Federal Reserve and Treasury “printing off debt” ?
October 28, 2010
According to a breaking news article on Bloomberg the following sentence is causing all sorts of reactions in the markets.
The Treasury also doesn’t want to give any impression to investors, particularly those based overseas, that it might be coordinating with the Fed to finance the national debt.
The issue is that many foreign investors have believed this for at least the past 3 years. Many of those people believe that they are getting paid back in freshly printed dollars. As for the most part the new Quantitative easing policy or printing money (which ever term you use to describe it) is roughly equal to the interest payments on the national debt.
In other words many of them believe that literally we are printing off our national debt. This has many concerned of the real threat of inflation, or in extreme cases even hyperinflation.
This is the fear, in the most simplest terms.
1 - We hand over to China freshly printed dollars to pay back our debt.
2 - China then re-exports those inflation causing dollars back to the US in the form of buying hard assets in the United States
3 - At the end of the cycle you find yourself standing in the middle of your fair city with all the high rises around you owned by the Chinese and your wallet full of worthless money.
Honestly that is what the fear is… and it’s a very valid fear.
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Advertising Agency uses German Troops for US Election
October 27, 2010
An Advertising Agency that produced a mailing for state Rep. Tim Spear promoting his support for military service members has issued an apology for using an image of World War II re-enactors depicting German soldiers that shot at American Troops.
On the front of the mailing was, “In combat, you always want another soldier covering your back.”
That’s awesome stuff, show the images of the guys that shot at you rather than your own troops. This is the definition of terrible. The worst part of the whole advertising campaign is that it was designed to show support for our troops, not the troops that shot at our guys.
This is why advertising is in a downward freefall, because the overall IQ at the typical advertising agency is now near bacteria level. They passed on the way down complex life a few years ago.
So go ahead, support the World War II German era troops. Our guys love that… idiots.
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Pop-up Stores to Benefit from Instant Point of Sale with No Commitment
October 26, 2010
New York, NY – ShopKeep.com has announced a new initiative designed to directly benefit pop-up stores, a retail trend that has been growing tremendously over the past few years.
ShopKeep.com is a simple web based pos system designed by a retailer. The system allows retail shops to easily ring up sales, take credit cards and cash, print receipts and manage inventory right from their web browser.
For pop-up store owners, ShopKeep.com provides nearly instant set up with flexible month-to-month terms, eliminating the need to make the long-term commitment most point of sale options require. Additionally, ShopKeep.com has created a free pricing option with pop-up stores in mind, with the only requirement being that the pop-up store use ShopKeep.com’s preferred credit card provider.
According to Jason Richelson, Founder/CEO of ShopKeep.com, the simplicity and flexibility of ShopKeep.com matches the needs of pop-up retailers. “The very nature of pop-up retailing is getting up and running instantly. ShopKeep.com’s instant set up, month-to-month pricing with a free option, and easy credit card acceptance leaves pop-up retailers with no residual commitments at all,” said Richelson. Further, Richelson adds, “ShopKeep.com is a web based point of sale system, so pop-up retailers just need a PC or Mac laptop and an inexpensive credit card reader.”
More information can be found at http://www.shopkeep.com.
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Digg is toast : the biggest Web 2.0 failure to date
October 26, 2010
Evidently the evidence is mounting that Digg might be ending as an ongoing concern within a matter of a year or two. in the past 24 hours they have announced a 40% staff reduction and it’s been exposed that the social media website has been gaming their own system by fraudulently promoting items to the main page. Further alienating their user-base.
Dozens, if not hundreds of bogus accounts owned by the social media site that robo-digg items has been discovered, leaving many suspecting that companies and partners of Digg are “paying to be on the main page”. In other words the site went from a social media user generated website to nothing but listings of advertising.
Take it from this author, I’ve been though the 1990′s .com boom to .com bust, I’ve been though the social media explosion to implosion. Digg is toast.
I give it 24 months max to be the Lycos of social media or just go away.
The only thing supporting the site is Microsoft’s payments to the company, and even then it’s questionable as Microsoft’s heavy handed tactics against any “anti-Microsoft” articles are part of what started the problem.
In the words of Marc Andreessen circa 1990′s “We know what happens to Microsoft Partners”
We do Marc, We do.
Digg’s new Logo
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Silver Market Facing `Fraudulent Efforts’ to Control Prices
October 26, 2010
“There have been fraudulent efforts to persuade and deviously control that price,” said Bart Chilton, one of five commissioners on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the top U.S. commodities regulator.
He was alleging there have been violations of the Commodity Exchange Act. “Any such violation of the law in this regard should be prosecuted,” he said.
The commission began investigating allegations of price manipulation in the silver futures market in September 2008.
The problem is that the silver market is much smaller than the gold one and can technically be manipulated by one or a few extremely wealthy individuals or banks.
The commission should release more information “in the very near future,” he said.
It’s unknown which direction the manipulation has taken place, but **rumors** on the street are that a few banks hold nearly 1/2 of all the shorts in Silver. In other words from what we are hearing the price of silver is being held much … much lower than what it should be. As several of this bailout inspired banks are also the largest holders of silver as well.
Story is developing… and enjoy the new reality.
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Active Data Exchange Integrates Payment Software Into Event Registration Processing
October 26, 2010
Active Data Calendar expands integration with leading commerce vendor for higher education
(Bethlehem, PA – Oct 21, 2010) – Active Data Exchange, a leading provider of web-based calendaring, event marketing, event registration, and information broadcasting solutions, announced their integration of online payments with TouchNet U.Commerce, a commerce management and secure payment solution for the higher education market.
As a member of the TouchNet Ready Partner Program, Active Data Exchange adds PCI compliance and data security to its Advanced Registration module. The Advanced Registration module allows for configurable event registration templates to capture unique information for each event, automatic or workflow approval of registrations, configurable email messages, and online payment processing with the TouchNet solution. Other features include the ability to track events registered by registrant, persistent export of registration data, tracking attendance, and easy integration with the Active Data Calendar base marketing and room scheduling functionality.
“Our higher education clients asked for TouchNet integration and we delivered. We are excited to be working with the TouchNet organization to jointly deliver best in class online event registration and payment processing,” said Susan Yee, CEO of Active Data Exchange.
About TouchNet Information Systems, Inc.
Since 1989, TouchNet Information Systems, Inc., based in Lenexa, KS, has set the curve in technology, efficiency and trust. As leaders in campus commerce management, TouchNet helps colleges and universities around the world save, make, and manage money better than ever before. For more information, visit www.touchnet.com.
About Active Data Exchange, Inc.
Active Data Exchange provides enterprise calendaring solutions to over 300 organizations across North America with its Active Data Calendar solution. Used by communities, government agencies, colleges, K-12 school districts, finance and information technology departments, corporations and media companies, Active Data Calendar provides the ability to aggregate and distribute event, key dates and deadline information across multiple websites, departments and organizations. Clients include New York City Department of Education, University of Colorado, Palo Alto School District, Temple University, California State University, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Miami Dade College, Tecnologico de Monterrey and others. For more information, visit www.activedatax.com.
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Bed Bugs, Stink Bugs and Gold Bugs – What’s the difference
October 22, 2010
Evidently Bugs are all the rage today. We have Bed Bugs Infesting New York City, we have Stink Bugs infesting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and we have Gold Bugs infesting the entire country.
Let’s define Stink Bugs, Generally they look like this vile creature:
Stink Bugs infest your home, your car and your house. You can’t kill them because they let out a vile smell that is similar to having a skunk bomb your living room. So you have to vacuum them up, or do like what most residents of Pennsylvania do, use a tissue and pick up that thing and drop it in the toilet and flush it down.
These vile animals are not from America, they were imported by Toyota in the 1990′s from Japan, rumour has it that some car salesman in Allentown. PA opened up the Toyota to make a sale… saw those stink bugs sitting there… he killed one one of them… learned why they are called “stink bugs” and then proceeded to swoosh them off rather than killing them so the client didn’t see them (or smell them).
10 years later, the entire North East is infected with them as birds won’t even eat them due to the stench. Sounds like a terrible Zombie movie.
Let’s define Bed Bugs, Generally they look like this vile creature:
This isn’t a joke. Bed Bugs are vampires. Sink Bugs are terrible because they are highly annoying. Bed Bugs are terrible because they drink human blood. They sneak up on you in the middle of the night and feast on your blood. They live for a year without any food, but they do wait.. and wait they do until you sleep.. they smell the carbon dioxide from your breath and they flock to feast on your blood while you sleep.
They inject a small dosage of anaesthetic so you don’t feel the bite and wake up, then they eat you until they are full.
Wonderful beasts.
They used to be controlled via a pesticide called DDT but it’s been banned due to serious side effects. In other words that “cure” is worst than the Bed Bugs themselves.
Let’s define Gold Bugs, Generally they look like this vile creature:
This is the worst of the worst. Bed Bugs are vampires, stink bugs are skunks, but Gold Bugs… wow they are an amazing breed.
Many of them believe that the entire economic system is abound to collapse. They are in the process of buying Gold Coins, Guns and Ammo and building their bunker stocked with food clothing. They are storing Gold coins to barter when “cash becomes worthless and the economy collapses”.
They are stocking up on Guns and Ammo because they feel that “they are the only ones prepared for the eventual end of the world” And you can’t forget the daily candle night reading of the Bible.
These people are the definition of Gold Bugs. They do come in many forms. Some of “smarter ones” are “Silver Bugs” because they feel that Gold is too much currency to do daily trades. Others mass in other types of assets. But the strategy is the same, horde up because everyone will be coming to you for product X or Y because you’re the only guy in town with it.
The end result is that these people feel with a mix of hyperinflation, unemployment and total debt in the US it has nowhere to go but bad.
So there you have it people, the three major bugs in the media today, all on one article.
Enjoy the new reality.
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Election Formula Proves Infallible – Compared to E = mc2
October 20, 2010
Evidently a new election tool is making the political circles. This simple formula:
((Unemployment + Gas) - (Dow / 1000)) * ( -10) = Answer
If the result number is negative, the incumbent is toast, if the number is positive, the incumbent has another 4 years in office.
The breakthrough formula has been compared to E = mc2 in political circles.
The formula literally has predicted all presidential elections for the past 50 years. Dubbed the “search election formula” as it was initially created to test search volume to predict elections, instead during testing it was found that this literal formula was infallible.
The simple site, mimicking a “Google / Drudge Report” look and feel has had over 200,000 visitors in the past 3 days. Amazingly simple, the author has even applied for a patent.
The controversy surrounding the site focuses on the assumption that Americans vote with their wallet and only their wallet. The problem is that historically it has proven itself to be 100% true in the past half a century.
Enjoy the new reality. According to SearchElection.com, President Obama most likely is hoping for unemployment under 8.1%, Gas under $2.90 and The Dow can’t drop below 11000…
Or some variation of the above. I suggest you test the site yourself.
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Ben Bernanke prints $1 trillion to cover $1 trillion deficit
October 15, 2010
Evidently hot off the presses, Ben Bernanke will single handedly pay our deficit with newly printed dollars.
Evidently this is how we are going to repay our creditors, with all inflated dollars. China is going to love us when we send over a check filled with less than honourable dollars.
Enjoy the new reality people, we’re printing our debt away… buy hard assets now.. because things are only going to get worse.
This is perhaps one of the most terrible things a country can do, ruin our name, ruin our status of reserve currency and in the process send inflation out the roof. Nothing good will come from printing off more dollars like this. What they need to do is stop printing… and start innovating in terms of industry, technology and job creation to expand the tax base.
Instead we are going Weimar Republic style printing money like no tomorrow.
Helicopter Ben has a plan, the problem is the helicopter isn’t flying over your house, it’s flying over Hu Jintao’s bedroom in Beijing. That’s how we’re paying off our deficit.
Literally Ben’s going to single handedly pay off our entire yearly deficit with the press of button. With that we’ll send all those inflated dollars to China… and teach those “commies” a lesson in currency pegging… right?
Like printing money like that won’t boomerang back to us in the form of nasty inflation.
But we as Americans love inflation, it will make it so much easier to pay off our debt right? Right? RIGHT?
Welcome to the new reality people…
Ben prints off dollars, sends to China, China uses to those dollars to buy assets in the United States.. and dumps the inflation back on us, while taking physical assets in the process.
great strategy.
I surrender.
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Ben Bernanke and the failed QE2 Policy
October 15, 2010
Printing Money to fight unemployment. Basically that is the new Motto at the Federal Reserve. The concept is to run a second instance of Quantitative easing (QE2 AKA: Printing Money) to increase the money supply, spark inflation and get the economy and the job market moving again.
The idea behind the Federal Reserve is that if they flood the Planet with US dollars, inflation would become more of an issue and people would start consuming more goods and companies start hiring more people to fill that demand with the fear of those products being more expensive the next day.
Some of the major concerns with the policy are inflation or even Hyperinflation. But even those pale in comparison to what the real problem is.
What you most likely don’t want to hear, but is the truth is that the United States has a labor problem. What we are facing even an unlimited amount of dollars won’t fix. The US has what is called Structural Unemployment.
Many of those jobs that existed 5 years ago before the recession started do not exist anymore.
Let that sink in… the factory job that you had 5 years ago doesn’t exist anymore. Meaning all your job training doesn’t help you become a computer programmer or a nurse or a denture technician.
Did that sink in? All your job training doesn’t count.
This applies for many, if not most, of the 17.1% (U-6) of the population looking for a job, and no amount of dollars will fix that problem.
The issue is literally structural unemployment. The US does not have the necessary skillset that is demand. Though people from all walks of life hit the unemployment lines, initially and largely it fell mostly on construction.
Again generally speaking Construction was done mostly by individuals without college degrees and was basically unskilled labor…. and boy does the United States have a ton of these guys. You know the guy we are talking about. Mr. Football and beer… with the circa 1999-2005 construction job.
There are way too many individuals like Laurence from the movie office space (above) and not enough guys like the one below.
Hence now you see the problem in the United States.
I am sorry Ben… printing money isn’t going to help us.
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