Leo Kolivakis's blog

Bob Prechter was on Teck Ticker today telling us to "stay in cash" because we entered the "second major wave of deflation". Before you go slicing your wrists, relax, it's just the big hedgies toying with your insecurities. I got one message for these big hedge fund swingers: BRING IT ON!

Joshua Rauh, associate professor of finance at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University said that, without reform, some state pensions might run out within the decade. By 2030, as many as 31 states may not have the money to pay pensions. And, if these funds exhaust their assets, the size of payments for the benefits they have promised will be too large to cover through taxes, putting pressure on the federal government for a bailout that could potentially cost more than $1 trillion.

OPA! Californians are going to suffer a major Greek hangover and they can thank former Governor Gray Davis and rosy investment projections from Calpers that back in 19999 projected the Dow Jones would reach roughly 25,000 by 2009 and 28,000,000 by 2099. That's not a typo...Dow 28,000,000!

As final salary pensions reach the end of the road in the UK, politicians in Illinois ponder on which pension poison to swallow. Kicking the can down the road is no longer an option...

Outspoken hedge fund manager Ray Dalio isn't shy about sharing his opinions with employees and clients. His Principles are a must read for any organization. And please, have the guts to follow Principle #11. If you don't, you're just another slimy weasel.

Raghuram Rajan, professor of finance at the University of Chicago, and former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund was interviewed on Yahoo Tech Ticker peddling a message for Washington: Stop Targeting "Greedy Bankers" and Focus on Growth.

As we "socialize debt", we risk seeing more drastic adjustments in currency markets, and the world could very well be heading towards parity.

According to Jim Leech, president and CEO of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, the failure of pension plan legislation and design to keep up with the times is hurting the ability of Canadians to prepare for retirement. He's right and it's high time we revamp Canada's pension system.

"Surely, however, one of the most important financial decisions in EU history, which will now lead inexorably to the creation of a federal budget running into trillions of euros, should not have been taken in one Sunday night sitting, on a proposal that had not even been mooted until the previous Friday, and at a time when Britain did not have a functioning government and the German finance minister was suddenly in hospital." - Anatole Kaletsky

Did they really have a choice? Hell no!

The message to speculators is clear: you no longer have free reign to mount destructive speculative attacks on European sovereign debt or the Euro. Even though it's late, Europe's show of force is resolute and decisive. In my opinion, this will have a profound impact on markets, helping shore up confidence and it will stem the slide to deflationary depression.

At this juncture of the crisis, there are only two choices: 1) do nothing and let the world sink into a deflationary hellhole or 2) do anything it takes to shore up the global financial system and look to restructure debt as the world economic recovery gains traction. I believe the Fed and the ECB will opt for the second choice.

The global debt supercycle exacerbated income inequality, and the revolts we're now seeing in Greece will eventually spread throughout the world. Is Greece the straw that breaks the camel's back?

Jean Turmel is a legend in Montreal and one of Canada's sharpest investment minds. He was kind enough to sit down with me and talk about markets and pensions.

Is there Eurozone warfare going on right now? William Engdahl thinks so, and what he has to say might surprise you.