The rise of Socialism: Standing on the shoulders of morons

by Simon Black I’ve spent the last several days in this quaint Colombian city near the Venezuelan border (though I’m presently at the airport, en route to Chile for a board meeting). As I’ve discussed several times in the past, Colombia is great. It’s naturally gorgeous, incredibly cheap, and full of interesting opportunities. The country has … Read more

1 in 5 millennials with debt expect to die without ever paying it off

via CNBC: The average millennial (aged 18 to 34) had about $32,000 in personal debt, excluding home mortgages, last year, according to Northwestern Mutual’s 2018 Planning & Progress Study. That debt can feel both crushing — and endless. Just over 60 percent of millennials (classified here as those aged 18-37) with debt don’t know when, or if, … Read more

Mish Shedlock and Max Keiser discuss where the Fed is leading the markets

via sputniknews: https://video.img.ria.ru/Out/MP3/20190109/2019_01_09_DOUBLEDOWN146080119_nezkf5p0.j3o.mp3 As financial markets begin the year with huge volatile swings and job numbers surprise to the upside, Double Down talks to Mish Shedlock of MishTalk.com about what the Federal Reserve will do now that investors had priced in a rate cut in March: can the Fed do that in face of booming employment numbers and rising wages? And what about Warren Buffett, who seems … Read more

U.S. cancer rate hits milestone…

From the Associated Press: The U.S. cancer death rate has hit a milestone: It’s been falling for at least 25 years, according to a new report. Lower smoking rates are translating into fewer deaths. Advances in early detection and treatment also are having a positive impact, experts say. But it’s not all good news. Obesity-related cancer … Read more

Washington state governor proposes state-run healthcare system

by DCG Seems the proggies received the same memo (see my previous two posts). Residents in Washington state already have “access to affordable health care” via free and low cost clinics. In my search of seven counties throughout Washington (out of 39 total counties) I came across 159 clinics. That fact won’t stop the TDS-infected governor from … Read more

CA Gov. Newsom pushes new health care plan to help illegal aliens

by DCG Elections have con$equences. From Fox News: Shortly after he took office on Monday, California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom unearthed an unprecedented new health care agenda for his state, aimed at offering dramatically more benefits to illegal immigrants and protecting the embattled Affordable Care Act, which a federal judge recently struck down as unconstitutional. The sweeping proposal … Read more

CNN Invites on Federal Worker Angry at Trump, Forgets to Mention He’s a Public Union Boss

Jim Hoft for the Gateway Pundit reports, Daily Reminder to NEVER trust the Liberal Mainstream Media… There lies never stop. CNN invited on disgruntled federal employee Brian Garthwaite to share his thoughts on the government shutdown. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9DkifLMp1I Read More/Source/Credit/FairUse: https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2019… CNN forgot to include in their segment that Brian Garthwaite is a union leader in the Wisconsin, … Read more

Mother of Son Killed by Illegal Looks Directly at Camera With Border Wall Message

Karita Baldwin for the Conservative Tribune reports, A mother whose son was killed by an illegal immigrant pleaded with Democrats to stop playing “Russian roulette with our lives.” Sabine Durden told “Fox & Friends” on Saturday that she applauds President Trump for standing his ground on border security. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEsIiVpPcjw Read More/Source/Credit/FairUse: https://www.westernjournal.com/ct/mot… A mother whose … Read more

Big Short investor Steve Eisman sounds alarm on rising corporate debt

via businessinsider: Steve Eisman, the hedge fund manager famous for betting against the US housing market ahead of the 2008 crash, is sounding the alarm on the spectacular rise of poorly rated debt among corporations. Eisman, a central figure in the book “The Big Short” and the subsequent film, told the Financial Times that the rising stock of … Read more

Crescat Capital Quaterly Investor Letter Q4 2018 – Top of the “everything bubble”?

by SirTylerGalt I discovered the Crescat Capital investor letters, because their “Q3 2017” letter is featured in Meb Faber’s book “The Best Investment Writing Volume 2”. It’s interesting to read their latest letter. https://www.crescat.net/crescat-capital-quarterly-investor-letter-q4-2018/ Investment Outlook Summary September 20, 2018 should mark the closing high for the S&P 500 to end the second longest bull … Read more

WHAT WE ARE BEING DISTRACTED FROM

https://twitter.com/OccupyWisdom/status/1082874705730785280 https://twitter.com/OccupyWisdom/status/1082876418588061698 https://twitter.com/OccupyWisdom/status/1082877080604499968 My most requested table is finally here. Here is every prior Bear Market in $SPX history (-20% drop from a unique All Time High) with dates/notes on the initial bounce after first entering Bear territory and then what it did next. The NOTES column is the most important. pic.twitter.com/W3Y1hom8tH — OddStats (@OddStats) … Read more

Visual comparison of country-specific ETF returns over time

Interactive chart: https://www.walletwyse.com/analytics/global-etf-index This chart pulls same-day quotes for major ETFs indexed to specific foreign markets. For larger financial markets like China, Japan and Germany, the chart returns the average of the 2-3 largest dedicated ETFs. To calculate total return over time, any dividends are added to the gain/loss at the end of the period. This … Read more

Fitch warns of possible downgrade to U.S. AAA credit rating if shutdown persists

via Marketwatch: “I think people are looking at the CBO (Congressional Budget Office) numbers. If people take the time to look at that you can see debt levels moving higher, you can see the interest burden in the U.S. government moving decidedly higher over the next decade,” James McCormack, Fitch’s global head of sovereign ratings … Read more

REUTERS: Apple cuts first-quarter production plan for new iPhones by 10 percent: Nikkei

Apple Inc is cutting planned production for its three new iPhone models by about 10 percent for the March quarter, the Nikkei Asian Review reported on Wednesday, a week after the company slashed its quarterly sales forecast. That rare step exposed weakening demand in China for Apple’s iPhones amid a slowing economy, which has also … Read more

Global bear market rally continues

global bear market rally continues b/c of trade war optimism pic.twitter.com/WSo1BWkKQT — Alastair (@StockBoardAsset) January 9, 2019 https://twitter.com/FerroTV/status/1082944302874087424 this is not good pic.twitter.com/4uLwo39oV1 — Alastair (@StockBoardAsset) January 9, 2019 global slowdown pic.twitter.com/eJgEl5kmTq — Alastair (@StockBoardAsset) January 9, 2019 this is probably not a good sign pic.twitter.com/9i77DGPLlE — Alastair (@StockBoardAsset) January 9, 2019 Germany’s Industry Shock … Read more

10+ Suspicious Packages w/ White Powder Sent To Foreign Consulates in Australia!

Developing… Melbourne: Suspicious packages were found on Wednesday at several diplomatic missions in Melbourne, including the Indian Consulate, prompting Australian authorities to launch a major emergency response. A major operation is underway after packages were delivered to at least 10 international consulates across Melbourne. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/consulates-australia-suspicious-packages-today-2019-01-09/   h/t AstroBuzz