Archive - Apr 7, 2015
The Most Whiney, Thin-Skinned, Easily Offended Society In The History Of The World
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 23:39 -0500Sorry... but it's your fault you're offended all the time.
Germany Slams "Stupid" Greek Demands For "Incomprehensible" €278 Billion In Reparations
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 22:01 -0500Yesterday we reported that in what may have been an attempt to stun the world, if not so much Germany, with the law of large numbers, Greece calculated that Germany owes it a whopping €278 billion in World War II reparations, or about a third of what Germany reported was its GDP in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for Greece, Germany does not appear to be rushing to wire the funds. As Reuters reported earlier today, Germany's economy minister had one word for the Greek demand: "stupid."
How America Became An Oligarchy
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 21:30 -0500"The politicians are put there to give you the idea that you have freedom of choice. You don’t. . . . You have owners." - George Carlin, The American Dream
According to a new study from Princeton University, American democracy no longer exists. Using data from over 1,800 policy initiatives from 1981 to 2002, researchers Martin Gilens and Benjamin Page concluded that rich, well-connected individuals on the political scene now steer the direction of the country, regardless of – or even against – the will of the majority of voters. America’s political system has transformed from a democracy into an oligarchy, where power is wielded by wealthy elites.
China "Can't Believe Its Luck" On Investment Bank
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 21:00 -0500The only one tilting at windmills now is Washington, which is stuck between persisting on the idea that this institution is somehow lacking when it comes to Western underwriting “standards” and executing a completely humiliating mea culpa which isn’t really an option given The White House’s steadfast refusal to support the Chinese venture.
The EMP Threat: Sending America Back To The 1800s
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 20:30 -0500Previously, Elliott Management's Paul Singer has explained that he believes "there is one risk that stands way above the rest in terms of the scope of potential damage adjusted for the likelihood of occurrence" - an electromagnetic pulse (EMP). Today we dig deeper into that risk... Why are we writing about EMP? Because in any analysis of societal risk, EMP stands all by itself.
Why The Oil Price Collapse Is The Fed's Fault
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 20:30 -0500The present oil price collapse is because of over-production of expensive tight oil. The collapse occurred because of the inability of the world market to support the cost of the new expensive oil supply from shale, oil sands and deep water. The problem is structural and systemic and firmly rooted in the irresponsible funding of under-performing U.S. tight oil companies since at least 2010. The first step to price recovery is the severing of capital supply to companies that could not fund their operations from cash flow when oil prices were more than $90 per barrel. If this does not happen, we could be in for a long period of low oil prices.
Hillary Angers Chinese Even Before She Announces Presidential Run
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 20:00 -0500"We hope that public figures in other countries can respect China's judicial sovereignty and independence," was the abrupt response from Beijing, clearly aimed at Hillary Clinton, after the yet-to-announce-her-run-for-president-ness, denounced as "inexcusable" the detention of five women activists. On suspicion of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble", the five women face a jail sentence of up to five years, and so Clinton, using direct social media channels, tweeted, "The detention of women's activists in China must end. This is inexcusable". China's Foreign Ministry said the matter was an internal affair.
Russian Government Hacked White House Computer System, CNN Reports
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 19:26 -0500A few months ago, Sony used a ridiculous "hacking" publicity stunt to generate some $40 million more in revenues for what would otherwise have been the latest Seth Rogen "comic" flop, in which the film agency blamed North Korea - which has about ten ultramodern 80386 computers in the entire country - for hacking its firewall, a hack which was subsequently revealed to be the result of disgruntled former employee. Fast forward to today, when moments ago CNN reported that Russian hackers which according to left "tell-tale codes and other markers that they believe point to hackers working for the Russian government", had penetrated the White House computer system.
After Viacom's "Shocker", These Companies Are Most At Risk Of Early Terminating Their Stock Buyback Programs
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 19:01 -0500Yesterday afternoon Viacom revealed that as part of its "Strategic Realignment to Create Efficiencies and Drive Long-Term Growth" it would do something which the market loathes: it would stop its buybacks. Specifically it said that "Viacom will temporarily pause share purchases under its current $20 billion stock repurchase program in order to stay within its target leverage ratio." What Viacom meant was that just like IBM, its net debt ratio had likewise soared in the past several years, and had reached a level where the Baa2/BBB-rated company was on the verge of being cut to junk status. So is Viacom a harbinger for the broader market, a market which as we reported previously only, had a tremendous month of February only because of a record $100 billion in announced stock buybacks? The answer: a resounding yes.
The Government's "Revolving"-est Doors
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 18:00 -0500Former employees of federal agencies can often find good (and lucrative) jobs as lobbyists, capitalizing on the connections that they forged while in public service. As OpenSecrets exposes, the numbers of revolving-door-enthusiasts is reminiscent of the Ebola epidemic as this deadly-to-democracy disease spreads from department to department ripping away 'hope and change' wherever it appears. "Revolvers" include those as powerful - and well connected - as secretaries of state and as far from Washington as Peace Corps volunteers... but The Department of Commerce tops the list...
The Iranian Nuclear Framework Finally Exposes The War Party's Big Lie
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 17:30 -0500There is virtually nothing in the substance of the deal for the War Party to attack. To defeat the deal, the War Party will have to defend its three-decade long campaign of exaggerations, distortions and bellicose animosity toward the Iranian state. But that is impossible because the axis-of-evil narrative was never remotely true. What the framework deal actually does, therefore, is to open the door to an eventual US withdrawal from its bloody, failed history of intervention in the middle east. So doing, it would pave the way for a drastic shrinkage of an obsolete war machine that has had no purpose since 1991 except to spill American blood and treasure in a region of the world where it has no business meddling. No wonder the War Party is going hysterical.
The “Runs” In The Market
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 17:05 -0500The market in 2015 through the first quarter appears fickle. We hear on a daily basis how the market doesn’t know which way it is going. Up one day, down the next. Based on this anecdotal evidence of the popular opinion, the market appears unusually volatile. There are many ways to measure volatility, including standard deviation of returns and distribution of returns. For this IQS Brief, we measure the “runs” in the market. Instead of focusing on the magnitude of the returns, we pay attention to the trends in the market. We simply count the number of days the market goes up consecutively, and the number of days the market goes down consecutively. This metric, which we call “runs,” easily allows a pictorial representation of the market movements.
Dilbert Explains Sell-Side Analysis
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 16:30 -0500In search of "conflict of interest..."

America: Bankrupt And On Borrowed Time
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 16:00 -0500Thomas Jefferson is credited with the following sage advice, “The central bank is an institution of the most deadly hostility existing against the Principles and form of our Constitution. If the American People allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the People of all their Property until their Children will wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered.” And so it seems sometimes the answer is right in front of us all along and we just fail to see it.
Crude Tumbles After API Reports Largest Inventory Build In 30 Years
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 04/07/2015 15:43 -0500Who could have seen that coming? For 2 days, oil has surged on every headline (good or bad) as algo-mania created the 2nd best performance in 4 years.. and then API reports an absolutely massive 12.2 million (almost 4 times larger than the 3.4mm estimate). If this corresponds to the DOE inventory data tomorrow - this is the biggest inventory build since 1985... Crude prices are... not up...


