A World Changing Weekend Ahead?

by

This morning it’s a little hard to call….we don’t know how it will work out.

But the election this weekend in Ukraine could set all kinds of balls in motion (or under the chopping block) depending on how orderly, believable, and acceptable to all parties the results of the Sunday polling turn out.

The rebel government in Kiev (the Western media won’t call it that, but it was a coup, let’s at least be honest, shall we?) attacked the OTHER rebels (those in the eastern part of the country who want nothing to do with Maidan and who are closer to the Russians than they are the European Union.

Since peacefully settling things is not happening (yet), the answer is gunfire and at least two died in overnight fighting in the Donetsk region this morning.

But a few dead bodies about may be the least of the world’s problems.

Prince Charles recently likened Vlad Putin to Hitler, and mentioning the Germans when the Russians lost something like 20-million in World War Two (going from memory, fact check that) is not what you do if you’re trying to build bridges and friendship.

So it’s not surprising that the Russians are demanding an explanation for what the Kremlin is calling outrageous remarks.

The West is doing its best to do a replay of Ted Mack’s  The Original Amateur Hour with the Russians so far pivoting on Ukraine and signing a nearly half-trillion dollar gas pipeline deal with China.

And, as if that’s not enough, the End Timers will be running to Scripture to see how Russia and China holding naval warfare drills this week might fit into where the world is going…beyond to hell in a handbasket.

Not to give any hints, but Isaiah 11:6  (KJV) goes something like “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” But it doesn’t mention naval exercises.

What’s more, many of the End Timers refer to “lion laying down with the lamb” as a major marker of [whatever] but that phrase doesn’t appear in the Bible.  Just so’s you know…just a marketing deal, near as I can figure it, but it stuck.  Like “…things go better with…” or “Quality is job…”  Positioning, marketing, sticky words for soft minds.  “Oh, oh, oh, what a feeling…” and so it goes.

Back to point ( I know…do we have to? Yes, I need breakfast at some point.)…

Besides Ukraine, the other biggie the market is trying to overlook is the existing home sales were still lower than year ago numbers and we may see that in the Tuesday report next week from Case Shiller/S&P (etc.) on 20 city home prices.

Why, I can hardly wait, for these things to work out.  It’s the same kind of “can’t hardly wait to see how this ends” that went through my head as a kid when I was racing on my bike, hit some gravel and was falling, falling, falling toward the ground wonder “Gee, I wonder how this ends?”

We should get some answers next week, but the markets so far this week seem to be hitting the holiday sauce a little ahead of schedule.

We usually get a run-up into major holidays, but this is nuts.  Therefore, I’ll go out on a limb and predict new highs in at least the S&P before Memorial Day.

Any forecast I make is sure to drive a silver stake into the market, so plan on down a hundred by the close.

Maybe.

Speaking of this Ad

I don’t usually comment on ads, but just so you know, tomorrow wraps up National Dog Bite Prevention Week.

And I’m proud to report that I have made it through another year without biting a dog.

Hagel Said WHAT?

“21st Century World Order” being built.   On The Pentagon Channel:

May be a bit slow due to millions of pings on the site…

Playing Your “Hot Buttons”

It’s what sells ad space, after all, so let’s see what gives this morning:

On the other hand, and to re-center a bit:  We note that Boulder, CO has moved a rubber duck race Monday to an inflatable pool.  This is fallout from those record rains last fall up there.  Somehow, won’t be the same….

Auuummmmm…….

Iran:  Defending or Warmongering?

We have to wonder when “Iran publicly boars of attack plan against the US Navy…”

And this comes amidst this other “don’t miss” report.

Russians may be additional (8) nuclear reactors for Iran.

Interesting discussion of the Saudi role in what’s going on may be found over here.

Driving: US Crazy

With the arrival of the summer driving season next week we are seeing a lot of headlines about trends in the auto world, and this year’s crop of pre-summer reports is less than encouraging.

Detroit, for example has become CarsJack City, says a report over here.

And if the carjackers don’t get you, gas prices might:  They’re at their longest stretch ever at over $3 a gallon.

I used to be really pissy about gasoline prices, blaming the oil industry for the holdup.  But then I got to looking at the tax load placed on gasoline.

California and New York are both in the 50-cent range with state taxes alone.  Hawaii is about 47-cents.  Here in Texas, it’s 20 cents a gallon of state tax.  Look up your state on the Tax Foundation website over here.

And then you read how the governor of South Dakota is looking at this goldmine of government tax money.  South Dakota is presently ranked 28th in gas taxes (24 cents a gallon) but political types just can’t keep their hand out of your pocket, can they?

When you toss in the 18.4 cents of federal tax on gasoline (24.4 cents on diesel) you can quickly see how the first 25 to 70-cents a gallon of gas price is really taxes.

Most people bitch about the price, but 20% of price is tax, darned near (depending on state).

Where There Is Growth

Three of the top 10 fastest growing spots in the country are in this here state:  Texas.  Also, Houston is now about 938,000 bigger than Dallas.  But Dallasonians can count Fort Worth, so the battle over who is biggest in Texas will continue.  San Antonio (1.4 mil) is bigger than Dallas, too, but don’t tell J.R. that.

Jobs:  Helps to be a Foreigner

You can’t make up things like this from the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

The unemployment rate for the foreign born in the United States was 6.9 percent in 2013, down from 8.1 percent in 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The jobless rate for the native born fell to 7.5 percent in 2013, also down from 8.1 percent in the prior year.

Sound like reverse discrimination to you?  Maybe if I move out and move back….I wonder if I could score dual citizenship?