Milk Prices Double? Another Scare Tactic To Induce Panic Spending

The New York Time’s webpage title is, “Milk Prices Could Double As Farm Bill Stalls.” The article itself warns of a gallon of milk costing six to eight dollars.

First, of all, that is not going to happen in any long-term way. … Read More

State/Wall Street Slavery In One Lesson

Follow the steps with me:

One: Push low-interest-rate madness that makes putting money in a bank’s saving account more or less the equivalent of stuffing cash in your mattress and encourages people to turn to higher risk stock market speculation, or, … Read More

Tim Geithner Admits Social Security Is Bankrupt

There was a time when, in order to make one’s money increase, one had to find a private venture to invest in. This was risky, but when the venture succeeded it also created a great deal of wealth for not … Read More

JPMorgan CEO: Banks Too Complex For You To Understand

Since 2007 the United States and the world has been entangled in a deep financial crisis. This crisis was spurred by insanely low interest rates that encouraged misallocated investments. People could make virtually nothing in a savings account, but could … Read More

Ryan: Dems Calling For Spending Increases (And So Is He)

We had a “tea party” in 2010. We are facing a historic worldwide economic depression that is under the pressure of monstrous sovereign debt and much worse unfunded liabilities. And yet we still can’t get Republicans in the White House … Read More

Military Spending Boosts Third Quarter GDP

The advance estimate for third quarter GDP growth came in at a better-than-expected 2.0%. This was up from 1.3% growth in the second quarter and, on the surface, it looks like good news. With the election just days away, the … Read More

Obama Wins, Stock Futures Turn Red

The elections are over. President Obama gets another four years in the White House. This means Ben Bernanke remains at the Fed. Tim Geithner will remain at Treasury if Obama insists, but Geithner has made clear his preference to step … Read More

Fiscal Cliff Fears Founder the Market

The post-election sell-off is becoming a serious concern. The S&P 500 is down 3.6% in just the two days following the election. This is a clear indication that investors are not happy with the election results. President Obama remains in … Read More

Immigration, One Reason Why Romney Lost

The election is over and the analysts are trying to explain the results. Of course, there are many reasons why Barack Obama won and Mitt Romney lost. Yet one thing is clear. The Democrats did an excellent job of defining the … Read More

Stop Posturing and Cut a Deal Now!

It is difficult to point this out without sounding partisan, but U.S. stocks have been sinking ever since Election Day. The selling has been across the board. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 Index are both down … Read More

The Rush for Special Dividends

With fiscal cliff negotiations still going on, one thing is certain. Tax rates on dividends and capital gains will be going up. The only question is by how much. The highest tax rate on qualified dividends is currently 15%, but … Read More

Political Dysfunction Remains Primary Risk

With 2012 drawing to a close, it is really difficult to believe that American politicians have yet to resolve the fiscal cliff. Just a few years ago my good friend Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group identified political risk as … Read More

More Good News About Housing

The economy continues to struggle in many respects, but housing has been one bright spot in recent months. The S&P/Case-Shiller numbers for October were announced today and they provided more evidence that demand for existing homes is strengthening. The 20-City … Read More

Not Perfect But Better Than Nothing

Well folks, a deal to avert the fiscal cliff has been struck and, at least for today, investors are celebrating. Not surprisingly, the deal is flawed, but it is better than no deal at all. And the resolution, if it … Read More

A Disconnect Between Housing and Jobs

There is plenty of evidence as of late that the housing market is improving. Sales and prices for both new and existing homes are on the rise. Since housing starts remain below trend and since household formation is growing, one … Read More

Investors Flock Back to Stocks

Some professionals believe that retail investors are an excellent contrary indicator. They claim it’s a good time to buy when the man on the street throws in the towel and vows to stay away from stocks; and it’s a good … Read More

The Can Gets Kicked Again

Every investor knows that the U.S. has some serious economic problems. The government has way too much debt, the budget deficit is huge, economic growth is anemic, and it has been 30 years since the employment participation rate was as … Read More