By Gonzalo Lira
This week—what with Christmas on one end and the new year’s celebration on the other, and everthing in between covered in snow—nothing much is gonna happen: It’s a week that’s about as dead as Dillinger. So I figured I should take stock of where we are—and more importantly, where we’re going.
To me, the biggest macro-economic story of 2010 was Europe: It’s falling apart, and there doesn’t seem to be anything Read More »
As Governments Go Broke, Public Employee Unions Must Share the Pain – Washington Examiner
CNN Poll: Americans Trust GOP Over Obama to Handle Nation’s Problems – More Believe Obama’s Radical Agenda Will Fail – Gateway Pundit
Why Can’t Europe Avoid Another Crisis? Why Can’t the U.S.? – Baseline Scenario
Natural Gas Boom Coming—But So Are Major Obstacles – CNBC
Four Reasons That Bipartisanship is Doomed in the Next Congress – New Republic
By Alasdair Macleod
US Treasury bond prices topped out at the end of September, and since then they have fallen sharply. The yield on the 10-year bond has risen from 2.4% to 3.4%, which is the break in the trend that those who believe bonds are in a bubble were looking for. Much of this rise in yields was after Congress agreed to extend the Bush tax cuts, prompting rumours that US Read More »
Baby Boomers Fear Outliving Medicare – AP/Yahoo
Unemployment Benefit Applications Drop Sharply – AP/Yahoo
Faber Says Long-Term U.S. Treasuries Are `Suicidal’ Investment – Bloomberg
The End of the Cheap-Money Era – MSN
China Has Seen the Future, and It Is Coal -George Will/Washington Post Isn’t This the Same Commodity That Obama Wants To Get Rid Of?
Rising commodity prices threaten global economy … Australians naturally regard high commodity prices as good, but they are now reaching levels that pose a threat to the world economy … A range of forces operates on commodity markets. The weather in Europe, the continuing strength of the emerging economies and, for some of Australia’s commodities, the recent floods all play a role. A common factor is the rise of Read More »
By Bill Bonner for The Daily Reckoning
Nothing comes from nothing. But what comes from something?
Did you see what happened? The Fed’s holdings topped $2 trillion for the first time ever. It took 95 years to get the Fed’s holdings to $600 billion. In the space of 3 years, it has added $1.4 trillion more. That’s something.
Extraordinary, no? Amazing, n’est-ce pas? Incredible, huh?
And yet, the feds expect this explosion of Fed Read More »
EDITOR”S NOTE: This concise summation of how the United States over the past forty years abandoned its core economic principles by printing fiat money, and by exchanging its industrial economy for a consumer-oriented service economy is one of the best that I’ve seen. It’s clearly very informative and on-target.
By Richard Duncan for The Daily Reckoning
When I was born in 1960, the political leaders of the United States believed very strongly that it Read More »
Stimulus Funds on the Slow Track – Washington Post
Higher Tax Rates Might Not Help Achieve “Equality” – Forbes
No Clintonian Comeback for Obama – Washington Times
In Social Security Retirement Debate, Younger Workers Have the Most at Stake – Boston Globe
The West and the Tyranny of Public Debt – Newsweek
By The Daily Bell
Self-righteous Germany must accept a euro-debt union or leave EMU If Germany and its hard-money allies genuinely wish to save the euro – which is open to doubt – they should stop posturing, face up to the grim imperative of a Transferunion, and desist immediately from imposing their ruinous and reactionary policies of debt deflation on southern Europe and Ireland … One can sympathise with the German people. Their Read More »
2010 Worst Year for Bank Failures Since 1992 – Washington Post
Europe’s Economic Pain Awakens Old Arguments – NY Times
Illinois Governor Considers Plan to Borrow Billions of Dollars – Daily Herald These Politicians Still Don’t Get It!
Year in Review: The Value of a Home – Smart MoneyYear in Review
In the Rearview, a Year That Fizzled – NY Times
