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November 2010

How to Short Munis

by John Rubino on November 22, 2010 · 9 comments

From Saturday’s Wall Street Journal, more on the federal government’s ongoing stealth bailout of US states: States Raise Payroll Taxes to Repay Loans Thirty one states, their unemployment-insurance funds empty, have borrowed nearly $41 billion from the federal government. California alone has borrowed nearly $8.8 billion as of mid-November, according to the Labor Department.As states [...]

Maybe Elections Do Matter

by John Rubino on November 17, 2010 · 20 comments

It’s been easy to tune out the chatter of the past couple of elections because the outcome seemed irrelevant. Whoever wins, their hands are tied by unmanageable debt and the limited spectrum of politically-feasible policy options. In fact, since whichever party is in office when the world falls apart will get the blame, it’s tempting [...]

Now Start Watching Interest Rates, Part 3

by John Rubino on November 12, 2010 · 18 comments

In the US, perception management is now the key to public policy. Which means the latest round of money creation and bond buying will only “work” if consumers and investors fall for what is essentially a con — the idea that fiat currency is the same thing as wealth. If they instead figure out that [...]

Competitive Devaluation, Stage One: Friends Bickering

by John Rubino on November 9, 2010 · 17 comments

This is what the early stage of a currency war looks like: Japan’s Leader Bemoans Impact of U.S. Economic Policy TOKYO—Prime Minister Naoto Kan joined the growing chorus of world leaders complaining about the side effects of American economic policy, tying the Japanese yen’s strength to Washington’s aggressive stimulus efforts—and implying that the U.S. should [...]

The Coming Non-Linear World

by John Rubino on November 7, 2010 · 17 comments

With the election over, there’s no political rationale for the Fed printing another $600 billion. So what they’re seeing must be terrifying enough to make another round of quantitative easing seem like the least dangerous alternative. They’re wrong, says Prudent Bear’s Doug Noland in his latest Credit Bubble Bulletin: It seems again worth highlighting a [...]

Will Bailing Out the States Tank the Dollar?

by John Rubino on November 3, 2010 · 26 comments

Back in 2006 Meredith Whitney was an obscure Wall Street analyst who bit the hand that fed her by declaring housing a bubble and the big banks a disaster. This took guts, both because analysts who dis their research universe tend to lose access and/or their job, and because the overwhelming consensus, from Alan Greenspan [...]

Want to Sue the Bullion Banks?

by John Rubino on November 2, 2010 · 10 comments

Jim Richter, a Georgia attorney and publisher of the Richter Report newsletter, just sent the following email about the growing number of lawsuits accusing the “bullion banks” of manipulating the price of silver. Some disclosures: Jim is a friend. I have no stake whatsoever (no finders fees or anything like that) in these suits, other [...]

Mainstream Money Manager Sees $10,000 Gold

by John Rubino on November 1, 2010 · 18 comments

I’ve been planning to post a review of Shayne McGuire’s new book, Hard Money. It’s coming, but in the meantime, here’s a profile from today’s Wall Street Journal. ‘The World Does Not Need to End’ A Gold Bull and His Prediction: $10,000 an Ounce There are gold bulls. And then there is Shayne McGuire. The [...]