Archive - May 2, 2015

There is little sign that Washington and its vassals care about life on Earth.

This conflict is not about Ukraine but about the future of the planet. There is no “Novorussian” or even “Ukrainian” solution. The only possible outcome is a strategic victory of either Russia or the USA which will affect the entire planet. In the following, Rostislav Ishchenko provides a superb overview of the risks and options for both sides and offers the first comprehensive “key” to the apparently incomprehensible behavior of Russia in this conflict.

F*ck the EU!

If there is one thing more likely to incite wide-spread social unrest in the Philippines than watching Manny Pacquiao lose to Floyd Mayweather tonight, it is Filipinos not being able to watch it all... and that is why, as The South China Morning Post reports, residents of the western Philippines are being asked to turn off their refrigerators so there will be enough electricity to watch tonight's fight. However, Rante Ramos, secretary of the electrical cooperative on the island of Palawan, warned, even with help, there is likely to remain a power shortfall and "some circuits may inevitably be switched off."

Michael Moore took to Twitter this week to outline his list of demands following the riots in Baltimore: Disarm the police and open prisons.

"As the decline in yields that has followed the liquidity injections has made its way to intermediate maturities, the market has extrapolated that the Bundesbank would have to purchase a larger share of longer maturity bonds to fill its quota. This is a self-reinforcing expectations loop, where lower yields beget lower yields," Goldman notes, describing the dynamic driving Bunds. We would note that this type of feedback loop also operates in the other direction and could thus be rather dangerous in a market that is becoming structurally very thin.

"Sir, we know you spent $13,000 on a seat for the Derby but as you can see, we are full. Please take your Citation over to Lexington. We hear they have some spots."

On a day full of exultation for The Oracle of Omaha, we could not help but see the irony of Warren Buffett losing yet another bet and not paying up...

At least one Texas Republican thinks Governor Greg Abbott's move to call in the Texas Guard to monitor US military drills in the state is outright preposterous. "Let me apologize in advance that your letter pandering to idiots who believe that US Navy Seals and other US military personnel are somehow a threat to be watched has left me livid." It only gets better from there... "

Having previously effused over gold and holocaust jews, bailouts, and handouts, Buffett & Munger took aim at Europe, well more implicitly Greece, during today's annual octagenerian-fest.

Munger on Euro strains: You shouldn't create a partnership with your drunken, shiftless brother in law.
And Buffett's (implicit Grexit) retort: the euro can and probably should survive but it will take some changes...

As he previously said, Germany must stop Greek dog peeing on its rug.

It seems that for the global warming lobby, all that is necessary to set everything right is to hand control of the global economy over to governmental central planners. In their minds, the machinery of government only needs to be set in motion, and everything will be done with righteous precision to preserve the climatological status quo by increasing the cost of energy and cutting economic activity. The costs of such a venture, whether in money or in human lives and human comfort, need never be considered, because, we are told, the only alternative is the total destruction of planet earth. This “Follow Us or Die!” routine is a propagandist’s dream of course, but in real life, where more rational heads - on occasion - prevail, the costs of any proposed government action must be considered against the costs of the alternatives.

It appears The US Ministry of Truth has been hard at work this week...

A quick look at the list below reveals why economists are praying, for consumers' sake, that oil and gas prices stay low and remain "unambiguously good" for all those who rushed to buy gas guzzling trucks and SUVs. Because if the plunge in oil and gas prices failed to spur a spending spree in the US in the first quarter, then a surge right back to historic price levels will hardly do miracles for American discretionary income once it again costs ~$100 to fill up one's gas tank.