Mortgage Market Slump: Is it Interest Rates or Jobs and Consumer Income? Posted by : rcwhalen Post date: 09/12/2013 -Investors need to stop listening to the happy talk coming from the economists, and start focusing on what banks and other lenders are saying and doing operationally to adjust for the mortgage market...
A SmartKnowledgeU Exclusive Interview with World Bank Whistleblower Karen Hudes: "The World Will Reject Central Bankers" Posted by: smartknowledgeu Post date: 09/11/2013 - An exclusive SmartKnowledgeU interview with World Bank Whistleblower Karen Hudes, in which we discuss the growing adoption of competitive currencies to fiat such as gold and silver, the reasons why... HiPSTa TWiT... Posted by: williambanzai7 Post date: 09/12/2013 - This is not an offer... HiPSTa TWiT... Submitted by williambanzai7 on 09/12/2013 ASSAD TO OBAMA: Stop arming rebels... PHOTOS: Syrian execution... **WARNING: Graphic** WITNESS: 'I saw scene of utter cruelty'... NSA Disguised Itself as GOOGLE to Spy... Pentagon Ends GOOGLE Fuel Perk... Jihadis gain ground in Syrian 'rebel' movement... CIA begins delivering weapons... POLL: 57% oppose Internet taxes... Is War Now "Inevitable" Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 17:00 For the right answer, we look to the past.... The "Gold" iPhone? Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 18:34 Sometimes you have to step back and laugh... spurious correlation perhaps, but over 10 years, 2 years, 2 months, or 2 weeks; the ebbs and flows of AAPL shareholders and spot gold prices seem oddly similar... so which is in a bubble and which is a screaming buy? Employment: Trending Down Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 18:10 The growth rate of employment is declining over time, as positive growth weakens and recessionary declines deepen. For all the reasons addressed here and many other sites over the years - offshoring, global competition, labor-replacing technologies, the perverse incentives of financialization, structural changes in the economy, etc. - there is no one simple way to boost full-time, higher-wage employment. If wages cannot easily be increased, the alternative approach is to dramatically lower the cost of living. The Slow Rise And Quick Fall Of The SEC's Enforcements Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 17:49 New SEC Chair May Jo White's motto "you have to be tough" and plans to toss out the SEC enforcement policy that allowed almost all defendants to settle cases without admitting wrongdoing sound great; but the reality is, as the WSJ reports, the policy shift comes as the SEC turns the page on its financial crisis work. New investigations into misconduct linked to the meltdown have slowed to a trickle. And a statute-of-limitations deadline that generally restricts the sanctions the SEC can get for conduct more than five years old is looming for many cases. The SEC's crisis-related actions are producing diminishing financial returns as the following charts suggest... As one law professor noted, "they've not had the big case that everybody wanted to see... a major player being held really accountable." Perhaps more reading and less porn would be a start? Twitter Files To Go Public Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 17:08 Precious Metals Monkey-Hammered As Equity Winning Streak Ends With A Thud Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 16:11 It started early this morning as Asia really went to bed - when gold markets were temporariliy halted. Someone decided that was the perfect time to sneak a few thousand contracts through the futures market (and clearly has no fiduciary duty to a client for best execution). As the US day-session opened, it was silver's turn totake a hiding (and gold less so that time); and then into the close, with both precious metals (and copper) heading towards their lows, Silver nose-dived (now -8% on the week) and its worst day in almost 3 months. Away from precious metals, Oil surged back over $109 as Syria chatter hotted up again (from Assad this time), the USD slid further (though ended flat on the day after an opening dump), and Treasuries shrugged off early gains to close red even as stocks closed lower (despite a late-day ramp effort) - breaking the streak and stunning a few TV anchors as VIX-slam and the 'short squeeze' seems over for now. White House Proclaims "Exceptional" Obama Deserves Credit For Any Syrian Deal Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 15:49 It will likely come as no surprise but the political one-up-manship continues as the Obama White House try to rescue themselves from a face-melting Putin Op-Ed... As Politico reports, WH press secretary Jay Carney stated: “If we were to see a situation unfold where Assad were to give up his chemical weapons to international supervision that would be an enormous accomplishment ... would be due to the decisions made by the Russian leadership but also the decisions made by the United States, by the president, to take the approach he has taken in response to the horrifying use of chemical weapons on his own people." Feeling the need to make one more jab at the Russians, Carney added, "The United States, in part because it is an exceptional nation, is called upon the lead in situations like this." Indeed, that's what it felt like eh? Under control the whole time... It's Official. America's 'Suez Moment' Has Arrived Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 15:32 In the summer of 1956, Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, sparking a worldwide crisis. Britain was a major stakeholder in the canal, and almost immediately, the British government put together a small coalition consisting of the UK, France, and Israel to regain Western control. Their subsequent military action, however, greatly displeased the US government. And Uncle Sam quickly asserted its new role as the world’s superpower. But to anyone paying attention, this status has waned. Asia is rising. Major centers of wealth and power have grown around the world. US finances are desolate. And its currency is now widely reviled by foreign governments. But US politicians have completely ignored this trend over the last decade. They spend and act as if US global dominance is an endless river. With Syria, though, the US may have finally reached its Suez moment. What The US Deficit Tells Us About The Size Of The Fed's Taper Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 15:02 Moments ago the Treasury reported its deficit for the month of August, which was $148 billion, slightly less than the $150 billion expected. More importantly, it was over 22% less than the deficit from August 2012 when it was $191 billion. And that, in a nutshell, is the main reason why the Fed has no choice but to taper. What the chart below shows is the cumulative deficit of the US for fiscal 2012 and 2013. What becomes immediately obvious is that with the total deficit Year to Date of $755.3 billion running 35% below the $1,165 billion from a year ago, the Fed has far less room to monetize gross issuance. Merkel's Mounting Imbalances Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 14:23 As Angela Merkel prepares for her third term - in whatever odd coalition that lurches from the election - the following four charts may surprise many that believe in the core European nations' dominance uber alles. As Bloomberg's Niraj Shah notes, Merkel may find rebalancing the German economy, as its reliance on exports increases, harder than ever. The low levels of growth, high trade balances, excepotionally low consumption and homeownership, and growing "shadow" economy all point to a European core that is far from the beacon of stability so many assume it to be. Two Centuries Of Inflation Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:53 Guess what "stabilizing" event took place almost exactly one hundred years ago, in 1913. The Kerry-Lavrov "Awkward" Press Conference - Live Webcast Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:48 We are sure this conversation went very well... and now the press conference (and Q&A hopefully)... *U.S. `GRATEFUL' FOR RUSSIA PUTTING PLAN FORWARD, KERRY SAYS *`WE DO BELIEVE THERE IS A WAY TO GET THIS DONE,' KERRY SAYS *U.S. HAS PUT TOGETHER ITS OWN PROPOSALS, KERRY SAYS Italian Housing Market Faces Ongoing Collapse Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:31 While Spain is the European nation making all the headlines with regard its housing market collapse, Italy has quietly been experiencing its own decline. As Bloomberg notes, however, Italy shows no sign of stopping as falling prices may not be enough to stem a decline in Italian home purchases as the country's biggest group of buyers - those aged 30 to 40 - is set to shrink until the end of the decade. As the chart below indicates, housing transactions have followed the growth and contraction of this important 'buyers group' as it has plunged by more than 1 million people since 2005 (and is set to drop to only 8.3 million by 2020) and prices are set to follow. Of course, officials proclaim that prices have dropped enough to trigger a rise in purchases (for the first time since 2006); but, this runs counter to the more-than-decade-long demographic trend. But apart from that, Europe is recovering... Tritium Levels At Fukushima Surge To New Highs Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:18 As if the "developed" world did not have enough things to worry about, moments ago VOA's Steve Herman reported that the radioactive problem in Japan, the country hosting the 2020 summer olympics, continues to deteriorate uncontrollably, and citing Jiji, said that Tepco revealed tritium levels in the Fukushima groundwater have just surged to a new high. AP sources: CIA delivering light weapons to Syria KIMBERLY DOZIER 10 hours ago WASHINGTON (AP) — The CIA has been delivering light machine guns and other small arms to Syrian rebels for several weeks, following President Barack Obama's decision to arm the rebels. The agency has also arranged for the Syrian opposition to receive anti-tank weaponry like rocket-propelled grenades through a third party, presumably one of the Gulf countries that has been arming the rebels, a senior U.S. intelligence official and two former intelligence officials said Thursday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the classified program publicly. The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal first reported the lethal aid. Top rebel commander Gen. Salim Idris told NPR on Thursday that rebels had received no such aid from the U.S. The CIA declined to comment. The officials said the aid has been arriving for more than a month, much of it delivered through a third party, which could explain why the rebel commander Idris does not believe the U.S. directly delivered the aid. The officials said the aid is delivered to commanders who have been vetted by the CIA, and the path of the weaponry is tracked through trusted parties within the country — though eventually, once they're in the hands of fighters, the U.S. loses sight of where the weapons go. The rebels continue to request sophisticated anti-aircraft weaponry to take out the Syrian regime's helicopters, but the officials said neither the U.S. nor Syria's neighboring countries, like Jordan or Israel, wants the rebels to have weaponry that may fall into the hands of the al-Qaida-linked rebel group al-Nusra, or captured by Hezbollah fighters who are bolstering the Syrian army's effort. The CIA program is classified as covert, which means it would be briefed to Congress's intelligence committees but not its defense committees. That explains why some senior lawmakers on the defense committees have complained the lethal aid was not arriving, two of the officials said. Are You Absolutely Certain That You Know The Truth About What Happened On 9/11? Do you believe that you know precisely what happened on 9/11/2001? Are you absolutely certain that you know the truth? If so, what you are about to see might shake you up quite a bit. The events that happened 12 years ago on this day shocked the world and will certainly never be forgotten. Thousands of innocent people died needlessly, and that day fundamentally changed the course of history. But what if it could be proven that the “official story” that the government has been telling us about 9/11 is a lie? Are you willing to use logic and reason to evaluate new evidence that has emerged, or do you have such an emotional attachment to your current beliefs that you are going to blindly believe whatever the government tells you to believe? In this day and age, it is absolutely imperative that we all learn to think for ourselves. For the next few minutes, please be very skeptical as you read the rest of this article. Be skeptical of what I am claiming, be skeptical of what the experts are claiming and be skeptical of what the government is claiming. Evaluate the evidence for yourself and come to your own (Read More....) More than 2,000 architects and engineers are supporting a massive worldwide advertising campaign entitled ReThink911. You can find the official website right here. According to these architects and engineers, the government’s version of what happened on 9/11/2001 is absolutely impossible. And it turns out that an increasing percentage of the American population is agreeing with them. The following is an excerpt from a ReThink911 press release about new polling that has just been released… —– On the 12th anniversary of 9/11, a new national survey by the polling firm YouGov reveals that one in two Americans have doubts about the government’s account of 9/11, and after viewing video footage of World Trade Center Building 7’s collapse, 46% suspect that it was caused by a controlled demolition. Building 7, a 47-story skyscraper, collapsed into its own footprint late in the afternoon on 9/11. The poll was sponsored by ReThink911, a global public awareness campaign launched on September 1. The campaign includes a 54-foot billboard in Times Square and a variety of transit and outdoor advertising in 11 other cities, all posing the question, “Did you know a third tower fell on 9/11?” Among the poll’s findings: 38% of Americans have some doubts about the official account of 9/11, 10% do not believe it at all, and 12% are unsure about it; 46%, nearly one in two, are not aware that a third tower collapsed on 9/11. Of those who are aware of Building 7’s collapse, only 19% know the building’s name; After seeing video footage of Building 7′s collapse: 46% are sure or suspect it was caused by controlled demolition, compared to 28% who are sure or suspect fires caused it, and 27% who don’t know; By a margin of nearly two to one, 41% support a new investigation of Building 7′s collapse, compared to 21% who oppose it. —– Even though Americans have been hearing about 9/11 endlessly for the past 12 years, nearly half of them still don’t know that a third building fell on that day. A 47-story building named “Building 7″ collapsed perfectly into its own footprint at freefall speed, but no plane ever hit it. So why did it fall? The following is the official ReThink911 video about Building 7… And of course the collapse of the other two World Trade Center towers would have been impossible as well without the help of controlled demolition. But for many Americans, the implications of accepting that reality would just be too painful to accept. It would mean that someone wired those buildings for controlled demolition ahead of time, and for many very patriotic Americans such a notion is absolutely unthinkable. However, we owe it to future generations of Americans to put our emotions aside and to search out the truth. Whoever was responsible for the events of 9/11 needs to be brought to justice, no matter who they might be. And the families of those that were killed on that day deserve to know exactly what happened and why it happened. The following is an excerpt from a great editorial by Dennis Maley in the Bradenton Times… For too long, government officials have been able to successfully leverage the emotional components of the tragedy to deflect questions they painted as either disrespectful to the victims and their families or crackpot conspiracies. But with over 2,000 architects and engineers having signed the 9/11 truth petition, most of whom have offered credible and detailed reasons why their expertise has left them at odds with root elements of the official version of events, there remain too many unanswered questions for us to continue to ignore those raising them. Perhaps the most noted event of that day, in terms of skepticism, is the implausible “collapse” of building seven, the third tower to fall, which reached free-fall speeds and fell in its own footprint in the way that a controlled demolition does – despite the fact that it was not hit by a plane. Building seven’s improbable collapse was not explained by the 9/11 Commission and has been routinely described by demolition experts as something which could have only occurred through a well-planned, coordinated demolition, aided by pre-placed explosives. The two main towers also fell at near free-fall speeds, with concrete floors being pulverized to dust almost immediately (before the required force would be present) while the necessary deceleration that would be needed to generate the force to continuously penetrate each floor below was obviously absent. Quite simply, a building of that size and structural integrity would not seem capable of falling at such speed, while simultaneously expelling such tremendous energy in obliterating each floor – which was nearly 4-ft. thick and topped with 4 inches of poured concrete above and lined with interlocking steel trusses beneath. The documented phenomenon of extreme-high temperatures at the twin tower sites, which inexplicably reached levels capable of melting iron and structural steel when a normal open air fire is not capable of reaching such ranges, also warrants a closer look, as does eyewitness accounts of “molten metal.” Iron-laden spheres in residual dust at the site that suggest temperatures had to reach more than 2,700 degrees fahrenheit (the melting point of iron and structural steel) is also suspect. The use of thermite would be one possible explanation, though the pyrotechnic compound was not tested for at the site, a standard protocol when investigating such an explosion. Why are so many Americans still so resistant to asking such hard questions? Shouldn’t we allow the evidence to lead us to the truth instead of allowing the government to define what the truth is for us? Posted below is video from investigative reporter Ben Swann asking some more questions about the collapse of Building 7… Why aren’t there more reporters out there like Ben Swann? Today, we live in a society where certain kinds of questions are considered to be “off limits”. But that should not be the case. As Americans, we should all be “truth seekers”. After all, the truth will set us free, right? I want to share another video with you, but this one doesn’t have anything to do with Building 7. Instead, it shows well-known footage of Flight 175 hitting one of the World Trade Center towers. The incredible thing about this video is that it apparently shows a very obvious “CGI glitch” that I have absolutely no explanation for. Watch this video for yourself and see what you think… Can you explain that very blatant CGI glitch? I can’t. Perhaps there is a rational explanation. If so, I would love to hear it. But wait a minute, wasn’t al-Qaeda supposed to be behind 9/11? Wasn’t that the reason why we have been chasing them around the Middle East for over a decade? Well, these days the U.S. government is actually allied with al-Qaeda. The Obama administration has been supplying Syrian rebel groups that are openly affiliated with al-Qaeda with weapons and supplies even though they are slaughtering Christians, using chemical weapons and dismembering little girls. And now Obama is telling us that we need the U.S. military to get directly involved in the civil war in Syria so that we can help al-Qaeda take over Syria and set up a radical jihadist Sunni government in that nation. The following is an excerpt from a recent article by Paul Joseph Watson… The Obama administration’s insistence that the United States intervene militarily on the side of Syrian rebels, who are being led by Al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra, which the report states is the “most effective fighting force in Syria,” has led to charges by the likes of Senator Ted Cruz that the White House is acting as “Al-Qaeda’s Air Force.” The BPC report also warns that chemical weapons falling into the hands of jihadists in Syria could subsequently be used against the west. “Potential jihadi access to the vast stockpile of chemical weapons assembled by the Assad regime and scattered across Syria is a potential game-changer though—not only because they could be used there, but because they could be smuggled out of the country as well,” states the report. The report highlights how Jabhat al-Nusra is under the control of Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri, who “personally intervened to settle a dispute between Jabhat al-Nusra and al-Qaeda in Iraq….and declared the Syrian group to be under his direction.” If you doubt any of this, just watch the video posted below. It shows Syrian rebels singing a victory song about the destruction of the World Trade Center towers, praising Osama bin Laden, and calling him their leader… Does that video make you angry? It should. 12 years after 9/11, the U.S. government is allied with the very forces that supposedly conducted the terror attacks in the first place. Something does not add up here. For much more on all of this, and especially if you are new to this information about 9/11, I encourage you to watch the award-winning documentary Loose Change which is posted below… About the author: Michael T. Snyder is a former Washington D.C. attorney who now publishes The Truth. His new thriller entitled “The Beginning Of The End” is now available on Amazon.com. Be Sociable, Share! Vladimir Putin Addresses America In NYT Op-Ed; Calls For Caution In Syria, Denounces "American Exceptionalism" Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 20:45 "If we can avoid force against Syria, this will improve the atmosphere in international affairs and strengthen mutual trust. It will be our shared success and open the door to cooperation on other critical issues.... No one doubts that poison gas was used in Syria. But there is every reason to believe it was used not by the Syrian Army, but by opposition forces, to provoke intervention by their powerful foreign patrons, who would be siding with the fundamentalists. Reports that militants are preparing another attack — this time against Israel — cannot be ignored.?" ...The potential strike by the United States against Syria, despite strong opposition from many countries and major political and religious leaders, including the pope, will result in more innocent victims and escalation, potentially spreading the conflict far beyond Syria’s borders.... It is alarming that military intervention in internal conflicts in foreign countries has become commonplace for the United States. Is it in America’s long-term interest? I doubt it. Millions around the world increasingly see America not as a model of democracy but as relying solely on brute force, cobbling coalitions together under the slogan “you’re either with us or against us.” Venture Capitalist Claims US Troops Have Received Orders to Deploy to Syria Paul Joseph Watson | Dan Bubalo says he was told of deployment by source close to Ft. Hood. Sen. Menendez Wanted to Puke After Reading Putin’s New York Times Op-ed Kurt Nimmo | Insiders react predictably to Russian leader’s analysis. Media Kills 9/11 Truth Rally by Lying About It Adan Salazar | News outlets mislabeled constitutional and government transparency rally as “Million Muslim March.” Black Jihadist Flag Flies Over Christian Town of Maaloula Paul Joseph Watson | Syrian rebels murdered Catholics for refusing to convert to Islam, then joked about it. CIA Begins Delivering Weapons to al-Qaeda in Syria Kurt Nimmo | Meanwhile, al-Nusra says it doesn’t want help from the CIA and the infidels. David Petraeus Ambushed, Branded “War Criminal” by Protesters Paul Joseph Watson | Former CIA director mobbed on first day of new job. Putin’s Emergency Warning to America Vladimir Putin | A potential US strike on Syria is fraught with dangerous consequences. Prepare For Tough Times If Your Job Has Anything To Do With Real Estate Or Mortgages Michael Snyder | Would they be doing that if we were really heading into a “sustainable housing recovery”? New federal consumer ‘protection’ bureau data-mining Americans’ private financial records Washington Examiner | ‘Protection’ bureau collected decade’s worth of private financial data on the consumer behavior of 5 million Americans. Stratfor Analysis: US Will Attack Syria if Russian Plan is Successful Stratfor | Merely to prevent Obama from looking weak. Tritium Levels At Fukushima Surge To New Highs Zero Hedge | As if the “developed” world did not have enough things to worry about. Sen. Menendez Wanted to Puke After Reading Putin’s New York Times Op-ed Kurt Nimmo | Insiders react predictably to Russian leader’s analysis. Black Jihadist Flag Flies Over Christian Town of Maaloula Paul Joseph Watson | Syrian rebels murdered Catholics for refusing to convert to Islam, then joked about it. CIA Begins Delivering Weapons to al-Qaeda in Syria Kurt Nimmo | Meanwhile, al-Nusra says it doesn’t want help from the CIA and the infidels. David Petraeus Ambushed, Branded “War Criminal” by Protesters Paul Joseph Watson | Former CIA director mobbed on first day of new job. U.S. can’t prove Bashar Assad approved chemical attacks in Syria Washington Times | U.S. intelligence has yet to uncover evidence that Syrian President Bashar Assad directly ordered the chemical attacks. Putin’s Letter to America Vladimir Putin | A potential US strike on Syria is fraught with dangerous consequences. 9/11 Commission Chair: Director of Intelligence James Clapper Should Be Indicted for Perjury Washington’s Blog | Hamilton says Americans should be more outraged about spying abuses. Greece’s Unemployment Nightmare Has Gotten Worse Business Insider | As the rest of the world economy improves, Greece seems to only be getting worse. Prepare For Tough Times If Your Job Has Anything To Do With Real Estate Or Mortgages Michael Snyder | Would they be doing that if we were really heading into a “sustainable housing recovery”? Polish Government Seizes Private Pension Assets Alex Newman | Authorities in Poland last week announced the confiscation of bonds held in private pension funds without compensation. CBO: We Can’t Estimate Cost of Intervening in Syria CNSNews.com | The CBO’s bottom line: There is no bottom line to the U.S. military intervention in Syria that was approved by the Senate committee in its resolution. Eminent Domain Mortgage-Seizure "Approved" For CA City Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 20:31 Despite PIMCO, DoubleLine, and pretty much every other major mortgage bondholder in the world litigating the actions, Richmond, California's leaders approved this morning a plan for the city to become the first in the nation to acquire mortgages with negative equity in a bid to keep local residents in their homes. Richmond's city council voted 4 to 3 to use the power of 'eminent domain' (as we discussed here most recently) to seize underwater mortgages and refinance them. City council members opposed to the plan countered that using eminent domain would put Richmond at risk of expensive lawsuits that could destroy the city's finances; and sure enough, Richmond had no takers last month when the successor to its redevelopment agency put $34 million of bonds up for sale to refinance previous debt. As Reuters reports, investors holding the mortgages targeted by Richmond dispute altruism motivates the plan and are set to meet in court for the first time tomorrow. Police Raid Swiss Home Of Israel's Richest Man Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 20:05 Israel's richest person Beny Steinmetz, who amassed his $7.4 billion net worth beginning in the diamond trade, has seen his Geneva home raided by Swiss police following a request from the Government of Guinea. The West African country, as Bloomberg reports, approached Swiss prosecutors following an investigation into claims that bribes (shock, horror) were paid for mining licenses by Steinmetz's mining company BSG Resources. This follows raids of London-based Onyx Financial (run by a director of BSG) and the arrest of a BSG employee on charges he interfered with the U.S. grand jury probe (witness tampering, obstructing a criminal investigation and destruction of evidence in a federal investigation). He has pleaded not guilty. All sounds above board we are sure... just ask Eike Batista... And Now The Unions Are Angry At Obamacare: AFL-CIO To Press For Healthcare Law Changes Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 19:43 Moments ago The Hill reported that the Executive Council of the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of unions in the US and one of Obama's staunchest supporters, is expected to consider a resolution, "subject to fierce internal debate, that will call for changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) — setting up a potential floor vote this Wednesday before the convention closes." In other words, the one constituency that was supposed to be among the biggest benefactors from Obamacare is about to launch a formal criticism of Obamacare as "frustration has grown within labor as the Obama administration has failed to offer a fix to temper union worries over the law." But at least "they passed it." Are The Real Enemies In Syria Or Washington? Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 18:52 The definition of what makes an “enemy” may vary from person to person. But we would say that, generally, an enemy is one who has an active ability to do irreparable harm to you or your essential values. He is motivated by destruction, the destruction of all that you hold dear. He is capable and unrelenting. He is a legitimate threat. He will not compromise. He will not waver. He will do anything to wound you. He will not stop. He is possessed. Americans have spent the better part of a century being told who their enemies are with very little explanation or substantiation. We have blindly rallied around our patriotic prerogative without knowing the root cause of the conflict or the nature of the target we are told to annihilate. We have been suckered into war after war, conjured by international interests in order to lure us into accepting greater centralization and concentrated globalism. As a culture, we're sorry to say, we have been used. We are a tool of unmitigated doom. We are the loaded gun in the hand of the devil. When one applies the above definition of “the enemy” to Syria, one comes away with very little satisfaction. So, the question arises: If Syria is not the real enemy, who is? Has The Selling Of VIX Come To An End? Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 18:14 VIX futures positioning hit another all-time record short just two weeks ago after collapsing to 12-month high levels as "Taper" concerns increased. From the start of July to the 3rd week of August VIX futures were sold in epic proportions providing the fuel to lift a plateaued stock market from taper-anxiety to new all-time highs (as nothing changed). Over 100 million contracts were sold in the 7-week period - a totally unprecedented amount of complacency. However, in the past 3 weeks, there has been an inflection; is this the end of selling, or are we about to pull VIX even lower with a concerted reflexive selling of even more shorts? As SocGen warns, this historic level of non-commercial short positions (read speculative) implies any market correction - or VIX-related spike - would increase short-covering and exaggerate the fall dramatically. With today's exuberant spurt lower in VIX, vol has caught back with stocks once again. Summary Of The Current Situation Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 17:33 Policy officials believe that growth and inflation would fix the problem of large debts, but growth fueled by public spending that is financed by debt or central banks is not sustainable. Like most Ponzi schemes, it doesn’t end well. Reducing total debt was always a better solution, but it would have resulted in even slower economic activity and lower living standards. However, in the long run, the system would have been purged of unsustainable excesses. ‘Short term pain’ for ‘long term gain’ is often shunned for fear of electoral defeat and lobby group pressure. Now, we are stuck with financial repression. Investment is being directed toward funding the public sector. Policy rewards debtors over creditors. Such policy cannot go on forever. In reality, “unlimited” rarely means unlimited, because imbalances become too great. The Fed’s current quagmire has aspects resembling the Triffin Dilemma. The recent adverse spillover from Fed policies in emerging market economies and currencies may be the first hint of cracks in the global monetary system. At a minimum, foreign central banks have deviated from good policy in order to prevent sharp destabilizing fluctuations in the value of their currencies and to arrest volatile inflows and outflows of capital. Which John Kerry Said The Following? Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 17:04 "Not only was it a civil war, an effort by a people who had for years been seeking their liberation from any colonial influence whatsoever, but also we found that the Vietnamese whom we had enthusiastically molded after our own image were hard put to take up the fight against the threat we were supposedly saving them from. We found most people didn't even know the difference between communism and democracy. They only wanted to work in rice paddies without helicopters strafing them and bombs with napalm burning their villages and tearing their country apart. They wanted everything to do with the war, particularly with this foreign presence of the United States of America, to leave them alone in peace..." UN: CIRCUMSTANTIAL CASE PAPER: US can't prove Assad ordered chemical attack... Developing... Jihadis gain ground in Syrian 'rebel' movement... SNOWDEN: NSA shares raw intelligence data with Israel... Top-secret document revealed... YAHOO CEO: We faced jail... 12-Year War: 73% of U.S. Casualties in Afghanistan on Obama's Watch...
HiPSTa TWiT... Posted by: williambanzai7 Post date: 09/12/2013 - This is not an offer...
Submitted by williambanzai7 on 09/12/2013
ASSAD TO OBAMA: Stop arming rebels...
PHOTOS: Syrian execution... **WARNING: Graphic** WITNESS: 'I saw scene of utter cruelty'...
NSA Disguised Itself as GOOGLE to Spy... Pentagon Ends GOOGLE Fuel Perk...
Jihadis gain ground in Syrian 'rebel' movement... CIA begins delivering weapons...
POLL: 57% oppose Internet taxes...
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 17:00
For the right answer, we look to the past....
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 18:34
Sometimes you have to step back and laugh... spurious correlation perhaps, but over 10 years, 2 years, 2 months, or 2 weeks; the ebbs and flows of AAPL shareholders and spot gold prices seem oddly similar... so which is in a bubble and which is a screaming buy?
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 18:10
The growth rate of employment is declining over time, as positive growth weakens and recessionary declines deepen. For all the reasons addressed here and many other sites over the years - offshoring, global competition, labor-replacing technologies, the perverse incentives of financialization, structural changes in the economy, etc. - there is no one simple way to boost full-time, higher-wage employment. If wages cannot easily be increased, the alternative approach is to dramatically lower the cost of living.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 17:49
New SEC Chair May Jo White's motto "you have to be tough" and plans to toss out the SEC enforcement policy that allowed almost all defendants to settle cases without admitting wrongdoing sound great; but the reality is, as the WSJ reports, the policy shift comes as the SEC turns the page on its financial crisis work. New investigations into misconduct linked to the meltdown have slowed to a trickle. And a statute-of-limitations deadline that generally restricts the sanctions the SEC can get for conduct more than five years old is looming for many cases. The SEC's crisis-related actions are producing diminishing financial returns as the following charts suggest... As one law professor noted, "they've not had the big case that everybody wanted to see... a major player being held really accountable." Perhaps more reading and less porn would be a start?
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 17:08
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 16:11
It started early this morning as Asia really went to bed - when gold markets were temporariliy halted. Someone decided that was the perfect time to sneak a few thousand contracts through the futures market (and clearly has no fiduciary duty to a client for best execution). As the US day-session opened, it was silver's turn totake a hiding (and gold less so that time); and then into the close, with both precious metals (and copper) heading towards their lows, Silver nose-dived (now -8% on the week) and its worst day in almost 3 months. Away from precious metals, Oil surged back over $109 as Syria chatter hotted up again (from Assad this time), the USD slid further (though ended flat on the day after an opening dump), and Treasuries shrugged off early gains to close red even as stocks closed lower (despite a late-day ramp effort) - breaking the streak and stunning a few TV anchors as VIX-slam and the 'short squeeze' seems over for now.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 15:49
It will likely come as no surprise but the political one-up-manship continues as the Obama White House try to rescue themselves from a face-melting Putin Op-Ed... As Politico reports, WH press secretary Jay Carney stated: “If we were to see a situation unfold where Assad were to give up his chemical weapons to international supervision that would be an enormous accomplishment ... would be due to the decisions made by the Russian leadership but also the decisions made by the United States, by the president, to take the approach he has taken in response to the horrifying use of chemical weapons on his own people." Feeling the need to make one more jab at the Russians, Carney added, "The United States, in part because it is an exceptional nation, is called upon the lead in situations like this." Indeed, that's what it felt like eh? Under control the whole time...
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 15:32
In the summer of 1956, Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, sparking a worldwide crisis. Britain was a major stakeholder in the canal, and almost immediately, the British government put together a small coalition consisting of the UK, France, and Israel to regain Western control. Their subsequent military action, however, greatly displeased the US government. And Uncle Sam quickly asserted its new role as the world’s superpower. But to anyone paying attention, this status has waned. Asia is rising. Major centers of wealth and power have grown around the world. US finances are desolate. And its currency is now widely reviled by foreign governments. But US politicians have completely ignored this trend over the last decade. They spend and act as if US global dominance is an endless river. With Syria, though, the US may have finally reached its Suez moment.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 15:02
Moments ago the Treasury reported its deficit for the month of August, which was $148 billion, slightly less than the $150 billion expected. More importantly, it was over 22% less than the deficit from August 2012 when it was $191 billion. And that, in a nutshell, is the main reason why the Fed has no choice but to taper. What the chart below shows is the cumulative deficit of the US for fiscal 2012 and 2013. What becomes immediately obvious is that with the total deficit Year to Date of $755.3 billion running 35% below the $1,165 billion from a year ago, the Fed has far less room to monetize gross issuance.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 14:23
As Angela Merkel prepares for her third term - in whatever odd coalition that lurches from the election - the following four charts may surprise many that believe in the core European nations' dominance uber alles. As Bloomberg's Niraj Shah notes, Merkel may find rebalancing the German economy, as its reliance on exports increases, harder than ever. The low levels of growth, high trade balances, excepotionally low consumption and homeownership, and growing "shadow" economy all point to a European core that is far from the beacon of stability so many assume it to be.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:53
Guess what "stabilizing" event took place almost exactly one hundred years ago, in 1913.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:48
We are sure this conversation went very well... and now the press conference (and Q&A hopefully)...
*U.S. `GRATEFUL' FOR RUSSIA PUTTING PLAN FORWARD, KERRY SAYS *`WE DO BELIEVE THERE IS A WAY TO GET THIS DONE,' KERRY SAYS *U.S. HAS PUT TOGETHER ITS OWN PROPOSALS, KERRY SAYS
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:31
While Spain is the European nation making all the headlines with regard its housing market collapse, Italy has quietly been experiencing its own decline. As Bloomberg notes, however, Italy shows no sign of stopping as falling prices may not be enough to stem a decline in Italian home purchases as the country's biggest group of buyers - those aged 30 to 40 - is set to shrink until the end of the decade. As the chart below indicates, housing transactions have followed the growth and contraction of this important 'buyers group' as it has plunged by more than 1 million people since 2005 (and is set to drop to only 8.3 million by 2020) and prices are set to follow. Of course, officials proclaim that prices have dropped enough to trigger a rise in purchases (for the first time since 2006); but, this runs counter to the more-than-decade-long demographic trend. But apart from that, Europe is recovering...
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/12/2013 - 13:18
As if the "developed" world did not have enough things to worry about, moments ago VOA's Steve Herman reported that the radioactive problem in Japan, the country hosting the 2020 summer olympics, continues to deteriorate uncontrollably, and citing Jiji, said that Tepco revealed tritium levels in the Fukushima groundwater have just surged to a new high.
KIMBERLY DOZIER 10 hours ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The CIA has been delivering light machine guns and other small arms to Syrian rebels for several weeks, following President Barack Obama's decision to arm the rebels.
The agency has also arranged for the Syrian opposition to receive anti-tank weaponry like rocket-propelled grenades through a third party, presumably one of the Gulf countries that has been arming the rebels, a senior U.S. intelligence official and two former intelligence officials said Thursday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the classified program publicly.
The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal first reported the lethal aid.
Top rebel commander Gen. Salim Idris told NPR on Thursday that rebels had received no such aid from the U.S. The CIA declined to comment.
The officials said the aid has been arriving for more than a month, much of it delivered through a third party, which could explain why the rebel commander Idris does not believe the U.S. directly delivered the aid. The officials said the aid is delivered to commanders who have been vetted by the CIA, and the path of the weaponry is tracked through trusted parties within the country — though eventually, once they're in the hands of fighters, the U.S. loses sight of where the weapons go.
The rebels continue to request sophisticated anti-aircraft weaponry to take out the Syrian regime's helicopters, but the officials said neither the U.S. nor Syria's neighboring countries, like Jordan or Israel, wants the rebels to have weaponry that may fall into the hands of the al-Qaida-linked rebel group al-Nusra, or captured by Hezbollah fighters who are bolstering the Syrian army's effort.
The CIA program is classified as covert, which means it would be briefed to Congress's intelligence committees but not its defense committees. That explains why some senior lawmakers on the defense committees have complained the lethal aid was not arriving, two of the officials said.
Do you believe that you know precisely what happened on 9/11/2001? Are you absolutely certain that you know the truth? If so, what you are about to see might shake you up quite a bit. The events that happened 12 years ago on this day shocked the world and will certainly never be forgotten. Thousands of innocent people died needlessly, and that day fundamentally changed the course of history. But what if it could be proven that the “official story” that the government has been telling us about 9/11 is a lie? Are you willing to use logic and reason to evaluate new evidence that has emerged, or do you have such an emotional attachment to your current beliefs that you are going to blindly believe whatever the government tells you to believe? In this day and age, it is absolutely imperative that we all learn to think for ourselves. For the next few minutes, please be very skeptical as you read the rest of this article. Be skeptical of what I am claiming, be skeptical of what the experts are claiming and be skeptical of what the government is claiming. Evaluate the evidence for yourself and come to your own (Read More....) More than 2,000 architects and engineers are supporting a massive worldwide advertising campaign entitled ReThink911. You can find the official website right here. According to these architects and engineers, the government’s version of what happened on 9/11/2001 is absolutely impossible.
And it turns out that an increasing percentage of the American population is agreeing with them. The following is an excerpt from a ReThink911 press release about new polling that has just been released…
—–
On the 12th anniversary of 9/11, a new national survey by the polling firm YouGov reveals that one in two Americans have doubts about the government’s account of 9/11, and after viewing video footage of World Trade Center Building 7’s collapse, 46% suspect that it was caused by a controlled demolition. Building 7, a 47-story skyscraper, collapsed into its own footprint late in the afternoon on 9/11.
The poll was sponsored by ReThink911, a global public awareness campaign launched on September 1. The campaign includes a 54-foot billboard in Times Square and a variety of transit and outdoor advertising in 11 other cities, all posing the question, “Did you know a third tower fell on 9/11?”
Among the poll’s findings:
38% of Americans have some doubts about the official account of 9/11, 10% do not believe it at all, and 12% are unsure about it;
46%, nearly one in two, are not aware that a third tower collapsed on 9/11. Of those who are aware of Building 7’s collapse, only 19% know the building’s name;
After seeing video footage of Building 7′s collapse:
46% are sure or suspect it was caused by controlled demolition, compared to 28% who are sure or suspect fires caused it, and 27% who don’t know;
By a margin of nearly two to one, 41% support a new investigation of Building 7′s collapse, compared to 21% who oppose it.
Even though Americans have been hearing about 9/11 endlessly for the past 12 years, nearly half of them still don’t know that a third building fell on that day. A 47-story building named “Building 7″ collapsed perfectly into its own footprint at freefall speed, but no plane ever hit it.
So why did it fall?
The following is the official ReThink911 video about Building 7…
And of course the collapse of the other two World Trade Center towers would have been impossible as well without the help of controlled demolition.
But for many Americans, the implications of accepting that reality would just be too painful to accept. It would mean that someone wired those buildings for controlled demolition ahead of time, and for many very patriotic Americans such a notion is absolutely unthinkable.
However, we owe it to future generations of Americans to put our emotions aside and to search out the truth. Whoever was responsible for the events of 9/11 needs to be brought to justice, no matter who they might be.
And the families of those that were killed on that day deserve to know exactly what happened and why it happened. The following is an excerpt from a great editorial by Dennis Maley in the Bradenton Times…
For too long, government officials have been able to successfully leverage the emotional components of the tragedy to deflect questions they painted as either disrespectful to the victims and their families or crackpot conspiracies. But with over 2,000 architects and engineers having signed the 9/11 truth petition, most of whom have offered credible and detailed reasons why their expertise has left them at odds with root elements of the official version of events, there remain too many unanswered questions for us to continue to ignore those raising them.
Perhaps the most noted event of that day, in terms of skepticism, is the implausible “collapse” of building seven, the third tower to fall, which reached free-fall speeds and fell in its own footprint in the way that a controlled demolition does – despite the fact that it was not hit by a plane. Building seven’s improbable collapse was not explained by the 9/11 Commission and has been routinely described by demolition experts as something which could have only occurred through a well-planned, coordinated demolition, aided by pre-placed explosives.
The two main towers also fell at near free-fall speeds, with concrete floors being pulverized to dust almost immediately (before the required force would be present) while the necessary deceleration that would be needed to generate the force to continuously penetrate each floor below was obviously absent. Quite simply, a building of that size and structural integrity would not seem capable of falling at such speed, while simultaneously expelling such tremendous energy in obliterating each floor – which was nearly 4-ft. thick and topped with 4 inches of poured concrete above and lined with interlocking steel trusses beneath.
The documented phenomenon of extreme-high temperatures at the twin tower sites, which inexplicably reached levels capable of melting iron and structural steel when a normal open air fire is not capable of reaching such ranges, also warrants a closer look, as does eyewitness accounts of “molten metal.” Iron-laden spheres in residual dust at the site that suggest temperatures had to reach more than 2,700 degrees fahrenheit (the melting point of iron and structural steel) is also suspect. The use of thermite would be one possible explanation, though the pyrotechnic compound was not tested for at the site, a standard protocol when investigating such an explosion.
Why are so many Americans still so resistant to asking such hard questions?
Shouldn’t we allow the evidence to lead us to the truth instead of allowing the government to define what the truth is for us?
Posted below is video from investigative reporter Ben Swann asking some more questions about the collapse of Building 7…
Why aren’t there more reporters out there like Ben Swann?
Today, we live in a society where certain kinds of questions are considered to be “off limits”. But that should not be the case. As Americans, we should all be “truth seekers”.
After all, the truth will set us free, right?
I want to share another video with you, but this one doesn’t have anything to do with Building 7. Instead, it shows well-known footage of Flight 175 hitting one of the World Trade Center towers. The incredible thing about this video is that it apparently shows a very obvious “CGI glitch” that I have absolutely no explanation for. Watch this video for yourself and see what you think…
Can you explain that very blatant CGI glitch?
I can’t.
Perhaps there is a rational explanation. If so, I would love to hear it.
But wait a minute, wasn’t al-Qaeda supposed to be behind 9/11? Wasn’t that the reason why we have been chasing them around the Middle East for over a decade?
Well, these days the U.S. government is actually allied with al-Qaeda. The Obama administration has been supplying Syrian rebel groups that are openly affiliated with al-Qaeda with weapons and supplies even though they are slaughtering Christians, using chemical weapons and dismembering little girls.
And now Obama is telling us that we need the U.S. military to get directly involved in the civil war in Syria so that we can help al-Qaeda take over Syria and set up a radical jihadist Sunni government in that nation. The following is an excerpt from a recent article by Paul Joseph Watson…
The Obama administration’s insistence that the United States intervene militarily on the side of Syrian rebels, who are being led by Al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra, which the report states is the “most effective fighting force in Syria,” has led to charges by the likes of Senator Ted Cruz that the White House is acting as “Al-Qaeda’s Air Force.”
The BPC report also warns that chemical weapons falling into the hands of jihadists in Syria could subsequently be used against the west.
“Potential jihadi access to the vast stockpile of chemical weapons assembled by the Assad regime and scattered across Syria is a potential game-changer though—not only because they could be used there, but because they could be smuggled out of the country as well,” states the report.
The report highlights how Jabhat al-Nusra is under the control of Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri, who “personally intervened to settle a dispute between Jabhat al-Nusra and al-Qaeda in Iraq….and declared the Syrian group to be under his direction.”
If you doubt any of this, just watch the video posted below. It shows Syrian rebels singing a victory song about the destruction of the World Trade Center towers, praising Osama bin Laden, and calling him their leader…
Does that video make you angry?
It should.
12 years after 9/11, the U.S. government is allied with the very forces that supposedly conducted the terror attacks in the first place.
Something does not add up here.
For much more on all of this, and especially if you are new to this information about 9/11, I encourage you to watch the award-winning documentary Loose Change which is posted below…
About the author: Michael T. Snyder is a former Washington D.C. attorney who now publishes The Truth. His new thriller entitled “The Beginning Of The End” is now available on Amazon.com.
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Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 20:45
"If we can avoid force against Syria, this will improve the atmosphere in international affairs and strengthen mutual trust. It will be our shared success and open the door to cooperation on other critical issues.... No one doubts that poison gas was used in Syria. But there is every reason to believe it was used not by the Syrian Army, but by opposition forces, to provoke intervention by their powerful foreign patrons, who would be siding with the fundamentalists. Reports that militants are preparing another attack — this time against Israel — cannot be ignored.?" ...The potential strike by the United States against Syria, despite strong opposition from many countries and major political and religious leaders, including the pope, will result in more innocent victims and escalation, potentially spreading the conflict far beyond Syria’s borders.... It is alarming that military intervention in internal conflicts in foreign countries has become commonplace for the United States. Is it in America’s long-term interest? I doubt it. Millions around the world increasingly see America not as a model of democracy but as relying solely on brute force, cobbling coalitions together under the slogan “you’re either with us or against us.”
Paul Joseph Watson | Dan Bubalo says he was told of deployment by source close to Ft. Hood.
Kurt Nimmo | Insiders react predictably to Russian leader’s analysis.
Adan Salazar | News outlets mislabeled constitutional and government transparency rally as “Million Muslim March.”
Paul Joseph Watson | Syrian rebels murdered Catholics for refusing to convert to Islam, then joked about it.
Kurt Nimmo | Meanwhile, al-Nusra says it doesn’t want help from the CIA and the infidels.
Paul Joseph Watson | Former CIA director mobbed on first day of new job.
Vladimir Putin | A potential US strike on Syria is fraught with dangerous consequences.
Michael Snyder | Would they be doing that if we were really heading into a “sustainable housing recovery”?
New federal consumer ‘protection’ bureau data-mining Americans’ private financial records
Washington Examiner | ‘Protection’ bureau collected decade’s worth of private financial data on the consumer behavior of 5 million Americans.
Stratfor | Merely to prevent Obama from looking weak.
Zero Hedge | As if the “developed” world did not have enough things to worry about.
Washington Times | U.S. intelligence has yet to uncover evidence that Syrian President Bashar Assad directly ordered the chemical attacks.
Washington’s Blog | Hamilton says Americans should be more outraged about spying abuses.
Greece’s Unemployment Nightmare Has Gotten Worse
Business Insider | As the rest of the world economy improves, Greece seems to only be getting worse.
Prepare For Tough Times If Your Job Has Anything To Do With Real Estate Or Mortgages
Polish Government Seizes Private Pension Assets
Alex Newman | Authorities in Poland last week announced the confiscation of bonds held in private pension funds without compensation.
CBO: We Can’t Estimate Cost of Intervening in Syria
CNSNews.com | The CBO’s bottom line: There is no bottom line to the U.S. military intervention in Syria that was approved by the Senate committee in its resolution.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 20:31
Despite PIMCO, DoubleLine, and pretty much every other major mortgage bondholder in the world litigating the actions, Richmond, California's leaders approved this morning a plan for the city to become the first in the nation to acquire mortgages with negative equity in a bid to keep local residents in their homes. Richmond's city council voted 4 to 3 to use the power of 'eminent domain' (as we discussed here most recently) to seize underwater mortgages and refinance them. City council members opposed to the plan countered that using eminent domain would put Richmond at risk of expensive lawsuits that could destroy the city's finances; and sure enough, Richmond had no takers last month when the successor to its redevelopment agency put $34 million of bonds up for sale to refinance previous debt. As Reuters reports, investors holding the mortgages targeted by Richmond dispute altruism motivates the plan and are set to meet in court for the first time tomorrow.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 20:05
Israel's richest person Beny Steinmetz, who amassed his $7.4 billion net worth beginning in the diamond trade, has seen his Geneva home raided by Swiss police following a request from the Government of Guinea. The West African country, as Bloomberg reports, approached Swiss prosecutors following an investigation into claims that bribes (shock, horror) were paid for mining licenses by Steinmetz's mining company BSG Resources. This follows raids of London-based Onyx Financial (run by a director of BSG) and the arrest of a BSG employee on charges he interfered with the U.S. grand jury probe (witness tampering, obstructing a criminal investigation and destruction of evidence in a federal investigation). He has pleaded not guilty. All sounds above board we are sure... just ask Eike Batista...
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 19:43
Moments ago The Hill reported that the Executive Council of the AFL-CIO, the largest federation of unions in the US and one of Obama's staunchest supporters, is expected to consider a resolution, "subject to fierce internal debate, that will call for changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) — setting up a potential floor vote this Wednesday before the convention closes." In other words, the one constituency that was supposed to be among the biggest benefactors from Obamacare is about to launch a formal criticism of Obamacare as "frustration has grown within labor as the Obama administration has failed to offer a fix to temper union worries over the law."
But at least "they passed it."
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 18:52
The definition of what makes an “enemy” may vary from person to person. But we would say that, generally, an enemy is one who has an active ability to do irreparable harm to you or your essential values. He is motivated by destruction, the destruction of all that you hold dear. He is capable and unrelenting. He is a legitimate threat. He will not compromise. He will not waver. He will do anything to wound you. He will not stop. He is possessed. Americans have spent the better part of a century being told who their enemies are with very little explanation or substantiation. We have blindly rallied around our patriotic prerogative without knowing the root cause of the conflict or the nature of the target we are told to annihilate. We have been suckered into war after war, conjured by international interests in order to lure us into accepting greater centralization and concentrated globalism. As a culture, we're sorry to say, we have been used. We are a tool of unmitigated doom. We are the loaded gun in the hand of the devil. When one applies the above definition of “the enemy” to Syria, one comes away with very little satisfaction. So, the question arises: If Syria is not the real enemy, who is?
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 18:14
VIX futures positioning hit another all-time record short just two weeks ago after collapsing to 12-month high levels as "Taper" concerns increased. From the start of July to the 3rd week of August VIX futures were sold in epic proportions providing the fuel to lift a plateaued stock market from taper-anxiety to new all-time highs (as nothing changed). Over 100 million contracts were sold in the 7-week period - a totally unprecedented amount of complacency. However, in the past 3 weeks, there has been an inflection; is this the end of selling, or are we about to pull VIX even lower with a concerted reflexive selling of even more shorts? As SocGen warns, this historic level of non-commercial short positions (read speculative) implies any market correction - or VIX-related spike - would increase short-covering and exaggerate the fall dramatically. With today's exuberant spurt lower in VIX, vol has caught back with stocks once again.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 17:33
Policy officials believe that growth and inflation would fix the problem of large debts, but growth fueled by public spending that is financed by debt or central banks is not sustainable. Like most Ponzi schemes, it doesn’t end well. Reducing total debt was always a better solution, but it would have resulted in even slower economic activity and lower living standards. However, in the long run, the system would have been purged of unsustainable excesses. ‘Short term pain’ for ‘long term gain’ is often shunned for fear of electoral defeat and lobby group pressure. Now, we are stuck with financial repression. Investment is being directed toward funding the public sector. Policy rewards debtors over creditors. Such policy cannot go on forever. In reality, “unlimited” rarely means unlimited, because imbalances become too great. The Fed’s current quagmire has aspects resembling the Triffin Dilemma. The recent adverse spillover from Fed policies in emerging market economies and currencies may be the first hint of cracks in the global monetary system. At a minimum, foreign central banks have deviated from good policy in order to prevent sharp destabilizing fluctuations in the value of their currencies and to arrest volatile inflows and outflows of capital.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 09/11/2013 - 17:04
"Not only was it a civil war, an effort by a people who had for years been seeking their liberation from any colonial influence whatsoever, but also we found that the Vietnamese whom we had enthusiastically molded after our own image were hard put to take up the fight against the threat we were supposedly saving them from. We found most people didn't even know the difference between communism and democracy. They only wanted to work in rice paddies without helicopters strafing them and bombs with napalm burning their villages and tearing their country apart. They wanted everything to do with the war, particularly with this foreign presence of the United States of America, to leave them alone in peace..."
UN: CIRCUMSTANTIAL CASE
PAPER: US can't prove Assad ordered chemical attack... Developing... Jihadis gain ground in Syrian 'rebel' movement...
SNOWDEN: NSA shares raw intelligence data with Israel... Top-secret document revealed... YAHOO CEO: We faced jail...
12-Year War: 73% of U.S. Casualties in Afghanistan on Obama's Watch...
