James S. Chanos built one of the largest fortunes on Wall Street by foreseeing the collapse of Enron and other highflying companies whose stories were too good to be true.

Now Mr. Chanos, a wealthy hedge fund investor, is working to bust the myth of the biggest conglomerate of all: China Inc.

As most of the world bets on China to help lift the global economy out of recession, Mr. Chanos is warning that China’s hyperstimulated economy is headed for a crash, rather than the sustained boom that most economists predict. Its surging real estate sector, buoyed by a flood of speculative capital, looks like “Dubai times 1,000 — or worse,” he frets. He even suspects that Beijing is cooking its books, faking, among other things, its eye-popping growth rates of more than 8 percent.

“Bubbles are best identified by credit excesses, not valuation excesses,” he said in a recent appearance on CNBC. “And there’s no bigger credit excess than in China.” He is planning a speech later this month at the University of Oxford to drive home his point.

As America’s pre-eminent short-seller — he bets big money that companies’ strategies will fail — Mr. Chanos’s narrative runs counter to the prevailing wisdom on China. Most economists and governments expect Chinese growth momentum to continue this year, buoyed by what remains of a $586 billion government stimulus program that began last year, meant to lift exports and consumption among Chinese consumers.

Still, betting against China will not be easy. Because foreigners are restricted from investing in stocks listed inside China, Mr. Chanos has said he is searching for other ways to make his bets, including focusing on construction- and infrastructure-related companies that sell cement, coal, steel and iron ore.

Mr. Chanos, 51, whose hedge fund, Kynikos Associates, based in New York, has $6 billion under management, is hardly the only skeptic on China. But he is certainly the most prominent and vocal.

ROAD TO PERDITION by James Quinn

stuffit — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 11:18:27 +0000

As usual James presents much to think about for the times ahead of us with compelling words and charts~Together we stand, divided we fall -“Christmas is a time when kids tell Santa what they want and adults pay for it. Deficits are when adults tell the government what they want - and their kids pay for it.” Richard Lamm

Decade after decade, Americans have voted for intellectually and morally bankrupt dullards that promise them more goodies under the tree. Every day is Christmas in Washington DC. Long-term means the next election cycle to these traitors of the Republic. I have written ad nauseum about the impending financial cataclysm that awaits our nation. I have spent countless hours documenting the unsustainable path of our politicians’ financial decisions and lack of courage in addressing the forthcoming tragedy that grows closer by the day. Our political system is so corrupt and dysfunctional that there is absolutely no chance that our path will be altered at the voting booth. Government programs are fashioned, but never finished. The IRS tax code consists of 3.4 million words covering 7,500 pages of payoffs to business lobbyists. Simplicity is a virtue. The politicians who are bought and sold by corporate interests prefer complexity and obscuring the truth. Everyone knows that the government cannot fulfill the fiscal promises they have already made. Instead of dealing with this reality using intelligence, courage and conviction, the weak kneed politicians that slither the halls of Congress have chosen to add a brand new bloated entitlement program guaranteed to detonate in our faces. This is the existing reality. There is nothing I can do that will change this reality. Instead, I will propose a new model.

Road to Perdition Scenario

“Government ‘help’ to business is just as disastrous as government persecution… the only way a government can be of service to national prosperity is by keeping its hands off.”
                                                                                                                Ayn Rand

Politicians do not care about budgets, inflation, or the value of the U.S. dollar. They care about power, personal enrichment and being re-elected. In fiscal 2000, the US government had $1.545 trillion of receipts and $1.458 trillion of expenses, resulting in a surplus of $87 billion that year. A mindless government bureaucrat doesn’t conclude that the surge in receipts was due to the internet bubble resulting in billions of one time capital gains revenues. They should have expected reduced revenues in future years. Nine years later government receipts were $1.51 trillion, while expenditures had reached $3.5 trillion. Total government outlays never go down. Obama’s FY10 budget projects $1.649 trillion of receipts and $3.042 trillion of expenditures, resulting in a deficit of $1.393 trillion. Deficits in the range of $1 trillion per year are projected for the next 10 years. Instead of addressing this budget gap that will absolutely lead to economic disintegration, politicians add new entitlements, expand our interventionist foreign wars, and dole out pork to their corporate backers.

Year

On-Budget

Receipts

Outlays

Surplus or Deficit(−)

2000

$1,544,873

$1,458,451

$86,422

2001

$1,483,907

$1,516,352

-$32,445

2002

$1,338,074

$1,655,491

-$317,417

2003

$1,258,690

$1,797,108

-$538,418

2004

$1,345,534

$1,913,495

-$567,961

2005

$1,576,383

$2,069,994

-$493,611

2006

$1,798,872

$2,233,366

-$434,494

2007

$1,933,150

$2,275,303

-$342,153

2008

$1,866,280

$2,508,130

-$641,850

2009 estimate

$1,501,784

$3,479,621

-$1,977,837

2010 estimate

$1,649,422

$3,041,947

-$1,392,525

2011 estimate

$1,966,273

$3,047,386

-$1,081,113

2012 estimate

$2,317,712

$3,047,482

-$729,770

2013 estimate

$2,501,165

$3,205,650

-$704,485

2014 estimate

$2,636,281

$3,370,689

-$734,408

In the early 1980’s, before the three decade long debt induced frat party, the National Debt was between $900 billion and $1.6 trillion. Today, the National Debt is $12.3 trillion, up 1,250% in three decades. The US dollar was phenomenally strong in the early 1980’s versus against a trade weighted basket of foreign currencies, reaching 145 in 1985. Today it has sunk to 77, a 50% decrease in 24 years. Enormous deficits and a plunging currency are a precursor of the unavoidable breakdown of a onetime economic powerhouse. A courageous act by our leaders would be to dramatically decrease government spending and increase interest rates to encourage savings, which would result in a strong dollar. The short term pain would be intense, but it would put our country back on a sound fiscal path. Instead, we will throw our children and grandchildren under the bus with continued financial malfeasance. More spending, more debt, and a cheaper dollar are the drugs of choice.

Dying of Debt

“Deficits mean future tax increases, pure and simple. Deficit spending should be viewed as a tax on future generations, and politicians who create deficits should be exposed as tax hikers.”
                                                                                                          Ron Paul

As the U.S. National Debt has grown from $900 billion to $12.3 trillion since 1980, three month Treasury interest rates have declined from 16% in 1980 to .04% today. The U.S. Treasury has been taking advantage of these artificially low rates to rollover the National Debt and issue new debt on a short-term basis at very low rates. Even with these low rates, interest on the debt was $400 billion in 2009. The government has essentially been able to borrow from foreigners at an overall effective rate of 3.5%. Foreigners are making rational decisions to reduce purchases of long-term US Treasury bonds because they know it is the policy of the United States to inflate away our debt obligations. Buying U.S. Treasury bonds is a recipe for significant losses. The U.S. Treasury is playing Russian roulette at every debt auction. At some point, Timmy Geithner is going to pull the trigger and his pea brains will splatter all over the floor.

Based upon the projected budget deficits over the next ten years, the National Debt will reach $25 trillion by 2019. Interest on the National Debt at various interest rates would be:

                        Rate               Interest Expense

                        3.5%               $875 billion

                        5.0%               $1.25 trillion

                        7.5%               $1.87 trillion

                        10.0%             $2.50 trillion

Total 2008 expenditures of the U.S. government were $2.5 trillion. The law of supply and demand will inevitably lead to much higher interest rates. The market will call the U.S. bluff. It will happen well before 2019. The result will be chaos, upheaval, and social unrest. This is based upon just our current spending. The unfunded commitments made by corrupt myopic politician’s decades into the future cannot be honored. These unfunded liabilities total $106.8 trillion according to the Social Security and Medicare Trustees. The bold faced lies by politicians and mainstream media morons about “bending the cost curve” downward are outrageous in their audacity.



The failure of politicians to address a crisis that has been predictable for decades is truly criminal. The demographic facts are undeniable. In 1950 there were 7 workers per retiree in the U.S. Today, there are 4.5 workers per retiree. By 2030, there will be less than 3 workers per retiree. In the next twenty years retiree benefit payouts will skyrocket as Baby Boomers retire en masse. The confluence of these entitlement payouts with soaring interest on the National Debt and peak oil will floor the U.S. economy. The only way to honor these commitments would be through huge tax increases. During the current healthcare debate, politicians have actually described these government programs as successful. I suppose the executives at GM, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac feel they have been running successful companies too. They are fitting in perfectly as government blood sucking entities.

No Political Will

“The moral and constitutional obligations of our representatives in Washington are to protect our liberty, not coddle the world, precipitating no-win wars, while bringing bankruptcy and economic turmoil to our people.”
                                                                                                        Ron Paul

As disaster draws near, the two crooked political parties that are controlled by corporate and banking interests spout their usual mantras. The Democratic solution is to tax the “rich” and spread the wealth around by squandering our tax dollars on stimulus programs, jobs programs, welfare programs, foreign wars and bailing out their banker masters. The Republican answer is to reduce taxes on the “rich”, boost defense spending, issue tax rebate checks, and frittering away our tax dollars on foreign wars, while bailing out their banker masters. The differences between the two parties are inconsequential. Neither party have ever reduced government spending and neither party will ever take on the military industrial complex or the entitlement system. These dishonest politicians have devastated the American dream. Sound fiscal, monetary and tax policy were discarded in 1913 with the creation of the Federal Reserve and the institution of the income tax. Politicians were given a green light to spend taxpayer money and borrowed money in order to get re-elected. The Federal Reserve has provided the liquidity by inflating away 97% of the value of the USD.

The chart below detailing the FY10 Federal budget clearly shows the dire circumstances we are in today. Mandatory spending on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, interest on the debt, and other social spending already exceed $2 trillion per year. These mandatory programs are sitting on the launch pad like the space shuttle ready to blast off into the stratosphere. When these costs blast off, with the mass retirement of Baby Boomers, we all know what happens next.

Military spending, and running all the other ineffectual government agencies total $1.5 trillion per year of “discretionary” spending. A rational reality based civil servant would look at this and honestly tell the American people that massive cuts in defense spending and social programs is absolutely necessary to save the country from bankruptcy and decline. If you are waiting for President Barack Obama to go on national TV and speak these words to the American public, you probably believe the new healthcare bill will reduce the National Debt, improve your healthcare, and reduce your premiums. Democrats and Republicans continue to live in their Washington DC fantasy world where increasing taxes will miraculously solve our problems according to Democrats and decreasing taxes to stimulate growth will solve our dilemmas according to Republicans. Both are delusional and dishonest.

Creating a New Model

“You never change the existing reality by fighting it. Instead, create a new model that makes the old one obsolete.”

                                                R. Buckminster Fuller

There is zero chance that my proposed modifications to our financial system would ever be implemented by either one of the existing political parties. There is a long shot chance that a 3rd party, using this new model as their platform, could get elected and implement these necessary changes. This is highly unlikely given that 50% of the country pays no taxes and sucks off the teat of state. These proposed alterations would require shared sacrifice, a decline in our standard of living, a conclusion to the welfare state, and an end to our colonial empire. Since no one in this “me first” selfish society would willingly vote for such a transformation, the existing corrupt structure will need to give way first. At that point, reasonable people will have a chance to choose a rational sound economic model. We may not have to wait long for our chance.

Taxing Situation

“When the federal government spends more each year than it collects in tax revenues, it has three choices: It can raise taxes, print money, or borrow money. While these actions may benefit politicians, all three options are bad for average Americans.”

                                                                                                                 Ron Paul

The Federal government has chosen all three. A family or business recognizes that it needs to spend less than its income in order to prosper over the long-term. The U.S. government is dependent upon individual income taxes to provide 64% of its receipts. The FY10 budgeted receipts are as follows:

            Individual Income Tax                       $1.051 trillion

            Corporate Income Tax                     $   179 billion

            Social Insurance                               $   257 billion

            Highway Taxes                                 $    38 billion

            Tobacco & Alcohol Taxes               $    28 billion

            Customs & Duties                            $    24 billion

            Estate Taxes                                     $    20 billion

            Other Excise Taxes                          $    52 billion

            TOTAL RECEIPTS                         $1.649 trillion

·         The 7,500 page Internal Revenue Code has been written to benefit politicians and special interests that pay politicians. This is how politicians repay their financial backers with tax breaks or deductions. The tax code is purposely indecipherable so that the general public is unable to recognize the payoffs for what they are. If the current tax code was scrapped and made so simple a Treasury Secretary could do their tax return properly, influence would be stripped from Congress. They will never willingly consent to this. The truth is that the top 1% of income earners pays 40% of the taxes. The top 10% of income earners pay 71% of all taxes. The bottom 50% of income earners pays virtually no taxes. Still, the rich and powerful are able to hire highly paid tax attorneys to avoid billions in taxes through loopholes provided by their Congressional concubines.

My proposal to reconstitute our corrupt tax system is a flat tax of 10% on all earned income. There would be absolutely no deductions or credits. Interest, dividends, and capital gains would not be taxed. Savings and investment should not be discouraged. Corporate income taxes would be eliminated. Taxes on corporations are just passed through to customers in higher prices. The biggest change to our tax system would be the implementation of a 15% Value Added Tax on all consumption, excluding food and clothing. Overconsumption is what got us into this predicament. It can help get us out of it. The simplicity of my system would make politicians, tax accountants, and special interest groups foam at the mouth like rabid dogs. Based on figures supplied by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, government receipts would be:

Flat Tax Receipts ($6.3 trillion x 10%)                             $ 630 billion

Value Added Tax Receipts ($9 trillion x 15%)                $1.350 trillion

Social Insurance & Excise Taxes                                     $ 320 billion

TOTAL RECEIPTS                                                           $2.300 trillion

Politicians wield immense amounts of power through the use of tax goodies. There is absolutely no reason for this complex system other than to pay back constituents and lobbyists for their votes and contributions. Simplicity would destroy their power base and shift control back to the people.

Don’t Cut My Program

“All initiation of force is a violation of someone else’s rights, whether initiated by an individual or the state, for the benefit of an individual or group of individuals, even if it’s supposed to be for the benefit of another individual or group of individuals.”

                                                                                                                Ron Paul

The FY 2010 Federal Budget projects spending of $3.6 trillion. According to the sages that control the government purse strings, $1.4 trillion of this spending is discretionary, while $2.2 trillion is considered mandatory. In FY 2000 total government spending was under $1.9 trillion. Government expenditures have risen 89% in ten years. Over this same time frame receipts have risen 7%. That certainly sounds sustainable. Government spending needs to be slashed with a machete. If we can cut spending back to the levels of 2000, we can achieve a balanced budget. Once the initial slashing of the budget is complete, reinstitution of PAYGO rules would be essential. Politicians cannot be trusted to do what is right for the country. These rules would force them to cut other expenditures in order to institute new spending. The other absolute necessity would be the reinstitution of a sound money policy. A currency backed by a combination of limited metals such as gold, silver, platinum, and palladium would restrict politicians from reckless spending. The Federal Reserve has proven to be a political animal and has destroyed the value of the dollar. They cannot be trusted to act in the best interests of the people.

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009 estimate

2010 estimate

Total outlays

2,655,435

2,728,940

2,982,881

3,997,842

3,591,076

3,614,774

National defense

521,840

551,286

616,097

690,308

712,853

658,697

Nondefense:

Payments for individuals

1,591,772

1,689,307

1,824,596

2,090,273

2,213,262

2,279,522

Direct payments

1,314,964

1,400,936

1,519,911

1,711,774

1,803,769

1,883,317

Grants to State and local governments

276,808

288,371

304,685

378,499

409,493

396,205

All other grants

157,289

155,426

156,631

189,324

242,708

223,248

Net Interest

226,603

237,109

252,757

142,738

135,862

254,488

All other

226,181

178,050

219,042

976,880

370,647

286,358

Undistributed offsetting receipts

-68,250

-82,238

-86,242

-91,681

-84,256

-87,539

Total nondefense

2,133,595

2,177,654

2,366,784

3,307,534

2,878,223

2,956,077

As far as I’m concerned, the term Mandatory means nothing. Politicians promised people benefits they could never deliver in order to get elected. It is time for a reality check. You will not receive the Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits you were promised. Al Gore was lying to you. There is no lockbox. The immoral politicians who skulk about the halls of Congress have already spent the Social Security funds that were supposed to be in a lockbox. The sooner Americans learn the truth about these programs, the sooner we can get this country back on a sound fiscal course. The FY 2010 Budget shows that the $3.5 trillion is spread around like Obama stash. We only need to slash the budget by $1.2 trillion in order to balance the Federal books. Do you think a few special interests, neo-cons, socialists, senior citizens, do-gooders, and welfare beneficiaries will be upset?

The major expenditures in the FY 2010 budget are as follows:

            National Defense Related              $822 billion

            Social Security                                 $696 billion

            Medicare                                           $458 billion

            Medicaid                                           $290 billion

            Welfare Payments                           $153 billion

            Social Tax Credits                           $141 billion

            Federal Retirement Benefits          $128 billion

            Education                                         $105 billion

            Transportation                                  $104 billion

            Unemployment                                 $ 89 billion

            Health                                                $ 67 billion

            Housing                                             $ 58 billion

            International Affairs                          $ 53 billion

            Justice                                               $ 52 billion

            Other                                                  $399 billion

            TOTAL EXPENDITURES             $3.615 trillion

In order to balance the budget, America’s far flung empire must be reined in. Overreach has previously bankrupted the Roman Empire and the British Empire. We need to recall the troops from Germany, Japan and every other outpost on the planet. We need to declare victory in Iraq and Afghanistan and withdraw our troops. The military industrial complex must be dismantled. We have enough bombs, fighter jets, bombers, submarines and aircraft carriers to blow up the earth three times over. The military will need to pick the essentials, as their budgets are slashed. Efficiency will be a blessing. These changes would cut $300 billion from the budget and put Defense spending all the way back to 2002 levels.

Social Security was created so that widows and orphans would not starve to death during the Great Depression. It morphed into an entitlement over the decades. The government cannot payout the amount it has committed. Either the tax rate needs to be increased from 6.2% to 8.2% or benefits need to be slashed. My choice is to slash benefits. Immediate means testing based on net worth should be implemented. Anyone over a reasonable threshold would not receive Social Security. The minimum age to receive benefits should be increased to 70 years old and increasing over time. Anyone less than 50 years old would have half their contributions go into their own self managed investment account. They would receive reduced benefits at retirement. New employees into the workforce would not receive any benefits at retirement. Their investment account would be their sole government pension. These changes would immediately save $250 billion per year and save trillions in the future.

Both Democrats and Republicans have harped on the fraud in waste in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. For once, they are right. Fraud, waste, defensive medicine, malpractice lawsuits, and lack of competition combine to cost $400 billion per year in unnecessary expenditures. Instead of adding a new healthcare entitlement to an already bankrupt system, we need to fix the existing system. Medicare needs to be completely reconstituted. It also needs to be means tested. If you can afford your own insurance, you don’t go on Medicare. The insurance portion should only be for catastrophic illness. Each Medicare recipient should receive a fixed amount of funds in a health savings account to use for their basic medical needs. All doctors and hospitals would be required to publish their rates for service, tests, and procedures. Laser eye surgery has not been covered by medical insurance and doctors have had to compete on price and quality. Prices have come down dramatically over time. By limiting malpractice awards, allowing competition across state lines, actually stopping fraud and introducing price competition, we can ring $400 billion out of these costs. Instead, the government will criminalize not having medical insurance.

“The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.”
                                                                                    Ayn Rand

The various tax credits would be eliminated with the new simple tax system. This would eliminate $141 billion of expenditures. The remaining $1.2 trillion of expenditures would need to be cut by 10% in order to save another $120 billion. The cumulative savings would be $1.2 trillion and the Federal Budget would be in balance. Virtually no one in this country would vote for anyone proposing such drastic changes. The implementation of these cuts would surely result in a deep recession. It would be a chosen path back to reality. It would be a courageous and noble act of adults taking the bitter medicine today so that our children and grandchildren will have a tomorrow. I have no hope that anyone in government today would be willing to tell the American public the bitter truth about our economic future and propose anything close to what I have proposed. This leads me to the logical conclusion that we will continue on the current path until our empire collapses under the weight of debt, political corruption and grand illusions.



Another Brick in the Wall

“Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps, down new roads, armed with nothing but their own vision.”
                                                                                    Ayn Rand

I’ve noticed that since the term “liberal” has been discredited liberals call themselves “progressives”. I get it – progress. Any fresh unpaid for entitlement, new social program, environmental tax, stimulus package, or union bailout is considered progress to these visionary do-gooders. Now that “neo-con” has been discredited by the disastrous actions of Bush and Cheney, I anticipate these warmongers to adopt the new Orwellian name “peace through war and invasion guys”. Today, when I hear the degeneratives, I mean progressives, describe the financial crisis as a failure of free market capitalism, I have to laugh.

“Capitalism should not be condemned, since we haven’t had capitalism.”
                                                                                    Ron Paul

We haven’t had true capitalism since 1913. We live in a corporate fascist state dominated by the military industrial complex, the financial banking complex, and now the healthcare industry complex. It is fascinating that the health industry has spent $396 billion in 2009 on lobbying and the financial industry $334 billion while Congressmen debate the future of both industries. These industries surprisingly have received a windfall in the legislation that has been put forth by Congress. The system is so corrupt and rotting from within that elections will never result in necessary reform. Corporations are spending $3 billion per year to bribe (lobby) your elected officials. Whose interest do you think Congress is looking out for?

2009 Lobby

Sector

Spending

Health

$396,240,855

Misc Business

$362,259,396

Finance, Insurance & Real Estate

$334,341,984

Energy & Natural Resources

$300,512,509

Communications/Electronics

$266,103,829

Transportation

$184,606,661

Other

$182,632,267

Ideological/Single-Issue

$112,914,979

Agribusiness

$103,924,231

Defense

$96,174,660

Construction

$40,387,356

Labor

$32,015,440

Lawyers & Lobbyists

$24,617,969

Source: Open Secrets

The Defense industry doesn’t need to splurge as much on lobbying because our never ending wars of choice keep the orders flowing in. Our liberal left wing President is spending more on defense than our last neo-con President. There are no plans to scale back our interference in world affairs. The military planners work around the clock preparing for war in Iran and Yemen. The planned domination of the Middle East is the untold truth, as our ruling elite know that Peak Oil is a fact and our sprawling suburban existence depends upon cheap oil. Once it becomes clear that peak oil has set in, panic will result and armed conflict for the remaining supplies will breakout. Instead of planning for this event by preparing the country by shifting our economy to natural gas, nuclear, coal, geothermal, wind, solar, and ocean based sources, we will invest in our military machine to seize the nectar of American life. This will be a tragic choice.

The United States owes foreign countries $3.5 trillion today. Our obligation to foreigners has risen by $500 billion in the last 12 months. The Obama spending plans will require the issuance of $2.2 trillion of new debt this year. We will need foreigners to buy close to $1 trillion of our debt in 2010. The Chinese already own 25% of our outstanding debt, with Japan at 23% and OPEC at 6%. They know our budgets project $13 trillion in deficits over the next 10 years. They know Ben (ameba spine) Bernanke is trying to inflate away this debt through inflation and a lower dollar. They know they are guaranteed to lose billions if they buy Treasuries paying 3%. They are not fools. They will eventually choke on this debt and vomit it back in our face. With mammoth debts, gargantuan unfunded liabilities, massive unemployment, a far flung military empire, multiple wars, and an overconfident, clueless, lethargic population, the surge in interest rates and hyperinflation will topple this bloated crumbling kingdom.

“We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force.”
                                                                        Ayn Rand

When the current economic scheme breaks down and the country dissolves in disarray because there is no courage, truthfulness or morality left in Washington DC, anything is possible. When governments are confronted with intractable domestic problems, they seek a foreign threat to distract the public. Our economic malfeasance and oil shortages will likely spark a World War III scenario with the Muslim world at odds with the Christian world. With nukes in the possession of many countries, terrifying outcomes are easy to imagine. The people of America will have a choice to make. They can put another brick in the wall, or they can try to break free. They can choose to take back their freedom and liberty or relinquish their last vestiges of humanity to a fascist dictatorship. Together we stand, divided we fall.



But it was only fantasy.
The wall was too high,
As you can see.
No matter how he tried,
He could not break free.
And the worms ate into his brain.

Hey you, standing in the road
always doing what you’re told,
Can you help me?

Hey you, don’t tell me there’s no hope at all
Together we stand, divided we fall.

                                    Hey You – Pink Floyd

Please join me at www.TheBurningPlatform.com to make a stand.

Climate - Lord Christopher Monckton Speaking in St. Paul

kujo — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 08:41:54 +0000

Amazing Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zOXmJ4jd-8

CRE~(song parady) O’ CHRISTMAS TREE!!!

stuffit — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:12:37 +0000

The Newest==>From the 2009 VERSUS Holiday Songbook! A musical parody of the traditional song “O Christmas Tree (O Tannenbaum),” about commercial real estate

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....r_embedded

For A Complete LIST of other tunes use link! (Another of Interest==IT’S BEGINNING (TO LOOK A LOT MORE RISKLESS)

http://versusplus.com/ohcre.html

Parody Lyrics by Marcy Shaffer

Oh, CRE.*
Oh, CRE.*
To what degree
are you debris?
For sophistry in office-stry.
Your property could drop-erty.
You used to earn on cruise control.
Now you must turn on bruise control.
Oh, CRE.
Oh, CRE.
Uneasy thE recovery.

Oh, FDIC.**
Oh, FDIC.**
Why amnesty in bank exam-nesty?
Your lending spree unendingly
Pretending we are mending-ly.
You can’t tweak a new peak out of rubble.
You can freak this streak might W.
Oh, FDIC.
Oh, FDIC.
Your custody a bust-ody.

Oh, teetering REIT.***
Oh, teetering REIT.***
Once such conceit, now mince-ce-meat.
Whene’er square feet you dare excrete?
Deadbeat-ment treatment by the Street.
You used to bring the ring of bling.
But now your thing does not ka-ching.
Oh, teetering REIT.
Oh, teetering REIT.
How bittersweet your Twitter tweet.

Oh, CRE.
Oh, CRE.
To what degree
are you debris?
With retail throwing in the key.
A detail showing what may be.
You used to earn on cruise control.
Now it’s your turn on lose control.
Oh, CRE.
Oh, CRE.
The TNT in GDP.
The TNT
is
CRE.

*CRE = commercial real estate
**fdic = federal deposit insurance corporation
***reit = real estate investment trust

Janis Liebhart - LEAd vocal, BACKGROUND VOCAL
ANGIE JARÉE - BACKGROUND vocal
GARY STOCKDALE - BACKGROUND vocal
Greg Hilfman - music director

Volcker speaks on Derivatives

stuffit — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 14:15:42 +0000

VOLCKER continues to speak out (Are they listening?)

Volcker Sees No Value in Derivatives

The Daily Bell
News & Views
12/10/2009 - by Staff Reports (ARBP)

The former US Federal Reserve chairman told an audience that included some of the world’s most senior financiers that their industry’s “single most important” contribution in the last 25 years has been automatic telling machines, which he said had at least proved “useful”. Echoing FSA chairman Lord Turner’s comments that banks are “socially useless”, Mr. Volcker (pictured left) told delegates who had been discussing how to rebuild the financial system to “wake up”. He said credit default swaps and collateralized debt obligations had taken the economy “right to the brink of disaster” and added that the economy had grown at “greater rates of speed” during the 1960s without such products. When one stunned audience member suggested that Mr. Volcker did not really mean bond markets and securitizations had contributed “nothing at all”, he replied: “You can innovate as much as you like, but do it within a structure that doesn’t put the whole economy at risk.” He said he agreed with George Soros, the billionaire investor, who said investment banks must stick to serving clients and “proprietary trading should be pushed out of investment banks and to hedge funds where they belong”. - Telegraph

Dominant Social Theme: A stand for reason.

Free-Market Analysis: Paul Volcker, George Soros and others are picking up the pace. These people, in our humble opinion, are stitched right into the fabric of the power elite ( http://tiny.cc/KGZDX ), and the elite appears to be a tad frustrated. The whole idea of “not wasting a crisis’ - in this case a financial crisis - is providing an imperative to move ahead as quickly as possible with a global realignment of Western finances.

What we think is going on, in keeping with larger elite priorities, is that More Should Be Done As Soon As Possible. America is perhaps the best example of this craze for progressivism. When the Depression hit after the stock crash of 1929, in short order you had the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the promotion of the NASD and the NYSE into quasi-governmental authorities and a host of other lesser changes that reset the dynamic of the United States Monetary system. But this time, events have moved more slowly, or at least have not generated the kind of global regulation as of yet that it seems the elite desires.

This time the changes thus far (from a global perspective) have been relatively subdued given the magnitude of the crisis. Sure, America and Britain are moving along with domestic regulatory programs. And internationally, there’s been talk of a new monetary system managed by the IMF and the creation of an international regulatory authority, but we sense it is still going less quickly than it might have. In fact, it could be said that the crisis has had an impact on the wrong elements from the power elite’s point of view. The SEC has come in for heavy criticism, instead of being hailed as heroes, central banking has been hit, and those in government who threw their weight behind various bail out programs like TARP have come in for criticism as well.

Generally speaking, there has been an exploration in both America and Britain of how the financial process has morphed from a private entity into a mercantilist one. Of course, this happened more than century ago in America, and has never been any different in Europe. But the conversation, thanks to the Internet, has been much elevated in the 21st century compared to the 20th. People are mentioning and even investigating this mercantilist muddling for the first time in decades.

So no, things could be going better for the mercantilist crowd. In fact, if one imagines that there is a power elite of tremendously wealth families and individuals that want to continually consolidate power and generate wealth from the process of mercantilism - the blending of government with private business to empower a few at the expense of the many - then the financial crisis has been fairly unrewarding thus far, at least from a global perspective. Thin gruel, so-to-speak.

However, it would seem that the international campaign is ratcheting up. The first shots in a renewed effort may have been fired by Volcker and leftist financier George Soros. In his speech, Volcker went out of his way (the Telegraph reports) to endorse remarks made recently by Soros:

He said he agreed with George Soros, the billionaire investor, who said investment banks must stick to serving clients and “proprietary trading should be pushed out of investment banks and to hedge funds where they belong”. Mr. Volcker argued that banks did have a vital role to play as holders of deposits and providers of credit. This importance meant it was correct that they should be “regulated on one side and protected on the other”. He said riskier financial activities should be limited to hedge funds to whom society could say: “If you fail, fail. I’m not going to help you.”

Here’s some more from a recent article in the Telegraph about what Soros recently had to say on the issue:

George Soros warns against rebuilding same ‘Humpty Dumpty’ financial system

Mr. Soros said the success of the post-1930s financial system was built on market fundamentalism - the belief that markets will always correct themselves - that in turn led to widespread de-regulation. “We now realize that was unsound,” he said. “And we need some regulation.” But he argued that the “big test” is “can you have global regulation or not? If you can’t global markets will break down into their national units.”

However, he warned against relying on individual regulators since “markets are imperfect but regulators are more imperfect.” The solution, said Mr. Soros, is that the new system of regulation “has to be global” and has to include the regulation of credit. Mr. Soros noted that Alan Greenspan had argued against regulating credit markets but said that the former chairman of the Federal Reserve was wrong. He said that it would be wrong for regulators to try to prevent all bubbles but they should be prepared to step in and slow them down. He said credit bubbles should be controlled by “margin requirements and capital requirements” that should be varied according to the “mood of the market.” …

Mr. Soros dismissed the idea of preventing banks from getting “too big to fail” as unworkable. He said he was also unconvinced by the notion of “living wills” for the banks. He said that the idea would have to be proven a few times and until then there was an “implicit guarantee to the banking system.” He said while this guarantee was in place, governments had a “right and a duty to regulate those institutions - and also to regulate their salaries.” He added: “The banking industry is receiving a tremendous amount of hidden subsidy” such as zero interest rates.

Mr. Soros said hedge fund salaries should also be scrutinized since the rewards in the high-rolling sector “drove the investment banks to give big bonuses too.” However, he argued that hedge funds should not be subject to heavy regulation because they are “not too big to fail” and also “speculate with their own money.” He said: “The proprietary trading operations should be pushed out of investment banks and into hedge funds where they belong. Investment bank [prop desks] speculate with investors money, hedge funds speculate with money that has been well advised in advance.”

Mr. Soros is the founding sponsor of the Institute for New Economic Thinking which he said is “designed to change the teaching of economics that has been so firmly entrenched.”

We can start to see from these remarks what the next regulatory onslaught may be. Since it is apparently not an adult occupation (Soros tells us) to consider ways to break up “too-big-to-fail” banks, the regulatory apparatus is going to have to grow larger still, to fully global proportions. Both Volcker and Soros criticize over-leveraging with the implicit or explicit prediction that credit will have to be regulated by a global super regulator. This global super regulator will regulate bank salaries as well.

The last place to make quick amounts of super-duper amounts of money is on bourses. Through proprietary trading, banking and investment banking, people can make loads of money and if you were amongst the elite - and uncomfortable about the amounts of money still available to the hoi-polloi — you’d probably want to shut down these avenues of pecuniary advancement as well. See, in our opinion, it’s not an issue of regulation, actually, but propriety. Less competition, so to speak.

In fact, in our humble opinion, what needs to be shut down are central banks. Without the fiat-money boom-bust credit cycle, the financial system would calm down a great deal. And once it calmed down, there would be no need for the regulatory apparatus now in place. What occurs on regular intervals is that Frankenstein’s monster awakes - charged up by fiat money — and then (after the predicable rampage has taken place) those who are close to the operation clamor for the regulation of electricity rather than the beast itself.

Conclusion: Despite the best of efforts of the power elite, central banking issues remain on the table. But the counterattack is coming. It is not central bank stimulation that is to blame but too much credit. And thus it is that the elite will now try to regulate credit and salaries as well within the financial system - and worldwide at that. And when credit is regulated at banks, by the way, it will be regulated for the average joe, too. A bureaucracy rather than a bank may decide if Joe is credit-worthy and even if he is, the current financial conditions may preclude a loan. Come back when the economy is feeling less stimulated - whenever that is, perhaps in several years. “But - but … I need the money now.” “Sorry, Joe, maybe you can borrow it from friends, if you can find anyone with cash to spare.” And, funny thing, he can’t, and won’t.

http://www.thedailybell.com/64.....tives.html

Dec 14-18th~The Wk Ahead`$DEBT and Major Reports/Events

stuffit — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 13:55:32 +0000

FIRST this morning-Senate Democrats overcame a Republican filibuster to clear the way for a vote Sunday on a huge end-of-year $1.1 trillion spending bill that includes money to run much of the government and pay for Medicare and Medicaid benefits. The Senate is set to vote on a $1.1 trillion spending bill

See for an interesting read~ The Dark Of Night - Debt Limit To Be Increased by cmartenson http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/dark-night-debt-limit-be-increased/32625

Major Reports and Events

Dec 14-18th

Monday, December 14, 2009
Before: NWPX, NTSC, SMTS
During: -
After: ALCO, IAAC, IESC, PAY, SEH, SNS,

Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Before: BBY, DAB, FDS, GIGM
During: -
After: AIR, ADBE, TTWO, WPCS

Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Before: JOYG
During: -
After: ABM, APOG, HOV, MLHR, MATK, NDSN, OHB, PAYX

Thursday, December 17, 2009
Before: ATU, BRLI, CCL, DFS, FDX, GIS, LEN, MCS, PIR, RAD, SCHL, WGO
During: -
After: COMS, ACN, APSG, CRI, CTAS, DRI, HEI, NKE, ORCL, PALM, ZQK, RIMM, SCS

Friday, December 18, 2009
Before: KMX, STEI
During: - After -DRI

Calendar: Week of December 14 - 18,2009

***Monday, December 14, 2009

Economic
10:00 TAF auction
15:30 Mexico Oct Industrial Production
Events
IMGN Analyst Call. Ex-dividend: HPQ $0.08, BDK $0.12.

***Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Economic
06:00 Brazil Oct Retail Sales
08:30 Nov PPI (last m/m 0.3%, y/y -1.9%, ex food & energy last m/m -0.6%, y/y 0.7%), Dec Empire Manufacturing (last 23.51), Canada Oct Leading Indicators, Canada Q3 Capacity Utilization
09:00 Oct Net Long-Term TIC Flows (last $40.7B), Oct Total Net TIC Flows (last $133.5B)
09:15 Nov Industrial Production (last 0.1%), Nov Capacity Utilization (last 70.7%)
10:00 TAF results
13:00 Dec NAHB Housing Market Index (last 17)
16:30 API Crude Oil/Gasoline/Distillate Inventories
Events
08:00 FDA Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee Meeting. 08:00 Pediatric Oncology Subcommittee Advisory Committee Meeting. 13:30 FDA Vaccines & Related Biological Products Advisory Committee Meeting. Deutsche Bank Boston Biotech Confab. Raymond James IT Supply Chain Conference. PBI Guidance Call. GNW Investor Day. ICSC/UBSW Chain Store Sales (7:45, last -1.3%). Redbook Retail Sales (8:55, last 1.2%). ABC Consumer Confidence (last -47). Trades Ex-dividend: AVF $0.481, AINV $0.28, ENH $0.25.

***Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Economic
08:30 Nov CPI (last m/m 0.3%, y/y -0.2%; ex food & energy last m/m 0.2%, y/y 1.7%), Nov CPI Core Index SA (last 220.453), Nov Housing Starts (last 529K), Nov Building Permits (last 551K), Q3 Current Account Balance (last -$98.8B)
10:30 DoE Crude Oil/Gasoline/Distillate Inventories
14:15 FOMC rate decision
Events
08:00 Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee Meeting. FSLR Guidance Call. DHR Investor Day. HON 2010 Guidance Announcement. MBA Mortgage Applications (7:00, last 8.5%). Trades Ex-split: NEOG 3-2, UHS 2-1. Trades Ex-dividend: CB $0.35, SCMR $1.00, TTC $0.18, UIL $0.432.

***Thursday, December 17, 2009

Economic
08:30 Initial Jobless Claims (last 474K), Continuing Claims (last 5.157M), Canada Nov CPI
10:00 Nov Leading Indicators (last 0.3%), Dec Philadelphia Fed (last 16.7), Brazil rate decision
10:30 Natural Gas Inventories
Events
BoJ Rate Decision. 10:00 Senate Confirmation Vote for Fed Chairman Bernanke. BCR Analyst Day. PLL Analyst Day. Trades Ex-dividend: HES $0.10, DTE $0.53, TIF $0.17, EQR $0.338.

***Friday, December 18, 2009

Economic
08:00 Canada Oct Wholesale Sales
TBD Colombia Rate Decision
Events
08:00 FDA Ear, Nose, and Throat Devices Panel Meeting. ITT 2010 guidance call. Trades Ex-dividend: HNZ $0.42.

Wkend New$-Hit List Reads with thoughts to Ponder

stuffit — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 15:16:04 +0000

Today Dec 6th - Let’s start with Some Cold Weather Music for the early cold blanket across the US -Wintersong http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....r_embedded

1. Abu Dhabi shares gained the most since March and Dubai’s index rose for the first time in three days on investor speculation last week’s drop was overdone and the impact of Dubai’s debt problems would be limited

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/.....&pos=4

2. Kuwait Investment Authority, the nation’s sovereign-wealth fund, sold its stake in Citigroup Inc for $4.1 billion after helping the U.S. bank boost capital amid the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

3. Today, Obama will attempt to rally Senate Democrats on the Health Care plan with another trip scheduled to the hill. Reid seems to be four votes short of the 60 needed to pass this sweeping monster overhaul. The Republicans attempt to draw attention to the impact on the elderly and restore the home health services funding with an amendment failed yesterday. The public option and the abortion issue continues to be the biggest problems.

Tuesday, Obama is scheduling an economic speech focused on new ideas and plans to spur private hiring by business, with possible new incentives and job plans. Obama said in his Saturday radio and Internet address that the country is emerging from an “economic storm” and that he’s working to put people back on the payroll after a painful recession.

4. The Russian Nightclub Fire-(unfortunately a familiar one to the US 2003 Station Fire with both seemingly caused by Onstage pyrotechnics) More than 100 are killed and more than 130 injured at the Russian club. One hundred died from the Station fire, and more than 200 were injured http://www.projo.com/news/cont.....ae9e8.html

5. EPA Poised on declaration of endangerment of CO2`- Per the WSJ it seems the EPA may as early as Monday officially declare carbon dioxide a public danger by using the Clean Air Act, creating the stab that could mean regulation for emitters across the country. Why now??? Well folks, there’s always a reason and this looks to be a given to happen right before Obama heads to Copenhagen (where there’s a will-there’s a way to skin that cat)! While a decsion is needed to meet the new standards next year for auto emissions, this could well later affect “stationary sources”, such as utilities, refineries and chemical plants. The US Chamber of Commerce has said the endangerment declaration could spark litigation and regulation that could harm the economy(guess that’s no biggy). As per stated==>”With House legislation passed, a bipartisan Senate bill in the works, and strong EPA action a virtual certainty, the president goes to Copenhagen with a very strong hand to play,” Mr. Mendelson said.(his bird in the hand) http://online.wsj.com/article/.....78287.html

The declaration would pressure US lawmakers to pass legislation on a climate bill (House passed one-Senate faces problems)
EPA’s Ms. Jackson and President Obama’s energy and climate czar Carol Browner have said they would prefer Congress to take action but are prepared to move ahead in the absence of lawmakers crafting their own law
If the EPA decided to move ahead with emission regulations for stationary sources such as utilities, new rules would likely be in place by 2012 and could set stringent emission standards to require firms to install the best available technology

6. Swaps and Derivatives, those weapons of mass destruction in the financial crisis~Well, the stampede may seem to have slowed, but the long trunk of this elephant is still around. Interesting piece from BL Friday, on the cost to New Jersey (one of many across the country), of $22,000.00 a day. Their interest rate swap, an agreement between borrowers to exchange fixed and variable-rate payments on a set amount of debt, was arranged in 2004 to protect taxpayers against rising borrowing costs, and now is a boomerang. These shall haunt the globe for a very long time==>Derivatives have created “unprecedented financial stress” for some of the 500 municipal issuers that sold variable-rate debt and purchased swaps from banks to lock in borrowing costs, according to an October report by Moody’s Investors Service. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/.....amp;pos=15

7. Mish: Chicago Cannibalization-Mayor Daley’s Budget Eat’s 75% of a 75 Year Rainy Day Fund in One Year~

http://globaleconomicanalysis......aleys.html

8. Decemeber 5th, by Barry Ritholz~ALL the charts in one place (10 posted) on Employment/UnEmployment-Highly suggest use link to view ALL

One as Example from: http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2.....-round-up/

Total Non-Farm Payroll (Scale: Millions of Workers)

	09:32AM	FPL to put $2 billion behind wind energy’s back
	09:05AM	NewsWatch: U.S. stocks to get another run at jobs and retail

Wk of Dec 7-11th Major $Events/Calendar/Earnings

stuffit — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 16:03:53 +0000

FIRST, we had 6 U.S. Friday Nite Bank Flights for Dec 4th~Regulators on Friday closed three banks in Georgia, bringing the number of bank failures in that state this year to 24, and one each in Virginia, Illinois and Ohio. The biggest bank to close on Friday was *AmTrust Bank of Cleveland, Ohio, which had assets of $12 billion and deposits of $8 billion. **The New York Community Bank of Westbury, New York, assumed its deposits.

**NOTE: very interesting piece posted at Zero Hedge involving the questionable action on NYB caught on screens late Friday afternoon, use link to view in full==>Under the terms of the agreement,the Community Bank did not acquire any of AmTrust Bank’s non-performing loans serviced by AmTrust Bank or any other real estate owned; construction, land, or development loans; private-label securities, or mortgage servicing rights, nor did it acquire any of the assets or assume any of the obligations of the holding company.

”The smoking gun here comes straight from a quick observation of NYB’s intraday P/V chart: the jump at 3:24pm on statistically significant volume is a clear signal that someone was fully aware of the soon to be announced transaction” http://www.zerohedge.com/artic.....ther-blata

The other five banks had assets of less than $1 billion. They are Benchmark Bank of Illinois, Greater Atlantic Bank of Virginia and the three banks in Georgia — Tattnall Bank, Buckhead Community Bank, and First Security National Bank. The six failures are expected to cost the FDIC’s insurance fund a total of more than $2.3 billion~This brings the yearly total to 130, with many more possible as the small institutions have a disproportionately large exposure to commercial real estate the leftovers of the credit boom. The FDIC has said it expects bank failures to cost its insurance fund about $100 billion from 2009 through 2013.

Complete List and Info on failed banks http://www.fdic.gov/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WEEK of December 7th Major Economic Events/Conferences and Shareholder/Analyst Meetings of Interest

(Nothing guaranteed here-allow for copy errors)

Useful link on Auctions http://www.treas.gov/offices/d.....ctions.pdf

*Monday:-

EBAY, PCS, VIA, MHP at UBS Media & Communications Conference

- $30 bln 3 month and $31 bln 6 month Treasury Bill Auctions

-- Fed’s Bernanke Speaks 12:00 PM et-

Consumer Credit 3:00 PM ET

*Tuesday:

- CSCO Financial Analyst Conference

- RF, JPM, MA, ZION at Goldman Sachs US Financial Services Conference

-ICSC-Goldman Store Sales 7:45 AM ET

-Redbook 8:55 AM ET

-4-Week Bill Auction 11:30 AM ET

-$40 bln 3-yr Treasury Note Auction 1:00 PM ET

*Wednesday:

- BK, USB, BX, COF at Goldman Sachs US Financial Services Conference

- HPQ, INTU, QCOM, YHOO at Barclays Technology Conference

MBA Purchase Applications 7:00 AM ET

-Wholesale Trade 10:00 AM ET

-EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET

- $21 bln 10-yr Treasury Note Auction 1:00 PM ET

*Thursday:

- UTX Investor and Analyst Meeting

- GE, ROK, CKP, WSO at Bank of America Merrill Lynch Global Industries Conference

-International Trade 8:30 AM ET - Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET

-RBC CASH Index 9:00 AM ET

-Quarterly Services Survey 10:00 AM ET

-EIA Natural Gas Report 10:30 AM ET

-Elizabeth Duke Speaks 12:45 PM ET

-3-Month Bill Announcement/6-Month Bill Announcement/52-Week Bill Announcement 11:00

- $13 bln 30-yr Treasury Bond Auction 1:00 PM ET

-Treasury Budget 2:00 PM ET

-Fed Balance Sheet and Money Supply 4:30 PM ET　　

*Friday:

Retail Sales/Import and Export Prices 8:30 AM ET- ITW Investor Day

-Consumer Sentiment 9:55 AM ET

-Business Inventories

- HSC Annual Analyst Conference

EARNINGS BEFORE THE BELL MONDAY

BTH GRB LAYN

EARNINGS AFTER THE BELL

CASY FMCN PBY

EARNINGS BEFORE THE BELL TUESDAY

AZO GIGM HRB IPSU KR SAFM TLB TTC MTN

EARNINGS AFTER THE BELL

AVAV CKR CMTL COO MW MIND NCS SAI

EARNINGS BEFORE THE BELL WEDNESDAY

CHP HITK JTX MOV POWL

EARNINGS AFTER THE BELL

ALOG BWY FCEL GEF LULU OXM PLL

EARNINGS BEFORE THE BELL THURSDAY

CIEN COST CUB DG GIL MEI SFD TITN UNFI

EARNINGS AFTER THE BELL

CRI CPII ESL LTRE NSM

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Dow 30 List - Performance

**Sorted by 1-Week Price Performance**
Symbol	Close	1Day Change	1Day %Change	1W %Change	2W %Change	4W %Change	YTD %Change	3M %Change	6M %Change	12M %Change
INTC	20.46	0.59	2.97%	7.06%	6.01%	8.31%	34.61%	4.18%	26.84%	60.22%
BAC	16.20	0.44	2.79%	4.72%	0.75%	7.07%	13.05%	-5.21%	36.48%	12.97%
BA	54.68	0.91	1.69%	4.25%	6.32%	9.87%	20.84%	11.25%	8.13%	39.53%
VZ	32.70	0.01	0.03%	3.38%	7.14%	11.57%	-5.60%	6.86%	10.59%	1.71%
CSCO	24.16	0.33	1.38%	3.34%	2.03%	0.96%	42.45%	10.62%	22.83%	57.60%
AA	12.99	-0.28	-2.11%	2.61%	-1.74%	0.78%	7.27%	6.65%	21.52%	61.17%
MSFT	29.98	0.15	0.50%	2.60%	0.67%	5.30%	47.47%	21.77%	37.33%	56.88%
JNJ	64.36	0.20	0.31%	2.34%	3.09%	7.30%	6.12%	6.70%	15.26%	14.56%
T	27.60	0.08	0.29%	2.26%	5.71%	6.40%	-6.19%	8.19%	13.30%	-2.02%
MMM	78.24	1.09	1.41%	1.94%	1.28%	3.68%	32.18%	9.66%	30.73%	32.30%
HD	28.08	0.15	0.54%	1.70%	3.58%	9.56%	16.37%	3.88%	14.29%	20.93%
UTX	68.32	1.06	1.58%	1.67%	0.46%	4.39%	24.33%	12.89%	23.93%	44.87%
GE	16.20	0.20	1.25%	1.63%	2.79%	12.27%	-5.10%	16.80%	17.82%	-7.69%
DIS	30.84	0.51	1.68%	1.61%	2.09%	6.34%	28.93%	19.07%	22.67%	41.53%
CAT	58.30	0.10	0.17%	1.48%	-0.53%	0.53%	24.28%	26.44%	53.34%	55.38%
HPQ	49.79	0.83	1.70%	1.47%	-0.06%	1.92%	35.26%	10.40%	37.96%	49.12%
PFE	18.49	-0.15	-0.80%	1.32%	2.10%	8.64%	1.20%	12.81%	26.30%	13.64%
IBM	127.25	-0.30	-0.24%	1.23%	-0.23%	3.37%	45.64%	8.33%	19.67%	64.32%
MRK	36.70	-0.07	-0.19%	1.13%	3.88%	12.20%	18.39%	19.54%	38.07%	46.80%
JPM	41.74	0.34	0.82%	0.99%	-1.90%	-4.86%	33.14%	-1.42%	18.08%	34.30%
KO	57.49	0.22	0.38%	0.54%	1.07%	5.68%	25.25%	15.10%	15.53%	28.47%
PG	62.60	0.04	0.06%	0.19%	0.72%	3.52%	-0.32%	18.43%	17.34%	2.20%
CVX	78.07	0.11	0.14%	-0.13%	0.94%	1.07%	2.03%	13.21%	11.86%	8.79%
KFT	26.57	0.15	0.57%	-0.26%	-1.48%	-1.70%	-2.82%	-5.44%	-1.74%	1.76%
WMT	54.24	-0.20	-0.37%	-0.71%	-0.55%	5.77%	-5.14%	4.95%	6.62%	-1.58%
XOM	74.25	-0.74	-0.99%	-0.83%	-0.54%	2.41%	-9.05%	7.33%	1.74%	-2.65%
TRV	51.04	-0.40	-0.78%	-1.18%	-3.11%	0.79%	12.92%	1.84%	17.01%	31.48%
MCD	61.59	-0.38	-0.61%	-3.16%	-2.87%	0.18%	-3.39%	9.71%	2.24%	1.23%
AXP	39.30	0.43	1.11%	-3.77%	-4.47%	4.13%	103.31%	19.67%	55.64%	88.58%
DD	32.34	-2.49	-7.15%	-5.99%	-6.53%	-3.12%	23.53%	1.99%	12.64%	36.51%

Year	On-Budget
Year	Receipts	Outlays	Surplus or Deficit(−)
2000	$1,544,873	$1,458,451	$86,422
2001	$1,483,907	$1,516,352	-$32,445
2002	$1,338,074	$1,655,491	-$317,417
2003	$1,258,690	$1,797,108	-$538,418
2004	$1,345,534	$1,913,495	-$567,961
2005	$1,576,383	$2,069,994	-$493,611
2006	$1,798,872	$2,233,366	-$434,494
2007	$1,933,150	$2,275,303	-$342,153
2008	$1,866,280	$2,508,130	-$641,850
2009 estimate	$1,501,784	$3,479,621	-$1,977,837
2010 estimate	$1,649,422	$3,041,947	-$1,392,525
2011 estimate	$1,966,273	$3,047,386	-$1,081,113
2012 estimate	$2,317,712	$3,047,482	-$729,770
2013 estimate	$2,501,165	$3,205,650	-$704,485
2014 estimate	$2,636,281	$3,370,689	-$734,408

	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009 estimate	2010 estimate
Total outlays	2,655,435	2,728,940	2,982,881	3,997,842	3,591,076	3,614,774
National defense	521,840	551,286	616,097	690,308	712,853	658,697
Nondefense:
Payments for individuals	1,591,772	1,689,307	1,824,596	2,090,273	2,213,262	2,279,522
Direct payments	1,314,964	1,400,936	1,519,911	1,711,774	1,803,769	1,883,317
Grants to State and local governments	276,808	288,371	304,685	378,499	409,493	396,205
All other grants	157,289	155,426	156,631	189,324	242,708	223,248
Net Interest	226,603	237,109	252,757	142,738	135,862	254,488
All other	226,181	178,050	219,042	976,880	370,647	286,358
Undistributed offsetting receipts	-68,250	-82,238	-86,242	-91,681	-84,256	-87,539
Total nondefense	2,133,595	2,177,654	2,366,784	3,307,534	2,878,223	2,956,077

	2009 Lobby
Sector	Spending
Health	$396,240,855
Misc Business	$362,259,396
Finance, Insurance & Real Estate	$334,341,984
Energy & Natural Resources	$300,512,509
Communications/Electronics	$266,103,829
Transportation	$184,606,661
Other	$182,632,267
Ideological/Single-Issue	$112,914,979
Agribusiness	$103,924,231
Defense	$96,174,660
Construction	$40,387,356
Labor	$32,015,440
Lawyers & Lobbyists	$24,617,969